Anonymous search system using human searchers

Abstract

A system and a method for performing a search with the assistance of a computer may assign a unique identifier to a user, to a query submitted to the system by the user, to a human searcher that may respond to the query, and to a result produced by a human searcher in response to the query. These unique identifiers may be stored in a database, and associated with one another. The system maintains a database of unique identifiers for each original query associated with the unique identifier of the posing user and responding searcher, and may establish an anonymous communication channel between the user and the searcher during the initial session when the query is posed and answered, and during follow-up sessions that may occur in the future.

1 . A method, comprising:
 receiving a query from a user;   directing the query to a human searcher;   associating the user and the human searcher with a unique identifier of the query;   providing an indicator of the human searcher in receipt of the query to the user;   receiving a request from the user subsequent to the query;   providing an answer to the user responsive to the request;   selecting, by a processor, the human searcher to perform a search responsive to the request when the user activates the indicator of the human searcher and rejects the answer provided.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 assigning a verification code to the user; and 
 delivering queries previously submitted by the user when a message includes the verification code. 
 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  further comprising:
 delivering the queries based on a keyword provided by the user. 
 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 providing a search result of the human searcher as the indicator. 
 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 linking a tracking ID to the human searcher; and 
 retrieving requests to which the human searcher has responded based on the tracking ID. 
 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  further comprising:
 retrieving the requests based on a keyword provided by the human searcher. 
 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 5  further comprising:
 receiving a modification associated with the query; and 
 sending a notification to the user of the modification. 
 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 receiving from the human searcher an expiration associated with a search result. 
 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 retrieving the answer from a storage. 
 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 retrieving the answer from a storage associated with human searchers; and 
 selecting the answer based on a ranking of the answer for the request. 
 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising:
 identifying a human provider associated with the answer; and 
 establishing a communication between the user, the human searcher, and the human provider. 
 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 selecting the human searcher to perform the search when the human searcher has responded to a previous question of the user associated with a topic of the query. 
 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 selecting the human searcher to perform the search based on a rank of the searcher for the query and the user. 
 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 providing the answer by directing a portion of the query to a search resource ranked highest for the query. 
 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 providing the answer by selecting a stored answer of a human provider ranked highest for the query. 
 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 receiving the answer from a human provider selected based on a rank of the provider and an availability of the provider; and 
 directing the query to the human searcher when the human searcher is ranked highest for the query and the human searcher is not available when the query is received. 
 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 receiving the answer from a human provider ranked highest for the request; and 
 blocking the human provider from receiving requests associated with the user. 
 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 providing the query to human searchers; and 
 notifying the human searchers when the human searcher accepts the query. 
 
     
     
         19 . A system, comprising:
 a user system providing a user identifier, receiving a query and a request from a user, and transmitting the query and the request via a network;   a server device receiving the query, associating the user identifier and a searcher device with the query, directing the query to a searcher device, providing a response to the request, providing an indicator of a searcher and a search result to the user responsive to the query, and directing the request to the searcher device when the user system rejects an answer provided responsive to the request and selects the indicator of the human searcher; and   the searcher device receiving the query and the request and providing the search result to the server device, and performing a search when the request is received.   
     
     
         20 . A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a program embodied therein for causing a computer to execute operations including assisting a user submitting a query to a human searcher, comprising:
 receiving a query from a user;   directing the query to a human searcher;   associating the user and the human searcher with a unique identifier of the query;   providing an indicator of the human searcher in receipt of the query to the user;   receiving a request from the user subsequent to the query and providing an answer to the user responsive to the request;   selecting the human searcher to perform a search responsive to the request when the user activates the indicator of the human searcher and rejects the answer provided.