Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/EP2382563A1
Timestamp: 2018-04-26 15:41:58
Document Index: 397203676

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 2500', '§ 1']

EP2382563A1 - System and method to retrieve relevant information - Google Patents
EP2382563A1
EP2382563A1 EP20090799844 EP09799844A EP2382563A1 EP 2382563 A1 EP2382563 A1 EP 2382563A1 EP 20090799844 EP20090799844 EP 20090799844 EP 09799844 A EP09799844 A EP 09799844A EP 2382563 A1 EP2382563 A1 EP 2382563A1
EP20090799844
This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 61/142,176 filed on December 31, 2008, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
In accordance with another embodiment, a system to retrieve information is disclosed. The system includes a primary search device, a secondary search device and a combiner device. The primary search device is configured to generate a plurality of information identifier (infoID) sets based on at least one search term and at least one filtering criteria. The primary search device is also configured to join at least the plurality of infoID sets according to a mathematical expression to form a resultant infoID set that includes at least one resultant infoID. The primary search device is further configured to retrieve at least a portion of a content document associated with the at least one resultant infoID. The secondary search device configured to summarize the at least one resultant infoID into at least one summary. The combiner device configured to combine the retrieved portion of the content document into the at least one summary of a combined result based on the associated at least one resultant infoID. In accordance with yet another embodiment, a machine-readable storage medium is disclosed. The machine-readable storage medium includes operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to generate a plurality of information identifier (infoID) sets based on at least one search term and at least one filtering criteria. The machine-readable storage medium also includes operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to join at least the plurality of infoID sets according to a mathematical expression to form a resultant infoID set that includes at least one resultant infoID.
The machine-readable storage medium further includes operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to retrieve at least a portion of a content document associated with the at least one resultant infoID. Additionally, the machine- readable storage medium includes operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to summarize the at least one resultant infoID into at least one summary. Moreover, the machine-readable storage medium includes operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to combine the retrieved portion of the content document into the at least one summary of a combined result based on the associated at least one resultant infoID.
FIG. 3 illustrates an example search input window to receive a user query; FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of an example method for performing a search of at least one content database (primary and/or secondary database) and at least one relationship database illustrated in FIG. 1 in accordance with the query illustrated in the search input window of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5B illustrates the example query of FIG. 5 A translated into a query of information identifiers (infoIDs) in accordance with at least one relationship database illustrated in FIG. 1.
The topic navigation device 115 is configured to receive one or more indications from the client device 104 via the external communication device 112 concerning a topic of the results displayed in FIG. 6 and to display a topic map window including a t least a topic map related to the topic, as will be described in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 6 and
The federated search engine 128 is configured to receive search and filtering criteria (e.g., query) from the client device 104 or the alert system 152, as well as additional filtering criteria from at least one other system 118, 144 and 148. In some embodiments, further filtering information can be received or used (e.g., relevancy and timestamp) to refine the search, as will be described in greater detail below The federated search engine 128 is further configured to perform a search using at least one relationship database 184 against at least one content database (e.g., primary database 170, secondary database 176 or another content database) to retrieve at least one document (or portion thereof) based on the query (search and filtering criteria) and additional filtering criteria, to summarize the retrieved at least one document (or a portion of the document), and to return the summarization and the retrieved at least one document (or the portion of the document) to the client device 104 or the alert system 152. As will be described in greater detail below, the documents of the content databases are associated with information identifiers (infoDs) and the federated search engine 128 is configured to search, summarize and retrieve documents in association with the infoIDs. Additional identifiers (e.g., docIDs) can be associated with the infoIDs to facilitate retrieval of content documents or portions thereof associated with the infoIDs. The federated search engine 128 includes a primary search device 130, secondary search device 132, content combiner device 134, relevancy device 136, and a topic search device 137. The primary search device 130 is configured to convert the query (search and filtering criteria) (e.g., the query illustrated in FIG. 5A) into multiple infoID sets (e.g., illustrated in FIG. 5C) based on at least one relationship database 184, to retrieve at least one additional infoID set (filtering criteria) from at least one other system (e.g., subscriber connection system 118, aggregation system 144, suggestion system 148). The additional infoID sets from the systems 144, 148 can be based on the at least one search term of the query, while the additional infoID set from the subscriber system 118 can be associated with a user-defined filtering criteria retrieved from the configuration database 122 for the user, such as via the user's user ID.
The network 142 is configured to interconnect the components systems and databases of the information retrieval system 108, including the web server 110, subscriber connection system 118, federated search engine 128, report management system 138, aggregation system 144, suggestion system 148, alert system 152, reporting system 158, delivery system 162, and the backend databases 168. The network 142 can include one or more of a wide area network (WAN), local area network (LAN), virtual private network (VPN), wireless network, as well as any other public or private network, or any combination thereof. The transmission over the network 142 can be accomplished, for example, via Transfer Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP)/IP, as well as any combination of conventional protocols or yet to be developed protocols.
The alert system 152 is configured to provide alerts to the user when relevant information changes (e.g., when search results or infoID track results of periodic queries change). The alert system 152 includes a search device 154 and an InfoID track device 156. The alert system 152 can maintain one or more folders (not shown) associated with periodic queries that the user would like to perform periodically (e.g., hourly, daily, weekly, and other periodicities) against content databases (e.g., primary or secondary databases 170, 176) or relationship databases 184. . As will be described in greater detail below, alert system 152 can also perform the periodic queries when certain events occur in the information retrieval system 108. An example event that can invoke a periodic query of a particular folder can be one that is associated with one or more updated/new documents (via associated infoIDs) that are loaded into one or more of the content databases 170, 176. For example, upon receipt of an event indicating one or more infoIDs, the alert system 152 can instruct the search device 154 to perform any queries associated with such infoIDs.
Based on the periodicity set by the user for the query in the folder, the search device 154 can transmit a periodic query to the federated search engine 128 and can receive in response a combined search result (e.g., document content and at least one summary). For a periodically executed query, the search device 154 can maintain a timestamp associated with each periodic execution of the query. The time stamp can be initially set to the date and time when the user configures (e.g., adds or changes) the query. For example, the initial timestamp can be TS=<December 1, 2009>. The search device 154 can request an initial query on the same date as the configuration (e.g., December 1, 2009). After receiving the combined search result, the search device 154 can save the combined result to the result section of the folder and can also save the timestamp to the folder. Additionally, or alternatively, for a received search result of a query, the search device 154 can also request the report management system 138 to generate a report or document of the search result for delivery to the user. Based on the document delivery configuration (e.g., set forth for the user in configuration database 122), the report management system 138 thereafter can deliver the generated document to the user online via one or more web page or plugins, and/or via the delivery system 162, such as via FTP, RSS, and email.
For a later periodic or event-based query, search device 154 is configured to append to the periodic query a timestamp of a previously executed query maintained in the folder. In some embodiments, the timestamp can be associated with the periodic query but can be transmitted separately from the periodic query. For example, if the periodicity is set to "weekly," the query will be requested on December 8, 2009, December 15, 2009, and so on. For each periodic request, the search device 154 can append to the periodic query a previous timestamp, such as TS=<December 1, 2009> for the second query on December 8, 2009, TS=<December 8, 2009> for third periodic query on December 15, 2009, and so on. Similarly, when an event-based query occurs, the next periodically scheduled query can include the timestamp associated with the event-based execution of the periodic query. For example, the search device 154 can append to the periodic query on December 8, 2009, a TS=<December 6, 2009> when the periodic query was last executed due to an event-based query execution. Similarly, the search device 154 can request the report management system 138 to generate a report or document of the search result for delivery to the user. Based on the document delivery configuration (e.g., set forth for the user in configuration database 122), the report management system 138 thereafter can deliver the generated document to the user online via one or more web page or plugins, and/or via the delivery system 162, such as via FTP, RSS, and email.
The secondary content databases 176 can include at least one secondary content database 178, 180 and 182. For example, the at least one secondary content database 178, 180 and 182 can include law review documents, regulatory guidance documents (e.g., IRS- related documents), agency documents (e.g., IRS regulations documents), as well as myriad other content documents. Additional or alternate secondary content databases 176 can be provided. The at least one secondary content database 178, 180 and 182 can also include other types of content documents. For example, the at least one secondary content database 178, 180 and 182 can include bill summary documents, analytical documents, congressional transcript documents, as well as any other type of content documents.
The relationship databases 184 include relationships associated with the content documents. More specifically, the relationship databases 184 include an index database 186, NORM (No vus Object Relationship Manager) database 188 and NORT (Novus Object Relationship Tree) database 190. The index database 186 can maintain associations of search terms and filtering criteria with metadata. The NORM database 188 can maintain relationships between identifiers and associated metadata. The NORT database 190 can maintain parent-child hierarchical information. The relationship databases 184 will be described in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 2A-2E.
The infoID is an identifier that identifies the content document across content documents of the information retrieval system 108, while a docID is an identifier that identifies an instance of the infoID. For example, the first document and the last document in FIG. 2A are identified by the same infoID (e.g., ID 6) and by different docIDs (e.g., docIDl and docID4). The verID is a timestamp indicating an instance (or point-in-time) of the content document. The document content portion can include the content of a particular statute or regulation, or other content as described herein. For example, the document content of the first document and the fourth document in FIG. 2A is associated with 10 MN Stat. § 2500, the document content of the second document is associated with 10 NY Reg. Pt. 562, and the document content of the third document can be any content that desired to be maintained in the primary content database 170 (or secondary content database 176). For example, document content of the third document can be associated with a NY senate bill 485, or any other content.
FIG. 2B illustrates example records of the index database 186. The index database 186 relates a query (search terms and filtering criteria) in the information retrieval system 108 to docID, infoID and verID of content documents illustrated in FIG. 2A. A record of the index database 186 relates a field name, value, docID, infoID and verID. For example, the first record indicates that a document type "state statutes" is related to docIDs (docIDl, docID4), infoIDs (ID6, ID6) and verIDs (TSl, TS4). The first docID is associated with the first infoID and with the first verID. Other docIDs, infoIDs and verIDs are similarly related. The second record indicates that a jurisdiction "MN" is also related to docIDs (docIDl, docID4), infoIDs (ID6, ID6) and verIDs (TSl, TS4).
The third record indicates that a document type "state regulations" is related to docID2, infoID ID7 and TS2, and the fourth record indicates that a jurisdiction "NY" is also related to docID2, infoID ID7 and TS2. The last two records indicate relationships of respective search terms of "Srchl" and "Srch2" (e.g., set forth in FIG. 3) to docIDs, infoIDs and verIDs. More specifically, the first search term "Srchl" is related to docIDs (docIDl, docID3, docID4), infoIDs (ID6, ID8, ID6) and verIDs (TSl, TS3, TS4), while the second search term "Srch3" is related to docID2, infoID ID7 and verID TS2.
FIG. 2C illustrates example records of the NORM database 188. The NORM database 188 is configured to relate a document (e.g., via its infoID) to at least one base topic and its relevancy for summarization by topic. A first portion of the NORM database 188 includes example self-referencing records associated with topics Tl, T2, T3 and T5, which are metadata for the topics and display information related to the topics. A second portion of the NORM database 188 relates document infoIDs to base topics and relevancies. As an example, the document represented by infoID ID6 is related to three base topics, e.g., base topic Tl and relevancy of 86%, to T2 and relevancy of 95%, and T3 And relevancy of 64%. As another example, the document represented by infoID ID7 is related to one topic Tl and relevancy of 73%. The actual topic name can be populated in the base topic field or a lookup table can be maintained by the NORM DB 188 to relate the base topics to actual base topic names, such as Tl-"Topicl"; T2-"Topic2" and T3-"Topic 3". It should be noted that the topic names set forth herein are representative examples and can therefore be actual topic names provided according to the topics represented by the content documents of FIG. 2A. There can be other relationships represented in the NORM database 188. For example, the topic can be a family of bills represented by topics a topic B (e.g., Bl), which can include the third document identifier by infoID ID8 in FIG. 2A (e.g., NY Sen. Bill 485). Other families can be related in similar fashion, such as patent families, legislative histories, as well as any other families.
FIG. 2D illustrates example records of the NORT database 190. The NORT database 190 is configured to relate one or more child topics to a parent topic using topic expression for summarization by table of contents (TOC). For example, a child topic Cl (e.g., topic Tl) can be a child of a summary topic (parent) and can include a value representing a mathematical topic expression -- Tl U T2. Accordingly, the TOC can include the summary topic and the child topic. This TOC can be a graph representing children with multiple parents, grandparents, and additional levels of parentage to express higher levels of a topical concept. FIG. 3 illustrates an example search input window 300 to receive a user query. After logging in, the user can request to perform a search via the information retrieval system 108 of FIG. 1, either online via client device 104 or periodically via the alert system 142. The federated search engine 128 can generate a search input window, such as search input window 300. For example, the search input window 300 can include the following inputs: search terms 302 and filtering criteria, which can include one or more of document types 304; document sections 306; dates 308; jurisdictions 310; selected topic(s) 312; and topic search 314. It should be noted that the filtering criteria is non-exhaustive and additional or alternative filtering criteria can be provided (e.g., agencies, legislative committees). The particular filtering criteria can be based on user's access level to the information retrieval system 108. More specifically, configuration database 122 can include particular filtering criteria that are to be provided to the user (via user ID). For example, only certain topics (e.g., topics 1-5 and topic X) can be provided to the user, while certain other topics may not available to the user based on the user's access level to the information retrieval system 108. Alternatively, the user can have unrestricted access to all topics. Similarly, certain document types 304, document sections 306, dates 308 and jurisdictions 310 can be restricted based on user's access level to the information retrieval system 108.
As illustrated in the example search input window 300, the user has entered two search terms "Srchl" and "Srch2" into the search terms 302 and has selected the following filtering criteria, including topics selected via search term "Srch3". The filtering criteria selected includes: document type 304 - state statutes, state regulations; document sections 306 - nothing; dates 308 - all; jurisdictions 310 - all; and selected topic(s) 312 - topics 1, 5.
At operation 406, at least one relationship database is accessed to convert the query (e.g., at least on search term and the at least one filtering criteria) into a query of information identifiers (infoIDs). It is noted that the timestamp is not converted but can be used to filter an infoID resultant set, as described in greater detail below. The example converted query is illustrated in FIG. 5B. Each infoID of the converted query is associated with a related document in the content databases 170, 176. For example, in view of the example queries in FIGS. 5 A, 5B and the index database 186 of FIG. 2B, "Srchl" is converted to infoIDs ID6, ID8 and "Srch2" is converted to infoID ID7. In view of the NORM database 188, Topic 1 (Tl) is converted to infoID ID6, ID7 and Topic 2 (T2) is converted to infoID ID6. As described hereinabove, a table can be used to relate Topics to (Ts). In view of the index database 186, "State Stats" is converted to infoID ID6 and "State Regs" is converted to infoID ID7.
At operation 408, a plurality of infoID sets is generated from the converted query. Each of the infoID sets can include one or more infoIDs. For example, as shown in example FIGS. 5B, 5C, infoID set A can include infoIDs ID6, ID7, ID8, infoID set B can include infoIDs ID6, ID7, and infoID set C can include infoIDs ID6, ID7. At operation 410, at least one additional infoID set based on the at least one search term of the query is retrieved from another system, such as the aggregation system 144 and/or the suggestion system 148. The additional sets can include one or more infoIDs. For example, as shown in example FIG. 5C, infoID set D from the aggregation system 144 can include infoID ID6, infoID set E from the suggestion system 148 can include infoIDs ID7.
At operation 412, a user-configured exclusion set of infoIDs is retrieved. For example, as shown in example FIG. 5C, a user-configured exclusion infoID set F retrieved from the configuration database 122 can include infoID ID8. At operation 414, the infoID sets are joined to form a resultant infoID set of infoIDs according to a mathematical expression. For example, as shown in example FIG. 5C, the mathematical expression according to which the infoID sets A-F can be joined can be described as follows: (((Set A U Set D U Set E) D Set B D Set C) - Set F). While the example resultant infoID set for this example query can include infoIDs ID6, ID7, other resultant infoID sets for the same or other queries can be empty (e.g., no infoIDs result from the mathematical expression). In the foregoing example, infoID set A that is associated with the search terms can be expanded by its union with infoID sets D, E from the aggregation and suggestions systems 144, 148. This intermediate result of infoIDs can then be filtered by its intersection with infoID sets B, C and subtraction of infoID set F.
Similarly, in some embodiments, the resultant infoID set can also be filtered according to the received timestamp (e.g., from the alert system 152) based on the latest verIDs in the index database 186, which are associated with the infoIDs of the resultant infoID set. As an example, the received timestamp can be <December 1 , 2009> and the latest verID for ID6 can be <October 15, 2009> (e.g., TS4). Because the latest verID is before the received timestamp, ID6 can be filtered from the resultant infoID set. As another example, the latest verID for ID7 can be <December 3, 2009> (e.g., TS2). Because the latest verID is after the received timestamp of <December 1, 2009>, ID7 will be not be filtered from the resultant infoID set. For clarity of the following description, none of the infoIDs is filtered from the resultant infoID set.
At operation 422, the resultant infoIDs are summarized via at least on relationship database into at least one summary of topics, table of contents (TOC) and document types. For example, operation 422 can be performed by the secondary search device 132 of the federated search system 128, illustrated in FIG. 1. As an example, the NORM database 188 is accessed and infoID ID6 is used as a key to retrieve topics Tl, T2 and T3 for the topics summary. The infoID ID7 is used to retrieve topic Tl. As another example, the retrieved topics Tl and T2 are used to access NORT database 190 for the table of contents (TOC) summary, by executing the expression Tl U T2 to generate a summary topic for the topics Tl, TZ.
At operation 424 the retrieved portions of the document content from operation 420 are combined with the at least one summary into a combined result. For example, operation 424 can be performed by the content combiner device 134 of the federated search system 128, illustrated in FIG. 1. As an example, for the topic summary, the retrieved portions of the documents represented by infoIDs ID6, ID7 are added to topic Tl and infoIDs ID6, ID7 are counted for the topic Tl summary. There are two (2) entries for the topic Tl . The retrieved portions of the document represented by infoID ID6 added to the topic T2 and the topic T3, and infoID ID6 is counted for the respective topic summaries. There is one entry for the each of the topics T2, T3. As another example, in the document type summary, the retrieved portions of the documents represented by infoIDs ID6, ID7 are added to state statues and state regulations, respectively, and counted for each document type.
FIG. 5A illustrates an example query generated in accordance with the query illustrated in the search input window of FIG. 3. The query can be key- value pairs indicating search terms and filtering criteria entered via the example search input window 300 of FIG. 3. As example search terms, the following key-value pairs can be provided: Trml=Srchl and Trm2=Srch 2. The search terms can be separated by connector, such as Cx=or. As example filtering criteria, the following key-value pairs can be provided: Tpkl=Topic 1 and Tpk2=Topic 5. As other filtering criteria, the following key- value pairs can be provided: Typl=State Stats; and Typ2=State Regs. In similar fashion, the foregoing filtering criteria can be separated by connectors.
FIG. 5B illustrates the example query of FIG. 5 A converted into a query of information identifiers (infoIDs) in accordance with at least one relationship database illustrated in FIG. 1. In similar fashion to FIG. 5 A, the query can be key- value pairs indicating search terms and filtering criteria entered via the example search input window 300 of FIG. 3 and converted to infoIDs. As example search terms, the following key- value pairs can be provided: Trml=ID6, ID8 and Trm2=ID7. As an example filtering criteria, the following key-value pairs can be provided: Tpkl=ID6, ID7 and Tpk2=Null. As other filtering criteria, the following key-value pairs can be provided: Typl=ID6; and Typ2=ID7. In similar fashion to FIG. 5A, the can be separated by connectors as shown on FIG. 5B.
FIG. 5C illustrates at least one infoID set generated from the query of FIG. 5B, at least one additional infoID set retrieved from at least one system of FIG. 1, as well as a resultant infoID set generated from the infoID sets according to a mathematical expression. InfoID sets A-C are generated from the converted query of FIG. 5B. Each of the infoID sets can include one or more infoIDs. For example, infoID set A can include infoIDs ID6, ID7, ID8, infoID set B can include infoIDs ID6, ID7, and infoID set C can include infoIDs ID6, ID7. InfoID sets D and E based on the at least one search term of the query can be retrieved from the aggregation system 144 and the suggestion system 148. For example, infoID set D can include infoID ID6 and infoID set E can include infoIDs ID7. A user-configured exclusion infoID set F is retrieved from the configuration database 122 of the subscriber connection system 118. For example, infoID set F can include infoID ID 8. The foregoing additional infoID sets can include one or more infoIDs. The infoID sets are joined to form a resultant infoID set of infoIDs according to a mathematical expression. For example, as shown in example FIG. 5C, the mathematical expression can be described as follows: (((Set A U Set D U Set E) n Set B n Set C) - Set F). The example resultant set according to the mathematical expression can include infoIDs ID6, ID7.
The topic summary 606 includes topic 1, topic 2, and topic 3 and documents (or portions thereof) summarized by each of the topics. For example, topic 1 includes two (2) documents. The first document of topic 1 is "10 MN Stat § 2500" which is a portion of the document in the content database (e.g., primary database 170 or secondary database 176) identified by infoID ID6. The second document of topic 1 is "12 NY Reg Pt. 562" which is a portion of the document in the content database (e.g., primary database 170 or secondary database 176) identified by infoID ID7, as indicated in the relationship databases 184. Topics 2 and 3 each includes one (1) document "10 MN Stat § 2500" identified by infoID ID6. A topic can be associated with topic navigation icon 608, which is configured to facilitate the display of a topic associated with topic navigation icon 608 and topics related to that topic, as will be described in greater detail below with reference to FIG. 8. The user can click topic navigation icon 608, which instructs the topic navigation device 115 to display the topic map window 800 of FIG. 8.
The document type summary 610 includes state statutes and state regulations and documents (or portions thereof) summarized by each document type. For example, the state statutes document type includes one (1) document. Specifically, state statutes document summary includes "10 MN Stat § 2500," which is a portion of the document in the content database (e.g., primary database 170 or secondary database 176) identified by infoID ID6. As another example, the state regulations document summary type also includes one (1) document. Specifically, state regulations includes "12 NY Reg Pt. 562," which is a portion of the document in the content database (e.g., primary database 170 or secondary database 176) identified by infoID ID7. A document can also be associated with graphical display icon 612, which is configured to facilitate the display of the document type summary and topic summary associated with that document as a graphical display, as will be described in greater detail below with reference to FIG. 7. The user can click the graphical display icon 612, which instructs the graphical navigation device 114 to display the summary associated with the document in the graphical search result window 700.
The TOC summary 614 includes a summary topic, summary subtopic and documents (or portions thereof) summarized by each of summary topic and subtopic. For example, the topic expression Tl U T2 is evaluated from information contained within the NORM database 188 and determined to include infoIDs ID6, ID7. Accordingly, the child Cl from the NORT database 190 has a summarized value of two (2) and its parent Pl is a summary of all the documents that its children contain and thus also has a value of two (2).
The search result window 700 can be displayed as a result of clicking the graphical display link 604 in FIG. 6. The results summary of FIG. 7 extends from the dotted box, which includes the documents (or portions thereof) retrieved as a result of the query of FIG. 3 (e.g., 10 MN Stats § 2500 and 12 NY Reg. Pt. 562). The documents are displayed as related to the topic summary 706 (e.g., topic 1, topic 2 and topic 3). Clicking on a topic, displays document type summary 708 associated with foregoing documents. Clicking on a document type, displays the documents 710 of the document type summary 708.
The search result window 700 can also be displayed as a result of clicking the graphical display icon 612 in FIG. 6. In this case, the results summary of FIG. 7 extends from the dotted box, which includes only the document (or portions thereof) associated with graphical display icon 612 (e.g., 10 MN Stats § 2500 or 12 NY Reg. Pt. 562). For example, in the case of document 10 MN Stats § 2500, the document is displayed as related to the topic summary 706 (e.g., topic 1, topic 2 and topic 3). Clicking on a topic, displays document type summary 708 associated with foregoing documents. In this case, only the state statutes document type is displayed. Clicking on a document type, displays the documents 710 of the document type summary 708 (e.g., 10 MN Stats § 2500). The relevancy slider 712 and report creator 714 operate similarly to the relevancy slider 616 and report creator 618 of FIG. 6, respectively.
The topic map window 800 can be displayed as a result of clicking the topic navigation icon 608 in FIG. 6. The topic map of FIG. 8 includes a topic map 806, which extends from the dotted box that includes the selected topic (from the search result window 600 of FIG. 6). Based on the selected topic (e.g., topic 1), the topic navigation device 115 accesses at least relationship database 184 (e.g., NORM 188) to retrieve at least one other topic related to the selected topic. This can be accomplished by determining which infoIDs associated with topic 1 (e.g., topic Tl in NORM database 188) are also associated with other one or more topics. For example, based on the example records in NORM database 188, ID6 and ID7 of topic Tl are also related to topics T2 and T3.
Accordingly, related topics T2 and T3 are shown the topic map 806 as being related to topic Tl . Clicking or selecting a related topic (e.g., topic T2), instructs the topic navigation device 115 to determine and display one or more topics related to that selected topic. As an example, although not in the example records of the NORM database 188, topics X and Y could be displayed. The relationships in the topic map 806 can be expanded by selecting successive related topics. For a selected topic from the topic map 806, a citation list of documents summarized by document type can be displayed for that selected topic. For example, for selected topic Tl, citation list 810 can be displayed, which can be similar to document type summary 610 associated with infoID ID6 (e.g., 10 MN Stat. § 2500) and ID7 (e.g., 12 NY Reg. Pt. 562). A create report icon 812 operates in a similar fashion to the create report icon 714 of FIG. 7.
In a networked deployment, the computer system 900 may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in a server-client network environment, or a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The computer system 900 can also be implemented as or incorporated into various devices, such as a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a web appliance, a communications device, a mobile device, a wireless telephone, a server, client or any other machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while a single computer system 900 is illustrated, the term "system" shall also be taken to include any collection of systems or sub-systems that individually or jointly execute a set, or multiple sets, of instructions to perform one or more computer functions.
In an alternative embodiment, dedicated hardware implementations, such as application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices, can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatus and systems of various embodiments can broadly include a variety of electronic and computer systems. One or more embodiments described herein may implement functions using two or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and data signals that can be communicated between and through the modules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Accordingly, the present system encompasses software, firmware, and hardware imp lementations .
In accordance with the various embodiments, the methods described herein may be implemented by software programs that are tangibly embodied in a processor-readable medium and that may be executed by a processor. Further, in an example, non-limited embodiment, implementations can include distributed processing, component/object distributed processing, and parallel processing. Alternatively, virtual computer system processing can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods or functionality as described herein. While the computer-readable medium is shown to be a single medium, the term "computer-readable medium" includes a single medium or multiple media, such as a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers that store one or more sets of instructions. The term "computer-readable medium" shall also include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by a processor or that cause a computer system to perform any one or more of the methods or operations disclosed herein.
In a particular non-limiting, example embodiment, the computer-readable medium can include a solid-state memory such as a memory card or other package that houses one or more non- volatile read-only memories. Further, the computer-readable medium can be a random access memory or other volatile re-writable memory. Additionally, the computer- readable medium can include a magneto-optical or optical medium, such as a disk or tapes or other storage device to capture carrier wave signals such as a signal communicated over a transmission medium. A digital file attachment to an e-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives may be considered a distribution medium that is equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more of a computer-readable medium or a distribution medium and other equivalents and successor media, in which data or instructions may be stored.
It should also be noted that software which implements the disclosed methods may optionally be stored on a tangible storage medium, such as: a magnetic medium, such as a disk or tape; a magneto-optical or optical medium, such as a disk; or a solid state medium, such as a memory card or other package that houses one or more read-only (non- volatile) memories, random access memories, or other re -writable (volatile) memories. A digital file attachment to e-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives is considered a distribution medium equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include a tangible storage medium or distribution medium as listed herein, and other equivalents and successor media, in which the software implementations herein may be stored.
The Abstract is provided to comply with 37 CF. R. § 1.72(b) and will allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature and gist of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.
1. A method of retrieving information, the method comprising: generating a plurality of information identifier (infoID) sets based on at least one search term and at least one filtering criteria; joining at least the plurality of infoID sets according to a mathematical expression to form a resultant infoID set that includes at least one resultant infoID; retrieving at least a portion of a content document associated with the at least one resultant infoID; summarizing the at least one resultant infoID into at least one summary; and combining the retrieved portion of the content document into the at least one summary of a combined result based on the associated at least one resultant infoID.
2. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1, the method further comprising: receiving a query from a device once or periodically, the query including the at least one search term and the at least one filtering criteria; and accessing at least one relationship database to convert the at least one search term and the at least one filtering criteria of the query into a converted query of infoIDs that represents content documents.
3. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1, the method further comprising: receiving a search term; and accessing at least one relationship database to retrieve the at least one filtering criteria associated with the search term.
4. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1, the method further comprising: retrieving at least one additional infoID set associated with one of a user-configured exclusion, entity relationship and suggested relationship to at least one search term; and joining the plurality of infoID sets and the at least one additional infoID set according to the mathematic expression to form the resultant infoID set.
5. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1, the method further comprising: receiving a first timestamp; and accessing at least one relationship database to filter an infoID from the resultant infoID set based on a comparison of the first timestamp and a second timestamp associated with the infoID maintained in the at least one relationship database.
6. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1, wherein summarizing includes: accessing at least one relationship database to determine association of the least one resultant infoID with the at least one summary; and generating a count of the least one resultant infoID associated with the at least one summary.
7. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1, the method further comprising: transmitting the combined result to a device.
8. The method of retrieving information according to claim 7, the method further comprising: receiving a display indication from the device; converting the combined result between a textual result and a graphical result based on the indication; and transmitting the converted result to the device.
9. The method of retrieving information according to claim 7, the method further comprising: receiving a relevancy indication from the device; accessing at least one relationship database to determine an infoID whose relevancy is below the received relevancy indication; and updating the combined result to exclude a portion of a content document associated with the infoID from the at least one summary of the combined result.
10. The method of retrieving information according to claim 7, the method further comprising: receiving an indication from the device concerning a topic of the at least one summary; accessing at least one relationship database to retrieve at least one related topic based on at least one infoID associated with the topic also being associated with the at least one related topic; generating a topic map display showing relationship between the topic and the at least one related topic; and transmitting the topic map to the device.
11. The method of retrieving information according to claim 1 , the method further comprising: generating a report based on the combined result; and transmitting the report to a device.
12. A system to retrieve information, the system comprising: a primary search device configured to: generate a plurality information identifier (infoID) sets based on at least one search term and at least one filtering criteria; join at least the plurality of infoID sets according to a mathematical expression to form a resultant infoID set that includes at least one resultant infoID; and retrieve at least a portion of a content document associated with the at least one resultant infoID; a secondary search device configured to summarize the at least one resultant infoID into at least one summary; and a combiner device configured to combine the retrieved portion of the content document into the at least one summary of a combined result based on the associated at least one resultant infoID.
13. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, wherein the primary search device is further configured to: receive a query from a device once or periodically, the query including the at least one search term and the at least one filtering criteria; and access at least one relationship database to convert the at least one search term and the at least one filtering criteria of the query into a converted query of infoIDs that represents content documents.
14. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, the system further comprising: a topic search device configured to receive a search term and further configured to access at least one relationship database to retrieve the at least one filtering criteria associated with the search term.
15. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, wherein the primary search device is further configured to: retrieve at least one additional infoID set associated with one of a user-configured exclusion, entity relationship and suggested relationship to at least one search term; and join the plurality of infoID sets and the at least one additional infoID set according to the mathematic expression to form a resultant infoID set.
16. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, wherein the primary search device is further configured to: receive a first timestamp; and access at least one relationship database to filter an infoID from the resultant infoID set based on a comparison of the first timestamp and a second timestamp associated with the infoID maintained in the at least one relationship database.
17. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, wherein the secondary search device is further configured to: access at least one relationship database to determine association of the least one resultant infoID with the at least one summary; and generate a count of the least one resultant infoID associated with the at least one summary.
18. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, further comprising: a communication device to transmit the combined result to a device.
20. The system to retrieve information according to claim 18, the system further comprising a graphical navigation device configured to: receive a display navigation from the device; convert the combined result between a textual result and a graphical result based on the indication; and. transmit the converted result to the device.
21. The system to retrieve information according to claim 18, the system further comprising a relevancy device configured to: receive a relevancy indication from the device; access at least one relationship database to determine a infoID whose relevancy is below the received relevancy indication; and update the combined result to exclude a portion of a content document associated with the infoID from the at least one summary of the combined result.
22. The system to retrieve information according to claim 18, the system further comprising a topic navigation device configured to: receive an indication from the device concerning a topic of the at least one summary; access at least one relationship database to retrieve at least one related topic based on at least one infoID associated with the topic also being associated with the at least one related topic; generate a topic map display showing relationship between the topic and the at least one related topic; and transmit the topic map to the device.
23. The system to retrieve information according to claim 12, further comprising: a report generator device to generate a report based on the combined result; and a delivery device to transmit the report to a device.
24. A machine-readable storage medium comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: generate a plurality of information identifier (infoID) sets based on at least one search term and at least one filtering criteria; join at least the plurality of infoID sets according to a mathematical expression to form a resultant infoID set that includes at least one resultant infoID; retrieve at least a portion of a content document associated with the at least one resultant infoID; summarize the at least one resultant infoID into at least one summary; and combine the retrieved portion of the content document into the at least one summary of a combined result based on the associated at least one resultant infoID.
25. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 24, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: receive a query from a device once or periodically, the query including the at least one search term and the at least one filtering criteria; and access at least one relationship database to convert the at least one search term and the at least one filtering criteria of the query into a converted query of infoIDs that represents content documents.
26. The machine-readable storage medium according to claim 24, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: receive a search term; and access at least one relationship database to retrieve the at least one filtering criteria associated with the search term.
27. The machine-readable storage medium according to claim 24, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: retrieve at least one additional infoID set associated with one of a user-configured exclusion, entity relationship and suggested relationship to at least one search term; and join the plurality of infoID sets and the at least one additional infoID set according to the mathematic expression to form a resultant infoID set.
28. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 24, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: receive a first timestamp; and access at least one relationship database to filter an infoID from the resultant infoID set based on a comparison of the first timestamp and a second timestamp associated with the infoID maintained in the at least one relationship database.
29. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 24, wherein instructions to summarize further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: access at least one relationship database to determine association of the least one resultant infoID with the at least one summary; and generate a count of the least one resultant infoID associated with the at least one summary.
30. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 24, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: transmit the combined result to a device.
31. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 30, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: receive a display indication from the device; convert the combined result between a textual result and a graphical result based on the indication; and transmit the converted result to the device.
32. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 30, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: receive a relevancy indication from the device; access at least one relationship database to determine a infoID whose relevancy is below the received relevancy indication; and update the combined result to exclude a portion of a content document associated with the infoID from the at least one summary of the combined result.
33. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 30, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to receive an indication from the device concerning a topic of the at least one summary; access at least one relationship database to retrieve at least one related topic based on at least one infoID associated with the topic also being associated with the at least one related topic; generate a topic map display showing relationship between the topic and the at least one related topic; and transmit the topic map to the device.
34. The machine -readable storage medium according to claim 24, further comprising operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: generate a report based on the combined result; and transmit the report to a device.
EP20090799844 2008-12-31 2009-12-30 System and method to retrieve relevant information Pending EP2382563A1 (en)
EP2382563A1 true true EP2382563A1 (en) 2011-11-02
EP20090799844 Pending EP2382563A1 (en) 2008-12-31 2009-12-30 System and method to retrieve relevant information
See references of WO2010078415A1 *