Readability and context identification and exploitation
First Claim
1. A method of ranking a set of documents according to readability criteria pertaining to a user, the method comprising the steps of:
- a. receiving criteria indicative of a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. receiving a user-supplied search query;
c. retrieving a list of documents relevant to the search query, the documents having contents;
d. analyzing the document contents against the received criteria; and
e. ranking the list of documents based at least in part on the analysis.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Search systems and methods address the subjective nature of the relevancy of matches to users'"'"' queries through the use of readability formulae. As a result, the documents are ranked by relevance not only to user queries, but specifically to the user. In one approach, the searchable web (or a searchable corpus of documents) is categorized on one or more servers. Each document is designated by reading level or other parameter(s) relevant to the user'"'"'s reading ability. In one embodiment, searching is carried out utilizing the user'"'"'s search query, and documents are ranked based on relevance to the query and on their degree of readability to the user—e.g., the degree to which the contents of each document correspond to the user'"'"'s reading level. Advertisement displays may be targeted to both the search tokens entered and the user'"'"'s age as determined from his reading level, rendering search-related advertisements significantly more effective in reaching their intended audiences.
100 Citations
32 Claims
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1. A method of ranking a set of documents according to readability criteria pertaining to a user, the method comprising the steps of:
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a. receiving criteria indicative of a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. receiving a user-supplied search query;
c. retrieving a list of documents relevant to the search query, the documents having contents;
d. analyzing the document contents against the received criteria; and
e. ranking the list of documents based at least in part on the analysis. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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- 13. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of providing the ranked list of documents to the user along with advertising selected, at least in part, based on the criteria.
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13-1. A method of searching a set of documents according to readability criteria pertaining to a user, the method comprising the steps of:
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a. receiving, at a client computer, criteria indicative of a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. receiving, at the client computer, a user-supplied query; and
c. receiving, at the client computer, a list of documents relevant to the query and ranked based at least in part on the received criteria.
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17. A method of targeting advertisements in conjunction with return of search results, the method comprising the steps of:
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a. receiving criteria indicative of a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. receiving a user-supplied search query;
c. retrieving a list of documents relevant to the search query, the documents having contents; and
d. providing a list of documents to the user along with advertising selected, at least in part, based on the criteria. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A system for ranking a set of documents according to readability criteria pertaining to a user, the system comprising:
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a. a module for determining a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. a search application for receiving a user-supplied search query and, based thereon, retrieving a list of documents relevant to the search query, the documents having contents; and
c. a module for analyzing the document contents against the received criteria and ranking the list of documents based at least in part on the analysis. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A system for targeting advertisements in conjunction with return of search results, the system comprising:
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a. a module for determining a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. a search application for receiving a user-supplied search query and, based thereon, retrieving a list of documents relevant to the search query, the documents having contents; and
c. an analysis module for facilitating selection of advertising based, at least in part, on the analysis. - View Dependent Claims (31)
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32. A computer-readable medium comprising executable instructions for ranking a set of documents according to readability criteria pertaining to a user, the medium comprising instructions for:
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a. receiving criteria indicative of a user'"'"'s reading level;
b. receiving a user-supplied search query;
c. retrieving a list of documents relevant to the search query, the documents having contents;
d. analyzing the document contents against the received criteria; and
e. ranking the list of documents based at least in part on the analysis.
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Specification