Auto convert meeting link to join button in chat

• US 10,445,410 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2017
• Issued: 10/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Powell, Brian C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Titcomb, William D
• Application Number:
  US15/448,755
• Publication Number:
  US 20180253215A1
• Time in Patent Office: 956 Days
• Field of Search: 715752
• 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: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/103 Formatting, i.e. changing of presentation of documents automatic justification G06F40/189; automatic line break hyphenation G06F40/191
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/18 Commands or executable codes
• 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 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

A method is provided to simplify the connection to a meeting service based on a link presented in a text-based communication session. The method involves monitoring the text-based communication session among at least two participants and detecting in the text-based communication session a text string that represents a link to a meeting service. The text string is converted to a graphical user interface element that indicates a connection to the meeting service. The graphical user interface element is displayed in association with the text-based communication session.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

monitoring, by a server supporting text-based communication sessions, a text-based communication session among at least two participants;

detecting, by the server, in the text-based communication session a text string that is received from a first participant and represents a link to a known meeting service at least in part by;

parsing text in the text-based communication session to identify the text string, and pattern matching at least part of the text string with at least part of text strings indicative of known meeting services;

in response to detection of the text string in the text-based communication session, converting, by the server, the text string to a graphical user interface element that allows a connection by a second participant to the known meeting service; and

outputting, for display via a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface element in association with the text-based communication session.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting comprises:

parsing text in the text-based communication session to detect a text-string that is a universal resource locator; and

pattern matching of the universal resource locator with respect to known meeting services to determine that the universal resource locator refers to a meeting service.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein detecting further comprises:

expanding the universal resource locator by following all redirects associated with the universal resource locator to produce a resolved universal resource locator;

wherein pattern matching is based on the resolved universal resource locator with respect to a database of the known meeting services.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to received input associated with the graphical user interface element, retrieving meeting information corresponding to a current state of a meeting supported by the known meeting service; and

displaying, via the graphical user interface, the meeting information corresponding to the current state of the meeting in association with the text-based communication session.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the known meeting service to which the text string is a link allows retrieval of information associated with a meeting supported by the known meeting service;

if it is determined that the known meeting service allows retrieval of information, retrieving for the meeting one or more of;

start time and duration, identities of participants, identity of meeting host, or status; and

outputting, for display by the graphical user interface, the information associated with the meeting.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising displaying the information associated with the meeting including at least one of:

identity information of participants of the meeting or identifiers of participants already in the meeting.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the text-based communication session is one of a:

chat session, email communication, or text-messaging session.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying the graphical user interface element by a client application running on a user device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the link is for a meeting already in progress, an ad-hoc meeting, or a scheduled meeting to be conducted in the future.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a network interface unit configured to enable network communications;

a processor coupled to the network interface unit, wherein the processor is configured to;

monitor a text-based communication session among at least two participants;

detect in the text-based communication session a text string that is received from a first participant and represents a link to a known meeting service at least in part by;

parsing text in the text-based communication session to identify the text string, and pattern matching at least part of the text string with at least part of text strings indicative of known meeting services;

in response to detection of the text string in the text-based communication session, convert the text string to a graphical user interface element that allows a connection by a second participant to the known meeting service; and

cause display, via a graphical user interface, of the graphical user interface element in association with the text-based communication session.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is configured to detect by:

parsing text in the text-based communication session to detect a text-string that is a universal resource locator; and

pattern matching of the universal resource locator with respect to known meeting services to determine that the universal resource locator refers to a meeting service.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to:

expand the universal resource locator by following all redirects associated with the universal resource locator to produce a resolved universal resource locator; and

perform the pattern matching based on the resolved universal resource locator with respect to a database of the known meeting services.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is configured to:

in response to received input associated with the graphical user interface element, retrieve meeting information corresponding to a current state of a meeting supported by the known meeting service; and

cause display, via the graphical user interface, of the meeting information corresponding to the current state of the meeting in association with the text-based communication session.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine whether the known meeting service to which the text string is a link allows retrieval of information associated with a meeting supported by the known meeting service; and

if it is determined that the known meeting service allows retrieval of information, retrieve for the meeting one or more of;

start time and duration, identities of participants, identity of meeting host, or status.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to cause display of the information associated with the meeting.

16. One or more non-transitory computer readable storage media encoded with instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations including:

monitoring a text-based communication session among at least two participants;

detecting in the text-based communication session a text string that is received from a first participant and represents a link to a known meeting service at least in part by;

parsing text in the text-based communication session to identify the text string, and pattern matching at least part of the text string with at least part of text strings indicative of known meeting services;

in response to detection of the text string in the text-based communication session, converting the text string to a graphical user interface element that allows a connection by a second participant to the known meeting service; and

displaying, via a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface element in association with the text-based communication session.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 16, wherein the instructions operable for detecting include instructions operable for:

parsing text in the text-based communication session to detect a text-string that is a universal resource locator; and

pattern matching of the universal resource locator with respect to known web-based meeting services to determine that the universal resource locator refers to a meeting service.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 16, further comprising instructions operable for:

in response to received input associated with the graphical user interface element, retrieving meeting information corresponding to a current state of a meeting supported by the known meeting service; and

displaying, via the graphical user interface, the meeting information corresponding to the current state of the meeting in association with the text-based communication session.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 16, further comprising instructions operable for:

determining whether the known meeting service to which the text string is a link allows retrieval of information associated with a meeting supported by the known meeting service; and

if it is determined that the known meeting service allows retrieval of information, retrieving for the meeting one or more of;

start time and duration, identities of participants, identity of meeting host, or status.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 19, further comprising instructions operable for displaying the information associated with the meeting.