Unsupervised Section Clustering for Multi-Section Document Encoding

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current technologies face challenges in extracting, processing, and encoding unstructured content from multi-section documents into a structured format suitable for data analytics and machine learning, often requiring manual effort and resulting in inefficiencies and errors.

Innovation Solution

An unsupervised section clustering machine learning model is used to generate an inferred document representation by identifying section batches, processing them to create per-type section clusters, and generating an inferred document representation based on these clusters, enabling automated processing and encoding of content.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If manual extraction and processing of unstructured content from multi-section documents is used, then accuracy can be maintained through human judgment, but productivity is reduced and manual effort increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveprocessing speedVSAvoidmanual effort
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSExtent of automation

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs self-service by automatically extracting, processing, and encoding unstructured content from multi-section documents without requiring manual human intervention. The unsupervised section clustering model autonomously identifies section types, groups similar sections, and generates structured representations, enabling the system to serve its own content processing needs independently.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical human effort of manually extracting and processing document content with an automated machine learning system. The unsupervised section clustering model substitutes human cognitive and manual operations with computational processes that automatically perform extraction, classification, and encoding of document sections.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Manufacturing precision

If traditional encoding methods are used for multi-section documents, then implementation is simpler, but measurement precision and manufacturing precision of document representations are reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveencoding accuracyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments multi-section documents into discrete section units and processes each section independently through unsupervised clustering. By dividing the document into manageable section batches and applying clustering algorithms to each, the system achieves precise encoding of individual sections while maintaining overall document structure, thereby improving manufacturing precision without overwhelming system complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent transforms document sections from unstructured text into structured vector representations through unsupervised clustering in a multi-dimensional space. This dimensionality transformation enables precise measurement and comparison of section similarities, improving encoding accuracy by representing document content in a structured format suitable for machine learning applications.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

3Productivity

If unsupervised section clustering is implemented, then productivity and automation are improved, but device complexity and computational requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveprocessing efficiencyVSAvoidcomputational complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the document processing task into segment-level operations by processing sections in batches rather than treating the entire document as a single unit. This segmentation reduces computational complexity at each step while maintaining overall productivity through efficient batch processing and incremental clustering operations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies partial action by processing sections in manageable batches rather than attempting to cluster all document sections simultaneously. This approach reduces computational complexity by breaking down the excessive computational burden into smaller, more manageable partial operations that can be executed efficiently.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS12190252B2Explainable unsupervised vector representation of multi-section documents
Publication Date: 2025.01.07 OPTUM SERVICES IRELAND LTD
  • US12190252B2 patent drawing
  • US12190252B2 patent drawing
  • US12190252B2 patent drawing

AI summary

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide methods, apparatus, systems, computing devices, computing entities, and/or the like for generating an inferred document representation for a multi-section document using a machine learning model. In accordance with one embodiment, a method is provided that includes: identifying a document corpus comprising the multi-section document and other multi-section documents; for each section of the document that is associated with a section type identifier: identifying a section batch that comprises common-type sections across the document corpus; and processing the section batch using the machine learning model to generate per-type section clusters for the section type identifier that comprise an inferred per-type section cluster for the current section; generating the inferred document representation based at least in part on each inferred per-type section cluster for a section of the document; and performing a prediction-based action based at least in part on the representation.