Acquisition of user data over a network

• US 20060129905A1
• Filed: 12/15/2004
• Published: 06/15/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Spork, Murray Leo
• Granted Patent: US 7,996,760 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/221
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging

Abstract

An embodiment includes a method that includes intercepting, by an intermediary, a form destined for a device used by a user over a network that is from an application executing on a different device on the network. The form includes parts to be completed by the user. The method also includes completing, by the intermediary, a first part of the parts to be completed by the user, prior to the form being received by the device.

Claims

1. A method including:

intercepting, by an intermediary, a form destined for a device used by a user over a network that is from an application executing on a different device on the network, the form including parts to be completed by the user; and

completing, by the intermediary, a first part of the parts to be completed by the user, prior to the form being received by the device.

2. The method of claim 1, further including forwarding, by the intermediary, to the device a second part of the parts to be completed by the user that has not been completed by the intermediary.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first part of the parts that has been completed by the intermediary is not forwarded to the device.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein forwarding to the device the second part of the parts to be completed by the user that have not been completed by the intermediary comprises forwarding to the device non-confidential data.

5. The method of claim 2, further including receiving, by the intermediary, back from the device, in response to the forwarding operation, an answer to the parts to be completed by the user.

6. The method of claim 5, further including merging, by the intermediary, the first part and the answer from the device.

7. The method of claim 1, further including forwarding, by the intermediary, to the device the parts to be completed by the user.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first part of the parts that has been completed by the intermediary is hidden and viewable by the user.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the first part of the parts that has been completed by the intermediary is viewable and editable by the user.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least part that has been completed by the completing operation is viewable and not editable by the user.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein intercepting the form destined for the device comprises intercepting the form destined for a constrained information device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the constrained information device is from a group consisting of a mobile telephone, a personal digital assistant or a non-mobile device.

35. A machine-readable medium that provides instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause said machine to perform operations including the method of claim 1.

13. A method including:

receiving a form being transmitted to a device of a user over a network prior to the form being received by the device, the form including parts that are to be completed by the user;

generating a data query based on the parts that are to be completed by the user;

querying, using the data query, a database that includes a profile of the user;

receiving at least one answer to at least part of the data query;

completing at least one part of the parts that are to be completed by the user to generate a non-user completed part of the form;

generating a form fragment that does not include the at least one part completed;

forwarding the form fragment to the device of the user; and

receiving back from the device, in response to the forwarding, a document fragment that includes a result of the user completing the form fragment.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein receiving the form comprises receiving more than one form from more than one application.

15. The method of claim 13, further including merging the non-user completed part of the form with the result of the user completing the form fragment to generate a completed document.

16. The method of claim 13, further including returning the completed document over the network to an application that transmitted the form.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein returning the completed document comprises returning the completed document in accordance with a document schema for the form.

18. The method of claim 13, further including forwarding to the device of the user the at least one part completed.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the at least one part completed is hidden and viewable by the user.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the at least one part completed is viewable and editable by the user.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the at least one part completed is viewable and not editable by the user.

36. A machine-readable medium that provides instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause said machine to perform operations including the method of claim 13.

22. A system including:

a proxy server coupled to a device of a user and coupled to an application server to execute an application, the proxy server to intercept a form being transmitted from the application server to the device, the form including parts that are to be completed by the user, the proxy server including;

a data store to store an annotation of the form and a personal profile of the user; and

a form personalizer engine to generate a data query for the parts to be completed by the user based on the annotation of the form, the form personalizer engine to retrieve from the personal profile, using the data query, an answer to at least part of the parts to be completed by the user, wherein the form personalizer engine is to generate a form fragment that does not include the at least part.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the form personalizer engine is to forward the form fragment to the device of the user.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the form personalizer engine is to receive back from the device, in response to the forwarding, a document fragment that includes a result of completion by the user of the form fragment.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the document fragment does not include confidential data.

26. The system of claim 24, wherein the form personalizer engine is to merge the at least part and the document fragment to generate a merged document.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the form personalizer engine is to forward the merged document to the application server.

28. The system of claim 23, wherein the form personalizer engine is not to forward the at least part to the device.

29. An apparatus including:

means for intercepting, by an intermediary, a form destined for a device used by a user over a network that is from an application executing on a different device on the network, the form to include parts to be completed by the user; and

means for completing, by the intermediary, at least a part of the parts to be completed by the user, prior to the form being received by the device.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, further including means for forwarding, by the intermediary, to the device the parts to be completed by the user that have not been completed by the completing operation.

31. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the at least part that has been completed by means for completing is not forwarded to the device.

32. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein means for forwarding to the device the parts to be completed by the user that have not been completed by the completing operation comprises means for forwarding to the device non-confidential data.

33. The apparatus of claim 30, further including means for receiving, by the intermediary, back from the device, in response to the forwarding, an answer to the parts to be completed by the user.

34. The apparatus of claim 33, further including means for merging, by the intermediary, the at least the part and the answer from the device.