Establishing a communication link between plural participants based on preferences

• US 10,001,911 B2
• Filed: 04/10/2015
• Issued: 06/19/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Breedvelt-Schouten, Ilse M., Jenkins, Jana H., Kusnitz, Jeffrey A., Lentz, James L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Serrao, Ranodhi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fiorillo, James
• Application Number:
  US14/683,321
• Publication Number:
  US 20160299670A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,166 Days
• Field of Search: 709206, 709217, 709227
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/206 Drawing of charts or graphs
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/18 for broadcast or conference , e.g. multicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/00 Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD] real-time bi-directional transmission of motion video data H04N7/14 ; broadcast or conference over packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104

Abstract

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a system determines the best communication channel to be utilized between multiple participants and establishes a communication link between the multiple participants via that communication channel. The system analyzes the preferences, limitations, behaviors, and capabilities of each of the participants and displays an aggregate of these traits from each of participants. The system then applies a set of rules and guidelines for determining which communication channel is best suited for establishing a communication link with all of the participants. The system comprises a computer system including at least one processor. Embodiments of the present invention further include a method and computer program product for determining the best communication channel to be utilized between multiple participants and establishing a communication link between the multiple participants in substantially the same manner described above.

Claims

1. A method of conducting an activity among a plurality of participants comprising:

monitoring, by a processor, for each participant using a computing device to communicate among the plurality of participants, use of a plurality of options to conduct the activity, wherein the activity includes conducting a communication session between the plurality of participants and the plurality of options includes different communication channels to conduct the communication session, and wherein the monitored use includes for each participant a numerical ranking of the different communication channels based on at least one or more options used by that participant, one or more options most frequently used, the option preferred with respect to an initiator of the activity, the option preferred with respect to that participant, the options used with respect to one or more contexts and familiarity to that participant;

collecting, by the processor, the monitored use of each participant from the computing device of each participant and storing the collected monitored use in a repository;

processing, by the processor, the collected monitored use from the repository and generating a graphical display of the monitored use of each participant for each of the options for conducting the activity, wherein the graphical display includes a chart for each of at least two participants with a plurality of bars each indicating the use for a corresponding option and is presented on the computing devices of at least two participants;

combining, by the processor, the monitored use of each participant for each of the options, wherein the combining includes manipulating the charts of the at least two participants toward each other;

determining, by the processor, the option to employ for the activity based on the combined monitored uses, wherein the option for the activity was identified at least in part based on contact between the corresponding bars of an option; and

conducting, by the processor, the activity employing the determined option by establishing the communication session between the plurality of participants over the communication channel associated with the determined option in response to contact between the corresponding bars of the identified option.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical display further presents one or more from a group of common tendencies for options between the participants, and options currently active for the activity.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

switching from the determined option to another option to conduct the activity in response to selection of the other option by one or more of the participants.

4. A system for conducting an activity among a plurality of participants comprising:

a plurality of computing devices; and

at least one processor configured to;

monitor for each participant using a computing device to communicate among the plurality of participants, use of a plurality of options to conduct the activity, wherein the activity includes conducting a communication session between the plurality of participants and the plurality of options includes different communication channels to conduct the communication session, and wherein the monitored use includes for each participant a numerical ranking of the different communication channels based on at least one or more options used by that participant, one or more options most frequently used, the option preferred with respect to an initiator of the activity, the option preferred with respect to that participant, the options used with respect to one or more contexts and familiarity to that participant;

collect the monitored use of each participant from the computing device of each participant and store the collected monitored use in a repository;

process the collected monitored use from the repository and generate a graphical display of the monitored use of each participant for each of the options for conducting the activity, wherein the graphical display includes a chart for each of at least two participants with a plurality of bars each indicating the use for a corresponding option and is presented on the computing devices of at least two participants;

combine the monitored use of each participant for each of the options, wherein the combining includes manipulating the charts of the at least two participants toward each other;

determine the option to employ for the activity based on the combined monitored uses, wherein the option for the activity was identified at least in part based on contact between the corresponding bars of an option; and

conduct the activity employing the determined option by establishing the communication session between the plurality of participants over the communication channel associated with the determined option in response to contact between the corresponding bars of the identified option.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the graphical display further presents one or more from a group of common tendencies for options between the participants, and options currently active for the activity.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein at least one processor is further configured to:

switch from the determined option to another option to conduct the activity in response to selection of the other option by one or more of the participants.

7. A computer program product for conducting an activity among a plurality of participants comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising computer readable program code configured to;

monitor for each participant using a computing device to communicate among the plurality of participants, use of a plurality of options to conduct the activity, wherein the activity includes conducting a communication session between the plurality of participants and the plurality of options includes different communication channels to conduct the communication session, and wherein the monitored use includes for each participant a numerical ranking of the different communication channels based on at least one or more options used by that participant, one or more options most frequently used, the option preferred with respect to an initiator of the activity, the option preferred with respect to that participant, the options used with respect to one or more contexts and familiarity to that participant;

collect the monitored use of each participant from the computing device of each participant and store the collected monitored use in a repository;

process the collected monitored use from the repository and generate a graphical display of the monitored use of each participant for each of the options for conducting the activity, wherein the graphical display includes a chart for each of at least two participants with a plurality of bars each indicating the use for a corresponding option and is presented on the computing devices of at least two participants;

combine the monitored use of each participant for each of the options, wherein the combining includes manipulating the charts of the at least two participants toward each other;

determine the option to employ for the activity based on the combined monitored uses, wherein the option for the activity was identified at least in part based on contact between the corresponding bars of an option; and

conduct the activity employing the determined option by establishing the communication session between the plurality of participants over the communication channel associated with the determined option in response to contact between the corresponding bars of the identified option.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the graphical display further presents one or more from a group of common tendencies for options between the participants, and options currently active for the activity.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the computer readable program code further comprises computer readable program code configured to:

switch from the determined option to another option to conduct the activity in response to selection of the other option by one or more of the participants.