System and method of organizing nodes within a tree structure
US6411957B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 30, 1999 |
| Grant date | Jun 25, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 30, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99945
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A system and method are provided for organizing and managing a tree structure having a plurality of nodes representing physical entities, the tree structure defining a number of node locations, each node location being reached via a predetermined path from a root node of the tree structure. The method comprises the steps of associating first and second keys with each node to be included in the tree structure, the value of at least the first key being unique for each node, and then arranging the nodes within the tree structure by sorting the nodes with respect to both the first key and the second key, the sorting with respect to the first key being such that each node may be positioned within the tree structure at any node location along the path from the root node to the node location specified by the first key. By this approach, a search can be performed for a node within the tree structure based on specified criteria for both the first and second keys.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.