Systems and methods for managing email

• US 20030145057A1
• Filed: 01/30/2002
• Published: 07/31/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Swiss Reinsurance Company
• Original Assignee: Westport Insurance Corp. (Canada) (Swiss Re AG)
• Inventors: Throop, Robert
• Granted Patent: US 7,296,058 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99955 Archiving or backup

Abstract

The invention provides for systematic email induction. Email is automatically scanned for email content. The content is then extracted and automatically loaded to a graphics database accessible from a network. The graphics database may for example be a FileNet repository. “Content” may include the written text of the email, graphic image attachments, electronic documents, and other file types. Preferably, content is associated with certain business tasks to facilitate future use of the content within automated workflow processes. Content is preferably stored within the graphics database as one or more single page TIFF files to memorialize the content for later use with the workflow processes.

Claims

1. A method for managing email content, comprising the steps of:

electronically monitoring network email for email content;

automatically extracting the content; and

loading the content to a graphics database accessible from the network.

2. A method of claim 1, the step of automatically extracting the content comprising extracting graphic image attachments from the email.

3. A method of claim 1, the step of automatically extracting the content comprising extracting electronic documents from the email.

4. A method of claim 1, the step of automatically extracting the content comprising extracting parsed text from the email.

5. A method of claim 1, the step of loading the content into a graphics database comprising loading into a FileNET repository.

6. A method of claim 1, the step of loading further comprising the step of associating the content with business tasks to facilitate automated workflow processes.

7. A method of claim 1, the step of electronically monitoring comprising periodically polling one or more email inboxes for new messages.

8. A method of claim 7, the step of periodically polling comprising polling the email inboxes at about every ten seconds.

9. A method of claim 1, further comprising the step of automatically determining an organization associated with the email, to authorize, or not, later steps of monitoring, extracting, and loading.

10. A method of claim 9, the step of automatically determining an organization comprising automatically comparing the organization with an authorization list.

11. A method of claim 10, further comprising forwarding the email to an electronic file for error handling in the event that the organization is not within the authorization list.

12. A method of claim 9, the step of automatically determining an organization comprising the step of interrogating a from-field of the email.

13. A method of claim 1, further comprising the step of automatically scanning the email for illegal text strings defined in a predetermined electronic file.

14. A method of claim 13, further comprising moving the message with one or more illegal text strings to an electronic file for error handling.

15. A method of claim 1, the step of automatically extracting the content comprising the step of converting the email, without enclosures, to a graphics image.

16. A method of claim 15, the step of converting the email to a graphics image comprising converting the email to a TIFF image.

17. A method of claim 1, the step of automatically extracting the content comprising the step of interpreting enclosures of the email.

18. A method of claim 17, further comprising the step of converting the enclosures to one or more graphic images.

19. A method of claim 18, further comprising converting multiple graphic images to a single page graphic image.

20. A method of claim 19, the step of converting multiple graphic images to a single page graphic image comprising converting to a TIFF image.

21. A method of claim 17, further comprising the step of converting each non-graphic image enclosures of the email to one or more graphic images.

22. A method of claim 21, further comprising the step of converting multiple graphic images to a single page graphic image.

23. A method of claim 21, the step of converting each of the non-graphic image enclosure comprising converting the non-graphic image enclosure to one or more TIFF images.

24. A method of claim 23, the step of converting to one or more TIFF images comprising converting multiple page TIFF images to a single page TIFF image.

25. A method of claim 21, the non-graphic image enclosures comprising one or more of spreadsheets, documents, rich text files, and postscript files.

26. A method of claim 17, further comprising converting .pdf files to one or more graphic images.

27. A method of claim 26, further comprising converting the one or more graphic images to a single page TIFF image.

28. A method of claim 17, further comprising converting graphic images to one or more TIFF images.

29. A method of claim 28, further comprising converting multi-page TIFF images to a single page TIFF image.

30. A method of claim 28, the graphic images comprising one or more of .pdf and .jpg files.

31. A method of claim 17, further comprising the step of converting each .wpd file to a .doc file.

32. A method of claim 31, further comprising converting each .doc file to one or more graphic images.

33. A method of claim 32, further comprising converting the images to a single page TIFF image.

34. A method of claim 1, further comprising the step of automatically formulating a overview file summarizing the content stored in the graphics database.

35. A system for managing email content of a network, comprising:

an email server configured to monitor incoming email of the network; and

an email induction server having application software for (a) extracting content from the email, (b) converting the content to a graphics image, and (c) loading converted email content to a graphics database accessible from the network.

36. A system of claim 35, further comprising the graphics database.

37. A system of claim 36, the graphics database comprising a FileNet repository.

38. A system of claim 35, the email server communicating email between the induction server and the Internet, and one or more computers coupled to the database via the network, wherein incoming email from the Internet is available at the computers.

39. A system of claim 35, the email server configured to periodically poll email inboxes of the network for new email messages.

40. A system of claim 35, further comprising a management computer coupled to the database via the network, for managing the application software.

41. A system of claim 35, the graphics database comprising means for acknowledging receipt of loaded content, the receipt triggering automated workflow processes.

42. In an email system of the type that processes email for a network, the improvement comprising application software configured with the network for converting email content to graphic images and for storing the graphic images into a graphics database accessible from the network.

43. In an email system of claim 42, the further improvement wherein the database automatically responds to the storing of graphic images to trigger subsequent workflow processes linked with the content.

44. A process for memorializing email content, comprising communicating email from a computer to an email server, converting content of the email to one or more graphic images for storage within a graphics database in response to receiving the email at the server, and automatically communicating acknowledgment to the server that the content is graphically memorialized.

45. A process of claim 44, further comprising triggering workflow associated with the email in response to the acknowledgment.

46. A process of claim 45, the email comprising an insurance claim, the workflow comprising further processing of the insurance claim.