Methods & Apparatus for Searching with Awareness of Geography and Languages

• US 20070288422A1
• Filed: 05/22/2007
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tamiras Per Pte Ltd LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Platformation Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Cao, Yu
• Granted Patent: US 7,523,108 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

A system that automatically discerning the best combinations of a user query'"'"'s geographical origin and language, retrieving and displaying search results accordingly. A record on the system are associated with a geographic location and a language. A record could be composed of two or more records, each of which associates with a location and a language. A record could be in rich media format.

Claims

1. A method of providing records to a user, comprising:

automatically discerning a set of suspected geographical origins from which the user may have connected to a server;

identifying a first language of a term submitted in a query by the user; and

using the first language to evaluate applicability of an individual member of the set of suspected origins to the user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the origins is a non-political region.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the origins is a metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the origins is a postal code.

5. The method of claim 1, where in at least one of the origins is an airport code.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of suspected origins includes a smallest member, and the individual member is the smallest member.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising using a second term from the query to assist in evaluating the applicability of the individual member.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising preferentially serving information to the user as a function of at least one of the individual member and the first language.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising concurrently displaying to the user at least a portion of the information in both the individual member and another member of the set of suspected origins.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising concurrently displaying to the user at least a portion of the information in both the first language and another language.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the information is derived from a plurality of records that are selected at least in part as a second function of at least one of the individual member and the first language.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein at least some of the plurality of records contain data in a rich content format.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a display to the user that includes first and second areas, each of which contains a portion of the information.