Method for keyword proximity searching in a document database

摘要

Keyword proximity searching in a document database according to a query condition initiates with generation of inverted lists having a location for each instance of the keyword in the document database. A plane-sweep mode is used to efficiently search the inverted lists until an output tuple satisfying proximity criteria in the search query is detected. The method then shifts to a nested-loop search mode to enumerate all possible combinations of the keyword instances that satisfy the proximity search query which are in the neighborhood of the output tuple detected in plane-sweep mode. The method alternates between these two modes of operation until all of the output tuples satisfying the query condition are enumerated.