Methods of and apparatus for refining descriptors

• US 6,507,841 B2
• Filed: 02/19/1999
• Issued: 01/14/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Riverieulx de Varax, Aymeric
• Primary Examiner(s): Breene, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAM, KHANH B
• Application Number:
  US09/252,671
• Publication Number:
  US 20020083031A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,425 Days
• Field of Search: 707/200, 707/2, 707/3, 707/4, 707/5
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/313 Selection or weighting of terms for indexing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• 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

A database containing data items, such as images, text, audio records or video records, in both summary and complete forms, is searched by reference to descriptors associated with the data items, in response to user requests. The search result contains the summary form of the selected items. Responses from users indicative of the utility of the search results (implicit in the users'"'"' subsequent actions in requesting the complete forms of specific selected items) are used to refine the descriptors to alter subsequent search results.

Claims

1. A method of indexing data items to enable retrieval thereof, comprising the steps of:

storing said data items in a complete form,

storing association relationships between said stored data items and descriptors associated with said stored data items;

receiving a search request from a user for selection of stored data items, said request incorporating at least one descriptor;

sending the user a search result including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request; and

modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including adding at least one descriptor to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested or removing said at least one descriptor from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user'"'"'s responses that cause the modification include explicit comments supplied by the user indicative of the usefulness of search results.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the stored data items include representations of images and the summary form of the stored data item including a representation of an image includes a thumbnail version of the image.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the association relationship for a selected data item is modified in response to the user making a monetary transaction in connection with a thing associated with the selected data item.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the association relationship between one of said stored data items and one or more of said stored descriptors has for each of said one or more of said descriptors a stored weight indicating a strength of association between the stored data item and the stored descriptor.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein modification to the association relationships further comprises modifying the stored weights in said stored association relationships.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein a descriptor not previously present in the stored association relationship for a data item is assigned a first weight in response to the descriptor initially occurring in a search request from a user.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein a descriptor is added to the stored association relationship in response to the weight for that descriptor exceeding a threshold value.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein a descriptor is removed from the stored association relationship in response to the weight falling below a threshold value.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein a descriptor is added to the stored association relationship in response to the weight for that descriptor exceeding a first threshold value and a descriptor is removed from the stored association relationship in response to the weight falling below a second threshold value.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one of the stored descriptors is modified by being added to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested and said at least one of the descriptors is modified by being removed from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

12. A method of indexing data items in a central facility accessible by a plurality of users, the data items being indexed to enable retrieval thereof, comprising the steps of:

storing said data items in a complete form;

storing association relationships between said stored data items and descriptors associated with said stored data items;

receiving search requests from a plurality of users for selection of stored data items, said requests incorporating at least one descriptor associated with each data item;

sending users search results, each search result including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request; and

modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including adding said at least one descriptor to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested or removing said at least one descriptor from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said at least one of the stored descriptors is modified by being added to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested and said at least one of the descriptors is modified by being removed from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

14. A search facility for retrieving data items in response to user requests, the search facility comprising

a store for (a) the data items and (b) association relationships between the stored data items and descriptors associated with the stored items,

a receiver for search requests from users of the search facility, each search request including a user selection of at least one of the stored data items and at least one descriptor associated with the user selected at least one stored data item,

a processor coupled to the receiver for retrieving from the store the users'"'"' search results in response to the search request by the users, the retrieved search results including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request, the processor being arranged for modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including adding said at least one descriptor to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested or removing said at least one descriptor from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

15. The search facility of claim 14, wherein responses by the users include explicit comments supplied by the user indicative of the usefulness of search results, the processor being arranged to modify the descriptors in response to the explicit comments indicative of the usefulness of the search results.

16. The search facility of claim 14, wherein responses by the users include a monetary transaction in connection with a commodity associated with a selected data item, the processor being arranged to modify the descriptors in response to the response including the monetary transaction.

17. The search facility of claim 14, wherein the stored association relationship between one of said stored data items and one or more of said descriptors has for each of said one or more of said descriptors a stored weight indicating strength of association between the stored data item and the stored descriptor.

18. The search facility of claim 17, wherein the processor is arranged for modifying the stored association relationships by modifying the stored weights in said association relationships.

19. The search facility of claim 18, wherein the processor is arranged for assigning a first weight for the stored association relationship for a data item in response to the descriptor initially occurring in a search request from a user.

20. The search facility of claim 18, wherein the processor is arranged for adding a description to the stored association relationship in response to the weight for that descriptor exceeding a threshold value.

21. The search facility of claim 18, wherein the processor is arranged for removing a descriptor from the stored association relationship in response to the weight for that descriptor falling below a second threshold value.

22. The search facility of claim 14, wherein the processor is arranged for modifying said at least one of the stored descriptors by (a) adding the descriptor to the stored relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was completed and (b) removing the descriptor from the stored relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was completed.

23. A method of indexing data items to enable retrieval thereof, comprising the steps of:

storing said data items in a complete form,

storing association relationships between said stored data items and descriptors associated with said stored data items;

receiving a search request from a user for selection of stored data items, said request incorporating at least one descriptor;

sending the user a search result, including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request; and

modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including removing at least one descriptor from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

24. A method of indexing data items to enable retrieval thereof, comprising the steps of:

storing said data items in a complete form,

storing association relationships between said stored data items and descriptors associated with said stored data items;

receiving a search request from a user for selection of stored data items, said request incorporating at least one descriptor;

sending the user a search result including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request; and

modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including adding at least one descriptor to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

25. A method of indexing data items in a central facility accessible by a plurality of users, the data items being indexed to enable retrieval thereof, comprising the steps of:

storing said data items in a complete form;

storing association relationships between said stored data items and descriptors associated with said stored data items;

receiving search requests from a plurality of users for selection of stored data items, said requests incorporating at least one descriptor associated with each data item;

sending users search results, each search result including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request; and

modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including removing at least one descriptor from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

26. A method of indexing data items in a central facility accessible by a plurality of users, the data items being indexed to enable retrieval thereof, comprising the steps of:

storing said data items in a complete form;

storing association relationships between said stored data items and descriptors associated with said stored data items;

receiving search requests from a plurality of users for selection of stored data items, said requests incorporating at least one descriptor associated with each data item;

sending users search results, each search result including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request; and

modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including adding said at least one descriptor to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

27. A search facility for retrieving data items in response to user requests, the search facility comprising

a store for (a) the data items and (b) association relationships between the stored data items and descriptors associated with the stored items,

a receiver for search requests from users of the search facility, each search request including a user selection of at least one of the stored data items and at least one descriptor associated with the user selected at least one stored data item,

a processor coupled to the receiver for retrieving from the store the users'"'"' search results in response to the search request by the users, the retrieved search results including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request, the processor being arranged for modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including removing said at least one descriptor from the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.

28. A search facility for retrieving data items in response to user requests, the search facility comprising

a store for (a) the data items and (b) association relationships between the stored data items and descriptors associated with the stored items,

a receiver for search requests from users of the search facility, each search request including a user selection of at least one of the stored data items and at least one descriptor associated with the user selected at least one stored data item,

a processor coupled to the receiver for retrieving from the store the users'"'"' search results in response to the search request by the users, the retrieved search results including a summary form of the stored data items selected in accordance with the search request, the processor being arranged for modifying the stored association relationship between the stored data items and the stored descriptors in response to the user responding to the sent search result by requesting the complete form of a selected data item in a search result, the modification including adding said at least one descriptor to the stored association relationship for the selected data item for which the complete form was requested.