Cloud-based universal collaborative messaging system and method

• US 10,250,534 B2
• Filed: 08/11/2015
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Chavez, David L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Uzma
• Application Number:
  US14/823,158
• Publication Number:
  US 20170048172A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,330 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]

Abstract

Methods, devices, and systems are provided for converting messages received from different sources into a universal file management system format managed by a central server. Each message may be sent from a sender to at least one recipient in a communication system. Upon receiving the messages, the central server converts each message into at least one folder and file. The files or folders can be stored in a secure central repository or memory. The secure central repository may include directory-sync servicing to virtually a user communication device other than the server. Files or folders may be marked as sensitive and restricted from access, copying, or other distribution. Sensitive files and folders, representing messages received can be restricted to viewing via a real-time communication application running on a user'"'"'s communication device and portal connection to the secure central repository.

Claims

1. A server, comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

a universal collaborative messaging system (UCMS) application contained in the memory and executed by the processor, wherein the UCMS application;

receives messages from a plurality of different messaging sources, wherein the messages are configured as communications from a sender to at least one recipient including a user;

transforms a received message from a first messaging format into a second messaging format compatible with standardized file management systems, wherein the second messaging format is configured as a folder including one or more files, each file of the one or more files representing content of the received message, and wherein a size of the transformed message is less than a size of the received message;

stores the transformed message in the second messaging format in a secure central memory in communication with the server, wherein the secure central memory is part of a cloud storage platform; and

sends a notification to a communication device of the user, wherein the notification activates a universal message viewing application on the communication device without transmitting the transformed message to the communication device and enables a connection to the secure central memory via the communication device and the server, and wherein the communication device is caused to render at least a portion of the transformed message that is hosted by the server and the secure central memory.

2. The server of claim 1, wherein the UCMS application is further configured to determine a first messaging format of the message, extracting, based on an identification of the first messaging format, content of the received message, wherein the content includes one or more portions of the received message, wherein each portion of the one or more portions is associated with a separate file of the folder, and automatically build the transformed message using only the extracted content of the received message.

3. The server of claim 1, wherein the secure central memory includes at least one shared memory platform administered by a third party, and wherein the at least one shared memory platform is configured with a synchronized directory configured to synchronize the transformed message with the communication device and other authorized client communication devices when the transformed message is identified as being non-sensitive.

4. A method, comprising:

providing a universal message viewing application to a user for installation on a communication device of the user;

receiving, at a server, messages from a plurality of different messaging sources, wherein the messages are configured as communications from a sender to at least one recipient including the user;

transforming, by the server, a received message from a first messaging format into a second messaging format compatible with standardized file management systems, wherein the second messaging format is configured as a folder including one or more files, each file of the one or more files representing content of the received message, and wherein a size of the transformed message is less than a size of the received message;

storing the transformed message in the second messaging format in a memory associated with the server and the user, wherein the memory is part of a cloud storage platform; and

sending, by the server, a notification to the communication device of the user, wherein the notification activates the universal message viewing application without transmitting the transformed message to the communication device and enables a connection to the memory via the communication device and the server, and wherein the communication device is caused to render at least a portion of the transformed message that is hosted by the server and the memory.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein transforming the received message further comprises:

determining, via the server, a first messaging format of the received message; and

extracting, based on an identification of the first messaging format, content of the received message, wherein the content includes one or more portions of the received message, wherein each portion of the one or more portions is associated with a separate file of the folder.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

building, automatically via the server, the transformed message using only the extracted content of the received message.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the content of the received message includes information stored in two or more of a header, footer, body, and metadata of the received message.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining whether the received message includes a text portion and an attachment;

building the transformed message as the folder including the attachment and a text file representing a simplified file of the text portion when the received message includes the text portion and the attachment; and

building the transformed message as the folder including only the text file representing the simplified file of the text portion when the message does not include the attachment.

9. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining whether the received message is an initial message or a subsequent message between the sender and the user, wherein the subsequent message corresponds to an additional message associated with a previous communication between the sender and the user, and wherein the previous communication includes at least one file and folder stored in the memory as a group;

building the transformed message as a first file or first folder for storing in the memory when the received message is determined to be the initial message between the sender and the user; and

building the transformed message as a subsequent file or subsequent folder for storing in the group when the received message is determined to be the subsequent message between the sender and the user.

10. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

generating, via the server, a standardized filename for the transformed message, wherein the standardized filename includes at least a portion of the content extracted from the received message.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein a single instance of the transformed message is stored in the memory, and wherein a pointer file including a link to the single instance of the transformed message is stored in a file management group associated with the user and any other user included as a recipient of the received message.

12. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining a sensitivity associated with the received message, wherein the sensitivity is configured to identify one or more of a restricted access, recipient, and distribution, and wherein the sensitivity is associated with a low, medium, or high value.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the sensitivity of the transformed message is changed in response to automatically determining, by the server, that a sensitivity for a related message to the transformed message has changed.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the memory associated with the server is different for messages having a low value of sensitivity and messages having a high value of sensitivity.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the server applies digital rights access management (DRAM) to messages that are transformed from received messages having the high value of sensitivity.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the notification sent to the communication device of the user requires a real-time communication connection for the communication device to access the memory for rendering transformed messages having DRAM.

17. A universal collaborative communication system, comprising:

a processor; and

a computer readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to;

receive messages from a plurality of different messaging sources, wherein the messages are configured as communications from a sender to at least one recipient including a user;

determine a sensitivity associated with a received message, wherein the sensitivity is configured to identify whether the received message is subject to a restricted access;

transform the received message from a first messaging format into a second messaging format compatible with standardized file management systems, wherein the second messaging format is configured as a folder including one or more files, each file of the one or more files representing content of the received message and wherein a size of the transformed message is less than a size of the received message;

store the transformed message in the second messaging format in a cloud-based memory, wherein the transformed message is stored in a secure memory location in the cloud-based memory when the received message is identified as being subject to the restricted access; and

send a notification to a communication device of the user, wherein the notification activates a universal message viewing application on the communication device without transmitting the transformed message to the communication device and enables a connection to the cloud-based memory via the communication device and the processor, and wherein the communication device is caused to render at least a portion of the transformed message that is hosted by the processor and cloud-based memory.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:

restrict access to the transformed message via a particular communications connection between the communication device and the server based on the sensitivity associated with the received message.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:

determine a change to the sensitivity associated with the received message, wherein the change includes increasing a sensitivity level from a first level to a higher second level; and

apply rights access management to the transformed message stored in the cloud-based memory, restricting access to the transformed message from one or more unauthorized users.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein prior to receiving the at least one message, the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:

register the processor as a messaging client of the user with each of the plurality of different messaging sources.