Extensible framework for ereader tools, including named entity information

• US 10,102,187 B2
• Filed: 05/15/2015
• Issued: 10/16/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Worsley, Frank Ronald, Bedrax-Weiss, Tania, Murray, Abraham Phelps, Dickinson, Dana L., Vemula, Gopal Venu, Buryak, Kirill
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsui, Wilson W
• Application Number:
  US14/713,787
• Publication Number:
  US 20150248380A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,250 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3323 using document space presentation or visualization, e.g. category, hierarchy or range presentation and selection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/382 using citations hypermedia G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9017 using directory or table look-up use of a directory or look-up table in file systems G06F16/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/902 using more than one table in sequence, i.e. systems with three or more layers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/114 Pagination
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/295 Named entity recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

Information about named entities referenced in an electronic book (ebook) is provided to a client device. An ebook identifier identifying the ebook is received from the client device. A set of layers available for use with the ebook is determined. The layers in the set provide information associated with the ebook and a layer in the set provides information associated with named entities referenced in content of the ebook. A content range identifying a range of content of the ebook for which layer information is requested and an identification of one or more of the layers in the set for which layer information is requested is received from the client device. Layer information associated with the ebook content identified by the content range for the identified layers is transmitted to the client device. The transmitted layer information includes information associated with named entities referenced by ebook content.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of providing information about content of an electronic book (ebook) displayed at a client device, the method comprising:

determining a set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device, one or more layers of the set of layers providing one or more types of information associated with one or more types of ebook content at one or more positions in the ebook;

transmitting, to the client device, a list identifying the available layers in the set;

receiving, from the client device, an identification of a layer, from one or more matching layers, that was launched by the client device and a position range of activated ebook content, the one or more matching layers determined, from the list of available layers, as being able to interact with the activated ebook content according to a type of the activated ebook content;

translating the received position range to a translated position range associated with an indexed version of the ebook different from a client version of the ebook displayed at the client device;

identifying the layer information associated with the ebook content identified by the translated position range, the layer information identified specific to the launched layer; and

transmitting, to the client device, the identified layer information for display in conjunction with the activated ebook content identified by the received position range.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying additional layer information associated with additional ebook content adjacent to the activated ebook content identified by the translated position range, the additional layer information identified specific to the launched layer; and

transmitting the additional layer information to the client device.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, from the client device, a user identifier identifying a user of the client device,

wherein determining the set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device comprises:

determining a set of user layers available to the user identified by the user identifier; and

filtering the set of user layers based on book layer data indicating layers that are available for the ebook to obtain the set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,

wherein the layer that was launched by the client device includes a named entity layer,

wherein identifying the layer information comprises:

identifying one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content identified by the translated position range; and

obtaining entity data for the one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content identified by the received position range, and

wherein the identified layer information includes the obtained entity data for the one or more named entities.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein obtaining the entity data for the one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content comprises obtaining entity data for one or more types of the one or more named entities, the one or more types of the one or more named entities selected from a set of named entity types consisting of:

date entities, person entities, and geographic location entities.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the obtained entity data is for a plurality of types of the one or more named entities and wherein obtaining the entity data comprises:

obtaining generic entity data common to multiple types of named entities; and

obtaining special entity data specific to a particular type of named entity.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein obtaining the entity data comprises obtaining entity summary data describing an overview of multiple named entities that are referenced by the activated ebook content.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable computer program instructions for providing information about content of an electronic book (ebook) that is displayed at a client device, the computer program instructions comprising instructions for:

determining a set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device, one or more layers of the set of layers providing one or more types of information associated with one or more types of ebook content at one or more positions in the ebook;

transmitting, to the client device, a list identifying the available layers in the set;

receiving, from the client device, an identification of a layer from one or more matching layers that was launched by the client device and a position range of activated ebook content, the one or more matching layers determined, from the list of available layers, as being able to interact with the activated ebook content according to a type of the activated ebook content;

translating the received position range to a translated position range associated with a translated version of the ebook different from a client version of the ebook displayed at the client device; and

identifying the layer information associated with the ebook content identified by the translated position range, the layer information identified specific to the launched layer; and

transmitting, to the client device, the identified layer information for display in conjunction with the activated ebook content identified by the received position range.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the computer program instructions further comprise instructions for:

identifying additional layer information associated with additional ebook content adjacent to the activated ebook content identified by the translated position range, the additional layer information identified specific to the launched layer; and

transmitting the additional layer information to the client device.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, further comprising receiving, from the client device, a user identifier identifying a user of the client device,

wherein determining the set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device comprises:

determining a set of user layers available to the user identified by the user identifier; and

filtering the set of user layers based on book layer data indicating layers that are available for the ebook to obtain the set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8,

wherein the layer that was launched by the client device includes a named entity layer,

wherein identifying the layer information comprises:

identifying one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content identified by the translated position range; and

obtaining entity data for the one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content identified by the received position range, and

wherein the identified layer information includes the obtained entity data for the one or more named entities.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein obtaining the entity data for the one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content comprises:

obtaining entity data for one or more types of the one or more named entities, the one or more types of the one or more named entities selected from a set of named entity types consisting of;

date entities, person entities, and geographic location entities.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the obtained entity data is for a plurality of types of the one or more named entities and wherein obtaining the entity data comprises:

obtaining generic entity data common to multiple types of named entities; and

obtaining special entity data specific to a particular type of named entity.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein obtaining the entity data comprises:

obtaining entity summary data describing an overview of multiple named entities that are referenced by the activated ebook content.

15. A computer for providing information about content of an electronic book (ebook) that is displayed at a client device, the computer comprising:

a processor; and

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer program instructions executable by the processor, the instructions comprising instructions for;

determining a set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device, one or more layers of the set of layers providing one or more types of information associated with one or more types of ebook content at one or more positions in the ebook;

transmitting, to the client device, a list identifying the available layers in the set, the client device using the list for;

identifying activated ebook content activated by the user and a position range of the activated ebook content;

determining, from the list of available layers, one or more matching layers that can be used to interact with the activated ebook content according to a type of the activated ebook content; and

launching a layer from the one or more matching layers with respect to the activated content;

receiving, from the client device, the position range and an identification of the launched layer;

translating the received position range to a translated position range associated with a translated version of the ebook different from a client version of the ebook displayed at the client device; and

identifying the layer information associated with the ebook content identified by the translated position range, the layer information identified specific to the launched layer; and

transmitting, to the client device, the identified layer information for display in conjunction with the activated ebook content identified by the received position range.

16. The computer of claim 15, wherein the computer program instructions further comprise instructions for:

identifying additional layer information associated with additional ebook content adjacent to the activated ebook content identified by the translated position range, the additional layer information identified specific to the launched layer; and

transmitting the additional layer information to the client device.

17. The computer of claim 15, further comprising instructions for receiving, from the client device, a user identifier identifying a user of the client device,

wherein determining the set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device comprises:

determining a set of user layers available to the user identified by the user identifier; and

filtering the set of user layers based on book layer data indicating layers that are available for the ebook to obtain the set of layers available for use with the ebook displayed at the client device.

18. The computer of claim 15,

wherein the layer that was launched by the client device includes a named entity layer,

wherein identifying the layer information comprises:

identifying one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content identified by the translated position range; and

obtaining entity data for the one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content identified by the received position range, and

wherein the identified layer information includes the obtained entity data for the one or more named entities.

19. The computer of claim 18, wherein obtaining the entity data for the one or more named entities referenced by the activated ebook content comprises obtaining entity data for one or more types of the one or more named entities, the one or more types of the one or more named entities selected from a set of named entity types consisting of:

date entities, person entities, and geographic location entities.

20. The computer of claim 18, wherein the obtained entity data is for a plurality of types of the one or more named entities and wherein obtaining the entity data comprises:

obtaining generic entity data common to multiple types of named entities; and

obtaining special entity data specific to a particular type of named entity.