Granted Patent B2

US 9,053,188 · App. 12/368,980 · Granted Jun 9, 2015

Abstract

Claims (26)

1. A method for performing searches using a search engine server, wherein the method evaluates session statistics to improve a search performance of the search engine server over time, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a search string from external to the search engine server, each search string corresponding to a specific client device source;

performing a search operation and outputting search operation information intended for presentation to a user at a specific client device source via a communication interface;

gathering page usefulness statistics back from the client device source via the communication interface, the page usefulness statistics being useful to the search engine server in determining what additional search results are of interest to the user;

merging the page usefulness statistics within the search engine server with other generated server session statistics using processing circuitry;

appending current session statistics into a webpage vector event table configured to store session statistics for many different search operations involving many different users over a period of time; and

executing a vector event manager configured to compile the session statistics gathered in the vector event table, the search engine server configured to use the session statistics for many different search operations involving many different users over a period of time to evaluate search engine server performance to improve the quality of search results provided to users in response to search operations.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of receiving a search string comprises receiving many search strings from many clients that are performing a plurality of search operations simultaneously and wherein the session statistics are used over many different user search operations to tune the search engine server for improved search operation over time.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein many clients are performing search operations simultaneously, each client starting a search operation by entering a search string of their own, and wherein there is one virtual machine search session existing on the search engine server for each client that is performing search operations and wherein the search engine sever gathers the search session statistics for each of the searched and browsed web pages within each virtual machine that corresponds to each client.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of appending current session statistics into the webpage vector event table comprises updating the vector event table with respective web pages from the search engine database and appending desirability data and current session statistics related to the respective web pages to the vector event table.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of executing the vector event manager for compiling the session statistics gathered in the vector event table comprises the computation of some useful statistics for rating the usefulness of each of the search results via vector event table contents.

6. A search engine server that supports searching of web content, the Search Engine Server comprising:

a communication interface;

memory; and

processing circuitry communicatively coupled to the communication interface and to the memory and configured to:

receive a search string via the communication interface that corresponds to a specific client device source;

perform a search operation using the search string;

output search operation information via the communications interface intended for presentation to a user at the specific client device source;

gather page usefulness statistics from the client device source via the communication interface, the page usefulness statistics being useful in determining what additional search results are of interest to the user;

merge the page usefulness statistics with session statistics;

append the session statistics into a webpage vector event table configured to store session statistics for many different search operations involving many different users over a period of time; and

execute a vector event manager configured to compile the session statistics gathered in the vector event table, to use the session statistics for many different search operations involving many different users over a period of time to evaluate search performance to improve the quality of search results provided to users in response to search operations.

7. The search engine server of claim 6 , wherein the processing circuitry is configured to service search strings from many clients to perform a plurality of search operations simultaneously and use the session statistics over many different user search operations to tune the search engine server for improved search operation over time.

8. The search engine server of claim 6 , wherein the processing circuitry is configured to service search strings from many clients to perform a plurality of search operations simultaneously, each client starting a search operation by entering a search string of their own, and wherein there is one virtual machine search session existing on the search engine server for each client that is performing search operations and wherein the search engine sever gathers the search session statistics for each of the searched and browsed web pages within each virtual machine that corresponds to each client.

9. The search engine server of claim 6 , wherein the search engine server is configured to append session statistics into the webpage vector event table by updating the vector event table with respective web pages from the search engine database and appending desirability data and current session statistics related to the respective web pages to the vector event table.

10. The search engine server of claim 6 , wherein search engine server is configured to compile compute useful statistics for rating the usefulness of each of the search results via vector event table contents.

Assignments (8)