Real time implicit user modeling for personalized search

• US 8,442,973 B2
• Filed: 05/01/2007
• Issued: 05/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Board of Trustees of The University of Illinois, Surf Canyon Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Board of Trustees of The University of Illinois, Surf Canyon Incorporated
• Inventors: Tan, Bin, Cramer, Mark, Zhai, Chengxiang, Shen, Xuehua
• Primary Examiner(s): Saeed, Usmaan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Zhao, Yu
• Application Number:
  US11/743,076
• Publication Number:
  US 20080114751A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,205 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 707/723
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation

Abstract

A method and apparatus for utilizing user behavior to immediately modify sets of search results so that the most relevant documents are moved to the top. In one embodiment of the invention, behavior data, which can come from virtually any activity, is used to infer the user'"'"'s intent. The updated inferred implicit user model is then exploited immediately by re-ranking the set of matched documents to best reflect the information need of the user. The system updates the user model and immediately re-ranks documents at every opportunity in order to constantly provide the most optimal results. In another embodiment, the system determines, based on the similarity of results sets, if the current query belongs in the same information session as one or more previous queries. If so, the current query is expanded with additional keywords in order to improve the targeting of the results.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically modifying search results comprising:

receiving one or more keywords for use as search terms from a user;

providing a set of search result objects on a first page of results displayed to said user;

providing title and display text with each of said search result objects in said set of search result objects;

monitoring which of said objects is selected by said user;

compiling information to infer user intent based on the content of said document the user clicks; and

by the time said user returns from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, immediately automatically re-ranking said set of search result objects based on user intent inferred from said analyzing of the content of said document said user clicks on, so that a user clicking on a single document from said set of search result objects results in a re-ranking of said set of search result objects, so that upon said user returning from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, without the user resubmitting the search, the re-ranked results will be visible;

using terms from the title and display text corresponding to a selected object in an algorithm for generating said re-ranking of said set of search result objects on at least said first page;

wherein said re-ranking includes moving at least one object from a subsequent page, not originally visible to said user on said first page, onto said first page;

wherein said at least one object moved onto said first page is displayed in a manner to indicate to the user that it has been inserted between other objects on said first page, with said display providing an indication that the object is from a subsequent page and was not originally displayed on said first page.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

using terms from the title and display text corresponding to a selected object as subordinate keywords for generating said re-ranking of said set of search result objects.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

selecting subordinate keywords from at least one of the links clicked on by the user, other links associated with a document including links pointing to the document, descriptive text associated with each document in the search results, meta-tags connected to viewed documents, prominent words and phrases in viewed documents and a thesaurus.

4. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

using terms from the title and display text corresponding to objects skipped by a user as negative subordinate keywords; and

reducing the ranking of search results objects containing said negative subordinate keywords.

5. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

assigning weights to said subordinate keywords, such that search result objects having higher weighted subordinate keywords are ranked higher.

6. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

providing a user interface allowing a user to promote selected subordinate keywords such that they have a higher weighting or are used as primary keywords to generate new search results.

7. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

providing a user interface allowing a user to delete selected subordinate keywords.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said providing a set of search result objects is performed by a separate search engine software program from a user behavior program that performs said monitoring and generating steps.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising monitoring user behavior by at least one of:

subsequent clicks on links within documents;

dwelling times;

time spent looking at documents from specific domains;

resources accessed;

transactions conducted;

purchases made;

orders placed;

sessions created;

documents downloaded;

cursors moved;

pages or text scrolled; and

images or other information highlighted.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

rating the usefulness of at least one of said search result objects in response to a user rating input.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing a display indication of the ranking movement of said search result objects in said re-ranking of said set of search result objects.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said one or more keywords are a first query, and further comprising:

receiving a second query of one or more keywords from said user;

generating a second set of search result objects;

comparing said second set of search result objects to one of said set of search result objects and said re-ranked set of search result objects to determine a correlation; and

providing a modified second set of search result objects to said user based on said correlation.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein said correlation comprises a similarity between keywords in said first and second queries.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein said correlation comprises a similarity between said sets of search result objects.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein said correlation comprises a similarity in text in said search result objects.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein said modified second set of search result objects is produced using keywords or other important terms from both said first and second queries.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein user behavior data is created by said monitoring step and is stored only on said user'"'"'s computer.

18. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

cumulatively using analysis of user intent to re-rank said set of search result objects based on subsequent documents said user clicks on and skips.

19. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

re-ranking only search results of said set of search result objects on search result pages the user has not yet navigated to.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising displaying at least one search result on search result pages the user has not yet navigated to as a recommendation on a current page of search results.

21. A system for dynamically modifying search results comprising:

a user interface on a first computer configured to receive one or more keywords for use as search terms from a user;

a search engine on a server in communication with said first computer over a network, said search engine being configured to provide a set of search result objects on a first page of results displayed in response to said keywords and to provide title and display text with each of said search result objects in said set of search result objects and to provide a plurality of advertisements on said first page of results;

a monitoring program in communication with said network, said monitoring program being configured to monitor user behavior in interacting with said search result objects;

a re-ranking program configured to monitor which document said user clicks on in interacting with said first set of search result objects;

compile information to infer user intent based on the content of said document the user clicks on;

by the time said user returns from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, immediately automatically re-rank said set of search result objects based on user intent inferred from said analyzing of the content of said document said user clicks on, so that a user clicking on a single document from said set of search result objects results in a re-ranking of said set of search result objects, so that upon said user returning from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, without the user resubmitting the search, the re-ranked results will be visible; and

use terms from the title and display text corresponding to a selected object in an algorithm for generating said re-ranking of said set of search result objects on at least said first page;

wherein said re-ranking includes moving at least one object from a subsequent page, not originally visible to said user on said first page, onto said first page;

wherein said at least one object moved onto said first page is displayed in a manner to indicate to the user that it has been inserted between other objects on said first page, with said display providing an indication that the object is from a subsequent page and was not originally displayed on said first page.

22. The system of claim 21 wherein said search engine is on a first server, and said monitoring and re-ranking programs are on a second server.

23. A non-transitory computer readable media having computer readable code thereon for dynamically modifying search results, comprising code for:

receiving one or more keywords for use as search terms from a user;

providing a set of search result objects on a first page of results displayed to said user;

providing title and display text with each of said search result objects in said set of search result objects;

monitoring which of said objects is selected by said user;

compiling information to infer user intent based on the content of said document the user clicks; and

by the time said user returns from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, immediately automatically re-ranking said set of search result objects based on user intent inferred from said analyzing of the content of said document said user clicks on, so that a user clicking on a single document from said set of search result objects results in a re-ranking of said set of search result objects, so that upon said user returning from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, without the user resubmitting the search, the re-ranked results will be visible;

using terms from the title and display text corresponding to a selected object in an algorithm for generating said re-ranking of said set of search result objects on at least said first page;

wherein said re-ranking includes moving at least one object from a subsequent page, not originally visible to said user on said first page, onto said first page;

wherein said at least one object moved onto said first page is displayed in a manner to indicate to the user that it has been inserted between other objects on said first page, with said display providing an indication that the object is from a subsequent page and was not originally displayed on said first page.

24. A device having a processor which will perform the steps of:

receiving one or more keywords for use as search terms from a user;

providing a set of search result objects on a first page of results displayed to said user;

providing title and display text with each of said search result objects in said set of search result objects;

monitoring which of said objects is selected by said user;

compiling information to infer user intent based on the content of said document the user clicks; and

by the time said user returns from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, immediately automatically re-ranking said set of search result objects based on user intent inferred from said analyzing of the content of said document said user clicks on, so that a user clicking on a single document from said set of search result objects results in a re-ranking of said set of search result objects, so that upon said user returning from said document to said set of search result objects including said document, without the user resubmitting the search, the re-ranked results will be visible;

using terms from the title and display text corresponding to a selected object in an algorithm for generating said re-ranking of said set of search result objects on at least said first page;

wherein said re-ranking includes moving at least one object from a subsequent page, not originally visible to said user on said first page, onto said first page;

wherein said at least one object moved onto said first page is displayed in a manner to indicate to the user that it has been inserted between other objects on said first page, with said display providing an indication that the object is from a subsequent page and was not originally displayed on said first page.