Method for Providing Information and Recommendations Based on User Activity

• US 20110238478A1
• Filed: 06/02/2011
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Personal Data Network Corporation
• Original Assignee: Personal Data Network Corporation
• Inventors: Gottfurcht, Elliot A., Dunn, Shawn C., Gottfurcht, Grant E.
• Application Number:
  US13/152,173
• Publication Number:
  US 20110238478A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.25
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/435 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3576 Multiple memory zones on card
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 Item recommendations
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/60 relating to nutrition control, e.g. diets
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/40 relating to drugs, e.g. their side effects or intended usage

Abstract

A method for providing recommendations to a user based on user activity. A plurality of activity data tracking a plurality of activities of a user is obtained. The activity data may be obtained over a wide area network such as the internet or downloaded from a data card which stores activity data whenever the user participates in an activity. The activity data is either stored on the data card or transmitted over the network whenever the user uses a card when participating in any activity such as when making a purchase of goods, paying for services, watching television, etc. The activity data is processed to identify a plurality of user patterns. The user patterns are used to form a user profile and may include user habit data. Recommendations specific to the user based on the user patterns are then created for and provided to the user. The recommendations are provided to a user when the user logs onto a computer network such as the internet. The recommendations may also be provided by electronic mail, electronic pager or other methods. The recommendations are provided by various data analysis techniques including rule based inference engines and other forms of artificial intelligence.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

collecting activity data for a user to update a user profile for the user, the activity data including purchase history data for the user, the user being part of a group;

generating a suggestion for the group by a computer system based on the user profile, the suggestion including a coupon for the group; and

sending the suggestion to the user.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending a request to bid to a business by a group manager, the request to form the suggestion for the group.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the suggestion for the group is a group discount.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the suggestion for the group is a bulk discount.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the group forms a buying cooperative.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a web query for the group manager to obtain pricing information, the web query to form the suggestion for the group.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a group profile based on activity data from each user in the group.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein sending the suggestion to the user comprises:

sending an email to the user containing the suggestion.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein sending the suggestion to the user comprises:

providing a web page to a user to be viewed by the user, the web page containing the suggestion.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the business for the request to bid is selected based on the user profile or a group profile including activity data.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a set of operations further comprising:

sending a request to bid to a business by a group manager, the request to form the suggestion for the group.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the suggestion for the group is a group discount.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the suggestion for the group is a bulk discount.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the group forms a buying cooperative.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a set of operations further comprising:

generating a web query for the group manager to obtain pricing information, the web query to form the suggestion for the group.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a group profile based on activity data from each user in the group.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein sending the suggestion to the user comprises:

sending an email to the user containing the suggestion.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein sending the suggestion to the user comprises:

providing a web page to a user to be viewed by the user, the web page containing the suggestion.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the business for the request to bid is selected based on the user profile or a group profile including activity data.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a set of operations comprising:

collecting activity data for a user to update a user profile for the user, the activity data including purchase history data for the user, the user being part of a group;

generating a suggestion for the group by a computer system based on the user profile, the suggestion including a coupon for the group; and

sending the suggestion to the user.