Electronic form automation

• US 20080172598A1
• Filed: 01/23/2007
• Published: 07/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Jacobsen, Eliot W., Olliphant, Hugo
• Granted Patent: US 9,069,745 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0603 Catalogue ordering
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/12 Applying verification of the received information cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for data integrity or data verification H04L9/32

Abstract

Some embodiments may provide a method comprising receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data and form identifying data, the form identifying data to identify a sequence of one or more electronic forms, the sequence including a target electronic form having a form element, determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data, accessing, from a data store, an entity attribute value based on the entity identifier, and transmitting, to the remote machine, form-filling instructions operable to cause a machine to automatically associate an entity attribute value with the form element.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a communication module to receive, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data and form identifying data, the form identifying data to identify a sequence of one or more electronic forms, the sequence including a target electronic form having a form element;

an identification module to determine an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data; and

a data access module to access, from a data store, an entity attribute value based on the entity identifier, and

the communication module further to transmit, to the remote machine, form-filling instructions operable to cause a machine to automatically associate the entity attribute value with the form element.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising an instruction generation module to select form element identifying data corresponding to the form element within the target electronic form, to select an entity attribute identifier from the data store, the entity attribute identifier being associated in the data store with the target form identifying data and the form element identifying data, to select the entity attribute value from the data store, the entity attribute value being associated in the data store with the entity attribute identifier and the entity identifier, and to generate the form-filling instructions.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication module is to receive, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data, target form identifying data to identify a target electronic form having a form element, form element identifying data to identify the form element, and the entity attribute value, the system of claim 1 further comprising a learning module to select the entity attribute identifier from the data store, the entity attribute identifier being associated in the data store with the target form identifying data and the form element identifying data, and to store, in the data store, an association of the entity attribute value with the entity attribute identifier and the entity identifier.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the learning module is to select the entity attribute identifier from a data store, the data store storing an association among the entity attribute value, the entity attribute identifier, and the entity identifier, and to store, in the data store, an association among the entity attribute identifier, the target form identifying data, and the form element identifying data.

5. A method comprising:

receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data and form identifying data, the form identifying data to identify a sequence of one or more electronic forms, the sequence including a target electronic form having a form element;

determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data;

accessing, from a data store, an entity attribute value based on the entity identifier; and

transmitting, to the remote machine, form-filling instructions operable to cause a machine to automatically associate the entity attribute value with the form element.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

selecting form element identifying data corresponding to the form element within the target electronic form;

selecting an entity attribute identifier from the data store, the entity attribute identifier being associated in the data store with the target form identifying data and the form element identifying data; and

selecting the entity attribute value from the data store, the entity attribute value being associated in the data store with the entity attribute identifier and the entity identifier.

7. The method of claim 5, further including generating the form-filling instructions.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the target electronic form is a markup language document.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the form element includes at least one of a group including a text entry box descriptor, a check box descriptor, a radio button descriptor, a drop-down menu descriptor, a selectable list descriptor, and a text entry field descriptor.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the target electronic form and a second markup language document are served by a first web domain, the second electronic document referencing a script, the script including the form-filling instructions and served by a second web domain in response to a request during the rendering of the second markup language document.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the rendering of the second markup language document and the requesting of the script are carried out by the remote machine.

12. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving, from the remote machine, credentials of an entity;

determining whether the credentials are valid; and

selectively transmitting the entity-identifying data to the remote machine when the credentials are valid.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the credentials include a password associated with the entity.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the receiving of credentials is via a transmission in response to a user interaction with a web browser toolbar running on the machine.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the receiving of credentials is via a transmission in response to a user interaction with a first web browser window running on the machine.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the first web browser window is presented in response to a user interaction with a graphical user interface (GUI) in a second web browser window, the GUI corresponding to an electronic document.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the electronic document is served by a network-based commerce system and the electronic document is the target electronic form.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the receiving of form element identifying data is via a transmission from a web browser toolbar.

19. The method of claim 5, wherein the transmission of the form-filling instructions to the remote machine is in response to a request from the remote machine for the form-filling instructions.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the request from the remote machine includes the entity-identifying data.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the request from the remote machine includes the form identifying data.

22. A method comprising:

receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data;

determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data;

receiving, from the remote machine, target form identifying data to identify a target electronic form having a form element;

receiving, from the remote machine, form element identifying data to identify the form element;

receiving an entity attribute value from the remote machine;

selecting an entity attribute identifier from a data store, the entity attribute identifier being associated in the data store with the target form identifying data and the form element identifying data; and

storing, in the data store, an association of the entity attribute value with the entity attribute identifier and the entity identifier.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the entity attribute value is associated with the form element identifying data by user entry of the entity attribute value into a graphical user interface (GUI) element corresponding to the form element.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the target electronic form is a markup language document.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the entity-identifying data includes valid credentials associated with the entity.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the credentials include a password associated with the entity.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein a remote machine prompts for the credentials from a user via a web browser toolbar.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein a remote machine prompts for the credentials from a user via a first web browser window.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the first web browser window is presented in response to a user interaction with a rendering, in a second web browser window, of an electronic document

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the electronic document is served by a network-based commerce system.

31. The method of claim 22, wherein the entity attribute value, the form element identifying data, and the target form identifying data are received from the remote machine, the remote machine having carried out a method comprising:

presenting a graphical user interface (GUI) element corresponding to the form element;

receiving user input via the GUI element; and

in response to receiving the user input, identifying the user input as the entity attribute value and associating the entity attribute value with the form element identifying data and the target form identifying data.

32. A method comprising:

receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data;

determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data;

receiving, from the remote machine, target form identifying data to identify a target electronic form having a form element;

receiving, from the remote machine, form element identifying data to identify the form element;

receiving an entity attribute value from the remote machine;

selecting an entity attribute identifier from a data store, the data store storing an association among the entity attribute value, entity attribute identifier, and the entity identifier; and

storing, in the data store, an association among the entity attribute identifier, the target form identifying data, and the form element identifying data.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the entity attribute value is associated with the form element identifying data by user entry of the entity attribute value into a graphical user interface (GUI) corresponding to the form element.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the entity-identifying data includes valid credentials of the entity.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein a remote machine prompts for the credentials from a user via a web browser toolbar.

36. The method of claim 34, wherein a remote machine prompts for the credentials from a user via a first web browser window.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the first web browser window is presented in response to a user interaction with a rendering, in a second web browser window, of an electronic document.

38. The method of claim 32, wherein the entity attribute value, the form element identifying data, and the target form identifying data are received from the remote machine, the remote machine having carried out a method comprising:

presenting a GUI element corresponding to the form element;

receiving user input via the GUI element; and

in response to receiving the user input, identifying the user input as the entity attribute value and associating the entity attribute value with the form element identifying data and the target form identifying data.

39. A system comprising:

means for receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data;

means for determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data

means for receiving, from the remote machine, target form identifying data to identify a target electronic form having a form element;

means for receiving, from the remote machine, form element identifying data to identify the form element;

means for receiving an entity attribute value from the remote machine;

means for selecting an entity attribute identifier from a data store, the data store storing an association among the entity attribute value, entity attribute identifier, and the entity identifier; and

means for storing, in the data store, an association among the entity attribute identifier, the target form identifying data, and the form element identifying data.

40. A system comprising:

means for receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data;

means for determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data;

means for receiving, from the remote machine, target form identifying data to identify a target electronic form having a form element;

means for receiving, from the remote machine, form element identifying data to identify the form element;

means for receiving an entity attribute value from the remote machine;

means for selecting an entity attribute identifier from a data store, the entity attribute identifier being associated in the data store with the target form identifying data and the form element identifying data; and

means for storing, in the data store, an association of the entity attribute value with the entity attribute identifier and the entity identifier.

41. A system comprising:

means for receiving, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data and form identifying data, the form identifying data to identify a sequence of one or more electronic forms, the sequence including a target electronic form having a form element;

means for determining an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data;

means for accessing, from a data store, an entity attribute value based on the entity identifier; and

means for transmitting, to the remote machine, form-filling instructions operable to cause a machine to automatically associate an entity attribute value with the form element.

42. A machine-readable medium comprising a plurality of instruction sets, the plurality of instruction sets comprising:

a first instruction set to cause a machine to receive, from a remote machine, entity-identifying data and form identifying data, the form identifying data to identify a sequence of one or more electronic forms, the sequence including a target electronic form having a form element;

a second instruction set to cause the machine to determine an entity identifier, based on the entity-identifying data;

a third instruction set to cause the machine to access, from a data store, an entity attribute value based on the entity identifier; and

a fourth instruction set to cause the machine to transmit, to the remote machine, form-filling instructions operable to cause a machine to automatically associate an entity attribute value with the form element.