Context-Aware Query Resolution Across Multiple Applications
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing techniques for resolving queries on electronic devices with multiple applications are inefficient and ineffective due to inconsistent user interfaces and formats, requiring direct application responses to inquiries without considering the context of displayed entities.
Innovation Solution
A digital assistant or search service can utilize a context service to annotate actions and entities, selectively obtaining additional context when needed, and perform operations based on a list of currently displayed entities, either by communicating with a second service or acting independently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If applications respond to inquiries about their content directly, then each application maintains its own context independently, but the system as a whole becomes inefficient and ineffective due to inconsistent user interfaces and formats
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a context service as an intermediary between applications and the digital assistant. This mediator collects context information from multiple applications, standardizes it into a unified format, and makes it available to the digital assistant. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining context accuracy through centralized collection while improving query resolution efficiency through standardized access.
Solution Approach 2:
The context service provides a universal interface that works across multiple different applications with inconsistent user interfaces and formats. By creating a common context representation that multiple applications can contribute to and access, the system achieves both reliability in context accuracy and productivity in query resolution across the entire application ecosystem.
2Ease of operation
If the digital assistant obtains context information from a context service, then query resolution becomes more accurate and effective, but the system complexity increases due to additional service components and communication protocols
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the system into distinct functional components: applications that generate context, a context service that standardizes and manages context information, and a digital assistant that consumes context for query resolution. This segmentation allows each component to focus on its specific function, improving ease of operation while managing complexity through clear separation of concerns.
Solution Approach 2:
The context service enforces homogeneity by standardizing context information from diverse applications into a unified format. This homogeneous representation simplifies the interface between components, making the system easier to operate despite the underlying complexity of integrating multiple heterogeneous applications.
3Loss of information
If the system requests a list of all currently displayed entities from the context service, then complete context information is obtained for accurate query resolution, but the communication overhead and processing time increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of always requesting complete context information, the digital assistant uses partial action by requesting only the specific context needed for the current query. The context service provides targeted information rather than exhaustive lists, reducing communication overhead and processing time while maintaining sufficient context completeness for accurate query resolution.
Solution Approach 2:
The context service performs preliminary action by maintaining an up-to-date registry of displayed entities and their attributes in advance. When the digital assistant needs context information, it can quickly retrieve pre-processed data rather than collecting it in real-time, reducing query resolution time while preserving information completeness.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present disclosure generally relates to resolving queries. Some techniques are for responding to queries in accordance with some embodiments. Other techniques are for annotating objects in accordance with some embodiments.