Patents by Inventor Alexander Franz

Alexander Franz has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6928448
    Abstract: A system and method for evaluating similarity among multiple data structures are provided. In one embodiment, a number of entries are created in a database and a relative entropy value corresponding to each entry is calculated. Each data structure is analyzed and at least one substructure is generated for each data structure as a result of the analysis. This at least one substructure pertaining to each data structure is matched to the entries in the database to obtain matching entries. Finally, a match value is generated using the relative entropy values corresponding to the matching entries.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2005
    Assignees: Sony Corporation, Sony Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi, Kazami Uchida
  • Publication number: 20050149499
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for improving search quality. Search queries are expanded using a variety of linguistic techniques. For example, the words in a query can be supplemented with related words obtained from a database of compound words, inflectional forms, and/or orthographic variations. The expanded queries can be used to perform searches for responsive documents. A document index can be expanded using similar techniques.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 30, 2003
    Publication date: July 7, 2005
    Applicant: Google Inc., A DELAWARE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Alexander Franz, Monika Henzinger
  • Publication number: 20040167771
    Abstract: A method and system for reducing lexical ambiguity in an input stream are described. In one embodiment, the input stream is broken into tokens. The tokens are used to create a connection graph comprising a number of paths. Each of the paths is assigned a cost. At least one best path is defined based upon a corresponding cost to generate an output graph. The generated output graph is provided to reduce lexical ambiguity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 17, 2004
    Publication date: August 26, 2004
    Inventors: Lei Duan, Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi
  • Patent number: 6778949
    Abstract: A natural language translation system contains language-neutral modules for syntactic analysis, transfer, and morphological and syntactical generation of feature structures for an input expression in a source and a target language. The language-neutral modules are driven by language-specific grammars to translate between the specified languages so that no knowledge about the languages need be incorporated into the modules themselves. The modules interface with the grammar rules in the form of compiled grammar programming language statements that perform the required manipulation of the feature structures. Because the modules are language-neutral, the system is readily adaptable to new languages simply by providing a grammar for the new language. Multiple copies of each module, each interfacing with a different natural language grammar, enables simultaneous translation of multiple languages in the same system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2004
    Assignees: Sony Corporation, Sony Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Lei Duan, Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi
  • Patent number: 6721697
    Abstract: A method and system for reducing lexical ambiguity in an input stream are described. In one embodiment, the input stream is broken into tokens. The tokens are used to create a connection graph comprising a number of paths. Each of the paths is assigned a cost. At least one best path is defined based upon a corresponding cost to generate an output graph. The generated output graph is provided to reduce lexical ambiguity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2004
    Assignees: Sony Corporation, Sony Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Lei Duan, Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi
  • Patent number: 6529865
    Abstract: A grammar programming language (“GPL”) compiler compiles each rule in a natural language grammar into a separate function that can be invoked by a translation system to apply the rule to a representation of a natural language expression. The GPL compiler can output the functions for the rules as source code for a standard computer programming language to be further compiled into object code that can be directly executed by a computer processor. The GPL compiler can also generate special functions for each rule to enable multi-layered operations on the representations and to handle the processing of representations of ambiguous expressions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2003
    Assignees: Sony Corporation, Sony Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Lei Duan, Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi
  • Publication number: 20030036898
    Abstract: A natural language translation system contains language-neutral modules for syntactic analysis, transfer, and morphological and syntactical generation of feature structures for an input expression in a source and a target language. The language-neutral modules are driven by language-specific grammars to translate between the specified languages so that no knowledge about the languages need be incorporated into the modules themselves. The modules interface with the grammar rules in the form of compiled grammar programming language statements that perform the required manipulation of the feature structures. Because the modules are language-neutral, the system is readily adaptable to new languages simply by providing a grammar for the new language. Multiple copies of each module, each interfacing with a different natural language grammar, enables simultaneous translation of multiple languages in the same system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 1999
    Publication date: February 20, 2003
    Inventors: LEI DUAN, ALEXANDER FRANZ, KEIKO HORIGUCHI
  • Patent number: 6393388
    Abstract: A translating apparatus and a translating method wherein a first language sentence is divided into syntax units consisting of predetermined units of sentence structure such as clauses and phrases in stages from large syntax units into small syntax units and at each stage stored examples most similar to these syntax units are detected using probability models taking into account grammatical attributes of the syntax units and of the examples and using generalized linguistic knowledge and with reference to a thesaurus and the syntax units are translated on the basis of these detected examples and the results of translation of the syntax units are compounded to generate a second language sentence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2002
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi
  • Patent number: 6330530
    Abstract: A system and method for transforming input source language linguistic structures (SLS) to target linguistic language linguistic structures (TLS) are described. In one embodiment, the SLS is matched to at least one existing source language example linguistic structure (SEF). The SLS is aligned with the at least one SEF, and the TLS is generated using at least one target language example linguistic structure (TEF) corresponding to the at least one SEF.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1999
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2001
    Assignees: Sony Corporation, Sony Electronics, Inc.
    Inventors: Keiko Horiguchi, Alexander Franz
  • Patent number: 6161083
    Abstract: A translating apparatus and a translating method wherein a first language sentence is divided into syntax units consisting of predetermined units of sentence structure such as clauses and phrases in stages from large syntax units into small syntax units and at each stage stored examples most similar to these syntax units are detected using probability models taking into account grammatical attributes of the syntax units and of the examples and using generalized linguistic knowledge and with reference to a thesaurus and the syntax units are translated on the basis of these detected examples and the results of translation of the syntax units are compounded to generate a second language sentence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2000
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Alexander Franz, Keiko Horiguchi