CONTEXT-BASED IDENTIFICATION OF ENTITY WITH WHICH COMMUNICATION OCCURS

• US 20080133670A1
• Filed: 11/30/2006
• Published: 06/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Accenture Global Services Limited (Accenture PLC)
• Original Assignee: Gestalt LLC (Accenture PLC)
• Inventors: Back, William D., O'Neill, Brian M., Stogdill, James R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,346,873 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

An entity is made the target of a communication—such as instant messaging, E-mail, or VoIP—based on a specification of context that the entity satisfies. A user (or other type of entity) who wishes to communication with one or more entities that satisfy a particular context specifies that context at the time the communication is to be sent. A system resolves the context by ascertaining which one or more entities satisfy the context, and the communication is sent to the ascertained entities. In one example, a user can specify that a message is to be sent to an entity at a particular geographic location, and the system chooses the one or more entities that are nearest to the specified location.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

one or more data retention devices;

a service module that comprises instructions that are executable on at least one of said processors and that are stored in at least one of said data retention devices, that receives, from a plurality of entities, registrations of said entities'"'"' presence and information descriptive of said entities'"'"' contexts, that receives, from a component, a request including a context, and that provides, to said component, identification of one or more of said entities that satisfy said context; and

said component, which provides a mechanism through which a user may specify an identifier associated with a first one of said entities with whom communication involving said user and said first one of said entities is to take place, that receives, using said mechanism, a specification of said context, that provides said request to said service module, that receives said identification of said one or more of said entities from said service module, and that causes said communication to occur involving said user and said one or more of said entities.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the entities are associated with corresponding identifiers, wherein said context does not contain or specify any of the identifiers, and wherein said service module ascertains said one or more of said entities that satisfy said context independently of any relationship that may exist between said context and said identifiers.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein said identifiers are e-mail addresses associated with said entities, wherein said communication that said component causes to occur comprises sending of e-mail to said one or more of said entities, and wherein said mechanism comprises a field designated to receive an e-mail address through a human interaction.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said field is a text field into which an e-mail address is typeable by said user, said component being configured to recognize that said context has been typed into said field in place of an e-mail address, and said component being configured to send e-mail to said one or more of said entities identified by said service module in place of sending e-mail to an e-mail address that could otherwise have been typed into said field.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein said identifiers are instant messaging identifiers associated with said entities, wherein said communication that said component causes to occur comprises sending an instant message to said one or more of said entities, and wherein said mechanism comprises a field designated to receive an instant messaging identifier through a human interaction.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein said identifiers are VoIP identifiers associated with said entities, wherein said communication that said component causes to occur comprises facilitating a VoIP communication involving said user and said one or more of said entities, and wherein said mechanism comprises a user input mechanism through which a VoIP identifier may be identified through a human interaction.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein said service module ascertains said one or more of said entities that satisfy said context in a manner that is dependent on a relationship between said context and said information.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein said information comprises descriptions of locations of said entities, said descriptions being recurrently updated to reflect physical movement of said entities, wherein said context comprises a description of a geographic position, wherein said service module ascertains said one or more of said entities based on which of said entities'"'"' most recently updated descriptions of location satisfy a positional predicate with respect to the geographic position described in said context.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a storage module that stores, in at least one of said one or more data retention devices, said registrations and said information, wherein said service module consults said storage module, and uses said registrations and said information stored by said storage module, to ascertain which of said entities satisfy said context.

10. One or more computer-readable media having stored thereon computer-executable instructions to implement a method, the method comprising:

receiving registrations from at least some of a plurality of entities, each registration representing presence of a particular one of the plurality of entities;

receiving items of information descriptive of contexts associated with said at least some of said plurality of entities;

receiving, from a component, a request for a set of entities, said request specifying a context;

ascertaining, based on said registrations, said items of information, and said context, a set selected from said at least some of said plurality of entities, wherein said entities contained in said set satisfy said context according to one or more criteria, wherein each of said plurality of said plurality of entities is associated with an identifier, and wherein said ascertaining is performed independently of any relationship that may exist between said identifier and said context;

first providing identification of said set of entities to said component;

second providing a mechanism through which an identifier associated with one of said entities is providable by a user;

enabling a communication to occur involving a user and said set of entities, said communication being in a form, and wherein combinations of said mechanism and said form are selected from the group consisting of;

said form constituting e-mail communication, and said mechanism comprising a text field into which said user may type an e-mail address;

said form constituting instant messaging communication, said mechanism comprising a user interface through which a user may specify an instant messaging identifier; and

said form constituting VoIP communication, said mechanism comprising a user interface through which a user may specify a VoIP identifier;

wherein said receiving acts, said ascertaining act, and said first providing act are performed by a service module, wherein said second providing act and said enabling act are performed by said component, said component and said service module being software items that are distinct from each other and that are implemented by the instructions stored on said one or more computer-readable media.

11. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

limiting said set to those ones of said plurality of entities for which a valid registration is known to said service module.

12. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 10, wherein said items of information comprise descriptions of locations of said at least some of said plurality of entities, said descriptions being recurrently updated to reflect physical movement of said at least some of said plurality of entities, wherein said context comprises a description of a geographic position, wherein said set consists of those ones of said at least some of said plurality of entities whose most recently updated descriptions of location satisfy a positional predicate with respect to the geographic position described in said context.

13. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

providing, by said component, said list to said user.

14. A method comprising:

receiving, from a first entity, a specification of a context;

subsequent to said receiving, ascertaining one or more of a plurality of second entities that satisfy said context, said one or more entities being ascertained entities; and

causing first information to be transmitted from said first entity to said ascertained entities,

wherein which ones of the plurality of second entities that satisfy said context is changeable over time.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the second entities are associated with corresponding identifiers, wherein said context does not contain or specify any of the identifiers, and wherein said ascertaining is performed independently of any relationship between said context and said identifiers.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said identifiers are e-mail addresses associated with said second entities, wherein said causing first information to be transmitted comprises:

sending e-mail to said ascertained entities;

wherein said receiving comprises;

receiving said specification of said context in a field designated to receive an e-mail address through a human interaction.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein said identifiers are instant messaging identifiers associated with said second entities, wherein said causing first information to be transmitted comprises:

sending an instant message to said ascertained identities;

wherein said receiving comprises;

receiving said specification of said context in a field designated to receive an instant messaging identifier through a human interaction.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein said identifiers are VoIP identifiers associated with said second entities, wherein said causing first information to be transmitted comprises:

engaging in a VoIP communication with said ascertained entities;

wherein said receiving comprises;

receiving said specification of said context by a mechanism designated to receive a VoIP identifier through a human interaction.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein said second entities provide second information concerning said entities, and wherein said ascertaining is dependent on said second information.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said second information comprises descriptions of locations of said second entities, said descriptions being recurrently updated to reflect physical movement of said second entities, wherein said context comprises a description of a geographic position, wherein said ascertained entities are those one or more second entities whose most recently updated descriptions of location satisfy a positional predicate with respect to the geographic position described in said context.