Verizon Laboratories Inc.

Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.

John S Huitema

Zhiying Jin

Fenglin Yin

Hannah Youngsil Moon

David Anthony Philbin

Sharon Marie Walker

Jennifer Logan Stelling

Demetrios Karis

William Christopher Smith

A map-based search application for map-based category navigation includes geographic data, category data, and categorized data comprising at least one item, wherein each item is associated with each of the geographic data and the category data. Accordingly, a user is enabled to search for categorized data that satisfies at least one condition related to the geographic data and at least one condition related to the category data. The invention further comprises a display for displaying a list of results from a search, wherein the list comprises the at least one item.

Hierarchical category index navigational system

Hierarchial category index navigational system

A hierarchy of nodes is created, each node being one of associated with an item retrieved according to a condition and associated with a category of information including the item. It is determined whether at least one of the nodes is redundant in the hierarchy. The at least one of the nodes is pruned from the hierarchy if the at least one of the nodes is redundant.

Hierarchy modification

Growing community of inventors

Arlington, MA, United States of America

John S Huitema