Interactive electronic form workflow assistant that guides interactions with electronic forms in a conversational manner

• US 10,460,024 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2016
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Inventors: Gaither, Shawn, Treitman, Richard, Parmenter, David, Behzadi, Arian, sub Yeom, Kyeung, Alisago, James, Thevenet, Frederic, Gonzalez, Andres, Matveief, Anatole
• Primary Examiner(s): Bhargava, Anil K
• Application Number:
  US14/988,293
• Publication Number:
  US 20170192950A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,393 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/453 Help systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue

Abstract

Techniques for assisting users electronic forms. One exemplary technique involves initiating a workflow assistant based on user input of the user or a predetermined triggering event to prompt the user to complete the electronic form. The workflow assistant downloads or obtains the electronic form based on a user response and identifies a workflow based on the electronic form. The workflow identifies a sequence of user interactions to complete the electronic form. Identifying the workflow includes developing, based on fields in the electronic form, requests for content of fields from the user and possible predicted answer choices for the content of each of the fields. The workflow assistant then executes the workflow to conduct the user interactions to obtain the content for the fields of the electronic form to complete the electronic form.

Claims

1. A method performed by a processor and comprising:

downloading or obtaining, by a workflow assistant, an electronic form;

identifying, by the workflow assistant, a workflow identifying a sequence of user interactions to complete the electronic form, wherein identifying the workflow comprises developing, based on fields in the electronic form, requests for content of fields and possible predicted answer choices for the content of the fields;

identifying, by the workflow assistant, an attribute of one or more of (i) a user device for conducting the sequence of the user interactions or (ii) a user associated with the user device;

determining, by the workflow assistant and from the attribute, a reduced capability to obtain input into the fields of the electronic form when the electronic form is presented, as downloaded, at the user device as compared to a capability existing in the absence of the attribute;

selecting, by the workflow assistant and based on the reduced capability being determined, a touch-free modality for the workflow;

executing, by the workflow assistant, the workflow in the selected touch-free modality to conduct the user interactions to obtain the content for the fields of the electronic form to complete the electronic form; and

for one of the requests, completing, by the workflow assistant, a corresponding one of the user interactions by performing, within the selected touch-free modality, operations comprising;

configuring the user device to present a set of candidate responses to the one of the requests, the set of candidate responses selected from the possible predicted answer choices, and

restricting, based on determining the reduced capability, possible responsive input to a selection of a candidate response from the set of candidate responses.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein developing the requests for content of fields comprises at least one of:

identifying fields of the electronic form using form field recognition, or

identifying a user characteristic in a user profile corresponding to an identified field of the electronic form.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein executing the workflow to conduct the user interactions to obtain the content for the fields comprises guiding user interactions according to the workflow to populate the fields of the electronic form, wherein guiding the user interactions to populate the fields comprises iteratively requesting user interactions using the requests for content and the possible predicted answer choices and receiving responses to the requests.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein conducting the user interactions comprises providing audible prompts for input, and wherein the responses comprise voice responses to the audible prompts, the voice responses interpreted using voice recognition or selection from graphic representations of the possible predicted answer choices.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising guiding, by the workflow assistant, user interactions to select the electronic form to complete.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising guiding, by the workflow assistant, user interactions to select the electronic form to complete based on a state of the electronic form or user circumstances.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising guiding, by the workflow assistant, user interactions to export the electronic form based on a state of the electronic form indicating that the electronic form is completed or user circumstances, wherein exporting the electronic form comprises printing, electronic sharing, saving, messaging, providing a notification, or e-mailing the electronic form.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the touch-free modality provides audible prompts for input and interprets voice responses to the audible prompts using voice recognition.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the touch-free modality is determined based on the user device not providing an appropriate type of input device.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein a modality used for the user interactions is determined based on a user characteristic in a user profile indicating that the user of the user device has a visual, manual, or cognitive disability or user circumstances.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the user interactions use a Braille-based, hand gesture-based, video recognition-based, eye gaze-based, switch control-based, or electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis-based input modality.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the workflow identifies contingent user interactions, wherein a next user interaction of a contingent user interaction is based on a user response to a prior user interaction request.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the workflow assistant guides the user to skip population of a field or section of the electronic form by omitting, from requests that are outputted via the user device, requests prompting the user to provide input for the field or section, wherein the omitting is performed based on (i) a prior response from the user populating a field of electronic form with a particular response and (ii) instructions of the electronic form.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the workflow is pre-computed and stored with the electronic form.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising the workflow assistant:

requesting a biometric identification;

receiving the biometric identification; and

based on confirming that the biometric identification is authentic, accessing user profile information or populating a signature field with an electronic signature.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein developing the requests for the content of fields comprises:

identifying a group of related fields in the electronic form;

outputting a single request for a user response providing data for the group of related fields; and

parsing the user response, received responsive to the single request, into multiple data elements for respective input into the related fields.

17. A system comprising:

a processor;

a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions, wherein, when executed by the processor, the instructions perform operations comprising;

downloading or obtaining, by a workflow assistant, an electronic form;

identifying, by the workflow assistant, a workflow identifying a sequence of user interactions to complete the electronic form, wherein identifying the workflow comprises developing, based on fields in the electronic form, requests for content of fields and possible predicted answer choices for the content of the fields,

identifying, by the workflow assistant, an attribute of one or more of (i) a user device for conducting the sequence of the user interactions or (ii) a user associated with the user device,

determining, by the workflow assistant and from the attribute, a reduced capability to obtain input into the fields of the electronic form when the electronic form is presented, as downloaded, at the user device as compared to a capability existing in the absence of the attribute,

selecting, by the workflow assistant and based on the reduced capability being determined, a touch-free modality for the workflow;

executing, by the workflow assistant, the workflow in the selected touch-free modality to conduct the user interactions to obtain the content for the fields of the electronic form to complete the electronic form, and

for one of the requests, completing, by the workflow assistant, a corresponding one of the user interactions by;

configuring the user device to present a set of candidate responses to the one of the requests, the set of candidate responses selected from the possible predicted answer choices, and

restricting, based on determining the reduced capability, possible responsive input to a selection of a candidate response from the set of candidate responses.

18. The system of claim 17 further comprising a data repository storing a user profile that identifies a visual, manual, or cognitive disability of the user, wherein determining the reduced capability is based on identifying the visual, manual, or cognitive disability from the data repository.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more processing devices, cause the one or more processing devices to perform operations comprising:

downloading or obtaining, by a workflow assistant, an electronic form;

identifying, by the workflow assistant, a workflow identifying a sequence of user interactions to complete the electronic form, wherein identifying the workflow comprises developing, based on fields in the electronic form, requests for content of the fields and possible predicted answer choices for the content of the fields,

identifying, by the workflow assistant, an attribute of one or more of (i) a user device for conducting the sequence of the user interactions or (ii) a user associated with the user device;

determining, by the workflow assistant and from the attribute, a reduced capability to obtain input into the fields of the electronic form when the electronic form is presented, as downloaded, at the user device as compared to a capability existing in the absence of the attribute;

selecting, based on the reduced capability being determined, a touch-free modality for the workflow;

executing, by the workflow assistant, the workflow in the selected touch-free modality to conduct the user interactions to obtain the content for the fields of the electronic form to complete the electronic form; and

for one of the requests, completing, by the workflow assistant, a corresponding one of the user interactions by performing, within the selected touch-free modality, additional operations comprising;

configuring the user device to present a set of candidate responses to the one of the requests, the set of candidate responses selected from the possible predicted answer choices, and

restricting, based on determining the reduced capability, possible responsive input to a selection of a candidate response from the set of candidate responses.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein developing the requests for the content of fields comprises:

identifying a group of related fields in the electronic form,

outputting a single request for a user response providing data for the group of related fields; and

parsing the user response, received responsive to the single request, into multiple data elements for respective input into the related fields.