Method and apparatus for knowledgebase searching
US6178416A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 15, 1998 |
| Grant date | Jan 23, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 15, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99935
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A library of query templates and a dictionary that relates keywords to more abstract concepts are first prepared on a computer system. Each template contains one or more typed variables. A query is then generated by entering into the system one or more keywords. Each keyword is abstracted to a concept. Advantageously, each concept may be further refined, for example, by additional abstraction, or by picking one concept from several candidates, or by successive abstraction and rejection of different keywords until an acceptable concept is found. Next, for the concepts that are obtained, the system finds all query templates are then instantiated with those concepts or with the keywords used to form the concepts. The user then selects the most appropriate query from among the instantiated query templates. The invention may be practiced in formulating queries to access any set of information sources. It is particularly useful to use the invention to access distributed, heterogeneous databases which do not have a single standardized vocabulary or structure.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.