Application view index and search

• US 10,592,572 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2015
• Issued: 03/17/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Salim, David, Prakash, Vipul Ved, Hornkvist, John M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mobin, Hasanul
• Application Number:
  US14/871,963
• Publication Number:
  US 20160357763A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,630 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking

Abstract

A method and apparatus of a device that indexes an application state in a search query index. In this embodiment, receiving the application state of the application from another device coupled to the server. The device further generates a view of the application corresponding to the application state, wherein the view is a representation of a user interface of the application corresponding to the application state. In addition, the device indexes the view in a search query index.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause one or more processing units to perform a method to index a plurality of application state views in a search query index, the method comprising:

receiving, with a server, a plurality of application states of the application from a device coupled to the server and the application state is generated from the device and the device removes private information from the application state prior to sending the application state for indexing;

generating, with the server, the plurality of application state views of this application corresponding to the plurality of application states, wherein each of the plurality of application state views is a representation of a user interface of the application corresponding to that application state and the server is a device different from the device that generated the application state, the application state has been engaged a requisite number of times, wherein the generating of each of the plurality of application state views comprises,

executing the application using one of the plurality of application states corresponding to that application state view on a virtual device hosted by the server; and

capturing a screen image of the user interface of the application corresponding to that application state view; and

indexing the plurality of application state views in a search query index.

2. The machine-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

linking each one of the plurality of application state views to a plurality of index entries for the application state.

3. The machine-readable medium of claim 2, wherein the index entry is part of an index, wherein the index includes a plurality of index entries of application states for a plurality of applications that originate from a plurality of devices coupled to the server.

4. The machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the application state includes data representing a snapshot in time of an application for that application state.

5. The machine-readable medium of claim 2, wherein the index entry includes information selected from the group of a title, searchable data, and application specific opaque data.

6. The machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the view is an image.

7. The machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the view is an image with multiple frames.

10. The machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the private information is user data.

14. The machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the plurality of application state views are displayed in an application store for the application.

8. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause one or more processing units to perform a method to retrieve an application state having an associated view with a query result, the method comprising:

sending a query to a server;

receiving a result to the query from the server, wherein the result includes the view of an application state of an application corresponding to the result, the view is a representation of a user interface of the application corresponding to the application state, and the application state is generated from a remote device, the application state has been engaged a requisite number of times, and the remote device removes private information from the application state prior to sending the application state for indexing, wherein the generation comprises,

simulating, with a view device, the application with the application state, and

capturing a screen image of the user interface of the application corresponding to the application state; and

presenting the result with an indication of the view.

9. The machine-readable medium of claim 8, further comprising:

presenting the view in response to a gesture by a user.

11. The machine-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the private information is user data.

12. A method comprising:

receiving, with a server, a plurality of application state views of the application from a device coupled to the server and the application state is generated from the device and the device removes private information from the application state prior to sending the application state for indexing;

generating, with the server, the plurality of application state views of the application corresponding to the plurality of application states, wherein each of the plurality of application state views is a representation of a user interface of the application corresponding to that application state and the server is a device different from the device that generated the application state, the application state has been engaged a requisite number of times, wherein the generation of each of the plurality of application state views comprises,

simulating, with a view device, the application with the application state corresponding to that application state view, and

capturing a screen image of the user interface of the application corresponding to that application state view; and

indexing the plurality of application state views in a search query index.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of application state views are displayed in an application store for the application.

13. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause one or more processing units to perform a method to retrieve an application state having an associated view with a query result, the method comprising:

sending a query to a server;

receiving a result to the query from the server, wherein the result includes the view of an application state of an application corresponding to the result the view is a representation of a user interface of the application corresponding to the application state, and the application state is generated from a remote device, the view is generated using a view device that is different from the remote device that generated the application state, the application state has been engaged a requisite number of times, and the remote device removes private information from the application state prior to sending the application state for indexing, wherein the generating comprises,

executing the application on a virtual device hosted by the server; and

capturing a screen image of the user interface of the application corresponding to the application state; and

presenting the result with an indication of the view.