Transformer-based Ranking Approaches for Keyword Queries over Relational Databases

Transformer-based Ranking Approaches for Keyword Queries over Relational Databases | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Transformer-based Ranking Approaches for Keyword Queries over Relational Databases Paulo Martins, Altigran da Silva, Johny Moreira, Edleno de Moura This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5887690/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Relational Keyword Search (R-KwS) systems enable naive/informal users to explore and retrieve information from relational databases without requiring schema knowledge or query-language proficiency. Although numerous R-KwS methods have been proposed, most still focus on queries referring only to attribute values or primarily address performance enhancements, providing limited support for queries referencing schema elements. We previously introduced Lathe, a system that accommodates schema-based keyword queries and employs an eager CJN evaluation strategy to filter out spurious Candidate Joining Networks (CJNs). However, Lathe still faces challenges in accurately ranking CJNs when queries are ambiguous. In this work, we propose a new transformer-based ranking approach that provides a more context-aware evaluation of Query Matches (QMs) and CJNs. Our solution introduces a linearization process to convert relational structures into textual sequences suitable for transformer models. It also includes a data augmentation strategy aimed at handling diverse and ambiguous queries more effectively. Experimental results, comparing our transformer-based ranking to Lathe’s original Bayesian-based method, show significant improvements in recall and $R@k$, demonstrating the effectiveness of our neural approach in delivering the most relevant query results. Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 10 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 21 Jul, 2025 Reviews received at journal 17 May, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Apr, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 20 Apr, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 20 Apr, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 08 Feb, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 23 Jan, 2025 First submitted to journal 23 Jan, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5887690","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":412883507,"identity":"a9fed88e-e3eb-4937-9afb-5112880b852c","order_by":0,"name":"Paulo Martins","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Amazonas","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Paulo","middleName":"","lastName":"Martins","suffix":""},{"id":412883511,"identity":"92782eea-5ad4-49c0-b0f4-09bd6942f60f","order_by":1,"name":"Altigran da Silva","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Amazonas","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Altigran","middleName":"da","lastName":"Silva","suffix":""},{"id":412883513,"identity":"b12637af-19d1-477d-b495-5ce72f37ba8e","order_by":2,"name":"Johny Moreira","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Amazonas","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Johny","middleName":"","lastName":"Moreira","suffix":""},{"id":412883516,"identity":"298f2eb1-eec3-41c3-a190-32a962e58f41","order_by":3,"name":"Edleno de Moura","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Federal University of Amazonas","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Edleno","middleName":"","lastName":"de Moura","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-01-23 10:53:35","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5887690/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5887690/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":79155832,"identity":"c4fb93f1-4c4c-42d2-a7f6-9c8709701f7c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-25 06:11:28","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":552274,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"finalmanuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5887690/v1_covered_6a5c7d28-d98c-4b4d-89d9-c96c9f43e3b7.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Transformer-based Ranking Approaches for Keyword Queries over Relational Databases","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"knowledge-and-information-systems","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"kais","sideBox":"Learn more about [Knowledge and Information Systems](http://link.springer.com/journal/10115)","snPcode":"10115","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/10115/3","title":"Knowledge and Information Systems","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5887690/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5887690/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Relational Keyword Search (R-KwS) systems enable naive/informal users to explore and retrieve information from relational databases without requiring schema knowledge or query-language proficiency. 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