Lateral Concept Generator for Search Query Assistance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional search engines provide limited query formulation assistance by relying on cached terms, failing to offer orthogonal concepts that could enhance user navigation through large collections of structured, semistructured, and unstructured data.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that generates and presents lateral concepts by processing user queries to identify categories and assign scores, allowing users to select these concepts for further search within structured, semistructured, and unstructured data, including the use of feature vectors and similarity engines to calculate scores and return relevant content.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional search engines use cached terms for query formulation assistance, then the system complexity is reduced and operation is simple, but the ability to provide orthogonal concepts and enhance user navigation is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the search assistance function into multiple independent components: a lateral concept generator that processes query results, a scoring mechanism that evaluates concepts, and a presentation layer that displays orthogonal concepts. This segmentation allows each component to specialize in specific tasks, improving overall adaptability while managing complexity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a lateral concept generator as an intermediary component between the search engine and the user. This mediator analyzes search results and generates orthogonal concepts that provide additional navigation options, enhancing query formulation assistance without requiring fundamental changes to the core search engine architecture.
2Productivity
If the search engine returns only direct match results, then the response time is fast and the process is simple, but the user cannot explore content beyond direct search results
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis of search results to identify and score lateral concepts before presenting them to the user. By pre-processing the results and organizing potential orthogonal concepts in advance, the system enables faster content exploration without requiring additional processing time when users interact with the results.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds a new dimension to search results by introducing lateral concepts that represent orthogonal topics and categories. Instead of only returning direct matches, the system presents results in multiple dimensions: direct match results and lateral concepts that open new exploration pathways, thereby improving content discovery efficiency.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the system generates and presents lateral concepts alongside search results, then the query formulation assistance is improved, but the information overload increases and the interface complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by selectively presenting lateral concepts based on their relevance scores and the specific context of each query. Not all concepts are displayed with equal prominence; instead, the interface adapts the presentation quality locally based on user needs and concept importance, reducing information overload while maintaining versatile query assistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the system monitors user interactions with lateral concepts and adjusts the generation and presentation of concepts accordingly. This feedback loop helps filter out less relevant concepts and focuses information presentation on what users actually need, preventing information overload while improving query formulation assistance over time.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, methods, and computer-storage media for generating lateral concepts are provided. The system includes a search engine to receive user queries, a storage to store content and its associated categories, and a lateral concept generator. The lateral concept generator is connected to both the search engine and storage. The lateral concept generator selects lateral concepts from categories associated with the content based on similarity scores for the stored content.