METHODS AND TECHNIQUES FOR ADAPTIVE SEARCH

• US 20100198822A1
• Filed: 12/30/2009
• Published: 08/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TiVo Solutions Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: TiVo Solutions Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Poniatowski, Robert, GLENNON, SHELLY, Cheng, James, Beach, Brian, Schmidt, Margret, Lee, Richard, Paluch, Kimberly
• Granted Patent: US 10,158,823 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/728
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/33 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/335 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739

Abstract

A method and apparatus for an adaptive search user interface is provided. An interface is provided that returns search results upon receiving each alphanumeric character of a search query term. Correlations of prefixes of alphanumeric characters and search results selected from previous searches are stored in a correlation matrix. Based upon the correlations in the correlation matrix, relevance rankings for search results with respect to the prefixes of alphanumeric characters are updated. Search results may be grouped based upon one or more common traits. Relevance rankings are also updated based upon the rate of change of selections recorded for a search result.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a multimedia device, a query from a user comprising one or more alphanumeric characters;

as each alphanumeric character is received;

generating a plurality of search results that correspond to the one or more alphanumeric characters received;

displaying the plurality of search results that are sorted based at least in part upon a relevance ranking associated with the alphanumeric characters received and a particular search result of the plurality of search results; and

receiving a selection from the user of a particular search result from the plurality of search results;

storing a correlation between the alphanumeric characters received and the search result selected;

aggregating the correlation with a plurality of other correlations in a correlation matrix; and

updating a relevancy ranking of the search result selected and the alphanumeric characters entered based upon the correlations in the correlation matrix.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the selection from the user comprises receiving command input at a DVR that indicates a particular level of interest by the user.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the correlations are removed from the correlation matrix when the correlations reach a threshold age.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein a rate of change of a frequency of a particular correlation in the correlation matrix is measured and the rate of change is a criterion used to update the relevancy ranking of the particular correlation.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein search results displayed are grouped based upon a common trait.

6. A method as recited in claim 5, wherein each search result within a group is given a same relevancy ranking.

7. A method as recited in claim 5, wherein common traits comprise one of:

a same title, a common actor, a common director, a common writer, a common creator, a common genre, or a common tag.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein search results are limited to media content that is available to a user.

9. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein relevance rankings are artificially increased for a debut of newly available content.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein a selection by the user of broadband video content associated with broadcast content increases the relevancy ranking of the associated broadcast content.

11. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein search results are displayed only from content providers that are selected by the user.

12. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

upon selection of the particular search result, displaying a plurality of content providers upon which the search result is available.

13. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein search results include media content that is available from a content source that the user does not have access or is not authorized.

14. A method as recited in claim 13, wherein upon selection of media content that are available from a content source that the user does not have access or is not authorized, displaying instructions on how the content source may be accessed or authorized.

15. A computer-readable storage medium storing one or more sequences of instructions, which when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out the steps of:

receiving, at a multimedia device, a query from a user comprising one or more alphanumeric characters;

as each alphanumeric character is received;

generating a plurality of search results that correspond to the one or more alphanumeric characters received;

displaying the plurality of search results that are sorted based at least in part upon a relevance ranking associated with the alphanumeric characters received and a particular search result of the plurality of search results; and

receiving a selection from the user of a particular search result from the plurality of search results;

storing a correlation between the alphanumeric characters received and the search result selected;

aggregating the correlation with a plurality of other correlations in a correlation matrix; and

updating a relevancy ranking of the search result selected and the alphanumeric characters entered based upon the correlations in the correlation matrix.

16. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein the selection from the user comprises receiving command input at a DVR that indicates a particular level of interest by the user.

17. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein the correlations are removed from the correlation matrix when the correlations reach a threshold age.

18. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein a rate of change of a frequency of a particular correlation in the correlation matrix is measured and the rate of change is a criterion used to update the relevancy ranking of the particular correlation.

19. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein search results displayed are grouped based upon a common trait.

20. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 19, wherein each search result within a group is given a same relevancy ranking.

21. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 19, wherein common traits comprise one of:

a same title, a common actor, a common director, a common writer, a common creator, a common genre, or a common tag.

22. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein search results are limited to media content that is available to a user.

23. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein relevance rankings are artificially increased for a debut of newly available content.

24. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein a selection by the user of broadband video content associated with broadcast content increases the relevancy ranking of the associated broadcast content.

25. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein search results are displayed only from content providers that are selected by the user.

26. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, further comprising:

upon selection of the particular search result, displaying a plurality of content providers upon which the search result is available.

27. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 15, wherein search results include media content that are available from a content source that the user does not have access or is not authorized.

28. A computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 27, wherein upon selection of media content that is available from a content source that the user does not have access or is not authorized, displaying instructions on how the content source may be accessed or authorized.

29. An apparatus, comprising:

a query receiving subsystem that receives, at a multimedia device, a query from a user comprising one or more alphanumeric characters;

as each alphanumeric character is received;

a generating subsystem that generates a plurality of search results that correspond to the one or more alphanumeric characters received;

a display subsystem that displays the plurality of search results that are sorted based at least in part upon a relevance ranking associated with the alphanumeric characters received and a particular search result of the plurality of search results; and

a selection receiving subsystem that receives a selection from the user of a particular search result from the plurality of search results;

a storing subsystem that stores a correlation between the alphanumeric characters received and the search result selected;

an aggregation subsystem that aggregates the correlation with a plurality of other correlations in a correlation matrix; and

a ranking updating subsystem that updates a relevancy ranking of the search result selected and the alphanumeric characters entered based upon the correlations in the correlation matrix.

30. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein the selection from the user comprises receiving command input at a DVR that indicates a particular level of interest by the user.

31. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein the correlations are removed from the correlation matrix when the correlations reach a threshold age.

32. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein a rate of change of a frequency of a particular correlation in the correlation matrix is measured and the rate of change is a criterion used to update the relevancy ranking of the particular correlation.

33. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein search results displayed are grouped based upon a common trait.

34. An apparatus as recited in claim 33, wherein each search result within a group is given a same relevancy ranking.

35. An apparatus as recited in claim 33, wherein common traits comprise one of:

a same title, a common actor, a common director, a common writer, a common creator, a common genre, or a common tag.

36. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein search results are limited to media content that is available to a user.

37. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein relevance rankings are artificially increased for a debut of newly available content.

38. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein a selection by the user of broadband video content associated with broadcast content increases the relevancy ranking of the associated broadcast content.

39. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein search results are displayed only from content providers that are selected by the user.

40. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, further comprising:

upon selection of the particular search result, the display subsystem displaying a plurality of content providers upon which the search result is available.

41. An apparatus as recited in claim 29, wherein search results include media content that are available from a content source that the user does not have access or is not authorized.

42. An apparatus as recited in claim 41, wherein upon selection of media content that is available from a content source that the user does not have access or is not authorized, the display subsystem displaying instructions on how the content source may be accessed or authorized.