Information management device

• US 5,870,741 A
• Filed: 10/18/1996
• Issued: 02/09/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Kawabe, Shigehisa, Ogawa, Yutaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Min, Donald
• Application Number:
  US08/733,604
• Time in Patent Office: 844 Days
• Field of Search: 364/561, 434/112, 455/457, 707/4, 707/5, 707/6, 707/10, 707/104, 707/3, 707/100
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

An information management device is provided which is capable of performing a flexible search of input information, without the need to attach user-specified keywords or search information and without the need of pre-processing of the input information such as character matching processing, natural language processing, statistical processing and recognition processing. The information management device is used in a network of multiple information processing devices at least one of which is a mobile information processing device and is equipped with an information input unit that inputs information via the mobile information processing device; an attribute value input unit that measures and inputs at least one of information attribute values from the mobile information processing device and attribute values of the information resulting from the input of the information; an information database that stores the information along with the corresponding attribute information; an information registration unit that registers the information and the attribute value to the information database; a search key input that inputs search keys; an attribute database unit that outputs at attribute information in response to the search keys; an information search unit that outputs to the information database; a search directive that includes at least one attribute information output from the attribute database; and an information output unit that outputs information from the information database in response to the search directive.

Claims

1. An information management device, which is used in a network of multiple information processing devices, at least one of which is a mobile information processing device, and that manages information input from the at least one mobile information processing device, the information management device comprising:

an information input unit that inputs information via the mobile information processing device;

an attribute value input unit that measures and inputs registration attribute information that includes at least one of attribute values that arise from the mobile information processing device and attribute values resulting from the input of the information;

an information database that stores the input information along with the corresponding registration attribute information;

an information registration unit that registers the input information and the corresponding registration attribute information in the information database;

a search key input unit that inputs at least one search key;

an attribute database unit that outputs at least one searching attribute information in response to the input of the at least one search key;

an information search unit that outputs to the information database search instructions that include at least one searching attribute information output from the attribute database; and

an information output unit that outputs information from the information database in response to the search instructions.

3. The device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first communication unit that transmits information and registration attribute information to the information database from the information registration unit; and

a second communication unit that transmits search keys to the attribute database from the search key input unit;

a third communication unit that transmits searching attribute information to the information search unit from the attribute database;

a fourth communication unit that transmits information to the information search unit from the information database and that transmits the search information to the information database from the information search unit; and

a fifth communication unit that transmits information to the information output unit from the information search unit.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein the information input unit is used in one of an information input unit of the at least one mobile information processing device and an information input device connected to the at least one mobile information processing device.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the attribute value input unit inputs a longitude and a latitude residing in the mobile information processing device prior to inputting the registration attribute information and includes input search keys and place locations from the search key input unit, the attribute database unit including a place location database, wherein if a search key is input into the attribute database unit, then it outputs at least one of coordinates which manifest longitude and latitude as a pair.

2. An information management device, which is used in a network of multiple information processing devices, at least one of which is a mobile information processing device, and that manages information input from the mobile information processing device, the information management device comprising:

an information input unit that inputs information via the mobile information processing device;

an attribute value input unit that measures and inputs attribute information that includes at least one of attribute values that arise from the mobile information processing device and attribute values resulting from input of the information;

a search key generation unit that generates at least one search key in response to the input attribute information;

an information database that stores the input information along with the corresponding search keys;

an information registration unit that registers the input information and the at least one search key in the information database;

a search key input unit that inputs the at least one search key;

an information search unit that outputs to the information database search instructions that include the at least one search key; and

an information output unit that outputs information from the information database in response to the search instructions.

4. The device according to claim 2, further comprising:

a first communication unit that transmits information and search keys to the information database from the information registration unit;

a second communication unit that transmits search keys to the information search unit from the search key input unit;

a third communication unit that transmits information to the information search unit from the information database and transmits the search information to the information database from the information search unit; and

a fourth communication unit that transmits information to the information output unit from the information search unit.

8. The device according to claim 2, wherein the information input unit is used in one of an information input unit of the at least one mobile information processing device and an information input device connected to the at least one mobile information processing device.

5. An information management device, comprising:

an information input unit that inputs information;

an attribute value input unit that measures and inputs attribute information that includes at least one of information registration attribute values from the information input unit and the information attribute values resulting from the input of the information;

an information database that stores the information along with the corresponding registration attribute information;

an information registration unit that registers the information and the registration attribute information in the information database;

a search key input unit that inputs search keys;

an attribute database unit that outputs at least one of a searching attribute information in response to the search keys;

an information search unit that outputs to the information database search information that includes at least one searching attribute information output from the attribute database; and

an information output unit that outputs information from the information database in response to the search information.

6. An information management device, comprising:

an information input unit that inputs information;

an attribute value input unit that measures and inputs attribute information that includes at least one of information attribute values from the information input unit and information attribute values resulting from the input of the information;

a search key generation unit that generates at least one search key in response to the input attribute information;

an information database that stores the information along with the corresponding at least one search key;

an information registration unit that registers the information and the at least one search key in the information database;

a search key input unit that inputs the at least one search key;

an information search unit that outputs to the information database search information that includes the input at least one search key; and

an information output unit that outputs information from the information database in response to the search information.

10. An information management method, wherein multiple information processors are connected and utilized in a network that includes at least one mobile information processor from among a plurality of information processors, and wherein the information which is a plurality of input from the mobile information processor is stored in a database, the method comprising:

inputting information through the mobile information processor;

measuring and inputting registration attribute information that includes at least one of information attribute values originating in the inputting of the information attribute values and information originating in the mobile information processor;

registering the information and registration attribute information in a database;

inputting search keys;

outputting at least one of a searching attribute information in accordance with the input search key;

outputting search information that includes at least one of the output searching attribute information;

searching the information from the database on the basis of the output search information; and

outputting the information which has been searched.

11. An information management method, wherein multiple information processors are connected and utilized in a network that includes at least one mobile information processor from among a plurality of information processors and wherein input information from the mobile information processor is stored, the method comprising:

inputting information through the mobile information processor;

measuring and inputting attribute information that include at least one of information attribute values originating in the inputting of the information attribute values and information originating in the mobile information processor;

outputting specified search keys on the basis of the attribute information;

registering the information and search keys into a corresponding database;

outputting the search keys and search information that includes at least one of the input search keys;

searching the information from the database on the basis of the output search information; and

outputting the information, which has been searched.