System and method for attribute-based visual search over a computer communication network

A method executed by a processor of a computing system, the method comprising:

• obtaining an image, wherein the image is displayed on a display of a computing device operated by a user;
• identifying a plurality of objects in the image;
• upon identifying the plurality of objects in the image, determining respective categories of each of the plurality of objects in the image;
• in response to receiving an indication that an object in the plurality of objects in the image has been selected by the user, generating a feature vector that represents the object;
• retrieving a plurality of attributes based upon a category of the object, wherein the plurality of attributes comprise one or more first attributes and one or more second attributes, wherein the one or more first attributes are indicative of a feature of the object and the one or more second attributes are indicative of a feature of at least one other object in the category but are not indicative of the object;
• generating a plurality of search results based upon the feature vector and the plurality of attributes;
• and
• causing the plurality of search results to be displayed within a graphical user interface (GUI) shown on the display.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of a computing system, cause the processor to perform acts comprising:

• obtaining an image, wherein the image is displayed within a graphical user interface (GUI) shown on a display of a computing device;
• in response to receiving an indication that an object in the image has been selected by a user of the computing device, generating a feature vector that represents the object;
• determining a category of the object based upon the feature vector;
• retrieving a plurality of attributes based upon the category of the object, wherein the plurality of attributes comprise one or more first attributes and one or more second attributes, wherein the one or more first attributes are indicative of a feature of the object and the one or more second attributes are indicative of at least one other object in the category but are not indicative of the object;
• generating a plurality of search results based upon the feature vector and the plurality of attributes;
• and
• transmitting the plurality of search results to the computing device, wherein the plurality of search results are displayed within the GUI.