Questionless cased-based knowledge and a method for constructing the same

• US 5,995,956 A
• Filed: 08/27/1997
• Issued: 11/30/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Compaq Computer Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Nguyen, Trung D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Downs, Robert W.
• Application Number:
  US08/921,218
• Time in Patent Office: 825 Days
• Field of Search: 706/54
• US Class Current: 706/54
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/022 Knowledge engineering; Knowledge acquisition

Abstract

A questionless case-based knowledge base suitable for access by an intelligent search engine and an associated method for constructing the same from pre-existing on-line documentation. A case structure for questionless cases is determined. The determined case structure includes a first field for containing a title for a case, a second field for containing a description of the case and a third field for containing a solution for the case. On-line documentation having information directed to a plurality of topics, each of which includes a title portion and a contents portion, is then provided. The information directed to each of the plurality of topics is then reconfigured into the determined case structure such that the title portion of each topic is configured as a first field of a corresponding case and the contents portion of each topic is configured as a second field of the corresponding case. A solution comprised of a path from the third field of the case to the second field of the case is then appended to each of the cases. The information reconfigured into questionless case structures are then combined to form a questionless case-based knowledge base.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium for determining a solution to a problem using on-line documentation, comprising:

a questionless case-based knowledge base, said questionless case-based knowledge base comprised of a series of questionless case structures stored in memory, each said questionless case structure are formed from on-line documentation and are comprised of a title, a description of a particular problem, and a solution to said particular problem or a path to the solution to said particular problem;

first computer program code for receiving a natural language description of said problem, said natural language description of said problem comprised of one or more strings of alpha-numeric characters; and

second computer program code for searching said questionless case-based knowledge base to identify questionless case structures that match said natural language description of said problem.

2. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 1, wherein said computer readable medium further comprises:

third computer program code for ranking said identified questionless case structures; and

fourth computer program code for displaying said titles of said ranked, identified questionless case structures on a display device.

3. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 2, wherein said computer readable medium further comprises:

fifth computer program code for allowing a user to select one of the displayed titles displayed on the display device; and

sixth computer program code for displaying on the display device the solution corresponding to said questionless case structure associated with the user selected one of the displayed titles.

4. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 3, wherein the solution displayed is retrieved from said questionless case structure associated with the user selected one of the displayed titles.

5. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 3, wherein the solution displayed is retrieved from a storage location in accordance with a path to said solution, said path being stored in said questionless case structure associated with the user selected one of the displayed titles.

6. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 1, wherein said computer readable medium further comprises:

third computer program code for determining which of said matching questionless case structures contains a most probable solution to said problem; and

fourth computer program code for allowing a user to select for review said matching questionless case structures determined to contain the most probable solution to said problem.

7. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 6, wherein said third computer program code comprises:

computer program code for assigning first, second and third weights to matches determined by said third computer program code;

computer program code for determining a composite score for said matching questionless case structures based upon both number and type of matches detected;

computer program code for ranking said matching questionless case structures by said composite scores; and

computer program code for selecting said questionless case structure having the highest ranking for review.

8. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 1, wherein said third computer program code performs a plurality of different type of searches of said questionless case-based knowledge base to identify questionless case structures that match said natural language description of said problem.

9. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 8, said plurality of different type of searches performed by said third computer program code includes a trigram search.

10. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 8, said plurality of different type of searches performed by said third computer program code includes a word search and a trigram search.

11. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 8, said plurality of different type of searches performed by said third computer program code includes a word based search, a trigram search, and a number based search.

12. A computer readable medium for determining a solution to a problem using on-line documentation, comprising:

first computer program code for forming a questionless case-based knowledge base, said questionless case-based knowledge base comprised of a series of questionless case structures stored in memory, each said questionless case structure comprised of a title, a description of a particular problem, and a solution to said particular problem;

second computer program code for determining a natural language description of said problem, said natural language description of said problem comprised of one or more strings of alpha-numeric characters;

third computer program code for inputting, to a search engine, said one or more strings of alpha-numeric characters which describe said natural language description of said problem, one alpha-numeric character at a time;

fourth computer program code for conducting first, second and third searches of said questionless case-based knowledge base each time one of said alpha-numeric characters is input into said search engine;

said first search of said questionless case-based knowledge base searching for questionless case structures which contain at least one word, or a portion thereof, which exactly matches one of said strings of alpha-numeric characters previously input into said search engine;

said second search of said questionless case-based knowledge base searching for questionless case structures which contain at least one word, or a portion thereof, which exactly matches three consecutive characters of one of said alpha-numeric character strings previously input into said search engine;

said third search of said questionless case-based knowledge base searching for questionless case structures which contain a numeric representation which differs from a numeric representation forming part of one of said alpha-numeric character strings previously input into said search engine by less than a pre-determined value;

fifth computer program code for determining which of said matching questionless case structures contains a most probable solution to said problem; and

sixth computer program code for selecting, for review, said matching questionless case structures determined to contain the most probable solution to said problem.

13. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 12, wherein said fifth computer program code comprises:

computer program code for ranking said matching questionless case structures in order of type and number of matches with said searched character strings; and

computer program code for selecting said questionless case structure having the highest ranking for review.

14. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 12, wherein said fifth computer program code comprises:

computer program code for assigning first, second and third weights to matches respectively determined by said first, second and third searches;

computer program code for determining a composite score for said matching questionless case structures based upon both number and type of matches detected;

computer program code for ranking said matching questionless case structures by said composite scores; and

computer program code for selecting said questionless case structure having the highest ranking for review.

15. A computer readable medium for constructing, from pre-existing on-line documentation, a questionless case-based knowledge base suitable for access by an intelligent search engine, said computer readable medium comprising:

computer program code for providing a case for questionless cases;

computer program code for receiving on-line documentation having a plurality of computer related topics, each comprised of a title portion and a contents portion;

computer program code for reconfiguring said received on-line documentation into said questionless case-based knowledge base by transferring said title portion of each of said computer related topics into a first field of a corresponding questionless case and transferring said contents portion of each of said computer related topics into a second field of said corresponding questionless case; and

computer program code for forming a third field for each of said produced questionless cases, said forming operates to at least form, for each of said questionless cases, a path to said second field of said questionless case or another location that stores the contents of said second field.

16. A computer readable medium for constructing, from pre-existing on-line documentation, a questionless case-based knowledge base, said questionless case-based knowledge base comprised of a plurality of questionless cases and suitable for access by an intelligent search engine, said computer readable medium comprising:

computer program code for providing a case structure for questionless cases, said providing of the case structure for questionless cases includes forming a first field for containing a title for a case, forming a second field for containing a description of said case, and forming a third field for containing a solution for said case or a path to the solution for said case;

computer program code for transmitting on-line documentation comprised of a plurality of topics, each said topic having a title portion and a contents portion, to said intelligent search engine; and

computer program code for reconfiguring said transmitted on-line documentation into a questionless case-base knowledge base comprised of a plurality of cases by reconfiguring each of said plurality of topics into said provided case structure for questionless cases and combining said plurality of topics respectively reconfigured into said provided case structure for questionless cases into said questionless case-based knowledge base.

17. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 16, wherein said computer readable code for reconfiguring said transmitted on-line documentation into a questionless case-base knowledge base comprised of a plurality of questionless cases further comprises:

computer program code for configuring said title portion of each of said topics as a first field of a corresponding questionless case configured in said provided case structure; and

computer program code for configuring said contents portion of each of said topics as a second field of said corresponding questionless case configured in said provided case structure.

18. A computer readable medium for constructing, from pre-existing on-line documentation, a questionless case-based knowledge base accessible by an intelligent search engine in a computer, said computer readable medium comprising:

computer program code for transmitting, to said intelligent search engine, on-line documentation having information directed to a plurality of computer related topics, each of said computer related topics having a subject matter to which the computer related topic is directed, a title portion that identifies said subject matter of each of said computer related topics, and a contents portion for describing said subject matter of each of said computer related topics; and

computer program code for reconfiguring said title portion and said contents portion of said information into a corresponding questionless case for said questionless case-based knowledge by transferring said title portion of each of said computer related topics into a first field of said corresponding questionless case, and transferring said contents portion of each of said computer related topics into a second field of said corresponding questionless case; and

computer program code for forming a third field for each of said questionless cases, said forming operates at least to form a path to said second field of said questionless case or to another location within the computer where said contents portion of said information for said on-line documentation associated with said corresponding questionless case is stored.

19. A computer readable medium for constructing, from pre-existing on-line documentation, a questionless case-based knowledge base suitable for access by an intelligent search engine, said computer readable medium comprising:

computer program code for determining a case structure for questionless cases, said determining of the case structure for questionless cases includes forming a first field for containing a title for a case, forming a second field for containing a description of said case, and forming a third field for containing a solution for said case;

computer program code for transmitting, to said intelligent search engine, on-line documentation having information directed to a plurality of computer related topics, each of said computer related topics having subject matter to which the computer related topic is directed, a title portion that identifies said subject matter of each of said computer related topics and a contents portion for describing said subject matter of each of said computer related topics;

computer program code for reconfiguring said title portion and said contents portion of said information directed to each of said computer related topics into said determined case structure for questionless cases; and

computer program code for combining said reconfigured information into said determined case structure for questionless cases into a questionless case-based knowledge base.

20. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 19, wherein said forming a third field containing a solution for said case further comprises forming a path to said second field for said case.

21. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 20, wherein said computer program code for reconfiguring said information into said determined case structure for questionless cases comprises:

computer program code for configuring said title portion of each of said computer related topics as a first field of a corresponding questionless case configured in said determined case structure; and

computer program code for configuring said contents portion of each of said computer related topics as a second field of said corresponding questionless case configured in said determined case structure.

22. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 21, wherein said computer readable medium further comprising computer program code for appending a solution to each of said questionless cases.

23. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 22, wherein said computer program code for appending a solution to each of said questionless cases comprises computer program code for forming a path from said third field to said second field for each of said questionless cases.

24. A computer readable medium as recited in claim 23, wherein said computer-related topics are related to a printer for a computer network.

25. A computer readable medium for determining a solution to a problem using on-line documentation, comprising:

a questionless case-based knowledge base, said questionless case-based knowledge base comprised of a series of questionless case structures stored in memory, each said questionless case structure are formed from on-line documentation and are comprised of a title, a description of a particular problem, and a solution to said particular problem or a path to the solution to said particular problem;

computer program code for receiving a natural language description of said problem, said natural language description of said problem comprised of one or more strings of alpha-numeric characters;

computer program code for searching said questionless case-based knowledge base to identify questionless case structures that match said natural language description of said problem;

computer program code for selection of at least one of said identified questionless case structures; and

computer program code for displaying on the display device said solution corresponding to said selected at least one of said identified questionless case structure, said solution displayed is retrieved from a storage location in accordance with a path to said solution, said path being stored in said identified questionless case structure.