Patent Abstract:
An exemplary method for providing personalized application search results in a mobile device comprises the steps of receiving a search request from a user, the search request including at least one search keyword and a user identifier, searching an application registry database for a first set of matching applications based on the search keyword, searching an application selection table for a second set of matching applications based on the search keyword and the user identifier, ordering the second set of matching applications based on frequency of use parameters in the application selection table to obtain an ordered second set of matching applications, appending a set of application in the first set of matching applications but not in the second set of matching applications to the end of the ordered second set of matching applications, generating a response to the search request based on the third set of matching applications, and sending the response to the user.

Full Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to the provisional application entitled “Data Synchronization System Modeling and Optimization for Support of Disconnected Operation and High Data Availability,” filed on Feb. 2, 2000, and bearing the Ser. No. 60/179,761. 
     This application is also related to applications entitled “Apparatus and Methods for Providing Data Synchronization by Facilitating Data Synchronization System Design,” “Apparatus and Methods for Optimizing Traffic Volume of Wireless Email Communications,” and “Apparatus and Methods for Providing Coordinated and Personalized Application and Data Management for Resource-Limited Mobile Devices,” bearing Ser. Nos. 09/776,598, 09/776,165, and 09/776,594, respectively. These applications were filed on Feb. 1, 2001 and all claimed priority to the above provisional application bearing Ser. No. 60/179,761. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to apparatus and methods for providing personalized application search results in a wireless device. In particular, this invention relates to apparatus and methods for providing personalized application search results based on user profiles. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Computer devices connected by a network are typically capable of sharing information. In a world wide network, such as the Internet, client computers or devices connected to the network are capable of accessing information stored in virtually any server computers connected to the network. Many modern server computers provide rich media that are accessible across the Internet. Examples of rich media are audio, video, image, software, applications, games, data, and other multimedia information. 
     Typically, transmission of rich media across the Internet requires a wide bandwidth. Further, the cost and efficiency for a user to retrieve rich media is dependent on the capacity of the user&#39;s computer or device. Partly due to size constraints, most existing wireless/mobile devices do not have the capacity to effectively retrieve rich media. In particular, most wireless/mobile devices have very limited memory space for caching and inadequate processing capability for retrieving complex objects. 
     Generally, wireless/mobile devices include a user interface, such as a micro-browser, pre-installed on a wireless/mobile device and a set of fixed applications and hierarchical menus for Internet access. Using the micro-browser, a user typically browses the Internet using the fixed menus or by manually entering specific uniform resource locators (URLs). Such fixed menus are not tailored to a user&#39;s preferences. 
     Through the micro-browser, a user typically performs a search for an application or data on a network by entering keywords into an input area. Based on the keywords, a search engine, which typically resides on the gateway, performs a search and returns a set of search results. Often, hundreds or thousands of search results are returned. The user then has the option of narrowing the search by entering more keywords or browsing through the entire search results for the application or data set he/she is looking for. This latter option is especially problematic in wireless/mobile devices where the output device (e.g., screen) and working memory are typically small and connection to the network is costly. Further, existing search engines do not take into account personal preferences by each user. At a given time, different users entering the same set of keywords will get identical search results. 
     Thus, it is desirable to provide apparatus and methods for providing personalized application search results in a mobile device. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An exemplary method for providing personalized application search results in a mobile device comprises the steps of receiving a search request from a user, the search request including at least one search keyword and a user identifier, searching an application registration database for a first set of matching applications based on the search keyword, searching an application selection table for a second set of matching applications based on the search keyword and the user identifier, ordering the second set of matching applications based on frequency of use parameters in the application selection table to obtained an ordered second set of matching applications, appending a set of applications that are included in the first set of matching applications but not included the second set of matching applications to the end of the ordered second set of matching applications to obtain a third set of matching applications, generating a response to the search request based on the third set of matching applications, and sending the response to the user. 
     In one embodiment, the exemplary method further comprises the steps of collecting application registration information for each application and storing the application registration information in the application registry database. In an exemplary embodiment, the application registration information includes: a uniform resource locator, a brief description, and at least one associated keyword. 
     In another embodiment, the exemplary method further comprises the steps of receiving application selection records from the user and storing the application selection records in the application selection table. In an exemplary embodiment, each of the application selection records includes a uniform resource locator, at least one associated keyword, parameter values indicating a frequency of use, and a time stamp indicating a last use of the application. In one embodiment, the associated keyword is provided by a user for having been successful in searching the application. 
     Another exemplary method for providing personalized search results in a mobile device comprises the steps of receiving a set of keywords from a user, searching an application selection table for a first set of applications matching the set of keywords, examining a local file system to locate each of the first set of applications, generating a second set of applications including applications located in the local file system based on the examining, and displaying the second set of applications to the user. 
     In one embodiment, the exemplary method further comprises the steps of receiving a user selection of an application from a set of displayed applications, loading and executing the application, and updating the application selection table based on the user selection. In another embodiment, the exemplary method further comprises the steps of sending a set of application selection records from the application selection table to a gateway, receiving an acknowledgment from the gateway, and removing the set of application selection records from the application selection table. 
     An exemplary computer program product for providing personalized application search results in a mobile device comprises logic code for receiving a search request from a user, the search request including at least one search keyword and a user identifier, logic code for searching an application registry database for a first set of matching applications based on the search keyword, logic code for searching an application selection table for a second set of matching applications based on the search keyword and the user identifier, logic code for ordering the second set of matching applications based on frequency of use parameters in the application selection table to obtain an ordered second set of matching applications, logic code for appending a set of applications that are included in the first set of matching applications but not included in the second set of matching applications to the end of the ordered second set of matching aplications to obtain a third set of matching applications, logic code for generating a response to the search request based on the third set of matching applications, and logic code for sending the response to the user. 
     In one embodiment, the exemplary computer program product further comprises logic code for collecting application registration information for each application and logic code for storing the application registration information in the application registry database. In an exemplary embodiment, the application registration information includes: a uniform resource locator, a brief description, and at least one associated keyword. 
     In another embodiment, the exemplary computer program product further comprises logic code for receiving application selection records from the user and logic code for storing the application selection records in the application selection table. In an exemplary embodiment, each of the application selection records includes: a uniform resource locator, at least one associated keyword, parameter values indicating a frequency of use, and a time stamp indicatin a last use of the application. 
     Another exemplary computer program product for providing personalized search results in a mobile device comprises logic code for receiving a set of keywords from a user, logic code for searching an application selection table for a first set of applications matching the set of keywords, logic code for examining a local file system to locate each of the first set of applications, logic code for generating a second set of applications including applications located in the local system based on the examining, and logic code for displaying the second set of applications to the user. 
     In one embodiment, the exemplary computer program product further comprises logic code for receiving a user selection of an application from a set of displayed applications, logic code for loading and executing the application, and logic code for updating the application selection table based on the user selection. In another embodiment, the exemplary computer program product further comprises logic code for sending a set of application selection records from the application selection table to a gateway, logic code for receiving an acknowledgment from the gateway, and logic code for removing the set of application selection records from the application selection table. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an exemplary system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 2A schematically illustrates an exemplary mobile device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 2B schematically illustrates an exemplary application selection table maintained in a mobile device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 3A schematically illustrates an exemplary gateway in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 3B schematically illustrates an exemplary application selection table maintained in a gateway in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIGS. 4A-4D illustrate exemplary processes in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 5 illustrates another exemplary process in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 6 illustrates another exemplary process in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 7 illustrates another exemplary process in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 8 illustrates another exemplary process in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary prior art system  100 . The system  100  includes multiple servers connected to multiple gateways that service multiple mobile devices. For ease of explanation, only a representative number of servers, gateways, and mobile devices are shown in FIG.  1 . The system  100  includes servers  102 - 106 , gateways  108 A- 108 B, and mobile devices  110 A- 110 C. 
     FIG. 2A schematically illustrates an exemplary mobile device  110  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The mobile device  110  includes a communications interface  202  for communicating with a network, a microprocessor  204 , a user interface, and a memory  208 . In an exemplary embodiment, the user interface includes a user input device (e.g., keyboard) and an output device (e.g., screen). The memory  208  includes an operating system  210 , a micro-browser application  212 , a user operation history tracking module  214  for tracking user operation history, a directory module  216 , an application selection table  218 , a local file system  220 , and a communications transport protocol module  222  for adapting to different transport protocols in the network. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, the micro-browser application  212  provides a menu that enables keyword-based application search in the network or in the local application selection table  218 . For example, the menu may include an application search button and a help button. In one embodiment, when the application search button is selected, an input bar is presented to a user to enter search keywords. A search is performed based on the keywords and the results are displayed to the user. The user can select an application in a list of applications displayed. In one embodiment, each item in the list of applications includes a uniform resource locator (URL) and a brief description of the application. For example, the brief description includes a function description, product promotion, or URLs to other related web pages. In an exemplary embodiment, the user can select an application by browsing the list and highlighting the application or by entering an application number. When an application is selected, it is either uploaded from the local file system  220  or from the gateway  108 . The application selection information is tracked by the user operation history tracking module  214  and recorded in the application selection table  218 . The directory module  216  defines and maintains the application selection table  218 . 
     In an exemplary embodiment, the application selection table  218  includes application selections records that are dynamically updated based on user operation history. In an exemplary embodiment, each application selection record includes various parameters, such as the user inputted keywords (keywords), the name of the selected application (name), the number of times that application was executed (nExec), and the time of the last execution (lastExecTime). An exemplary application selection table  218  is illustrated in FIG.  2 B. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, when a user&#39;s request to search for applications is received while the mobile device  110  is disconnected from the gateway  108  (e.g., mobile device out of all service areas), a search in the application selection table  218  is performed instead. In one embodiment, each selected (and executed) application is associated with one or more keywords in the application selection table  218 . In another embodiment, these selected applications are continuously monitored by the mobile device  110 . In an exemplary embodiment, if a connection to the gateway  108  cannot be established, the directory module  216  begins search in the application selection table  218  using the user provided keywords. For example, the user provided keywords are compared to the keywords associated with each application selection record. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, bandwidth utilization policies are implemented to allow continuous operations even when the mobile device  110  is disconnected from the gateway  108 . For example, for short-lived disconnections, the directory module  216  remains in an active state and will retry periodically to re-connect with the gateway  108 . If a connection is established before a time out, the communication between the mobile device  110  and the gateway  108  will resume at the point of previous failure to minimize bandwidth usage. For long-lived disconnections, the directory module  216  terminates the current communication transaction and saves the status of the transaction in the local file system  220 . When the mobile device  110  is reconnected to the gateway  108 , the communication between the mobile device  110  and the gateway  108  will resume at the point of previous failure based on the transaction status saved in the local file system  220 . In an exemplary embodiment, if communication fails during an application search transaction, the search will be automatically redirected from the gateway to the local storage (e.g., the application selection table  218 ) of the mobile device  110 . 
     FIG. 3A schematically illustrates an exemplary gateway  108  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The gateway  108  includes a communications interface  302  for communicating with a network, a CPU  304 , a user interface  306 , and a memory  308 . The memory  308  includes an operating system  310 , gateway applications  312 , a directory (application search) module  314 , an application registration module  316 , a gateway synchronization module  318 , an application registry database  320 , a subscriber registry database  322 , a gateway information database  324 , an application selection table  326 , a transaction manager module  328 , a subscriber manager module  330 , and a communications transport and protocol module  332 . In an exemplary embodiment, the communications transport and protocol module  332  includes transport protocols for communicating with other gateways (e.g., HTTP, file transfer protocol (FTP), simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP), etc.) and with mobile devices (e.g., wireless application protocol (WAP), TCP/IP, HTTP, SMTP, etc.). 
     The gateway applications  312  include standard gateway applications that are known in the art for performing gateway functions. In an exemplary embodiment, the application registration module  316  collects application registration information from servers or application service providers connected to the network, such as the Internet. In one embodiment, the registration includes an application URL, a brief description of the application, and any assigned keywords for identifying the application. Such registration information is stored in the application registry database  320  via the application registration module  316 . Contents in the application registry database  320  in each gateway  108  is synchronized periodically with contents in other gateways. In an exemplary embodiment, such gateway-to-gateway synchronization is triggered and facilitated by the application registration module  316  and the gateway synchronization module  318 . The gateway information database  324  includes information about other gateways that is useful for achieving gateway-to-gateway synchronization. 
     The transaction manager module  328  prevents violations of transaction semantics and data integrity. In one embodiment, the transaction manager module  328  tracks and logs the progress of each transaction, including application search and data synchronization transactions. Transaction tracking also facilitates billing by providing a detailed record of each user&#39;s billable activities. The subscriber manager module  330  facilitates registration of user/subscriber IDs into the subscriber registry database  322 . In an exemplary embodiment, user requests to the gateway  108  typically includes the user&#39;s subscriber ID. That subscriber ID is checked by the subscriber manager module  322  against the subscriber registry database  322  before the requested services are performed. 
     The application selection table  326  is a database table maintained on gateways  108 . Contents of each application selection table  326  is synchronized with application selection tables in other gateways. Generally, the application selection table  326  contains information similar to the mobile application selection table  218 , except the gateway application selection table  326  generally may include additional rows listing the associated subscriber IDs and a description for each application selection record. An exemplary application selection table  326  maintained on a gateway  108  is illustrated in FIG.  3 B. Further, in an exemplary embodiment, the gateway application selection table  326  maintains selective application information from all users serviced by the gateway  108  and for a longer period of time relative to information stored on mobile devices. The period of maintenance on the gateway application selection table  326  can be an automatic default time or a manually configured time. 
     Typically, applications searches are performed by the directory module  314  based on contents in the application registry database  320  and the application selection table  326 . An exemplary application search is described in FIG. 6 below. 
     The directory modules  216  and  314  facilitate communications between the mobile device  110  and the gateway  108 . In an exemplary embodiment, the directory modules  216  and  314  include a directory protocol as its application layer protocol. 
     The directory protocol is a family of sub protocols that includes an application search protocol and an application usage upload protocol. The application search protocol searches for a set of matching applications based on keywords provided by a user of a mobile device  110 . An exemplary application search protocol process is described in FIG. 7 below. 
     The application usage upload protocol submits application selection records stored in a mobile device  110  to the gateway  108  that services the mobile device  110 . In an exemplary embodiment, validated application selection records in the mobile application selection table  218  are periodically uploaded to the gateway  108 , such that the gateway application selection table  326  is kept current. After an application selection record in the mobile device  110  is uploaded to the gateway  108 , that application selection record is removed from the application selection table  218 . An exemplary application usage upload protocol process is described in FIG. 8 below. 
     FIGS. 4A-4D illustrate exemplary processes performed by the mobile device  110  in accordance with embodiments of this invention. In FIG. 4A, the device  110  performs three functions to maintain and update the application selection table  218 . At step  402 , a function call is received. If the application search function is called (step  404 ), the process continues in FIG. 4B (step  406 ). If an add application selection record function is called (step  408 ), the process continues in FIG. 4C (step  410 ). If an add select count function is called (step  412 ), the process continues in FIG. 4D (step  414 ). Otherwise, the called function is ignored and the process ends (step  416 ). 
     FIG. 4B illustrates an exemplary process when the application search function is called. At step  418 , a set of keywords and/or an application URL is received. The application selection table  218  is searched for a match of the keywords or the URL (step  420 ). If no match is found (step  422 ), a “null” code is returned (step  424 ). If a match is found (step  422 ), the found applications are returned (step  426 ). In an exemplary embodiment, the found applications may be uploaded from the mobile local file system  220  or remotely. 
     FIG. 4C illustrate an exemplary process when the add application record function is called. At step  428 , a set of keywords and/or an application URL representing a new application selection is received. Any free space in the mobile device is determined and compared with the needed space for storing the application selection record (step  430 ). If there is enough free space, the new application selection record is added to the application selection table (step  432 ). If there is not enough free space, the device  110  attemps to connect to the gateway (ste  434 ). If connected, the device  110  uploads some or all application selection records from the device  110  to the gateway (step  438 ), removes the successfully uploaded application selection records from the mobile application selection record (step  440 ), and the new application selection record is added to the local application selection table on the device  110  (step  432 ). If the connection was not successful, an error code is returned and the function fails (step  442 ). 
     FIG. 4D illustrates an exemplary process when the add select count function is called. At step  444 , a pointer to an application selection record is received. Next, the nExec value for that application selection record is increased by 1 (step  446 ). The lastExecTime value is updated to the current time (step  448 ). 
     FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary process performed by the gateway  108  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. At step  502 , the gateway  108  receives a search request from a mobile device. In an exemplary embodiment, the search request includes user specified keywords. In one embodiment, the search request also includes the user or subscriber ID. The search request is parsed for any keywords (step  504 ). The application registry DB  320  and the application selection table  326  are searched for any applications matching the keywords (step  506 ). If the search was successful (step  508 ), a response is constructed based on the search result (step  510 ). FIG. 6 below illustrates an exemplary process to organize search result applications. The response is sent to the mobile device (step  512 ). Referring back to step  508 , if the search in step  506  is unsuccessful (i.e., no matching application is found), an error code is returned to the mobile device and the user may be prompted to revise the keyword query (step  514 ). 
     FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary application search process performed by the gateway  108  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. At step  602 , the application registry DB  320  is searched for any matching application to the user specified keywords; all matching applications are included in a first list of applications. Next, the application selection records, which are associated with the user&#39;s ID in the application selection table  326 , are searched for any matching application to the user specified keywords; all matching applications are included in a second list of applications (step  604 ). The first list of applications is compared to the second list of applications (step  606 ). Applications present in both the first and the second lists are selected sorted first in decreasing order of the nExec parameters and then in decreasing order of the lastExecTime parameters, such ordered applications are placed in a third list of applications (step  608 ). For example, an application having a higher nExec parameter value has a higher position in the third list than an application having a lower nExec parameter value. Similarly, among applications having the same nExec values, the application having the most recent lastExecTime has a higher position on the third list than other applications. For example, if both applications A and B are selected 3 times, but application A was more recently selected than application B, then application A has higher priority on the third list than application B. Applications that are not present in both the first and second lists are randomly attached to the end of the third list (step  610 ). Thus, the third list contains applications in the descending order of frequency of use by the user based on the user&#39;s past preferences. 
     FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary application search protocol process performed by the directory modules  216  and  314  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. At step  702 , a search request sent by a mobile device  110  is received by the gateway  108 . At the gateway  108 , the message is forwarded to the application search module  314  (step  704 ). After the search is completed by the application search module  314 , a response is generated and sent to the directory module  216  in the mobile device  110  (step  708 ). In an exemplary embodiment, the response includes the number of matching applications, the URLs for those applications, a brief description of each application, and assigned keywords for each application. After the mobile directory module  216  received the response, it passes the response to the micro-browser  212  (step  710 ). The micro-browser  212  then displays the results to the user via the output device  206  (step  712 ). Further, the micro-browser  212  monitors the user&#39;s reactions and updates the application selection table  218  accordingly (step  714 ). 
     FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary application usage upload protocol process performed by the directory modules  214  and  314  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. At step  802 , an application post request sent by the mobile device  110  is received by the gateway  108 . In an exemplary embodiment, the post request includes a user ID and an array of application selection records from the application selection table  218  of the mobile device  110 . At the gateway  108 , the directory module  314  updates the application selection table  326  (step  804 ). The directory module  314  sends an acknowledgment message back to the mobile device  110  (step  806 ). At an appropriate time (e.g., when the network is least congested), the directory module  314  triggers and facilitates database synchronization with other gateways to update the application selection tables (step  808 ). After receiving the acknowledgment from the gateway  108 , the directory module  216  at the mobile device  110  removes that array of application selection records that were successfully posted at the gateway  108  (step  810 ). 
     The foregoing examples illustrate certain exemplary embodiments of the invention from which other embodiments, variations, and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The invention should therefore not be limited to the particular embodiments discussed above, but rather is defined by the claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8