Interactive interface for specifying searches

• US 6,223,145 B1
• Filed: 11/25/1998
• Issued: 04/24/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Zerox Corporation
• Original Assignee: Zerox Corporation
• Inventors: Hearst, Marti A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Teska, Kevin J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sergent, Douglas W.
• Application Number:
  US09/200,194
• Time in Patent Office: 881 Days
• Field of Search: 703/22, 707/3, 707/4, 707/5, 345/348
• US Class Current: 703/22
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3323 using document space presentation or visualization, e.g. category, hierarchy or range presentation and selection
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

An interactive interface for creating a search query for a corpus of machine-readable documents, each of which is associated with at least one category of a category hierarchy. The interactive interface includes a cone tree generation component, a query specification component, a begin search component, and a query generation component. The cone tree generation component generates and displays a cone tree representing the category hierarchy. The cone tree represents each category of the category hierarchy as a node having a selection object for indicating inclusion of the category in a one of a first group, and a second group. Each selection object is responsive to a cursor control device. The query specification component generates and displays a query specification object including a first group object and a second group object. Each group object is responsive to the cursor control device and indicates members of the group. Each group includes a one of a term included within the corpus and a category of the category cone tree. The begin search component generates and displays a begin search object responsive to the cursor control device. The query generation component generates a query for searching the corpus to find documents that include at least one member of the first group and at least member of the second group.

Claims

1. An interactive interface for creating a search query on a display controlled by a processor coupled to a cursor control device and to a memory storing instructions for implementing the interactive interface, the processor searching a corpus of documents in machine-readable form, each document being associated with at least one category of a category hierarchy, the interactive interface comprising:

a) a cone tree generation component for generating and displaying on the display a cone tree representing the category hierarchy, each category of the category hierarchy being represented as a node having a selection object for indicating inclusion of the category in a one of a first group and a second group, each selection object being responsive to the cursor control device;

b) a query specification component generating and displaying on the display a query specification object including a first group object and a second group object, each group object being responsive to the cursor control device and for indicating members of the group, each group including a one of a term to be searched for within the corpus and a category of the category cone tree;

c) a begin search component for generating and displaying on the display a begin search object responsive to the cursor control device, the begin search component responding to the cursor control device by indicating that the query is complete; and

d) a query generation component coupled to the begin search object, the query specification component and the corpus, the query generation component generating a query for all documents in the corpus and that include at least one member of the first group and at least one member of the second group.

2. In a computer system including a display, a cursor control device, and a processor executing instructions stored in memory, a computer implemented method of specifying a search query over a corpus of machine-readable documents, each document of the corpus being associated with at least one category of a category hierarchy, the method comprising:

a) generating and displaying on the display a category cone tree visually representing the category hierarchy, each category of the category hierarchy being represented as a node having a selection object for indicating inclusion of the category in a one of a first group and a second group, each selection object being responsive to the cursor control device;

b) generating and displaying on the display a query specification object including a first group object and a second group object, each group object being responsive to the cursor control device and for indicating members of the group, each group including a one of a term included within the corpus and a category of the category cone tree;

c) generating and displaying on the display a begin search object responsive to the cursor control device to indicate the query specification is complete;

d) responding to indication via the cursor control device that the query specification is complete by generating a query for all documents in the corpus that include at least one member of the first group and at least one member of the second group.