Method and apparatus for improved document searching

• US 5,983,221 A
• Filed: 01/13/1998
• Issued: 11/09/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Wordstream
• Original Assignee: Wordstream
• Inventors: Christy, Sam
• Primary Examiner(s): HO, RUAY L
• Application Number:
  US09/006,339
• Time in Patent Office: 665 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707/5, 707/10, 707/100-104, 707/200-206, 704/9, 704/7, 704/270, 704/275, 704/277
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/345 Summarisation for human users
• 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

To facilitate accurate document searching, electronically accessible documents are provided with abstracts written in a highly constrained artificial grammar. The artificial grammar is capable of expressing the thoughts and information ordinarily conveyed in a natural grammar, but in a structured format that restricts the number of possible alternative meanings. Accordingly, while the grammar is clear in the sense of being easily understood by native speakers of the vocabulary and complex in its ability to express sophisticated concepts, sentences are derived from an organized vocabulary according to fixed rules. A query, preferably formulated in accordance with these rules, is employed by a search engine in the usual fashion. Due to the highly constrained meaning of the search query, and the likelihood that relevant documents have similar or matching abstracts in their headers, keyword searches are likely to identify the most relevant documents.

Claims

1. A method of facilitating searches of electronically stored documents in a text-searchable database, the method comprising the steps of:

a. electronically storing, with respect to each document, at least one text-searchable abstract descriptive of a document subject, the abstract comprising a series of words generated by selecting a nominal item and expanding the abstract by iteratively applying at least one of a set of rules comprising;

i. to a nominal item, add a descriptor describing the nominal item;

ii. to a nominal item, add a connector item and another nominal item, connector items specifying relationships between at least two nominal items;

iii. to a nominal item, add a logical connector and another nominal item, logical connectors establishing sets of nominal items; and

iv. to a descriptor item, add a logical connector and another descriptor item;

b. receiving a user query comprising a series of words;

c. applying the query to the document abstracts to identify word matches therebetween;

d. identifying stored documents having abstracts with words matching at least some of the words of the query; and

e. based on word matches, ranking the identified documents in an order relevance, the order favoring documents having abstracts with terms literally matching the query.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein each iteration of the rules is identified by enclosure within parentheses.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of structuring the query according to the set of rules.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of providing data-bases of nominal, connector, descriptor and logical-connector items, the words of the abstract being selected from the databases.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the words of the user query are also selected from the databases.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the logical-connector database comprises the entries and, or.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the documents comprise viewable and non-viewable portions, the abstracts being contained in the non-viewable portions.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of facilitating user retrieval of the identified documents.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the nominal items name a person, place, thing, activity or idea.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the nominal items include the terms set forth in Appendix 1.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the connector items show action, being or state of being.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the connector items include the terms set forth in Appendix 2.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the descriptor items describe a quality, quantity, state or type of a nominal entry.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the descriptor items include the entries set forth in Appendix 3.

15. Apparatus for facilitating searches of electronically stored documents, the apparatus comprising:

a. a database of electronically stored documents, the database comprising, with respect to each document, at least one text-searchable abstract descriptive of a document subject, the abstract comprising a series of words generated by selecting a nominal item and expanding the abstract by iteratively applying at least one of a set of rules comprising;

i. to a nominal item, add a descriptor describing the nominal item;

ii. to a nominal item, add a connector item and another nominal item, connector items specifying relationships between at least two nominal items;

iii. to a nominal item, add a logical connector and another nominal item, logical connectors establishing sets of nominal items; and

iv. to a descriptor item, add a logical connector and another descriptor item;

b. means for receiving a user query comprising a series of words;

c. means for applying the query to the document abstracts to identify word matches therebetween;

d. means for (i) identifying stored documents having abstracts with words matching at least some of the words of the query, and (ii) based on the word matches, ranking the identified documents in an order relevance, the order favoring documents having abstracts with terms literally matching the query.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 further comprising databases of nominal, connector, descriptor and logical-connector items, the words of the abstract being selected from the databases.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the words of the user query are also selected from the databases.

18. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the logical-connector database comprises the entries and, or.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the documents comprise viewable and non-viewable portions, the abstracts being contained in the non-viewable portions.

20. The apparatus of claim 15 further comprising means for facilitating user retrieval of the identified documents.

21. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the nominal items name a person, place, thing, activity or idea.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the nominal items include the terms set forth in Appendix 1.

23. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the connector items show action, being or state of being.

24. The apparatus of claim 23 wherein the connector items include the terms set forth in Appendix 2.

25. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the descriptor items describe a quality, quantity, state or type of a nominal entry.

26. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein the descriptor items include the entries set forth in Appendix 3.