Hi all,
We've built a custom hybrid query parser plugin ({!hybrid}) for Solr 9.x that
fuses BM25 (lexical) and kNN (dense-vector) results per document. Rather than
rank-based fusion (like the native RRF combiner landing in 9.11/10.1), it takes
a score-based route: every candidate is scored on BOTH signals, each normalized
within the candidate set (this matters a lot in practice — modern embedders
pack cosine into a razor-thin high band, so the raw vector barely varies), then
combined with a tunable semantic<->lexical weight. The search "mode" (union /
intersection / keywords-required / meaning-required) genuinely controls the
candidate set, not just the scoring.
We'd really value some outside eyes on it, so here are live, public demos
across several real indexes and languages. Change the q= in the URL and try
your own — and note the "{ } Debug" toggle in the lower-right corner of each
result page: it exposes debugQuery plus the full set of params sent to Solr
(parsed query, per-doc lexical and vector score components, timings), so you
can see exactly what's going on.
Live search UI:
- German (office supplies) — "Dokumente zusammenheften":
https://search.opensolr.com/b2b?topbar=block&pagination_style=scroll&ui_theme=light&layout=default&sidebar=on&source=&fresh=no&lang=&q=Dokumente+zusammenheften&in=web&og=yes&locale=&duration=
- English (test & measurement — Fluke) — "see heat through walls":
https://search.opensolr.com/fluke?topbar=block&pagination_style=scroll&ui_theme=light&layout=default&sidebar=on&source=&fresh=no&lang=&locale=en_us&q=see+heat+through+walls&in=web&og=yes&duration=
- English (Fluke) — a natural-language question, "how do I check current
without touching wires":
https://search.opensolr.com/fluke?topbar=block&pagination_style=scroll&ui_theme=light&layout=default&sidebar=on&source=&fresh=no&lang=&locale=en_us&q=how+do+I+check+current+without+touching+wires&in=web&og=yes&duration=
- Cross-lingual (English query -> Romanian DIY catalog) — "tyres that work both
in winter and summer":
https://search.opensolr.com/dedeman?topbar=block&pagination_style=scroll&ui_theme=light&layout=default&sidebar=on&source=&fresh=no&lang=&q=tyres+that+work+both+in+winter+and+summer&in=web&og=yes&locale=&duration=
- World news — "what is going on with climate change":
https://search.opensolr.com/vector?topbar=block&pagination_style=scroll&ui_theme=light&layout=default&sidebar=on&source=&fresh=no&lang=&q=what+is+going+on+with+climate+change&in=web&og=yes&locale=&duration=
- Swedish news (English query -> Swedish articles, date-sorted) — "what's going
on with migration these days?":
https://search.opensolr.com/nyheter?topbar=block&pagination_style=scroll&ui_theme=light&layout=default&sidebar=on&source=&fresh=no&lang=&locale=&q=what%27s+going+on+with+migration+these+days%3F&in=web&og=yes&duration=&sort_field=creation_date&sort_dir=desc
- Shop — "cute domestic pet jewelery":
https://search.opensolr.com/rueb?topbar=block&pagination_style=pages&ui_theme=light&layout=default&source=&fresh=no&lang=&q=cute+domestic+pet+jewelery&in=web&og=yes&locale=&duration=
- Shop — "winter hat":
https://search.opensolr.com/peilishop?topbar=block&pagination_style=pages&ui_theme=light&layout=default&source=&fresh=no&lang=&q=winter+hat&in=web&og=yes&locale=&duration=
If you'd rather dig in at the Solr level and run your own queries, these demo
cores are open read-only (HTTP basic auth 123:123):
https://123:[email protected]/solr/vector/select?wt=json&indent=true&q=*:*&rows=2
https://123:[email protected]/solr/fluke/select?wt=json&indent=true&q=*:*&rows=2
https://123:[email protected]/solr/nyheter/select?wt=json&indent=true&q=*:*&rows=2
How it works, and the reasoning behind the score-based approach, is written up
here:
https://opensolr.com/opensolr-platform-user-documentation/hybrid-search
And if anyone wants to index their own data and try it, there's a free trial:
https://opensolr.com/register
Any observations, critiques, or queries you can break it with are genuinely
welcome — that's exactly the kind of feedback we're hoping for. Thanks for
taking a look.
Thanks!
Cip.
Opensolr.com
Your Path to AI Search <https://opensolr.com/>
[email protected]
https://opensolr.com <https://opensolr.com/>
VAT: RO-35410526
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