Apparatus and method for providing messages in a social network

• US 10,243,912 B2
• Filed: 01/19/2016
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ServiceNow Incorporated
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chang, Hisao, Renger, Bernard S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Yen, Eric
• Application Number:
  US15/000,168
• Publication Number:
  US 20160134581A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,162 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/377 for mixing or overlaying two or more graphic patterns G09G5/02, G09G5/397 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/28 Constructional details of speech recognition systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 17/00 Speaker identification or verification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1813 for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms instant messaging H04L51/04; protocols for multimedia communication H04L65/1101; arrangements for multi-party communication H04L65/403; telephonic conference arrangements H04M3/56; television conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/10 Multimedia information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/60 Medium conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4936 Speech interaction details speech recognition per se G10L15/00

Abstract

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a server including a controller to receive audio signals and content identification information from a media processor, generate text representing a voice message based on the audio signals, determine an identity of media content based on the content identification information, generate an enhanced message having text and additional content where the additional content is obtained by the controller based on the identity of the media content, and transmit the enhanced message to the media processor for presentation on the display device, where the enhanced message is accessible by one or more communication devices that are associated with a social network and remote from the media processor. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a server comprising a processor, a voice message from a computing device;

identifying, by the server, media content using a time of receipt of the voice message and a library that includes scheduling information for the media content;

determining, by the server, a context of the voice message based on an identity of the media content;

obtaining, by the server, additional content, wherein the obtaining is based on the media content and on the context of the voice message;

generating, by the server, an enhanced message comprising the additional content; and

providing, by the server, access to the enhanced message via a communication device, thereby enhancing communication between users of the computing device and the communication device by providing the additional content based on the media content and on the context of the voice message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication device and the computing device are associated with each other via a social network.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the enhanced message is posted on a social network website, wherein the additional content of the enhanced message improves a social function of the social network website.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device captures a portion of the media content being viewed at the time of receipt of the voice message, and wherein the identifying further comprises matching the captured portion of the media content with stored media content in the library.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the matching comprises using voice recognition, audio recognition, image recognition, or a combination thereof.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing further comprises providing the enhanced message to a social network, and wherein the communication device has access to the social network.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating text representing the voice message.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the generating comprises recognizing a word in the voice message based in part on the context of the voice message.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the generating comprises recognizing a word in the voice message based in part on a genre of the media content identified using the library.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the enhanced message further comprises the text representing the voice message.

11. A server comprising:

a memory that stores instructions; and

a processor coupled with the memory, wherein the processor, responsive to executing the instructions, performs operations comprising;

receiving a voice message from a computing device of a first user of a communication network;

identifying media content using a time of receipt of the voice message and a library that includes scheduling information for the media content;

determining a context of the voice message based on an identity of the media content;

obtaining additional content, wherein the obtaining is based on the media content and on the context of the voice message;

generating an enhanced message comprising the additional content; and

providing the enhanced message to a communication device of a second user of the communication network, thereby enriching communication between users of the computing device and the communication device by providing the additional content.

12. The server of claim 11, wherein the computing device captures a portion of the media content being viewed at the time of receipt of the voice message, and wherein the identifying further comprises matching the captured portion of the media content with stored media content in the library.

13. The server of claim 12, wherein the matching comprises using voice recognition, audio recognition, image recognition, or a combination thereof.

14. The server of claim 11, wherein the identifying further comprises correlating a channel being viewed by the first user with the time of receipt of the voice message.

15. The server of claim 11, further comprising generating text representing the voice message, and wherein the enhanced message further comprises the text representing the voice message.

16. The server of claim 15, wherein the generating comprises recognizing a word in the voice message based in part on the context of the voice message.

17. A non-transitory machine-readable storage device comprising instructions which, responsive to being executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

receiving a voice message from a computing device of a first user of a communication network;

identifying media content using a time of receipt of the voice message and a library that includes scheduling information for the media content, wherein the identifying comprises matching a portion of the media content with stored media content in the library;

determining a context of the voice message based on an identity of the media content;

obtaining additional content, wherein the obtaining is based on the media content and on the context of the voice message;

generating text representing the voice message;

generating an enhanced message comprising the additional content and the text; and

providing the enhanced message to a communication device of a second user of the communication network, thereby improving communication between users of the computing device and the communication device by providing the additional content based on the context of the voice message in addition to the text of the voice message.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage device of claim 17, wherein the matching comprises using voice recognition, audio recognition, image recognition, or a combination thereof.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage device of claim 17, wherein the identifying further comprises correlating a channel being viewed by the first user with the time of receipt of the voice message.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage device of claim 17, wherein generating the text representing the voice message comprises recognizing a word in the voice message based in part on the context of the voice message.