Agent for integrated annotation and retrieval of images

A method for utilizing images that are stored in a data base with an e-mail application in which text is input by a user into a message, said method comprising the steps of:

• a) providing metadata associated with the stored images;
• b) running an e-mail application in which text is entered by a user into a message window;
• c) continuously monitoring text typed by the user into the message window to isolate keywords in the text;
• d) matching and ranking the keywords with the metadata associated with the stored images thereby providing one or more matched images that are ranked according to the keywords;
• e) retrieving and displaying the matched images alongside the message window in order of their rank;
• and
• f) providing the user with the capability of moving selected ones of the matched images into the message window and utilizing the context to provide new keyword annotations for the matched images, together with the capability of manually selecting certain of the annotations for subsequent association with the matched images in the data base.

A computer implemented autonomous agent stored on a computer readable medium and including programming instructions for use in interfacing a text-based application with a picture archive containing representations of images and metadata associated with the images said agent comprising:

• a language analyzer for continuously monitoring text entered by the user into the application and extracting keywords appropriate to the context surrounding the entered text;
• a retrieval agent for retrieving images from the archive on the basis of one or more matches between the extracted keywords and the metadata;
• an annotation agent for providing suggested annotations to the user for the matched images based on the extracted keywords, together with the capability of selecting certain of the suggested annotations for subsequent association with the matched images;
• and
• a picture database viewer for displaying the retrieved images to the user and for enabling the images to be incorporated into the application, as desired by the user.