Full-text search integration in XML database

• US 7,493,338 B2
• Filed: 08/10/2004
• Issued: 02/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Cheslow, Robert D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Rones; Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): Khoshnoodi; Fariborz
• Application Number:
  US10/914,903
• Publication Number:
  US 20060036657A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,652 Days
• Field of Search: 707/104.1, 707/3, 709/217, 709/228, 705/2, 705/1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/8373 Query execution
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A system for full text search integration in XQuery for a binary object XML repository includes XQuery interpreter module(s) for implementing the XQuery language and function dispatcher module(s) for implementing the XQuery function calling mechanism. Search function implementation module(s) implement the component search function and interpret the full-text search query syntax. The search function postings resolution manager module(s) compute the candidate elements for search query resolution, and postings module(s) return all XML nodes that contain a specified token, with a token corresponding to a piece of XML syntax.

Claims

1. A system for providing full-text search integration in XQuery for a binary object XML repository, comprising:

a storage device configured to store computer-executable program code; and

a processor configured to execute the computer-executable program code on computer executable program modules, comprising;

an XQuery interpreter module configured to interpret XQuery code and to accept a search query comprising one or more search expressions having one or more search terms;

a function dispatcher module configured to dispatch an XQuery function calling mechanism comprising at least one argument for the search query based on the search expressions;

a search function module configured to search and interpret a full-text search query syntax for the XQuery function calling mechanism as a built-in search function specified as part of an XQuery language;

a search function manager module configured to determine candidate elements that satisfy at least one of the search terms;

a postings module configured to return all of the candidate elements that match at least one of the search expressions, wherein each search expression corresponds to a piece of XML syntax; and

a score module configured to return a score that reflects strength of each match.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the search query is accepted and results are returned in XQuery.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the XQuery function calling mechanism evaluates the argument, locates code associated with the body of the built-in search function, invokes implementation of the built-in search function, and passes argument values to the built-in search function.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the built-in search function applies logic of each search expression to determine the candidate elements that satisfy that search expression.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein each candidate element that contains one of the search terms is identified.

6. A computer-implemented method for providing full-text search integration in XQuery for a binary object XML repository, comprising:

interpreting XQuery code and accepting a search query comprising one or more search expressions having one or more search terms;

identifying all matching variants in a lexicon for each search term within the search expressions;

collecting posting lists for each variant of each search term comprising sequence offset values to candidate elements containing that search term;

dispatching an XQuery function calling mechanism comprising at least one argument for the search query based on the search expressions;

searching and interpreting a full-text search query syntax for the XQuery function calling mechanism as a built-in search function specified as part of an XQuery language, comprising;

applying search query Boolean logic to the sequence offset values; and

filtering the posting lists for relations specified in the search query;

determining the candidate elements that satisfy at least one of the search terms;

returning all of the determined candidate elements that match at least one of the search expressions based on the search query Boolean logic and the relations, wherein each search expression corresponds to a piece of XML syntax; and

returning a score that reflects strength of each match.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising:

identifying at least one of the matching variants using one or more of case-insensitive, spelling correction, and stemming routines.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the XQuery function calling mechanism is written in a full-featured, pattern-matching language.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the full-featured, pattern-matching language comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of Boolean operations, proximity relations, order relations, and flexible token matching.

10. The method according to claim 6, wherein each sequence offset value comprises a location in a sequence file for the search term.

11. The method according to claim 6, further comprising:

applying the search query Boolean logic using fast ordered list routines comprising one of union routines and intersect routines.

12. The method according to claim 6, wherein relations specified in the search query comprise at least one member selected from the group consisting of word-order relations and proximity relations.

13. The method according to claim 6, further comprising:

regenerating the candidate elements that match the at least one search expression into XML.

14. The method according to claim 6, further comprising:

accepting the search query and returning results in XQuery.