JPH06243166A - Information display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the retrieval of related information by having a relation to a classification which is being retrieved at present, and also, discriminating the classification which is not retrieved yet, and displaying a part of an information element belonging to the selected classification in the classification concerned. CONSTITUTION:The device is provided with a data base part 2, a semantic related information management means 4, a retrieval information management means 5, a display information management means 6 and an other retrieval candidate display request means 7. In such a state, when a display of other classification requested by the other retrieval candidate display request means 7, the display information management means 6 derives a classification having the same keyword as a keyword corresponding to the classification which a user is retrieving at present from management information of the semantic related information management means 4. Also, the classification which a user does not retrieve yet therein is derived from management information of the retrieval information management means 5, and in the classification corresponding to two conditions, the selected classification is indicated clearly on a screen of a display part 3. Simultaneously, a part of an information element belonging to the classification concerned is displayed on the display part 3.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

[Table of Contents] The present invention will be described in the following order. Field of Industrial Application Conventional Technology Problems to be Solved by the Invention Means for Solving the Problems (FIG. 1) Action (FIG. 8) Example (FIGS. 1 to 9) (1) First Example (FIG. 1 to 9) (2) Other Examples Effect of the Invention

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information display device in an information retrieval system, and in particular, it is possible to grasp the information space in a database by graphically displaying the relationship between the information in the database and supporting the information retrieval. It is suitable for application to facilitators.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, the use of database technology has been widely spread to general users due to the progress of database technology for managing a large amount of information. However, in order to retrieve the necessary information from these databases, it is necessary to have specialized knowledge about the databases and acquisition of complicated usage methods.

Certainly, even in the conventional information retrieval method, if the user has a specific knowledge about the retrieval object and the related keyword can be used as an adjective, those keyword groups are successfully combined. By doing so, desired information can be easily searched. However, when the user actually wants to find some information, the target to be searched is undecided, or he / she has vague knowledge about the target, and often cannot think of an appropriate keyword.

Therefore, when the search request is ambiguous and the related words do not appear, a method of presenting the information accumulated by the system and allowing the user to select it has been considered in order to support the information search by the user. It utilizes the characteristics that it is not immediately remembered as a word, but that it can be understood if it is shown, and that the characteristic of recalling related information from the memory by viewing and generating a search request from another perspective.

For example, such information retrieval methods include a hierarchical menu method and a hypertext method. The former constructs a classification of information hierarchically, and supports the user's grasp of the information by tracing the classification menu in each hierarchy step by step. It is represented by a work structure, and the related information is traced through links in the information space to assist the user in grasping the information.
In addition, in order to support information retrieval, various relationships were devised to make it easy to grasp the overall structure of the information space in the database by visually displaying the relationship between information elements in the database using diagrams. A method has been proposed.

[0007]

However, as the scale of the information space increases, the details of the entire information space cannot be displayed at one time due to the physical limitation of the display screen size, and the details of the entire information space are related to the search target on the screen. There may be cases where not all categories are displayed. However, it is generally difficult for a user to search for a category that is not displayed on the screen in this way.

[0008] Further, the method of classification by the database and the viewpoint of classification considered by the user are often different, and in this case, the user cannot easily notice that there is another related classification. Similarly, if the search by the user is fixed to a specific classification, it is difficult for the user to notice the classification even if there are other related classifications.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and assists the user in searching the database for the search candidates related to the currently searched category, and the search that is not displayed on the display screen. The present invention is intended to propose an information display device that does not miss a search including candidates.

[0010]

In order to solve such a problem, in the present invention, information is hierarchically classified, and a database for managing information elements by assigning classification names A, B, C ... To each classification. The section 2, the meaning related information managing means 4 for managing the keywords corresponding to each category, the category currently searched by the user for each category, the category already searched, or not yet searched. A search information management unit 5 that determines whether the information is a classification and manages the determination result;
Display information management means 6 for displaying a part of the classification managed in the database section 2 on the display section based on the management information of the meaning related information management means 4 and the search information management means 5.
And another search candidate display requesting means 7 for requesting the display information management means 6 to display a display other than the currently displayed classification, and the display information management means 6 uses the other search candidate display requesting means 7 to perform another classification. Is requested from the management information of the meaning related information managing means 4, a category having the same keyword as the category currently searched for by the user is searched, and a category not yet searched by the user Is obtained from the management information of the search information management means 5 and the selected classification among the classifications corresponding to the two conditions is clearly displayed on the screen of the display unit 3, and at the same time, the display unit 3 displays some of the information elements belonging to the corresponding classification. To display.

[0011]

With the display information management means 6, the display information management means 6 determines a classification that has a semantic relationship with the classification that the user is currently searching and has not yet searched, and displays the display other than the classification that is currently displayed as another search candidate. When the user makes a request using the requesting means 7, the selected category of the relevant category is displayed on the screen, and at the same time, a part of the information elements belonging to the category is displayed, so that the related information by the user is displayed. The search for will be much easier than before.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

(1) First Embodiment In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an information retrieval system as a whole,
The information corresponding to the user's instruction is read from the database device 2 in which the information is hierarchically classified and accumulated, and is displayed on the screen of the display unit 3. In the case of this embodiment, the data structure of the database device 2 includes a hierarchical classification space 2A in which information is classified by an inclusion relation (nested structure) and an information element group 2B belonging to the lowest classification.
(Fig. 2).

On the other hand, the display unit 3 is the database device 2
The information relation display window 3B provided in the display screen 3A for the relation between information in the hierarchical structure stored in
It is designed to display as a dendrogram, and when the database is large, only a part of it is displayed (Fig. 3).

Here, the hierarchical classification space 2A is classified into four hierarchies, and from the upper hierarchy to the lower hierarchy, A,
B (B1, B2), C (C1 to C4), D (D1 to D)
The classification name of 8) is attached respectively. Then, for each of the classifications D1, D2, D3 ... D8 arranged in the lowermost layer, 4
Information elements E1 to E3, E4 to E6, E7 and E8 ... E21 to Classified according to one hierarchy (A, B, C, D)
E23 is stored in each.

On the other hand, the meaning-related information management unit 4 is designed to manage the keyword information corresponding to each of the lowermost layers D1 to D8 by using the management table. According to this, information can be searched. In the case of this embodiment, for example, the information elements E1 to E3 belonging to the classification D1 can be searched by the two keywords “aaa” or “ddd”, and the information elements belonging to the classification D2 can be searched by the two keywords “b”.
It can also be searched by "bb" or "ccc" (Fig. 4).

Further, the search information management unit 5 determines whether each of the plurality of categories belongs to the “category currently searched by the user”, the “class already searched”, or the “class not yet searched”. The information is discriminated and the information is managed using a management table as shown in FIG. For example, from the management table in FIG. 5, it can be seen that there is a history that the user has already searched for the two classifications D6 and D7 and that the classification D8 is currently searched.

Incidentally, in the case of this embodiment, the classification framework currently searched by the user is displayed by a thick line as compared with other classification frameworks, and the classifications already searched are different. It is designed to be displayed in a color different from the classification of.

As described above, a management table based on keywords and a management table based on a search history are prepared for each of the classifications D1 to D8 that constitute the database. A display information management unit 6 is provided that selects "classes that have not been searched" and "classes that have the same keyword as the class that the user is currently searching" from the database.

The display information management unit 6 uses the two management tables prepared in the meaning-related information management unit 4 and the search information management unit 5 to indicate that "the classification having the same keyword as the classification currently searched for is not yet reached. It is designed to select a category that satisfies the “unsearched category”.

When the other search candidate request instructing section 7 instructs the display information managing section 6 to display the candidates, the display information managing section 6 clearly indicates the selected candidate area on the screen and also displays one of the information elements belonging to the classification. The copies are displayed in the empty area, and when there are a plurality of classifications of candidates satisfying the conditions, one of the candidates is displayed in order. This classification is displayed by shading so that it can be distinguished from other classifications.

For example, when selecting a category that satisfies this condition from the management tables of FIGS. 4 and 5, the display information management unit 6 selects the same keyword as the keyword “aaa” among the keywords corresponding to the currently searched category D8. Classifications D1 and D5 are selected as classifications that have not yet been searched (FIG. 6).

The candidates thus selected are displayed on the screen by the other search candidate request instructing section 7. Here, the other search candidate request instruction unit 7 is constituted by a pointing device such as a mouse and a search button 7A (“presentation of another search candidate” shown in FIG. 7) displayed on the screen of the display unit 3, When the user clicks the search button 7A with the pointing device, the display information management unit 6 is instructed to display the corresponding information because the user requests another search candidate. Incidentally, at this time, the user's operation is only to specify the search button 7A, and not to input the condition for searching for the requested search candidate.

In the above configuration, the database device 2
4 classifications out of all the classifications stored in D5, D
It is assumed that 6, D7 and D8 are displayed on the display screen 3A, and a search procedure in the case where the user wants to search for information related to the classification D8 currently searched for will be described. However, at this time, it is assumed that the user has already finished searching the classifications D6 and D7.

Unless the user knows the specific knowledge about the classification D8 or the related keywords, it is usually impossible to properly search the candidates of the information elements related to the classification D8, but in the case of this embodiment. It is sufficient to move the cursor 7B to click on the search button 7A displayed on the lower side of the display screen 3A and click to indicate the display of the semantically related classification.

When the display button 7A, that is, "presentation of other search candidates" is designated in this way, the display information management section 6 inputs this request from the other search candidate request instruction section 7 and the display information management section 6 is displayed. Displays the category D1 out of the relevant categories that has not been searched yet and one element E1 of the information elements E1 to E3 in the empty area of the display screen 3A (FIG. 8).

As a result, the user can easily confirm the classification D1 which could not be confirmed in FIG. 3 and could be overlooked. Further, when it is judged that it is necessary to confirm the contents of the information elements belonging to the classification D1, it is sufficient to specify the search of the classification D1, and as shown in FIG. 9, the information elements E1 classified into the classification D1, It is possible to easily confirm the detailed contents of E2 and E3.

According to the above configuration, when graphically displaying the relationship between the information in the database in order to support the information retrieval, it is requested to display the category currently being searched and the related category. By displaying the search button 7A to be displayed on the screen, and when the search button 7A is pressed, the classification of the search candidates which have not been displayed on the screen until then is displayed on the screen. The information element required by the user can be easily searched from the information elements.

Further, at this time, by displaying a part of the information elements together with the unsearched classification, the user can infer the entire contents of the unsearched classification by using the display of that part as a concrete example. Thus, the user can easily know the information of the related classification that has not been searched even for the classification that is not currently displayed on the screen, and the viewpoint can be moved to the related classification. . As a result, it is possible to sufficiently search for the related classification, and it is possible to further improve the utilization efficiency of the database as compared with the conventional case.

(2) Other Embodiments In the above embodiment, the thickness of the classification frame indicating the area of the classification currently being searched is displayed by a thickness different from the thicknesses of other classification frames, The case has been described in which the area of the category that has already been searched is colored and displayed, and the area of the category that has not been searched among the categories that are currently searched is displayed by hatching, but the present invention is not limited to this. , You may change the display of the area only for the area of one of the classification, and display the classification,
Further, each classification may be displayed according to the combination.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the thickness of the classification frame indicating the currently searched classification region is displayed with a thickness different from the thicknesses of the other classification frames, and the already searched classification region is displayed. Although the case where the region of the unsearched classification among the classifications currently searched is displayed by hatching is described, the present invention is not limited to this, and the classification currently searched. The area may be colored to display this classification, and similarly, the area of the already searched classification may be displayed by hatching, and various display methods can be adopted.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the information element E1 belonging to each of the classifications D1 to D8 in the lowest layer of the database stored in the database device 2 belongs to each classification.
Although the case where E23 to E23 are classified has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and information elements belonging to a classification corresponding to each classification in each hierarchy may be classified.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the case where the hierarchical classification display is displayed by the dendrogram is described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the hierarchical display may be performed by another display method. The classification may be displayed.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the case where the unsearched information among the information related to the currently searched classification is displayed and the case where this information is displayed in the empty area of the current display screen has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this,
It can also be applied to the case of opening and displaying a new window.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, when the unsearched information among the information related to the currently searched classification is displayed, when one of the plurality of classifications is displayed, one of them is displayed and The case of displaying a part of the classification belonging to the classification has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of classifications may be displayed, or all the classifications belonging to each classification may be displayed.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the mouse is used as the pointing device of the other search candidate request instructing section 7 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and is also applicable to other devices such as a cursor key. Widely applicable.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the case where the classification related to the classification currently being searched for is displayed on the screen by selecting the search button 7A displayed on the lower surface of the display screen 3A has been described. The present invention is not limited to this, and the display of the candidate information may be selected using another input key.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention, a category having a semantic relation with a category currently searched by a user and information that is not yet searched is hierarchically classified in a database. When a search candidate is requested to be displayed, the classification is displayed on the screen and a part of the information elements belonging to the corresponding classification is displayed to support the information search by the user. However, it is possible to search related information more easily than ever before.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an information display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a dendrogram used for explaining a data structure.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram used for explaining information actually displayed on a screen.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining a management table provided in a semantic related information management unit.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining a management table provided in a search information management unit.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining management information of a category that has not been searched yet and that is semantically related to the currently searched category.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram used to explain another search candidate request instruction unit.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram for explaining display of related information on a screen.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram used for explaining display of another search candidate related to the currently searched classification on the screen.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Information retrieval system, 2 ... Database device, 3
...... Display unit, 4 ... Semantic information management unit, 5 ... Search information management unit, 6 ... Display information management unit, 7 ... Other search candidate request instruction unit, 7A ... Search button.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. Information is hierarchically classified, a database unit that manages information elements by assigning a classification name to each classification, a semantic related information management unit that manages keywords corresponding to each classification, With respect to the classification, a search information management unit that determines whether the classification is a classification that the user is currently searching, a classification that has already been searched, or a classification that has not been searched yet, and manages the determination result, and the above meaning Display information management means for displaying a part of the classification managed in the database section on the display section based on the management information of the related information management means and the search information management means, and a display other than the currently displayed classification Other search candidate display requesting means for asking the display information managing means to display other classifications by the other search candidate display requesting means. Then, a category having the same keyword as the category currently searched by the user is obtained from the management information of the semantic related information managing means, and the category not yet searched by the user is searched for. Obtained from the management information of the information management means,
An information display device, characterized in that a selected classification of classifications corresponding to two conditions is clearly displayed on the display unit, and at the same time, a part of information elements belonging to the corresponding classification is displayed on the display unit. 2. The information display device according to claim 1, wherein the database unit classifies the information elements into a class located at the bottom of the hierarchically classified classes. 3. The display unit, whether the classification selected by the display information management means is a classification that the user is currently searching, a classification that has already been searched, or a classification that has not been searched yet. According to the above, the classification line is displayed according to the difference in the thickness of the frame of each classification frame, and / or the difference in the color in each classification frame, and / or the difference in the pattern in each classification frame, so that the classification can be easily distinguished. The information display device according to claim 1, wherein: 4. The other search candidate display requesting means, a pointing device for designating a predetermined area on the screen of the display unit, and a display device displayed on the screen, which is currently displayed on the display information managing means. A classification button other than the classification currently displayed by pressing the search button with the pointing device. The information display device according to claim 1, wherein is displayed on the screen. 5. The display unit displays the classifications hierarchically classified by a dendrogram.
Information display device described in. 6. The information display device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit displays a classification other than the currently displayed classification in an empty area of the current display screen.