Query rewriting with spell correction suggestions

• US 20080147637A1
• Filed: 12/14/2006
• Published: 06/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Peng, Fuchun, Lu, Yumao, Li, Xin, Ahmed, Nawaaz
• Granted Patent: US 7,630,978 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3338 Query expansion
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

Techniques for rewriting queries submitted to a query engine are provided. A query is submitted by a user and sent to a search mechanism. Based on the query, one or more query suggestions are generated. Features are generated based on the query and the query suggestions. Those features are input to a trained machine learning mechanism that generates a rewrite score. The rewrite score signifies a confidence score that indicates how confident the search mechanism is that the user intended to submit the original query. If the rewrite score is below a certain threshold, then the original query is rewritten to a second query. Results of executing the original query may be sent to the user along with a reference to the second query. Additionally or alternatively, results of executing the second query are sent to the user.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a particular query from a user;

based on the particular query, generating a set of one or more query suggestions, wherein each query suggestion in the set is different than said particular query;

generating a set of query features that are based, at least in part, on a set of suggestion features that are values associated with said set of query suggestions;

providing, to a trained machine learning mechanism, said set of query features to determine whether another query is more likely to produce search results that are consistent with an intent of the user;

in response to determining that another query is more likely to produce search results that are consistent with the intent of the user, determining to use a second query instead of the first query, wherein the second query is not identical to the first query.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating results based on executing the second query; and

sending said results to be displayed to the user.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said results are also based on executing the first query.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said results have been filtered to remove references to webpages that are associated with relatively low relevance scores.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

sending, to the user to be displayed, a reference to the first query;

receiving an indication that the user selected the reference;

generating second results based on executing the first query; and

sending, to the user to be displayed, said second results.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein:

said results comprise references to a plurality of webpages;

the plurality of webpages are based on executing the second query and optionally the first query;

the method further comprising;

determining that the user selected a particular reference;

determining that the particular reference is a result of executing a particular query;

associating the particular reference with the particular query;

storing the association in a database of associations.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

training the trained machine learning mechanism based on the database of associations.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining to use the second query includes rewriting the first query to the second query.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending, to the user to be displayed, a reference to the second query;

in response to an indication that the user selected the reference, sending, to the user to be displayed, results based on executing the second query.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of query features includes at least one of the following:

one or more confidence scores associated with a query suggestion in the set of query suggestions;

one or more confidence score associated with the particular query.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing said first query against at least one of a first list of queries and a second list of queries, wherein each query in the first list indicates that said each query should be rewritten, wherein each query in the second list indicates that said each query should not be rewritten.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining that the user selects a particular reference in said results;

associating the particular reference with the first query or a query suggestion of the plurality, wherein execution of the first query or said query suggestion resulted in the particular reference being selected;

storing information that indicates the association; and

based on the information, generating or updating at least one of the first list and the second list.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the second query includes one or more terms from the query suggestion associated with a higher score relative to other query suggestions in the set of one or more query suggestions.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the second query further includes one or more terms from the first query.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the second query includes terms from multiple query suggestions in the set of one or more query suggestions.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the second query further includes one or more terms from the first query.

17. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 1.

18. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 2.

19. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 3.

20. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 4.

21. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 5.

22. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 6.

23. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 7.

24. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 8.

25. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 9.

26. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 10.

27. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 11.

28. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 12.

29. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 13.

30. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 14.

31. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 15.

32. A machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the method recited in claim 16.