Patent ID: 7181437

Claim:
A data retrieval system comprising: a mass storage medium in which data is stored; a retrieval device in communication with the mass storage medium, wherein the retrieval device is configured to (1) receive a continuous stream of data from the mass storage medium, and (2) continuously process the data stream to determine whether an approximate match exists therein with respect to a key that is representative of data sought to be retrieved, wherein the retrieval device is further configured to process the data stream to determine whether an approximate match exists via a pattern comparison between the key and the data stream, wherein the key is an analog key and wherein the data stream is an analog data stream, wherein the retrieval device is further configured to perform the pattern comparison by calculating a correlation coefficient that is indicative of a degree of correlation between the key and the data stream, and wherein the retrieval device is further configured to determine that an approximate match exists if the correlation coefficient has a value larger than or at least equal to a predetermined threshold value.