Text search ordered along one or more dimensions
First Claim
1. A computer-implemented method including:
- (a) obtaining from a user a user query including at least some language;
(b) classifying the user query into a query class;
(c) selecting a search strategy using the query class in which the user query is classified, the selecting the search strategy including obtaining a set of search criteria;
(d) performing a first search for documents relevant to the user query using at least one search criteria selected from the set of search criteria, the set of search criteria including at least two different search criteria defining different search specificities when using identical terms from the user query language; and
(e) evaluating a first search result returned by the first search to determine whether to perform a subsequent search using at least one different search criteria from the set of search criteria.
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Accused Products
Abstract
This document discusses, among other things, systems and methods for searching for relevant documents in a document corpus. Using, among other things, text provided by a user'"'"'s query, the system undertakes a dynamic search process that includes at least one ordered sequence of searches. The results of a first search are evaluated to determine how to formulate a second or subsequent search, whether to perform a second or subsequent search, or whether or how to present to the user results from the search or searches performed up to that point. In one example, the first search uses tight criteria in conjunction with the language of the user'"'"'s query. If the number of documents in the search results do not meet or exceed a threshold value, the search criteria is progressively loosened over subsequent searches. The search list may depend on, among other things, a characteristic of the user query or upon a result returned by a previous search on the user query.
128 Citations
84 Claims
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1. A computer-implemented method including:
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(a) obtaining from a user a user query including at least some language; (b) classifying the user query into a query class; (c) selecting a search strategy using the query class in which the user query is classified, the selecting the search strategy including obtaining a set of search criteria; (d) performing a first search for documents relevant to the user query using at least one search criteria selected from the set of search criteria, the set of search criteria including at least two different search criteria defining different search specificities when using identical terms from the user query language; and (e) evaluating a first search result returned by the first search to determine whether to perform a subsequent search using at least one different search criteria from the set of search criteria. - 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)
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26. A computer-implemented method including:
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obtaining from a user a user query including at least some language; using an ordered list, S1, S2, . . . , SN, of at least two searches, each search using at least one search criteria that is different from the other searches, the search criteria selected from a multidimensional set of automatically generated search criteria, the set of search criteria including at least two different dimensions representing different approaches of varying search specificity; and performing a search for documents relevant to the user query using one of the S1, S2, . . . , SN searches, starting with the S1 search, evaluating search results corresponding to the search performed to determine whether to perform a subsequent search and, if the search results yielded an insufficient number of documents relevant to the user query, moving to and performing another search in the list; and returning a list of the documents returned by the at least one search that was performed. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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46. A computer-implemented method of searching for documents that are relevant to a user'"'"'s query, the method including:
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obtaining from a user a user query including at least some language; using an ordered list, S1, S2, . . . , SN, of at least two searches, each search using at least one search criteria that is different from the other searches, in which the list is ordered substantially according to specificity of the search criteria, in which S1 provides at least approximately more specific search criteria than S2, . . . , SN, and in which SN provides at least approximately more general search criteria than S1, S2, . . . , S(N−
1), and wherein the search criteria is selected from an automatically generated set of search criteria that includes at least two different search criteria that specify different regions of the document to be used in carrying out the search;performing a search for documents relevant to the user query using one of the S1, S2, . . . , SN searches, starting with the S1 search, evaluating search results corresponding to the search performed to determine whether to perform a subsequent search and, if the search results yielded an insufficient number of documents relevant to the user query, moving to and performing another search in the list; ranking the documents; and returning a ranked list of the documents returned by the at least one search that was performed. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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53. An automated content provider system including:
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a user query input to receive a user query; a search query generator, coupled to the user query input, the search query generator to generate a search using the user query to formulate corresponding search criteria selected from an automatically generated set of search criteria, the set of search criteria including at least two different search criteria defining different search specificities when using identical terms from the user query language; a search engine, including an input coupled to the search query generator and an output, the search engine using the search criteria to perform the search and to provide a corresponding search result at the search engine output; a search result evaluator, coupled to the search engine output and an input of the search query generator, the search result evaluator to evaluate the search result, in which the search query generator and search engine operate to generate or perform at least one subsequent search using different search criteria from the set of search criteria, if indicated by the evaluation of the search result by the search result evaluator; and a result ranking engine, coupled to the search engine output to rank documents returned in at least one search result, in which the result ranking engine includes an output user interface, in which the result ranking engine ranks a particular document based at least in part on which search returned that particular document. - View Dependent Claims (54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59)
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60. An automated content provider system including:
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a user query input to receive a user query; a search query generator, coupled to the user query input, the search query generator to generate an ordered list, S1, S2, . . . , SN, of at least two searches using the user query to formulate corresponding search criteria, each search including at least one search criteria that is different from the other searches, the search criteria selected from an automatically generated set of search criteria, the set of search criteria including at least two different search criteria defining different search specificities when using identical terms from the user query language; a search engine, including a input coupled to the search query generator and an output, the search engine using the search criteria to perform ones of the S1, S2, . . . , SN searches, starting with the S1 search; and to provide a corresponding search result at the search engine output; a search result evaluator, coupled to the search engine output and an input of the search query generator, the search result evaluator to evaluate the search result to determine whether to perform a subsequent search from the ordered list based on whether existing search results yielded an insufficient number of documents relevant to the user query; and a result ranking engine, coupled to the search engine output to rank documents returned in at least one search result, in which the result ranking engine includes an output user interface, in which the result ranking engine ranks a particular document based at least in part on which search returned that particular document. - View Dependent Claims (61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76)
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77. A computer-implemented method of searching for documents that are relevant to a user'"'"'s query, the method including:
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obtaining from a user a user query including at least some language; using an automatically generated ordered list of S1, S2, . . . , SN searches, the searches using search criteria taken from a plurality of dimensions, each dimension including a plurality of search criteria ranging from approximately more specific to approximately more general, the plurality of dimensions including at least two different dimensions representing different approaches of varying search specificity; and performing a search for documents relevant to the user query using one of the S1, S2, . . . , SN searches, starting with the S1 search, evaluating search results corresponding to the search performed to determine whether to perform a subsequent search and, if the evaluation deems the search results insufficient, then moving to and performing another search in the list. - View Dependent Claims (78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84)
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Specification