Patent ID: 8412712

Claim:
A computer-implemented method of selecting a representative value for a specified attribute type in an entity resolution system storing identity records related to a plurality of entities, the method comprising: receiving a selection of an entity in the entity resolution system, wherein the selected entity is associated with a plurality of identity records stored by the entity resolution system, wherein each identity record includes one or more attribute types and corresponding attribute values, and wherein the plurality of identity records have an assumed relation to a distinct individual; generating one or more distinct value groups, wherein each distinct value group includes one or more attribute values corresponding to the specified attribute type, wherein generating the one or more distinct value groups comprises: identifying a set of attribute values corresponding to the specified attribute type; calculating a pair-wise comparison score for each distinct attribute value pair in the set of attribute values; and assigning each distinct attribute value pair in the set of attribute values to one of the one or more distinct value groups based upon the pair-wise comparison score calculated for each distinct attribute value pair in the set of attribute values, wherein a respective distinct attribute value pair is assigned to the one of the one or more distinct value groups upon determining that its pair-wise comparison score is within a specified grouping threshold; selecting one of the one or more distinct value groups as a preferred group; and selecting, from the preferred group, a first attribute value as the representative value for the specified attribute type of the selected entity by selecting an attribute value with a least average pair-wise difference with other attribute values of the preferred group, wherein selecting the attribute value with the least average pair-wise difference comprises analyzing the pair-wise comparison score calculated for each distinct attribute value pair in the preferred group.