Grant: Idea to Innovation

Searching within domains such as patent databases or medical collections can be difficult, in both crafting effective queries and in evaluating the results. Searchers often use terminology that is different from what is used within the document collection and many non-relevant documents may be included in the search results. In our previous research, we explored the use of a concept knowledge base to support Web searchers in crafting a query and subsequently exploring the top search results. The goal of this research is to extend the framework of concept-based searching from our previous research to searching within domain-specific collections. The initial target information domain is within patent databases. A new concept knowledge base will be constructed using existing classifications of patents. Previously developed techniques for supporting users in their interactive query refinement and interactive search results exploration processes will form the basis for further research in the development of interfaces to support these tasks. A primary research goal is to further understand how searchers can make use of the conceptual information and the interfaces for representing this information to fulfill their information needs. The anticipated outcomes of the completed research include: (1) a concept knowledge base describing patent knowledge; (2) a prototype system that supports the interactive refinement of queries and the interactive exploration of search results, using the concept knowledge base; (3) completed user evaluations of the prototype systems; (4) patent applications to protect any new intellectual property created in the course of this research; and (5) public dissemination of the research outcomes through conference presentations and journal publications. This work may be readily extended to other document collections such as medical databases, corporate document collections, ect.