Pyramid view

• US 7,620,631 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2005
• Issued: 11/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Paek, Timothy S., Logan, Ronald K.
• Primary Examiner(s): ALAM, SHAHID AL
• Application Number:
  US11/085,731
• Publication Number:
  US 20060212817A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,702 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/5, 715/745
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

A system for displaying information to a user is disclosed. The system comprises a grouping module that organizes data items into groups that are ranked based upon at least one attribute of the data items. Also included is a presentation module that presents the ranked groups of data items to a user along with a group indicator. Methods for using the disclosed system are additionally provided.

Claims

1. A system, embodied in a computer-readable storage medium, for displaying information search results to a user, comprising:

a grouping module that organizes information search results into groups, the information search results are ranked based upon at least one attribute of the information search results;

a presentation engine that presents the ranked groups of information items search results along with a group indicator;

a group control module that facilitates bounding the groups based at least in part upon the attribute of the information search results;

an information condenser that creates an abbreviated version of at least one of the information search results for presentation to the user; and

an information expander that works with the presentation engine to present a full version of the abbreviated version of the information search results upon receiving an indication of selection of the abbreviated version.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the attribute of the information search result is a degree of interest function.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the degree of interest function is based upon at least one of an overall search score, a rank score, a personalized score, a number of links to an information search result, a number of links out from an information search result, and a popularity score.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the presentation module dynamically changes the presentation of the ranked groups based upon information from the group control module.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the group indicator is at least one of a color, a line, font style, and a graphical indicator.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the grouping module further comprises:

grouping a first subset of the information search results into a first group that is most responsive to the users search request;

grouping a second subset of the information search results into a second group that is less responsive to the users search request than the first subset; and

grouping a third subset of the information search results into a third group that is least responsive to the users search request.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the presentation engine further comprises:

presenting the first subset of information search results in the first group in a single-column layout as either full versions or abbreviated versions;

presenting the second subset of information search results in the second group in a dual-column layout as abbreviated versions; and

presenting the third subset of information search results in the third group in a three-column layout as abbreviated versions.

8. A method for displaying information search results to a user, comprising:

grouping, by a computing device, ranked elements of a search result into one or more groups based upon a user-selectable attribute of the information search results;

ranking by the computing device, the one or more groups in relation to each other;

presenting, by the computing device, the ranked groups to a user;

bounding, by the computing device, the one or more groups based at least in part upon the user-selectable attribute of the information search results;

creating, by the computing device, an abbreviated version of at least one of the information search results for presentation to the user; and

presenting, by the computing device, a full version of the abbreviated version of the at least one the information search results upon receiving an indication of selection of the abbreviated version.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising adjusting at least one parameter for the one or more groups.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising regrouping the elements of the search result based at least in part upon the at least one adjusted parameter.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising assigning a group indicator to each element of the search results.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising creating a summary of at least one element of the search result.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising expanding a summary of an element of the search result.

14. A system, embodied in a computer-readable storage medium, for displaying information search results to a user, comprising:

means for obtaining a plurality of elements by way of a search;

means for ranking the plurality of elements and grouping the plurality of elements into one or more groups based at least in part upon the ranking of the plurality of elements;

means for ranking the groups in relation to each other;

means for presenting the ranked groups to a user;

means for bounding the groups based at least in part upon a user-selectable attribute of the plurality of elements;

means for creating an abbreviated version of at least one of the plurality of elements for presentation to the user; and

means for presenting a full version of the abbreviated version of the at least one of the plurality of elements upon receiving an indication of selection of the abbreviated version.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising means for adjusting at least one parameter relating to the one or more groups.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising means for regrouping the elements of the search result based at least in part upon an adjusted parameter.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising means for assigning a group indicator to each element of the search results.

18. The system of claim 17, further comprising means for creating a summary of at least one element of the search result.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising means for expanding a summary of an element of the search result.