RELATIONSHIP COLLABORATION SYSTEM

• US 20110099211A1
• Filed: 10/28/2010
• Published: 04/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thomson Reuters Enterprise Centre GmbH (The Woodbridge Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: West Services
• Inventors: Yoon, Michael, Hyatt, Geoffrey, Swan, Wilbur
• Granted Patent: US 8,612,492 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/812
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/22 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/288 Entity relationship models
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/901 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures for retrieval from the web G06F16/951
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/955 Object-oriented

Abstract

A computer implemented method of processing data containing information about relationships between contacts and a community of contact owners, comprises: collecting data including contact information, contact owner information and one or more values related to strength of a relationship between the contact and the contact owner; evaluating the strength of the relationship based on the one or more values; and storing the collected data and evaluated strength in a computer database. A method of keying a database, comprises: building a database of records, each containing information about an entity, and each of which include a domain name field; and setting the domain name field as a key field; whereby a record for an entity is found by reference to a domain name. A method of keying a database, comprises: building a database of records, each containing information about an entity, and each of which include an email address field; and setting the email address field as a key field; whereby a record for an entity is found by reference to an email address. A method of keying a database, comprising: building a database of records, each containing information about an entity, and each of which includes a field holding an identifier uniquely associated with an entity by a convention of computer networking; and setting the field holding the identifier as a key field; whereby a record for an entity is found by reference to an identifier. A method of sharing relationship information, comprising: maintaining a database of relationship information records; selecting contact information according to a selection criterion; and returning selected relationship information also complying with restrictions set in a set of hierarchical privacy policies.

Claims

1. A computer implemented Method of processing data containing information about relationships between contacts or entities and a community of contact owners, comprising:

collecting data including contact information, contact owner information and one or

more values related to strength of a relationship between the contact and the contact owner;

evaluating the strength of the relationship based on the one or more values; and

storing the collected data and evaluated strength in a computer database.