Search Engine Portal (e.g., Metasearch Engine) Patents (Class 707/707)
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Patent number: 8375033Abstract: A system and method for information retrieval from a corpus of text based on offline prominent sentences extraction, and online prominent sentences retrieval ordered by predefined criteria, and recommending online cross-interest prominent sentences.Type: GrantFiled: October 19, 2009Date of Patent: February 12, 2013Inventors: Avraham Shpigel, Shalom Wintner
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Patent number: 8370321Abstract: Various system embodiments of the present invention are directed to an automated concierge system through which users of the automated concierge system can request and obtain many types of information and services. Unlike traditional search engines and electronic query-processing interfaces, the automated concierge systems provide much greater flexibility with respect to means of access, including types of electronic devices and communications media that can be used to access the concierge services, greater flexibility in the timing of responses to information and service requests, more efficient information and service provision, and access to a much broader range of information sources and service providers.Type: GrantFiled: September 4, 2008Date of Patent: February 5, 2013Assignee: Vulcan, Inc.Inventors: John Chu, Jeff Bowden, Christopher W. Jones, Stuart Graham, Robert E. Arnold, Paul G. Allen, Hubert E. Kolde
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Patent number: 8364659Abstract: An Internet infrastructure that supports searching of web links wherein a user profile is used to reorder search results in a search result list for improved searching. The Internet infrastructure consists of a plurality client devices with web browsers that are incorporated with user-profiling modules and a search engine server. The process of searching and reordering includes the search engine server receiving a search string along with a user profile from the user-profiling module (or retrieving the user profile from a database). Then, the search engine server stores the user profile in a database that is associated with the search engine server and delivers search results based upon the search string, and reorders the search results based upon stored data in the database.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2009Date of Patent: January 29, 2013Assignee: Enpulz, L.L.C.Inventor: James D. Bennett
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Patent number: 8364467Abstract: A classifier may include logic to parse incoming content and to compare a key term in the content to stored content related to multiple prior messages, where the stored content is classified with respect to one or more categories. The logic may produce a score for the content based on the comparing, relate the score to one of the one or more categories, and produce a result based on the comparing, producing, or relating.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2006Date of Patent: January 29, 2013Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Courtney Bowman, Nicolas Fernando Cabrera, Keyon Hedayati, Katherine Marie Hotchkiss, Stephen Tai-Chung Hu, Jared Smith, Isaac David Sparrow, Jeffrey Michael Stone, Juan Bacani Trinidad, David Wiesen
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Patent number: 8359344Abstract: A database of the location based relationships of points of interest within an environment is automatically generated using a digital representation of the environment that includes the points of interest at different locations within the environment. The locations of the points of interest in the environment are identified and the location based relationships between the points of interest are determined. The points of interest are labeled with the determined relationships and the points of interest and labeled relationships are stored. For example, a graph structure may be produced where each node is a point of interest and the edges between nodes is labeled with the determined relationships.Type: GrantFiled: June 11, 2010Date of Patent: January 22, 2013Assignee: QUALCOMM IncorporatedInventors: Saumitra Mohan Das, Rajarshi Gupta, Behrooz Khorashadi
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Publication number: 20130018867Abstract: Some embodiments relate to techniques for receiving a query from a device, the query comprising content; determining based at least in part on the content of the query that an application is to be launched on the device; and causing the device to launch the application using at least some information determined from the content of the query. Some embodiments relate to techniques for receiving a free-form query from a user; transferring a representation of the query to at least one computer; and receiving from the at least one computer at least one instruction to launch an application on the device.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 14, 2011Publication date: January 17, 2013Applicant: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: Marc W. Regan, Vladimir Sejnoha, Gunnar Evermann, Sean P. Brown, Stephen W. Laverty, Jeremy A. Slater, John R. Watson, Peter K. Lyons, Ryan S. LaSante
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Publication number: 20130013408Abstract: A method and arrangement for supporting network searches for information or content using one or more web-based search engines. When a search query is received (1:2) from a terminal user (A), a refined search query is created (1:4) from the received query based on a user profile (104) of the user. A network search is then made (1:5) in at least one search engine (106) using the refined search query. An aggregated search result from said network search is finally delivered (1:6) in response to the received search query.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 22, 2010Publication date: January 10, 2013Applicant: TELEFONAKTIEBOLAGET LM ERICSSON (PUBL)Inventors: Johan Hjelm, Mattias Lidström, Mona Matti
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Patent number: 8352464Abstract: Embodiments of system and method are provided for ranking contents of one or more documents through human assistance. The system includes one or more search engines configured to provide one or more documents based on a search query sent by a user. Further, the system includes a client application configured to capture the query sent by the user and the document tags provided by the document author or inbound links. The client application monitors one or more interactions of the user with the one or more documents for one or more events and provides a relevance measure to the one or more documents based on the captured query or tags, and the one or more events.Type: GrantFiled: June 9, 2010Date of Patent: January 8, 2013Assignee: Peer Belt Inc.Inventor: Krassimir Fotev
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Patent number: 8352453Abstract: A method and apparatus for plan-based compliance score computation is provided. Compliance-specific target results are stored. The compliance results include, for each target, a subset of target-specific compliance results for a rule subset of compliance rules. Each target-specific compliance result of the result subset includes a compliance value. The compliance value represents compliance to a compliance rule of the rule subset. An execution plan is generated. The execution plan generates data that measures compliance to a first compliance standard. For each target-specific compliance result, an execution plan step is generated for computing the compliance value of the respective compliance rule of the respective target.Type: GrantFiled: June 22, 2010Date of Patent: January 8, 2013Assignee: Oracle International CorporationInventor: Raja Chatterjee
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Patent number: 8352247Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for generating suffix rewriting rules. A method includes obtaining a plurality of canonical suffix-rewriting rules each associated with one or more words, generating a suffix tree from the words, selecting a minimum colored subset of the nodes and leaves in the suffix tree, and generating a plurality of final suffix-rewriting rules from the nodes in the minimum colored subset. Another method includes receiving applicable and non-applicable words for a suffix-rewriting rule, generating a suffix tree from the applicable words and the non-applicable words, selecting a minimum colored subset of the nodes and leaves in the suffix tree, and generating a plurality of suffix-rewriting rules, wherein each rule corresponds to a node in the minimum colored subset with a valid status.Type: GrantFiled: April 23, 2012Date of Patent: January 8, 2013Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Evgeny A. Cherepanov, Oleksandr Grushetskyy, Dmitry N. Orlov
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Patent number: 8346749Abstract: Described herein is a method that includes determining a utility to a user of sharing a set of attributes for use in connection with personalized searching or other online services. The method further includes determining a cost to the user of sharing the set of attributes. The method also includes outputting an indication of a net benefit to the user of sharing the set of attributes based at least in part upon the determined utility and the determined cost.Type: GrantFiled: June 27, 2008Date of Patent: January 1, 2013Assignee: Microsoft CorporationInventors: Ranier Andreas Krause, Eric Horvitz
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Patent number: 8346768Abstract: A method is presented for merging document metadata at a client computer. A document obtained from a server computer is opened by a user at the client computer. If the document does not include paragraph identifiers, a paragraph identifier is assigned to each paragraph in the document. When the document is opened by a second user at a second client computer, metadata for the document is received from the server computer. A determination is made whether to merge the metadata received from the server computer with current metadata for the document. When it is determined that the current metadata and the metadata received from the server computer should be merged, paragraph identifiers are adjusted in the document based on the metadata received from the server computer.Type: GrantFiled: April 30, 2009Date of Patent: January 1, 2013Assignee: Microsoft CorporationInventors: Jonathan B. Bailor, David B. Robins
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Patent number: 8340955Abstract: Automated question answering is disclosed that relates to the selection of an answer to a question from a pool of potential answers which are manually or automatically extracted from a large collection of textual documents. The a feature extraction component, a feature combination component, an answer selection component, and an answer presentation component, among others, are included. The input to the system is a set of one or more natural language questions and a collection of textual document The output is a (possibly ranked) set of factual answers to the questions, these answers being extracted from the document collection.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 2008Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Eric W. Brown, Anni R. Coden, John Martin Prager, Dragomir Radkov Radev, Valerie Samn
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Patent number: 8340475Abstract: The present invention provides a database production method including: a representative image selection step of selecting certain images each as a representative image which represents an image content from the image content; a display processing step of causing a display apparatus to display the representative image; an operation inputting step of allowing a user to input image text information corresponding to the representative image; and a database production step of registering representative characteristic information extracted from the representative image in accordance with a predetermined extraction method and the image text information inputted at the operation inputting step in an associated relationship with each other to produce a database for acquiring, using arbitrary image characteristic information for each image extracted from an arbitrary image content in accordance with the extraction method, substance character information corresponding to an image which the arbitrary image content has.Type: GrantFiled: October 22, 2007Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Sony CorporationInventor: Masaru Miyamoto
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Patent number: 8341019Abstract: In embodiments disclosed, information on a click stream associated with a user and meta tags commonly used by search engines can be used to profile a user. The click stream may comprise network addresses and timestamps and may be the only source of user information used for the profile. The meta tags may contain metadata that correspond to the network addresses in the click stream, including network address categorization for these network addresses. The profile obtained for the user may be an existing profile that represents a person or a theoretical individual having attributes similar to or most closely match the user. Based at least in part on the profile, information regarding an item may be provided to the user or the item may be offered to the user. In some embodiments, the information may be filtered before being displayed to the user.Type: GrantFiled: October 15, 2010Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Open Text, S.A.Inventor: Sean M. McCullough
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Patent number: 8341141Abstract: A method and system for automated document registration. The method and system provide an automatic document registration system that creates a secure transformed electronic document with an unalterable time and date stamp. Multiple third-parties are provided an ability to view a given original document in secure transformed electronic document format and each original individual document is provided with a unique set of approved third-party viewer/receivers/auditors via a virtual matrixed file system.Type: GrantFiled: December 15, 2009Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Inventor: Clinton A. Krislov
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Patent number: 8341142Abstract: Some embodiments relate to performing a search for content via the Internet, wherein user input specifying a search query is supplied to a mobile communications device, such as, for example, a smartphone. The mobile communications device separately issues the search query to a plurality of search engines and can receive the results from each search engine and display the results to the user. Thus, the user does not have to separately issue the query to each of the plurality of search engines.Type: GrantFiled: September 8, 2010Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: Vladimir Sejnoha, Gunnar Evermann, Marc W. Regan, Stephen W. Laverty
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Patent number: 8340957Abstract: Computer implemented methods, computing devices, and computing systems, wherein relationships of words or phrases within a textual corpus are assessed via frequencies of occurrence of particular words or phrases and via frequencies of co-occurrence of particular pairs of words or phrases within defined tracts of text from within the textual corpus.Type: GrantFiled: February 25, 2009Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Waggener Edstrom Worldwide, Inc.Inventors: Daniel Gerard Gallagher, Jia Lin, Marc Stoffregen
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Patent number: 8341135Abstract: It is necessary to create a new information search service system for differentiating reliable contents from unreliable contents. An information search provision apparatus for acquiring a search conditional statement, matching the search conditional statement and providing contents, as the search results, comprises: a collecting unit which collects contents to be evaluated, posted on a web page via a network at a predetermined time; and a reliability controlling unit which increases or decreases the reliability degree of the contents to be evaluated, depending on whether the contents to be evaluated were collectable by the collecting unit. Accordingly, the contents to be evaluated may be evaluated in terms of reliability degree, depending on whether it is possible to collect the contents to be evaluated, as a result, reliable contents can be separated from unreliable contents, and is thus an information search service which is highly convenient to users may be provided.Type: GrantFiled: August 30, 2005Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Interman CorporationInventors: Shigeki Uetabira, Mitsugu Uetabira
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Patent number: 8339680Abstract: A system and method for document image acquisition and retrieval which find application in litigation for responding to discovery requests are disclosed. The method includes automatically acquiring image data and associated records for documents being processed by a plurality of image output devices within an organization and archiving the image data and associated records as image logs for the processed documents. When a request for document production is received by the organization, the image logs (and/or information extracted therefrom) are automatically filtered through at least one classifier trained to return documents responsive to the document request, and documents corresponding to the filtered out image logs are output. One of the filters may be configured for filtering privileged from non-privileged documents.Type: GrantFiled: April 2, 2009Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Xerox CorporationInventors: Caroline Privault, Victor Ciriza, Yeriv Reave Reisler, Jean M. Ellefson
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Patent number: 8341140Abstract: A configuration management system for a storage system including a host computer, a storage device providing a storage area for data processed by the host computer, and a communication network connecting the host computer and the storage device communicatively is disclosed. The configuration management system comprises a system condition table storing a system condition, a storage configuration table storing storage configuration information, a performance table storing a performance condition indicating a storage performance. searching the system condition table is searched using the required system condition and the performance table is searched using the required performance condition. If the storage system satisfying the required conditions fails to be extracted, content of the required system condition is changed and searching of the system condition table and the performance table is carried out.Type: GrantFiled: July 3, 2009Date of Patent: December 25, 2012Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Ryuji Nagahori, Takashi Watanabe, Shiori Inoue
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Patent number: 8332379Abstract: A method and system for identifying nodes with similar content. In one aspect, the method comprises determining a structure of a network of nodes, said structure defined by incoming links and outgoing links between nodes within said network, grouping said nodes within said network into a first set of modules, calculating a first modularity value between each of the modules within the first set, said modularity value indicating a degree of similar content within each module, calculating a topical relevance value for each of the modules, selecting those modules whose topical relevance value exceeds a threshold value and calculating an authority score for the selected modules.Type: GrantFiled: June 11, 2010Date of Patent: December 11, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Ning Duan, Pei-Yun S. Hsueh, Yan Liu
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Patent number: 8326866Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that that uses geographic data to identify correlated geographic synonyms in search queries. A correlated geographic synonym occurs when two terms that are possible synonyms should not be considered synonyms because they are associated with related geographic context. During operation, the system receives a term and a possible synonym for the term. The system then determines whether the term and the possible synonym are both present in a geographic data set. If so, the system uses the geographic data set to determine whether the possible synonym is a correlated geographic synonym for the term.Type: GrantFiled: October 17, 2011Date of Patent: December 4, 2012Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Trystan G. Upstill, Steven D. Baker
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Patent number: 8327260Abstract: A method and apparatus for capturing annotations about database material in a way that allows queries with conditions or predicates on both the database material and the annotations. Database material may be text, computer programs, graphics, audio, spreadsheets, or any other material which may be stored and indexed. Database material may be in one or multiple sources, and annotations may be stored together with the original material or in a separate store. Annotations can be used to capture information such as additional facts about the database material, the opinions and judgments of experts about the database material, and/or links to other related material. Annotations may be captured in a structured form to enhance queryability and semantic interpretation.Type: GrantFiled: January 3, 2006Date of Patent: December 4, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Alan Ronald Bays, Laura Myers Haas, Hans Werner Horn, Julia Elizabeth Rice, Peter Martin Schwarz, William Clarence Swope
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Patent number: 8326864Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for implementing automated worklists are provided. The method includes generating a worklist, which further includes retrieving a worklist template corresponding to the worklist and, via a first query, selecting a listing of members and attributes to be populated in the worklist, the attributes include a status indicator of an action item specified for each of the members of the worklist. The worklist generation also includes building a worklist member table with results of the first query and, via a second query, and using attributes of the worklist member table, identifying up-to-date values of one or more worklist member attributes, and outputting results of the second query to the worklist. The method also includes presenting the worklist to a corresponding assignee. For each of the members in the worklist, the status indicator is editable to update a status of the member.Type: GrantFiled: October 21, 2008Date of Patent: December 4, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Prateek Agrawal, Rishi Arora, Walter C. Dietrich, Regina L. Haecker, Robert Hazeu, Saurabh Singh
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Patent number: 8326806Abstract: A set of one or more candidate parameters associated with a content item is identified. A subset of the one or more candidate parameters is determined. Performance statistics associated with the one or more candidate parameters in the subset are monitored, and the set of one or more candidate parameters or the subset of the one or more candidate parameters are modified based on the performance statistics.Type: GrantFiled: May 11, 2007Date of Patent: December 4, 2012Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Arash Baratloo, Eric Christopher Rollins, Benjamin J. Young, Daniel Virabott Phang
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Publication number: 20120303605Abstract: Process for metasearching on the Internet performed by a metasearch engine, comprising: receiving an HTTP request from a client device for the metasearch engine to send at least one search query to a plurality of unique hosts providing access to information to be searched, the HTTP request associated with at least one item that may be ordered from a plurality of items that may be ordered; sending the at least one search query to the plurality of unique hosts; receiving search results from the plurality of unique hosts; incorporating the received search results into a response; causing at least one advertisement associated with the at least one item that may be ordered to be displayed in the response; communicating the response from the metasearch engine to the client device; receiving another HTTP request from the client device for placing an order for the at least one item; processing the order.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 1, 2012Publication date: November 29, 2012Inventor: Harvey Lunenfeld
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Patent number: 8321399Abstract: A method and system for searching data is provided. An index of a search engine is accessed. Distribution data is extracted from the index of the search engine. A value index is generated from the distribution data. A search request is received from a client. A query is generated based on the search request and the value index. The query is forwarded to the search engine for execution.Type: GrantFiled: December 17, 2008Date of Patent: November 27, 2012Assignee: SAP AGInventors: Dirk Teufel, Cyrille Waguet
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Patent number: 8321443Abstract: An Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) proxy infrastructure to transparently route incoming queries to one or more selected query engines. The ODBC proxy receives a query from an application, and determines based on the characteristics of the query and the capabilities of the query engines which one or more query engines are to perform the query. The proxy then routes the query to the one or more query engines, which perform the query. The results are then returned to the proxy, which provides the results to the application.Type: GrantFiled: September 7, 2010Date of Patent: November 27, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Henrique Andrade, Bugra Gedik, Martin J. Hirzel, Robert J. Soule, Huayong Wang, Kun-Lung Wu, Qiong Zou
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Patent number: 8316005Abstract: The systems, methods, means, and computer program products disclosed herein provide a framework and tools for creating composite services from the array of services available as distributed, loosely structured, ad hoc, remote programming interfaces on the Internet. The framework includes metaservices for coordinating the execution of multiple services in a composite service, and also provides core services such as database management, security, financial transactions, media conversion, and so forth, to provide greater design latitude in the creation of new composite services from existing Internet content and services. The framework may be deployed to create new services and programming interfaces, or to deploy independent web applications constructed from available services.Type: GrantFiled: December 8, 2006Date of Patent: November 20, 2012Assignee: Newslike Media Group, IncInventor: James F. Moore
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Patent number: 8316006Abstract: A method for generating an ontology may include selecting, by a processing device, a tag in a tag cloud. The method may also include searching, by the processing device, an online encyclopedia for content corresponding to the selected tag and determining, by the processing device, at least one category to which the content belongs in the online encyclopedia in response to finding the content corresponding to the selected tag in the online encyclopedia. The method may additionally include adding, by the processing device, a class to the ontology corresponding to the at least one category of the content in the online encyclopedia.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 2010Date of Patent: November 20, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Clyde Lee Cain, Jr., Feng-Wei Chen, Yoo Y. Lee, Margaret J. Mago, Nikhil Parekh, William D. Reed
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Publication number: 20120290555Abstract: A client device comprising a search module configured to receive a search instruction from a federated search server, query one or more search services based on the search instruction, receive a first search result that comprises one or more search results from one or more search services, send the first search result to the federated search server, and receive a second search result from the federated search server. Also disclosed is a federated search server comprising a search instruction generator configured to send a search instruction to a client device, and a search result consolidator configured to receive a first search result from the client device, wherein the first search result comprises one or more search results and is obtained by the client device from one or more search services.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 11, 2011Publication date: November 15, 2012Applicant: FUTUREWEI TECHNOLOGIES, INC.Inventors: Zhiguo Wu, Zonghuan Wu, George Vanecek, JR.
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Patent number: 8306966Abstract: Computer-implemented system and methods are disclosed for optimizing the relative positions of sponsored and organic search results on a search results page displayed to a user, including calculating, by a search engine, a degree of commerciality of a search query; receiving the search query from a user by the search engine; and delivering, by the search engine to a browser of a user, a plurality of sponsored search results in at least two columns and a plurality of organic search results in at least a third column of one or more search results pages, wherein a layout of the at least three columns depends on the degree of commerciality of the search query.Type: GrantFiled: August 9, 2011Date of Patent: November 6, 2012Assignee: Yahoo! Inc.Inventor: Weiguo Liu
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Patent number: 8301878Abstract: A system and method for searching and retrieving certificates, which may be used in the processing of encoded messages. In one embodiment, a certificate synchronization application is programmed to perform certificate searches by querying one or more certificate servers for all of the certificates on those certificate servers. If all of the certificates on a certificate server cannot be successfully retrieved using a single search query, due to a search quota on the certificate server being exceeded for example, the search is re-performed through multiple queries, each corresponding to a narrower subsearch. Embodiments described herein enable large amounts of certificates to be automatically searched for and retrieved from certificate servers, thereby minimizing the need for users to manually search for individual certificates.Type: GrantFiled: August 20, 2008Date of Patent: October 30, 2012Assignee: Research In Motion LimitedInventors: Michael S. Brown, Neil P. Adams, David F. Tapuska, Herbert A. Little
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Patent number: 8301631Abstract: Methods and system for performing annotation of digital information are provided. One method includes searching for items of interest using a search engine. Once the URIs associated with the item of interest are identified, a plurality of attributes are provided that may be associated with each URI. A user may provide the values for the attributes or the system may suggest values for the attributes based on information associated with each URI. Once the attributes and values are assigned, the annotated URI along with the attributes and values is stored. Another method provides for sharing of the annotated information. A user may communicate annotated information to an external storage system for sharing with other users having access to the external storage system. Another method provides for automatic updates of the annotation entries by periodically fetching the digital information associated with each URI and updating the values associated with each attribute.Type: GrantFiled: July 17, 2009Date of Patent: October 30, 2012Inventor: Edmond Kwok-Keung Chow
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Patent number: 8301613Abstract: Disclosed is a method, system and a computer program for correlating an incident service ticket with an incident resource ticket. The method includes, in response to a creation of an incident service ticket in a certain service category; searching with a data processor for open incident resource tickets of the same or similar category; searching with the data processor based on a set of similarity rules for corresponding critical configuration items defined in business service configuration items and, if both searches succeed, searching with the data processor found incident resource tickets ordered by time using found critical configuration items and, if a match is found, declaring the incident service ticket to be correlated with the matching incident resource ticket.Type: GrantFiled: September 20, 2010Date of Patent: October 30, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Genady Grabarnik, Gabriela P. Marcu, Larisa Shwartz, Christopher Ward
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Patent number: 8301615Abstract: The present invention relates to systems and methods for customizing search engine (CSE) behavior. In an embodiment of the present invention, a system customizes a query search of a plurality of search engines. The system includes a search executor configured to receive a search specification having a query modification description, a results modification description, and a specification of sections. The specification of sections includes a first section identifying a first search engine in the plurality of search engines and a second section identifying a second search engine different from the first search engine in the plurality of search engines. The specification of sections also includes a connecting section coupled to the first section and the second section. The connecting section has an associated condition controlling results combined from the first and second sections.Type: GrantFiled: September 20, 2010Date of Patent: October 30, 2012Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Patrick Riley, Ramanathan Guha, Corin Anderson, Matthew Wytock, Othar Hansson
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Patent number: 8301438Abstract: A method and an apparatus for selecting an answer to a natural language question. The method includes: detecting a named entity in the natural language question; extracting information related to an answer from the natural language question; searching in linked data according to the detected named entity; generating a candidate answer according to a search result; parsing the candidate answer according to the information related to the answer; and obtaining a value of a feature of the candidate answer; and evaluating each candidate answer by synthesizing the value of the feature of the candidate answer.Type: GrantFiled: April 23, 2010Date of Patent: October 30, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: David Angelo Ferrucci, Li Ma, Yue Pan, Zhao Ming Qiu, Chen Wang, Christopher Welty, Lei Zhang
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Patent number: 8296283Abstract: Content items in a distributed system are defined by a respective key, and each such content item is copied to R1 computer systems of the distributed system which have unique identifiers closest to a value of the respective key, where R1 is less than R2 which is less than R3, at least R2 number of the computer systems have copies of any respective one of the content items for all of the content items, and none of the computer systems farther than R3 in an address space of the distributed system have a copy of the subject content item. Modifications of individual content items are synchronized across all instances thereof responsive to a put operation and/or at periodic intervals.Type: GrantFiled: April 12, 2010Date of Patent: October 23, 2012Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Borislav Agapiev, Igor Kabiljo
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Patent number: 8296311Abstract: A search middleware may be used to receive search requests regarding a software incident associated with a software application. The search requests may be populated with attribute values determined based on context data associated with the software application and collected in association with the software incident. The search requests may be dispatched to a subset of a plurality of solution repositories, even if the solution repositories have different interfaces and/or search technologies. The resulting solution documents retrieved from the solution repositories may be compiled for presentation on a solution search interface.Type: GrantFiled: November 21, 2011Date of Patent: October 23, 2012Assignee: SAP AGInventors: Roman Rapp, Constantin Savu, Tilmann Haeberle, Thomas Schneider, Olena Kushakovska, Jean-Pierre Djamdji
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Patent number: 8296123Abstract: Systems, methods, and apparatus for accessing distributed models in automated machine processing, including using large language models in machine translation, speech recognition and other applications.Type: GrantFiled: February 16, 2007Date of Patent: October 23, 2012Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Ignacio E. Thayer, Franz Josef Och, Alexander Mark Franz, Jeffrey Dean, Thorsten Brants, Jay M. Ponte, Peng Xu, Sha-Mayn Teh, Jeffrey Chin, Anton Carver, Daniel Rosart, John S. Hawkins, Karel Driesen
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Patent number: 8290924Abstract: A type of search engine (referred to as the “Get Engine”) receives one or more keywords, semantically formulates a question being asked from the keywords, generates specifications for the query, and searches a website index to determine websites that are likely owners of the answer to the question based on the query specifications and website classifications. The Get Engine determines a website that is most likely the owner of the answer based on credibility, searches the pages of the website using the keywords and additional keywords related to the query, retrieves the answer from the pages of the website, and receives feedback used in part to determine the credibility of the website.Type: GrantFiled: July 17, 2009Date of Patent: October 16, 2012Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLCInventor: Lalgudi Natarajan Rajaram
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Patent number: 8290768Abstract: A system and method for determining a set of attributes to a communication includes a decision engine, a monitoring module, and application software. The decision engine receives communications and assigns a set of attributes to each received communication. Each communication and associated set of attributes is sent to the communication's corresponding application which processes the set of attributes for performing an action, such as display. The monitoring module monitors an item selected by the system user. The monitoring module may feed the selected item and associated communication back to the decision module. The decision engine may process the feedback on-line or in real-time. The decision module is a learning system that updates classification criteria using feedback. Classification scores associated with each set of attributes may represent an estimate of the statistical likelihood that each attribute is the proper response to the communication.Type: GrantFiled: March 27, 2002Date of Patent: October 16, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventor: Yoram Nelken
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Patent number: 8290925Abstract: Disclosed are various embodiments for locating product references in community content. Character sequences (n-grams) are extracted from a page of text content. Each n-gram is evaluated as a potential product reference using a product catalog search for the n-gram or a conditional probability for the n-gram. The conditional probability is obtained from behavior-based search data. When the search was used for the evaluation, each n-gram is found to be a potential product based on results from the product catalog search. When the behavior-based search data was used for the evaluation; each n-gram is found to be a potential product based on the conditional probability exceeding a threshold.Type: GrantFiled: November 15, 2010Date of Patent: October 16, 2012Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Balamurugan Anandan, Logan Luyet Dillard, James G. Robinson
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Patent number: 8285709Abstract: In one embodiment, a method includes concurrently executing a set of multiple queries, through a processor, to improve a resource usage within a data warehouse system. The method also includes permitting a group of users of the data warehouse system to simultaneously run a set of queries. In addition, the method includes applying a high-concurrency query operator to continuously optimize a large number of concurrent queries for a set of highly concurrent dynamic workloads.Type: GrantFiled: May 12, 2010Date of Patent: October 9, 2012Assignee: Teradata US, Inc.Inventors: George Candea, Neoklis Polyzotis
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Patent number: 8285082Abstract: A system for identifying digital content related to a portion of a block of text receives, automatically or via input by a user, an indication of one or more words included in the block of text. The system searches a database of digital content based on the one or more words and retrieves from the database one or more digital content items or identifiers of digital content items that are related to the one or more words. The system provides the retrieved digital content items or identifiers to the user, and receives a selection of one or more of the provided items or identifiers from the user. The system associates for display or replay the one or more selected digital content items with the one or more words in the block of text. Other embodiments of the system are also disclosed.Type: GrantFiled: September 4, 2007Date of Patent: October 9, 2012Assignee: Getty Images, Inc.Inventor: Steven F. Heck
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Patent number: 8285702Abstract: A system and method including a simulator operating in conjunction with a search-engine, for improving document and site findability. Users input their content (pages or sites) and the simulator will analyze the site in terms of structure and content. It will then give the user a ranked list of suggestions about how the user might improve his/her site's findability. The user will then be able to apply some or all of these suggestions, or any other changes, by virtually modifying the site, and then immediately receive feedback both on how the pages look and a sense of the degree of findability improvement. The interactive process allows users to simulate modifications in their site structure and content in order to improve its findability. When the user completes the modifications and is satisfied with the new findability of his site, the user will be able then to replace his/her current site in the repository with the modified one.Type: GrantFiled: August 7, 2008Date of Patent: October 9, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: David Carmel, Elad Yom-Tov, Naama Zwerdling
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Patent number: 8280722Abstract: A system offers potential completions for fragments of text. The system may obtain a text fragment and identify documents that include the text fragment. The system may locate sentences within the documents that include at least a portion of the text fragment, identify sentence endings associated with the located sentences, and present the sentence endings as potential completions for the text fragment.Type: GrantFiled: September 16, 2011Date of Patent: October 2, 2012Assignee: Google Inc.Inventors: Georges R. Harik, Simon Tong, David R. Cheng
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Publication number: 20120246136Abstract: A live communication-enabled search engine comprising: a user interface for receiving at least one query from the user and for the user to interact with the search engine; a query server for receiving the at least one query from a user; a corpus to which the query is applied and against which search results are provided to the user; and at least one communications module included in the search results, the communications module operatable by the user to communicate substantially live with a third party.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 23, 2011Publication date: September 27, 2012Inventor: Bryant MOSS
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Patent number: RE43835Abstract: A tabulating system and method analyzes content posted and/or queried by an online community. The content can be searched based on a search filter executed at defined intervals, and the system can also reach through to locate and extract content from other remote systems. Community postings and queries can be tabulated to determine “hot topics” of interest to the community, to enhance the appeal and stickiness of a website. Furthermore, subscribers can also formulate and define their own custom searches to be run on their behalf to identify the existence of particular content on the website.Type: GrantFiled: February 22, 2007Date of Patent: November 27, 2012Assignee: Maquis Techtrix LLCInventors: Timothy O. Knight, J. Nicholas Gross