Title: Semantic query answering in digital repositories: Semantic Search v2 for DSpace

Authors: Dimitrios A. Koutsomitropoulos; Georgia D. Solomou; Theodore S. Papatheodorou

Addresses: High Performance Information Systems Lab, Department of Computer Engineering and Informatics, University of Patras, Building B, Second Floor, 26500 Rion, Patras, Greece ' High Performance Information Systems Lab, Department of Computer Engineering and Informatics, University of Patras, Building B, Second Floor, 26500 Rion, Patras, Greece ' Deceased; formerly of: University of Patras, Greece

Abstract: The added value the Semantic Web has to offer can find fertile ground in querying collections with rich metadata, such as ones often occurring in digital libraries and repositories. A relevant such effort is the semantic search service for the popular DSpace digital repository system. Semantic Search v2 introduces a structured query mechanism that makes query construction easier as well as several improvements in system design, performance and extensibility. Queries are targeted towards the dynamically created DSpace ontology, containing constructs that enable knowledge acquisition among available metadata. Both an empirical and a quantitative evaluation suggest that the system can bring semantic search closer to inexperienced users and make its benefits evident in the context of digital repositories, such as new querying dimensions, thus forming a paradigm production services can built upon.

Keywords: semantic web; semantic search; reasoning; digital libraries; digital repositories; information search; information retrieval; knowledge acquisition; query answering; ontology design.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMSO.2013.054181

International Journal of Metadata, Semantics and Ontologies, 2013 Vol.8 No.1, pp.46 - 55

Received: 24 Jul 2012
Accepted: 21 Feb 2013
Published online: 14 Oct 2014 *

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