Method for obtaining a unified information graph from multiple information resouces

• US 20020138469A1
• Filed: 12/03/2001
• Published: 09/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Systems Israel Ltd. (Adobe Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Mercado Software Ltd.
• Inventors: Karov, Yael, Horovitz, Oren
• Granted Patent: US 6,553,367 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A method for dynamically obtaining a unified classification information graph which provides a navigation system for a user to access sought information. The method includes providing multiple information resources that include a hierarchy of categories that are associated, each, with a category. Leaf categories in the hierarchy are connected to information pages. The method further provides generating a unified classification information graph by using the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the multiple information resources. The unified classification graph includes a hierarchy of unified categories. Leaf unified categories in the hierarchy are connected to information pages, whereby, information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the multiple information resources are also accessible through the hierarchy of the unified classification information graph.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically obtaining a unified classification information graph (UCIG), the UCIG providing a navigation system for a user to access sought information, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a plurality of information resources not all necessarily having the same conceptualization system, each resource including a respective hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in each hierarchy being connected to information pages; and

(b) generating a UGIC by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks using at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the information resources, the UCIG including a unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories being connected to information pages of the plurality of information resources,

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the plurality of information resources are also accessible through the unified hierarchy of categories of the UCIG.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein at least some of the provided information resources are located in World Wide Web sites on the Internet.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein at least some of the provided information resources are located in databases.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein at least some of the provided information resources are located in on-line catalogs.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising associating categories in the hierarchy of categories in the plurality of information resources with hyperlinks.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising associating categories in the hierarchy of categories in the plurality of information resources with menus.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the step of providing the plurality of information resources further includes:

(i) initializing to generate for each information resource a link graph that corresponds to the information resource, each link graphs including one or more link graph categories;

(ii) normalizing the one or more link graph categories of each link graph to generate a classification graph for the information resource that includes classification graph categories; and

(iii) unifying the classification graphs to generate the UCIG.

8. A method according to claim 7, further comprising providing a URL pointer of an on-line catalog for generating the link graph.

9. A machine having a memory containing data representing a unified classification information graph that was generated by the method of claim 1.

10. A memory storing data for access by an application program, the application program accessible to a user through a user interface for the user to access sought information, the application program being executed on a data processing system, the data comprising:

a data structure including a unified classification information graph generated by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks from a plurality of information resources not necessarily all having the same conceptualization system, the plurality of information resources providing access to information pages, the unified classification graph including a unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the unified hierarchy being connected to information pages of the information resources,

such that information pages accessible through the information resources are also accessible through the hierarchy of the unified classification information graph.

11. A system for dynamically obtaining a unified classification information graph that provides a navigation system for a user to access sought information, the system comprising:

an input device receiving a plurality of information resources not all necessarily having the same conceptualization system, the information resources each including a respective hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the hierarchy being connected to information pages; and

a generator to generate a unified classification information graph by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks utilizing at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the information resources, the unified classification information graph including a unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories being connected to information pages of the plurality of information resources,

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the information resources are also accessible through the unified hierarchy of the unified classification information graph.

12. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein at least some of the information resources are located in sites of the Internet.

13. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein at least some of the information resources are located in databases.

14. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein at least some of the information resources are located in on-line catalogs.

15. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein categories in the hierarchy of categories in the information resources are associated with hyperlinks.

16. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein categories in the hierarchy of categories in the information resources are associated with menus.

17. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein the generator includes:

an initialization unit for generating a respective link graph corresponding to each information resource, each link graph including link graph categories;

a normalization unit for normalizing the link graph categories to generate for each link graph a corresponding classification graph that includes classification graph categories; and

a unifying unit for unifying the classification graphs to generate the unified classification information graph.

18. A system according to claim 17, wherein generating one of the link graphs includes providing a URL pointer of an on-line catalog.

20. A method as recited in claim 19, further comprising the step of identifying the at least one information page in the unified classification information graph that is connected to the categories of the unified graph.

19. A method for retrieving information of interest using a unified classification information graph (UCIG), the UCIG providing a navigation system for a user to access sought information, the UCIG generated by a process including:

providing a plurality of information resources not necessarily having the same conceptualization system, each resource including a respective hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in each hierarchy being connected to information pages; and

generating a UGIC by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks using at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the information resources, the UCIG including a unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories being connected to information pages of the plurality of information resources,

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the plurality of information resources are also accessible through the unified hierarchy of categories of the UCIG,

the method comprising;

providing a user query; and

identifying unified categories in the unified classification information graph which substantially match the query.

21. A system for retrieving information of interest using a unified classification information graph (UCIG), the UCIG generated by a process including:

providing a plurality of information resources not necessarily having the same conceptualization system, each resource including a respective hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in each hierarchy being connected to information pages; and

generating a UGIC by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks using at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the information resources, the UCIG including a unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories being connected to information pages of the plurality of information resources,

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the plurality of information resources are also accessible through the unified hierarchy of categories of the UCIG,

the system comprising;

an interface for receiving a user query; and

an identifier identifying unified categories in the unified classification information graph which substantially match the query.

22. A system as recited in claim 21, wherein in the case of the identifier identifying a particular category that substantially matches the query and that is a leaf category attached to one or more particular information pages, the identifier also identifies the one or more particular information pages.

24. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein at least some of the provided additional information resources are located in sites of the Internet.

25. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein at least some of the provided additional information resources are located in databases.

26. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein at least some of the provided additional information resources are located in on-line catalogs.

27. A method as recited in claim 23, further comprising associating categories in the hierarchy of categories in the provided additional information resources with hyperlinks.

28. A method as recited in claim 23, further comprising associating categories in the hierarchy of categories in the provided additional information resources with menus.

29. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein generating the updated unified classification information graph includes:

(i) initializing to generate for each provided additional information resource a link graph that corresponds to the information resource, each link graph including link graph categories;

(ii) normalizing the link graph categories of each link graph to generate one or more classification graphs that correspond to the one or more link graphs and that each includes classification graph categories; and

(iii) unifying the one or more classification graphs with the provided unified classification information graph to generate the updated unified classification information graph.

30. A method according to claim 29, further comprising providing a URL pointer of an on-line catalog for generating the link graph.

23. A method for dynamically updating a provided unified hierarchy of categories representable by a unified classification information graph (UCIG), leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories connected to information pages of a first plurality of information pages, the UCIG providing a navigation system for a user to access sought information, the method comprising the steps of:

providing one or more additional information resources that each includes a hierarchy of categories, all the additional information resources not necessarily having the same conceptualization system, leaf categories in the hierarchy of any of the additional information resources being connected to information pages of a second plurality of information pages;

providing the unified classification graph of the unified hierarchy of categories; and

generating an updated unified classification information graph by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks utilizing at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the additional information resources, the updated unified classification graph including the provided unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the updated unified classification graph being connected to information pages of the first and second plurality of information pages;

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the additional information resources are also accessible through the updated unified classification information graph.

31. A carrier medium carrying one or more computer readable code segments to cause the one or more processors of a computer system to dynamically generate a unified classification information graph (UCIG), the UCIG providing a navigation system for a user to access sought information, the carrier medium comprising:

for a provided plurality of information resources, the information resources not necessarily having the same conceptualization system, each resource including a respective hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in each hierarchy being connected to information pages, code to cause the one or more processors to generating a UGIC by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks using at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the UCIG including a unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories being connected to information pages of the plurality of information resources,

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the plurality of information resources are also accessible through the unified hierarchy of categories of the UCIG.

32. A carrier medium as recited in claim 31, wherein at least some of the provided information resources are located in World Wide Web sites on the Internet.

33. A carrier medium as recited in claim 31, wherein at least some of the provided information resources are located in databases.

34. A carrier medium as recited in claim 31, wherein at least some of the provided information resources are located in on-line catalogs.

35. A carrier medium as recited in claim 31, wherein categories in the hierarchy of categories in the plurality of information resources are associated with hyperlinks.

36. A carrier medium as recited in claim 31, wherein categories in the hierarchy of categories in the plurality of information resources are associated with menus.

37. A carrier medium as recited in claim 31, further comprising:

wherein the step of providing the plurality of information resources further includes;

code to cause the one or more processors to generate for each information resource a link graph that corresponds to the information resource, each link graph including one or more link graph categories;

code to cause the one or more processors to normalize the one or more link graph categories of each link graph to generate for each link graph a classification graphs that includes classification graph categories; and

code to cause the one or more processors to unify the classification graphs to generate the UCIG.

38. A carrier medium according to claim 37, wherein the generating of the link graph uses a provided URL pointer of an on-line catalog.

40. A method as recited in claim 39, wherein generating the updated unified classification information graph includes:

(i) initializing to generate for each provided additional information resource a link graph that corresponds to the information resource, each link graph including link graph categories;

(ii) normalizing the link graph categories of each link graph to generate one or more classification graphs that correspond to the one or more link graphs and that each includes classification graph categories; and

(iii) unifying the one or more classification graphs with the provided unified classification information graph to generate the updated unified classification information graph.

39. A method for dynamically updating a provided unified hierarchy of categories representable by a unified classification information graph (UCIG), leaf categories in the unified hierarchy of categories connected to information pages of a first plurality of information pages, the UCIG providing a navigation system for a user to access sought information, the method comprising the steps of:

providing one or more additional information resources that each includes a hierarchy of categories, all the additional information resources not necessarily having the same conceptualization system, leaf categories in the hierarchy of any of the additional information resources being connected to information pages of a second plurality of information pages;

providing the unified classification graph of the unified hierarchy of categories; and

generating an updated unified classification information graph by carrying out knowledge acquisition tasks utilizing at least the hierarchy of categories and the categories of the additional information resources, the updated unified classification graph including an updated unified hierarchy of categories, leaf categories in the updated unified hierarchy of categories being connected to information pages of the first and second plurality of information pages;

such that information pages accessible through the hierarchy of the additional information resources are also accessible through the updated unified hierarchy of the updated unified classification information graph.