Providing knowledge panels with search results

• US 9,454,611 B2
• Filed: 01/20/2016
• Issued: 09/27/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Henry, Jeromy William
• Primary Examiner(s): Spieler, William
• Application Number:
  US15/001,533
• Publication Number:
  US 20160210364A1
• Time in Patent Office: 251 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/338 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/345 Summarisation for human users
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for providing knowledge panels with search results. In one aspect, a method includes obtaining search results that are responsive to a received query. A factual entity referenced by the query is identified. Content is identified for display in a knowledge panel for the factual entity. The content includes at least one content item obtained from a first resource and at least one second content item obtained from a second resource different than the first resource. Data is provided that causes the identified search results and the knowledge panel to be presented on a search results page. The knowledge panel presents the identified content in a knowledge panel area that is along side at least a portion of the search results.

Claims

1. A method performed by data processing apparatus, the method comprising:

receiving, from a client device, a query that references a given factual entity;

identifying one or more electronic resources related to the received query;

selecting, from the one or more electronic resources related to the given factual entity, content items for display in a knowledge panel for the given factual entity, each given content item of the selected content items being selected based on a number of received queries that reference both (i) the given factual entity and (ii) content depicted by the given content item; and

providing, to the client device, data that cause the knowledge panel to be presented at the client device, the presented knowledge panel including the selected content items.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the knowledge panel includes a first content item obtained from a first electronic resource of the one or more electronic resources and a second content item obtained from a second electronic resource of the one or more electronic resources, the second electronic resource being different from the first electronic resource.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first content item is an image of the given factual entity and the second content item is text specifying a fact about the given factual entity.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the knowledge panel is presented on a search results page that includes one or more search results for the received query.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the knowledge panel comprises an interactive user interface object, the method further comprising:

receiving data specifying an interaction with the interactive user interface object; and

providing data that cause additional content to be presented within the knowledge panel without navigating away from the search results page and while maintaining presentation of the knowledge panel and the one or more search results, the additional content being selected based on the interaction.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one content item of the selected content items includes a link that, when selected, causes the client device to initiate a search for search results related to content depicted by the at least one content item.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying a type of entity for the given factual entity;

identifying, from a set of different knowledge panel templates, a knowledge panel template specified for the type of entity, the identified knowledge panel template including placeholders for content relevant to the type of entity; and

generating the knowledge panel for the given factual entity by populating the placeholders of the identified knowledge panel template with the selected content items.

8. A system comprising:

a data processing apparatus; and

a computer storage medium encoded with a computer program, the program comprising data processing apparatus instructions that when executed by the data processing apparatus cause the data processing apparatus to perform operations comprising;

receiving, from a client device, a query that references a given factual entity;

identifying one or more electronic resources related to the received query;

selecting, from the one or more electronic resources related to the given factual entity, content items for display in a knowledge panel for the given factual entity, each given content item of the selected content items being selected based on a number of received queries that reference both (i) the given factual entity an (ii) content depicted by the given content item; and

providing, to the client device, data that cause the knowledge panel to be presented at the client device, the presented knowledge panel including the selected content items.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the knowledge panel includes a first content item obtained from a first electronic resource of the one or more electronic resources and a second content item obtained from a second electronic resource of the one or more electronic resources, the second electronic resource being different from the first electronic resource.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the first content item is an image of the given factual entity and the second content item is text specifying a fact about the given factual entity.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the knowledge panel is presented on a search results page that includes one or more search results for the received query.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the knowledge panel comprises an interactive user interface object, the method further comprising:

receiving data specifying an interaction with the interactive user interface object; and

providing data that cause additional content to be presented within the knowledge panel without navigating away from the search results page and while maintaining presentation of the knowledge panel and the one or more search results, the additional content being selected based on the interaction.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein at least one content item of the selected content items includes a link that, when selected, causes the client device to initiate a search for search results related to content depicted by the at least one content item.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying a type of entity for the given factual entity;

identifying, from a set of different knowledge panel templates, a knowledge panel template specified for the type of entity, the identified knowledge panel template including placeholders for content relevant to the type of entity; and

generating the knowledge panel for the given factual entity by populating the placeholders of the identified knowledge panel template with the selected content items.

15. A non-transitory computer storage medium encoded with a computer program, the program comprising instructions that when executed by one or more data processing apparatus cause the data processing apparatus to perform operations comprising:

receiving, from a client device, a query that references a given factual entity;

identifying one or more electronic resources related to the received query;

selecting, from the one or more electronic resources related to the given factual entity, content items for display in a knowledge panel for the given factual entity, each given content item of the selected content items being selected based on a number of received queries that reference both (i) the given factual entity and (ii) content depicted by the given content item; and

providing, to the client device, data that cause the knowledge panel to be presented at the client device, the presented knowledge panel including the selected content items.

16. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 15, wherein the knowledge panel includes a first content item obtained from a first electronic resource of the one or more electronic resources and a second content item obtained from a second electronic resource of the one or more electronic resources, the second electronic resource being different from the first electronic resource.

17. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 16, wherein the first content item is an image of the given factual entity and the second content item is text specifying a fact about the given factual entity.

18. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 15, wherein the knowledge panel is presented on a search results page that includes one or more search results for the received query.

19. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 18, wherein the knowledge panel comprises an interactive user interface object, the method further comprising:

receiving data specifying an interaction with the interactive user interface object; and

providing data that cause additional content to be presented within the knowledge panel without navigating away from the search results page and while maintaining presentation of the knowledge panel and the one or more search results, the additional content being selected based on the interaction.

20. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 15, wherein at least one content item of the selected content items includes a link that, when selected, causes the client device to initiate a search for search results related to content depicted by the at least one content item.