System for the automated semantic analysis processing of query strings

• US 10,740,401 B2
• Filed: 06/12/2017
• Issued: 08/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Local Knowledge-App Pty., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Local Knowledge-App Pty., Ltd.
• Inventors: Sherrard, Alex
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Yogeshkumar
• Application Number:
  US16/308,773
• Publication Number:
  US 20190258676A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,156 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90332 Natural language query formulation or dialogue systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9035 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/284 Lexical analysis, e.g. tokenisation or collocates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/35 Discourse or dialogue representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning

Abstract

There is generally provided a hosted question-and-answer system utilising machine learning semantic analysis and other computational techniques including to intelligently optimise query uniformity, automate answering and optimise answer quality. In one form, there is provided a system comprising: an interface for receiving a query string from an electronic device; a query semantic correlator controller configured for: generating a query semantic representation of the query string; and correlating the query semantic representation with earlier query semantic representations, and if a matching query semantic representation is found, sending a query string associated with the matching query semantic representation to the electronic device; an answer semantic correlator controller configured for: correlating the query semantic representation with earlier answer semantic representations, and if a matching answer semantic representation is found, sending an answer string associated with the matching answer semantic representation to the electronic device; and a profile correlator controller configured for: if no matching answer semantic representation is found, correlating the query semantic representation with user profile data representations, and if a matching user profile data representation is found, sending the query string to an electronic device associated with a user profile associated with the matching user profile data representation.

Claims

1. A system for the automated semantic analysis processing of query strings, the system comprising:

an interface for receiving a query string from an electronic device;

a query semantic correlator controller configured for;

generating a query semantic representation of the query string; and

correlating the query semantic representation with earlier query semantic representations, and if a matching query semantic representation is found, sending an alternative query string associated with the matching query semantic representation to the electronic device for selection;

an answer semantic correlator controller configured for;

correlating the query semantic representation with earlier answer semantic representations, and if a matching answer semantic representation is found, sending an answer string associated with the matching answer semantic representation to the electronic device; and

a profile correlator controller configured for;

if no matching answer semantic representation is found, correlating the query semantic representation with earlier answer semantic representations associated with user profile data representations, and if a matching user profile data representation is found, sending at least one of the query string and the alternative query string to an electronic device associated with a user profile associated with the matching user profile data representation.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the query semantic representation is a language independent meaning.

3. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein generating the query semantic representation of the query string comprises a lexical hierarchy decomposition.

4. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein generating the query semantic representation of the query string comprises machine learning semantic analysis.

5. A system as claimed in claim 4, wherein machine learning semantic analysis comprises at least one of Probabilistic latent semantic analysis (PLSA), latent semantic indexing, n-grams and hidden Markov models.

6. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the query semantic correlator controller comprises a supervised machine learning module trained utilising query training data comprising query semantic representations and wherein the supervised machine learning module is configured for optimising a trained query semantic correlator.

7. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the answer semantic correlator controller comprises a supervised machine learning module trained utilising answer training data comprising answer semantic representations and wherein the supervised machine learning module is configured for optimising a trained answer semantic correlator.

8. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the profile correlator controller comprises a supervised machine learning module trained utilising training data comprising profile data and wherein the supervised machine learning module is configured for optimising a trained profile correlator.

9. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the training data further comprises query training data comprising query semantic representations.

10. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the training data further comprises answer training data comprising answer semantic representations.

11. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the profile data comprises location data and wherein the supervised machine learning module optimises according to location.

12. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the profile data comprises response statistics and wherein the supervised machine learning module optimises according to response statistics.

13. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the profile data comprises related query semantic representations and wherein the supervised machine learning module optimises according to related query semantics.

14. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the profile data comprises related answer semantic representations and wherein the supervised machine learning module optimises according to related answer semantics.

15. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the profile data comprises user profiling data and wherein the supervised machine learning module optimises according to user profiling.

16. A system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a readability analyser and wherein the readability analyser is configured for rewording the query string to optimise readability.

17. A system as claimed in claim 16, wherein the readability analyser employs readability analysis comprising at least one of ARI (automatic readability index) and Flesch-Kincaid readability metric analysis.