e-Stract: a process for knowledge-based retrieval of electronic information
First Claim
1. A process to create, operate and exploit Networks of Qualified Knowledge:
- a. Said networks host knowledge about select electronic information (“
document”
) relevant to their domain of discourse. b. Access to such knowledge is enabled through context-directed retrieval. c. Said process facilitates the linking of quality information with means for interaction and collaborative problem solving.
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Abstract
This invention addresses the problems of current search techniques on the Internet—volume, ranking, difficulty to assess—and extends the solution to all kinds of electronic information accessible through networks and databases. The solution principle engages the help of specialists in particular domains and supplies them with tools to effectively scour the information resources for high quality information in their field, to commit that knowledge to distributed databases, to construct dedicated knowledge environments, and to submit corresponding context information to centralized registries. End users implicitly access mirrored services of these registries and use the context information to focus their searches onto the resources qualified by the expert network. Many of the individual techniques involved in building the tools for deployment, operation and exploitation of such “Networks of Qualified Knowledge” are well known and may in the future be replaced by more effective techniques. The essence of the invention lies in the way these techniques are put to use to implement the presented process.
156 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A process to create, operate and exploit Networks of Qualified Knowledge:
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a. Said networks host knowledge about select electronic information (“
document”
) relevant to their domain of discourse.b. Access to such knowledge is enabled through context-directed retrieval. c. Said process facilitates the linking of quality information with means for interaction and collaborative problem solving.
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2. A process to create knowledge about select electronic information. Said process includes:
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a. Acquisition of raw information from a plurality of electronic information sources, including but not limited to, local and remote files and data directories, databases, Internet. b. Extraction of Key items through analysis of the source information, to identify terms, phrases, shapes, sequences or patterns. c. Pattern and distribution analysis of key items to determine role and relevance (“
rating”
) for each key item in the document.d. A fuzzy-logic based technique to derive intrinsic contextual information through matching of weighted key item patterns. e. A vicinity technique to derive external contextual information from information sources that reference the document under consideration f. A fitting technique that exploits the results of d. (intrinsic context) and e. (external context) to consolidate the context evaluation of the document considered and to enrich the set of context definitions. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A process to elucidate knowledge recorded in k-bases. [Elucidation in this context deals with augmenting existing knowledge by structuring it, associating it with other knowledge, complementing it with means for interaction, and annotating it to form a knowledge node (k-node) for particular target audiences]. Said process includes:
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a. Connectivity to qualified knowledge sources (k-bases and other k-nodes). b. A toolset to build structured k-nodes as dedicated knowledge delivery environments. c. A technique to control access to the resources of a k-node by individuals and groups. d. Support for team-based problem solving. e. Personalized remote visibility control of k-node resources - View Dependent Claims (11)
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12. A process to distribute k-node objects across a virtual network for context-directed retrieval. Said process includes:
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a. A centralized submission mechanism for e-Stract objects characterized by their type and associated contexts. [Centralized does not mean unique;
each Network of Qualified Knowledge may boast its own registry].b. A distribution mechanism of submitted context information to end-users through computer networks. - View Dependent Claims (13)
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14. A process for context-directed retrieval of e-Stract objects and associated services. Said process includes:
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a. A mechanism for implicit connection to the context network and efficient focusing on contexts of interest. b. A mechanism to launch searches, optionally refined by Boolean expressions, on all (and only those) k-nodes that satisfy the given context conditions. c. A mechanism to receive and display the results, and enable the available services. - View Dependent Claims (15)
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Specification