DYNAMIC CLIENT INTERACTION FOR SEARCH

• US 20090144271A1
• Filed: 12/01/2008
• Published: 06/04/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: RICHARDSON, MATTHEW R., Ragno, Robert J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,554,755 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2428 Query predicate definition using graphical user interfaces, including menus and forms G06F16/2423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24534 Query rewriting; Transformation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3322 using system suggestions G06F16/3325 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3325 Reformulation based on results of preceding query
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/738 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/40 Processing or translation of natural language natural language analysis G06F40/20; semantic analysis G06F40/30
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 715/968 interface for database querying and retrieval

Abstract

A system for guiding a search for information is presented. The system comprises a user interface that accepts a phrase and receives at least one suggestion based at least in part on the phrase. The system also includes a phrase suggestion engine that matches the phrase with the at least one suggestion. Methods of using the system are also provided.

Claims

1-20. -20. (canceled)

21. A computer implemented search system, comprising:

a processor that executes code stored on a computer readable medium to perform the following acts;

receiving a phrase entered by a user;

executing a search as a function of the phrase;

providing a suggestion in response to the phrase;

updating the search and corresponding search results as a function of the suggestion and based upon a continuously-evolving search query; and

performing searches incrementally as each individual phrase is suggested.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the phrase is one of a prefix, a regular expression, a suffix, an infix, a pattern, a substring, and a string.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the phrase is entered by the user via a user interface that accepts the phrase and receives at least one suggestion based at least in part on the phrase.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the user interface is at least one of a command line interface, a text-based interface, a graphical user interface, a web-based interface, a stylus-based interface, a pen-based data input system, a keypad, a speech recognition system, and a handwriting recognition system.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the user interface includes a speech processing component that accepts an audio data input to recognize the phrase.

26. The system of claim 24, wherein the user interface includes a handwriting processing component that accepts handwritten data input to recognize the phrase.

27. The system of claim 21, further comprising utilizing previous search results to perform additional searches on the search query as the user enters additional phrases.

28. The system of claim 21, further comprising displaying at least a part of the search results that are based at least in part upon the search query.

29. A dynamic search system, comprising:

a user interface that accepts a phrase entered by a user and provides dynamically updated search results based upon a continuously-evolving search query; and

a search server that provides a suggestion in response to the phrase entered by the user.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the search server comprises a search engine that communicates with the user interface to transmit search results to the user interface based upon the query created using the suggestion, the search engine performs searches incrementally as each individual phrase is suggested by the search server.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein the search engine uses previous search results and performs additional searches on the search query as the user enters additional phrases.

32. The system of claim 29, wherein the search server comprises a guide engine that communicates with the user interface to transmit phrases, including single characters or groups of characters to a query segment engine.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the query segment engine assembles portions of the phrases received from the guide engine and determines suggestions and transmits the suggestions to the user interface.

34. The system of claim 33, wherein the portions of the phrases received from the guide engine are used as at least one of a prefix, a root, and a suffix, in performing the search query.

35. The system of claim 29, wherein the phrase is one of a prefix, a regular expression, a suffix, an infix, a pattern, a substring, and a string.

36. The system of claim 29, wherein the user interface is at least one of a command line interface, a text-based interface, a graphical user interface, a web-based interface, a stylus-based interface, a pen-based data input system, a keypad, a speech recognition system, and a handwriting recognition system.

37. The system of claim 29, wherein the user interface includes at least one of a speech processing component that accepts an audio data input to recognize the phrase, and a handwriting processing component that accepts handwritten data input to recognize the phrase.

38. A computer implemented search system, comprising:

means for receiving a phrase entered by a user;

means for executing a search as a function of the phrase;

means for providing a suggestion in response to the phrase;

means for updating the search and corresponding search results as a function of the suggestion and based upon a continuously-evolving search query;

means for performing searches incrementally as each individual phrase is suggested; and

means for displaying at least a part of the search results that are based at least in part upon the search query.

39. The system of claim 38, wherein the means for providing a suggestion includes a means for providing a set of suggestions.

40. The system of claim 39, wherein the means for providing a set of suggestions includes at least one of a means for providing a probability measure and a means for providing a ranking of suggestions.