Method and apparatus for distributed indexing and retrieval
First Claim
1. A method for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases comprising the steps, performed by a processor, of:
- receiving a query identifying desired information;
distributing the query to the indexes;
examining the concepts of information in the stored indexes to identify as hits the contents of the databases that match the query;
determining, for each hit, a measure of a difference between the query and the conceptual information from the indexes; and
combining the hits from the indexes in accordance with the determined measures.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods consistent with the present invention access information from databases having stored indexes of completed information corresponding to the databases by receiving a query identifying desired information; examining the concepts of information in the stored indexes to identify as hits the contents of the databases that match the query; determining, for each hit, a measure of a difference between the query and the conceptual information from the indexes; and combining the hits from the indexes in accordance with the determined measures.
176 Citations
63 Claims
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1. A method for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases comprising the steps, performed by a processor, of:
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receiving a query identifying desired information; distributing the query to the indexes; examining the concepts of information in the stored indexes to identify as hits the contents of the databases that match the query; determining, for each hit, a measure of a difference between the query and the conceptual information from the indexes; and combining the hits from the indexes in accordance with the determined measures. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An apparatus for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases, comprising:
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receiving means configured to receive a query identifying desired information; distributing means configured to distribute the query to the indexes; examining means configured to examine the concepts of information in the stored indexes to identify as hits the contents of the databases that match the query; determining means configured to determine, for each hit, a measure of a difference between the query and the conceptual information from the indexes; and combining means configured to combine the hits from the indexes in accordance with the determined measures. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A computer program product comprising:
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a computer usable medium having computer readable code embodied therein for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases, the computer usable medium comprising; a receiving module configured to receive a query identifying desired information; a distribution module configured to distribute the query to the indexes; an examining module configured to examine the concepts of information in the stored indexes to identify as hits the contents of the databases that match the query; a determining module configured to determine, for each hit, a measure of a difference between the query and the conceptual information from the indexes; and a combining module configured to combine the hits from the indexes in accordance with the determined measures. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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46. A method for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases in a distributed processing system having a plurality of platforms, the method comprising the steps, performed by a processor, of:
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receiving a query identifying desired information; distributing the query to the indexes; identifying information corresponding to the query from the stored indexes distributed among the plurality of platforms; and determining a measure of a difference between the query and the identified information. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48)
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49. An apparatus for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases in a distributed processing system having a plurality of platforms, comprising:
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receiving means configured to receive a query identifying desired information; distributing means configured to distribute the query to the indexes; identifying means configured to identify information corresponding to the query from the stored indexes distributed among the plurality of platforms; and determining means configured to determine a measure of a difference between the query and the identified information. - View Dependent Claims (50, 51)
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52. A computer program product comprising:
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a computer usable medium having computer readable code embodied therein for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases in a distributed processing system having a plurality of platforms, the computer usable medium comprising; a receiving module configured to receive a query identifying desired information; a distributing module configured to distribute the query to the indexes; an identifying module configured to identify information corresponding to the query from the stored indexes distributed among the plurality of platforms; and determining means configured to determine a measure of a difference between the query and the identified information. - View Dependent Claims (53, 54)
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55. A method for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases in a processing system having a plurality of platforms, the method comprising the steps, performed by a processor, of:
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receiving a query identifying desired information; distributing the query to the indexes; identifying information corresponding to the query from the stored indexes distributed among the plurality of processes; and determining a measure of a difference between the query and the identified information. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57)
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58. An apparatus for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases in a processing system having a plurality of platforms, comprising:
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receiving means configured to receive a query identifying desired information; distributing means configured to distribute the query to the indexes; identifying means configured to identify information corresponding to the query from the stored indexes distributed among the plurality of processes; and determining means configured to determine a measure of a difference between the query and the identified information. - View Dependent Claims (59, 60)
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61. A computer program product comprising:
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a computer usable medium having computer readable code embodied therein for accessing information from databases having stored indexes of conceptual information corresponding to the databases in a processing system having a plurality of platforms, the computer usable medium comprising; a receiving module configured to receive a query identifying desired information; a distributing module configured to distribute the query to the indexes; an identifying module configured to identify information corresponding to the query from the stored indexes distributed among the plurality of processes; and a determining module configured to determine a measure of a difference between the query and the identified information. - View Dependent Claims (62, 63)
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Specification