How Assistant Systems Combine Information About One Thing from Many Places
This patent describes a system that gathers all known information about a single person, place, or thing from various sources and combines it into one complete profile for an assistant system.
Original patent title: “Resolving entities from multiple data sources for assistant systems”
This patent describes a system that gathers all known information about a single person, place, or thing from various sources and combines it into one complete profile for an assistant system. Granted to Meta Platforms in 2023 with 23 claims, and it is expected to expire in 2040.
Coverage
What does this patent actually cover?
This method helps an assistant system provide a complete picture of an 'entity' (like a person or place) by combining information from multiple sources. When a 'client system' requests information about a 'first record' (ClaimclaimA numbered sentence at the end of a patent that legally defines what the inventor owns. The most important section.Read more → 1), the system identifies a 'globally unique entity identifier' linked to that record (Claim 1). It then finds other 'second records' also linked to this same unique identifier (Claim 1). All these related records are then 'deduped' and 'compiled' into a single 'fused record' (Claim 1), which is then sent back to the client system for presentation. For example, if you ask a voice assistant about a specific author, it could combine details from their book listings, social media profiles, and interview transcripts into one unified summary.
The gap
What does this patent NOT cover?
- Does not cover combining data about an entity if there is no globally unique identifier linking the different records.
- Does not cover systems that link data but do not generate and present a single 'fused record' in response to a user request.
- Does not cover methods of combining entity data that do not involve a deduplication step to associate records with a unique identifier.
- Does not cover systems that simply store multiple records about an entity without actively compiling and presenting a unified view.
These exclusions are unique to PatentBrief — derived from the actual claim language, not patent-office boilerplate.
Key facts
What made this novel
The clever part is how it automatically finds all scattered pieces of information about one specific thing across many different data sources, links them using a unique ID, and then intelligently combines them into one clean, complete summary to show a user. This avoids showing fragmented or repetitive information.
The Patent Drawing
Schematic visualization of the patent's claim structure. Hand-drawn diagrams in progress for each landmark patent.
Where you've seen this
Real-world examples
Meta AI
Google Assistant
Amazon Alexa
Apple Siri
Knowledge panels in search engines
Why it matters
The bigger picture
This patent is important for making AI assistant systems smarter and more helpful. By combining information about a person, place, or topic from many different places, it helps assistants give you a complete picture instead of just bits and pieces. This technology is key for companies like Meta Platforms Inc. to build advanced virtual assistants that can answer complex questions by drawing on a wide range of data.
Filed
September 11, 2020
Granted
July 18, 2023
Market context
Who's building on this
Companies in this space
Meta Platforms Inc., the assigneeassigneeThe entity that owns the patent — usually the inventor's employer or a company.Read more →, continues to build on this technology for its Meta AI assistant and other knowledge graph initiatives. Other major technology companies like Google, Amazon, and Apple also heavily invest in similar entity resolution and knowledge fusion capabilities to power their respective virtual assistants and search products.
Market impact
This patent's underlying technology has significantly impacted the market by enabling more sophisticated and comprehensive AI assistant responses. It helps move beyond simple lookup functions to systems that can synthesize information from disparate sources, thereby enhancing user experience and making virtual assistants more capable. This capability is now foundational for competitive AI products.
Claim 1 — Plain English
What this patent covers
This method helps an assistant system provide a complete picture of an 'entity' (like a person or place) by combining information from multiple sources. When a 'client system' requests information about a 'first record' (Claim 1), the system identifies a 'globally unique entity identifier' linked to that record (Claim 1). It then finds other 'second records' also linked to this same unique identifier (Claim 1). All these related records are then 'deduped' and 'compiled' into a single 'fused record' (Claim 1), which is then sent back to the client system for presentation. For example, if you ask a voice assistant about a specific author, it could combine details from their book listings, social media profiles, and interview transcripts into one unified summary.
The clever bit
The clever part is how it automatically finds all scattered pieces of information about one specific thing across many different data sources, links them using a unique ID, and then intelligently combines them into one clean, complete summary to show a user. This avoids showing fragmented or repetitive information.
What it does not cover
- Does not cover combining data about an entity if there is no globally unique identifier linking the different records.
- Does not cover systems that link data but do not generate and present a single 'fused record' in response to a user request.
- Does not cover methods of combining entity data that do not involve a deduplication step to associate records with a unique identifier.
- Does not cover systems that simply store multiple records about an entity without actively compiling and presenting a unified view.
Patent timeline
Application submitted to the patent office
Application published, typically 18 months after filing
Patent officially issued
Patent enters public domain
PatentBrief Score
Impact Score
Moderate
Citation count
0/40
No citations yet
Claim breadth
15/20
Broad claimsclaimsThe numbered statements at the end of a patent that legally define what the inventor owns.Read more →
Recency
20/20
Granted within 5 years
Assignee scale
20/20
Major company or institution
PatentBrief Impact Score — based on citation count, claim breadth, recency, and assignee scale. Not a legal assessment.
Heuristic Value Estimate
What this patent might be worth
$47K – $150K
Midpoint $94K · 14.2 yr remaining · industry ×1.6
Heuristic only — blends forward/backward citation counts, claim scope, time remaining, litigation history, and CPC-derived industry baseline. Real valuations need a professional appraisal.
The original legal language
Original claims
23 claims as filed with the patent office.
Concepts involved
Citations
Patent lineage
Cite this patent
Salkola, M. (2023). How Assistant Systems Combine Information About One Thing from Many Places (U.S. Patent No. 11,704,899). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/11704899/resolving-entities-from-multiple-data-sources-for-assistant-systems
Auto-generated from the patent record. Double-check author order and the issue date against the official USPTO document before submitting.
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Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What does How Assistant Systems Combine Information About One Thing from Many Places cover?
This patent describes a system that gathers all known information about a single person, place, or thing from various sources and combines it into one complete profile for an assistant system.
Who owns patent US 11704899?
Meta Platforms owns this patent, granted in 2023.
When does this patent expire?
This patent is expected to expire on September 11, 2040, when the invention enters the public domain.
What problem does this patent solve?
This patent is important for making AI assistant systems smarter and more helpful. By combining information about a person, place, or topic from many different places, it helps assistants give you a complete picture instead of just bits and pieces. This technology is key for companies like Meta Platforms Inc. to build advanced virtual assistants that can answer complex questions by drawing on a wide range of data.
What does this patent NOT cover?
Does not cover combining data about an entity if there is no globally unique identifier linking the different records.
Patent monitoring