Information retrieval by natural language querying
First Claim
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1. A system for providing information in response to a natural language query, comprising:
- an information extraction engine adapted to index an updated text source based on a predefined grammar, wherein said predefined grammar is based on one or more topics and objects;
a database coupled to the information extraction engine to store the index output; and
a natural language query engine coupled to the database to search the index for the text corpus in response to the natural language query.
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Abstract
A natural language information querying system includes an indexing facility configured to automatically generate indices of updated textual sources based on one or more predefined grammars and a database coupled to the indexing facility to store the indices for subsequent searching.
960 Citations
51 Claims
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1. A system for providing information in response to a natural language query, comprising:
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an information extraction engine adapted to index an updated text source based on a predefined grammar, wherein said predefined grammar is based on one or more topics and objects;
a database coupled to the information extraction engine to store the index output; and
a natural language query engine coupled to the database to search the index for the text corpus in response to the natural language query. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
a multimedia data source having a sound stream and a corresponding video stream; and
,a speech recognizer coupled to the multimedia data source and the data acquisition unit, the speech recognizer converting the sound stream to a text stream and delivering the text stream to the data acquisition unit.
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27. The system of claim 26, wherein the multimedia data source comprises one of a digital video disk, a videotape, a television transmission source, and a cable transmission source.
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28. The system of claim 21, wherein the client has a pen input engine adapted to convert user handwritings to the natural language query.
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29. A natural language information querying system, comprising:
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an indexing facility configured to automatically generate indices of updated versions of the textual information based on a predefined grammar, wherein said predefined grammar is based on one or more topics and objects; and
a database coupled to the indexing facility to store the indices. - View Dependent Claims (30)
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31. A method for providing information in response to a natural language query, comprising:
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extracting information from an updated text source based on a predefined grammar, wherein said predefined grammar is based on one or more topics and objects; and
creating a stored indexed text corpus adapted to permit natural language querying. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51)
sending the natural language query from a handheld computer; and
receiving a natural language response from the server and forwarding the response to a user.
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39. The method of claim 31, further comprising converting the response to speech using a text-to-speech unit.
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40. The method of claim 31, further comprising receiving the natural language query using a speech recognizer.
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41. The method of claim 31, further comprising receiving the natural language query using a handwriting recognizer.
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42. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating competitive intelligence information.
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43. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating litigation support information.
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44. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating products on-line.
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45. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating medical information.
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46. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating legal information.
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47. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating electronic commerce information.
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48. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating educational information.
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49. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating financial information.
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50. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating investment information.
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51. The method of claim 31, wherein the query and the text corpus relate to locating information for a vertical market application.
Specification