Search controls using sliders and lightboxes

• US 8,943,036 B1
• Filed: 01/09/2014
• Issued: 01/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Funded Ventures Inc.
• Original Assignee: Funded Ventures, LLC
• Inventors: Coudron, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): Ortiz Ditren, Belix M
• Application Number:
  US14/151,505
• Time in Patent Office: 383 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 707/706
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2423 Interactive query statement specification based on a database schema
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2428 Query predicate definition using graphical user interfaces, including menus and forms G06F16/2423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3322 using system suggestions G06F16/3325 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90324 using system suggestions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04804 Transparency, e.g. transparent or translucent windows
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting

Abstract

Code is injected into a web page loaded by an Internet browsing application. A search control to accept Internet search input is presented within an Internet browsing application. The search control visually covers at least a portion of a content display area of the Internet browsing application. A slider search control may be presented by automatically sliding the slider search control into the content display area. The presentation of a lightbox search control may include shading, darkening, dimming, blurring, or opaquing the content display area outside of the lightbox search control. The presentation of the search control may occur in response to a period of user inactivity, an amount of page scrolling, or a percentage of page scrolling. The search control receives input corresponding to a search query, a tracking code is combined with the received input, and the combination is communicated to a search engine.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, with instructions stored thereon, which when executed by at least one processor of a computing device, cause the computing device to:

inject code into each web page loaded by an Internet browsing application, the injected code causing the Internet browsing application to;

present a search control to accept Internet search input to be communicated to at least one search engine capable of receiving a search request and outputting search results, the search control visually covering at least a portion of a content display area of the Internet browsing application, the content display area being of a first size and the portion being of a second size smaller than the first size, the content display area to provide a view of content retrieved by the Internet browsing application, the presenting of the search control including at least one of shading, darkening, dimming, blurring, or opaquing the content display area outside of the search control, the presenting of the search control occurring in response to a period of user inactivity;

receive input in the search control, the input corresponding to the search request to be communicated to the at least one search engine;

combine a tracking code with the input received by the search control to form a search request, the tracking code associated with at least one of a user, the Internet browsing application, a session of the Internet browsing application, and an identifier; and

communicate the search request to the at least one search engine.

2. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the search control includes a text box pre-populated with a search term corresponding to at least one of a previous search and content in the content display area of the Internet browsing application.

3. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 2, wherein the text box suggests search terms using autocomplete.

4. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the search control includes a set of search queries, each search query comprising at least one search term, each search term corresponding to at least one of a previous search and content in the content display area of the Internet browsing application, each search query presented as a hyperlink, which, upon being selected, causes a search request associated with the search query to be communicated to the at least one search engine.

5. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 1, with further instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the processor, cause the computing device to:

capture search terms communicated as part of a search query to a search engine, the input of the search terms occurring outside of the search control.

6. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the injected code is injected by at least one of an add-on to the Internet browsing application and a stand-alone application.

7. A method performed by a computing device, the method comprising:

injecting code into each web page loaded by an Internet browsing application, resulting in the Internet browsing application;

presenting a search control to accept Internet search input to be communicated to at least one search engine capable of receiving a search request and outputting search results, the search control visually covering at least a portion of a content display area of the Internet browsing application, the content display area being of a first size and the portion being of a second size smaller than the first size, the content display area to provide a view of content retrieved by the Internet browsing application, the presenting of the search control including at least one of shading, darkening, dimming, blurring, or opaquing the content display area outside of the search control, the presenting of the search control occurring in response to a period of user inactivity;

receiving input in the search control, the input corresponding to the search request to be communicated to the at least one search engine;

combining a tracking code with the input received by the search control to form a search request, the tracking code associated with at least one of a user, the Internet browsing application, a session of the Internet browsing application, and an identifier; and

communicating the search request to the at least one search engine.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the search control includes a text box pre-populated with a search term corresponding to at least one of a previous search and content in the content display area of the Internet browsing application.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the text box suggests search terms using autocomplete.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the search control includes a set of search queries, each search query comprising at least one search term, each search term corresponding to at least one of a previous search and content in the content display area of the Internet browsing application, each search query presented as a hyperlink, which, upon being selected, causes a search request associated with the search query to be communicated to the at least one search engine.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the injecting of code is performed by at least one of an add-on to the Internet browsing application and a stand-alone application.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one of an add-on to the Internet browsing application and a stand-alone application is bundled with other machine-readable instructions for distribution.

13. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

capturing search terms communicated as part of a search query to a search engine, the input of the search terms occurring outside of the search control.

14. A system, comprising:

a processor, a memory device, and a network interface device operatively coupled via a bus;

instructions stored in the memory device and executable on the processor to;

inject code into each web page loaded by an Internet browsing application, the injected code causing the Internet browsing application to;

present a search control to accept Internet search input to be communicated to at least one search engine capable of receiving a search request and outputting search results, the search control visually covering at least a portion of a content display area of the Internet browsing application, the content display area being of a first size and the portion being of a second size smaller than the first size, the content display area to provide a view of content retrieved by the Internet browsing application, the presenting of the search control including at least one of shading, darkening, dimming, blurring, or opaquing the content display area outside of the search control, the presenting of the search control occurring in response to a period of user inactivity;

receive input in the search control, the input corresponding to the search request to be transmitted to the at least one search engine;

combine a tracking code with the input received by the search control to form a search request, the tracking code associated with at least one of a user, the Internet browsing application, a session of the Internet browsing application, and an identifier; and

transmit, via a network interface device, the search request to the at least one search engine.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the search control includes a text box pre-populated with a search term corresponding to at least one of a previous search and content in the content display area of the Internet browsing application.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the text box suggests search terms using autocomplete.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the search control includes a set of search queries, each search query comprising at least one search term, each search term corresponding to at least one of a previous search and content in the content display area of the Internet browsing application, each search query presented as a hyperlink, which, upon being selected, causes a search request associated with the search query to be transmitted to the at least one search engine.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to:

capture search terms transmitted as part of a search query to a search engine, the input of the search terms occurring outside of the search control.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the injected code is injected by at least one of an add-on to the Internet browsing application and a stand-alone application.