Single instance storage of information
US5813008A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 12, 1996 |
| Grant date | Sep 22, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 12, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99945
- WIPO fieldIT methods for management
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Information items commonly have a unique portion and a common portion that is the same for multiple items. The common portions of information items are stored once. Each common portion is assigned a globally unique single-instance identifier. Each unique portion of an information item stores the single-instance identifier of the associated common portion. A reference count, stored with the common portion, reflects the number of unique portions associated with the common portion. When an information item is created or distributed, the single-instance identifier of the common portion is used to ensure that multiple copies of the common portion are not stored.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.