Systems and methods of using natural language processing for visual analysis of a data set

• US 10,515,121 B1
• Filed: 04/12/2017
• Issued: 12/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tableau Software Incorporated (Salesforce.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Tableau Software Incorporated (Salesforce.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Setlur, Vidya R., Battersby, Sarah E., Tory, Melanie K., Gossweiler, III, Richard C., Chang, Angel Xuan, Dykeman, Isaac J., Prince, Md Enamul Hoque
• Primary Examiner(s): Sharma, Neeraj
• Application Number:
  US15/486,265
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24522 Translation of natural language queries to structured queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2465 Query processing support for facilitating data mining operations in structured databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90332 Natural language query formulation or dialogue systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/211 Syntactic parsing, e.g. based on context-free grammar [CFG] or unification grammars
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/253 Grammatical analysis; Style critique
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/1815 Semantic context, e.g. disambiguation of the recognition hypotheses based on word meaning
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/223 Execution procedure of a spoken command

Abstract

A method of using natural language processing for visual analysis of a data set includes displaying a data visualization based on a dataset retrieved from a database using a set of one or more queries and receiving a user input to specify a natural language command related to the displayed data visualization. The method further includes, based on the displayed data visualization, extracting one or more independent analytic phrases from the natural language command. The method further includes requerying the database using an updated set of one or more queries based on the extracted analytic phrases, thereby retrieving an updated dataset and displaying an updated data visualization using the updated dataset.

Claims

1. A method of using natural language for visual analysis of a dataset, comprising:

at computer having a display, one or more processors, and memory storing one or more programs configured for execution by the one or more processors;

displaying a data visualization based on a dataset retrieved from a database using a set of one or more queries, wherein the data visualization is selected from the group consisting of a map, a line chart, a bar chart, and a scatter plot;

receiving a first user input to specify a natural language command related to the displayed data visualization;

based on the displayed data visualization, extracting a first analytic phrase from the natural language command, the first analytic phrase including range of values for a first data field in the dataset;

displaying an editable user interface control corresponding to the first data field, wherein the user interface control displays the initial range of values;

receiving a second user input at the user interface control, the second user input specifying a modified range of values for the first data field;

requerying the database using an updated set of one or more queries based on the modified range of values, thereby retrieving an updated dataset; and

updating the displayed data visualization using the updated dataset.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user input is received as text input from a user in a data-entry region on the display in proximity to the displayed data visualization.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user input is received as a voice command using a microphone coupled to the electronic device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first analytic phrase is a filter command.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising iterating the steps of receiving, extracting, displaying, receiving, requerying, and updating a plurality of times.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the natural language command is a question.

7. A computing device, comprising:

one or more processors;

memory;

a display; and

one or more programs stored in the memory and configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more programs comprising instructions for;

displaying a data visualization based on a dataset retrieved from a database using a set of one or more queries, wherein the data visualization is selected from the group consisting of a map, a line chart, a bar chart, and a scatter plot;

receiving a first user input to specify a natural language command related to the displayed data visualization;

based on the displayed data visualization, extracting a first analytic phrase from the natural language command, the first analytic phrase including an initial range of values for a first data field in the dataset;

displaying an editable user interface control corresponding to the first data field, wherein the user interface control displays the initial range of values;

receiving a second user input at the user interface control, the second user input specifying a modified range of values for the first data field;

requerying the database using an updated set of one or more queries based on the modified range of values, thereby retrieving an updated dataset; and

updating the displayed data visualization using the updated dataset.

8. The computing device of claim 7, wherein the first user input is received as text input from a user in a data-entry region on the display in proximity to the displayed data visualization.

9. The computing device of claim 7, wherein the first user input is received as a voice command using a microphone coupled to the electronic device.

10. The computing device of claim 7, wherein the first analytic phrase is a filter command.

11. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs configured for execution by a computing device having one or more processors, memory, and a display, the one or more programs comprising instructions for:

displaying a data visualization based on a dataset retrieved from a database using a set of one or more queries, wherein the data visualization is selected from the group consisting of a map, a line chart, a bar chart, and a scatter plot;

receiving a first user input to specify a natural language command related to the displayed data visualization;

based on the displayed data visualization, extracting a first analytic phrase from the natural language command, the first analytic phrase including an initial range of values for a first data field in the dataset;

displaying an editable user interface control corresponding to the first data field, wherein the user interface control displays the initial range of values;

receiving a second user input at the user interface control the second user input specifying a modified range of values for the first data field;

requerying the database using an updated set of one or more queries based on the modified range of values, thereby retrieving an updated dataset; and

updating the displayed data visualization using the updated dataset.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the first user input is received as text input from a user in a data-entry region on the display in proximity to the displayed data visualization.

13. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the first user input is received as a voice command using a microphone coupled to the electronic device.

14. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the first analytic phrase is a filter command.