Knowledge storage and retrieval system and method

Abstract

A system and method for representing, storing and retrieving real-world knowledge on a computer or network of computers is disclosed. Knowledge is broken down into permanent atomic “facts” which can be stored in a standard relational database and processed very efficiently. It also provides for the efficient querying of a knowledge base, efficient inference of new knowledge and translation into and out of natural language. Queries can also be processed with full natural language explanations of where the answers came from. The method can also be used in a distributed fashion enabling the system to be a large network of computers and the technology can be integrated into a web browser adding to the browser's functionality.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer-implemented method, comprising:
 receiving text, wherein the text was entered as input in a field in a web browser configured to receive uniform resource locators (URLs) as input;   determining that the text comprises a natural language question;   generating a query for use with a knowledge base using the text;   generating a result by processing the query with reference to the knowledge base; and   generating a natural language answer to the natural language question for presentation in the web browser, the natural language answer corresponding to the result.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising identifying an object associated with the result, and generating profile information describing the object for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating an explanation representing how the result was generated, the explanation including a natural language translation of the query and one or more processing steps of the query. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, the method further comprising generating a request for further information for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, the method further comprising rejecting a first one of the possible results where the first possible result is incompatible with an object corresponding to a portion of the text. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein generating the result comprises inferring new knowledge not statically stored in the knowledge base from knowledge that is statically stored in the knowledge base. 
     
     
         7 . A computer-implemented method, comprising:
 receiving text, wherein the text was entered as input in a field in a web browser configured to receive uniform resource locators (URLs) as input;   determining that the text does not correspond to a URL;   generating a query for use with a knowledge base using the text;   generating a result by processing the query with reference to a knowledge base; and   generating a natural language answer responsive to the text for presentation in the web browser, the natural language answer corresponding to the result.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising identifying an object associated with the result, and generating profile information describing the object for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising generating an explanation representing how the result was generated, the explanation including a natural language translation of the query and one or more processing steps of the query. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, the method further comprising generating a request for further information for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, the method further comprising rejecting a first one of the possible results where the first possible result is incompatible with an object corresponding to a portion of the text. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein generating the result comprises inferring new knowledge not statically stored in the knowledge base from knowledge that is statically stored in the knowledge base. 
     
     
         13 . A computing system for responding to natural language input, comprising:
 one or more data stores having a knowledge base stored therein; and   one or more computing devices configured to:
 receive text, wherein the text was entered as input in a field in a web browser configured to receive uniform resource locators (URLs) as input; 
 determine that the text comprises a natural language question; 
 generate a query for use with the knowledge base using the text; 
 generate a result by processing the query with reference to the knowledge base; and 
 generate a natural language answer to the natural language question for presentation in the web browser, the natural language answer corresponding to the result. 
   
     
     
         14 . The computing system of  claim 13 , wherein the one or more computing devices are further configured to identify an object associated with the result, and generate profile information describing the object for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         15 . The computing system of  claim 13 , wherein the one or more computing devices are further configured to generate an explanation representing how the result was generated, the explanation including a natural language translation of the query and one or more processing steps of the query. 
     
     
         16 . The computing system of  claim 13 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, and wherein the one or more computing devices are further configured to generate a request for further information for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         17 . The computing system of  claim 13 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, and wherein the one or more computing devices are further configured to reject a first one of the possible results where the first possible result is incompatible with an object corresponding to a portion of the text. 
     
     
         18 . The computing system of  claim 13 , wherein the one or more computing devices are configured to generate the result by inferring new knowledge not statically stored in the knowledge base from knowledge that is statically stored in the knowledge base. 
     
     
         19 . A computer program product for responding to natural language input, comprising one or more non-transitory computer-readable media having computer program instructions stored therein, the computer program instructions being configured such that, when executed, the computer program instructions cause one or more computing devices to:
 receive text entered as input in a field in a web browser configured to receive uniform resource locators (URLs) as input;   transmit the text to a remote server configured to determine that the text does not correspond to a URL, generate a query for use with a knowledge base using the text, generate a result by processing the query with reference to the knowledge base, and generate a natural language answer corresponding to the result;   receive the natural language answer from the remote server; and   present the natural language answer in the web browser.   
     
     
         20 . The computer program product of  claim 19 , wherein the remote server is further configured to identify an object associated with the result, and generate profile information describing the object for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         21 . The computer program product of  claim 19 , wherein the remote server is further configured to generate an explanation representing how the result was generated, the explanation including a natural language translation of the query and one or more processing steps of the query. 
     
     
         22 . The computer program product of  claim 19 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, and wherein the remote server is further configured to generate a request for further information for presentation in the web browser. 
     
     
         23 . The computer program product of  claim 19 , wherein the text corresponds to a plurality of possible results, and wherein the remote server is further configured to reject a first one of the possible results where the first possible result is incompatible with an object corresponding to a portion of the text. 
     
     
         24 . The computer program product of  claim 19 , wherein the remote server is configured to generate the result by inferring new knowledge not statically stored in the knowledge base from knowledge that is statically stored in the knowledge base.