System and method for hierarchically grouping and ranking a set of objects in a query context based on one or more relationships
US5875446A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 24, 1997 |
| Grant date | Feb 23, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 24, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99934
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Topically relevant objects in an object database are first identified using any generally known methods to obtain a set of topically relevant objects (topically relevant set). Parents, and in alternative embodiments other ancestors, of one or more of the topically relevant objects are identified according to directional structural relationships that the parents have with respect to the topically relevant objects. These objects form a set of structurally relevant objects (structurally relevant set). In some embodiments, the user query identifies one or more of these structural relationships. The topically relevant objects are then organized under one or more of their respective parents to form a hierarchy level of both (topically relevant and structurally relevant) sets of objects. In some preferred embodiments, the process can iterate to create more than one hierarchy level.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.