Personalized Search Method and System for Enabling the Method

• US 20080195588A1
• Filed: 05/08/2006
• Published: 08/14/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NHN Corporation
• Original Assignee: NHN Corporation
• Inventors: Kim, Young Kwan, Lee, Joon Ho, Seo, Jang Won
• Granted Patent: US 7,933,917 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A method and system for storing information on a search result selected by a user with respect to a predetermined query, reflecting the user'"'"'s preference by utilizing the information when the user inputs an identical query and requests a search, and providing a personalized search result in which user preferences are reflected. More particularly, a personalized search method and system utilizing favorites of a web browser in which a personalized search result is provided to each user by utilizing information on a website that the user bookmarked as the user'"'"'s favorites is provided. According to the present invention, there is provided a personalized search service method and system which can provide a user with a personalized search service, even when user information is not stored in a search server and also, even when the user does not log in.

Claims

1. A personalized search method comprising:

receiving a search query and cookie information from a user terminal wherein the search query includes at least one query keyword;

identifying at least one search cookie including the received query keyword, from the received cookie information;

generating a personalized search result list based, at least in part, upon a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) included in the identified search cookie, the personalized search result list including at least one personalized search result;

generating a general search result list including at least one general search result associated with the received query keyword; and

providing the user terminal with the personalized search result list and the general search result list.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one search cookie includes the query keyword, the URL associated with the query keyword, and a number of selections associated with the URL, and the number of selections is a number of times that the user of the user terminal selects the website associated with the URL, and the generating of the personalized search result list comprises:

arranging the search result based, at least in part, upon the number of selections; and

generating the personalized search result list including the arranged search result.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one search cookie includes the query keyword, the URL associated with the query keyword, and a selection point in time associated with the URL, and the selection point in time is a point in time when the user most recently used the URL, and the generating of the personalized search result list comprises:

arranging the search result based, at least in part, upon the selection point in time; and

generating the personalized search result list including the arranged search result.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving

     1) a URL corresponding to a selected search result,

     2) the query associated with the selected search result, and

     3) cookie information stored in the user terminal, from the user terminal, when the user selects the search result included in the personalized search result list or the search result list;

updating the received cookie information by utilizing the received URL and the query; and

transmitting the updated cookie information to the user terminal.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the search cookie further includes information on the number of selections associated with the received URL included in the search cookie, the number of selections being a number of times that the user of the user terminal selects the website associated with the URL, and the updating of the received cookie information comprises:

searching the received cookie information for the search cookie including the received query keyword;

determining whether the received URL is included in the search cookie, when the search cookie including the received query keyword exists; and

updating the search cookie so that the number of selections associated with the received URL is updated.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the search cookie further includes information on the selection point in time associated with the URL included in the search cookie the selection point in time being a point in time when the user most recently used the URL, and the updating of the received cookie information comprises:

searching the received cookie information for the search cookie including the received query keyword;

determining whether the received URL is included in the search cookie when the search cookie including the received query keyword exists; and

updating the search cookie so that the selection point in time associated with the received URL is updated.

14. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

updating the cookie information so that predetermined invalidation information is additionally included in a predetermined number of search cookies whose number of selections is less than a predetermined value, among search cookies included in the updated cookie information.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the personalized search result list is displayed separately from the general search result list.

2. (canceled)

5-6. -6. (canceled)

10-13. -13. (canceled)

15. (canceled)

17-25. -25. (canceled)

26. A personalized search method comprising:

maintaining a general search database including at least one search record;

receiving a keyword from a user terminal;

searching the general search database for the search record including the keyword;

selecting at least one network address from network addresses included in a retrieved search record, based on a number of registrations included in the found search record; and

generating a search result including the selected at least one network address and providing the user terminal with the generated search result.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the search record includesthe keyword,at least one network address associated with the keyword, andthe number of registrations associated with the at least one network address, and the number of registrations is a number of times that a site corresponding to the network address is registered as a favorites in the favorites list which is set in the web browser installed in each user terminal.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the providing of the search result comprises:

arranging the search result, based on the number of registrations associated with the selected network address.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein the maintaining of the general search database comprises:

receiving a favorites list of user-selected network addresses from the user terminal, the favorites list being set in a web browser installed in the user terminal, the favorites list including network addresses;

determining an additionally registered network address from the network addresses included in the favorites list;

searching the general search database for the search record associated with the additionally registered network address; and

increasing the number of registrations included in the retrieved search record.

30. (canceled)

31. A personalized search system including a search server, the system comprises:

a receiving unit for receiving a search query and cookie information from a user terminal wherein the search query includes at least one query keyword;

an identification unit configured for identifying at least one search cookie including the received query keyword, from the received cookie information;

a search result list generation unit configured for;

1) generating a personalized search result list, based, at least in part, upon a URL included in the identified search cookie, the personalized search result list including at least one personalized search result, and

2) generating a general search result list including at least one general search result associated with the received query by utilizing any one of keyword searching and category searching; and

a search result list providing unit configured for providing a user of the user terminal with the personalized search result list and the general search result list.

33. The system of claim 31, wherein the search result list generation unit identifies the URL included in the identified search cookie and a number of selections associated with the URL, arranges the search result corresponding to the identified URL, based on the identified number of selections, and generates the personalized search result list including the arranged search result.

34. The system of claim 31, further comprising a cookie server, wherein the cookie server comprises:

a cookie information receiving unit receiving

1) a URL corresponding to a selected search result,

2) the query associated with the selected search result, and

3) cookie information stored in the user terminal, from the user terminal, when the user selects the search result included in the personalized search result list or the search result list;

a cookie information updating unit updating the received cookie information by including the received URL and the query; and

a control unit controlling the updated cookie information to be transmitted to the user terminal and stored therein.

32. (canceled)

35. A personalized search system comprising:

a receiving interface unit configured for receiving a favorites list of user-selected network addresses from the user terminal, the favorites list being set in a web browser installed in the user terminal, the favorites list including at least one network address and a site name corresponding to the at least one the network address;

a personalized information registration unit configured for storing the at least one network address and the site name in a personalized search database, in association with the user terminal;

an information search unit configured for searching the personalized search database for the site name including a query received from the user terminal and the network address corresponding to the site name;

a list generation unit configured for generating a search result including a retrieved network address and generating a personalized search result list including the generated search result; and

a transmitting interface unit configured for providing the user terminal with the generated personalized search result list.

36. The system of claim 35, wherein:

the personalized information registration unit generates a category corresponding to the folder, determines the network address included in the folder as the network address associated with the category, and stores the network address in the personalized search database which is provided for each user terminal, and the information search unit searches the personalized search database for the category associated with the query received from the user terminal and the network address associated with the category.

37. A personalized search method comprising the steps of:

receiving at least one network address from a user terminal;

storing the received network address in a personalized search database, wherein the personalized search database is associated with each user terminal;

receiving a search query from the user terminal wherein the search query includes at least one query keyword;

searching the personalized search database for at least one network address associated the query keyword;

generating a personalized search result list including at least some of the websites associated with the searched network addresses; and

providing the user terminal with the generated personalized search result list.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the stored network address is associated with a predetermined category, and the step of searching the personalized search database for at least one network address comprises the steps of:

searching the personalized search database for the category associated with the query keyword; and

searching for the network address associated with the searched category.

39. The method of claim 37, further comprising:

generating a general search result list including at least one general search result associated with the received query keyword, and wherein the personalized search result list is displayed separately from the general search result list.

40. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of receiving at least one network address from a user terminal comprises the step of:

receiving a favorites list of user-selected network addresses from a user terminal, the favorites list being set in a web browser installed in the user terminal, the favorites list including the network addresses and the names thereof, and wherein the step of storing the network address comprises the step of;

storing the network addresses and the names thereof in a personalized search database in association with the user terminal.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein the step of searching the personalized search database comprises the step of:

searching the personalized search database for at least one name of website including the query keyword, and the network address corresponding thereto.

42. The method of claim 40, wherein the favorites list includes any one of a network address and a folder, the folder including the network address, and the step of storing the network address comprises the steps of:

generating a category corresponding to the folder;

determining the network address included in the folder as the network address associated with the category, and

storing the network address in the personalized search database.

43. The method of claim 40, wherein the folder includes any one of a subfolder and a network address, and the subfolder includes another subfolder or another network address, and the storing of the network address comprises:

generating a subcategory corresponding to the subfolder, determining the network address included in the subfolder as the network address associated with the subcategory, and including the network address in the personalized search database.

44. The method of claim 40, wherein the receiving of the favorites list is performedwhen the favorites list set in the web browser is updated,periodically, ora request for a registration of favorites is received from the user terminal.