Patent ID: 7627820
Filing Date: 2009-12-01
Classification: B29C,G06F,Y10S

Abstract:
1. An information retrieval system in which information items map to respective nodes in an array of nodes by mutual similarity of said information items, so similar information items map to nodes at similar positions in said array of nodes to form a self-organizing map, said system comprising: (i) a processor; (ii) a graphical user interface configured to display a representation of nodes of the self-organizing map as a two-dimensional display array of display points within a display area on a user display; (iii) a user control configured to define a two-dimensional region of said display area; (iv) a detector configured to detect those display points lying within said two-dimensional region of said display area; and (v) a comparator configured to compute a quantization error of a newly received information item and comparing the quantization error to the self-organizing map, and configured to retrain the self-organizing map when the quantization error is above a predetermined threshold, wherein said graphical user interface is further configured to concurrently display a list of data representing information items, being those information items mapped onto said nodes corresponding to display points displayed within said two-dimensional region of said display area; and said graphical user interface is configured to provide a dither component so as to display nodes that have substantially identical or identical information items at different locations in a display area to visibly distinguish the nodes have substantially identical or identical information items, the dither component being a random addition to a node position of up to a half of a separation between adjacent nodes.