Synonym extension of search queries with validation

• US 7,120,574 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2001
• Issued: 10/10/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Allium US Holding LLC
• Original Assignee: Invention Machine Corporation (S&P Global Inc.)
• Inventors: Bialiauski, Yaraslau, Bondarenko, Andrei, Zhygalka, Igar, Troyanova, Galina
• Primary Examiner(s): Dorvil, Richemond
• Assistant Examiner(s): SPOONER, LAMONT M
• Application Number:
  US09/841,698
• Publication Number:
  US 20020022955A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,995 Days
• Field of Search: 704/1, 704/4, 704/7, 704/9, 704/10, 707 1- 5
• US Class Current: 704/9
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/211 Syntactic parsing, e.g. based on context-free grammar [CFG] or unification grammars
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/242 Dictionaries
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A computer search involves expanding a user query with two synonym dictionaries—actions and object—and then validating the expanded queries by comparison with entries in a Subject-Action-Object Knowledge Database (SAO KB) in a discipline corresponding to the query. The latter is prepared from natural language texts and contains fields with subjects, actions, objects, and “main parts of objects” extracted from the object.

Claims

1. A computer system for searching a database, comprising:

an input section responsive to user entry of a user query;

an expansion section responsive to the input section, for expanding the user query to include synonyms of action words and object words in the user query, wherein the expansion section interacts with an action dictionary of synonyms that includes a list of “

verb-noun”

expressions that are synonymous with other verbs;

a validation section responsive to said expansion section, and arranged for interaction with a subject-action-object knowledge database (SAO KB) containing fields with subjects, actions, objects, for selecting only those queries having corresponding expressions in the SAO KB; and

an output section for transmitting the selected queries for searching in the database.

2. A computer system as in claim 1, wherein said entry section includes an analysis portion for separating actions from objects.

3. A computer system as in claim 1, wherein said validating section includes an output portion for outputting validated results and rejecting non-validated results.

4. A computer system of claim 1, wherein said action dictionary of synonyms further includes:

a list of verbs with similar sense;

a list of “

verbA”

including the verbs—

perform, carry out, realize, and other verbs with similar sense;

a list of “

verb—

relevant verbal nouns”

;

a list of “

verbsB”

including the verbs—

produce, create, form, and other verbs with similar sense; and

a list of “

participle2”

words including “

verb—

relevant participle”

.

5. A computer system as in claim 4, wherein said expansion section includes an action expansion portion responsive to said action dictionary of synonyms and to an action word for forming:

a list of verbs relevant to an action;

a list of “

verbsA-verbal noun”

expressions relevant to an action;

a list of “

verbsB-partciple2”

expressions relevant to an action;

a list of “

verb-noun”

expressions relevant to an action.

6. A computer system as in claim 5, wherein said expansion section interacts with a dictionary of object synonyms, said expansion section interacts with a dictionary of object synonyms, said action dictionary of object synonyms containing groups of objects having similar sense and an object expression portion to form lists of expressions synonymous from an object and the dictionary of objects synonyms, and said validation section includes the fields;

subjects, actions, objects, and “

main parts of objects” and

classifies the query on the basis of the fields in response to the expansion section an din response to the SAO KB.

7. A computer system as in claim 1, wherein said expansion section interacts with a dictionary of object synonyms.

8. A computer system as in claim 1, wherein said expansion section interacts with a dictionary of object synonyms, said dictionary of object synonyms containing groups of objects having similar sense and an object expression portion to form lists of expressions synonymous from an object and the dictionary of objects synonyms.

9. A computer system as in claim 1, wherein said validation section includes the fields:

subjects, actions, objects, and “

main parts of objects” and

classifies the query on the basis of the fields in response to the expansion section and in response to the SAO KB.

10. A system as in claim 1, wherein said SAO KB contains data prepared from texts in a discipline corresponding to the discipline of the query.

11. A method as in claim 1, wherein said SAO contains data prepared from texts in a discipline corresponding to the discipline of the query.

12. A system as in claim 1, wherein said SAO KB contains only data prepared from texts in a discipline corresponding to the discipline of the query.

13. A method as in claim 1, wherein said SAO contains only data prepared from texts in a discipline corresponding to the discipline of the query.

14. A method for composing a computer search, comprising:

expanding a user query with action synonyms and with object synonyms to obtain expanded queries, wherein expanding includes interacting with an action dictionary of synonyms that includes a list of “

verb-noun”

expressions that are synonymous with other verbs;

obtaining results and validating the results obtained from the expanded queries by comparing the expanded queries with a subject-action-object knowledge database (SAO KB) containing fields with subjects, actions, objects, so as to validate only expanded queries having corresponding expressions in the SAO KB;

outputting validated results to obtain search results.

15. A method as in claim 14, wherein said processing an entry includes separating actions from objects.

16. A method as in claim 14, wherein said validating step includes outputting validated results and rejecting non-validated results.

17. A method as in claim 14, wherein said action dictionary of synonyms further includes:

a list of verbs with similar sense;

a list of “

verbsA”

including the verbs—

perform, carry out, realize, and other verbs with similar sense;

a list of “

verb—

relevant verbal nouns”

;

a list of “

verbsB”

including the verbs—

produce, create, form, and other verbs with similar sense; and

a list of “

participle2”

words including “

verb—

relevant participles”

.

18. A method as in claim 17, wherein said expanding step includes an action expansion responsive to said action dictionary of synonyms and to an action word for forming:

a list of verbs relevant to an action;

a list of “

verbsA-verbal noun”

expressions relevant to an action;

a list of “

verbsB-participle2”

expressions relevant to an action;

a list of “

verb-noun”

expressions relevant to an action.

19. A method as in claim 18, wherein said expanding step includes interacting with a dictionary of object synonyms, said dictionary of object synonyms containing groups of objects having similar sense and an object expression portion to form lists of expressions synonymous from an object and the dictionary of objects synonyms, and said validation step includes generating the fields:

subjects, actions, objects, and “

main parts of objects” and

classifying the query on the basis of the fields in response to the expanding step and in response to the SAO KB.

20. A method as in claim 14, wherein said expanding step includes interacting with a dictionary of object synonyms.

21. A method as in claim 14, wherein said expanding step includes interacting with a dictionary of object synonyms, said dictionary of object synonyms containing groups of objects having similar sense, and an said expanding step includes forming object expression synonyms from an object and the dictionary of object synonyms.

22. A method as in claim 14, wherein said validation step includes generating the fields:

subjects, actions, objects, and “

main parts of objects” and

classifying the query on the basis of the fields in response to the expanding step and in response to the SAO KB.