SEARCH DEVICE, SEARCH METHOD, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT

• US 20130254190A1
• Filed: 03/18/2013
• Published: 09/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Solutions Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation), Toshiba Solutions Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Manabe, Toshihiko, Kokubu, Tomoharu, Nakano, Wataru, Inaba, Masumi
• Granted Patent: US 10,078,672 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/727
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3322 using system suggestions G06F16/3325 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/353 into predefined classes

Abstract

According to an embodiment, a search device includes a first storage to store therein a keyword group generated by grouping keyword candidates which are to be candidates for a search keyword according to a rule set in advance; a first acquisition unit to acquire a first recommended keyword which is the keyword candidate partially including an input string not yet been entered; a second acquisition unit to acquire a second recommended keyword which is included in the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs and which is the keyword candidate other than the first recommended keyword; an output unit to output a search screen for displaying the first recommended keyword and the second recommended keyword in a selectable way; and a search unit to perform a search with the first recommended keyword or the second recommended keyword selected on the search screen as the search keyword.

Claims

1. A search device comprising:

a first storage configured to store therein a keyword group generated by grouping keyword candidates which are to be candidates for a search keyword according to a rule set in advance;

a first acquisition unit configured to acquire a first recommended keyword which is the keyword candidate partially including an input string not yet been entered;

a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a second recommended keyword which is included in the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs and which is the keyword candidate other than the first recommended keyword;

an output unit configured to output a search screen for displaying the first recommended keyword and the second recommended keyword in a selectable way; and

a search unit configured to perform a search with the first recommended keyword or the second recommended keyword selected on the search screen as the search keyword.

2. The search device according to claim 1, wherein

the first acquisition unit acquires the first recommended keyword every time the input string is changed,

the second acquisition unit acquires the second recommended keyword every time the first recommended keyword is changed, and

the output unit updates the search screen to be output every time at least one of the first recommended keyword and the second recommended keyword is changed.

3. The search device according to claim 1, wherein after the search is performed by the search unit, the first recommended keyword and the second recommended keyword, which have been displayed on the search screen before performing a search by the search unit, continue to be displayed while the input string remains unchanged.

4. The search device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a second storage configured to store therein the keyword candidates collected in advance; and

a generation unit configured to generate the keyword group by grouping the keyword candidates stored in the second storage, wherein

the first storage stores therein the keyword group generated by the generation unit, and

the first acquisition unit acquires the first recommended keyword from the second storage.

5. The search device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a third storage configured to store therein history information indicating history of a search keyword used for a search by the search unit, wherein

the second acquisition unit decides, based on the history information, the second recommended keywords to be acquired and an order of the second recommended keywords to be displayed on the search screen.

6. The search device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a third storage configured to store therein history information indicating history of a search keyword used for a search by the search unit, wherein

the first acquisition unit acquires, in a case an input string is not input, as the first recommended keyword, the keyword candidate which is included in the keyword group to which a search keyword used in an immediately preceding search belongs and which is other than the search keyword used in the immediately preceding search, and preferentially acquires, in a case an input string is input, as the first recommended keyword, the keyword candidate, among keyword candidates partially including the input string, which is included in the keyword group to which the search keyword used in the immediately preceding search belongs.

7. The search device according to claim 1, wherein the second acquisition unit acquires the second recommended keyword in a case the number of first recommended keywords acquired by the first acquisition unit is equal to or below a predetermined value set in advance.

8. The search device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a fourth storage configured to store therein a group output determination rule indicating a correspondence relationship between a predetermined keyword candidate and the keyword group which is the keyword group to which the predetermined keyword candidate does not belong, but which is relevant to the predetermined keyword candidate, wherein

the second acquisition unit acquires, as the second recommended keyword, the keyword candidate included in the keyword group indicated by the group output determination rule as the keyword group relevant to the first recommended keyword, in addition to the keyword candidate which is included in the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs and which is other than the first recommended keyword.

9. The search device according to claim 1, wherein

the search screen includes a first display area where the first recommended keyword is to be displayed, and a second display area where the second recommended keyword is to be displayed,

text information specifying the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs is displayed together with the first recommended keyword in the first display area in a selectable way, and

in a case the text information is selected, the keyword candidate which is included in the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs and which is other than the first recommended keyword is displayed in the second display area as the second recommended keyword.

10. The search device according to claim 9, wherein the text information is a group name assigned to the keyword group.

11. A search method performed in a search device including a storage for storing therein a keyword group generated by grouping keyword candidates which are to be candidates for a search keyword according to a rule set in advance, the search method comprising:

acquiring, by a first acquisition unit of the search device, a first recommended keyword which is the keyword candidate partially including an input string not yet been entered;

acquiring, by a second acquisition unit of the search device, a second recommended keyword which is included in the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs and which is the keyword candidate other than the first recommended keyword;

outputting, by an output unit of the search device, a search screen for displaying the first recommended keyword and the second recommended keyword in a selectable way; and

performing a search, by a search unit of the search device, with the first recommended keyword or the second recommended keyword selected on the search screen as the search keyword.

12. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium containing programmed instructions that cause a computer, which includes a storage for storing therein a keyword group generated by grouping keyword candidates which are to be candidates for a search keyword according to a rule set in advance, to execute:

acquiring a first recommended keyword which is the keyword candidate partially including an input string not yet been entered;

acquiring a second recommended keyword which is included in the keyword group to which the first recommended keyword belongs and which is the keyword candidate other than the first recommended keyword;

outputting a search screen for displaying the first recommended keyword and the second recommended keyword in a selectable way; and

performing a search with the first recommended keyword or the second recommended keyword selected on the search screen as the search keyword.