Cognitive reminder notification mechanisms for answers to questions

• US 10,169,326 B2
• Filed: 05/22/2015
• Issued: 01/01/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Allen, Corville O., Bradley, Lisa M. W., Carlson, Christina R., Freed, Andrew R., Henderson, Roderick C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vincent, David R.
• Application Number:
  US14/719,473
• Publication Number:
  US 20160342886A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,320 Days
• Field of Search: 706 12, 706 15, 706 45
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24522 Translation of natural language queries to structured queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3344 using natural language analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/295 Named entity recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 3/006 based on simulated virtual individual or collective life forms, e.g. social simulations or particle swarm optimisation [PSO]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting

Abstract

A data processing system generates a result of processing a natural language query. A determination is made as to whether the natural language query or the result has a temporal characteristic. In response, a reminder notification data structure is generated having an associated scheduled reminder notification time for outputting a reminder notification of the result generated for the natural language query. The reminder notification data structure is stored in a data storage device and, at a later time from a time that the reminder notification data structure was stored in the data storage device, in response to the later time being equal to or later than the scheduled reminder notification time, a reminder notification is output to a client device associated with a user. The reminder notification specifies the result generated for the natural language query.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having a computer readable program stored therein, wherein the computer readable program, when executed on a computing device implementing a natural language processing system, causes the computing device to:

generate, by the natural language processing system, a result of processing a natural language query;

determine that at least one of the natural language query or the result comprises a temporal characteristic;

generate, in response to determining that at least one of the natural language query or the result comprises a temporal characteristic, a reminder notification data structure having an associated scheduled reminder notification time for outputting a reminder notification of the result generated for the natural language query;

store the reminder notification data structure in a data storage device; and

output, at a later time from a time that the reminder notification data structure was stored in the data storage device, in response to the later time being equal to or later than the scheduled reminder notification time, a reminder notification to a client device associated with a user, wherein the reminder notification specifies the result generated for the natural language query and a historical listing that specifies a history of changes to the result occurring from a time that the result was originally generated for the natural language query and the scheduled reminder notification time, wherein the historical listing includes at least one change from the time that the result was originally generated for the natural language query and the scheduled reminder notification time.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the natural language processing system is a Question and Answer (QA) system, the natural language query is a natural language question input to the QA system, and the result is an answer generated by the QA system for the natural language question.

3. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the natural language processing system is a search engine, the natural language query is a search query input to the search engine, and the result comprises at least one search result generated by the search engine.

4. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the computer readable program causes the computing device to generate a reminder notification data structure at least by:

in response to determining that at least one of the natural language query or the result comprises a temporal characteristic, outputting an option to the client device of the user to create the reminder notification data structure, wherein the reminder notification data structure is created in response to the user selecting the option.

5. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:

identify temporal characteristics of the natural language query;

identify temporal characteristics of the result; and

calculate the scheduled reminder notification time based on the temporal characteristics of the natural language query and the temporal characteristics of the result.

6. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein at least one of the temporal characteristics of the natural language query or temporal characteristics of the result are identified by identifying at least one of time-based keywords or key phrases, concept relationships associated with time in language of the natural language query or result, a lexical answer type or focus of the natural language query or result that is associated with time, or implicit timing aspects within the natural language query or result.

7. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the computer readable program causes the computing device to identify the temporal characteristics of the natural language query at least by identifying a temporal characteristic of a domain associated with the natural language query.

8. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:

automatically check for a change in the result at a time between the current time and the scheduled reminder notification time;

determine, in response to a change in the result being identified, whether the change in the result is significant enough to send a change notification to the user; and

output, in response to the change in the result being significant enough to send a change notification to the user, a notification of the change in the result to the client device associated with the user.

9. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the scheduled reminder notification time is a time calculated based on at least one of an arbitrarily selected default timeframe, a default timeframe associated with a domain of the natural language query, or a user specified default timeframe, prior to a temporal characteristic of the result.

20. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the historical listing includes various results and corresponding date/time information indicating when each change was detected.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor, wherein the memory comprises instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

generate, by a natural language processing system implemented by the processor, a result of processing a natural language query;

determine that at least one of the natural language query or the result comprises a temporal characteristic;

generate, in response to determining that at least one of the natural language query or the result comprises a temporal characteristic, a reminder notification data structure having an associated scheduled reminder notification time for outputting a reminder notification of the result generated for the natural language query;

store the reminder notification data structure in a data storage device; and

output, at a later time from a time that the reminder notification data structure was stored in the data storage device, in response to the later time being equal to or later than the scheduled reminder notification time, a reminder notification to a client device associated with a user, wherein the reminder notification specifies the result generated for the natural language query and a historical listing that specifies a history of changes to the result occurring from a time that the result was originally generated for the natural language query and the scheduled reminder notification time, wherein the historical listing includes at least one change from the time that the result was originally generated for the natural language query and the scheduled reminder notification time.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the natural language processing system is a Question and Answer (QA) system, the natural language query is a natural language question input to the QA system, and the result is an answer generated by the QA system for the natural language question.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the natural language processing system is a search engine, the natural language query is a search query input to the search engine, and the result comprises at least one search result generated by the search engine.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the instructions cause the processor to generate a reminder notification data structure at least by:

in response to determining that at least one of the natural language query or the result comprises a temporal characteristic, outputting an option to the client device of the user to create the reminder notification data structure, wherein the reminder notification data structure is created in response to the user selecting the option.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

identify temporal characteristics of the natural language query;

identify temporal characteristics of the result; and

calculate the scheduled reminder notification time based on the temporal characteristics of the natural language query and the temporal characteristics of the result.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein at least one of the temporal characteristics of the natural language query or temporal characteristics of the result are identified by identifying at least one of time-based keywords or key phrases, concept relationships associated with time in language of the natural language query or result, a lexical answer type or focus of the natural language query or result that is associated with time, or implicit timing aspects within the natural language query or result.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the instructions cause the processor to identify the temporal characteristics of the natural language query at least by identifying a temporal characteristic of a domain associated with the natural language query.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

automatically check for a change in the result at a time between the current time and the scheduled reminder notification time;

determine, in response to a change in the result being identified, whether the change in the result is significant enough to send a change notification to the user; and

output, in response to the change in the result being significant enough to send a change notification to the user, a notification of the change in the result to the client device associated with the user.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the scheduled reminder notification time is a time calculated based on at least one of an arbitrarily selected default timeframe, a default timeframe associated with a domain of the natural language query, or a user specified default timeframe, prior to a temporal characteristic of the result.

19. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the historical listing includes various results and corresponding date/time information indicating when each change was detected.