Patent ID: 7962500

Claim:
A method, comprising: receiving a request for a digital image, wherein said request identifies one or more keywords; selecting a set of annotated digital images, wherein each member of said set of annotated digital images has a bounded region associated therewith, wherein each bounded region has been assigned an annotation that is associated with at least one of said one or more keywords, and wherein each bounded region identifies a portion of the appearance of the annotated digital image to which the bounded region is associated; upon determining that a certain annotated digital image of said set of annotated digital images is dissimilar in appearance to other annotated digital images of said set of annotated digital images, removing said certain annotated digital image from said set of annotated digital images; for each annotated digital image of said set of annotated digital images, selecting, from a set of digital images, a set of candidate digital images, wherein digital images in a particular set of candidate digital images are selected for inclusion in said particular set of candidate digital images based on visual characteristics shared by members of said particular set of candidate digital images and a particular annotated digital image, of said set of annotated digital images, to which said particular set of candidate digital images is associated; aggregating the sets of candidate digital images for said each annotated digital image of said set of annotated digital images into a single set of digital images; and generating a response to said request, wherein said response identifies a predetermined number of response digital images, wherein said response digital images are those digital images in said single set of digital images which are most responsive to said request; wherein a human made the association between at least one bounded region and at least one annotated digital image of said set of annotated digital images; wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.