Multimedia search system

• US 7,664,775 B2
• Filed: 07/21/2006
• Issued: 02/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Encyclopaedia Britannica Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Encyclopaedia Britannica Incorporated
• Inventors: Reed, Michael, Kester, Harold, Carlton, Ron, Meatman, Dave, Maatman, Gail B., Greenhalgh, Carol, Rogers, Derryl, Munevar, Edwardo, Good, Dale, Frank, Stanley D., Holzman, Carl, Jensen, Ann, Holman, Neil, Bastin, Norman J., Bestick, Greg
• Primary Examiner(s): LEWIS, CHERYL RENEA
• Application Number:
  US11/490,263
• Publication Number:
  US 20070179977A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,306 Days
• Field of Search: 707 2- 5, 707/100, 707/102, 707/104.1, 715/700
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/332 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3322 using system suggestions G06F16/3325 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/532 Query formulation, e.g. graphical querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/54 Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/213 Read-only discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2545 CDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/919 Geographic
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• 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 database search system that retrieves multimedia information in a flexible, user friendly system. The search system uses a multimedia database consisting of text, picture, audio and animated data. That database is searched through multiple graphical and textual entry paths. Those entry paths include an idea search, a title finder search, a topic tree search, a picture explorer search, a history timeline search, a world atlas search, a researcher'"'"'s assistant search, and a feature articles search.

Claims

1. A computerized map system, comprising:

a computer readable storage medium;

computer software stored on the storage medium and operable to;

cause an image of at least a portion of a map to be displayed on a display screen;

change the portion of the map displayed on the display screen in response to user input;

display a plurality of place indicators on the display screen, wherein a specific place indicator indicates the position of a place on the map and indicates that further information about the place is available;

display text information associated with one of the plurality of place indicators in response to input from a user indicating selection of the place indicator; and

provide a text search feature that allows the user to enter textual search information to search for a place, receive a list of places in response to the search, select a place from the list of places, and display an image of a part of the map indicating the location of the place.

2. A method of electronically using a map, comprising:

causing an image of at least a portion of a map to be displayed on a display screen;

changing the portion of the map displayed on the display screen in response to user input;

displaying a plurality of place indicators on the display screen, wherein a specific place indicator indicates the position of a place on the map and indicates that further information about the place is available;

displaying text information associated with a one of the plurality of place indicators in response to input from a user indicating selection of the place indicator; and

providing a text search feature that allows the user to enter textual search information to search for a place, receive a list of places in response to the search, select a place from the list of places, and display an image of a part of the map indicating the location of the place.

3. A machine-implemented method for retrieving multimedia information, comprising:

providing a textual search entry path configured to enable entry of one or more terms to search for in at least a portion of textual information stored on a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the textual search entry path is operable to access a stem index including a plurality of stems that are each associated with textual information and one or more related stems, the stems being concatenated in order to map each stem to other stems and to textual information that express a similar idea; and

searching the textual information using the stem index for textual information that closely resembles a search inquiry comprising one or more terms entered in the textual search entry path.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the concatenation comprises linking the stems together based on one or more of grammatical linkages and thesaurus linkages.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the textual search entry path is further operable to eliminate one or more stop terms in a search inquiry by comparing terms in the search inquiry to terms stored in a stop term list and by eliminating any terms in the search inquiry that match terms stored in the stop term list.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising automatically checking the spelling of terms in the search inquiry and providing alternate versions of misspelled words.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising automatically using a thesaurus to provide alternate terms for terms in the search inquiry.

8. The method of claim 3, further comprising ordering a plurality of results of the search for textual information in order of relevance to the search inquiry.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the results are ordered based on an exhaustivity coefficient and an exclusivity coefficient.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein all of the results ranked above a predetermined exhaustivity and exclusivity threshold are separately designated.

11. The method of claim 3, further comprising highlighting one or more terms from the search inquiry in the results to set them off from terms not in the search inquiry.

12. Software for retrieving multimedia information, the software embodied on a computer-readable storage medium and, when executed by a computer, operable to:

provide the multimedia information from independently accessible retrieval paths, the paths including;

a textual search entry path configured to enable entry of one or more terms to search for in at least a portion of textual information stored on a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the textual search entry path is operable to access a stem index including a plurality of stems that are each associated with textual information and one or more related stems, the stems being concatenated in order to map each stem to other stems and to textual information that express a similar idea, and

search the textual information using the stem index for textual information that closely resembles a search inquiry comprising one or more terms entered in the textual search entry path.

13. The software of claim 12, wherein the concatenation comprises linking the stems together based on one or more of grammatical linkages and thesaurus linkages.

14. The software of claim 12, wherein the textual search entry path is further operable to eliminate one or more stop terms in a search inquiry by comparing terms in the search inquiry to terms stored in a stop term list and by eliminating any terms in the search inquiry that match terms stored in the stop term list.

15. The software of claim 12, further operable to automatically check the spelling of terms in the search inquiry and providing alternate versions of misspelled.

16. The software of claim 12, further operable to automatically use a thesaurus to provide alternate terms for terms in the search inquiry.

17. The software of claim 12, further operable to order a plurality of results of the search for textual information in order of relevance to the search inquiry.

18. The software of claim 17, wherein the results are ordered based on an exhaustivity coefficient and an exclusivity coefficient.

19. The software of claim 18, wherein all of the results ranked above a predetermined exhaustivity and exclusivity threshold are separately designated.

20. The software of claim 12, further operable to highlight one or more terms from the search inquiry in the results to set them off from terms not in the search inquiry.

21. A machine-implemented method for retrieving multimedia information, comprising:

providing separate and independently accessible retrieval paths, at least one of said paths including;

a textual search entry path configured to enable entry of one or more terms to search for in at least a portion of textual information stored on a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the textual search entry path is operable to access a stem index including a plurality of stems that are each associated with textual information and one or more related stems, the stems being concatenated in order to map each stem to other stems and to textual information that express a similar idea; and

searching the textual information using the stem index for textual information that closely resembles a search inquiry comprising one or more terms entered in the textual search entry path.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the concatenation comprises linking the stems together based on one or more of grammatical linkages and thesaurus linkages.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the textual search entry path is further operable to eliminate one or more stop terms in a search inquiry by comparing terms in the search inquiry to terms stored in a stop term list and by eliminating any terms in the search inquiry that match terms stored in the stop term list.

24. The method of claim 21, further comprising automatically checking the spelling of terms in the search inquiry and providing alternate versions of misspelled words.

25. The method of claim 21, further comprising automatically using a thesaurus to provide alternate terms for terms in the search inquiry.

26. The method of claim 21, further comprising ordering a plurality of results of the search for textual information in order of relevance to the search inquiry.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the results are ordered based on an exhaustivity coefficient and an exclusivity coefficient.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein all of the results ranked above a predetermined exhaustivity and exclusivity threshold are separately designated.

29. The method of claim 21, further comprising highlighting one or more terms from the search inquiry in the results to set them off from terms not in the search inquiry.