Communication support system, communication support method and communication support program

• US 20070288566A1
• Filed: 11/30/2006
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Murakami, Masahiko, Okuyama, Satoshi
• Granted Patent: US 8,204,207 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding

Abstract

A communication support system is connected with a network enabling communication among user terminals and is capable of accessing a user information recording portion in which shared information concerning users and access information showing users who accessed the shared information are recorded. The communication support system includes: a user identification portion that acquires a communication start request from a user terminal and identifies an originator and a receiver; a retrieval portion that retrieves shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed from data recorded in the user information recording portion; and a control portion that, based on a result of the retrieval by the retrieval portion, controls the communication. Thereby, the communication support system can control whether or not to start the communication based on the presence or not of information about the receiver that the originator should confirm.

Claims

1. A communication support system connected with a network enabling communication among a plurality of user terminals used by a plurality of users, respectively,

wherein the communication support system is capable of accessing a user information recording portion in which shared information and access information are recorded, the shared information concerning one or more users included in the plurality of users, to which at least a part of the plurality of users is accessible, and the access information indicating a user who has accessed the shared information,

wherein the communication support system comprises:

a user identification portion that acquires a communication start request from any one of the plurality of user terminals and identifies an originator of a communication that is required to start and a receiver of the communication;

a retrieval portion that refers to the shared information and the access information recorded in the user information recording portion and makes a judgment as to whether any piece of the shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is present or not; and

a control portion that, based on a result of the judgment by the retrieval portion, makes a judgment as to whether the communication between a user terminal of the originator and a user terminal of the receiver is to be started or not and outputs a result of the judgment.

2. The communication support system according to claim 1, wherein in the case where the retrieval portion judges that shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is present in the user information recording portion, the control portion judges that the communication between the user terminal of the originator and the user terminal of the receiver is not to be started.

3. The communication support system according to claim 1, wherein in the case where the retrieval portion judges that shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is present in the user information recording portion, the control portion makes a judgment that the communication between the user terminal of the originator and the user terminal of the receiver is not to be started, and outputs, as a result of the judgment, data indicating a terminal as a forwarding destination that is recorded beforehand.

4. The communication support system according to claim 3, further comprising an update portion,

wherein in the case where the control portion outputs, as a result of the judgment, data indicating a terminal as a forwarding destination that is recorded beforehand, the update portion updates the access information so as to show that the originator is a user who has accessed the shared information.

5. The communication support system according to claim 1, further comprising an information providing portion,

wherein in the case where the retrieval portion judges that shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is present in the user information recording portion, the information providing portion allows the shared information that the originator has not accessed to be sent to the user terminal of the originator.

6. The communication support system according to claim 5, further comprising an update portion,

wherein in the case where the information providing portion makes the shared information that the originator has not accessed sent to the user terminal of the originator, the update portion updates the access information so as to show that the originator is a user who has accessed the shared information.

7. The communication support system according to claim 1,

wherein the user identification portion further acquires a communication completion notice indicating that communication by any one of the plurality of user terminals is completed, and identifies an originator of the completed communication and a receiver of the completed communication,

wherein the communication support system further comprises a registration portion that registers information containing a history of the completed communication as shared information about at least one of the originator and the receiver in the completed communication.

8. The communication support system according to claim 1 connected with a communication control server that controls a communication among the plurality of user terminals used by the plurality of users, respectively, the communication support system further comprising:

a reception portion that receives from the communication control server a communication start request that is sent from any one of the plurality of user terminals to the communication control server, and notifies the user identification portion of the communication start request,

wherein the control portion outputs the result of the judgment to the communication control server.

9. The communication support system according to claim 1, further comprising a process judgment portion that acquires a communication start request from any one of the plurality of user terminals before the user identification portion acquires the same, makes a judgment as to whether the communication start request contains specific data, and determines based on the judgment as to whether the user identification portion is to be notified of the communication start request.

10. The communication support system according to claim 1,

wherein in the case where it is judged that shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is not present in the user information recording portion, the control portion further judges as to whether the communication start request contains specific data, and in the case where the communication start request contains specific data, the control portion judges that the communication between the user terminal of the originator and the user terminal of the receiver is not to be started.

11. A communication support method that uses a computer connected with a network enabling communication among a plurality of user terminals used by a plurality of users, respectively, the communication support method comprising the steps of:

an identification step in which a user identification portion of the computer acquires a communication start request from any one of the plurality of user terminals and identifies an originator of a communication that is required to start and a receiver of the communication;

a retrieval step in which a retrieval portion of the computer accesses a user information recording portion in which shared information and access information are recorded, the shared information concerning one or more users included in the plurality of users, to which at least a part of the plurality of users is accessible, and the access information indicating a user who has accessed the shared information, and the retrieval portion makes a judgment as to whether shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is present or not; and

a step in which a control portion of the computer makes a judgment, based on a result of the judgment by the retrieval step, as to whether the communication between a user terminal of the originator and a user terminal of the receiver is to be started or not and outputs a result of the judgment.

12. A communication support program that makes a computer connected with a network enabling communication among a plurality of user terminals used by a plurality of users, respectively, execute the following processes of:

a process of acquiring a communication start request from any one of the plurality of user terminals and identifying an originator of a communication that is required to start and a receiver of the communication;

a retrieval process of accessing a user information recording portion in which shared information and access information are recorded, the shared information concerning one or more users included in the plurality of users, to which at least part of the plurality of users is accessible, and the access information indicating a user who has accessed the shared information, and making a judgment as to whether shared information concerning the receiver that the originator has not accessed is present or not; and

a process of making a judgment, based on a result of the judgment by the retrieval process, as to whether the communication between a user terminal of the originator and a user terminal of the receiver is to be started or not and outputting a result of the judgment.