System And Method For Compiling Search Results Using Information Regarding Length Of Time Users Spend Interacting With Individual Search Results

Abstract

A system and method for producing more relevant search results. When a user selects a search result from a search result listing, the amount of time that the user spends interacting with the item associated with the search result is tracked. Such information regarding interaction time is compiled and is used as a factor in assessing relevance of items in future searches.

1 . A computer-implemented method of processing search engine search results, comprising:
 determining a length of time spent by a user on a web page associated with a search result;   determining an amount of information on the web page associated with the search result;   weighing said length of time spent by the user on the web page against said amount of information on the web page; and   determining a search result ranking for a second, separate, search based at least in part on said length of time weighed against said amount of information.   
     
     
         2 . (canceled) 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the determining a length of time, determining an amount of information, weighing said length of time, and determining a search result ranking operations are performed by one or more computing devices. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein said determining a length of time comprises measuring a length of time spent by a user on a web page associated with a search result. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein said determining a length of time comprises receiving information regarding a length of time spent by a user on a web page associated with a search result. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the following operations performed prior to said determining a length of time:
 receiving a search query from a user; 
 providing a search result listing in response to said query; and 
 causing a web page to be displayed on a user access device in response to a selection by the user from said search result listing. 
 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising using said length of time, weighed against said amount of information, to update information pertaining to a typical length of time users spend on said web page after being directed there in response to a same or similar search, and wherein said determining a search result ranking comprises processing determining a search result ranking for a second, separate search based at least in part on said information pertaining to a typical length of time. 
     
     
         8 - 13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . A computer-implemented method of processing a search result generated by an automated database search, comprising:
 determining a length of time spent by a user viewing a database entry associated with a search result;   using said length of time to update information pertaining to a typical length of time users spend viewing said database entry after being directed to it in response to a same or similar search; and   determining a search result ranking for a second, separate, search based at least in part on said information pertaining to a typical length of time.   
     
     
         15 - 16 . (canceled) 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14  wherein said determining a length of time comprises measuring a length of time spent by a user viewing a database entry associated with a search result. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 14  further comprising the following operations performed prior to said determining a length of time:
 receiving a search query from a user; 
 providing a search result listing in response to said query; and 
 causing a database entry to be displayed on a user device in response to a selection by the user from said search result listing. 
 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 14  wherein said information pertaining to a typical length of time users spend viewing said database entry after being directed to it in response to a same or similar search comprises an average length of time users spend viewing said database entry after being directed to it in response to a same or similar search. 
     
     
         20 - 25 . (canceled) 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 1  wherein weighing said length of time spent by the user on the web page against said amount of information on the web page comprises generating a numerical value representing said length of time weighed against said amount of information, and wherein said processing a result of a second, separate, search comprises processing a result of the second, separate, search based at least in part on said numerical value. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 14  further comprising:
 comparing the length of time spent by the user viewing the database entry with a predetermined threshold length of time; 
 wherein if the length of time spent by the user viewing the database entry is greater than the predetermined threshold length of time, said length of time is not used to update the information pertaining to a typical length of time users spend viewing said database entry after being directed to it in response to a same or similar search. 
 
     
     
         28 . A method comprising:
 receiving at a server a user search request from a user access device;   generating a first set of search results based on the user search request;   matching the received user search request to at least one prior same or similar search request;   ranking the first set of search results based at least in part on temporal coefficients associated with at least some individual entries in the first set of search results, wherein each temporal coefficient is retrieved from a memory accessible by the server and is indicative of an amount of time at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry after being directed to said entry from the results of the at least one prior same or similar search request; and   transmitting the ranked first set of search results from the server to the user access device.   
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein each temporal coefficient is indicative of at least one of: an average length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; a median length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; a weighted average length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; a mean length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; and a range of times at least two prior users spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request. 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 28 , further comprising:
 obtaining at the server a first time interval spent by the user access device accessing a first search result entry from the ranked first set of search results; and   updating, based at least in part on the first time interval, the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry.   
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 30 , wherein obtaining the first time interval comprises measuring at the server a length of time spent by the user access device accessing the first search result entry. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein measuring at the server the length of time comprises receiving at the server, from software installed on the user access device, data indicative of search result access activity by the user access device. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 30 , wherein obtaining the first time interval comprises receiving at the server data indicative of a length of time spent by the user access device accessing the first search result entry, said data received from either the user access device or a remote server. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein said data indicative of the length of time is received from a remote server. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 30 , wherein updating the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry further comprises:
 determining an amount of information in the first search result entry associated with the matched user search request and the at least one prior same or similar search request; and   updating the temporal coefficient based at least in part on the first time interval weighted against the determined amount of information in the first search result entry.   
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 30 , wherein updating the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry further comprises:
 estimating an amount of time for a user to appreciate information of the first search result entry; and   updating the temporal coefficient based at least in part on the first time interval weighted against the estimated amount of time.   
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 28 , further comprising:
 obtaining at the server a first time interval spent by the user access device accessing a first search result entry from the ranked first set of search results;   comparing the first time interval with a predetermined threshold length of time stored in the memory of the server;   wherein if the first time interval is greater than the predetermined threshold length of time, said first time interval is not used to update the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry.   
     
     
         38 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon, that, when executed on a processor, perform the steps of:
 receiving at a server a user search request from a user access device;   generating a first set of search results based on the user search request;   matching the received user search request to at least one prior same or similar search request;   ranking the first set of search results based at least in part on temporal coefficients associated with at least some individual entries in the first set of search results, wherein each temporal coefficient is retrieved from a memory accessible by the server and is indicative of an amount of time at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry after being directed to said entry from the results of the at least one prior same or similar search request; and   transmitting the ranked first set of search results from the server to the user access device.   
     
     
         39 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 38 , wherein each temporal coefficient is indicative of at least one of: an average length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; a median length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; a weighted average length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; a mean length of time the at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request; and a range of times at least two prior users spent accessing the corresponding individual entry as a result of the at least one prior same or similar search request. 
     
     
         40 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 38 , wherein the instructions further comprise:
 obtaining at the server a first time interval spent by the user access device accessing a first search result entry from the ranked first set of search results; and   updating, based at least in part on the first time interval, the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry.   
     
     
         41 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 40 , wherein obtaining the first time interval comprises measuring at the server a length of time spent by the user access device accessing the first search result entry. 
     
     
         42 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 41 , wherein measuring at the server the length of time comprises receiving at the server, from software installed on the user access device, data indicative of search result access activity by the user access device. 
     
     
         43 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 40 , wherein obtaining the first time interval comprises receiving at the server data indicative of a length of time spent by the user access device accessing the first search result entry, said data received from either the user access device or a remote server. 
     
     
         44 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 43 , wherein said data indicative of the length of time is received from a remote server. 
     
     
         45 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 40 , wherein updating the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry further comprises:
 determining an amount of information in the first search result entry associated with the matched user search request and the at least one prior same or similar search request; and   updating the temporal coefficient based at least in part on the first time interval weighted against the determined amount of information in the first search result entry.   
     
     
         46 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 40 , wherein updating the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry further comprises:
 estimating an amount of time for a user to appreciate information of the first search result entry; and   updating the temporal coefficient based at least in part on the first time interval weighted against the estimated amount of time.   
     
     
         47 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 38 , wherein the instructions further comprise:
 obtaining at the server a first time interval spent by the user access device accessing a first search result entry from the ranked first set of search results;   comparing the first time interval with a predetermined threshold length of time stored in the memory of the server;   wherein if the first time interval is greater than the predetermined threshold length of time, said first time interval is not used to update the temporal coefficient corresponding to the first search result entry.   
     
     
         48 . A method comprising:
 communicating a user search request from a user access device to a server;   receiving, at the user access device from the server, a ranked first set of search results, wherein the results in the ranked first set of search results are ranked based at least in part on temporal coefficients associated with at least some individual entries in the first set of search results, wherein each temporal coefficient is indicative of an amount of time at least one prior user spent accessing the corresponding individual entry after being directed to said entry from results of at least one prior same or similar search request;   accessing, from the user access device, a first search result entry from the ranked first set of search results;   tracking at the user access device a first time interval spent by the user access device accessing the first search result entry; and   communicating the first time interval from the user access device to the server.   
     
     
         49 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein tracking at the user access device the first time interval comprises storing, in a memory accessible by the user access device, a cookie associated with the user access device and the first search result entry, the cookie comprising data indicative of the first time interval. 
     
     
         50 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein tracking at the user access device the first time interval comprises measuring the first time interval with a toolbar installed on the user access device.