SOCIAL-TOPICAL ADAPTIVE NETWORKING (STAN) SYSTEM ALLOWING FOR GROUP BASED CONTEXTUAL TRANSACTION OFFERS AND ACCEPTANCES AND HOT TOPIC WATCHDOGGING

• US 20120290950A1
• Filed: 02/07/2012
• Published: 11/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/12/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Jeffrey A. Rapaport
• Inventors: Rapaport, Seymour, Smith, Kenneth Allen, Beattie, James, Gimlan, Gideon, Rapaport, Jeffrey Alan
• Granted Patent: US 8,676,937 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/753
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1818 Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467

Abstract

Disclosed is a Social-Topical Adaptive Networking (STAN) system that can inform users of cross-correlations between currently focused-upon topic or other nodes in a corresponding topic or other data-objects organizing space maintained by the system and various social entities monitored by the system. More specifically, one of the cross-correlations may be as between the top N now-hottest topics being focused-upon by a first social entity and the amounts of focus ‘heat’ that other social entities (e.g., friends and family) are casting on the same topics (or other subregions of other cognitive attention receiving spaces) in a relevant time period.

Claims

1. One or more of inventions disclosed here within as taken alone or in combinations one with at least another, incorporated here-at and thus contained and defined hereby.

2-53. -53. (canceled)

54. A machine-implemented method for enhancing a network using experience of a respective first user, the method comprising:

causing a plurality of processes to occur with respect to the first user and a local data processing device which is accessible by the first user, where the local data processing device is operatively coupled to or includes as a part thereof of a network content displaying and/or otherwise presenting means for displaying and/or otherwise presenting content obtained from one or more networks to the first user;

wherein the local data processing device is operatively coupled to and/or has executing within it, a corresponding one or more network browsing modules where at least one of the browsing modules is configured to cause a presenting of browser generated content to the first user;

wherein the at least one of the browsing modules is configured to relay current focus indicator data obtained from attention giving activities of the first user;

the plurality of caused processes including;

causing an upstream network server configured to receive network serve requests from the at least one browsing module, to receive the current focus indicator data relayed by the at least one browsing module upstream to the network server; and

causing a Social-Topical Adaptive Networking (STAN) system to receive current focus indicator data forwarded to it from the network server.

55. The experience enhancing method of Claim 54 wherein the plurality of caused processes further include:

causing result data produced by the STAN system to be relayed downstream to

at least one of;

the network server;

one or more of the network browsing modules;

the local data processing device.

56. The experience enhancing method of Claim 54 wherein the plurality of caused processes further include:

causing an attachment of respective time of focus and/or screen location information to the current focus indicator data which is relayed by the at least one browsing module upstream to the network server, where the attached time of focus and/or screen location information is indicative of a respective time of focus-upon and/or of a respective screen location of respective content indicated to be focused-upon by the respective current focus indicator data; and

causing the STAN system to use the attached time of focus and/or screen location information to form a context-based hybrid clustering of received current focus indicators and chronological and/or spatial contexts associated therewith.

57. The experience enhancing method of Claim 56 wherein the plurality of caused processes further include:

causing presentation to the first user of new content that is derived based on use of result data produced by the STAN system.

58. The experience enhancing method of Claim 57 wherein the plurality of caused processes further include:

causing a learning to take place within the STAN system based on an obtained reaction by the first user to the caused presentation of the new content, where the caused learning reinforces a pre-defined profiling model of the first user or detracts from the pre-defined profiling model of the first user.

59-67. -67. (canceled)

68. A machine-implemented and automated process comprising:

providing empowerment to a first user, whose states and attention giving activities can be monitored by one or more local devices, the provided empowerment enabling for reporting signals representing monitored states and/or activities of that first user to be received and/or recognized by a remote Social-Topical Adaptive Networking (STAN) system where such received and/or recognized reporting signals induce an automated carrying out in the remote Social-Topical Adaptive Networking (STAN) system of an automated informational resource lookup operation on behalf of the first user where the automated informational resource lookup operation includes one or more of;

(a) an automatic determining of a current context of the first user;

(b) based on the determined current context, an automatic determining of one or more currently activated profiles for the first user;

(c) based on the currently activated one or more profiles and on state and/or activities reporting signals then received for the first user, which reporting signals report attention giving activities of the user and/or report recent physical context and/or biometric states of the user, automatically identifying one or more points, nodes or subregions of a hybrid Cognitive Attention Receiving Space to be pointed-to;

(d) based on the pointed-to parts of the hybrid Cognitive Attention Receiving Space, automatically identifying one or more informational resource signals to be transmitted to the first user where the informational resource signals can represent at least one of;

invitations to join chat or other online forum participation sessions, invitations to join real life (ReL) or virtual life events related to the pointed-to parts of the hybrid Cognitive Attention Receiving Space, suggestions to connect with one or more identified other users in regard to the pointed-to parts of the hybrid Cognitive Attention Receiving Space, and suggestions to access one or more identified data resources in regard to the pointed-to parts of the hybrid Cognitive Attention Receiving Space.

69-130. -130. (canceled)

131. A machine-implemented, non-abstract and automated process that provides for adaptive social networking between plural users of a machine system, where the machine system is used in implementing the process and where the process comprises:

empowering a first user and/or one or more data processing devices proximate to the first user to cause one or more other data processors of the machine system, which other data processors are operatively coupled to the one or more proximate devices, to home in on one or more of at least one plurality of points, nodes or subregions in a maintained one of plural Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces maintained by the machine system, where the homed-in on points, nodes or subregions are ones determined by the machine system to more likely than others cross-correlate to apparent individualized current cognitions of the first user;

wherein said empowering includes machine-implemented identification of the first user; and

wherein said system-maintained plural Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces each includes stored data-objects representing hierarchically and/or spatially organized at least one plurality of points, nodes or subregions and wherein the hierarchical and/or spatial organizations in the respective Communal Cognitions-representing Space of at least one plurality of the points, nodes or subregions thereof are determined and are modifiable, at least in part, by over-a-network reported actions of a corresponding community formed by at least a subset of the plural users of the machine system.

132. The automated process of Claim 131 and further wherein:

the stored data-objects of one or more of the plural Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces further include cognitive-sense-representing clustering center points (COGS'"'"'s) that are hierarchically and/or spatially organized relative to a corresponding one or more of the points, nodes or subregions of the respective one or more Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces; and

the automated process uses a calculated hierarchical and/or spatial distance between a given clustering center point (COGS) and one or more points, nodes or subregions that are hierarchically and/or spatially disposed in a neighborhood of the COGS to automatically determine how substantially same or similar the one or more points, nodes or subregions in an underlying cognitive sense to a cognitive sense represented by the given clustering center point.

133. The automated process of Claim 131 and further wherein:

the stored data-objects of one or more of the plural Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces include hierarchically and/or spatially clustered together ones of points, nodes or subregions of the respective one or more Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces; and

the automated process uses a calculated hierarchical and/or spatial distance between the hierarchically and/or spatially clustered together ones of points, nodes or subregions of a respective Communal Cognitions-representing Space to automatically determine how substantially same or similar the one or more points, nodes or subregions in an underlying cognitive sense to one another.

134. The automated process of Claim 131 and further wherein the plural Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces of the machine system include at least two of:

a topics mapping space;

a contexts mapping space;

a recently focused-upon sub-portions of-content mapping space;

a keywords mapping space;

a URLs mapping space;

a meta-tags mapping space; and

a hybrid mapping space whose points, nodes or subregions logically link to respective points, nodes or subregions in at least two other Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces of the machine system.

135. The automated process of Claim 134 wherein at least a respective one of the points, nodes or subregions (PNOS'"'"'s) of at least one of the Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces includes data identifying at least one of:

chat or other forum participation opportunities and/or sessions that are currently strongly tethered by respective scored logical tethering links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of keyword expressions that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of URL expressions that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of meta-data expressions that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of user context definitions that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of expert user identifications that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of influential user identifications that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS;

a ranked set of first other points, nodes or subregions in respective Cognitions-representing Space of the respective PNOS that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS, where the first other points include hierarchical children of the respective PNOS; and

a ranked set of second other points, nodes or subregions in another Cognitions-representing Space that are currently strongly linked by respective scored logical links to the respective PNOS.

136. The automated process of Claim 134 wherein at least a respective one of the points, nodes or subregions (PNOS'"'"'s) of at least one of the Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces includes data identifying at least one of:

a hierarchical location within a corresponding hierarchical organizing scheme of the respective Cognitions-representing Space where the respective PNOS is located;

a spatial location within a corresponding spatial organizing scheme of the respective Cognitions-representing Space where the respective PNOS is located;

a unique serial number or other unique identification assigned to the respective PNOS;

a version time and date assigned to the respective PNOS;

a currently dead or alive status assigned to the respective PNOS;

a respective hierarchical and/or spatial anchor factor currently assigned to the respective PNOS for indicating a respective anchoring strength at the corresponding hierarchical and/or spatial locations of the respective PNOS in the corresponding hierarchical and/or spatial location where it is deemed to be located;

an identification of one or more governance bodies currently empowered to modify one or more attributes of the respective PNOS including its hierarchical location or its spatial location or its respective hierarchical and/or spatial anchor factors or other attributes of the respective PNOS.

137. The automated process of Claim 131 and further wherein the respective points, nodes or subregions (PNOS'"'"'s) of at least one of the Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces of the machine system are distributed among:

a primitives portion that contains primitive ones of the PNOS'"'"'s; and

a composites portion that contains operator nodes which each define a composite point, node or subregion based on two or more of the primitive PNOS'"'"'s contained in the primitives portion.

138. The automated process of Claim 137 wherein:

the primitive ones of the PNOS'"'"'s include at least one of;

a textual expression primitive object;

a topic primitive object;

a music primitive object;

a sound primitive object;

a voice primitive object;

a context primitive object;

an image primitive object;

an anatomy and movement primitive object;

a biological state primitive object; and

a reactive chemical mixture primitive object.

139. The automated process of Claim 131 wherein said empowering of the first user and/or the one or more proximate devices to cause said homing-in-on includes:

empowering one or more of the proximate devices to automatically and repeatedly transmit to the one or more data processors of the machine system, current focus indicator signals (CFi'"'"'s) that indicate current activities and/or current states of the first user.

140. The automated process of Claim 139 wherein the indicated current activities and/or current states of the first user include at least one of:

a current location of the first user in real life (ReL) and/or in a virtual space;

a current time zone and/or date zone of the first user in real life (ReL) and/or in a virtual space;

a current pre-scheduled activities state of the first user;

identifications of other personas currently surrounding the first user in a potentially current attention giving way and/or in a near future interaction capability way;

a current other-contextual state of the first user;

a current biometric state of the first user;

current sub-portions of available content that are apparently being focused-upon by the first user; and

at least one of keywords, URL'"'"'s and/or meta-tags that are logically linked to the current sub-portions of available content that are apparently being focused-upon by the first user.

141. The automated process of Claim 139 wherein the one or more other data processors of the machine system provide a CFi'"'"'s clustering function that clusters together on a trial and error basis, different permutations of information provided on behalf of the first user by recently received CFi signals associated with the first user.

142. The automated process of Claim 131 wherein said other data processors of the machine system define a chunky granularity cloud system having a plurality of data centers whose resources are primarily but not exclusively dedicated to servicing system users of respective different geographic zones, where the plural data centers can be used to back one another up in case one of the data centers becomes inoperable or overwhelmed with service requests, but where the data centers are not all identical, one to the next in terms of locally stored data, but rather where some of the data centers store locally significant data not stored at others of the data centers, the locally significant data including data representing locally significant points, nodes or subregions in the maintained one or more of the plural Communal Cognitions-representing Spaces maintained by the machine system.