Data processing: database and file management or data structures – Database design – Data structure types
Reexamination Certificate
2000-09-27
2002-11-19
Choules, Jack (Department: 2177)
Data processing: database and file management or data structures
Database design
Data structure types
C704S009000, C706S047000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06484166
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
The present invention is a computerized system and method for searching through and retrieving information from an informational resource; and more particularly, the present invention is an information management, retrieval and display system for searching through an informational resource and for displaying the results of the search in an collapsible/expandable format based upon a user-selected display criteria or hierarchy.
An inherent drawback in many conventional search engines or search tools, such as Infoseek™, AltaVista™, Hotbot™, is that the results of the search are typically organized according to the number of hits that the search word or phrase made in each document (Web page) being searched. This type of search result display requires the end user to go through the hits one by one in order to finally access the document he/she was looking for. Another drawback with such conventional search engines is that the results of the search do not take into account that a word may have several different meanings, and may be used in many different contexts. For example, if an end user were looking for information on a cartoon mouse, because the search query would contain the word “mouse,” the list of hits will include documents for the electronic cursor-control devices, documents providing biological information on mice, documents providing pet information on mice, etc. Therefore, the end user may have to go through an enormous number of these hits before finally (if ever) reaching a hit related to the cartoon mouse.
Thus, there is a need for a search engine or search tool that allows the end user to that arranges the search results in a manner that allows the end user to effectively and quickly obtain items of interest.
SUMMARY
The present invention is an information management, retrieval and display system for searching through an informational resource, such as a document (e.g., a treaty), a number of individual documents (e.g., Web pages resident on the Internet), or a stream of information (e.g., DNA code, source code, satellite data transmissions, etc.) and for displaying the results of the search in an collapsible/expandable format based upon a user-selected display criteria or hierarchy. Such a display hierarchy will allow the end-user to effectively and quickly obtain items of interest from the search results. The type or format of the informational resource is not critical.
The invention includes four primary modules, a break module, an indexing module, a search module and an un-break module. The break module is an expert system operating upon a set of expert rules that define its operation. The break module parses through the informational resource to break up the informational resource into finite elements (such as paragraphs, sections, sub-sections, segments etc.). The break module also creates categorical tags for each of these finite elements, where the categorical tags assigned to each of the finite elements are based upon and analysis (defined by the set of expert system rules) of the contents of each of the finite elements. The categorical tag can include a standard classification such as, for example, “Dewey Decimal-type” number. The categorical tag can also include an organizational attribute (such as pertaining to the type or location of the finite element with respect to the rest of the rest of the informational resource), a date-stamp, a categorical word, etc. Preferably, the categorical tags are inserted into the finite element.
The index module parses through the finite elements identified/created/processed by the break module and creates a searchable database having a database record for each of the finite elements identified by the break module. The searchable database is a type of reverse index, where each record includes an address or location of the corresponding finite element (and, in turn, the categorical tag included therewith), and strings (such as words, phrases, etc.) contained in the finite element and their frequency (i.e., their weight) within the finite element.
In applications where the users of the invention do not have control of the information being searched (i.e., Web pages on the Internet), each database record may also include the categorical tag, since the categorical tag will not be able to be inserted by the break module into the finite elements themselves. Furthermore, with the Web search application, it may not be necessary to utilize the break and un-break modules at all since each Web-page or link might be considered a finite-element for the purposes of the present invention.
Once the reverse index is created, a search of the reverse index may be performed. Key strings (such as key words, phrases or symbol segments) may be supplied by an end user as a search query, and a display hierarchy or criteria may also be selected or defined by the user. The selected display criteria will instruct the search module how to manipulate the data of the search results. Specifically, the selected display criteria will define if the search results are to be displayed in an order or structure based entirely upon the information contained within the categorical tags (research-centric), if the search results are to be displayed in an order depending entirely upon the frequency of the key strings present in the finite elements (conventional), or if the search results are to be displayed in an order or structure based upon a combination of the two (document-centric).
The search module accesses the search query and searches through the reverse index for database records matching the specific search term or query. The search results are then displayed in an collapsible/expandable (tree) structure by applying the information in the categorical tags for each of the finite elements satisfying the search criteria to the selected display hierarchy. For example, if the selected hierarchy is a document-centric hierarchy, a first level of the display hierarchy may be, for example, the year in which the finite element was created; a second level of the display hierarchy may be, for example, the order in which the finite elements appear in the document; and a third level of the display hierarchy may be, for example, based upon the frequency in which the search words appear in each of the finite elements. The operation of the search module, as with the break and index modules, is based upon a set of expert rules. Therefore, if the search results are not satisfactory, the expert rules in the break, index and/or search modules are modified and the procedure is performed again.
Once one of the finite elements in the search result display are selected by the end-user, the un-break module allows the end user to view a contiguous portion of the informational resource that the selected finite element belongs to. The un-break module will assemble selected finite element with other related finite element to reconstruct the contiguous portion of the informational resource. The un-break module refers to the categorical tag of the selected finite element for information related to the location of the finite element with respect to the entire informational resource, and will then build a portion of the informational resource from all of the finite elements belong to that portion. For example, if the selected finite element is a paragraph of a document, the un-break module may be configured to rebuild the chapter of the document to which the paragraph belongs. As with the other modules of the present invention, the operation of the un-break module is controlled by a set of expert rules that may be modified if the results are unsatisfactory.
It is envisioned that the rule sets will be created and refined by an expert on the document or information being searched. For example, if the system of the present invention is to be associated with Volume 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations, an individual (or group of individuals) with intimate knowledge of the Volume would be best suited to generate and fine-tune the rule sets. The fine-tuning of the rule sets wou
Choules Jack
Evresearch, Ltd.
Thompson Hine LLP
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