Spatial filters for mobile information retrieval

Abstract

This paper introduces the concept of spatial filters as an approach to increasing the relevance of the information retrieved by users of mobile information systems. This approach applies post-query filters to remove results that are deemed not relevant given some aspect of a mobile individual's spatial behaviour. The aim is to reduce the volume of results returned to users of mobile information systems, to avoid the need for manual filtering. An opportunity for future research is to consider how these filters can be applied to the task of combining rankings based upon thematic and spatial criteria, for documents retrieved from unstructured or semi-structured collections, such as those handled by geographic information retrieval systems.