System and method for organizing email messages

• US 20050027779A1
• Filed: 07/29/2003
• Published: 02/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Co. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Co. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Schinner, Charles Edward
• Application Number:
  US10/629,932
• Publication Number:
  US 20050027779A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/200
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

Disclosed are systems and methods for organizing email messages. In one embodiment, a system and a method pertain to detecting receipt of email messages, determining if the received email messages identify a recipient to which an original email message was transmitted by the user, and organizing responsive content from at least two independent received email messages in a consolidated file such that responsive content that pertains to a given email exchange is contained within a single file.

Claims

1. A method for organizing email messages received by a user, comprising:

detecting receipt of email messages;

determining if the received email messages identify a recipient to which an original email message was transmitted by the user; and

organizing responsive content from at least two independent received email messages in a consolidated file such that responsive content that pertains to a given email exchange is contained within a single file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining if the received email messages identify a recipient comprises determining if senders of the received email messages were recipients to which the original email message was transmitted.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein organizing responsive content comprises organizing the responsive content from at least two independent received email messages that comprise direct responses to the original email message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein organizing responsive content comprises organizing the responsive content relative to content of the original email message.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein organizing responsive content comprises comparing content contained within the received email messages with content contained within the original email message transmitted by the user to identify common content.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein organizing responsive content further comprises omitting the common content so as not to provide multiple copies of originally-transmitted content.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein organizing responsive content comprises organizing the responsive content in accordance with a date and time that the responsive content was received.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein organizing responsive content comprises organizing the responsive content in accordance with at least one of a sender name, a size of the responsive content, a priority of the sender, and an identified importance with which the responsive content was sent.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein organizing responsive content in a consolidated file comprises organizing the responsive content in a consolidated email message.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein organizing the responsive content in a consolidated email message comprises organizing the responsive content in a consolidated email message presented in an email application inbox in lieu of the independent incoming email messages.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising organizing new content that is responsive to previously-organized responsive content in the consolidated file by associating the new content with the previously-organized responsive content.

12. A system for organizing email messages received by a user, comprising:

means for monitoring receipt of email messages;

means for detecting receipt of email messages;

means for determining if the received email messages were sent by a recipient to which an original email message was transmitted by the user; and

means for organizing responsive content from at least two of the independent received email messages sent by a recipient in a consolidated file such that all responsive content that pertains to a given email exchange is contained within a single file.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for organizing responsive content comprise means for comparing content contained within the received email messages with content contained within the original email message transmitted by the user to identify common content, and further comprising means for omitting the common content so as not to provide multiple copies of originally-transmitted content.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for organizing responsive content comprise means for organizing the responsive content in accordance with at least one of a date and time that the responsive content was received, a sender name, a size of the responsive content, a priority of the sender, and an identified importance with which the responsive content was sent.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for organizing the responsive content comprise means for organizing the responsive content in a consolidated email message provided in an email application inbox in lieu of the independent incoming email messages.

16. The system of claim 12, further comprising means for organizing new content that is responsive to previously-organized responsive content in the consolidated file by associating the new content with the previously-organized responsive content.

17. A message organization manager stored on a computer-readable medium, the manager comprising:

logic configured to determine if received email messages identify an intended recipient to which an original email message was transmitted by the user; and

logic configured to organize responsive content from at least two independent received email messages that were determined to identify an intended recipient in a consolidated file such that all responsive content that pertains to a given email exchange is contained within a single file.

18. The manager of claim 17, wherein the logic configured to determine if the received email messages identify an intended recipient comprises logic configured to determine if senders of the received email messages were recipients to which the original email message was transmitted.

19. The manager of claim 17, wherein the logic configured to organize responsive content comprises logic configured to compare content contained within the received email messages with content contained within the original email message to identify common content, and further comprising logic configured to omit the common content.

20. The manager of claim 17, wherein the logic configured to organize responsive content comprises logic configured to organize the responsive content in accordance with a date and time that the responsive content was received.

21. The manager of claim 17, wherein the logic configured to organize responsive content comprises logic configured to organize the responsive content in accordance with at least one of a sender name, a size of the responsive content, a priority of the sender, and an identified importance with which the responsive content was sent.

22. The manager of claim 17, wherein the logic configured to organize responsive content in a consolidation file comprises logic configured to organize the responsive content in a consolidated email message that is provided in an email application inbox in lieu of the independent incoming email messages.

23. The manager of claim 17, further comprising logic configured to organize new content that is responsive to previously-organized responsive content in the consolidated file by associating the new content with the previously-organized responsive content.