Document Thumbnail Selection via Content Richness Scoring

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing methods for selecting thumbnails from multi-page documents are either unsatisfactory when the first page is blank or lack content, or require tedious manual selection, failing to accurately represent the document's content.

Innovation Solution

A system and method that analyzes each page of a document based on rich content parameters to assign scores, identifying the page with the highest score as the most relevant thumbnail, which can also form a collage if multiple pages have the same score.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If the first page is used as the thumbnail, then the process is simple and automatic, but the thumbnail may not meaningfully represent the document when the first page is blank or lacks content

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvethumbnail generation simplicityVSAvoidthumbnail representativeness

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs self-service by automatically analyzing all pages of the document to identify the most representative thumbnail candidate, eliminating the need for manual selection while ensuring the thumbnail meaningfully represents the document content through automated content evaluation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system changes the selection parameter from a fixed rule (first page) to a dynamic evaluation based on content richness metrics, including text density, image presence, table detection, and formatting characteristics, allowing the thumbnail selection to adapt to the actual document content quality

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If manual thumbnail selection is used, then the thumbnail can be meaningfully selected based on user interpretation, but the process is time-consuming and tedious

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvethumbnail representativenessVSAvoidthumbnail selection time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system replaces the mechanical manual selection process with an automated computational analysis system that evaluates document pages using algorithms to detect content richness, images, tables, and formatting, substituting human interpretation with machine-based content analysis to eliminate time-consuming manual intervention

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Ease of manufacture

If simple plain text pages are used as thumbnails, then the process is straightforward, but the thumbnail is less meaningful and engaging for users

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvethumbnail selection simplicityVSAvoiduser engagement and meaning

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system changes the selection criteria from simple page identification to multi-parameter evaluation including text density, image presence, table detection, and formatting characteristics, prioritizing pages with richer content that are more engaging and meaningful for users while maintaining automated processing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS8046717B1Method to automatically determine the thumbnail of a document

Publication Date: 2011.10.25 ADOBE INC

AI summary

A system and method for automatically generating the most relevant thumbnail of a document. Every page of a multi-page document is analyzed for rich content. Based on this analysis, a score is assigned to every page of the document depending on certain parameters such as the amount of rich content and number of occurrences of rich content on each page. The page with the highest score is identified and this page is selected as the thumbnail of the document.