Patent ID: 6973206

Claim:
A method for comparing a search record against a file database comprising a plurality of file records, said method comprising the steps of: a) receiving a search record comprising multiple search prints; b) generating multiple hierarchical clusters, each said cluster having a different minimum quality level; c) for each said cluster, generating at least one corresponding search package comprising multiple search prints selected from said search record; d) of the clusters not selected, selecting a cluster having the highest minimum quality level; e) of the search packages not selected selecting a search package corresponding to the selected cluster and retrieving, as a function of the selected search package, a corresponding file record comprising multiple file prints for comparing the selected search package to the corresponding retrieved file record; and f) determining whether a match is found, and if no match is found returning to step e) until all the search packages are compared; and if no match is found in the selected cluster returning to step d) until all the file records are compared.