User interface for search method and system

A computer-implemented system for handling a search query, comprising:

• a user input section for:
• displaying, on a user interface of a computer, a plurality of search criteria fields for a plurality of categories, wherein each search criteria field corresponds to one of the categories;
• displaying, on the user interface, an input mechanism to input a plurality of weight values, one for each category, to designate an importance of the category to the user relative to other categories;
• receiving, through the user interface, a search query comprising a plurality of search criteria values for the categories entered through the search criteria fields;
• receiving, through the user interface, the weight values for the categories;
• at least one processor and memory, for:
• searching, in response to the search query, a database, stored in the memory, comprising a plurality of records that comprise information regarding the categories;
• computing a relevance value for a non-exact matching record, such that:
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record increases when the weight value of an associated category increases and when the record contains information that matches the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record decreases when the weight value of an associated category increases and when the record contains information that does not match the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record decreases when the weight value of an associated category decreases and when the record contains information that matches the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• and
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record increases when the weight value of an associated category decreases and when the record contains information that does not match the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• a display section for:
• displaying, in response to the searching, an indication for one or more exact matching records on the user interface, wherein an exact matching record comprises information that exactly matches all search criteria values of the received search query;
• and
• displaying, in response to the searching, an indication for one or more non-exact matching records on the user interface, wherein a non-exact matching record comprises information that does not exactly match one or more of the search criteria values of the received search query, each non-exact matching record having a relevance value based, in part, on the weight values of the received search query, the non-exact matching records being displayed in an order based on the relevance values.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps comprising:

• displaying, on a user interface of a computer, a plurality of search criteria fields for a plurality of categories, wherein each search criteria field corresponds to one of the categories;
• displaying, on the user interface, an input mechanism to input a plurality of weight values, one for each category, to designate an importance of the category to the user relative to other categories;
• receiving, through the user interface, a search query comprising a plurality of search criteria values for the categories entered through the search criteria fields;
• receiving, through the user interface, the weight values for the categories;
• searching, in response to the search query, a database, stored in computer storage, comprising a plurality of records that comprise information regarding the categories;
• computing a relevance value for a non-exact matching record, such that:
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record increases when the weight value of an associated category increases and when the record contains information that matches the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record decreases when the weight value of an associated category increases and when the record contains information that does not match the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record decreases when the weight value of an associated category decreases and when the record contains information that matches the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• and
• the relevance value of a non-exact matching record increases when the weight value of an associated category decreases and when the record contains information that does not match the search criterion specified for the associated category;
• displaying, in response to the searching, an indication for one or more exact matching records on the user interface, wherein an exact matching record comprises information that exactly matches all search criteria values of the received search query;
• and
• displaying, in response to the searching, an indication for one or more non-exact matching records on the user interface, wherein a non-exact matching record comprises information that does not exactly match one or more of the search criteria values of the received search query, based on the relevance values for the non-exact matching records.