Patent · US Active

Methods and apparatus for query formulation

US9075799B1 · kind B1 · utility

2Cited by
20References
22Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateOct 24, 2011
Grant dateJul 7, 2015
Priority date
Expiry dateOct 24, 2031

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG06F16/332
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

To the standard inverted index database, a new “To” operator is added. The “To” operator treats the standard single-level linear collection of records as being organized into localized clusters. Techniques for hierarchical clusters are presented. During indexing, hierarchical clusters are serialized according to a uniform visitation procedure. Serialization produces bit maps, one for each hierarchical level, that preserve the hierarchical level of each record and its location in the serialization sequence. Also presented are techniques, when searching for an Object-of-Interest, for greatly improving the process by which Exclude Terms are identified. Exclude Terms are particularly useful when the lexical units, representing an Object-of-Interest, are ambiguous. When in the mode of searching for Exclude Terms, the Object-of-Interest can match anywhere in a snippet, rather than just in the focus sentence. Using the “To” operator, the focus sentences thus found are converted into role values, from which are identified candidate Exclude Terms.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.