Generating search results based on determined relationships between data objects and user connections to identified destinations

• US 20070124296A1
• Filed: 11/29/2005
• Published: 05/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Toebes, John
• Granted Patent: US 7,895,223 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/903 Querying for retrieval from the web G06F16/953
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques

Abstract

A search system generates an ordered list of destination targets including identified individuals and data objects, based on applying a user context to an information context and to a connection context. The user context identifies a search context (i.e., the information the user is seeking) relative to an identity of the user, and the information context identifies destinations accessible by the user, including data objects and communications-based actions (e.g., voice over IP telephony calls, instant messaging session transcripts, etc.). The connection context identifies relationships between chosen destinations throughout the system, and the strength of those relationships determined from artifacts of the chosen destinations: the connection context is updated based on artifact detection. The portion of the connection context that is relevant to the user context is used to order the portion of the information context that is relevant to the user context, resulting in the ordered list of destination targets.

Claims

1. A method for searching a system, the method including:

receiving a user context that identifies a search context relative to an identity of a user seeking a search result;

identifying a portion of a connection context as relevant to the user context, the connection context identifying relationships between chosen destinations reachable throughout the system, each of the relationships having a strength determined from artifacts of the chosen destinations, a subset of the artifacts identifying destinations having been chosen independent of any search result; and

generating as the search result an ordered list of destination targets, including selected identified individuals and selected data objects determined as relevant to the user context, including ordering the ordered list according to the portion of the connection context.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the selected identified individuals and the selected data objects, relevant to the user context, from an information context identifying destinations in the system that are accessible by the user, the destinations including data objects and connections to identified individuals.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the selected identified individuals specified in the ordered list of destination targets provide, for a given identified individual, a link to any one of:

user profile information of the given identified individual, initiation of an IP Phone call to the given identified individual, meeting availability for the given identified individual, sending a message to given identified individual, accessing stored messages related to the given identified individual, and accessing stored documents related to the given identified individual.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating includes inserting within the search result the user context for submission thereof in response to any search refinement of the search result by the user, the method further comprising updating the search context of the user context into an updated search context in response to a detected artifact indicating a new chosen destination by the user following the search result, the updated search context reflecting the new chosen destination relative to the new chosen destination.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising generating a second search result that includes updating the updated search context to a second updated search context in response to subsequent detected artifacts indicating refinements of the search result.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising updating at least one of the relationships identified by the connection context based on the second updated search context identifying a change in the corresponding strength of the one relationship.

7. The method of claim 4, further comprising receiving the detected artifact from a resource independent of the search result.

8. The method of claim 4, further comprising updating the connection context based on the detected artifact identifying a change in the corresponding strength of one of the identified relationships.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

following generation of the search result, receiving artifacts from a system providing services to the user independent of the search result, the artifacts identifying chosen destinations not having been specified as destination targets in the search result; and

updating selected relationships identified by the connection context based on the received artifacts.

10. -15. (canceled)

16. An executable search resource for searching a system, the search resource comprising:

an interface configured for receiving a user context that identifies a search context relative to an identity of a user seeking a search result;

a context correlation resource configured for identifying a portion of a connection context as relevant to the user context, the connection context identifying relationships between chosen destinations reachable throughout the system, each of the relationships having a strength determined from artifacts of the chosen destinations, a subset of the artifacts identifying destinations having been chosen independent of any search result;

the context correlation resource configured for generating as the search result an ordered list of destination targets, including selected identified individuals and selected data objects determined as relevant to the user context, including ordering the ordered list according to the portion of the connection context.

17. The search resource of claim 16, wherein the context correlation resource is configured for identifying the selected identified individuals and the selected data objects, relevant to the user context, from an information context identifying destinations in the system that are accessible by the user, the destinations including data objects and connections to identified individuals.

18. The search resource of claim 17, wherein the selected identified individuals specified in the ordered list of destination targets provide, for a given identified individual, a link to any one of:

user profile information of the given identified individual, initiation of an IP Phone call to the given identified individual, meeting availability for the given identified individual, sending a message to given identified individual, accessing stored messages related to the given identified individual, and accessing stored documents related to the given identified individual.

19. The search resource of claim 16, wherein the context correlation resource is configured for inserting within the search result the user context for submission thereof in response to any search refinement of the search result by the user, the context correlation resource configured for updating the search context of the user context into an updated search context in response to a detected artifact indicating a new chosen destination by the user following the search result, the updated search context reflecting the new chosen destination relative to the new chosen destination.

20. The search resource of claim 19, wherein the context correlation resource is configured for generating a second search result that includes updating the updated search context to a second updated search context in response to subsequent detected artifacts indicating refinements of the search result.

21. The search resource of claim 20, wherein the context correlation resource is configured for updating at least one of the relationships identified by the connection context based on the second updated search context identifying a change in the corresponding strength of the one relationship.

22. The search resource of claim 19, wherein the network interface is configured for detecting the detected artifact from a resource independent of the search result.

23. The search resource of claim 19, wherein the context correlation resource is configured for updating the connection context based on the detected artifact identifying a change in the corresponding strength of one of the identified relationships.

24. The search resource of claim 16, wherein the context correlation resource is configured for:

following generation of the search result, receiving artifacts from a system providing services to the user independent of the search result, the artifacts identifying chosen destinations not having been specified as destination targets in the search result; and

updating selected relationships identified by the connection context based on the received artifacts.

25. -30. (canceled)

31. A computer readable medium having stored thereon sequences of instructions for searching a system by a processor, the sequences of instructions including instructions for:

receiving a user context that identifies a search context relative to an identity of a user seeking a search result;

identifying a portion of a connection context as relevant to the user context, the connection context identifying relationships between chosen destinations reachable throughout the system, each of the relationships having a strength determined from artifacts of the chosen destinations, a subset of the artifacts identifying destinations having been chosen independent of any search result; and

generating as the search result an ordered list of destination targets, including selected identified individuals and selected data objects determined as relevant to the user context, including ordering the ordered list according to the portion of the connection context.

32. The medium of claim 31, further comprising instructions for identifying the selected identified individuals and the selected data objects, relevant to the user context, from an information context identifying destinations in the system that are accessible by the user, the destinations including data objects and connections to identified individuals.

33. The medium of claim 32, wherein the selected identified individuals specified in the ordered list of destination targets provide, for a given identified individual, a link to any one of:

user profile information of the given identified individual, initiation of an IP Phone call to the given identified individual, meeting availability for the given identified individual, sending a message to given identified individual, accessing stored messages related to the given identified individual, and accessing stored documents related to the given identified individual.

34. The medium of claim 31, wherein the generating includes inserting within the search result the user context for submission thereof in response to any search refinement of the search result by the user, the medium further comprising instructions for updating the search context of the user context into an updated search context in response to a detected artifact indicating a new chosen destination by the user following the search result, the updated search context reflecting the new chosen destination relative to the new chosen destination.

35. The medium of claim 34, further comprising instructions for generating a second search result that includes updating the updated search context to a second updated search context in response to subsequent detected artifacts indicating refinements of the search result.

36. The medium of claim 35, further comprising instructions for updating at least one of the relationships identified by the connection context based on the second updated search context identifying a change in the corresponding strength of the one relationship.

37. The medium of claim 34, further comprising instructions for receiving the detected artifact from a resource independent of the search result.

38. The medium of claim 34, further comprising instructions for updating the connection context based on the detected artifact identifying a change in the corresponding strength of one of the identified relationships.

39. The medium of claim 31, further comprising instructions for:

following generation of the search result, receiving artifacts from a system providing services to the user independent of the search result, the artifacts identifying chosen destinations not having been specified as destination targets in the search result; and

updating selected relationships identified by the connection context based on the received artifacts.

40. -45. (canceled)

46. An executable search resource for searching a system, the search resource comprising:

means for receiving a user context that identifies a search context relative to an identity of a user seeking a search result;

means for identifying a portion of a connection context as relevant to the user context, and identifying relationships between chosen destinations reachable throughout the system, each of the relationships having a strength determined from artifacts of the chosen destinations, a subset of the artifacts identifying destinations having been chosen independent of any search result;

the means for identifying configured for generating as the search result an ordered list of destination targets, including selected identified individuals and selected data objects determined as relevant to the user context, including ordering the ordered list according to the portion of the connection context.

47. -60. (canceled)