Patent ID: 7464101

Claim:
A computer implemented apparatus for searching for a search character string in a source character string database, the search and source character strings each including a prefix [P], a base [B] and a suffix [S] segment, comprising: a means for stripping from an inputted search character string, a predefined group of non-alphanumeric of characters to generate a converted search character string; a means for generating a first group of search tokens, comprising a prescribed number of ‘search’ base tokens from the converted search character string, wherein the ‘search’ base tokens serve as search tokens, and wherein the number of ‘search’ base tokens in the first group of tokens is at least equal to the number of characters in a prefix segment of the converted search character string, each ‘search’ base token has a fixed base token length, wherein the fixed base token length is determined by a prescribed number of contiguous characters in the converted search character string and the first ‘search’ base token begins at a first character position of the converted search character string and each subsequent ‘search’ base token begins at an adjacent sequential character position of the converted search character string; a means for generating a source token database from a converted source character string generated from a source character string, and storing in a memory location of a computer, said generating means further generating a predetermined number of ‘source’ base tokens, wherein the ‘source’ base tokens serve as source tokens, and wherein the number of ‘source’ base tokens is at least equal to the number of characters in a prefix segment of the converted source character string, the number of the ‘source’ base tokens is substantially the same as the number of the ‘search’ base tokens, each ‘source’ base token has said fixed base token length, wherein the fixed base token length is determined by the prescribed number of contiguous characters in the converted source character string, and the first ‘source’ base token begins at a first character position of the converted source character string and each subsequent ‘source’ base token begins at an adjacent sequential character position of the converted source character string; a means for searching the source token database using each of the ‘search’ base tokens and identifying one or more ‘source’ base tokens that match each of the ‘search’ base tokens, wherein for each match found, the searching means also identifies a character position in the converted search character string at which the match occurs; and a means for outputting to a user, a list of one or more ‘source’ base tokens that match the ‘search’ base tokens and the corresponding character positions at which the match occurs.