Signature Files

Information Retrieval: Data Structures and Algorithms

by W.B. Frakes and R. Baeza-Yates (Eds.)

Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1992.

(Chapters 4)

Signature Files


Characteristics
Word-oriented index structures based on hashing Low overhead (10%~20% over the text size) at the cost of forcing a sequential search over the index Suitable for not very large texts Inverted files outperform signature files for most applications

Structure
    

Use superimposed coding to create signature. Each text is divided into logical blocks. A block contains n distinct non-common words. Each word yields word signature. A word signature is a B-bit pattern, with m 1-bit.
Each word is divided into successive, overlapping triplets. e.g. free --> fr, fre, ree, ee  Each such triplet is hashed to a bit position.

 

The word signatures are ORed to form block signature. Block signatures are concatenated to form the document signature.

Example


Example (n=2, B=12, m=4)

word free text block signature 001 000 001 signature 000 110 010 101 010 111 010 001 011

Search
Use hash function to determine the m 1-bit positions. Examine each block signature for 1s bit positions that the signature of the search word has a 1.

False Drop


false alarm (false hit, or false drop) Fd

the probability that a block signature seems to qualify, given that the block does not actually qualify. Fd = Prob{signature qualifies/block does not}

For a given value of B, the value of m that minimizes the false drop probability is such that each row of the matrix contains 1s with probability 0.5.
Fd = 2-m m = B ln2/n

Sequential Signature File (SSF)

documents

assume documents span exactly one logical block

the size of document signature F = the size of block signature B

Classification of Signature-Based Methods

Compression
If the signature matrix is deliberately sparse, it can be compressed.


Vertical partitioning
Storing the signature matrix column-wise improves the response time on the expense of insertion time.

Horizontal partitioning
Grouping similar signatures together and/or providing an index on the signature matrix may result in better-than-linear search.

Classification of Signature-Based Methods



Sequential storage of the signature matrix without compression

sequential signature files (SSF)

with compression
bit-block compression (BC) variable bit-block compression (VBC)


Vertical partitioning without compression

bit-sliced signature files (BSSF, BSSF) frame sliced (FSSF) generalized frame-sliced (GFSSF)

Classification of Signature-Based Methods

(Continued)

with compression
compressed bit slices (CBS) doubly compressed bit slices (DCBS) no-false-drop method (NFD) 

Horizontal partitioning
data independent partitioning Gustafsons method partitioned signature files data dependent partitioning 2-level signature files 5-trees

Criteria
  

the storage overhead the response time on single word queries the performance on insertion, as well as whether the insertion maintains the append-only property

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Compression


idea
Create sparse document signatures on purpose. Compress them before storing them sequentially.

Method
Use B-bit vector, where B is large. Hash each word into one (or k) bit position(s). Use run-length encoding (McIlroy 1982).

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Compression using run-length encoding

data base management system block signature 0000 0000 0000 0010 0000 0000 0001 0000 0000 0000 0000 1000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 1000 0000 1001 0000 0010 1000
L1 L2 L3 L4 L5

[L1] [L2] [L3] [L4] [L5] where [x] is the encoded vale of x. search: Decode the encoded lengths of all the preceding intervals example: search data (1) data ==> 0000 0000 0000 0010 0000 (2) decode [L1]=0000, decode [L2]=00, decode [L3]=000000 disadvantage: search becomes low

Bit-block Compression (BC)

Data Structure: (1) The sparse vector is divided into groups of consecutive bits (bit-blocks). (2) Each bit block is encoded individually. Algorithm: Part I. It is one bit long, and it indicates whether there are any 1s in the bit-block (1) or the bit -block is (0). In the latter case, the bit-block signature stops here. 0000 1001 0000 0010 1000 0 1 0 1 1 Part II. It indicates the number s of 1s in the bit-block. It consists of s-1 1 and a terminating zero. 10 0 0 Part III. It contains the offsets of the 1s from the beginning of the bit-block. 0011 10 00 4bits 0, 1, 2, 3 00, 01, 10, 11 block signature: 01011 | 10 00 | 00 11 10 00

Bit-block Compression (BC)

(Continued)
Search data (1) data ==> 0000 0000 0000 0010 0000 (2) check the 4th block of signature 01011 | 10 0 0 | 00 11 10 00 (4) OK, there is at least one setting in the 4th bit-block. (5) Check furthermore. 0 tells us there is only one setting in the 4th bit-clock. Is it the 3rd bit? (6) Yes, 10 confirms the result. Discussion: (1) Bit-block compression requires less space than Sequential Signature File for the same false drop probability. (2) The response time of Bit-block compression is lightly less then Sequential Signature File.

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Vertical Partitioning


idea avoid bringing useless portions of the document signature in main memory methods
store the signature file in a bit-sliced form or in a frame-sliced form store the signature matrix column-wise to improve the response time on the expense of insertion time

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Bit-Sliced Signature Files (BSSF) Transposed bit matrix

(document signature) documents

transpose
documents

represent

documents

F bit-files

search: (1) retrieve m bit-files. e.g., the word signature of free is 001 000 110 010 the document contains free: 3rd, 7th, 8th, 11th bit are set i.e., only 3rd, 7th, 8th, 11th files are examined. (2) and these vectors. The 1s in the result N-bit vector denote the qualifying logical blocks (documents). (3) retrieve text file through pointer file. insertion: require F disk accesses for a new logical block (document), one for each bit-file, but no rewriting

Frame-Sliced Signature File (FSSF)



Ideas
random disk accesses are more expensive than sequential ones force each word to hash into bit positions that are closer to each other in the document signature these bit files are stored together and can be retrieved with a few random accesses

Procedures
The document signature (F bits long) is divided into k frames of s consecutive bits each. For each word in the document, one of the k frames will be chosen by a hash function. Using another hash function, the word sets m bits in that frame.

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Frame-Sliced Signature File (Cont.)

documents

frames

Each frame will be kept in consecutive disk blocks.

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FSSF (Continued)

Example (n=2, B=12, s=6, f=2, m=3)

Word free text doc. signature Signature 000000 110010 010110 000000 010110 110010

Search
Only one frame has to be retrieved for a single word query. I.E., only one random disk access is required. e.g., search documents that contain the word free ->because the word signature of free is placed in 2nd frame, only the 2nd frame has to be examined. At most k frames have to be scanned for an k word query.

Insertion
Only f frames have to be accessed instead of F bit-slices.
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Vertical Partitioning with Compression



idea
create a very sparse signature matrix store it in a bit-sliced form compress each bit slice by storing the position of the 1s in the slice.

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Compressed Bit Slices (CBS)



Rooms for improvements Searching

Each search word requires the retrieval of m bit files. The search time could be improved if m was forced to be 1.

Insertion
Require too many disk accesses (equal to F, which is typically 600-1000).

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Compressed Bit Slices (CBS)

(Continued)

documents


Let m=1. To maintain the same false drop probability, F has to be increased. To compress each bit file, we store only the positions of the 1s. For unpredictable number of 1s, we store them in buckets of size Bp.

Size of a signature Sparse bit matrix

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Differences with inversion

The directory (hash table) is sparse The actual word is stored nowhere Simple structure

Obtain the pointers to the relevant documents from buckets Hash a word to obtain bucket address h(base)=30

Doubly Compressed Bit Slices

Idea: compress the sparse directory S

buckets

hash function Distinguish synonyms partially. h1(base)=30 h2(base)=011 Follow the pointers of posting buckets to retrieve the qualifying documents.

No False Drops Method

To distinguish between synonyms completely.

Using pointer to the word in the text file

Horizontal Partitioning
1. Goal: group the signatures into sets, partitioning the signature matrix horizontally. 2. Grouping criterion

documents

Partitioned Signature Files

  

Using a portion of a document signature as a signature key to partition the signature file. All signatures with the same key will be grouped into a so-called module. When a query signature arrives,
examine its signature key and look for the corresponding modules scan all the signatures within those modules that have been selected

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