Phonetic Encoding

Once data has gone through any necessary reformatting and normalization, it can be phonetically encoded. In a master index application, phonetic values are generally used in blocking queries in order to obtain all possible matches to an incoming record. They are also used to perform searches from the Master Index Data Manager (MIDM) that allow for misspellings and typographic errors. Typically, first names use Soundex encoding and last names and street names use NYSIIS encoding, but the Master Index Standardization Engine supports several additional phonetic encoders as well.