User collaboration system

• US 20080072158A1
• Filed: 09/21/2006
• Published: 03/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Accenture Global Services Limited (Accenture PLC), Conopco (Unilever PLC)
• Original Assignee: Accenture Global Services Limited (Accenture PLC)
• Inventors: Samele, Antonio, Schneider, Timothy J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,875,028 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/751
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1813 for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms instant messaging H04L51/04; protocols for multimedia communication H04L65/1101; arrangements for multi-party communication H04L65/403; telephonic conference arrangements H04M3/56; television conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services

Abstract

A user collaboration system providing for the efficient utilization of an organization'"'"'s resources, such as the bandwidth associated with call center activity. At the same time, the user collaboration system enables users to quickly and easily receive help in a particular subject matter area, without requiring the user to know who within the organization may be able to provide that assistance. The user collaboration system also maintains an organization'"'"'s user profile information that tracks employee subject matter expertise and allows users to request assistance from an anonymous expert. The assistance may be provided via a collaboration session which may be optimized based on available network resources.

Claims

1. A user collaboration system comprising:

a user profile database for storing community membership information, the community membership information including information about members for a plurality of communities, where each community includes a plurality of members;

a memory comprising;

a presentation layer for receiving a request for a collaborative session with an anonymous member of a community, the request associated with a first user, the request specifying a community;

a logic layer including;

a presence component operative to determine available members of the community;

a filter component operative to determine a second user from the determined available members and further operative to send collaboration session information to the first user and the second user to enable the first user and the second user to initiate a collaborative session.

2. The system of claim 1, where the presence component includes a network presence component operative to determine the network presence of a plurality of users, each user belonging to one or more of the community, and where the presence component is further operative to determine the available members of the specified community based on the network presence of the members of the specified community.

3. The system of claim 2, where the network presence component is further operative to store network characteristics of the users, and where the filter component is further operative to determine the second user based on the network characteristics of the available members.

4. The system of claim 1, where the presentation layer is further operative to notify the first user if at least one member of the community is available.

5. The system of claim 1, where the logic layer further comprises a booking component operative to enable the first user to request a future collaborative session with a member of the community if there are no available members.

6. The system of claim 5, where the booking component is further operative to cause the first user to be notified when a member of the group of subject matter experts becomes available.

7. The system of claim 1, where the members have an associated identity, and where the filter component is further operative to mask the identity of the second user from the first user, and where the processor executes the fourth set of instructions.

8. The system of claim 1, where the filter component is further operative to determine the second user to evenly distribute requests to available members.

9. The system of claim 1, where the filter component is further operative to establish a collaborative session between the first user and the second user.

10. A method for establishing a collaborative session over a network, the method comprising:

receiving, from a first user, a request for a collaborative session with an anonymous member of a community, the community having a plurality of members;

determining available members of the community;

automatically determining, in response to the receiving, a second user from the determined available members; and

,

sending collaboration session information to the first user and the second user to enable the first user and the second user to initiate a collaborative session.

11. The method of claim 10, where available members are determined based on network presence of the members of the community.

12. The method of claim 10, where each available member has at least one associated network characteristic, and where the second user is determined based on the associated network characteristics of the available members.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising notifying the first user if at least one member of the community is available.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

allowing the first user to request a future collaborative session with a member of the community if there are no available members.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

notifying the first user when a member of the community becomes available.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the members have an associated identity, the method further comprising:

masking the identity of the second user from the first user.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the second user is determined to evenly distribute requests to available members.

18. The method of claim 10, further comprising establishing a collaborative session between the first user and the second user.