Reformatting multiple paragraphs of text using the formatting of a sample object by creating multiple candidate combinations and selecting a closest match

• US 9,519,622 B2
• Filed: 04/10/2013
• Issued: 12/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Sun, Xingzhi, Xu, Lin H., Yu, Yi Q.
• Primary Examiner(s): Paula, Cesar
• Assistant Examiner(s): Norris, Benjamin
• Application Number:
  US13/859,840
• Publication Number:
  US 20130290836A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,343 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/103 Formatting, i.e. changing of presentation of documents automatic justification G06F40/189; automatic line break hyphenation G06F40/191
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/16 Automatic learning of transformation rules, e.g. from examples
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/186 Templates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/194 Calculation of difference between files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis

Abstract

The invention relates to electronic document processing. Embodiments of the present invention relate to a method and apparatus for copying a text format pattern. In one embodiment of the present invention there is a method for copying a text format pattern, including: receiving a selection of a sample object from a user, the sample object including multiple sample paragraphs of which at least two sample paragraphs have different format patterns; receiving a format copying instruction of from the user, the format copying instruction indicating reformatting a target object with the format pattern of the sample object, where the target object contains multiple target paragraphs; determining a corresponding relationship of the format pattern of the sample paragraphs with the target paragraphs; and applying the format pattern of the sample paragraphs to the target paragraphs in accordance with the corresponding relationship.

Claims

1. A method for copying a text format pattern, the method comprising:

receiving a selection of a sample object from a user, the sample object including multiple sample paragraphs of which at least two sample paragraphs have different format patterns;

receiving a format copying instruction from the user, the format copying instruction indicating reformatting a target object with a format pattern of the sample object, wherein the target object contains N number of target paragraphs;

determining a corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs by;

generating a sample combination by dividing the sample paragraphs into M number of sample groups according to their order and format pattern, each sample group includes adjacent sample paragraphs of the same format pattern;

generating a plurality of different candidate combinations by assigning the N number of target paragraphs to the M number of sample groups, wherein each of the plurality of candidate combinations comprises a different combination of target paragraphs and sample groups, and each of the N number of target paragraphs is assigned to only one of the M number of sample groups for each of the plurality of candidate combinations;

selecting two or more preferred candidate combinations from the plurality of candidate combinations based on a degree of similarity between the sample combination and each of the plurality of candidate combinations;

selecting a single matching combination from the two or more preferred candidate combinations; and

applying the format pattern of the sample paragraphs to the target paragraphs in accordance with the corresponding relationship.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs comprises:

comparing the position of the sample paragraphs with the position of the target paragraphs.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein

the number of sample groups is less than or equal to the number of sample paragraphs, and the number of sample groups is less than or equal to the number of target paragraphs.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs comprises:

comparing a positional relationship between the sample paragraphs to a positional relationship between the target paragraphs.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs comprises:

comparing a relationship between content of the sample paragraphs to a relationship between content of the target paragraphs.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the sample object and the target object are from different electronic documents.

7. A method for copying a text format pattern, the method comprising:

receiving a selection of a sample object from a user, the sample object including multiple sample paragraphs of which at least two sample paragraphs have different format patterns;

in response to receiving a format copying instruction from the user, reformatting a target object with a format pattern of the entire sample object, wherein the target object is also selected by the user and contains N number of target paragraphs;

determining a corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs by;

generating one sample combination by dividing the sample paragraphs into M number of sample groups according to their order and format pattern, each sample group includes adjacent sample paragraphs of the same format pattern;

determining a plurality of all possible combinations of the N number of target paragraphs and the M number of sample groups, wherein each of the N number of target paragraphs is assigned to only one of the M number of sample groups for each possible combination;

calculating a deviation between the one sample combination and each of the possible combinations, the deviation is the sum of the number of operations of deleting a target paragraph from a sample group for each of the possible combinations and the number of operations of adding a target paragraph to a sample group for each of the possible combinations in order for each of the possible combinations to match the one sample combination;

selecting two or more preferred combinations from the plurality of possible combinations based on the deviation between the one sample combination and each of the possible combinations, wherein the two or more preferred combinations comprises the smallest deviation;

selecting one matching combination from the two or more preferred combinations, the one matching combination having the same combination of target paragraphs and sample groups as the one sample combination; and

applying the format pattern of the sample paragraphs to the target paragraphs based on the corresponding relationship and based on the single matching combination.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs comprises:

comparing the position of the sample paragraphs with the position of the target paragraphs.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the number of sample groups is less than or equal to the number of sample paragraphs, and the number of sample groups is less than or equal to the number of target paragraphs.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs comprises:

comparing a positional relationship between the sample paragraphs to a positional relationship between the target paragraphs.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the corresponding relationship between the sample paragraphs and the target paragraphs comprises:

comparing a relationship between the content of the sample paragraphs to a relationship between the content of the target paragraphs.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the sample object and the target object are from different electronic documents.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the possible combinations are determined using the equation:

n=(N−

1)/[(M−

1)! (NM)!], where n is the number of possible combinations.

14. A method for copying a text format pattern, the method comprising:

in response to receiving a format copying instruction from a user, reformatting a set of target paragraphs with a format pattern of a set of sample paragraphs each of which is selected by the user;

generating a single sample combination by dividing the set of sample paragraphs into M number of sample groups according to their order and format pattern, each sample group includes adjacent sample paragraphs of the same format pattern;

determining a plurality of all possible combinations of the N number of target paragraphs and the M number of sample groups, wherein each of the N number of target paragraphs is assigned to only one of the M number of sample groups for each possible combination;

calculating a similarity between the single sample combination and each of the possible combinations, the similarity is the sum of the number of operations of removing a target paragraph from a sample group for each of the possible combinations and the number of operations of adding a target paragraph to a sample group for each of the possible combinations in order for each of the possible combination to match the single sample combination;

selecting two or more preferred combinations from the plurality of possible combinations based on the similarity between the single sample combination and each of the possible combinations, wherein the two or more preferred combinations comprises the smallest similarity;

selecting a single matching combination from the two or more preferred candidate combinations, the single matching combination having the same combination of target paragraphs and sample groups as the single sample combination; and

applying the format pattern of the set of sample paragraphs to the set of target paragraphs based on the single matching combination.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprises:

comparing the position of the sample paragraphs with the position of the target paragraphs.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the number of sample groups is less than or equal to the number of sample paragraphs, and the number of sample groups is less than or equal to the number of target paragraphs.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprises:

comparing a positional relationship between the sample paragraphs to a positional relationship between the target paragraphs.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprises:

comparing a relationship between the content of the sample paragraphs to a relationship between the content of the target paragraphs.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the sample object and the target object are from different electronic documents.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the possible combinations are determined using the equation:

n=(N−

1)/[(M−

1)! (NM)!], where n is the number of possible combinations.