U.S. patent application number 14/875177 was filed with the patent office on 2016-01-28 for identifying query aspects.
The applicant listed for this patent is Google Inc.. Invention is credited to Alon Yitzchak Halevy, Jayant Madhavan, Fei Wu.
Application Number | 20160026696 14/875177 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42132655 |
Filed Date | 2016-01-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160026696 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Madhavan; Jayant ; et
al. |
January 28, 2016 |
IDENTIFYING QUERY ASPECTS
Abstract
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer program
products, for generating aspects associated with entities. In some
implementations, a method includes receiving data identifying an
entity; generating a group of candidate aspects for the entity;
modifying the group of candidate aspects to generate a group of
modified candidate aspects comprising combining similar candidate
aspects and grouping candidate aspects using one or more aspect
classes each associated with one or more candidate aspects; ranking
one or more modified candidate aspects in the group of modified
candidate aspects based on a diversity score and a popularity
score; and storing an association between one or more highest
ranked modified candidate aspects and the entity. The aspects can
be used to organize and present search results in response to
queries for the entity.
Inventors: |
Madhavan; Jayant; (Fremont,
CA) ; Wu; Fei; (Seattle, WA) ; Halevy; Alon
Yitzchak; (Los Altos, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Google Inc. |
Mountain View |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
42132655 |
Appl. No.: |
14/875177 |
Filed: |
October 5, 2015 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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13908456 |
Jun 3, 2013 |
9152676 |
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14875177 |
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12512908 |
Jul 30, 2009 |
8458171 |
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13908456 |
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61148897 |
Jan 30, 2009 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
707/732 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 16/248 20190101;
G06F 16/9535 20190101; G06F 16/24578 20190101; G06F 16/24575
20190101; G06F 16/3338 20190101 |
International
Class: |
G06F 17/30 20060101
G06F017/30 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: receiving a query in a computer system, the
computer system comprising one or more computers and the query
including one or more terms corresponding to an entity;
identifying, by the computer system, a plurality of aspects
associated with the entity in at least one database; identifying,
by the computer system, a plurality of search results, the search
results including a first set of the search results based on the
entity and a first aspect of the aspects and a second set of the
search results based on the entity and a second aspect of the
aspects; and providing, in response to the query, a presentation of
the search results in one display, the presentation including a
plurality of visually distinct aspect areas with each of the aspect
areas being for a corresponding one of the aspects and including a
corresponding label, wherein providing the presentation of the
search results comprises: presenting at least one of the search
results of the first set in a first aspect area of the aspect
areas, the first aspect area corresponding to the first aspect; and
presenting at least one of the search results of the second set in
a second aspect area of the aspect areas, the second aspect area
corresponding to the second aspect.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein a first search result of the
first search results is provided in the first aspect area and
wherein the first search result is a summary of information about
the entity in accordance with the first aspect.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the search results further
include a third set of search results responsive to the query and
providing the presentation of the search results further comprises
presenting at least some of the third set of search results in the
one display.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein identifying the first set of
search results comprises receiving the first set of search results
in response to issuing a first aspect query that is based on the
entity and the first aspect and wherein identifying the second set
of search results comprises receiving the second set of search
results in response to issuing a second aspect query that is based
on the entity and the second aspect.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first aspect query includes
the one or more terms corresponding to the entity and at least one
first aspect term corresponding to the first aspect and wherein the
second aspect query includes the one or more terms corresponding to
the entity and at least second aspect term corresponding to the
second aspect.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the search results of the first
set that are presented in the first aspect area include a first
search result that includes a first link to a first web page.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: generating the
association of the plurality of aspects to the entity in the
database.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein generating the association of the
plurality of aspects to the entity in the database comprises:
generating a group of candidate aspects for the entity; for each
pair of one or more pairs of candidate aspects, calculating a
similarity score for the pair based on identifying respective
aspect sets of search results corresponding to respective queries
of candidate aspects in the pair of candidate aspects and comparing
the aspect sets of search results; modifying the group of candidate
aspects to generate a group of modified candidate aspects based on
the similarity score for the candidate aspects; and selecting one
or more of the modified candidate aspects as the aspects to
associate with the entity in the database.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein selecting one or more of the
modified candidate aspects as the aspects to associate with the
entity in the database comprises: ranking the modified candidate
aspects based on a diversity score and a popularity score; and
selecting the one or more of the modified candidate aspects as the
aspects to associate with the entity in the database based on the
ranking.
10. A system comprising: one or more processors; and a computer
storage medium including instructions, which, when executed by the
processors, cause the processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving a query in a computer system, the computer system
comprising one or more computers and the query including one or
more terms corresponding to an entity; identifying, by the computer
system, a plurality of aspects associated with the entity in at
least one database; identifying, by the computer system, a
plurality of search results, the search results including a first
set of the search results based on the entity and a first aspect of
the aspects and a second set of the search results based on the
entity and a second aspect of the aspects; and providing, in
response to the query, a presentation of the search results in one
display, the presentation including a plurality of visually
distinct aspect areas with each of the aspect areas being for a
corresponding one of the aspects and including a corresponding
label, wherein providing the presentation of the search results
comprises: presenting at least one of the search results of the
first set in a first aspect area of the aspect areas, the first
aspect area corresponding to the first aspect; and presenting at
least one of the search results of the second set in a second
aspect area of the aspect areas, the second aspect area
corresponding to the second aspect.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein a first search result of the
first search results is provided in the first aspect area and
wherein the first search result is a summary of information about
the entity in accordance with the first aspect.
12. The system of claim 10, wherein the search results further
include a third set of search results responsive to the query and
providing the presentation of the search results further comprises
presenting at least some of the third set of search results in the
one display.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein identifying the first set of
search results comprises receiving the first set of search results
in response to issuing a first aspect query that is based on the
entity and the first aspect and wherein identifying the second set
of search results comprises receiving the second set of search
results in response to issuing a second aspect query that is based
on the entity and the second aspect.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein the first aspect query includes
the one or more terms corresponding to the entity and at least one
first aspect term corresponding to the first aspect and wherein the
second aspect query includes the one or more terms corresponding to
the entity and at least second aspect term corresponding to the
second aspect.
15. The system of claim 10, wherein the search results of the first
set that are presented in the first aspect area include a first
search result that includes a first link to a first web page.
16. The system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further
include instructions that, when executed by the processors, cause
the processors to perform an operation comprising: generating the
association of the plurality of aspects to the entity in the
database.
17. The system of claim 16, wherein generating the association of
the plurality of aspects to the entity in the database comprises:
generating a group of candidate aspects for the entity; for each
pair of one or more pairs of candidate aspects, calculating a
similarity score for the pair based on identifying respective
aspect sets of search results corresponding to respective queries
of candidate aspects in the pair of candidate aspects and comparing
the aspect sets of search results; modifying the group of candidate
aspects to generate a group of modified candidate aspects based on
the similarity score for the candidate aspects; and selecting one
or more of the modified candidate aspects as the aspects to
associate with the entity in the database.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein selecting one or more of the
modified candidate aspects as the aspects to associate with the
entity in the database comprises: ranking the modified candidate
aspects based on a diversity score and a popularity score; and
selecting the one or more of the modified candidate aspects as the
aspects to associate with the entity in the database based on the
ranking.
19. A non-transitory computer storage device comprising
instructions that when executed by an apparatus cause the apparatus
to perform operations comprising: receiving a query in a computer
system, the computer system comprising one or more computers and
the query including one or more terms corresponding to an entity;
identifying, by the computer system, a plurality of aspects
associated with the entity in at least one database; identifying,
by the computer system, a plurality of search results, the search
results including a first set of the search results based on the
entity and a first aspect of the aspects and a second set of the
search results based on the entity and a second aspect of the
aspects; and providing, in response to the query, a presentation of
the search results in one display, the presentation including a
plurality of visually distinct aspect areas with each of the aspect
areas being for a corresponding one of the aspects and including a
corresponding label, wherein providing the presentation of the
search results comprises: presenting at least one of the search
results of the first set in a first aspect area of the aspect
areas, the first aspect area corresponding to the first aspect; and
presenting at least one of the search results of the second set in
a second aspect area of the aspect areas, the second aspect area
corresponding to the second aspect
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] This specification relates to providing, in response to
search queries, information identifying aspects of entities
identified in the search queries, and using the aspects in
presenting information in response to the search queries.
[0002] Internet search engines provide information about Internet
accessible resources (e.g., Web pages, images, text documents,
multimedia content) that are responsive to a user's search query
and present information about the resources in a manner that is
useful to the user. Internet search engines return a set of search
results (e.g., as a ranked list of results) in response to a user
submitted query. A search result includes, for example, a URL and a
snippet of information from a corresponding resource. Conventional
search engines are implemented under an assumption that the user's
search query can be satisfied by a single result, and work to help
the user find that result. Unfortunately, users are not always
looking for a single result, but are instead using the query as a
starting point for exploration of an unknown space of information
about something that they may initially refer to in a generic
way.
[0003] For example, a user may submit a query that names or refers
to an entity as a starting point for exploring various aspects
associated with that entity. When used in reference to operations
of an information retrieval system, e.g., a search engine, the term
"entity" refers to text that names or identifies something. This
something can be any object that can have associated properties
(e.g., an object in the physical, conceptual or mythical world).
For example, an entity can refer a location, a person, a fictional
character, a state, a thing, an idea, and so on. When the meaning
is clear from context, and to avoid unnecessary verbiage, the term
"entity" may also be used to refer to the thing itself.
[0004] Aspects are different axes of information along which
additional information about an entity can be obtained. For
example, for an entity "Hawaii", possible aspects can include
"beaches," "hotels," and "weather." As with the term "entity", when
used in reference to operations of an information retrieval system,
e.g., a search engine, the term "aspect" refers to text that names
the aspect in question, and otherwise, when the meaning is clear
from context, the term may also be used to refer to the aspect
itself.
[0005] A single ranked list of results provided by conventional
search engines typically fail to provide users an overview of
different aspects of the entity. Rather, the single ranked list
often provides many results directed to a single or a small number
of aspects. Additionally, the presented results typically do not
identify the aspects represented.
SUMMARY
[0006] This specification describes technologies relating to
identifying aspects associated with entities.
[0007] In general, one aspect of the subject matter described in
this specification can be embodied in methods that include the
actions of receiving a query in a computer system, the computer
system comprising one or more computers, the query including an
entity; generating in the computer system a group of candidate
aspects for the entity; modifying in the computer system the group
of candidate aspects to generate a group of modified candidate
aspects comprising combining similar candidate aspects and grouping
candidate aspects using one or more aspect classes each associated
with one or more candidate aspects; ranking in the computer system
one or more modified candidate aspects in the group of modified
candidate aspects based on a diversity score and a popularity
score; associating in the computer system one or more highest
ranked modified candidate aspects with the entity; receiving in the
computer system one or more sets of search results; and providing a
presentation of the search results in response to the query, the
presentation presenting the search results organized according to
the aspects associated with the entity. Other embodiments of this
aspect include corresponding systems, apparatus, and computer
programs, configured to perform the actions of the methods, encoded
on computer storage devices.
[0008] These and other embodiments can each optionally include one
or more of the following features. The method can further include
presenting a summary of information about an entity in accordance
with an aspect. The one or more sets of search results can include
a set of search results responsive to the query. Each of the one or
more sets of search results can correspond to a respective aspect
associated with the entity.
[0009] In general, another aspect of the subject matter described
in this specification can be embodied in methods that include the
actions of receiving data identifying an entity; generating in a
computer system a group of candidate aspects for the entity, the
computer system comprising one or more computers; modifying in the
computer system the group of candidate aspects to generate a group
of modified candidate aspects, comprising combining similar
candidate aspects and grouping candidate aspects using one or more
aspect classes each associated with one or more candidate aspects;
ranking in the computer system one or more modified candidate
aspects in the group of modified candidate aspects based on a
diversity score and a popularity score; and storing an association
of one or more of the highest ranked modified candidates aspects
with the entity in a data storage device of the computer system.
Other embodiments of this aspect include corresponding systems,
apparatus, and computer programs, configured to perform the actions
of the methods, encoded on computer storage devices.
[0010] These and other embodiments can each optionally include one
or more of the following features. The method can further include
receiving a query including the entity; identifying one or more
aspects associated with the entity; receiving search results
responsive to the query; and presenting the search results based on
the identified aspects. The method can further include receiving a
query including the entity; identifying one or more aspects
associated with the entity; receiving one or more sets of search
results, each set corresponding to one of the identified aspects;
and presenting the search results based on the identified
aspects.
[0011] The method can further include receiving data identifying
one or more entity properties, where generating the group of
candidate aspects includes using the one or more entity properties;
and the one or more highest ranked candidates aspects are
associated with both the entity and the entity properties. The
method can further include associating the entity with a class, the
class having one or more class members including the entity; and
where generating the group of candidate aspects includes generating
candidate aspects corresponding to the entity and the class.
Generating the group of candidate aspects can include analyzing one
or more first user search histories to identify queries associated
with the entity; and analyzing one or more second user search
histories to identify queries associated with a class member other
than the entity.
[0012] Combining candidate aspects can include calculating
similarity scores, where each similarity score is an estimate of
similarity between two candidate aspects; and combining candidate
aspects into a single modified candidate aspect based on the
similarity scores. Each candidate aspect can be expressed as text
and the similarity score between two candidate aspects can be based
on a comparison of the strings of text associated with each
candidate aspect. Calculating a similarity score between two
candidate aspects can include receiving a respective set of search
results for each aspect; and calculating the similarity score based
on a comparison of the sets of search results. The comparison of
the sets of search results can include a comparison of paths of the
search results in one of the sets of search results to paths of the
search results in the other one of the sets of search results. The
comparison of the sets of search results can include a comparison
of titles and snippets of the search results in one of the sets of
search results to titles and snippets of the search results in the
other one of the sets of search results. Combining candidate
aspects based on the similarity scores can further include using a
graph partition algorithm to determine which aspects to
combine.
[0013] Grouping candidate aspects using one or more aspect classes
can include associating two or more candidate aspects with a
respective aspect class; and grouping two or more candidate aspects
into a single modified candidate aspect based on their aspect
classes. The single modified candidate aspect can be an aspect
class.
[0014] Ranking one or more modified candidate aspects based on a
diversity score and a popularity score can include calculating a
popularity score for each aspect; ranking the aspect with the
highest popularity score the highest; and ranking the remaining
aspects by repeating the following steps one or more times:
calculating a similarity score for each un-ranked aspect, where the
similarity score compares the similarity of the un-ranked aspect to
the ranked aspects; and assigning the next highest ranking to the
aspect whose popularity score divided by its similarity score is
the highest.
[0015] Particular embodiments of the subject matter described in
this specification can be implemented so as to realize one or more
of the following advantages. Aspects of an entity in a search query
can be identified. Aspects can be presented to make it easy for
users to explore the search space along multiple axes. The use of
aspects allows a user to explore the search space beyond the scope
of his or her original query. The presentation of aspects also
allows a user to quickly gain an overview of what the possible axes
of search are. The presentation of aspects can allow a user to
browse a search space efficiently, for example, by using faceted
browsing. Information related to the aspects can be identified and
presented to the user. This information can allow a user to quickly
gain information he or she needs about multiple aspects of the
entity. Mashups can be presented to a user as a way of visualizing
information about the aspects of the entity. The mashups present
information associated with several aspects in a single integrated
interface.
[0016] The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are
set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below.
Other features, aspects, and advantages of the invention will
become apparent from the description, the drawings, and the
claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] FIG. 1 illustrates an example search system for providing
search results relevant to submitted queries.
[0018] FIG. 2 illustrates an example method for associating aspects
with an entity.
[0019] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of combining similar candidate
aspects.
[0020] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of grouping aspects based on
their aspect classes.
[0021] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of ranking an unranked aspect,
given a pre-existing group of one or more ranked aspects.
[0022] FIG. 6 illustrates an example method for receiving a query
including one or more terms corresponding to an entity and
presenting search results based on the identified aspects of the
entity.
[0023] FIG. 7 illustrates an example mashup displayed after a user
submits a search query.
[0024] FIG. 8 illustrates an example architecture of a system.
[0025] Like reference numbers and designations in the various
drawings indicate like elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] FIG. 1 illustrates an example search system 114 for
providing search results relevant to submitted queries as can be
implemented in an internet, an intranet, or another client and
server environment. The search system 114 is an example of an
information retrieval system in which the systems, components, and
techniques described below can be implemented.
[0027] A user 102 can interact with the search system 114 through a
client device 104. For example, the client 104 can be a computer
coupled to the search system 114 through a local area network (LAN)
or wide area network (WAN), e.g., the Internet. In some
implementations, the search system 114 and the client device 104
can be one machine. For example, a user can install a desktop
search application on the client device 104. The client device 104
will generally include a random access memory (RAM) 106 and a
processor 108.
[0028] A user 102 can submit a query 110 to a search engine 130
within a search system 114. When the user 102 submits a query 110,
the query 110 is transmitted through a network to the search system
114. The search system 114 can be implemented as, for example,
computer programs running on one or more computers in one or more
locations that are coupled to each other through a network. The
search system 114 includes an index database 122 and a search
engine 130. The search system 114 responds to the query 110 by
generating search results 128, which are transmitted through the
network to the client device 104 in a form that can be presented to
the user 102 (e.g., a search results web page to be displayed in a
web browser running on the client device 104).
[0029] When the query 110 is received by the search engine 130, the
search engine 130 identifies resources that match the query 110.
The search engine 130 may also identify a particular "snippet" or
section of each resource that is relevant to the query. The search
engine 130 will generally include an indexing engine 120 that
indexes resources (e.g., web pages, images, or news articles on the
Internet) found in a corpus (e.g., a collection or repository of
content), an index database 122 that stores the index information,
and a ranking engine 152 (or other software) to rank the resources
that match the query 110. The indexing and ranking of the resources
can be performed using conventional techniques. The search engine
130 can transmit the search results 128 through the network to the
client device 104, for example, for presentation to the user
102.
[0030] The search system 114 may also maintain one or more user
search histories based on the queries it receives from a user.
Generally speaking, a user search history stores a sequence of
queries received from a user. User search histories may also
include additional information such as which results were selected
after a search was performed and how long each selected result was
viewed.
[0031] In some implementations, the search system 114 includes an
aspector 140. Alternatively, the aspector 140 can be implemented in
one or more distinct systems coupled to the search system 114. The
aspector 140 associates aspects with particular entities.
Additionally, the aspector 140 can receive the query 110 and, in
conjunction with the search engine 130, provide aspect based search
results to the user 102. Identifying and using aspects will be
described in greater detail below.
[0032] FIG. 2 illustrates an example method 200 for associating
aspects with an entity. For convenience, the example method 200
will be described in reference to a system that performs the method
200. The system can be, for example, the search system 114, or a
separate system.
[0033] The system receives an entity (step 202). An entity can be
any object that can have associated properties (e.g., an object in
the physical or conceptual world). For example, an entity can be a
location, a person, a thing, an idea, etc. The system can receive
the entities from a variety of sources. For example, the system can
receive an entity directly from a user or in response to actions
performed by the system (e.g., the action of executing a process).
An entity can be extracted from a search query received from a user
or the search system 114, for example, by parsing the query and
comparing the terms of the query to a database of possible
entities. Other sources of an entity are also possible, for
example, an entity can be extracted from query data, such as user
search histories.
[0034] In some implementations, the system also receives data
identifying one or more properties of the entity. Properties of
entities are additional elements associated with an entity that can
be used to further refine the entity. For example, "travel" can be
a property of the entity "Vietnam" because people travel to
Vietnam.
[0035] The system generates a group of candidate aspects for the
entity (step 204). The candidate aspects can be generated based on
the entity, or alternatively, based on a class associated with the
entity. The class is an abstraction of the entity. For example,
"chocolate cake" could be associated with the class "food," because
chocolate cake is a type of food. "Daffodil" could be associated
with the class "flower," because a daffodil is a type of flower.
The class can have multiple members. Each member is also an entity.
For example, the class "flowers" could include many types of
flowers, including "tulips," "alstroemeria," "roses," and so
on.
[0036] In some implementations, both entity-based aspects and
class-based aspects are used. Reliance on both entity-based aspects
and class-based aspects can result in a more robust set of aspects.
For example, some entities are so rare that there will be a small
amount of data to base the aspects on. For these entities, relying
on class based aspects can increase the number of candidate
aspects. However, some entities are very popular and may have
entity-specific aspects that can be identified, for example, from
user search histories. Therefore, also including entity-based
aspects can be useful for these more popular entities.
[0037] In some implementations, generating a group of candidate
aspects for the entity includes analyzing query data for queries
including the entity. The query data can be analyzed, for example,
to identify query refinements and query super-strings.
[0038] A query refinement occurs when a user first issues a query
for the entity, and then follows that query with another related
query. For example, if a user issues a query for "popcorn" followed
by a query for "microwave popcorn," microwave popcorn can be
identified as a query refinement for popcorn. Query refinements do
not have to include the original query. For example, if a user
issues a query for "computer" followed by a query for "laptop,"
laptop can be identified as a query refinement for computer. Query
refinements can provide valuable information about an entity,
because they indicate how a given user chose to explore the search
space for the entity.
[0039] Query refinements can be generated as follows. One or more
user search histories including queries for the entity can
identified. Each user search history is then divided into sessions,
where each session represents a group of queries issued by a given
user for a given information finding task. A session can be
measured in a number of ways including, for example, by a specified
period of time (for example, thirty minutes), by a specified number
of queries (for example, 15 queries), until a specified period of
inactivity (for example, ten minutes without performing a search),
or while a user is logged-in to a search system.
[0040] The sessions that do not include a query for the entity can
be filtered out. The queries that follow a query for the entity in
the remaining sessions are query refinements. Each of the query
refinements indicates a potential candidate aspect. For example, a
candidate aspect can be the query refinement itself, or the part of
the query refinement that does not include the entity. Candidate
aspects can also be identified by analyzing the query refinement
using linguistic analysis techniques, for example, using
dictionaries or statistical analysis to identify the terms in the
query refinement that are most likely to be aspects, or by looking
the query refinement up in a database that associates query
refinements with aspects. Potential candidate aspects can be
aggregated across users, and candidate aspects that do not appear
more than a threshold number of times can be filtered out.
[0041] In some implementations, query refinements are generated for
a query based on both the entity in the query and the entity's
associated properties, instead of just the entity.
[0042] Generally speaking, a query is a super-string of another
query when it includes the other query. For example, "Vietnam
travel package" is a super-string of "Vietnam travel," because it
includes the text "Vietnam travel." Unlike query-refinements, a
query super-string does not have to be sent during the same session
as the query for which it is a super-string.
[0043] Query super-strings can be generated by considering one or
more user search histories and identifying queries that include the
entity. Each query super-string indicates a potential candidate
aspect. For example, a candidate aspect can be the part of the
query super-string that does not include the entity. In some
implementations, the query super-string is filtered to remove
common words such as "a" and "the" before the candidate aspect is
identified. Candidate aspects can also be identified from the query
super-string using linguistic techniques or a database, as
described above. Potential candidate aspects can be aggregated
across users, and candidate aspects that do not appear more than a
threshold number of times can be filtered out.
[0044] In some implementations, query super strings are identified
for queries that include text naming the entity and its properties,
rather than just the entity.
[0045] In some implementations, the system associates the entity
with a class and generates class-based candidate aspects for the
entity.
[0046] In some implementations, the system associates the entity
with a class based on a pre-defined database that associates
entities with classes. This pre-defined database can be generated,
for example, by analyzing knowledge base information (e.g.,
information from Wikipedia.TM., run by the Wikimedia Foundation, or
Freebase.TM., run by Metaweb Technologies). Generally speaking, a
knowledge base is a collection of information for one or more
entities. Knowledge bases can specify relationships between
entities, such as class relationships, and can also specify
features of entities. For example, a knowledge base could specify
that "Canada" is in a class called "country" and that one of its
features is its "GDP." Entity-class relationships can be identified
from the knowledge base information, and associations based on the
relationships can be stored in the database for future use. The
pre-defined database can also be generated by querying the search
system 114 for Hearst patterns, e.g., if the entity is "Boston," a
query for "X such as Boston" can be issued to the search system.
The results can then be analyzed for sentences including "such as
Boston" and the resulting class can be identified. For example, if
several of the search results included the phrase "cities such as
Boston," then Boston could be associated with a class of "city." In
some implementations, the entity does not have to be a perfect
match with an entity in the database in order for an association to
be identified. For example, small differences such as whether the
entity is singular or plural may be overlooked. For example, if the
singular "rose" was stored in the database, but the entity was
"roses," the class information for rose could be used. Other small
differences, such as spelling variations may also be
overlooked.
[0047] In some implementations, the system associates the entity
with a class on the fly, for example, by accessing knowledge base
information (e.g., crawling a website such as Wikipedia.TM.) and
identifying a class associated with the received entity, or issuing
a query with a Hearst pattern including the entity. Other
techniques for associating an entity with a class are also
possible. For example, the entity can be classified based on
machine learning techniques, such as support vector machines.
Alternatively, a user can specify the class that is associated with
an entity.
[0048] Class-based aspects can be generated, for example, by
analyzing query data for queries including a class member other
than the entity. For example, if the entity was "daffodils" and its
class was "flowers," then query data could be analyzed for queries
including "roses," because "roses" is one of the members of the
flowers class. The query data for the class member can be analyzed
to identify aspects much as the query data for the entity is
analyzed to identify aspects, as described above. When the entity
is associated with one or more properties, these properties can be
included with each class member for purposes of identifying
aspects. In some implementations, class-based aspects are generated
only from class members that are sufficiently close to the entity,
e.g., within a threshold of time or space or another measure of
distance between entities. For example, "Canada" "Belgium" and
"France" are all in the class "country". However, Belgium and
France are neighboring countries. Therefore, if the entity is
"Belgium" the system can identify class-based aspects based on the
class member "France" but not the class member "Canada," because
Canada is too far away from Belgium. The threshold can be a number
of miles, or a number of days, or other measures of distance. The
threshold can be determined empirically.
[0049] Other methods of generating candidate aspects are also
possible, for example, candidate aspects can be generated by
analyzing knowledge base information associated with the entity or
its class members. Knowledge bases can provide binary relationships
between a given entity and its features. For example, Wikipedia.TM.
provides an "Infobox" for some entities. The Infobox for Cambodia
lists features such as capital, flag, population, area, and GDP.
These can provide additional aspects for the entity Cambodia.
Candidate aspects can also be retrieved from a database associating
entities or class members with potential candidate aspects.
[0050] In some implementations, the candidate aspects are filtered
based on user feedback on aspects that had been previously
associated with entities and presented to users. The user feedback
can indicate which aspects are useful aspects of an entity, and
which aspects are not useful aspects of an entity. The user
feedback can be used to directly filter out aspects that users have
indicated are not useful. Alternatively, the user feedback can be
used as training inputs to train a machine to filter candidate
aspects using machine learning techniques.
[0051] The system modifies the group of candidate aspects (step
206). Modifying the group of candidate aspects can include
combining similar candidate aspects and grouping candidate aspects
based on a class of one or more candidate aspects. This combining
and grouping reduces redundant aspects and helps focus the aspects
on various axes of search.
[0052] Often similar aspects are generated. For example, for the
query "Vietnam travel" the aspects "package" "packages" and "deal"
could all be generated. All of these aspects refer to the same
basic concept--a product bundling various aspects of a trip into
one package. Consequently, these aspects can be combined into a
single aspect.
[0053] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of combining similar candidate
aspects. An initial group of candidate aspects 302 contains four
aspects: Aspect 1, Aspect 1', Aspect 2, and Aspect 3.
[0054] A similarity score can be calculated for each pair of
aspects in the group of candidate aspects 302. For example, Aspect
1 and Aspect 1' have a similarity score 304 of 0.9. Aspect 1 and
aspect 2 have a similarity score 306 of 0.5, and Aspect 1' and
Aspect 2 have a similarity score 308 of 0.3.
[0055] In some implementations, calculating the similarity score
for two aspects includes identifying a respective set of search
results corresponding to a query for each aspect, and then
comparing the search results. The search results can be generated
by issuing a query to a search engine (e.g., search engine 130 in
FIG. 1) for each aspect. The top n search results for each query
are then chosen as the set of search results for the respective
aspect (where n can be any integer chosen to give a sufficient
amount of information for comparison, (e.g., 8 or 10)). For
purposes of illustration, let D.sub.i be the set of search results
d.sub.i.epsilon.D.sub.i that correspond to a first aspect, and let
D.sub.j be the set of search results d.sub.j.epsilon.D.sub.j that
correspond to a second aspect being compared to the first aspect.
The similarity score for the two sets of search results, and
therefore the two aspects, can be calculated as follows.
[0056] A feature vector is generated for each search result in
D.sub.i and D.sub.j. For example, a feature vector can include one
or more features (e.g., terms) and a corresponding statistical
measure of the importance of the feature to the user (e.g., a term
frequency (tf) weight or a term frequency inverse document (tf-idf)
weight for each feature). The terms can be all words in the search
result, or a subset of the words of the search result (for example,
the title of the result and the snippet identified by a search
engine).
[0057] In some implementations, tf weights are used as statistical
measures of the importance of a feature to the user. The tf weights
can be used because the importance of a feature to the user can
increase proportionally according to the frequency with which the
feature occurs (e.g., a term frequency) in a collection of
documents, for example, all documents indexed by the search system
(e.g., search system 114 in FIG. 1), or all documents indexed by
the search system that are in the same language as the term.
[0058] The term frequency in a search result is the relative
frequency that a particular term occurs in the search result, and
can be represented as:
tf q , p = n q , p k n k , p , ##EQU00001##
[0059] where the term frequency is a number n.sub.q,p of
occurrences of the particular term t.sub.q in a search result
(d.sub.p) divided by the number of occurrences of all terms t.sub.k
in d.sub.p.
[0060] In some implementations, tf-idf weights are used as the
statistical measures of the importance of the features to the user.
A tf-idf weight can be calculated by multiplying a term frequency
with an inverse document frequency (idf).
[0061] The idf is an estimate of how frequently a term appears in a
collection of documents, for example, all documents indexed by the
search system, or all documents indexed by the search system that
are in the same language as the term. The inverse document
frequency can be represented as:
idf q = log D D p : t q .di-elect cons. d p , ##EQU00002##
[0062] where the number D of all documents in the corpus of
documents is divided by a number D.sub.p of documents d.sub.p
containing the term t.sub.q. In some implementations, the Napierian
logarithm is used instead of the logarithm of base 10.
[0063] A tdf idf weight can be represented as:
tf.sub.--idf.sub.q,p=tf.sub.q,pidf.sub.q,p.
[0064] A similarity score is calculated for each pair of search
results {d.sub.i,d.sub.j}. The similarity score for each pair can
be calculated by determining the distance between the feature
vectors for the two results. For example, if the a search result di
has a feature vector of X=(x.sub.1, x.sub.2, x.sub.3) and a search
result d.sub.j has a feature vector of Y=(y.sub.1, y.sub.2,
y.sub.3), sim(d.sub.i, d.sub.j) and a search result d.sub.j has a
feature vector of Y=(y.sub.1, y.sub.2, y.sub.3), sim(d.sub.i,
d.sub.j) can be represented as a cosine distance:
sim ( d i , d j ) = cosine distance = X Y X Y = x 1 y 1 + x 2 y 2 +
x 3 y 3 x 1 2 + x 2 2 + x 3 2 y 1 2 + y 2 2 + y 3 2 .
##EQU00003##
[0065] The similarity score for the two sets of search results,
D.sub.i and D.sub.j, as a whole can be calculated based on the
similarity scores between their individual search documents. In
some implementations, the similarities for each pair of search
results is averaged. In some implementations, the average of the
highest similarity scores for each search result is used as
follows:
sim ( D i , D j ) = .SIGMA. i sim ( d i , D j ) 2 D i + .SIGMA. j
sim ( d j , D i ) 2 D j , ##EQU00004##
where
[0066] sim(d.sub.i,D.sub.j)=max.sub.ksim(d.sub.i,d.sub.k) and
sim(d.sub.j,D.sub.i)=max.sub.ksim(d.sub.k,d.sub.j),
and where max.sub.ksim(d.sub.i,d.sub.k) is the maximum similarity
score of the similarity scores between the search result d.sub.i
and all search results in D.sub.j, and
max.sub.ksim(d.sub.k,d.sub.j) is the maximum similarity score of
the similarity scores between the search result d and all search
results in D.sub.i.
[0067] Other similarity measures can also be used, for example,
determining a single feature vector for all search results for each
aspect and calculating the similarity scores based on the
similarity of the two feature vectors, e.g., based on the cosine
distance.
[0068] Alternatively, the similarity score for two aspects can be
calculated by comparing the paths (e.g., web addresses, file paths)
of the search results for each aspect, for example, by parsing the
text of the paths and extracting features, such as a domain name or
directory in a file system, and then comparing the extracted
features. The similarity score for two aspects can also be
calculated by comparing the text of the aspects themselves, for
example, by comparing the characters in the text of the two
aspects.
[0069] Once the similarity scores for each pair of aspects are
identified, the similarity scores can be used to identify candidate
aspects that should be combined into a single aspect. Various
clustering techniques can be used to determine when two candidate
aspects should be combined. For example, a graph partition
algorithm can be used. The graph partition algorithm creates a
graph where the nodes of the graph are the aspects and an edge
connects two nodes if they are sufficiently similar (e.g., if their
similarity score exceeds a threshold). For example, in FIG. 3,
there is an edge (indicated by a solid line) between Aspect 1 and
Aspect 1', because the similarity score between Aspect 1 and Aspect
1' is greater than the threshold value. However, there are no other
connected edges in the graph. The threshold value can be determined
empirically, for example, based on a set of test aspects. The graph
partition algorithm then combines aspects that are connected into a
single aspect. For example, in FIG. 3, the resulting set of aspects
316 lists only Aspect 1, Aspect 2, and Aspect 3. Aspect 1' has been
combined with Aspect 1.
[0070] Combining two aspects can include keeping one aspect in the
group of aspects and removing the other one from the group of
aspects. The decision of which aspect to keep can be made, for
example, by selecting the aspect with the highest popularity score.
Aspect popularity scores are discussed in more detail below.
[0071] Other clustering techniques can be used, for example,
k-means clustering (where aspects are divided into a pre-defined
number of clusters based on the similarity scores), spectral
clustering, hierarchical clustering, and star-clustering.
[0072] The candidate aspects can be grouped based on their classes.
Aspect classes can be determined much as entity classes are
determined, for example, as described above. In some
implementations, determining an aspect class includes determining a
synonym for the aspect, and then determining the synonym's class.
For example, "New York University" is frequently abbreviated as
"NYU." However, it may be difficult to determine an aspect class
for "NYU," for example, because many knowledge bases only classify
one of the possible names for a given entity. Therefore, there may
be no data on which to base a classification of "NYU." However, the
more formal "New York University" is more likely to be included in
knowledge bases. Therefore, a class for "NYU" can be determined by
associating "NYU" with its synonym "New York University" and then
identifying a class for the synonym. Synonyms can be determined,
for example, by looking the aspect up in a thesaurus or a
dictionary. Synonyms can also be determined, for example, by using
redirect web pages of a knowledge base such as Wikipedia.TM.. The
redirect pages indicate the mapping of various terms to a synonym
that is classified by Wikipedia.TM..
[0073] Aspects can be different from a similarity score perspective
but still related in the sense that they belong to the same class.
When this occurs, the aspects can be grouped into the same class.
For example, the aspects "New York," "San Francisco," and
"Washington DC" are different because they point to different
cities with different food, culture, streets, etc., yet can all be
associated with the class "U.S. cities." Thus, the aspects can be
grouped into the class "U.S. cities." In some implementations,
aspects are grouped into a sub-class of their class. For example,
"New York" and "Washington DC" are members of the class "U.S.
cities" and the sub-class "East coast cities." Therefore, they
could alternatively be grouped together into "East coast
cities."
[0074] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of grouping aspects based on
their aspect classes. A group of aspects 402 is each associated
with a respective class. Aspect 1 and Aspect 3 are both in Class 1,
while Aspect 2 is in Class 2. When the aspects are grouped based on
their class, the new group of aspects 404 includes Aspect 2 and
Class 1. Aspect 2 remains unchanged in the new group of aspects
404, because its class did not match the class of any other
aspects. Aspect 1 and Aspect 3 were combined into a new aspect
equal to their class, Class 1, because they had the same class.
[0075] In some implementations, some aspects are associated with
multiple classes. Determining a class for these ambiguous aspects
can be problematic. For example, imagine an entity "Vietnam" and
two aspects "food" and "history." Both of these aspects are
ambiguous. In addition to referring to something you can eat,
"food" could refer to the "F.O.O.D." music album. In addition to
referring to something in the past, "history" could refer to the
"HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book 1" music album. Thus, the
two ambiguous aspects could be classified as "album," and then
grouped together into an "album" aspect. Food and history are two
distinct aspects for exploring Vietnam, and there is value in
keeping them separate. Therefore, they should not be grouped
together. In some implementations, ambiguous aspects are not
grouped, in order to avoid this potential problem.
[0076] Ambiguous aspects can be identified, for example, by using a
disambiguation database that identifies aspects with multiple
meanings Ambiguous aspects can also be identified, for example, by
using disambiguation web pages of a website such as Wikipedia.TM..
These disambiguation pages identify multiple meanings for a given
aspect.
[0077] In some implementations, once the modified group of
candidate aspects is determined, the group is filtered, for
example, to remove potentially offensive aspects (e.g., porn
filtering). This filtering can be done by comparing the aspects to
a list of potentially offensive aspects, and removing any aspects
that are on the list.
[0078] As shown in FIG. 2, the system ranks one or more of the
candidate aspects for the entity (step 280). The candidate aspects
are ranked based on a diversity score and a popularity score of
each aspect. The goal of the ranking is to identify aspects that
are both interesting to the user and diverse enough to give a user
choices on where to next direct his or her search. Ranking can be
performed as follows.
[0079] The highest ranked aspect is the aspect with a highest
popularity score. The popularity score is a measure of how common
the aspect is. Popularity scores can be calculated in various ways
depending on how the aspect was generated.
[0080] When the aspect was generated as a query refinement, the
popularity score can be based on the frequency with which the query
refinement appears, for example, by taking the total number of
sessions that the query refinement appears in and dividing by the
total number of sessions.
[0081] For example, a popularity score p.sub.r(q.sub.j|q) of a
refinement q.sub.j of a query q can be calculated as follows:
p r ( q j | q ) = fq ( q j ) .SIGMA. j fq ( q j ) ,
##EQU00005##
[0082] where fq(q.sub.j) is the frequency with which the query
refinement q.sub.j appears in the user search histories.
[0083] When the aspect was generated as a query super-string, the
popularity score can be based on the frequency with which the query
super-string appears in the user search histories, for example, by
taking the total number of times the super-string appears in the
search histories and dividing that by the total number of query
super-strings in the user search history plus the total number of
times that a query for the entity appears in the user search
histories.
[0084] For example, the popularity score p.sub.ss(q.sub.j|q) for a
given query super string q.sub.j can be calculated as follows:
p ss ( q j | q ) = fq ( q j ) fq ( q ) + .SIGMA. j fq ( q j ) ,
##EQU00006##
[0085] where fq(q.sub.j) is the frequency with which the
super-string query q.sub.j appears in the search histories, and
fq(q) is the frequency with which the query for the entity appears
in the search histories.
[0086] The popularity score can also be calculated by dividing the
total number of times the super-string appears in the search
histories by the total number of query super-strings in the search
histories, for example:
p ss ( q j | q ) = fq ( q j ) .SIGMA. j fq ( q j ) ##EQU00007##
[0087] When a query refinement and a query super-string are both
identified as candidate aspects, the two can be combined into a
single aspect. The popularity score for that aspect can be
determined in a number of ways, including, for example, taking the
higher of the two scores, taking the average of the two scores, or
taking the lower of the two scores.
[0088] For example, the score p.sub.inst(q.sub.j|q) for an aspect
associated with given query q.sub.j which is both a query
refinement and a query super-string can be calculated as
follows:
p.sub.inst(q.sub.j|q)=max(p(q.sub.j|q),p.sub.ss(q.sub.j|q)).
[0089] When an aspect is identified by analyzing query log data for
other class member entities in the same class as the entity, the
popularity score can be generated for the aspect as described
above, e.g.,
p.sub.inst(a.sub.i|q)=max(p(a.sub.i|q),p.sub.ss(a.sub.i|q))
[0090] The popularity score for class-based aspects can be adjusted
so that aspects associated with the class do not overwhelm aspects
associated with the specific entity. Rarer entities require the
class-based aspects in order to have a sufficient number and
variety of aspects. However, more popular entities may have
entity-based aspects that are more important than the class-based
aspects. A balance can be struck by weighting the scores of the
aspects.
[0091] For example, a candidate aspect a.sub.i, of a query q which
contains an entity of class C can be assigned a weighted score
p(a.sub.i|q) as follows:
p ( a i | q ) = p inst ( a i | q ) + K .times. p class ( a i | C )
.SIGMA. j p inst ( a j | q ) + K .times. .SIGMA. j p class ( a j |
C ) , ##EQU00008##
where K is a design parameter controlling the relative importance
of the individual score of the aspect and the class score and can
be determined empirically and
p class ( a | C ) = Count ( a ) C , ##EQU00009##
where count(a) is the number of queries in the query log that
included the aspect a, and |C| is the number of entities in the
class C.
[0092] The popularity score for a class-based candidate aspect can
also reflect how close the entity is to the class member the aspect
is based on, e.g., from a time or space or other perspective. For
example, if the entity is "November," an aspect based on the class
member "December" might have a better score than an aspect based on
the class member "May," because November is closer to December than
May in the order of months. As another example, if the entity is
"San Francisco," an aspect based on "Los Angeles" might have a
better score than an aspect based on "New York," because San
Francisco is closer to Los Angeles than New York from a distance
perspective.
[0093] Other popularity scores are also envisioned. For example,
the popularity score can be based on the click through rate for a
given aspect, e.g., the number of times users selected a search
result after issuing a query for the aspect (or the entity and the
aspect), divided by the total number of times users issued queries
for the aspect. The popularity score can also be based on the dwell
time associated with one or more of the search results
corresponding to a query for the aspect or the aspect and the
entity. Dwell time is the amount of time a user spends viewing a
search result. Dwell time can be a continuous number, such as the
number of seconds a user spends viewing a search result, or it can
be a discrete interval, for example "short clicks" corresponding to
clicks of less than thirty seconds, "medium clicks" corresponding
to clicks of more than thirty seconds but less than one minute, and
"long clicks" corresponding to clicks of more than one minute. In
some implementations, a longer dwell time of one or more results is
associated with a higher popularity score. The score is higher
because users found the results with a longer dwell time useful
enough to view for a longer period of time.
[0094] Once the first aspect is ranked, subsequent aspects are
ranked based on their popularity scores and a diversity score,
e.g., a measure of how similar they are to the already ranked
aspects. The diversity score for an un-ranked aspect can be
generated, for example, by calculating a similarity score between
the un-ranked aspect and each ranked aspect, and then taking the
minimum, maximum, or average of the scores.
[0095] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of ranking an unranked aspect
502, given a pre-existing group of one or more ranked aspects
508.
[0096] A popularity score 506 is generated for the unranked aspect
502 using a popularity score generator 504. The popularity score
generator generates a popularity score for the aspect, for example,
as described above. A diversity score 512 is then generated for the
unranked aspect 502 by the diversity score generator 510. The
diversity score 512 is an estimate of how similar the unranked
aspect 502 is to the ranked aspects 508. The diversity score
between the unranked aspect 502 and the set of ranked aspects 508
can be determined by calculating the similarity score between the
unranked aspect 502 and each ranked aspect in the set 508, for
example as described above, and then using the minimum, maximum,
average, or sum of the scores as the diversity score.
[0097] Once the popularity score 506 and the diversity score 512
are generated, they are passed to an overall score generator 514.
The overall score generator 514 generates an overall score 516
based on the popularity score 506 and the diversity score 612, for
example, by dividing the popularity score 506 by the diversity
score 512.
[0098] Other methods of ranking the candidate aspects are also
envisioned. For example, the highest ranked candidate aspect can be
chosen based on the popularity score, and all subsequent aspects
can be chosen based on the diversity score (for example, by
choosing the aspect with the lowest diversity score). The candidate
aspects can also be ranked based just on their popularity scores or
just on their diversity scores.
[0099] Returning to FIG. 2, the system then associates a number of
the highest ranked candidate aspects with the entity, or the entity
and its properties (step 210). Any number of candidate aspects can
be associated with the entity (and its properties), based on the
needs of the system and the storage capabilities of the system. For
example, if the system will present the aspects to the user in a
graphical environment where only a few aspects can be displayed at
a time, the number of aspects may be small. In contrast, if the
system might provide a large number of aspects to a user or
process, the number of candidate aspects may be larger.
[0100] Once the number of highest ranked candidate aspects are
associated with the entity (and its properties), the association is
stored in a location accessible to the system, for example, in a
database that associates a given entity with its aspects.
[0101] FIG. 6 illustrates an example method 600 for receiving a
query including one or more terms corresponding to an entity and
presenting search results based on the identified aspects of the
entity. For convenience, the example method 600 will be described
with reference to a system (e.g., the search system 114 of FIG. 1
or another system) that performs the method 600. The method can be
performed in conjunction with the method described above in
reference to FIG. 2.
[0102] The system receives a query including one or more terms
corresponding to an entity (step 602). The query can be received,
for example, from a user or from the search system 114. In some
implementations, the system and the search system 114 are the same
system.
[0103] The system identifies aspects associated with the entity
(step 604). In some implementations, the query includes an entity
and its properties, and the system can identify aspects associated
with the entity and its properties. For example, if the query is
"Hawaii vacation" then "Hawaii" could be identified as the entity,
and "vacation" could be identified as a property of the entity
"Hawaii." The aspects can be identified as described above in
reference to FIG. 2, or can be retrieved, for example, from a
database including ranked aspects generated using the method
described above in reference to FIG. 2. The system can identify all
aspects associated with the entity. When the aspects are ranked,
the system can alternatively identify a top k number of the ranked
aspects, where k is the number of aspects that are going to be
presented to the user.
[0104] The system receives one or more sets of search results (step
606). Each set of search results corresponds to an entity and one
of the identified aspects. For example, if the entity was "Hawaii"
and the identified aspects were "beaches," "hotels," "weather," and
"food," separate sets of search results could be received for
"Hawaii beaches," "Hawaii hotels," "Hawaii weather," and "Hawaii
food." The search results can be received in response to a query
issued to the search engine 130 for the entity and an aspect.
[0105] The system presents the search results based on the
identified aspects (step 608). In some implementations, the search
results are presented in a "mashup," where relevant results and
other information for one or more of the aspects are presented in
one display, organized according to aspect.
[0106] FIG. 7 illustrates an example mashup displayed after a user
submits a search query 702 for "mount bachelor" by clicking on the
search button 704. Search results and other information
corresponding to aspects for Mount Bachelor (e.g., "weather,"
"hotels" "community college" and "mountains") are labeled in
accordance with the aspect and presented to the user in the boxes
706, 708, 710, and 712. The presentation of information can be
tailored to the aspect. For example, a ski and snow report is
presented in box 706 for users interested in the "weather" aspect.
Search results corresponding to "hotels" are presented in box 708,
search results corresponding to "community college" are presented
in box 710, and search results corresponding to "mountains" are
presented in box 712.
[0107] As FIG. 7 illustrates, all search results for a given aspect
are not necessarily presented for that aspect. For example, more
search results for the "hotels" aspect than the two search results
that are presented can be received. The search results that are
presented are chosen from the search results that are received, for
example, by taking a top number of search results based on a
ranking of the search results (e.g., a ranking provided by the
search system 114). The number can be determined, for example,
based on the number of aspects for the entity and/or the space
available for presentation of the search results. Search results do
not have to be presented for all identified aspects.
[0108] In some implementations, a summary of the entity in
accordance with one of the aspects is presented. A summary of an
entity in accordance with an aspect is a direct presentation of
information that is available through search results corresponding
to the entity and the aspect. For example, the ski and snow report
presented in box 706 is a summary of information for the entity
"mount bachelor" and the aspect "weather." A user interested in the
"weather" aspect is likely interested in knowing the current
weather, so rather than requiring the user to click on a search
result to see weather information, the system can instead directly
present information on the weather. As another example, if the
entity is "University of Southern California football team" and the
aspect is "season record," a summary of the team's season record
can be presented. As yet another example, if the entity is a
particular movie, and the aspect is movie reviews, then multiple
reviews can be presented side by side. In some implementations, the
summary is associated with an aspect and an entity in advance and
stored, for example, in a database. The system can then retrieve
the summary when needed.
[0109] Other methods of presenting the search results based on the
aspects are also envisioned. For example, the system can create a
separate web page for the search results corresponding to each
aspect. Links to the web pages corresponding to the identified
aspects can be presented along with search results for the original
query. Alternatively, the links to the web pages can be presented
as a separate web page. The system can present the aspects as
"related search" options for the user, and then present the search
results corresponding to a given aspect once a user selects the
aspect.
[0110] In some implementations, the query includes terms
corresponding to multiple entities. When the query includes
multiple entities, the system can identify the aspects associated
with each query, and then combine the identified aspects based on
their rank (e.g., based on a popularity score and a diversity score
of each aspect). Search results for the top ranked aspects can then
be received and presented to the user. Alternatively, the system
can present search results for the aspects corresponding to each of
the entities separately.
[0111] In some implementations, the system receives search results
corresponding to the entity, rather than the entity and an aspect
(for example, from the search system 114). In these
implementations, the search results can be grouped based on the
aspects, for example, by sorting the search results based on the
aspects, or using clustering techniques to cluster search results
around the aspects. In these implementations, the search results
can be presented based on the aspects as described above.
[0112] FIG. 8 illustrates an example architecture of a system 800.
The system generally includes a data processing apparatus 802 and a
user device 828. The data processing apparatus 802 and user device
828 are connected through a network 826. In some implementations,
the user device 828 and the data processing apparatus 802 are the
same device.
[0113] While the data processing apparatus in 802 is shown as a
single data processing apparatus, a plurality of data processing
apparatus may be used. The data processing apparatus 802 runs a
number of modules, for example, processes, e.g. executable software
programs. In various implementations, these processes include an
entity-class associator 804, aspect generator 806, aspect combiner
808, aspect grouper 810, aspect ranker 812, and aspect associator
814.
[0114] The entity-class associator 804 associates a given entity
with a class, for example, based on a pre-defined database that
associates entities with classes or by accessing knowledgebase
information for the entity.
[0115] The aspect generator 806 generates aspects for a given
entity, for example, as described above in reference to FIG. 2, by
analyzing user search histories to identify query refinements and
query superstrings for the entity, its class members, or the entity
and its class members.
[0116] The aspect combiner 808 combines aspects, for example, as
described above in reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, based on their
similarity scores. The aspect combiner 808 may also calculate
similarity scores for pairs of aspects as described above in
reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.
[0117] The aspect grouper 810 groups aspects based on their class,
for example, as described above in reference to FIGS. 2 and 4. In
some implementations, the aspect combiner 808 and the aspect
grouper 810 are the same process.
[0118] The aspect ranker 812 ranks aspects based on a popularity
score and a diversity score of each aspect, for example, as
described above in reference to FIGS. 2 and 5.
[0119] The aspect associator 814 associates one or more aspects
with a given entity or a given entity and its properties, for
example, as described above in reference to FIG. 2.
[0120] In some implementations, the data processing apparatus 802
stores one or more of an entity-class database associating a given
entity with its class, an aspect-class database associating a given
aspect with its class, user search histories, and an entity-aspect
database associating a given entity with one or more aspects. In
some implementations, the entity-class database and the
aspect-class database are the same database. In some
implementations, the data is stored on a computer readable medium
820. In some implementations, the data is stored on the additional
device(s) 818.
[0121] The data processing apparatus 802 may also have hardware or
firmware devices including one or more processors 816, one or more
additional devices 818, computer readable medium 820, a
communication interface 822, and one or more user interface devices
824. The processor(s) 816 are capable of processing instructions
for execution. In one implementation, at least one of the
processor(s) 816 is a single-threaded processor. In another
implementation, at least one of the processor(s) 816 is a
multi-threaded processor. The processor(s) 816 are capable of
processing instructions stored in memory or on a storage device to
display graphical information for a user interface on the user
interface device(s) 824. User interface device(s) 824 can include,
for example, a display, a camera, a speaker, a microphone, or a
tactile feedback device.
[0122] The data processing apparatus 802 communicates with user
device 828 using its communication interface 822.
[0123] The user device 828 can be any data processing apparatus,
for example, a user's computer. A user uses the user device 828 to
submit search queries through the network 826 to the data
processing apparatus 802 and receive search results from the data
processing apparatus 802, for example, through a web-browser run on
the user device, for example, Firefox.TM., available from the
Mozilla Project in Mountain View, Calif. The user device 828 may
present the search results to the user, for example, by displaying
the results on a display device, transmitting sound corresponding
to the results, or providing tactile feedback corresponding to the
results. The search results may be organized according to aspects
associated with the entity. When a user uses his or her computer to
select a search result to view, information regarding the user
selection can be sent to the data processing apparatus 802 and used
to generate user search history data.
[0124] In some implementations, the user device 828 runs one or
more of the modules 804, 806, 808, 810, 812, and 814 instead of or
in addition to the data processing apparatus 802 running the
modules.
[0125] While the system 800 of FIG. 8 envisions a user who submits
a search query through his or her computer, the search query does
not have to be received from a user or a user's computer, but can
be received from any data processing apparatus, process, or person,
for example a computer or a process run on a computer, with or
without direct user input. Similarly, the results and aspects do
not have to be presented to the user's computer but can be
presented to any data processing apparatus, process, or person. The
user search histories can be received from a population of users,
and not necessarily from the same user device 828 used to receive
search results organized based on aspects of an entity in the
search query.
[0126] Embodiments of the subject matter and the operations
described in this specification can be implemented in digital
electronic circuitry, or in computer software, firmware, or
hardware, including the structures disclosed in this specification
and their structural equivalents, or in combinations of one or more
of them. Embodiments of the subject matter described in this
specification can be implemented as one or more computer programs,
i.e., one or more modules of computer program instructions, encoded
on a computer storage media for execution by, or to control the
operation of, data processing apparatus.
[0127] Alternatively or in addition, the program instructions can
be encoded on an artificially generated propagated signal, e.g., a
machine-generated electrical, optical, or electromagnetic signal,
that is generated to encode information for transmission to
suitable receiver apparatus for execution by a data processing
apparatus. The computer storage medium can be, or be included in, a
computer-readable storage device, a computer-readable storage
substrate, a random or serial access memory array or device, or a
combination of one or more of them.
[0128] The operations described in this specification can be
implemented as operations performed by a data processing apparatus
on data stored on one or more computer-readable storage devices or
received from other sources.
[0129] The term "data processing apparatus" encompasses all kinds
of apparatus, devices, and machines for processing data, including
by way of example a programmable processor, a computer, a system on
a chip, or combinations of them. The apparatus can include special
purpose logic circuitry, e.g., an FPGA (field programmable gate
array) or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit). The
apparatus can also include, in addition to hardware, code that
creates an execution environment for the computer program in
question, e.g., code that constitutes processor firmware, a
protocol stack, a database management system, an operating system,
a cross-platform runtime environment, e.g., a virtual machine, or a
combination of one or more of them. The apparatus and execution
environment can realize various different computing model
infrastructures, such as web services, distributed computing and
grid computing infrastructures.
[0130] A computer program (also known as a program, software,
software application, script, or code) 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, component, subroutine, or other
unit suitable for use in a computing environment. A computer
program does not necessarily correspond to a file in a file system.
A program can be stored in a portion of a file that holds other
programs or data (e.g., one or more scripts stored in a markup
language document), in a single file dedicated to the program in
question, or in multiple coordinated files (e.g., files that store
one or more modules, sub-programs, or portions of code). A computer
program can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on
multiple computers that are located at one site or distributed
across multiple sites and interconnected by a communication
network.
[0131] The processes and logic flows described in this
specification can be performed by one or more programmable
processors executing one or more computer programs to perform
functions by operating on input data and generating output. The
processes and logic flows can also be performed by, and apparatus
can also be implemented as, special purpose logic circuitry, e.g.,
an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or an ASIC
(application-specific integrated circuit).
[0132] Processors suitable for the execution of a computer program
include, by way of example, both general and special purpose
microprocessors, and any one or more processors of any kind of
digital computer. Generally, a processor will receive instructions
and data from a read-only memory or a random access memory or both.
The essential elements of a computer are a processor for performing
instructions and one or more memory devices for storing
instructions and data. Generally, a computer will also include, or
be operatively coupled to receive data from or transfer data to, or
both, one or more mass storage devices for storing data, e.g.,
magnetic, magneto-optical disks, or optical disks. However, a
computer need not have such devices. Moreover, a computer can be
embedded in another device, e.g., a mobile telephone, a personal
digital assistant (PDA), a mobile audio player, a Global
Positioning System (GPS) receiver, to name just a few.
Computer-readable media suitable for storing computer program
instructions and data include all forms of non-volatile memory,
media and memory devices, including by way of example semiconductor
memory devices, e.g., EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices;
magnetic disks, e.g., internal hard disks or removable disks;
magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. The processor
and the memory can be supplemented by, or incorporated in, special
purpose logic circuitry.
[0133] To provide for interaction with a user, embodiments of the
subject matter described in this specification can be implemented
on a computer having a display device, e.g., a CRT (cathode ray
tube) or LCD (liquid crystal display) monitor, for displaying
information to the user and a keyboard and a pointing device, e.g.,
a mouse or a trackball, by which the user can provide input to the
computer. Other kinds of devices can be used to provide for
interaction with a user as well; for example, feedback provided to
the user can be any form of sensory feedback, e.g., visual
feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; and input from
the user can be received in any form, including acoustic, speech,
or tactile input.
[0134] Embodiments of the subject matter described in this
specification can be implemented in a computing system that
includes a back-end component, e.g., as a data server, or that
includes a middleware component, e.g., an application server, or
that includes a front-end component, e.g., a client computer having
a graphical user interface or a Web browser through which a user
can interact with an implementation of the subject matter described
is this specification, or any combination of one or more such
back-end, middleware, or front-end components. The components of
the system can be interconnected by any form or medium of digital
data communication, e.g., a communication network. Examples of
communication networks include a local area network ("LAN") and a
wide area network ("WAN"), e.g., the Internet.
[0135] 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.
[0136] While this specification contains many specifics, these
should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the
invention or of what may be claimed, but rather as descriptions of
features specific to particular embodiments of the invention.
Certain features that are described in this specification in the
context of separate embodiments can also be implemented in
combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features
that are described in the context of a single embodiment can also
be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any
suitable subcombination. Moreover, although features may be
described above as acting in certain combinations and even
initially claimed as such, one or more features from a claimed
combination can in some cases be excised from the combination, and
the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or
variation of a subcombination.
[0137] Similarly, while operations are depicted in the drawings in
a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that
such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in
sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed,
to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances,
multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Moreover,
the separation of various system components in the embodiments
described above should not be understood as requiring such
separation in all embodiments, and it should be understood that the
described program components and systems can generally be
integrated together in a single software product or packaged into
multiple software products.
[0138] Thus, particular embodiments of the invention have been
described. Other embodiments are within the scope of the following
claims. For example, the actions recited in the claims can be
performed in a different order and still achieve desirable
results.
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