Social network search

• US 8,195,656 B2
• Filed: 02/13/2008
• Issued: 06/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Grasset, Nicolas
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu, Charles
• Application Number:
  US12/030,715
• Publication Number:
  US 20090204601A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,574 Days
• Field of Search: 707/732
• US Class Current: 707/732
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation

Abstract

A device, system and method to enable communications over a network wherein a user may conduct a search directed to target contacts within a social network. A knowledge base of prior social search responses may be searched for responses from the target contacts with the results being presented to the user. The results of the search can be sorted along with responses received from the target contacts. The selection of target contacts and presentation of results can be based on various attributes of target contacts or ranking of the prior search responses. The search responses received by the user along with attributes and rankings may be stored in the knowledge base for future use. The target contacts and search may be taken from contacts or the knowledge base of the contacts with greater than one degree of separation from the user.

Claims

1. A network device to manage communications over a network, comprising:

a transceiver to send and receive data over a network; and

a processor that is operative to enable actions for;

receiving a request for a social search for a user;

determining at least one target contact to query regarding the social search request;

querying the determined at least one target contact for a current social search response to the social search request;

determining at least one prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and also relevant to a previously provided response associated with the determined at least one target contact based at least in part on an aggregated knowledge base of results for a plurality of social searches, wherein the aggregated knowledge base of results includes results from social searches of multiple users in a social network;

receiving at least one social search response that includes at least one of the at least one prior social search response or the current social search response that are associated with the determined at least one target contact;

sorting the at least one received social search response based on at least one relevancy characteristic, wherein each sorted social search response is provided in response to the social search request, and wherein the current social search response is provided to the user at a time later than the at least one prior social search response is provided to the user;

updating the aggregated knowledge base of results to include the at least one received social search response and at least a ranking or a categorization for at least one of the at least one received social search response, wherein each of the ranking or categorization is a ranking or categorization of a response;

determining at least one other prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and associated with at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact;

receiving the determined at least one other prior social search response associated with the at least one other target contact; and

providing the sorted at least one received social search response to a user who requested the social search after an elapse of a predetermined period of time.

2. The network device of claim 1, further comprising:

providing the social search request to at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact, wherein the at least one other target contact is enabled to provide another current social search response; and

receiving the other current social search response associated with the at least one other target contact, wherein the received other current social search response is sorted by at least one relevancy characteristic and provided in response to the social search request.

3. The network device of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving from a recipient of the provided response, a relevancy characteristic for the current social search response; and

storing the current social search response and associated relevancy characteristic.

4. The network device of claim 1, wherein the relevancy characteristic is a rating or ranking of the social search response.

5. The network device of claim 1, wherein the relevancy characteristic relates to an attribute of the target contact.

6. The network device of claim 2, wherein the at least one other target contact has one or more degrees of separation from the at least one target contact.

7. A method operating on one or more network devices for managing a social search over a network, comprising:

receiving a request for a social search for a user from a client device;

determining at least one target contact to query regarding the social search request;

querying the determined at least one target contact for a current social search response to the social search request;

determining at least one prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and also relevant to a previously provided response associated with the determined at least one target contact based at least in part on an aggregated knowledge base of results for a plurality of social searches, wherein the aggregated knowledge base of results includes results from social searches of multiple users in a social network;

receiving at least one social search response that includes at least one of the at least one prior social search response or the current social search response that are associated with the determined at least one target contact;

sorting the at least one received social search response based on at least one relevancy characteristic, wherein each sorted social search response is provided in response to the social search request, and wherein the current social search response is provided to the user at a time later than the at least one prior social search response is provided to the user;

updating the aggregated knowledge base of results to include the at least one received social search response and at least a ranking or a categorization for at least one of the at least one received social search response, wherein each of the ranking or categorization is a ranking or categorization of a response;

determining at least one other prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and associated with at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact;

receiving the determined at least one other prior social search response associated with the at least one other target contact; and

providing the sorted at least one received social search response to a user who requested the social search after an elapse of a predetermined period of time.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

providing the social search request to at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact, wherein the at least one other target contact is enabled to provide another current social search response; and

receiving the other current social search response associated with the at least one other target contact, wherein the received other current social search response is sorted by at least one relevancy characteristic and provided in response to the social search request.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the relevancy characteristic relates to an attribute of the target contact.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one other target contact has at least one or more degrees of separation from the at least one target contact.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

providing the sorted at least one received social search response to a user who requested the social search, wherein the previously provided response is provided to a user before the current social search response.

12. A system for managing a message over a network, comprising:

a plurality of client devices, wherein each client device is configured to receive and send messages over the network; and

a network device that is in communication with the plurality of client devices, and is configured and arranged to perform actions, including;

receiving a request for a social search from one client device in the plurality of client devices, for a user;

determining at least one target contact to query regarding the social search request;

querying the determined at least one target contact for a current social search response to the social search request, wherein each of the at least one target contact is associated with a different one client device in the plurality of client devices;

determining at least one prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and also relevant to a previously provided response associated with the determined at least one target contact based at least in part on an aggregated knowledge base of results for a plurality of social searches, wherein the aggregated knowledge base of results includes results from social searches of multiple users in a social network;

receiving at least one social search response that includes at least one of the at least one prior social search response or the current social search response that are associated with the determined at least one target contact;

sorting the at least one received social search response based on at least one relevancy characteristic, wherein each sorted social search response is provided in response to the social search request, and wherein the current social search response is provided to the user at a time later than the at least one prior social search response is provided to the user; and

updating the aggregated knowledge base of results to include the at least one received social search response and at least a ranking or a categorization for at least one of the at least one received social search response, wherein each of the ranking or categorization is a ranking or categorization of a response;

determining at least one other prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and associated with at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact;

receiving the determined at least one other prior social search response associated with the at least one other target contact; and

providing the sorted at least one received social search response to a user who requested the social search after an elapse of a predetermined period of time.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

providing the social search request to at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact, wherein the at least one other target contact is enabled to provide another current social search response; and

receiving the other current social search response associated with the at least one other target contact, wherein the received other current social search response is sorted by at least one relevancy characteristic and provided in response to the social search request.

14. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

associating at least one additional relevancy characteristic with the social search response; and

storing the social search response and the associated at least one additional relevancy characteristic.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the relevancy characteristic is a rating or ranking of the social search response.

16. A mobile device to manage communications over a network, comprising:

a transceiver to send and receive data over a network; and

a processor that is operative to perform actions, comprising;

receiving a request for a social search for a user from the mobile device;

determining at least one target contact to query regarding the social search request;

querying the determined at least one target contact for a current social search response to the social search request;

determining at least one prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and also relevant to a previously provided response associated with the determined at least one target contact based at least in part on an aggregated knowledge base of results for a plurality of social searches, wherein the aggregated knowledge base of results includes results from social searches of multiple users in a social network;

receiving at least one social search response that includes at least one of the at least one prior social search response or the current social search response that are associated with the determined at least one target contact;

sorting the at least one received social search response based on at least one relevancy characteristic, wherein each sorted social search response is provided in response to the social search request for display on the mobile device, and wherein the current social search response is provided to the user at a time later than the at least one prior social search response is provided to the user;

updating the aggregated knowledge base of results to include the at least one received social search response and at least a ranking or a categorization for at least one of the at least one received social search response, wherein each of the ranking or categorization is a ranking or categorization of a response;

determining at least one other prior social search response that is relevant to the social search request and associated with at least one other target contact referred to by the determined at least one target contact;

receiving the determined at least one other prior social search response associated with the at least one other target contact; and

providing the sorted at least one received social search response to a user who requested the social search after an elapse of a predetermined period of time.

17. The mobile device of claim 16, further comprising:

storing the sorted at least one received social search response.

18. The mobile device of claim 16, further comprising:

providing the previously provided response to a user before providing any current social search response.