Systems methods and computer-readable storage media for real-time automated conversational agent

• US 10,303,758 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2017
• Issued: 05/28/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Service Friendz Limited
• Original Assignee: Service Friendz Limited
• Inventors: Ben Ami, Shahar, Arad, Ido, Saidon, David Jonathan, Rosenthal, Yotam, Daya, Roy, Berger, Adi, Chu, Billy Tai Kwan, Elovic, Assaf, Levi, Lee, Shahar, Or Tzion, Tsilov, Marianna
• Primary Examiner(s): Guerra-Erazo, Edgar X
• Application Number:
  US15/709,477
• Publication Number:
  US 20180089163A1
• Time in Patent Office: 615 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/243 Natural language query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/20 Natural language analysis semantic analysis of natural language G06F40/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 3/006 based on simulated virtual individual or collective life forms, e.g. social simulations or particle swarm optimisation [PSO]
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 3/08 Learning methods
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/046 Forward inferencing; Production systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/02 using automatic reactions or user delegation, e.g. automatic replies or chatbot-generated messages

Abstract

Systems, methods and computer-readable storage media for natural language understanding in combination with real-time automated humanized verification in conversation agent messaging are described.

Claims

1. A system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, characterized by human crowd verified responses, said system comprises:

(a) at least one user computing device comprising;

(I) a micro-processor programmable to operate a terminal of a conversational agent;

(II) at least one input/output (I/O) hardware component configured to;

(i) provide an incoming message collected at said terminal;

(ii) communicate a verified response to said user;

(III) a communication port configured to;

(i) transmit said incoming message collected at said terminal to a conversational agent;

(ii) receive said verified response communicable to said user, from a conversational agent;

(b) at least one conversational agent, operatively connected to said at least one user computing device, said at least one conversational agent comprising;

(I) a computer-readable storage medium configured to store a plurality of definite replies;

(II) a micro-processor programmable to determine whether there is a definite reply among said plurality of definite replies that matches said incoming message;

(III) a communication port configured to;

(i) transmit said incoming message from said conversational agent;

(ii) to receive said verified response by said conversational agent;

(iii) transmit said verified response from said conversational agent to said at least one user computing device;

(c) at least one natural language programming (NLP) server, operatively connected to said at least one conversational agent, said at least one NLP server comprising;

(I) a computer-readable storage medium configured to store;

(i) a plurality of verified responses;

(ii) at least one set of rules for determining whether there is a verified response among said plurality of verified responses that matches said incoming message with a matching score above a predefined matching score threshold;

(iii) at least one set of rules for censoring and/or filtering said incoming message;

(II) a micro-processor programmable to;

(i) determine whether there is a verified response among said plurality of verified responses that matches said incoming message with a matching score above a predefined matching score threshold, according to said at least one set of rules for determining;

(ii) censor and/or filter said incoming message, according to said at least one set of rules for censoring and/or filtering;

(III) a communication port configured to;

(i) transmit a censored/filtered incoming message from said at least one NLP server;

(ii) receive said verified response by said at least one NLP server;

(iii) transmit said verified response to said at least conversational agent;

(d) at least one challenge server, operatively connected to said at least one NLP server, said at least one challenge server comprising;

(I) a computer-readable storage medium configured to store;

(i) a list of currently available participants;

(ii) metrics of registered participants;

(iii) at least one set of rules for constructing a statistically reliable sample;

(iv) a plurality of optional/non-verified responses;

(v) at least one set of rules for constructing a challenge;

(II) a micro-processor programmable to;

(i) construct a statistically reliable sample from said list of currently available participants, according to said at least one set of rules for constructing said statistically reliable sample;

(ii) construct a challenge from said censored/filtered incoming message and plurality of optional/non-verified responses, according to said at least one set of rules for constructing said challenge;

(III) a communication port configured to;

(i) receive said censored/filtered incoming message from said at least one NLP server;

(ii) transmit said challenge from said at least one challenge server;

(iii) receive responses to said challenge;

(iv) transmit said verified response to said at least one NLP server;

(e) a plurality of participant computing devices, operatively connected to said at least one challenge server, each one of said plurality of participant computing devices comprising;

(I) at least one input/output (I/O) hardware component configured to detect a response to said challenge;

(II) a communication port configured to;

(i) receive said challenge from said at least one challenge server;

(ii) transmit said response to said challenge, to said at least one challenge server.

2. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said at least one input/output (I/O) hardware component is selected from the group consisting of:

a graphical user interface (GUI), a voice user interfaces (VUI), a display, a screen touch, a computer keyboard, a virtual keyboard, a drawing pad, a speech-to-text conversation engine, a microphone, a computer pointing device.

3. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said computer-readable storage medium of said challenge server is further configured to store a set of rules for determining that said responses collected by said challenge server attain credibility above a predefined threshold level.

4. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said computer-readable storage medium of said challenge server is further configured to store a set of rules for conducting an offline non-real-time challenge, to a group of participants larger than said statistically reliable sample, in order to re-verify said credibility of said verified response among said larger group of participants.

5. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said computer-readable storage medium of said challenge server is further configured to store a set of rules for recalculating said metrics of said registered participants.

6. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said NLP server is further configured to perform machine learning of said verified responses.

7. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said NLP server is further configured for updating said computer-readable storage medium of said NLP server with said verified responses.

8. The system for operating a real-time automated conversational agent, as in claim 1, wherein said set of rules for constructing said challenge on said computer-readable storage medium of said challenge server further comprises a set of rules for construction of multiple challenges for ensuring adequate challenge construction by said challenge server, wherein a portion of interest in said incoming message is identified and a plurality of challenges is constructed by said challenge server.