Search user interface providing mechanism for manipulation of explicit and implicit criteria

• US 6,662,177 B1
• Filed: 03/29/2000
• Issued: 12/09/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sisvel S.p.A. (Fineur International S.A.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Martino, Jacquelyn A., Nikolovska, Lira, Camplin, Alison F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Coby, Frantz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thai, Hanh B
• Application Number:
  US09/537,495
• Time in Patent Office: 1,350 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1-9, 707/10, 345/325-327, 705/1, 705/10, 705/5
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/735 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/78 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90328 using search space presentation or visualization, e.g. category or range presentation and selection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9038 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A user interface for querying and displaying records from a database allows explicit and implicit profiles to be stored and selectively, and independently, incorporated in a search. Implicit profiles are derived from the selections of resources by a user without requiring the user to specify any rules by which selections are made. A machine-learning algorithm is used to derive a model by which user-preferences can be predicted. Explicit profiles are rules entered by the user. For example, the user may select certain categories of resources that the user prefers to exclude from searches. Queries are defined by selecting predefined criteria, and one or both of the explicit and implicit profiles. In an embodiment, profiles are displayed and manipulated just as categories of other criteria to add and remove them from queries. The queries can be saved and edited.

Claims

1. A method of accessing a database, comprising the steps of:

generating a user interface for performing a search of said database;

defining implicit profile data by inferring from a user'"'"'s previous use of data in said database, a model to predict what data in said database said user would prefer to use in the future;

defining explicit profile data by permitting a user to specify a set of criteria to predict what data in said database said user would prefer to use in the future;

providing a user interface by which at least one of said implicit and explicit profiles may be applied, selectively, to said search;

submitting said search query to a controller programmed to access said database responsively to said query;

wherein

said step of generating includes

displaying said implicit and explicit profiles as symbols in a scene.

2. A method as in claim 1, wherein

said step of providing includes

displaying search criteria as respective other symbols in the scene and

accepting commands to group said symbols and the other symbols to form said search query.

3. A method as in claim 2, wherein

said step of defining implicit profile data includes

applying a machine-learning technology to data defining previous selections of said user to derive a predictive model.

4. A method as in claim 1, wherein

said step of defining implicit profile data includes

applying a machine-learning technology to data defining previous selections of said user to derive a predictive model.

5. A method as in claim 1, wherein

said database is an electronic program guide.

6. A method of selecting programs from an electronic program guide database containing information about media content items comprising the steps of:

selecting implicit and explicit user profiles from a data store;

said implicit user profile representing a set of data derived at least in part, from viewing selections made by a user and from which predictions about future viewing selection preferences of said user may be made;

said explicit user profile representing a set of data representing criteria selected explicitly by said user, from which predictions about future viewing selection preferences of said user may also be made;

generating a user interface by means of which one or both of said explicit and implicit user profiles may be incorporated in a search query and thereby used to generate predictions about future viewing selection preferences of said user; and

at least one of filtering and sorting records of said electronic program database responsively to said search query, wherein

said step of generating includes

displaying said implicit and explicit profiles as symbols in a scene.

7. A method as in claim 6, wherein

said step of generating includes

permitting a selection of at least one criteria by which records in said electronic program guide database may be distinguished, and

combining said criteria in said search query.

8. A method as in claim 7, wherein

said step of generating includes

displaying said criteria as other symbols in the scene.

9. A database access user-interface, comprising:

a computer connectable to a database having records, each containing information about a respective resource;

said computer being connected to a preference data store storing preference data indicating resources preferred by a first user;

said preference data store containing implicit profile data including data responsive to selections of resources made by said first user and effective to permit a prediction of which of said resources will be preferred by said first user in the future;

said preference data store containing explicit profile data including data responsive to rules for selecting resources selected by said first user to be stored as a set;

said implicit and explicit profile data being stored as sets, a first set corresponding to said first user and a second set corresponding to a second user;

said computer being connected to a user interface with a display and an input device;

said computer being programmed to permit a selection of criteria to define a search query;

said computer being programmed to permit at least one of said first and second sets to be added to said search query; and

said computer being programmed to display the at least one of said first and second sets as at least one symbol in a scene.

10. A user-interface as in claim 9, wherein

said computer is connected to control a delivery of said resources responsively to said search query.

11. A user-interface as in claim 10, wherein

said database is an electronic program guide database and

said resources are media content deliverable through a broadcast channel.

12. A user-interface as in claim 9, wherein

said database is an electronic program guide database and

said resources are media content deliverable through a broadcast channel.

13. A user interface as in claim 9, wherein

said computer is further programmed

to update said explicit profile data by displaying a list of categories of resources and accepting input indicating ones of said categories to exclude from said second identifiers, and

to exclude from a selection set returned after application of said query.

14. A media resource access device, comprising:

a controller with a display, a data store, and input device;

said controller being programmed to derive an implicit profile from selections of resources by a user without requiring the user to specify any rules by which selections are made;

said controller being programmed to generate an explicit profile storable in said data store, from rules entered through said input device by said user;

said controller being programmed to generate search queries by accepting commands, through said input device, selecting predefined criteria;

said controller being further programmed to include in said search queries one or both of said explicit and implicit profiles responsively to commands through said input device; and

said controller being further programmed to generate a user interface by means of which said profiles and said predefined criteria are displayed and manipulated to construct said search queries;

wherein

said profiles and said predefined criteria are displayed as symbols in a scene.

15. A device as in claim 14, wherein

said controller is programmed to generate said search queries by accepting commands through said input device to select certain categories of said resources to be excluded from results of said search queries.

16. A device as in claim 14, wherein

said controller is programmed to save and edit said search queries.