Search system, search program, and client program

Abstract

In order to achieve a search system that enables a user of a client terminal to arrive at unexpected information, a search system 10 is configured to display a search word input screen 21 on a client terminal 5, and is configured to perform, once a search word entered on the input screen 21 reaches a server device 11 connected to the client terminal 5 via the Internet 6, at least a regular search in which a search engine operating in the server device 11 searches for associated information associated with the search word, and a separate aspect search that searches for separate aspect information associated with a separate word that has been derived from the search word and has a different meaning than the search word. The client terminal 5 displays a search result display screen 22 on which a regular search result and a separate aspect search result are simultaneously displayed.

Description

Search system, search program, and client program

[0001] The present invention relates to a search system used to search for information on the Internet.

[0002] Search systems are used to help users search for desired information from the vast amount of information on the Internet. In a search system, a search word (search query) entered into a search box in a browser on a client terminal is sent to a server device, and a search using the search word is performed by a search engine running on the server device. The results of the search by the search engine are then sent from the server device to the client terminal and displayed on the browser of the client terminal (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Patent No. 6790942

[0004] Conventional search systems such as Google (registered trademark) can only reach web pages and information that are highly relevant to a search term. This makes it difficult to gain new insights. While this is not a problem for users who want to look up the meaning of words, it is difficult to say that it is useful in situations where gaining new insights is beneficial (for example, when conducting research for product development or marketing).

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to realize a search system that enables a user of a client terminal to find information that the user never expected.

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a first invention is a search system that displays a search word input screen on a client terminal, and when the search word input on the input screen reaches a server device connected to the client terminal via the Internet, a search engine operating on the server device performs a search, and when the search results from the search engine reach the client terminal, displays a search result display screen on the client terminal to display the search results.The search engine is configured to perform at least a normal search that searches for related information related to the search word, and an alternative-aspect search that searches for alternative-aspect information related to a different word that is derived from the search word and has a different meaning from the search word, and the search result display screen simultaneously displays the results of the normal search and the results of the alternative-aspect search.

[0007] In a second aspect based on the first aspect, the search result display screen displays identification information for the user of the client terminal to distinguish between the results of a normal search and the results of a different aspect search.

[0008] In a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the different aspect search is a serendipity search in which a coincidence search word obtained by elemental decomposition of a search word is used as a different word to search for serendipity information that a user of a client terminal perceives as coincidental.

[0009] In a fourth invention, in the third invention, the serendipity search is used as a first alternative search, and the search engine further performs an inverse search as a second alternative search, using an inverse search word having the opposite meaning to the search word as a separate word to search for opposite information, and the search result display screen simultaneously displays the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the inverse search.

[0010] A fifth invention is the third invention, in which the serendipity search is used as a first alternative search, and the search engine further performs an objective information search as a second alternative search, using the search word to search multiple types of databases, and the search result display screen simultaneously displays the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search.

[0011] In a sixth aspect based on the first aspect, when a scroll operation is performed on the search result display screen, the results of the normal search and the results of the other-side search are scrolled simultaneously.

[0012] The seventh invention is the first invention, in which a selection operation can be performed on the search result display screen to narrow down and view one type of search result from multiple types of search results, including results of normal searches and results of other-side searches, and when the selection operation is performed, a narrowed-down viewing screen is displayed on the client terminal, which displays only the one type of search result selected by the selection operation from the multiple types of search results.

[0013] An eighth invention is a search program that realizes a search engine in a server device connected to a client terminal via the Internet, the search program causing the computer of the server device to execute, when a search word is received from a client terminal, at least the following steps as search engine operations: a normal search that searches for related information related to the search word; and an alternative-aspect search that searches for alternative-aspect information related to another word that is derived from the search word and has a different meaning from the search word; and a step of transmitting information including the results of the normal search and the alternative-aspect search to the client terminal to which the search word is sent.

[0014] A ninth invention is a client program that enables viewing of search results by a search engine on a client terminal connected via the Internet to a server device on which the search engine operates, the client program causing a computer of the client terminal to execute the following steps: sending a search word entered on an input screen displayed on the client terminal to the server device; and, when information including the results of the normal search and the results of the different-side search arrives at the client terminal from the server device on which a search engine operates that performs at least a normal search that searches for related information related to the search word and an alternative-side search that searches for alternative-side information related to another word that is derived from the search word and has a different meaning from the search word, transitioning the screen display of the client terminal to a search result display screen that simultaneously displays the results of the normal search and the results of the different-side search.

[0015] In the present invention, the search engine not only performs a normal search to search for information related to a search word, but also a different-view search to search for information from a different perspective using a different word derived from the search word and having a different meaning from the search word.The search result display screen displayed on the client terminal simultaneously displays the results of the normal search and the different-view search.This allows the user of the client terminal to view not only the results of the normal search but also the results of the different-view search, allowing the user to arrive at information that he or she never expected.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a search system according to this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an input screen. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow of a search unit. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow of a browsing processing unit. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a search result display screen. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a method of arranging search results. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of forward scrolling on the search result display screen. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of backward scrolling on the search result display screen. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a screen for narrowed browsing. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a positioning map. FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration diagram of a search system according to a first modified example of this embodiment. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow of a search unit according to the first modified example.

[0017] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments are merely examples of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, its applications, or its uses.

[0018] [Overview of Search System] The search system 10 is a web search system used to search for information (resources) such as web pages, documents (papers, articles, etc.), images, and videos on the Internet 6. The search system 10 has a server device 11 connected to a client terminal 5 via the Internet 6 (see FIG. 1 ).

[0019] A search program that realizes a search engine is installed on the server device 11. In the server device 11, a CPU (processor) executes and interprets the search program to operate the search engine, and a database creation unit 11a and a search unit 11b are realized as functional blocks. In the database creation unit 11a, a crawler traverses the Internet 6 to collect resource information, and an indexer creates an index (database) 11c from the resource information. When a search word (search query) is received from a client terminal 5, the search unit 11b searches the index 11c and outputs the search results to the client terminal 5 to which the search word was sent. The search results (transmission information) include list information (resource list information) of web pages or the like for each of the three types of search results described below.

[0020] A client program that enables input of search terms and viewing of search results by a search engine is installed on the client terminal 5. In the client terminal 5, a CPU (processor) executes and interprets the client program, thereby realizing a search word processing unit 5a and a browsing processing unit 5b as functional blocks. The search word processing unit 5a displays a search word input screen 21 (see FIG. 2) on the client terminal 5, and upon receiving a search execution operation from a user of the client terminal 5, transmits the search term entered in the search box 21a of the input screen 21 to the server device 11. Upon receiving the above-mentioned transmission information from the server device 11, the browsing processing unit 5b displays a search result display screen 22 (see FIG. 5) on the screen of the client terminal 5 to display the search results. The client program may run on the client terminal 5 or on the cloud.

[0021] [Regarding the Search Engine] In this embodiment, the processing of the search unit 11b (processing of the search engine) enables searching for things from multiple perspectives. The search unit 11b is configured to execute three types of searches when a search word arrives from the client terminal 5. The search unit 11b provides unbiased search results in all three types of searches. The three types of searches are a normal search, a serendipity search (a first different aspect search), and an inverse search (a second different aspect search).

[0022] 3 shows an example of a processing flow of the search unit 11b. When the search unit 11b receives a search word from the client terminal 5, the search unit 11b starts the processing flow and performs a normal search process P1, a serendipity search process P2, and an inverse search process P3 in parallel.

[0023] The normal search searches for related information (related resources) related to a search word from the information stored in the index 11c. In the normal search process P1, an index search S11 is performed in which the search word is used as a search word in the index 11c.

[0024] The serendipity search uses coincidence search words (different words) obtained based on related words related to the search word to search for serendipity information (different aspect resources) that the user of the client terminal 5 perceives as having a sense of coincidence from the information stored in the index 11c. In the serendipity search process P2, the following steps are performed in this order: acquisition of coincidence search words S21, in which coincidence search words are obtained from the search word; and index search S22, in which the coincidence search words are used as search words for the index 11c.

[0025] Regarding the method of acquiring coincidental search words, in step S21, the search unit 11b acquires related words (primary related words) of the search word, and then performs a process of acquiring secondary related words related to the primary related words as coincidental search words. For example, if the search word is "war," candidates for primary related words include "dispute," "politics," "history," "lifestyle," and "history / journalism." If "history / journalism" is acquired from these candidates as the primary related word, the secondary related word "photo" related to "history / journalism" is acquired as the coincidental search word. Furthermore, if "dispute" is acquired as the primary related word, the secondary related word "family court" related to "dispute" is acquired as the coincidental search word. Note that in acquiring coincidental search words S21, coincidental search words may be acquired through another process, such as directly acquiring related words of the search word as coincidental search words.

[0026] Regarding the method of acquiring related words in step S21, for example, the server device 11 is provided with a language dictionary database 15 in advance, and the search unit 11b acquires primary related words by searching the language dictionary database 15 for the meaning of the search word. Then, the search unit 11b acquires secondary related words by searching the language dictionary database 15 for the meaning of the primary related words. The language dictionary database 15 is a database that records the meanings of many words, the origins of words, word classifications, and relationships between words (such as superordinate and subordinate relationships, synonymous relationships, synonymous relationships, and antonymous relationships), and is composed of data from a thesaurus, for example. Furthermore, when multiple related word (secondary related word) candidates are found by searching for meanings in the language dictionary database 15, one candidate can be randomly selected as the related word using a random number or the like. However, when multiple related word candidates are found, one candidate can also be selected as the related word using a predetermined algorithm.

[0027] In the language dictionary database 15, words obtained by abstracting, superordinately conceptualizing, concretizing, decomposing, etc. the search target word, the meaning of which is searched for in the language dictionary database 15, are associated with the search target word (search word, primary related word) and recorded as related words. For example, if the search target word is "apple," "fruit" and "nutrition" are related words. If the search target word is "fruit," "fertilizer" is one of the related words. If the search target word is "nutrition," "vitamin" is one of the related words. If the search target word is "war," "part of history" is one of the related words. If the search target word is "part of history," "photo" is one of the related words. Note that these are merely examples of related words.

[0028] The reverse search is a search for opposite information (resources from another aspect) from the information stored in the index 11c using an opposite search word (another word) that has the opposite (opposite) meaning to the search word. In the reverse search process P3, an opposite search word acquisition S31 for acquiring an opposite search word from the search word and an index search S32 using the opposite search word as a search word for the index 11c are performed in this order. Note that, as a method for acquiring the opposite search word, in step S31 the search unit 11b searches the above-mentioned language dictionary database 15 and performs a process for acquiring an opposite search word corresponding to the search word. However, the method for acquiring the opposite search word is not limited to this process. Note that if there is no opposite search word for the search word, an opposite search is not performed.

[0029] [Regarding the Client Terminal] The screen display of the client terminal 5 transitions according to the processing of a program dedicated to the client or a program running on a web browser. Specifically, the screen display of the client terminal 5 starts with the input screen 21 shown in Fig. 2. Then, when the user of the client terminal 5 inputs a search term and performs a search, transmitted information including the search results by the search engine is received from the server device 11. The browsing processing unit 5b then performs processing according to the flowchart shown in Fig. 4.

[0030] When the results of a search by the search engine arrive, the browsing processing unit 5b displays S41 the search result display screen 22 shown in Fig. 5. Furthermore, when a predetermined operation (a selection operation, which will be described later) is performed on the search result display screen 22, the browsing processing unit 5b displays S42 the narrowed-down browsing screen 23 shown in Fig. 9, or when another predetermined operation is performed on the search result display screen 22, the browsing processing unit 5b displays S43 the positioning map 24 shown in Fig. 10. When a predetermined operation (a map transition operation, which will be described later) is also performed on the narrowed-down browsing screen 23, the browsing processing unit 5b displays S43 the positioning map 24 shown in Fig. 10. Furthermore, when the user clicks on a link to a web page on the search result display screen 22, the narrowed-down browsing screen 23, or the positioning map 24, the browsing processing unit 5b transitions to the web page.

[0031] The search result display screen 22 simultaneously displays search results from the three types of searches described above (normal search results, serendipity search results, and reverse search results). Each type of search result is made up of information (list information) of a large number of web pages (resources). Of the three types of search results, at least the normal search results and the reverse search results each have the list information described above that includes information on ranking by search.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 5 , information on each web page (resource) is displayed within a display frame 25n, 25s, or 25r of a predetermined shape (e.g., a circle). Here, reference numeral 25n represents the display frame for the web page included in the results of the normal search, reference numeral 25s represents the display frame for the web page included in the results of the serendipity search, and reference numeral 25r represents the display frame for the web page included in the results of the reverse search. Each display frame 25n, 25s, or 25r is also provided with identification information 26 indicating which of the three types of search results it represents. In this embodiment, the results of the normal search are provided with identification information 26 marked "(normal)," the results of the serendipity search are provided with identification information 26 marked "(even)," and the results of the reverse search are provided with identification information 26 marked "(anti-)." For example, title information of the web page and a portion of the information posted on the web page are displayed within the display frames 25n, 25s, or 25r. The display frames 25n, 25s, and 25r each have link information (e.g., a uniform resource locator (URL)) to a web page, etc. A user can access the web page, etc. by clicking inside the display frame 25n, 25s, or 25r.

[0033] Next, screen scrolling on the search result display screen 22 will be described. On the search result display screen 22, three types of search results can be simultaneously scrolled. In the virtual area shown in FIG. 6 , display frames (virtual display frames) 25n, 25s, and 25r of web pages or the like constituting the three types of search results transmitted from the server device 11 are arranged on lines L1, L2, and L3 extending in three directions from a center S. When transitioning to the search result display screen 22, the area R on the side of the center S in FIG. 6 is displayed on the screen of the client terminal 5. The three lines L1, L2, and L3 are provided for the purpose of creating a screen design. Three types of search results are arranged on each of the lines L1, L2, and L3. In other words, each line L1, L2, and L3 does not correspond to a single type of search result. The number of these lines may be other than three, or no lines may be provided.

[0034] In the virtual area shown in FIG. 6 , the results of the normal search (virtual display frames 25 n) and the results of the reverse search (virtual display frames 25 r) are arranged in the scrolling direction in order according to the ranking of the search based on the list information described above. For the results of the normal search and the results of the reverse search, the virtual display frames 25 n and 25 r are arranged in order of higher ranking toward the center S. For the results of the serendipity search, multiple web pages, etc. (virtual display frames 25 s) included in the list information described above are arranged in a random order in the scrolling direction using random numbers or the like, regardless of the ranking of the search. Furthermore, because the results of the reverse search and the serendipity search do not correspond to the content the user is searching for, it is preferable that the proportion of the virtual display frames 25 r for the reverse search and the proportion of the virtual display frames 25 s for the serendipity search be small relative to the total number of the virtual display frames 25 n, 25 s, and 25 r, and the respective proportions can be arranged so as to be, for example, 20% or less. In this embodiment, the screen scrolls toward the front or back (vertical direction of the screen) of the client terminal 5, as indicated by arrow A in Fig. 5. Note that in Figs. 6 to 8, the search ranking is written in parentheses next to the symbols in the display frames 25n and 25r for the results of the normal search and the reverse search.

[0035] For example, when an operation is performed to scroll forward (in the direction of arrow A1 in FIG. 7 ), in each of lines L1, L2, and L3, the display frame 25 that was already on the screen at the start of the operation (hereinafter referred to as the "appeared display frame") gradually becomes larger as it moves away from the center S, and finally moves to the outside of the screen, while in FIG. 6 , a display frame 25 that is one frame outside the appeared display frame 25 newly appears from the center S of the screen. Then, like the appeared display frame 25, the newly appeared display frame 25 gradually becomes larger as it moves away from the center S. On the other hand, when an operation is performed to scroll backward (in the direction of arrow A2 in FIG. 8 ), in each of lines L1, L2, and L3, the appeared display frame 25 gradually becomes smaller as it moves toward the center S, and disappears when it falls below a predetermined size, while in FIG. 6 , a display frame 25 that is one frame inside the appeared display frame 25 newly appears from the outside of the screen. In this embodiment, the display frames 25 displayed on the screen of the client terminal 5 are switched by scrolling, so that the three types of search results move through a tunnel arranged in order. The user can simultaneously view the three types of search results from a bird's-eye view. In this scrolling, for the results of the normal search and the reverse search, the display frame 25 with the lowest search ranking is arranged immediately behind the display frame 25 with the highest search ranking, so scrolling backward from the display frame 25 with the highest search ranking displays the lowest-ranked display frame 25.

[0036] Furthermore, the user can narrow down the three types of search results to one for viewing by operating the search result display screen 22. Performing this operation transitions to the narrowed-down browsing screen 23 shown in FIG. 9 . Specifically, this operation involves dragging and dropping display frames 25n, 25s, and 25r displayed on the search result display screen 22 from lines L1, L2, and L3 to outside the lines. If the display frame where the drag and drop is performed is the normal search display frame 25n, the screen transitions to the narrowed-down browsing screen 23 where only the results of the normal search are displayed. If the display frame where the drag and drop is performed is the serendipity search display frame 25s, the screen transitions to the narrowed-down browsing screen 23 where only the results of the serendipity search are displayed. If the display frame where the drag and drop is performed is the reverse search display frame 25r, the screen transitions to the narrowed-down browsing screen 23 where only the results of the reverse search are displayed.

[0037] The narrowed-down browsing screen 23 displays only the search results for one of the three search types selected by the user (hereinafter referred to as the "narrowed-down search results"). The narrowed-down browsing screen 23 displays information on numerous web pages (resources) that constitute the narrowed-down search results in a horizontally scrolling format. The narrowed-down browsing screen 23 displays some or all of the information posted on each web page within a display frame 28. A portion of the information posted on a web page is displayed, for example, when the amount of information posted on the web page exceeds the amount that can be displayed in the display frame 28. Similarly to the display frame 25, the display frame 28 also contains link information to web pages. The user can access the web page by clicking within the display frame 28. In the horizontal scrolling described above, the display frame 28 with the lowest search ranking is located immediately behind the display frame 28 with the highest search ranking. Therefore, scrolling backward from the display frame 28 with the highest search ranking displays the lowest-ranked display frame 28.

[0038] Comparing the display frame 28 of the narrowed browsing screen 23 with the display frame 25 of the search result display screen 22, the display frame 28 has a larger area and displays more information. Therefore, compared to the search result display screen 22, the user can select the web page they want to access while understanding the content of each web page in more detail.

[0039] In this embodiment, when the user performs a map transition operation, a positioning map 24 (see FIG. 10 ) that visualizes the nature of information about the web page (resource) that the user was viewing is generated and displayed on the screen of the client terminal 5. The map transition operation is an operation of clicking an area outside the display frame 28 on the screen or a blank area of ​​the display frame 28.

[0040] Here, the positioning map 24 arranges web pages and the like (resources) in a predetermined order (such as the order of search ranking) or randomly for a plurality (approximately 10 to 20) of preset information categories C (for example, finance, construction, food, etc.). The positioning map 24 has reference lines 29 for arranging web pages that extend radially from the center, and each reference line 29 is assigned one of the plurality of information categories C.

[0041] The contents of the web pages, etc. included in the three search results are analyzed to determine which of the multiple information categories C they correspond to based on meta-information (such as the web page owner, the article's topic and text, and the article's author). Based on the determination result, an icon 30 representing each web page, etc., is positioned on the reference line 29 of the corresponding information category C. Note that the icon 30A representing the web page, etc., being viewed during the map transition operation is displayed so as to be distinguishable from the other icons 30. In this embodiment, only the icon 30A is colored. Note that the positioning map 24 may be any type that separates and arranges web pages, etc., by information category C. For example, the positioning map 24 may be divided vertically into multiple areas, and an information category C to be arranged may be assigned to each divided area. A portion of the positioning map 24 is displayed on the screen of the client terminal 5, and the area displayed on the screen (information category C) can be switched by scrolling horizontally.

[0042] Furthermore, when the user selects a specific web page (icon) 30 or information category C (clicks on the display portion) on the positioning map 24, the screen transitions to the search result display screen 22 (see FIG. 4). However, the search result display screen 22 displayed by this transition only displays the display frame 25 of the web pages, etc. 30 narrowed down to the information category C selected by the user (if the web page 30 is selected, the information category C corresponding to the web page 30).

[0043] [Effects of the embodiment] In this embodiment, the search engine performs two types of searches: a normal search that searches for related information related to a search word, and an alternative search that searches for information from another perspective using a different word derived from the search word and having a different meaning from the search word. The search result display screen 22 displayed on the client terminal 5 simultaneously displays the results of the normal search and the two types of alternative search. This allows the user of the client terminal to view not only the results of the normal search but also the results of the two types of alternative search, thereby enabling the user to arrive at information that the user never expected.

[0044] [First Modification of the Embodiment] In the above embodiment, the search unit 11b performs a normal search, a serendipity search, and an inverse search, but may also perform a normal search, a serendipity search, and a reflection search (objective information search). In other words, a reflection search may be performed instead of an inverse search.

[0045] Reflection search is a search method that encourages users to think introspectively and deliberately about information, and provides users with highly objective information for search terms. Reflection search uses multiple types of databases 31-34 that collect highly objective information. Examples of the multiple types of databases 31-34 that can be used include an encyclopedia / dictionary database 31 that associates meanings with individual words, an essay database 32 that collects numerous essays, a book database 33 that collects numerous books, and a newspaper article database 34 that collects numerous newspaper articles (see FIG. 11). These databases 31-34 may be prepared by a business that provides search services using the search system 10, or they may be publicly available databases or databases available only to subscribers.

[0046] 12 shows an example of a processing flow of the search unit 11b. When the search unit 11b receives a search word from the client terminal 5, the search unit 11b starts the processing flow and performs a normal search process P1, a serendipity search process P2, and a reflection search process P4 in parallel.

[0047] In the reflection search process P4, a search S41 is performed on each of the databases 31 to 34 using the search word. The collection of search results obtained from the multiple databases 31 to 34 is the result of the reflection search. The search result display screen 22 then simultaneously displays the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the reflection search. In Figures 5 to 8, the reference symbol 25r corresponds to the result of the reflection search.

[0048] The search unit 11b is configured to perform three types of searches: a normal search, a serendipity search, and an inverse search, and may perform a reflection search if no results are obtained from the inverse search.

[0049] Other Embodiments In the above-described embodiment, two types of different aspect searches (serendipity search and inverse search) are performed, but either one of the searches may be performed together with the normal search.

[0050] In the above-described embodiment, the search result display screen 22 may be configured such that the screen area is divided horizontally or vertically into three divided areas, and three types of search results are displayed in the three divided areas. In this case, the three types of search results may be scrolled simultaneously or individually.

[0051] In the above embodiment, the results of the serendipity search may also be arranged in the virtual area shown in FIG. 6 in the order according to the ranking determined by the search in the scroll direction based on the list information described above.

[0052] The present invention is applicable to search systems and the like used to search for information on the Internet.

[0053] 5 Client terminal 6 Internet 10 Search system 11 Server device 21 Input screen 22 Search result display screen 23 Narrowed view screen 24 Positioning map

Claims

1. It is possible to enter search terms into the client terminal, When the search word input to the client terminal is received by a server device connected to the client terminal via the Internet, a search engine running on the server device performs a search; A search system that displays, when a result of a search by the search engine arrives at the client terminal, a search result display screen for displaying the result of the search on the client terminal, The search engine is configured to perform a serendipity search and an objective information search in addition to a normal search for searching related information related to the search word; The serendipity search is a search for serendipity information that a user of the client terminal feels is coincidental, using coincidence search words obtained based on related words related to the search word; The objective information search is a search using the search word in a plurality of types of databases selected from a database in which meanings are associated with individual words, a paper database in which a large number of papers are collected, a book database in which a large number of books are collected, and a newspaper article database in which a large number of newspaper articles are collected, A search system, wherein the search result display screen simultaneously displays the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search.

2. The search system according to claim 1 , wherein the search result display screen displays identification information for a user of the client terminal to distinguish between the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search.

3. on the search result display screen, a selection operation can be performed to narrow down and view one type of search result from a plurality of types of search results including the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search, The search system according to claim 1 , wherein when the selection operation is performed, a screen for narrowing down and viewing is displayed on the client terminal, the screen displaying only one type of search result selected by the selection operation out of the multiple types of search results.

4. A search program for implementing a search engine in a server device connected to a client terminal via the Internet, The computer of the server device When a search word is received from the client terminal, the search engine performs a normal search for searching for information related to the search word, as well as a serendipity search and an objective information search. transmitting information including the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search to the client terminal that transmitted the search word; The serendipity search is a search for serendipity information that a user of the client terminal feels is coincidental, using coincidence search words obtained based on related words related to the search word; The objective information search is a search program that uses the search word to search multiple types of databases selected from a database in which meanings are associated with individual words, a paper database in which a large number of papers are collected, a book database in which a large number of books are collected, and a newspaper article database in which a large number of newspaper articles are collected.

5. A program for a client that enables browsing of results of a search by a search engine in a client terminal connected via the Internet to a server device on which the search engine operates, comprising: The client terminal computer includes: transmitting the search word inputted to the client terminal to the server device; when information including the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search is received from a server device on which a search engine operates that performs a normal search to search for related information related to the search word, the client terminal is switched to a search result display screen that simultaneously displays the results of the normal search, the results of the serendipity search, and the results of the objective information search, The serendipity search is a search for serendipity information that a user of the client terminal feels is coincidental, using coincidence search words obtained based on related words related to the search word; The objective information search is a client program that uses the search words to search multiple types of databases selected from a database in which meanings are associated with individual words, a paper database in which a large number of papers are collected, a book database in which a large number of books are collected, and a newspaper article database in which a large number of newspaper articles are collected.