Personalized search methods

• US 6,539,377 B1
• Filed: 10/06/2000
• Issued: 03/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IAC Search & Media Incorporated (Match Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Ask Jeeves, Inc. (IAC, Inc.)
• Inventors: Culliss, Gary A.
• Primary Examiner(s): CHOULES, JACK M
• Application Number:
  US09/684,209
• Time in Patent Office: 900 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707/2, 707/3, 707/5, 707/10
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/335 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/337 Profile generation, learning or modification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

A method of organizing information in which the search activity of previous users is monitored and such activity is used to organize articles for future users. Personal data about future users can be used to provide different article rankings depending on the search activity and personal data of the previous users.

Claims

1. A process of presenting search results to a current user wherein the process of selecting the order of the squibs of articles presented in said search results comprises:

a. matching personal data associated with said current user to personal data associated with said articles.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein personal data is associated with said articles by a process comprising:

a. tracking activity of previous users with respect to said articles; and

b. tracking the personal data associated with said previous users.

3. The process of claim 2 wherein said activity comprises passing over a presented squib to select a squib lower in said search results.

4. The process of claim 1 wherein personal data comprises information provided by a user.

5. The process of claim 4 wherein said personal data provided by said user comprises data about their interest in articles that were provided in search results.

6. The process of claim 4 wherein said personal data provided by said user comprises data about their profession.

7. The process of claim 4 wherein said personal data provided by said user comprises data about their interests.

8. The process of claim 1 wherein said personal data is information assumed for said user based on said user'"'"'s activities.

9. The process of claim 1 wherein said current user may identify themselves as having personal data characteristics for search purposes, so that articles utilized by prior users with the same personal data will be provided higher in said order of the squibs of articles displayed in said search results.

10. A process of modifying an index that includes categories of personal data comprising:

a. tracking user activity; and

b. combining index entries for categories of personal data when said user activity is not significantly different in response to search results presented to users for the same query term when said users have two or more different categories of personal data associated with them.

11. The process of claim 10 wherein the measure of whether said user activity is significantly different comprises determining whether more than five of the top ten of said articles ranked in said index are different between said query term with one of said