Graphically representing associations between referents and points in a story

• US 8,615,513 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2010
• Issued: 12/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Audible Incorporated (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Audible Incorporated (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Story, Guy A. Jr., Dzik, Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): Perveen, Rehana
• Assistant Examiner(s): Khong, Alexander
• Application Number:
  US12/972,127
• Publication Number:
  US 20120158707A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,103 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 707/723
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/345 Summarisation for human users

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for graphically representing associations between one or more points in a story and one or more referents of interest. In some embodiments, a score may be determined for each of a set of points in a story based at least in part on a number of associations between the given point in the story and one or more referents of interest. A graphical representation of the points in the story may then be presented for display. The graphical representation may include indicia, where each indicium graphically indicates the strength of association between a given point in the story and the one or more referents of interest. The strength of association for a given point in the story may be determined, for example, based at least in part on the determined score for the point.

Claims

1. A system for graphically representing one or more referents associated with a story, the system comprising:

a data store that stores data associated with one or more stories, wherein the data associated with each story comprises referent data identifying one or more referents associated with the story; and

a computing device in communication with the data store and that executes;

a first processing component operative to;

receive a user selection of a first referent of interest to the user and a second referent of interest to the user, wherein the first referent and second referent each comprise at least one of an event, a character, an object, a subject, a time, a place and a person;

determine, for each of a plurality of points in a story, a first score for the point in the story, wherein the first score is determined based at least in part on a number of times that the point in the story is associated with the first referent of interest to the user; and

determine, for each of the plurality of points in the story, a second score for the point in the story, wherein the second score is determined based at least in part on a number of times that the point in the story is associated with the second referent of interest to the user;

wherein the first score and the second score for each of the plurality of points in the story are determined based at least in part on referent data stored in the data store; and

a second processing component operative to generate for display a graphical representation of the story, the graphical representation comprising;

a plurality of indicia that each represent a different point in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia is included in the graphical representation in a narrative order in which the point represented by the indicium occurs in the story, wherein each of the plurality of points in the story is represented by one indicium of the plurality of indicia, wherein the indicium associated with each point in the story graphically indicates a strength of association between the point in the story represented by the indicium and both the first referent of interest to the user and the second referent of interest to the user, wherein the strength of association is determined based at least in part on the first score and the second score.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a first color represents the first referent of interest to the user and a second color represents the second referent of interest to the user, and wherein, for each of the plurality of indicia, the strength of association between the point in the story and the first and second referents of interest is graphically indicated by a combination of the first color and the second color.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein a relative intensity of the first color in the combination corresponds to the first score, wherein a relative intensity of the second color in the combination corresponds to the second score.

4. A system for graphically representing one or more referents associated with a story, the system comprising:

a data store that stores data associated with one or more stories, wherein the data associated with each story comprises referent data identifying one or more referents associated with the story; and

a computing device in communication with the data store, the computing device operative to;

determine, for each of a plurality of points in a story, a score for the point in the story based at least in part on a number of times that the point in the story is associated with one or more referents of interest, wherein the number of times that the point in the story is associated with the one or more referents of interest is derived from the referent data stored in the data store; and

generate for display a graphical representation of the story, the graphical representation comprising a plurality of indicia that each represent a different point in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia is included in the graphical representation in a narrative order in which the point represented by the indicium occurs in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia graphically indicates a strength of association between the point in the story represented by the indicium and the one or more referents of interest, and wherein the strength of association is determined based at least in part on the score for the point in the story.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein each indicium comprises a color.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the strength of association between the point in the story and the one or more referents of interest is indicated by a relative intensity of the color.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein the strength of association between the point in the story and the one or more referents of interest is indicated by a combination of colors, wherein the combination of colors comprises a color associated with each referent of interest that is associated with the point in the story.

8. The system of claim 4, wherein an association between the point in the story and a referent of interest comprises the referent of interest being referenced in content of the story at the point in the story.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the content of the story comprises at least one of text data, audio data, image data and video data.

10. The system of claim 4, wherein the story is associated with one or more story versions.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein each story version comprises one of a book, an audio book, an electronic book, and a movie.

12. The system of claim 4, wherein the one or more referents of interest are selected by a user.

13. The system of claim 4, wherein the score for each of the plurality of points in the story is determined based at least in part on a weight associated with at least one of the one or more referents of interest.

14. The system of claim 4, wherein each referent of interest comprises at least one of an event, a character, an object, a subject, a time, a place and a person.

15. A computer-implemented method for graphically representing one or more referents associated with a story, the computer-implemented method comprising:

as implemented by one or more computing devices configured with specific executable instructions,

determining, for each of a plurality of points in the story, a score for the point in the story based at least in part on a number of times that the point in the story is associated with one or more referents of interest; and

generating for display a graphical representation of the story, the graphical representation comprising a plurality of indicia that each represent a different point in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia is included in the graphical representation in an order in which the point represented by the indicium occurs in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia graphically indicates a strength of association between the point in the story represented by the indicium and the one or more referents of interest, and wherein the strength of association is determined based at least in part on the score for the point in the story.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein each indicium comprises a color.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein the strength of association between the point in the story and the one or more referents of interest is indicated by a relative intensity of the color.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the strength of association between the point in the story and the one or more referents of interest is indicated by a combination of colors, wherein the combination of colors comprises a color associated with each referent of interest that is associated with the point in the story.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, further comprising, in response to a user selection of the indicium, causing display of a portion of content of the story corresponding to the point in the story.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 19, wherein the content comprises at least one of text data, audio data, image data and video data.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the displayed portion of content of the story references at least one referent of the one or more referents of interest.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein each referent of interest comprises at least one of an event, a character, an object, a subject, a time, a place and a person.

23. A non-transitory, computer-readable medium having a computer-executable component, the computer-executable component comprising:

a user interface component which causes display of a graphical representation of associations between one or more referents of interest and a plurality of points in a story, the graphical representation comprising a plurality of indicia that each represent a different point in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia is included in the graphical representation in an order in which the point represented by the indicium occurs in the story, wherein each indicium of the plurality of indicia graphically indicates a strength of association between the point in the story represented by the indicium and the one or more referents of interest, wherein the strength of association is determined based at least in part on a number of times that the point in the story is associated with the one or more referents of interest.

24. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the computer-executable component is further for, in response to a user selection of the indicium, causing display of a portion of content of the story corresponding to the point in the story.

25. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 24, wherein the content comprises at least one of text data, audio data, image data and video data.

26. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the strength of association is graphically indicated by a relative intensity of color.

27. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the strength of association is determined based at least in part on a weight associated with each referent of interest.

28. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the strength of association between the point in the story and the one or more referents of interest is indicated by a combination of colors, wherein the combination of colors comprises a color associated with each referent of interest that is associated with the point in the story.

29. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the one or more referents of interest are selected by a user.