U.S. patent application number 13/854801 was filed with the patent office on 2014-01-30 for system and methods to configure a profile to rank search results.
This patent application is currently assigned to eBay Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Swati Agarwal, Amit Basu, Richard D. Henderson, Carson Hoffacker, Anand Lakshminath, Davide Libenzi, Jagadish Nallapaneni, Thomas Pan, Pradeep Sankaranthi, Hal Schectman, Guanglei Song, Prasad Sriram, Nicholas Whyte. Invention is credited to Swati Agarwal, Amit Basu, Richard D. Henderson, Carson Hoffacker, Anand Lakshminath, Davide Libenzi, Jagadish Nallapaneni, Thomas Pan, Pradeep Sankaranthi, Hal Schectman, Guanglei Song, Prasad Sriram, Nicholas Whyte.
Application Number | 20140032517 13/854801 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 49995896 |
Filed Date | 2014-01-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140032517 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Henderson; Richard D. ; et
al. |
January 30, 2014 |
SYSTEM AND METHODS TO CONFIGURE A PROFILE TO RANK SEARCH
RESULTS
Abstract
A method and system to configure a profile to rank search
results are provided. A profile that includes behavior information
organized as a plurality of components is generated. Additional
behavior information is received from a user. At least one
component of the plurality of components is updated using the
additional behavior information received from the user. A search
query is received and search results are generated based on the
search query. Search results are ranked based on the updated
profile.
Inventors: |
Henderson; Richard D.; (San
Jose, CA) ; Lakshminath; Anand; (Fremont, CA)
; Libenzi; Davide; (San Jose, CA) ; Nallapaneni;
Jagadish; (San Jose, CA) ; Sankaranthi; Pradeep;
(Fremont, CA) ; Schectman; Hal; (Palo Alto,
CA) ; Song; Guanglei; (San Jose, CA) ; Sriram;
Prasad; (Manchester, CT) ; Whyte; Nicholas;
(San Jose, CA) ; Pan; Thomas; (Mountain View,
CA) ; Hoffacker; Carson; (Mountain View, CA) ;
Agarwal; Swati; (Sunnyvale, CA) ; Basu; Amit;
(San Jose, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Henderson; Richard D.
Lakshminath; Anand
Libenzi; Davide
Nallapaneni; Jagadish
Sankaranthi; Pradeep
Schectman; Hal
Song; Guanglei
Sriram; Prasad
Whyte; Nicholas
Pan; Thomas
Hoffacker; Carson
Agarwal; Swati
Basu; Amit |
San Jose
Fremont
San Jose
San Jose
Fremont
Palo Alto
San Jose
Manchester
San Jose
Mountain View
Mountain View
Sunnyvale
San Jose |
CA
CA
CA
CA
CA
CA
CA
CT
CA
CA
CA
CA
CA |
US
US
US
US
US
US
US
US
US
US
US
US
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
eBay Inc.
San Jose
CA
|
Family ID: |
49995896 |
Appl. No.: |
13/854801 |
Filed: |
April 1, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61675793 |
Jul 25, 2012 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
707/706 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 16/319 20190101;
G06F 16/2228 20190101; G06F 16/337 20190101; G06F 16/245 20190101;
G06F 16/93 20190101; G06F 16/24578 20190101; G06F 16/316
20190101 |
Class at
Publication: |
707/706 |
International
Class: |
G06F 17/30 20060101
G06F017/30 |
Claims
1. A system comprising: a generator module configured to generate a
profile that includes behavior information organized as a plurality
of components; a receiver module configured to receive additional
behavior information from a user; a modification module configured
to update at least one component of the plurality of components
using the additional behavior information received from the user;
and a search engine module configured to receive a search query,
generate search results based on the search query, and rank the
search results based on the updated profile.
2. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a verification module
configured to determine that the profile may be updated using the
additional behavior information.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the verification module is
further configured to determine that the user is authorized to
update the profile using the additional behavior information.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the modification module is
configured to replace at last one component of the behavior
information in the profile with the additional behavior
information.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the modification module is
configured to add the additional behavior information to at least
component in the profile.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of components are
ordered according to a hierarchy.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein the behavior information includes
a plurality of keys and each name corresponds to a value.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the profile is generated based on
a template.
9. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a transformer module
configured to transform the profile into a fully expanded
profile.
10. A method comprising: generating a profile that includes
behavior information organized as a plurality of components;
receiving additional behavior information from a user; updating at
least one component of the plurality of components using the
additional behavior information received from the user; receiving a
search query and generating search results based on the search
query; and ranking the search results based on the updated
profile.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising: determining that
the profile may be updated using the additional behavior
information.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising: determining that
the user is authorized to update the profile using the additional
behavior information.
13. The method of claim 10, wherein updating at least one component
of the plurality of components includes replacing at last one
component of the behavior information in the profile with the
additional behavior information.
14. The method of claim 10, wherein updating at least one component
of the plurality of components includes adding the additional
behavior information to at least one component in the profile.
15. The method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of components are
ordered according to a hierarchy.
16. The method of claim 10, wherein the behavior information
includes a plurality of keys and each name corresponds to a
value.
17. The method of claim 10, wherein the profile is generated based
on a template.
18. The method of claim 10, further comprising: transforming the
profile into a fully expanded profile.
19. A non-transitory machine-readable medium storing instructions
which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or
more processors to perform operations comprising: generating a
profile that includes behavior information organized as a plurality
of components; receiving additional behavior information from a
user; updating at least one component of the plurality of
components using the additional behavior information received from
the user; receiving a search query and generating search results
based on the search query; and ranking the search results based on
the updated profile.
Description
PRIORITY
[0001] This application claims the priority benefit of U.S.
Provisional Application No. 61/675,793, filed Jul. 25, 2012, which
is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
[0002] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains
material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright
owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of
the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the
Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise
reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. The following notice
applies to the software and data as described below and in the
drawings that form a part of this document: Copyright eBay, Inc.
2012, All Rights Reserved.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0003] The present application relates generally to the technical
field of processing and, in one specific example, to configure a
profile to rank search results.
BACKGROUND
[0004] A user may generate a profile to rank search results
generated from a search query. In order to change components of the
profile, a separate new profile may be generated with the
components changed. The new profile may then be used to rank the
search results generated from the search query.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not
limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in
which:
[0006] FIG. 1 is a network diagram depicting a client-server
system, where various embodiments embodiment may be
implemented;
[0007] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a profile configuration system,
according to various embodiments;
[0008] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method to update a profile and
rank search results using the updated profile, according to various
embodiments;
[0009] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a profile and additional
behavior information being used to update the profile, according to
various embodiments;
[0010] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an updated profile; according
to various embodiments;
[0011] FIG. 6 is a diagram depicting a component of a profile,
according to various embodiments;
[0012] FIG. 7 is a diagram depicting a component of a profile,
according to various embodiments;
[0013] FIG. 8 is a diagram depicting a component of a profile,
according to various embodiments; and
[0014] FIG. 9 is a diagram depicting a representation of a machine
in the example form of a computer system, according to various
embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] Example methods and systems to configure a profile to rank
search results are described. In the following description, for
purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in
order to provide a thorough understanding of example embodiments.
It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the
present invention may be practiced without these specific
details.
[0016] A user may generate a profile to rank search results
generated from a search query. The profile may be comprised of
several components. To change the ranking of search results, the
user may modify a component of the profile without having to create
a new search profile. The user may send information to the system
and have the information replace a component of the profile.
Alternatively, the user may send information to be added to the
profile. The modified profile may then be used to rank the search
results.
[0017] FIG. 1 illustrates a system 10 to build and utilize a search
infrastructure, according to an embodiment. The system 10 may
include an information storage and retrieval platform 11 that is
communicatively coupled over a network (e.g., Internet) (not shown)
to a client machine 12 and a client machine 33.
[0018] Illustrated on the top left is an operation A that describes
a first user operating the client machine 12 to interact with an
application server 14 to store or update a document 16 in a
database 18; illustrated in the middle are operations B, C, D, E
that describe retrieving and transforming the contents of the
database 18, storing the transformed contents in a database 20 that
is time-stamped, retrieving the contents from the database 20 to
generate a full-index 22 and a set of mini-indexes 24 which are
utilized to generate and continually update the index information
26 in the database 28 to be consumed and served by the query node
servers 30; and illustrated on the top right is an operation F that
describes a second user who operates a client machine 33 to enter a
query that is received by one or more query node servers 30 that,
in turn, apply the query to the index information 26 to identify
and return search results that reference the document 16. The above
operations to continually rebuild the index information 26 are
performed in real-time and without interruption to service that is
provided to the first and second users who continue to interact
with the system 10.
[0019] The index information 26 may include an inverted index 32
and document information 34. An inverted index (e.g., inverted
index 32), as is well known in the art, is an index data structure
storing a mapping from content (e.g., content contained by the
document 16), such as words or numbers, to its locations in a
database file, or in a document (e.g., document 16) or a set of
documents. The documents 16 (e.g., document data, column group
data) and/or information contained by the documents 16 may be
stored in the document information 34.
[0020] Merely for example a "document X" may include the words
"apple," "orange," and "banana;" a "document Y" may include the
words "apple" and "orange; and, a "document Z" may include the word
"apple." An inverted index for the words in documents X, Y, and Z
may be generated as follows:
TABLE-US-00001 Word Document apple X(1), Y(1), Z(1) orange X(2),
Y(2) banana X(3)
[0021] The above inverted index may be utilized to identify the
word "apple" as being positioned in the first word of documents X,
Y, and Z; the word "orange" as being positioned in the second word
of the documents X and Y; and the word "banana" as being positioned
as the third word of the document X. Accordingly, the above
inverted index may be utilized to map a keyword "apple" contained
in a query that is received from a client computer to the documents
X, Y, and Z that are further referenced in search results that are
returned to the client computer. It is appreciated by one skilled
in the art that the inverted index 32 corresponds to the underlying
database that it describes. Accordingly, any update to the
underlying database is reflected in a corresponding update to the
inverted index 32. Updates to the database 28 may include the
addition and deletion of documents 16 in the document information
34 as well as the update of any of the contents contained by the
documents 16 in the document information 34. In the present
embodiment, the index information 26 may be updated in real time to
respond to a query in real time with accurate search results that
include the most recent document information 34. To this end, the
operations A-F are now further described.
[0022] The information storage and retrieval platform 11 includes
multiple components including the application servers 14 that may
execute on one or more application server machines (not shown), the
database 18, a database 20, an Hadoop distributed file system 23,
the database 28, the query node servers 30 that operate on query
node server machines (not shown), an Hbase/Hadoop Cluster 44
comprised of one or more Hbase/Hadoop machines (not shown)
including an Hbase Hadoop Node 49 (e.g, Hbase/Hadoop machine), an
index distribution module 52 executing on Hbase/Hadoop machine,
search front end servers 58 that executes on search machines (not
shown), and search back end servers 60 that execute on search
machines (not shown) as being communicatively coupled together. For
example, the multiple components may be communicatively coupled
with any combination of a wide area network, local area network,
wireless network, or any other type of network utilizing various
networking technologies.
[0023] At operation A, the document 16, or one or more elements of
the document 16, may be communicated from the client machine 12 to
the application servers 14 and stored in the database 18 (e.g.,
Oracle database). The document 16 may include multiple elements
including elements a, b, c, d, e, and f that may include strings of
text, numeric information, scores, or other discrete quantum of
information that are positioned in different sections or fields of
the document (e.g., item information).
[0024] At operation B, at the application servers 14, event manager
modules 36 may identify updates to the database 18, generate events
that correspond to the respective updates, prioritize the events
according to the quality of the data in the event and communicate
the prioritized events into event queues 38 that are consumed by
consumer modules 40 that service the respective event queues 38.
According to an embodiment, the event manager modules 36 and the
consumer modules 40 may utilize three event queues 38 to process
and prioritize event types. For example, the update of the "element
a" in the document 16 in the database 18 may be a price change to
item information describing an item for sale that causes the
generation of a corresponding event that is associated with a high
priority that, in turn, is communicated into in a first event queue
associated with high priority that, in turn, is received by a
consumer module 40. Similarly, the update of the "element b" in
document 16 in the database 18 may be a change to a title of the
item that causes the generation of an event that is associated with
a medium priority that, in turn, is communicated into a second
event queue associated with the medium priority that, in turn, is
received by a consumer module 40. Finally, the update of the
"element c" in document 16 in the database 18 may be a change to a
description of the item that causes the generation of an event that
is communicated into a third event queue associated with a low
priority that, in turn, is received by a consumer module 40.
Accordingly, the three event queues 38 may be utilized to
communicate events in high, medium, and low priorities to
facilitate a preference for the update of high priority events
(e.g., price) over medium priority events (e.g., title) over low
priority events (e.g., description). In some embodiments the
priority for the respective event types may be configured. Other
embodiments may include fewer or more event queues 38.
[0025] At operation C, the consumer modules 40 may transform the
data in the events and communicate the transformed data via an
HBase application programming interface to an HBase master server
42 in an HBase/Hadoop cluster 44 that, in turn, stores the
transformed data in one or more tables including an items table 21
in the database 20 (e.g., HBase). The transformed data may be
stored according to regions that are managed by region server
processes 46. According to an embodiment, the database 20 may be
embodied as an open source non-relational, distributed database
(e.g., HBase) that runs on a Hadoop Distributed Filesystem (HDFS)
23. HDFS 23 is an open source software framework that supports
data-intensive distributed applications, known by those skilled in
the art. The Hbase/Hadoop cluster 44 may further includes the HBase
master server 42 that is utilized to manage the HBase/HDFS
environment, a scheduler module 48, and an HBase/Hadoop node 49
that includes multiple region server processes 46 and a map-reduce
job module 50. Each region server process 46 may further be
associated with a column (not shown) that corresponds to a range of
documents (e.g., or items corresponding to item information in the
items table 21) and may be utilized to manage one or more regions
(not shown) that respectively correspond to a range of the
documents 16. For example, the documents 16 may be uniquely
identified with document identifiers (e.g., item identifiers) that
are numbered from 0 to X where each column and region are dedicated
to respective overlapping predetermined ranges of documents (e.g.,
documents (0-100 and documents (0-50), as described further in this
document. According to one embodiment, the number of region server
processes 46 may be in the hundreds but scaling is not limited to
any fixed number. HBase is a technology that provides a
fault-tolerant way of storing large quantities of sparse data
featuring compression, in-memory operation, and a space-efficient
probabilistic data structure (e.g., Bloom filters) on a per-column
basis as outlined in the original BigTable paper, as is known by
those skilled in the art. A table in the database 20 (e.g., HBase)
may serve as the input and output for one or more map-reduce jobs
that are scheduled by the map-reduce job module 50. The map-reduce
jobs may be embodied as a map jobs and reduce jobs that runs in
HDFS. The tables in the database 20 may further be accessed through
the Java Application Programming Interface (API) but also through
representational state transfer (REST) architecture and other
APIs.
[0026] At operation D, the scheduler module 48, executing in the
HBase/Hadoop cluster 44, may schedule two index generating
sub-operations that process in parallel to generate indexes that
are subsequently distributed to the query node servers 30. The
sub-operations may execute for the generating of a full-index 22
and the generating of the mini-indexes 24. The sub-operations may
further execute for the distribution of the indexes to the query
node servers 30. The full-index 22 may be a snapshot of the
contents of items table 21 in the database 20 and the mini-indexes
24 may respectively correspond to a series of consecutive snapshots
where each snapshot captures one or more updates to the items table
21 in the database 20 that occurred within an associated time
period of time. The distribution of the full-indexes 22 and the
mini-indexes 24 to the query node servers 30 may be over a network
utilizing an index distribution module 52 which is based on Bit
Torrent, a peer to peer file sharing protocol. In one embodiment,
the scheduler module 48 may schedule the generation of the
full-index 22 twice in a twenty-four hour period and the generation
of mini-indexes 24 every five minutes. The scheduler module 48 may
generate a full-index 22 that is associated with a start-time by
scheduling a map-reduce job module 50. The map-reduce job module 50
may initiate a map step that divides the job into smaller sub-jobs
(e.g., map tasks) and multiple reduce steps that consume the output
from the sub jobs and aggregates results to generate the index
information 26. Similarly, the scheduler module 48 may generate a
mini-index 24 by scheduling a map-reduce job module 50 for
execution on the Hbase/Hadoop Node 49 may include a map step but
not, according to one embodiment, a reduce step. Accordingly, each
mini-index 24 may be associated with events that arrive from the
event queues 38 during a particular period of time and is
associated with one or more full-indexes 22. Each index 22, 24
(e.g., full and mini) may include a bill of material (BOM)
information which describes the content of the index 22, 24
including the index information 26. The full-index 22 may include
full-index BOM information 54 and the mini-index 24 may include
mini-index BOM information 56. The index information 26 may include
the inverted index 32 and document information 34, as previously
described.
[0027] At operation E, each of the query node servers 30 may
receive the full-index 22 and the associated mini-indexes 24. The
query node servers 30 may be comprised of a search grid that is
arranged in columns of query node servers 30, as described later in
this document. Each column of query node serves 30 and may be
utilized to manage a range of the documents 16 (e.g., column), as
previously mentioned. The index information 26 may be stored in
memory of the query node servers 30 and in the database 28
connected to the query node servers 30. The index information 26
may be updated with the full-index 22 responsive to its arrival at
the query node servers 30. Further, the index information 26 may be
updated with the mini-index 24 responsive to its arrival at the
query node servers 30. The index information 26 is generally
updated in sequential order. For example, the index information 26
are generally updated at the query node server 30 in the order in
which the full-index 22 and the mini-indexes 24 are generated. To
this end, the full-index 22 may be associated with full-index BOM
information 54 the mini-index 24 may be associated with mini-index
BOM information 56 that are utilized by the query node server 30 to
manage the update of the index information 26. In one embodiment a
map-reduce job module 50 may include sub jobs that execute on the
Hbase/Hadoop node 49 to generate inverted indices in the form of
region sub-indices (not shown) for part of the region associated
with the region server (HBase). The sub jobs may further merge or
stitch the multiple region sub-indices together for the region.
[0028] At operation F, a second user who operates the client
machine 33 may enter a query that may be communicated over a
network (e.g., Internet) via front-end servers 58 and back-end
servers 60 to be received by the query node servers 30 which may be
divided into two layers. The two layers may include an aggregation
layer and a query execution layer. The aggregation layer may
include a query node server 30 that includes a query engine 62
(e.g., query module) that receives the query that, in turn,
communicates the query to multiple query engines 62 that
respectively execute in the execution layer in multiple query node
servers 30 that correspond to the columns. The query engines 62 in
the query execution layer may, in turn, respectively apply the same
query, in parallel, against respective the index information 26
that were generated for a range of document identifiers (e.g.,
column) to identify search results (e.g., document 16) in parallel.
Finally, the query engines 62, at each query node servers 30 in the
query execution layer, may communicate their respective partial
search results to the query engine 62 in the aggregation layer
which aggregates the multiple sets of partial search results to
form a search result for the entire index information 26 and to
communicate the search result over the network to the second
user.
[0029] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a profile configuration system
200, according to various embodiments. The system 200 may be
implemented as a hardware or as software executed by hardware
(e.g., by one or more processors) comprises a generator module 205,
a receiver module 210, a modification module 215, a verification
module 220, a search engine module 225, and a transformer module
230.
[0030] In various embodiments, the generator module 205 may be
configured to generate a profile that includes behavior information
organized as a plurality of components. The behavior information
may be used to rank search results generated from a search query.
In various embodiments, the behavior information describes of a
plurality of factors and each factor may influence the ranking of
search results. When a description of a factor in the behavior
information is changed, the ranking of search results may also
change. In various embodiments, the behavior information is
organized as a plurality of components. The plurality of components
may comprise the profile, at least one sub-profile, a blender, and
at least one key where each key is paired with a value. In various
embodiments, the components of the profile may be ordered according
to a hierarchy. The hierarchy may order the components according to
various schemes, such as location of implementation, type, and the
like. In various embodiments, the behavior information may be
transferred from a component within the profile. Alternatively, the
behavior information may be transferred from a component included
in a separate profile. In various embodiments, a lower ordered
component may inherit behavior information from a higher ordered
component. Alternatively, a higher ordered component may not
inherit behavior information from a lower ordered component. In an
example embodiment, the hierarchy may order profiles as being
higher than sub-profiles. This ordering indicates that information
from a sub-profile may be replaced by information from a profile.
This ordering also indicates that information from the sub-profile
may not replace information in the profile. In another example
embodiment, the hierarchy may rank a country location as being
higher than a region location. This ordering indicates that
information from a component being implemented in the United States
may be used to replace information in a component being implemented
in California. In various embodiments, access to the profile may be
limited to authorized users. A user may be authorized based on a
user credential, such as identification, password, and the like. As
such, a non-authorized user may not transfer information to the
profile. In various embodiments, once behavior information in a
component is modified, the ranking of the search results may
change.
[0031] In various embodiments, the profile may be generated based
on a template. The template may include a set of rules and comprise
a plurality of components. In various embodiments, the set of rules
for the template may indicate a maximum number of components for
the template. In various embodiments, the set of rules may order
the components in the template according to the hierarchy. The
ordering of each component in the template may determine whether or
not behavior information is transferred from one component to
another component. In various embodiments, the behavior information
may comprise of various types. For instance, the behavior
information may be classified as "category," "site," and the like.
The type of behavior information may indicate the type of search
results the behavior information may influence. In various
embodiments, the set of rules may also indicate types of behavior
information for which the template may inherit from. As an example,
the set of rules may indicate that the template may inherit
behavior information classified as "category." In various
embodiments, if a profile is generated based on the template, the
profile adheres to the set of rules for the template.
[0032] In various embodiments, the receiver module 210 may be
configured to receive additional behavior information from a user.
In various embodiments, the behavior information received from the
user may comprise of various types. For instance, the behavior
information may be classified as "category," "site," and the like.
In various embodiments, the additional behavior information may be
organized as a component. Alternatively, the additional behavior
information may be organized as a plurality of components. In
various embodiments, the additional behavior information received
from the user may be a second profile organized as a plurality of
components.
[0033] In various embodiments, the modification module 215 may be
configured to update at least one component of the profile using
the additional behavior information received from the user. As
mentioned previously, the additional behavior information may be
organized as a component or as a plurality of components. In
various embodiments, the additional behavior information may
replace the behavior information from one component in the profile.
Alternatively, the additional behavior information may replace the
behavior information from two or more components in the profile. In
various embodiments, the modification module 215 may add the
additional behavior information to the profile. The additional
behavior information may be added as a component or as a plurality
of components to the profile. Alternatively, the additional
behavior information may be added to the behavior information from
one or more components in the profile.
[0034] In various embodiments, the verification module 220 may be
configured to determine that the profile may be updated using the
additional behavior information. As mentioned previously, the
components of the profile may be ordered according to a hierarchy.
The component of the additional behavior information may also be
ordered according to the same hierarchy. The rank of a component in
the hierarchy may indicate an order of inheritance for the
component. The order of inheritance may determine whether or not
behavior information is transferred from one component to another
component. In various embodiments, the verification module 220 may
determine whether the component of the additional behavior
information has a higher order than a component from the profile.
The verification module 220 may determine that the component of the
additional behavior information has a higher order than the
component from the profile and therefore the component from the
profile may be updated using the additional behavior information.
Alternatively, the verification module 220 may determine that the
component of the additional behavior information has a lower order
than the component from the profile and therefore the profile may
not be updated using the additional behavior information. As an
example, the receiver module 210 may receive additional behavior
information organized as a sub-profile from the user. The
verification module may determine that the sub-profile is ordered
higher than a component from the profile and therefore allow the
additional behavior information to replace the information in the
component from the profile.
[0035] In various embodiments, information may be transferred
between components of the same type. As such, the verification
module 220 may determine that the component of the additional
behavior information is of the same type as the component from the
profile and therefore the profile may be updated using the
additional behavior information. In various embodiments, the
verification module 220 is further configured to determine that the
user is authorized to update the profile using the additional
behavior information. The determination may be based on the user's
credentials, such as an identification of the user, an account
password, and the like. In various embodiments, the modification
module 215 may update the profile using the additional behavior
information after receiving verification from the verification
module 220.
[0036] In various embodiments, the verification module 220 may
determine that the profile is generated based on a template. The
verification module 220 may use the set of rules for the template
to determine that the profile may be updated using the additional
behavior information. In various embodiments, the verification
module 220 may determine that the additional behavior information
is of a type allowed by the set of rules for the template and
therefore allow the profile to be updated. In various embodiments,
the verification module 220 may determine that if the additional
behavior information is used to update the profile, the updated
profile will not violate the maximum number of components as
indicated by the set of rules for the template. In various
embodiments, the verification module 220 may determine that if the
additional behavior information is used to update the profile, it
does not violate the maximum number of times the template may
inherit behavior information, as indicated by the set of rules for
the template.
[0037] In various embodiments, the search engine module 225 may be
configured to receive a search query and generate search results
based on the search query. In various embodiments, the search query
may be received from a user at the query node server 24 to search a
database 26 as depicted in FIG. 1. The search engine module 225 may
be further configured to rank the search results based on the
profile updated by the modification module 215. In various
embodiments, the ranking of the search results may be based on the
behavior information included in the updated profile. As mentioned
previously, the behavior information describes a plurality of
factors each of which may influence the ranking of search results.
In various embodiments, the ranking of search results using the
updated profile may be different than the ranking of search results
using the profile prior to modification. In various embodiments,
there may be a plurality of generated profiles organized as a
plurality of components. The plurality of components within each
generated profile may be ordered according to a single hierarchy or
may be ordered according to a plurality of hierarchies. In other
words, the plurality of components in a first profile may be
ordered according to a first hierarchy. And the plurality of
components in a second profile may be ordered according to a second
hierarchy. Moreover, there may be a plurality of templates each
with a set of rules. In various embodiments, the set of rules from
one template may be different from the set of rules from another
template. In various embodiments, a plurality of profiles may be
used by the search engine module 225 to influence the ranking of
search results.
[0038] In various embodiments, the profile may be represented in a
simplified form. A simplified profile may include behavior
information expressed in terms of variables. The variables may be a
short form representation of a longer expression. In various
embodiments, expressing the behavior information in terms of
variables allows the user send the additional behavior information
to the system 200 more easily. In various embodiments, the
transformer module 230 may be configured to transform the variables
in the profile to its longer expression. After transformation, the
profile may be a fully expanded profile. The transformed profile
may then be used to communicate with the system 200. In various
embodiments, the simplified profile may not be implemented by the
system 200 until it is transformed by the transformer module
230.
[0039] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method 300 to update a profile
and rank search results using the updated profile, according to
various embodiments. The method 300 beings at step 302 when the
generator module 205 generates a profile that includes behavior
information organized as a plurality of components. At step 304 the
receiver module 210 may receive additional behavior information
from a user. At step 306, the modification module 215 may update at
least one component of the plurality of components using the
additional behavior information received from the user. At step
308, the search engine module 225 may receive a search query and
may generate search results based on the search query. At step 310,
the search engine module 225 may rank the search results based on
the updated profile.
[0040] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a profile 402 and additional
behavior information being used to update the profile 402,
according to an embodiment. In various embodiments, the profile 402
may include a profile component 404, a sub-profile component A 406
that includes a key value component 408, and a blender component
410. Moreover, both the sub-profile component A 406 and the blender
component 410 may be included within the profile component 402 of
the profile component 404. In various embodiments, additional
behavior organized as a sub-profile component B 412 may be used to
update the sub-profile component A 406 of the profile 402. In
various embodiments, each component of the profile 402 may include
a component order indicating an order of an inheritance. As
mentioned previously, a lower ordered component may inherit
behavior information from a higher ordered component. Further, the
verification module 220 may determine that the sub-profile
component A 406 and sub-profile component B 412 are components of
the same type. As mentioned previously, information may be
transferred between components of the same type. Therefore the
verification module 220 may allow the additional behavior
information organized as the sub-profile component B 412 to replace
the sub-profile component A 406.
[0041] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a profile 502, according to an
embodiment, that is updated. The profile 502 that is updated may
include a profile component 504 that further includes a sub-profile
component B 506 and a blender component 508. In various
embodiments, the profile 502 that is updated result from updating
the profile 402, as shown on FIG. 4, with the additional behavior
information organized as the sub-profile component B 412, also
shown on FIG. 4. Accordingly, search results that are ranked using
the profile 502 may be different from search results that are
ranked using the profile 402.
[0042] FIG. 6 is a diagram 600 depicting a component of a profile,
according to various embodiments. In various embodiments, the
component of the profile may comprise ranking expressions used to
influence the ranking of search results.
[0043] FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 depicting a component of a profile,
according to various embodiments. In various embodiments, the
component of the profile may comprise ranking expressions used to
influence the ranking of search results.
[0044] FIG. 8 is a diagram 800 depicting a component of a profile,
according to various embodiments. In various embodiments, a
component of a profile may be a sub-profile component that
comprises behavior information used to influence the ranking of
search results.
Modules, Components and Logic
[0045] Certain embodiments are described herein as including logic
or a number of components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules may
constitute either software modules (e.g., code embodied (1) on a
non-transitory machine-readable medium or (2) in a transmission
signal) or hardware-implemented modules. A hardware-implemented
module is tangible unit capable of performing certain operations
and may be configured or arranged in a certain manner. In example
embodiments, one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone,
client or server computer system) or one or more processors may be
configured by software (e.g., an application or application
portion) as a hardware-implemented module that operates to perform
certain operations as described herein.
[0046] In various embodiments, a hardware-implemented module may be
implemented mechanically or electronically. For example, a
hardware-implemented module may comprise dedicated circuitry or
logic that is permanently configured (e.g., as a special-purpose
processor, such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or an
application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)) to perform certain
operations. A hardware-implemented module may also comprise
programmable logic or circuitry (e.g., as encompassed within a
general-purpose processor or other programmable processor) that is
temporarily configured by software to perform certain operations.
It will be appreciated that the decision to implement a
hardware-implemented module mechanically, in dedicated and
permanently configured circuitry, or in temporarily configured
circuitry (e.g., configured by software) may be driven by cost and
time considerations.
[0047] Accordingly, the term "hardware-implemented module" should
be understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity
that is physically constructed, permanently configured (e.g.,
hardwired) or temporarily or transitorily configured (e.g.,
programmed) to operate in a certain manner and/or to perform
certain operations described herein. Considering embodiments in
which hardware-implemented modules are temporarily configured
(e.g., programmed), each of the hardware-implemented modules need
not be configured or instantiated at any one instance in time. For
example, where the hardware-implemented modules comprise a
general-purpose processor configured using software, the
general-purpose processor may be configured as respective different
hardware-implemented modules at different times. Software may
accordingly configure a processor, for example, to constitute a
particular hardware-implemented module at one instance of time and
to constitute a different hardware-implemented module at a
different instance of time.
[0048] Hardware-implemented modules can provide information to, and
receive information from, other hardware-implemented modules.
Accordingly, the described hardware-implemented modules may be
regarded as being communicatively coupled. Where multiple of such
hardware-implemented modules exist contemporaneously,
communications may be achieved through signal transmission (e.g.,
over appropriate circuits and buses) that connect the
hardware-implemented modules. In embodiments in which multiple
hardware-implemented modules are configured or instantiated at
different times, communications between such hardware-implemented
modules may be achieved, for example, through the storage and
retrieval of information in memory structures to which the multiple
hardware-implemented modules have access. For example, one
hardware-implemented module may perform an operation, and store the
output of that operation in a memory device to which it is
communicatively coupled. A further hardware-implemented module may
then, at a later time, access the memory device to retrieve and
process the stored output. Hardware-implemented modules may also
initiate communications with input or output devices, and can
operate on a resource (e.g., a collection of information).
[0049] The various operations of example methods described herein
may be performed, at least partially, by one or more processors
that are temporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently
configured to perform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily
or permanently configured, such processors may constitute
processor-implemented modules that operate to perform one or more
operations or functions. The modules referred to herein may, in
some example embodiments, comprise processor-implemented
modules.
[0050] Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least
partially processor-implemented. For example, at least some of the
operations of a method may be performed by one or processors or
processor-implemented modules. The performance of certain of the
operations may be distributed among the one or more processors, not
only residing within a single machine, but deployed across a number
of machines. In some example embodiments, the processor or
processors may be located in a single location (e.g., within a home
environment, an office environment or as a server farm), while in
other embodiments the processors may be distributed across a number
of locations.
[0051] The one or more processors may also operate to support
performance of the relevant operations in a "cloud computing"
environment or as a "software as a service" (SaaS). For example, at
least some of the operations may be performed by a group of
computers (as examples of machines including processors), these
operations being accessible via a network (e.g., the Internet) and
via one or more appropriate interfaces (e.g., Application Program
Interfaces (APIs).)
Electronic Apparatus and System
[0052] Example embodiments may be implemented in digital electronic
circuitry, or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or in
combinations of them. Example embodiments may be implemented using
a computer program product, e.g., a computer program tangibly
embodied in an information carrier, e.g., in a machine-readable
medium for execution by, or to control the operation of, data
processing apparatus, e.g., a programmable processor, a computer,
or multiple computers.
[0053] A computer program can be written in any form of programming
language, including compiled or interpreted languages, and it can
be deployed in any form, including as a stand-alone program or as a
module, subroutine, or other unit suitable for use in a computing
environment. A computer program can be deployed to be executed on
one computer or on multiple computers at one site or distributed
across multiple sites and interconnected by a communication
network.
[0054] In example embodiments, operations may be performed by one
or more programmable processors executing a computer program to
perform functions by operating on input data and generating output.
Method operations can also be performed by, and apparatus of
example embodiments may be implemented as, special purpose logic
circuitry, e.g., a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or an
application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).
[0055] The computing system can include clients and servers. A
client and server are generally remote from each other and
typically interact through a communication network. The
relationship of client and server arises by virtue of computer
programs running on the respective computers and having a
client-server relationship to each other. In embodiments deploying
a programmable computing system, it will be appreciated that that
both hardware and software architectures require consideration.
Specifically, it will be appreciated that the choice of whether to
implement certain functionality in permanently configured hardware
(e.g., an ASIC), in temporarily configured hardware (e.g., a
combination of software and a programmable processor), or a
combination of permanently and temporarily configured hardware may
be a design choice. Below are set out hardware (e.g., machine) and
software architectures that may be deployed, in various example
embodiments.
Example Machine Architecture and Machine-Readable Medium
[0056] FIG. 9 is a block diagram of machine in the example form of
a computer system 900 within which instructions, for causing the
machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed
herein, may be executed. In alternative embodiments, the machine
operates as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g.,
networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the
machine may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine
in server-client network environment, or as a peer machine in a
peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine may
be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a
Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a web
appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine
capable of executing instructions (sequential or otherwise) that
specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a
single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall also be
taken to include any collection of machines that individually or
jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform
any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.
[0057] The example computer system 900 includes a processor 902
(e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit
(GPU) or both), a main memory 904 and a static memory 906, which
communicate with each other via a bus 908. The computer system 900
may further include a video display unit 910 (e.g., a liquid
crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer
system 900 also includes an alphanumeric input device 912 (e.g., a
keyboard or a touch-sensitive display screen), a user interface
(UI) navigation device 914 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 916,
a signal generation device 918 (e.g., a speaker) and a network
interface device 920.
Machine-Readable Medium
[0058] The disk drive unit 916 includes a machine-readable medium
922 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions and data
structures (e.g., software) 924 embodying or utilized by any one or
more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The
instructions 924 may also reside, completely or at least partially,
within the main memory 904 and/or within the processor 902 during
execution thereof by the computer system 900, the main memory 904
and the processor 902 also constituting machine-readable media.
[0059] While the machine-readable medium 922 is shown in an example
embodiment to be a single medium, the term "machine-readable
medium" may include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a
centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and
servers) that store the one or more instructions or data
structures. The term "machine-readable medium" shall also be taken
to include any tangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding
or carrying instructions for execution by the machine and that
cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies
of the present invention, or that is capable of storing, encoding
or carrying data structures utilized by or associated with such
instructions. The term "machine-readable medium" shall accordingly
be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories,
and optical and magnetic media. Specific examples of
machine-readable media include non-volatile memory, including by
way of example semiconductor memory devices, e.g., Erasable
Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM), Electrically Erasable
Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM), and flash memory devices;
magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removable disks;
magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks.
Transmission Medium
[0060] The instructions 924 may further be transmitted or received
over a communications network 926 using a transmission medium. The
instructions 924 may be transmitted using the network interface
device 920 and any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols
(e.g., HTTP). Examples of communication networks include a local
area network ("LAN"), a wide area network ("WAN"), the Internet,
mobile telephone networks, Plain Old Telephone (POTS) networks, and
wireless data networks (e.g., WiFi and WiMax networks). The term
"transmission medium" shall be taken to include any intangible
medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying
instructions for execution by the machine, and includes digital or
analog communications signals or other intangible media to
facilitate communication of such software.
[0061] Although an embodiment has been described with reference to
specific example embodiments, it will be evident that various
modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without
departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention.
Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in
an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. The accompanying
drawings that form a part hereof, show by way of illustration, and
not of limitation, specific embodiments in which the subject matter
may be practiced. The embodiments illustrated are described in
sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice
the teachings disclosed herein. Other embodiments may be utilized
and derived therefrom, such that structural and logical
substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the
scope of this disclosure. This Detailed Description, therefore, is
not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of various
embodiments is defined only by the appended claims, along with the
full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
[0062] Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be
referred to herein, individually and/or collectively, by the term
"invention" merely for convenience and without intending to
voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any single
invention or inventive concept if more than one is in fact
disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments have been
illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any
arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be
substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is
intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various
embodiments. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other
embodiments not specifically described herein, will be apparent to
those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description.
* * * * *