System and method for locating web-based product offerings

• US 6,785,671 B1
• Filed: 03/17/2000
• Issued: 08/31/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: A9.com Incorporated (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Bailey, David R., Rajaraman, Anand, Feldman, Todd J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pardo, Thuy N.
• Application Number:
  US09/528,138
• Time in Patent Office: 1,628 Days
• Field of Search: 707/2, 707/4, 707/5, 707/100, 707/523, 707/3, 707/6, 707/10, 705/14, 705/26, 705/27, 705/5, 709/223, 709/228, 709/203, 709/219, 704/10, 713/171
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A search engine system assists users in locating web pages from which user-specified products can be purchased. Web pages located by a crawler program are scored, based on a set of rules, according to likelihood of including an online product offering. A query server accesses an index of the scored web pages to locate pages that are both responsive to a user'"'"'s search query and likely to include a product offering. In one embodiment, the responsive web pages are listed on a composite search results page together with products that satisfy the query.

Claims

1. A method for facilitating searches for web pages that include product offerings, comprising:

for each of a plurality of web pages located by a crawling program;

(a) generating a score that indicates a likelihood that the web page includes a product offering, and (b) generating and storing a representation of the web page, including an address of the web page, for subsequently determining whether the web page satisfies a search query;

receiving a search query from a user; and

determining whether the search query is satisfied by a web page for which the score generated in (a) satisfies selected criteria;

whereby the need for the user to consider web pages that satisfy the search query but that do not include product offerings is substantially reduced.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein (b) comprises storing the representation of the web page in a keyword index.

3. The method as in claim 2, wherein (b) further comprises storing the score within the keyword index.

4. The method as in claim 1, wherein (b) is performed only for web pages for which the score satisfies a selected threshold.

5. The method as in claim 1, wherein generating a score comprises applying a set of rules to the web page only, without regard to other pages of a web site to which the web page belongs.

6. The method as in claim 1, wherein generating a score comprises applying a set of rules to the web page and to at least one additional web page of a web site to which the web page belongs.

7. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

searching one or more product databases to identify a set of products that satisfy the query; and

generating and returning to the user a composite search results page which lists at least a set of web pages for which the score satisfies the selected criteria and the set of products.

8. The method as in claim 1, wherein the score is generated based primarily on a computer-implemented analysis of the web page.

9. A product-oriented web search engine system, comprising:

an index that includes representations of web pages that, based on a set of rules, have been determined to within a selected level of confidence to include product offerings; and

a query server that uses the index and a query received from a user to identify web pages that both satisfy the query and include product offerings;

whereby the need for the user to consider web pages that satisfy the search query but that do not include product offerings is substantially reduced.

10. The system of claim 9, where the index includes scores that represent probabilities that specific web pages include product offerings, and the query server excludes from consideration web pages with scores that fail to satisfy selected criteria.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the query server further uses the query to search a database of products that are available from a known merchant.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the query server generates a composite search results page which lists located products from the database and located web pages with product offerings.

13. The system of claim 9, further comprising a component that applies the set of rules to web pages located by a web crawling program.

14. A method for assisting a user in purchasing a product online, comprising:

(a) receiving a query from the user;

(b) identifying, within one or more databases of products associated with at least one merchant, a set of products that satisfy the query;

(c) identifying a set of web pages that both (i) have been determined to within a selected level of confidence to include product offerings, and (ii) satisfy the query, wherein at least some of the web pages of the set include product offerings from merchants other than the at least one merchant; and

(d) generating and returning to the user a search results page which lists at least some of the products and at least some of web pages identified in (b) and (c).

15. The method of claim 14, wherein (b) comprises searching one or more databases of products sold by a host merchant, wherein the host merchant provides a search engine that operates according to claim 14.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein (b) further comprises searching one or more databases of products sold by merchants that are affiliated with the host merchant.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein (c) comprises applying the query to an index in which web pages are classified and/or scored according to a likelihood that each web page includes a product offering.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

identifying a plurality of categories associated with the set of products;

calculating, for each of the plurality of categories, a relevance level of the query to the category; and

listing the plurality of categories within the search results page in a display order which is dependent upon the relevance levels.

19. A search engine system for assisting users in purchasing products, comprising:

a first repository that includes representations of products sold by at least one merchant;

a second repository that includes representations of web pages that, based on a set of rules, have been determined to within a selected level of confidence to include product offerings, wherein at least some of the web pages correspond to merchants other than the at least one merchant; and

a query server which searches the first and second repositories in response to a query received by a user to identify products sold by the at least one merchant, and web pages with product offerings from additional merchants, that are responsive to the query.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the second repository comprises a keyword index of the web pages that have been determined to within a selected level of confidence to include product offerings.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the keyword index includes scores that represent probabilities that specific web pages include product offerings.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein the web pages are classified within the keyword index according to probability of including a product offering.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein the query server generates a composite search results page which lists at least some of the responsive products sold by the at least one merchant and at least some of the responsive web pages with product offerings.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the composite search results page generated by the query server includes an option for the user to rate the at least one merchant.

25. A method for identifying web pages associated with a search query submitted by a user, wherein web pages that do not provide the opportunity to initiate a product purchase are substantially excluded, comprising:

for each of a plurality of web pages located by a crawling program;

(a) generating a score that indicates a likelihood that the web page provides a user the ability to initiate a product purchase, and (b) generating and storing a representation of the web page, including an address of the web page, for subsequently determining whether the web page satisfies a search query;

receiving a search query from a user;

determining whether the search query is satisfied by a web page for which the score generated in (a) satisfies selected criteria; and

generating and returning to the user a search results page that identifies a set of web pages for which the score generated in (a) satisfies the selected criteria.

26. A computer-implemented method for facilitating searches for web pages that provide the ability to conduct a desired type of transaction, comprising:

for each of a plurality of web pages located by a crawling program;

(a) generating a score that indicates a likelihood that the web page provides the ability to conduct the desired type of transaction, and (b) generating and storing a representation of the web page, including an address of the web page, for subsequently determining whether the web page satisfies a search query;

receiving a search query from a user; and

determining whether the search query is satisfied by a web page for which the score generated in (a) satisfies selected criteria;

whereby the need for the user to consider web pages that satisfy the search query but that do not provide the ability to conduct the desired transaction is substantially reduced.

27. The method as in claim 26, wherein the score is generated based primarily on a computer-implemented analysis of the web page.

28. The method as in claim 26, wherein the score is generated by applying a set of rules to the web page only, without regard to other pages of a web site to which the web page belongs.