Posting questions from search queries

• US 8,768,920 B1
• Filed: 02/06/2012
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Coladonato, Greg, Ke, Huacheng
• Primary Examiner(s): Robinson, Greta
• Assistant Examiner(s): Weinrich, Brian E.
• Application Number:
  US13/366,984
• Time in Patent Office: 876 Days
• Field of Search: 730/730, 730/766
• US Class Current: 707/730
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9536 Search customisation based on social or collaborative filtering

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed to a system and method for posting questions from search queries. In some implementations, a method includes identifying a plurality of different questions previously searched. The previously-searched questions each include a word indicating a question. The previously-searched questions are filtered to remove one or more specified words included with the question word. At least a subset of the plurality of previously-searched questions that can be used to generate a canonical form after removing the one or more specified words are determined. The subset of previously-searched questions are ranked based, at least in part, on a frequency of submission of each previously-submitted search query in the subset. A particular one of the previously-submitted search queries in the subset is identified as representative of the subset of previously-submitted search queries based on the ranking.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

identifying search queries that each include a question word of a plurality of predetermined question words;

mapping each of the search queries to a corresponding canonical form, including applying mappings defined in an evaluation file to the search queries, the defined mappings including

filtering that removes from the search queries any predetermined non-question words occurring in the search queries, the predetermined non-question words being obtained from the evaluation file,

conjugating any verbs in the search queries to a particular verb tense,

updating declensions of nouns in the search queries to a particular noun declension, and

ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries after the filtering, conjugating, and updating in a predefined way, including placing the question word in a predetermined position in the ordering;

identifying a plurality of different search queries that each map to a particular canonical form;

ranking the different search queries based on a frequency of occurrence of each of the different search queries; and

selecting a highest-ranked different query as a representative query for each of the different search queries.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a question word is a word that indicates a question in a particular language.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting one or more most-frequently occurring non-question words as the predetermined non-question words; and

storing the selected predetermined non-question words in the evaluation file.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein each question word of the plurality of predetermined question words includes one or more words indicating an interrogative sentence.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining the one or more most-frequently occurring non-question words occurring in the search queries according to a respective frequency of occurrence in the search queries of the non-question words occurring in the search queries.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a user designation of the predetermined non-question words; and

storing the user designated predetermined non-question words in the evaluation file.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

posting the representative query on a Question and Answer (Q&

A) Webpage.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries in a predefined way comprises:

ordering the remaining words in an alphabetical order.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries in a predefined way comprises:

placing the question word first followed by the other remaining words in an alphabetical order.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein mapping each of the search queries to a corresponding canonical form further includes:

identifying all synonyms in the search queries that translate to a particular word; and

translating the identified synonyms to the particular word.

11. A system comprising:

one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising;

identifying search queries that each include a question word of a plurality of predetermined question words;

mapping each of the search queries to a corresponding canonical form, including applying mappings defined in an evaluation file to the search queries, the defined mappings including

filtering that removes from the search queries any predetermined non-question words occurring in the search queries, the predetermined non-question words being obtained from the evaluation file,

conjugating any verbs in the search queries to a particular verb tense,

updating declensions of nouns in the search queries to a particular noun declension, and

ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries after the filtering, conjugating, and updating in a predefined way, including placing the question word in a predetermined position in the ordering;

identifying a plurality of different search queries that each map to a particular canonical form;

ranking the different search queries based on a frequency of occurrence of each of the different search queries; and

selecting a highest-ranked different query as a representative query for each of the different search queries.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein a question word is a word that indicates a question in a particular language.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

selecting one or more most-frequently occurring non-question words as the predetermined non-question words; and

storing the selected predetermined non-question words in the evaluation file.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein each question word of the plurality of predetermined question words includes one or more words indicating an interrogative sentence.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise determining the one or more most-frequently occurring non-question words occurring in the search queries according to a respective frequency of occurrence in the search queries of the non-question words occurring in the search queries.

16. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving a user designation of the predetermined non-question words; and

storing the user designated predetermined non-question words in the evaluation file.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise posting the representative query on a Question and Answer (Q&

A) Webpage.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries in a predefined way comprises:

ordering the remaining words in an alphabetical order.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries in a predefined way comprises:

placing the question word first followed by the other remaining words in an alphabetical order.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein mapping each of the search queries to a corresponding canonical form further includes:

identifying all synonyms in the search queries that translate to a particular word; and

translating the identified synonyms to the particular word.

21. A computer program product, encoded on one or more non-transitory computer storage media, comprising instructions that when executed by one or more computers cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

identifying search queries that each include a question word of a plurality of predetermined question words;

mapping each of the search queries to a corresponding canonical form, including applying mappings defined in an evaluation file to the search queries, the defined mappings including

filtering that removes from the search queries any predetermined non-question words occurring in the search queries, the predetermined non-question words being obtained from the evaluation file,

conjugating any verbs in the search queries to a particular verb tense,

updating declensions of nouns in the search queries to a particular noun declension, and

ordering the words remaining in each of the search queries after the filtering, conjugating, and updating in a predefined way, including placing the question word in a predetermined position in the ordering;

identifying a plurality of different search queries that each map to a particular canonical form;

ranking the different search queries based on a frequency of occurrence of each of the different search queries; and

selecting a highest-ranked different query as a representative query for each of the different search queries.