US007251628B1
`
`12)
`
`United States Patent
`Edlundetal.
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 7,251,628 B1
`Jul. 31, 2007
`
`54) AUTOMATED PURCHASING AGENT
`SYSTEM AND METHOD
`
`6,871,190 BL*
`
`3/2005 Seymouret al. ........0 705/37
`
`735)
`
`Inventors: Stefan B. Edlund, San Jose, CA (US);
`Daniel A. Ford, Tos Gatos, CA (JS);
`Reiner Kraft, Gilroy, CA (US)
`
`73) Assignee:
`
`International Business Machines
`Corporation, Armonk, NY (US)
`
`*) Notice:
`
`Subject to any disclaimer, the termofthis
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days.
`21) Appl. No.: 09/417,065
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`Abstract to Japanese Patent No. JP10063741 A, Mar. 6, 1998.
`Abstract to “The Michigan Internet AuctionBot: A Configurable
`Auction Server for Human and Software Agents”, Wurman, PR, et
`al, Proceedings ofthe Second International Conference on Autono-
`mous Agents, pp. 301-308, New York, New York, USA, 1998,
`14478 pp.
`
`(Continued)
`Primary Examiner—Nga Nguyen
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm Teonard T. Guzman; Jon A.
`Gibbons; Fleit Kain Gibbons Gutman Bongim & Bianco
`PL.
`(57)
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`
`
`Filed:
`Int. CL
`(2006.01)
`G060 40/00
`52) U.S. Ch ce eeeeeeeenee 705/37; 705/26; 705/27;
`705/37; 705/38; 705/80
`58) Field of Classification Search ...........0...... 705/26,
`705/27, 78, 80, 28, 37, 38
`See application file for complete search history.
`References Cited
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`.
`
`2/1991 Dworkin sees 705/26
`4,992,940 A *
`s-s-eseeseeseee 105/37
`2/1997 Nahanot al.
`5,664,111 A
`12/1997 Koropilzer el al. o...... 705/37
`5,694,323 A
`5/1998 Berentct al.
`..
`705/37
`5.774.873 A
`8/1998 Walkeret al.
`.
`705/26
`5,794,207 A *
`5,826,244 A * 10/1998 Huberman ..
`705/37
`5,835,896 A
`11/1998 Fisheretal.
`705/37
`5,862,223 A
`/1999 Walker et al.
`705/26
`....
`5,870,723 A
`2/1999 Pare, Jr et al.
`5,890,138 A *
`3/1999 Godin otal.
`.......
`In accordance with another embodiment of the present
`5,966,697 A * 10/1999 Fergerson et al
`
`
`invention, an information processing system and computer
`>
`6,035,289 A 3/2000 Chouet al. «.......
`readable storage medium is disclosed for carrying out the
`705/37
`6,085,176 A *
`7/2000 Woolston........
`.
`6,141,653 A * 10/2000 Conklin et al.
`above methad
`6,151,589 A
`11/2000 Aggarwal et al.
`.
`6,415,270 BL*
`7/2002 Rackson ct al
`
`7/2003 Ojha etal. wu...
`6,598,026 BL*
`
`22)
`51)
`
`Oct. 13, 1999
`
`56)
`
`A system and method of automating and managing bids
`within the context of an Internct auction is disclosed. The
`present invention permits continuous monitoring and. veri-
`fication ofauctionson the Internet based on criterion such as
`highest bid on an item, maximum permissible bid, and a
`restriction on the number ofsuccessful bids in the auctions
`by any given participant (0109). The present
`invention
`permits embodiments incorporating, an auction profile data-
`base (0101) that is generated by an auction profile configu-
`.
`.
`.
`ration tool (0102) to act as input to an item search manager
`(0104) that takes data from an item database (0105) and
`control from an item selector (0103) to then interact with an
`auction bid controller (0106) that communicates with the
`remote auction site via an auction command interface
`(0107).
`
`
`
`
`
`
`.
`
`19 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets
`
`Start
`
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 1
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 1
`
`

`

`US 7,251,628 BI
`Page 2
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`Abstract to “Evolving a Multi-Agent Information Filtering Solution
`in Amalthaea”, Moukas, A., et al, Proceedings of the First Interna-
`tional Conference on Autonomous Agents, pp. 394-403, New York,
`New York, USA, 1997, xvi+549 pp.
`Abstractto “Intelligent Agents for Matching Information Providers
`and Consumers on the World-Wide-Web”, Lee, JKW. et al, Pro-
`ceedings of the Thirticth Hawaii International Conference on Sys-
`
`tem Sciences (Cal. No. 97TBL00234), PL. vol. 4, pp. 189-199, vol,
`4, Los Almitos, California, USA, 1997, 6 vol.
`Abstract to “A Decision Support System for Bidding Process”,
`Sebal, S, et all1997 IEEE International Conference on Systems,
`Man, and Cybernetics, Computational Cybernetics and Simulation
`(Cat. No. 97CH36088-5), Pt. vol. 4, pp. 3603-3608 vol. 4., New
`York, New York, USA, 1997, 5 vol. 4535 pp.
`
`* ciled by examiner
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 2
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 2
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jul. 31, 2007
`
`Sheet 1 of 3
`
`US 7,251,628 B1
`
`FIG. 1
`
`Auction
`
`Profile
` Database
`
`Configuration
`
`
`Tool
`
`105
`
`
`
`
`
`Profile
`Search
`Sscloneor
`
`
`
`
`
`Manager
`Database
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`0101
`
`
`
`0104
`
`item
`
`
`103
` 106
`
`Result
`
`
`
`Definition
`Auction Bid
`Auction
`
`
`
`and
`Controller
`Confirmaton
`
`Receiver
`
`Verification
`(ABC)
`Unit
`
`0109
`
`Auction
`Command
`Interface
`
`010
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 3
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 3
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jul. 31, 2007
`
`Sheet 2 of 3
`
`US 7,251,628 B1
`
`FIG. 2
`
`Start
`0201 AUTOMATED PURCHASING AGENT PROcEss)0202
`
`
`
`
`
`0203
`J ——
`Detehece
`Register at Auction Site(s)
`
`identification
`Password
`Product
`
`0204
`=>
`Product Purchase Request
`
`0205
`
`
`
`
`Product Available?
`
`0207
`
`No
`
`.
`-
`Bid Below Limit Max?
`
`0208
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Cancel
`Outstanding
`Bids
`
`Place Bid
`
`Bid Accepted?
`
`No
`
`0211
`
`Bidding Over?
`No
`
`ime Running Out?
`
`
`
`0212
`
`
`Cancel
`Yes
`
`Outstanding
`Bids
`
`No
`
`0215
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 4
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 4
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jul. 31, 2007
`
`Sheet 3 of 3
`
`US 7,251,628 B1
`
`Database
`0302
`
`
`
`
`Communications
`Medium
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 5
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 5
`
`

`

`US 7,251,628 Bl
`
`1
`AUTOMATED PURCHASING AGENT
`SYSTEM AND METHOD
`
`CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED
`APPLICATIONS
`
`Not applicable
`
`COPYRIGHT NOTICE
`
`A portion of the disclosure of this patent document
`contains material which is subject to copyright protection.
`The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile
`reproduction by anyone of the patent documentorthe patent
`disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office
`patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright
`rights whatsoever.
`
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`
`
`
`
`2
`rather is purchasing a commodity product. The desired. item
`could be a mass product (e.g. CDROM,music cassette, etc.)
`and as such there may be a wide variety of sources for the
`product. So one auction sile can oller mass products items
`in several auctions simultaneously from different sellers.
`Additionally, there can be more then one auction web
`site
`that offers this type of item. For instance, a ‘greatest hits’
`compact disc of a popular rock band is a commodity
`product, wherein thousands of copies will
`typically be
`
`available for sale. In this case there could be several ongoing
`
`auctions on the same or different web sites from different
`sellers. The problem for the purchaser in these circum-
`stances is to choose the best auction for the desired item.
`Current sofiware tools available to purchasers within
`web-based auction contexts do not addressthese deficiencies
`and as such the bidding process inthese situations generally
`is dictated as muchbyluck as bythe skill and experience of
`the purchaser.
`
`
`
`SUMMARYOF THE INVENTION
`
`Current systems and web-based auction sites provide
`mechanisms to search for individual items as well as place
`and cancel bids. However, they do not provide the function-
`ality required to overcome the above-mentioned procedural
`problems associated with a disparate and non-uniform web-
`base auction system. Purchasers have to do the entire
`bidding process manually. They must carcfully monitor their
`active auctions and must quickly react when other persons
`place higher bids on a desired item. Therefore, the buying
`process is somewhal lime consuming and the purchaser is
`probably not able to get the best possible deal, because it
`takes too much time for humans to manually monitor and
`subsequently discover all the best auctions available.
`The present invention solves the deficiencies associated
`with the prior art by allowing purchasers to manage their
`auction sites automatically. This automated control includes
`adding, updating, and removing auction sites. For every
`auction site the purchaser provides an auction configuration
`profile that is conveniently generated by an auction profile
`configuration software tool
`incorporated as a subsystem
`within the present invention. This software will produce the
`configuration profile information for each selected auction
`sile, The configuration profile information basically contains
`a protocol to access the auction sile, howto retrieve a list of
`current auctions, howto search an auction sile, howto place
`or cancel a bid, purchaser and password information for the
`auctionsite, along with additional information about thesite
`(e.g., format specification for extraction of data). Addition-
`ally, since purchaser identification and password informa-
`ion is usually required on auction sites in order to access
`hem, the present invention may automatically manage this
`aspect of the auction bidding process.
`Since the present invention has knowledge of what auc-
`ion sites are available and how to communicate with them
`using the configuration profile information provided, this
`permits a purchaser to select or define an item that they are
`interested in purchasing and have the bidding associated
`with that item done automatically. ‘The purchaser will set a
`price range of what they are willing to pay lor the desired
`item. The present invention will then automatically contact
`he defined auctions sites and perform a query (poll) in
`specific time intervals to determine whether the selected
`item is currently available for purchase. With this informa-
`ion one preferred embodiment will
`then automatically
`select the auction with the lowest current bid and place a bid
`here.
`
`
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 6
`
`wna
`
`65
`
`1. Field of the Invention
`The invention disclosed broadly relates to the field of
`Internet Search Engines and E-commerce technology, and
`has special application to the emerging on-line markets of
`web-based auction siles.
`2. Description of the Related Art
`The electronic auction sales paradigm exemplified by
`web-based auction siles such as such as eBay, Onsale, Yahoo
`and the like allows purchasers to bid for items they want to
`buy. The great advantage of this business model is that the
`potential buyer has the possibility to define the price that
`he/she is willing to payfor this item. In contrast to traditional
`sales/purchase paradigms, a ‘price’ in this electronic mar-
`ketplace is not a fixed quantity, but rather a dynamic entity.
`Because of this fact, the popularity of web-based auction -
`sites is growing rapidly. Additionally, more and more pur-
`chasers are becoming involved and taking advantage ofthis
`auction based buying on the World Wide Web (WWW). In
`he near future it is highly probable that dynamic prices lor
`buying items will become a standard, especially as world
`commercial markets become more tightly integrated.
`‘The problem present with the prior art is the inherent
`difficulty for the purchaser in managing this kind of!price-
`based buying. There are several problems for a potential
`buyer. First, Web-based auctions produce fierce competition.
`Becauseofthe possibilities of the Internet the competition in
`price bidding is neither geographically nor temporally lim-
`ited. Purchasers are able to bid 24 hours a day from
`essentially any place in the world. Because of this compe-
`ition,
`it
`is not guaranteed that a purchaser eventually
`succeeded.
`in purchasing the item that he/she desires. To
`ensure that the purchaser even has a good chanceat success
`with this bidding system, he/she must be diligent regarding
`both monitoring of auction siles and placement ofbids lor
`desired items.
`Asecond problem[or a potential buyer is managing bids
`across one or moresites. ‘here are growing number web-
`based auction sites, making management of bids across
`hese different sites difficult. One and the same item can be
`sold on different sites simultaneously and independently
`e.g. a seller wants to increase the probability of selling the
`item, so he/she submits the same item on different web-
`based auctions). This structure is difficult to manage and
`coordinate manually using conventional web-based user
`interface tools.
`A third problem is the purchase of a commodity product.
`Most times a buyer need not have a particular item, but
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 6
`
`

`

`US 7,251,628 Bl
`
`3
`Within the context of this system and process, the present
`invention provides safeguards to ensure that at the end ofall
`auctions one or more ofthe following goals have been mel:
`The purchaser will have placed the highest bid on the item,
`so that he/she actually is able to buyit.
`1. The defined bid maximum will not he exceeded.
`2. The purchaser will be the winner ofonly one auction for
`the specific item. Thal means that a prospective purchaser
`eventually obtainstitle to the desired quantity ofthe item
`as requested.
`The present invention specifically anticipates continuously
`monitoring the selected auctions and uses algorithms
`described belowto ensure that these goals are fulfilled.
`Briefly, in accordance with the present invention,
`In accordance with another embodiment of the present
`invention, an information processing system and computer
`readable storage mediumis disclosed for carrying out the
`above method.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`wa
`
`The subject matter which is regarded as the inventionis
`particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims
`at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and 2
`other objects, features, and advantagesof the invention will
`be apparent from the following detailed description taken in
`conjunction with the accompanying, drawings.
`FIG.1 illustrates an architectural system block diagram of
`an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention;
`FIG. 2 illustrates a procedural block diagram of an
`exemplary embodiment of the present invention;
`FIG.3 illustrates a generalized block diagram illustrating
`some of the teachings of the present invention.
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN
`EMBODIMENT
`
`30
`
`35
`
`4
`to be given their broadest possible meanings within the
`context ofthis disclosure. While several disclosed embodi-
`ments of the present
`invention are specifically targeted
`towards Internet auctions andthe like, other embodiments of
`the present
`invention may be utilized to attack similar
`problems in wildly different sales/purchase environments.
`Thus, the entire broad context of sales and purchase order
`bidding that occurs within normal commerce is within the
`anticipated scope of the present invention.
`
`
`
`System Blocks/Procedural Steps Not Lunitive
`The present invention may be aptly described in terms of
`
`exemplary system block diagrams and procedural flow-
`charts. While these items are sufficient to instruct one of
`ordinary skill in the art the teachings of the present inven-
`tion, they should not be strictly construed as limiting the
`scape of the present invention. One skilled in the art will be
`aware that system block diagrams may be combined and
`rearranged with no loss ofgenerality, and procedural steps
`may be added or subtracted, and rearranged in order to
`achieve the same ellect with no loss of teaching generality.
`Thus, it should be understood that the present invention as
`depicted in the attached exemplary system block diagrams
`and procedural flowcharts is for teaching purposes only and
`may be reworked by one skilled in the art depending on the
`intended target application.
`
`Personal Computer Not Limitive
`Throughout the discussion herein there will be examples
`provided that utilize personal computer (PC) technologies to
`illustrate the teachings of the present invention. The term
`‘personal computer’ should be given a broad meaningin this
`regard, as in general any computing device maybeutilized
`to implementthe teachings of the present invention, and the
`scape of the invention is not limited just to personal com-
`puter applications.
`Additionally, while the present invention may be imple-
`mented to advantage using a variely of Microsolt™ oper-
`ating systems (including a variety of Windows™variants),
`nothing should be construed to limit
`the scope of the
`invention to these particular software components.
`EXAMPLE
`
`While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in
`many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and
`will herein be described in detailed preferred embodiment of
`the invention with the understanding that the present dis-
`closure is to be considered as an exemplification of the
`principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the
`broad aspect of the invention to the embodimentillustrated.
`The numerous innovative teachings of the present appli-
`cation will be described with particular reference to the
`presently preferred embodiments, wherein these innovative
`teachings are advantageouslyapplied to the particular prob-
`
`lems of an AUTOMATED PURCHASING AGENT SYS-
`
`TEM AND METHOD. However, it should be understood
`that these embodiments are only examples of the many
`advantageous uses of the innovative teachings herein. In
`general, statements made in the specification of the present
`application do not necessarily limit any of the various
`claimed inventions. Morcover, some statements may apply
`to some inventive features but not to others. In general,
`unless otherwise indicated, singular elements may be in the
`plural and visa versa with no loss ofgenerality.
`Definitions
`Throughout the discussion in this documentthe following
`definitions will be utilized:
`
`Auction/Bid Not Limitive
`Throughout the discussion of the present invention the
`term ‘auction’ and/or ‘bid’ may be used in the context of an
`Internet based auction and bidding example. These termsare
`
`45
`
`60
`
`The following provides an exemplary example of this
`system in action, and explain howthe invention could be
`used in order to buy a commodity‘greatest hits’ rock music
`CD.
`A prospective purchaser first registers and obtains access
`to at least one auction website. By registering he/she will be
`provided with an auction user identification and a password.
`The purchaser generally enters this information into an
`information screen dialog with the present invention and
`creates a configuration profile for this auction web sitc. After
`this the present invention is able to communicate with this
`registered auction site. At this time the purchaser could
`register al more auction web sites and insert this data to
`creale more auction sile profiles.
`Then the purchaser will enter his/her purchasing request
`along with the maximum amount of moneyhe/she is willing
`lo payfor the requested ilem. In this example, the ‘greatest
`hits’ CD would constitute the purchasing request. The
`present invention now queries the auction site to determine
`if the desired CD is currently available for bidding. In case
`that the CD is available and the current bidding price is
`below the defined maximum,it will automatically place a
`bid. Thenit will monitor the bid and place additional bids if
`necessary. For instance it could happen that someoneplaced
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 7
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 7
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`

`

`US 7,251,628 Bl
`
`
`
`5
`a higher bid, and the auction terminated. The present inven-
`ion then searches lor another ongoing auction that would be
`appropriale to meet the user purchase requirements, Addi-
`jonally, it could place more bids on diflerent auctions ifit
`seems to be necessary to enhance the probability of buying
`he desired item. In case, that the time is running out on an
`auction, where it holds the highest bid, and there are also
`high bids in other auctions placed, it will cancel these bids
`to ensure, that only one ‘greatest hits’ CD is purchasedat the
`ermination of auction bidding.
`Overall the present invention will likely become a sig-
`nificant e-commerce tool that helps purchasers to manage
`he more and more complicated dynamic buying process
`associated with web-based auctions. Given the rapid growth
`in e-commerce and the warm welcomethat this purchasing
`paradigm has received in the retail marketplace, the present
`invention provides a convenient and efficient mechanismto
`exploit this new purchasing methodology.
`System
`As illustrated in FIG. 1, exemplary embodiments of the
`present invention consist of the following components:
`Auction Profile Database (0101);
`
`1. Auction Profile Configuration Tool (0102);
`2. Item Selector (0103);
`3. Item Search Manager (0104);
`4. Item Database (0105);
`5. Auction Bid Controller (0106):
`6. Auction Command Interface (0107);
`7. Auction Confirmation Recciver (0108);
`8 . Result Definition and Verification Unit (0109);
`The following sections contain a detailed description of
`these components, making specific reference to the exem-
`plary system block diagram of FIG.1.
`
`Auction Profile Database (0101)
`The Auction Profile Database (0101) stores auction pro-
`files of web-based auction sites. An auction profile typically
`contains the following information: How to access an auc-
`tion site (protocol, URT., etc.).
`1. Purchaser identification and. password of the purchaser
`(authentication method).
`2. Command language to place and cancel bids.
`3. Howto perform search for items.
`4. General description of howto extract item information.
`5. Format of search results for items to extract these
`6. Format ofnotification for bid status, and other notification
`events.
`
`e 5
`
`30
`
`35
`
`40
`
`Overall these profiles describe how to interact with a web-
`based auction site and how to automatically retrieve desired
`data of items. Although the functionality of these sites is
`typically the same, the method of accessing data maydiffer
`dramatically. The auction profiles provide a way to access
`these siles in a standard way.
`‘The lormat
`to store and
`describe auction profiles could be based on the Extended
`Markup Language (XML). To describe the format of a web
`documentin orderto extract specific data it is possible to use
`TAPStechnology. TAPS is also based on XMLandallows
`the format of a web documentto be described. With the help
`of this description (e.g., a DTD—Document Type Defini-
`tion) the present invention is able to locate for example a
`description of an item in a web document. However, TAPS
`
`wna
`
`65
`
`6
`is just one wayof retrieving this information. It is also
`possible to use existing parser and webfilter technolagyto
`retrieve the required information from these web sites. One
`skilled in the art will no doubt realize that there are a
`plethora of equivalent methods to achieve these same
`results.
`
`Auction Profile Configuration Tool (0102)
`(0102) helps
`The Auction Profile Configuration Tool
`purchasers to generate and store the auction profiles in the
`Auction Profile Database (0101). Because the syntax ofan
`auction profile can become complex, the task ofthis tool is
`to remove the complexity from the purchaser. It might use
`a graphical user interface along with a user-friendly wizard
`to guide the purchaser through the process of creating an
`auction profile. Additionally, auction profiles for popular
`auction siles could be already integrated in Auction Profile
`Database (0101). So there would be no need to generate
`auction profiles for these sites. However, authentication
`information is purchaser-dependent and needsto be added to
`the auction profile. Also, the tool is able to update and delete
`auction profiles.
`
`Item Selector (0103)
`The Item Selector (0103) provides a mechanism for the
`purchaser to enter a desired item for purchase. It uses the
`Item Database (0105) to store information of items (prop-
`erties) for further reuse. ‘he purchaser enters the item
`information typically in an electronic form (for example, by
`using a textbox dialog screen). An ilem generally consists of
`a name, an optional description, or a unique identification
`number (for example, ISBN number for books). The Item
`Selector (0103) could also present a list of the stored items
`in the Item Database (0105) to the purchaser for selection.
`Ifthe purchaseris finished with an itemselection, a query for
`the item will be performed first against the Item Database.
`The goal is to retrieve additional information for an item if
`available. This could help to improve the search accuracy of
`the Item Search Manager (0104) component. The complete
`item information along with an optional description is then
`passed to the Item Search Manager (0104)
`for further
`processing.
`
`Item Search Manager (0104)
`After the Item Search Manager (0104) receives the item
`information from the Ttem Selector (0103) component, it
`will perform a query for this item on all available auction
`web sites stored in the Auction Profile Database (0101).
`Thereafter the Item Search Manager (0104) will use the
`auction profile information stored in the Auction Profile
`Database (0101) to build the correct querystrings. The goal
`is to find out which web-based auction sites have the item
`currently available for bidding. The auction sites will pro-
`duce search results and return these results to the Item
`Search Manager (0104) that in turn will consolidate this
`information to one or more lists.
`
`The Ttem Search Manager (0104) then will parse these
`resull pages and extract the required inlormation.It will also
`collect additional
`information of the item (¢.g., a more
`detailed description) if available and store this item infor-
`mation in the Item Database (0105) for further reuse to
`enhance search accuracy. To extract the item information
`from the result pages of the auction sites,
`it uses the
`information stored in the Auction Profile Database (0101).
`As a result it will generate one or morelists containing the
`following information:
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 8
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`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 8
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`US 7,251,628 Bl
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`7
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`Item Name
`1. Item identification Gf available).
`2. Item Description (if available).
`3. Multimedia Description (e.g., picture, video, etc.,
`available).
`4, One or more lists ofall current auctions where the item
`is currently available for bidding, along with current bid
`price, auction duration, etc.
`
`if
`
`This list will be passed to the Result Definition and Verifi-
`cation Unit (0109) for further processing.
`Another functionality of the Item Search Manager (0104)
`is that it will perform periodic querying of the available
`auction sites for items in which the purchaser has interest.
`This feature will generate an updated list and forward this
`list to the Auction Bid Controller (0106) for auction status
`control processing. Also it will perform auction querying on
`demand bythe user via use of the Auction Bid Controller
`(0106).
`
`Result Definition and Verification Unit (0109)
`The Result Definition and Verification Unit (0109) com-
`ponent receives the item information/description from the
`Item Selector (0103) in which the purchaser has interest,
`along with a list of auctions gencrated from the Item Search
`Manager (0104). Basically, the Result Definition and Veri-
`fication Unit (0109) presents the current bid range ofall the
`auctions to the purchaser and prompts for a maximum
`permissible bid the purchaser is willing to spend for the
`desired item.
`Tt could be possible that there are no auctions available for
`the desired item. In this case the purchaser has to specily
`another item and the process will start from the beginning.
`After the purchaser defines a bid maximum, the complete
`information (includes item,
`list of auctions for the item,
`maximum bid) will be passed to the Auction Bid Controller -
`0106)
`that
`is the key management component for all
`bidding on behalf of the purchaser.
`
`?°
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`
`
`Auction Bid Controller (0106)
`As explained. above, the Auction Bid Controller (ABC)
`0106) componentis responsible for the whole bid manage-
`ment process. ‘The ABC (0106) receives its task from the
`Result Definition and Verification Unit (0109). With this
`information, the ABC (0106) starts to look for an auction
`hat offers the desired item for the lowest price. The ABC
`0106) then forwards a bid request to the Auction Command
`Interface (0107). The ABC (0106) keeps track of the status
`of all auctions. Ifa bid request was successful, it will receive
`a notification from the Auction Confirmation Receiver
`0108). The corresponding auction in the list will be then
`marked as “active”. There may be zero or more auctions
`marked as active at any given time.
`From time to time the ABC (0106) mayrequest a status
`update from the Item Search Manager(0104). The reason for
`this is to find out whether there are additional auctions
`available for the particular item that were not listed previ-
`ously. It could be the case that a new auction was detected
`for the item that posts a lower price than the current active
`auction. In this case, the Auction Bid Controller (0106) will
`try to place a smaller bid there. If successful, it will cancel
`other active auctions with a higher bid price. The overall
`goal is to have at least one active auction that should produce
`the lowest price for the item.
`In case the Auction Bid Controller (0106) receives an
`outbid notice from the Auction Confirmation Receiver
`(0108) for an active auction, it has to determine whetherit
`makessense to place a higherbit on this auction, or whether
`
`40
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`45
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`wna
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`60
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`8
`there is an auction where even a lower bid could be placed,
`in order to have the highest accepted bid in a given auction.
`In case there are no other auctions and the maximumprice
`range for the item has not exceeded, it will request a higher
`bid for the auction from where it recerved the outbid
`notification.
`Finally, if the Auction Bid Controller (0106) receives an
`‘end of auction” notice, where it placed the highest bid (and
`herefore won the auction), the item is marked as “success”’.
`All other active auctions will be canceled (a cancel request
`will be send to the Auction Command Interface). The
`information of the successful auction purchase will then be
`passed to the purchaser in order that the purchaser may be
`able to contact the seller regarding payment and delivery
`Note that the Auction Bid Controller (0106) will only
`finish execution if an item could be successful bought;
`1. there are no auctions available for an item:
`2. all auctions available require a bid amount higher then the
`desired maximum:or
`3. a purchaser wished to cancel all auctions for the item.
`Otherwise it will continue to request new searches and
`generate bid requests and/or cancellations until the purchase
`goal has beensatisfied.
`
`Auction Command Interface (0107)
`There are two components that are responsible for the
`communication with the Internet Auction Sites (0110). ‘The
`first Internet communications system component is termed
`the Auction Command Interface (0107) and is designed to
`receive bid and cancellation requests from the Auction Bid
`Controller (0106). The Auction CommandInterface (0107)
`typically uses the information stored in the Auction Profile
`Database (0101) provided by the Auction Bid Controller
`(0106) to transform the auction requests into commandsthat
`the corresponding auction site understands. Once this trans-
`lation has been performed, the Auction CommandInterface
`(0107) will send the request to the Internet Auction Site(s)
`(0110) (e.g., using Internet TCP/IP communication or some
`other suitable protocol). In summary, the Auction Command
`Interface (0107) is generally responsible for all outgoing
`auction requests.
`Auction Confirmation Receiver (0108)
`The second Internet communications system component
`is termed the Auction Confirmation Receiver (0108) and is
`designed to handle all
`incoming requests, such as bid
`conformations, outbid notifications, etc. These notifications
`will be delivered from the Internet Auction Site(s) (for
`example) using email communication. All the requests will
`be transformed/translated in a way that the Auction Bid
`Controller (0106) can understand the resulting message
`context. The information the Auction Confirmation Receiver
`(0108) needs is stored in the Auction Profile Database
`(0101). With this information the incoming notification can
`be parsed and the important auction status information can
`be extracted andlater utilized by other system components
`consistent with the purchasing goals described above.
`Method
`‘The system as described in FIG. 1 may be implemented
`using a process/method as exemplified by the process flow-
`chart of FIG. 2.
`the automated purchasing agent
`Referring to FIG. 2,
`process (0102) begins with registration at one or more
`auction sites (0203) typically via some user dialog console
`interface (0202). In many exemplary embodiments this
`interface is via a personal computer (PC), but need not be
`restricted to this context. The auction registration informa-
`
`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 9
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`Amazon/AlmondNet
`Exhibit 1005
`Page 9
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`9
`tion is logged into an auction database (0205). Once this
`information is collected, the purchaser may enter using t