patents_search_php/site/text_functions.php

<?php

function highlight_search_terms($result, $search_term){
  $search_array = explode(" ", $search_term);
  foreach ($search_array as $term) {
    $replacement = "<span class='search_term'>$term</span>";
    $result = str_ireplace($term, $replacement, $result);
  }
  return $result;
}

?>