System and method for automatically grouping items

• US 20050165841A1
• Filed: 10/04/2004
• Published: 07/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Brodie, Alexander S., Kasperkiewicz, Tomasz S.M., Yuan, Po, Parlin, David R., Dart, Scott E., Xu, Jingyang, Frigon, Kathleen M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,441,186 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/51 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

A system and method for automatically grouping items, e.g., digital photographs, by analyzing the statistical distributions of at least one piece of information associated with each of the items, for instance, creation time, are provided. In one embodiment, the creation time may be converted into a numeric value and the numeric values placed in ascending order such that gaps between adjacent numeric values may be determined. Subsequently, a median difference may be determined as well as an optimum difference. The items may then be organized into groups such that an additional group is created each time the difference between the numeric value for an item and the numeric value for the adjacent item located therebelow in the ascending array is greater than the optimum difference.

Claims

1. A method for organizing a plurality of items into at least one group, comprising:

receiving at least one piece of information associated with each of the plurality of items, the at least one piece of information being stored in metadata;

converting the at least one piece of information for each of the plurality of items into a numeric value;

sorting the numeric values for each of the plurality of items into an ascending array;

determining a difference between each adjacent numeric value in the ascending array;

determining a median difference for the ascending array;

determining an optimum difference for the ascending array based upon the median difference; and

organizing the items into at least one group using the optimum difference.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving at least one piece of information associated with each of the plurality of items comprises receiving at least one time parameter associated with each of the plurality of items.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving at least one time parameter associated with each of the plurality of items comprises receiving a time of creation for each of the plurality of items.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining an optimum difference for the ascending array comprises determining a low threshold difference and a high threshold difference.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining the low threshold difference comprises determining a largest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is smaller than a sum of log(median difference) and log(22).

6. The method of claim 4, wherein determining the high threshold difference comprises determining a smallest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is larger than a sum of log(median difference) and log(326).

7. The method of claim 4, wherein determining an optimum difference for the ascending array further comprises determining a largest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is between the low threshold difference and the high threshold difference.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein determining an optimum difference for the ascending array further comprises determining the optimum difference such that log(optimum difference) is equal to one-half of the largest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is between the low threshold difference and the high threshold difference.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein organizing the items into at least one group comprises creating an additional group each time the difference between the numeric value for an item and the numeric value for the adjacent item located therebelow in the ascending array is greater than the optimum difference.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein determining an optimum difference for the ascending array comprises determining the optimum difference such that log(optimum difference) is equal to the sum of log(median difference) and log(40).

11. The method of claim 10, wherein organizing the items into at least one group comprises creating a new group each time the difference between the numeric value for an item and the numeric value for the adjacent item located therebelow in the ascending array is greater than the optimum difference.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the third determining component determines the optimum difference for the ascending array by determining a low threshold difference and a high threshold difference.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the third determining component determines the low threshold difference by determining a largest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is smaller than a sum of log(median difference) and log(22).

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the third determining component determines the high threshold difference by determining a smallest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is larger than a sum of log(median difference) and log(326).

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the third determining component further determines the optimum difference for the ascending by determining a largest difference between adjacent numeric values in the ascending array that is between the low threshold difference and the high threshold difference.

12. A computer system for organizing a plurality of items into at least one group, comprising:

a receiving component for receiving a creation time for each of the plurality of items, the creation time being stored in metadata;

a conversion component for converting the creation time for each of the plurality of items into a numeric value;

a sorting component for sorting the numeric values for each of the plurality of items into an ascending array;

a first determining component for determining a difference between each adjacent numeric value in the ascending array;

a second determining component for determining a median difference for the ascending array;

a third determining component for determining an optimum difference for the ascending array based upon the median difference; and

an organizing component for organizing the items into at least one group using the optimum difference.

17. The computer system of claim 12, wherein the organizing component organizes the items into at least one group by creating an additional group each time the difference between the numeric value for an item and the numeric value for the adjacent item located therebelow in the ascending array is greater than the optimum difference.

18. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a method, the method comprising:

receiving a creation time for each of the plurality of items, the creation time being stored in metadata;

converting the creation time for each of the plurality of items into a numeric value;

sorting the numeric values for each of the plurality of items into an ascending array;

determining a difference between each adjacent numeric value in the ascending array;

determining a median difference for the ascending array;

determining an optimum difference for the ascending array based upon the median difference; and

organizing the items into at least one group using the optimum difference.

19. A computer system for organizing a plurality of items into at least one group, the computer system comprising:

receiving means for receiving a creation time for each of the plurality of items, the creation time being stored in metadata;

converting means for converting the creation time for each of the plurality of items into a numeric value;

sorting means for sorting the numeric values for each of the plurality of items into an ascending array;

first determining means for determining a difference between each adjacent numeric value in the ascending array;

second determining means for determining a median difference for the ascending array;

third determining means for determining an optimum difference for the ascending array based upon the median difference; and

organizing means for organizing the items into at least one group using the optimum difference.