Abstract: A search device and a search program for searching an identifier of a site server, which provides information corresponding to a search format including an inputted keyword. Specifically, the search device includes: a search database storage which stores a search database; a conversion program storage which stores a conversion program and the identifier of the site server by associating them with each other; a search unit which reads the search database storage and searches the identifier of the site server corresponding to the inputted search format; and a site search link generation unit which reads the conversion program storage, selects a conversion program while the conversion program is associated with the identifier of the site server, which is searched by the search unit, and uses the selected conversion program to convert the inputted search format into the identifier of the site search server attached to the site server.

Abstract: The encoded contents of a piece of delivered information is accompanied by an applicable time data indicating a specific time period for authorizing a particular mode of utilization. When a request for utilizing the contents is issued in an information utilization apparatus, it determines if the current time agrees with the time authorizing the requested utilization by referring to the time data annexed to the encoded contents. If the request is acceptable at the current time, a set of processing steps is carried out for decoding the encoded contents and other necessary operations. Thus, an information access control method can be adapted to have flexibility in setting charges and access requirements for the contents of information that can change the value and the mode of utilization with time.

Abstract: Provided are a search device and a search program for searching an identifier of a site server, which provides information corresponding to a search format including an inputted keyword.

Abstract: An information retrieval apparatus retrieves information from a database. When a retrieval request is received from a user, a first retrieval section retrieves information from the database using a retrieval expression in the retrieval request. A retrieval result memory section stores the information retrieved by the first retrieval section. If a new retrieval request is not received and detailed information corresponding to the retrieval expression is not stored in the retrieval result memory section, a second retrieval section retrieves more appropriate information from the database using a modified retrieval expression and/or more sophisticated retrieval algorithm.

Abstract: A next update prediction time storage section receives the present time from a clock section and transfers part or all of the links whose corresponding next update prediction times are earlier than the present time to a transmission/reception section. The transmission/reception section communicates via a network and acquires the data specified by a link. An update history storage section extracts the latest update time when information on the latest update time exists in the acquired data. The update history storage section adds the extracted latest update time to the update history corresponding to the link and calculates the next update prediction time from the added and updated update history. The update history storage section sends the calculated next update prediction time to the next update prediction time storage section. The next update prediction time storage section replaces the next update prediction time corresponding to the link with the calculated next update prediction time.

Abstract: A method and a system for displaying multimedia data including video data. A display of video data and related information are controlled according to a movement of a pointing selection marker, a type of related information, or a distribution of pointing selection possible regions over frames of video data. Linked related information can be displayed in synchronization with a progress of a display of the video data. Information indicating a presence/absence of pointing selection possible region for currently displayed video data can also be displayed. A useful information can be obtained by collecting a statistical information on the desired positions specified by the user's pointing selection inputs. Each frame of video data can be partitioned and related information can be provided in correspondence to partitioned parts of each frame.

Abstract: A parallel processing system capable of facilitating the data prefetch in the parallel computer and realizing a compilation scheme capable of removing the overhead caused by the control codes due to the parallelism. In the system, data dependency of each operation in the program is analyzed. Then, according to the data dependency, each processor recognizes those processors which have possibilities to require data allocated to the distributed part of the distributed shared memory in each processor, and each processor transmits the data to these processors before these processors actually require the data.

Abstract: Terms are extracted from a document as a retrieval subject, and weights of the respective terms in the document are set. In assigning data to a plurality of retrieving apparatuses in accordance with the weights thus set, weight ranges are determined so as to avoid overlap or omission in terms as subjects of the retrieving apparatuses, and evaluation value ranges are determined according to a given evaluation formula so as to correspond to the respective weight ranges. Searches are performed in descending order of evaluation values that are obtained according to the evaluation formula.

Abstract: A version management apparatus for managing the versions of data having link structure obtained by designating an address, has a data obtaining section for obtaining data having link structure of the designated address, a section for extracting addresses buried in the obtained data having link structure, a section for storing the extracted addresses, a section for selecting an address from the address storage section, and instructing the data obtaining section to obtain data designated by the selected address, and a section for storing data obtained by the data obtaining section or its modified data by adding the address of the data and version data associated with the version of the data thereto.

Abstract: A retrieval system for performing database retrieval in response to a retrieval request includes a database preparing means for collecting corresponding data to prepare a database under at least a condition that an update frequency range of data serving as a target for index table generation is uniquely assigned to the database, and an update frequency of data falls within the assigned update frequency range, or a mean update frequency of a data group to which the data belongs falls within the assigned update frequency range.

Abstract: The learning of an associative memory suitable for the connectionist model which can deal with the patterns having the non-random frequencies of the appearances or the non-random correlations. In this invention, the learning of the associative memory in a form of a neural network, in which a plurality of nodes having activation values are connected by a plurality of links having link weight values, is achieved by entering a plurality of learning patterns sequentially, where each learning pattern has a plurality of elements in correspondence with the nodes, calculating an energy E of the entered learning pattern, determining a learning amount .delta. for the entered learning pattern according to a difference between the calculated energy E and a predetermined reference energy level Eth, and updating the link weight values of the links according to the entered learning pattern and the determined learning amount .delta..

Abstract: An apparatus for translating original words in an original sentence into words in a translated sentence consists of a sentence structure analysis dictionary, a translation dictionary, an inflection dictionary, a knowledge dictionary, grammar dictionaries of original language and translated language, a translation unit, and a processing device with an artificial neural network in which an external input is provided one after another to each of the artificial neurons assigned the words of the translated language linguistically corresponding to the original words classified as polysemy and semantically corresponding to the original words classified as monosemy, the external input provided to each of the artificial neurons is stored therein, and the value of the external input previously stored in the artificial neurons is uniformly reduced to again provide to each of the artificial neurons as past records each time the external input is provided to each of the artificial neurons.

Abstract: A neural network processing apparatus calculates an average of the absolute values of differences between the output values of all neurons and a center value whenever the output value of all neurons change, and calculates the difference between the average and the previous average. If the average is larger than a threshold or the previous average, the gain of a function in the network is decreased. If the average is smaller than the threshold or the previous average, the gain of the function is increased. Then the controlled function is set to each neuron and the neural network is activated repeatedly to correctly identify an unknown multivalued image pattern.

Abstract: An object-oriented system comprises concept and instance objects allocated to a plurality of processors to form a network. Each of the processors comprises a transmission-reception portion for transmitting and receiving messages, an object control portion for managing concept and instance objects, an inheritance retrieval portion for recording and retrieving information inherited from upper concept objects, a message pattern retrieval portion for retrieving message patterns, a message procedure storage portion for storing procedures corresponding to the message patterns, and an instance object storage portion for storing instance variables that hold internal states of the instance objects.

Abstract: An inference processing system comprises a plurality of processors assigned for nodes of a semantic network respectively to carry out parallel processing. Each of the processors stores tables and linking information. The tables are made by arranging rules and prepared for goals respectively. Each table contains the names of links to follow when a certain goal is given and markers for specifying the kinds of the links. In the table, the link names and markers are set as outputs with respect to the given goal as an input. The linking information contains information of links connected to a node for which a corresponding one of the processors is assigned. When the goal and a marker are inputted to any one of the processors, the processor finds an output marker and output links in the tables and linking information and outputs the output marker to the output links, thus achieving an inference process.