METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR MODIFYING A USER PROFILE FOR A RECOMMENDATION ALGORITHM AND MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS BASED ON USER INTERACTIONS WITH ITEMS

• US 20140108395A1
• Filed: 10/04/2013
• Published: 04/17/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gartner, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Gartner, Inc.
• Inventors: Polonsky, Nir, Malangi, Girish, Volpe, Kevin
• Granted Patent: US 10,102,278 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/733
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/335 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/337 Profile generation, learning or modification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/437 Administration of user profiles, e.g. generation, initialisation, adaptation, distribution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90324 using system suggestions

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for modifying a user profile for a recommendation algorithm are provided. A user is provided with electronic access to an item. The item may comprise one of a document, an article, a chart, a graphic, a report, a web page, or the like. User interaction with the item is enabled. The user interaction with the item is then electronically tracked and stored. The user'"'"'s user profile used by a recommendation engine is then modified based on the tracked user interactions. The user interaction may comprise at least one of annotating, highlighting, modifying, customizing, adding comments to the item, and the like. The user modified item can be saved and details of the user interaction with the item may be used to modify the user profile. At least one of items or peer recommendations can then be provided to the user based on the modified user profile.

Claims

1. A computerized method for modifying a user profile for a recommendation algorithm, comprising:

providing a user with electronic access to an item, the item comprising one of a document, an article, a chart, a graphic, a report, and a web page;

enabling user interaction with the item;

electronically tracking and storing the user interaction with the item; and

modifying the user'"'"'s user profile used by a recommendation engine based on the tracked user interactions.

2. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the user interaction comprises at least one of annotating, highlighting, modifying, customizing, and adding comments to the item.

3. A method in accordance with claim 2, wherein the user interaction is enabled via an application service provider application or a downloadable software application.

4. A method in accordance with claim 2, further comprising:

enabling a web page displaying the item to be displayed as an interactive web page providing capabilities for at least one of entering annotations, entering comments, adding highlighting of text portions, and making modifications to the item.

5. A method in accordance with claim 4, further comprising:

saving the user modified item;

recording details of the user interaction from the user modified item;

using the details of the user interaction to modify the user profile.

6. A method in accordance with claim 5, wherein the details of the user interaction comprise at least one of:

a coordinate position of the annotation, modification, comment, or highlighting in the item;

the content of the annotation, modification, comment, and highlighting;

meta data describing the content being annotated, modified, commented on, or highlighted;

meta data assigned to the annotation, modification, comment, or highlighting; and

results of sentiment analysis of the annotation, modification, comment, or highlighted content.

7. A method in accordance with claim 6, wherein the user profile is modified based on at least one of:

key words taken from the annotation, modification, comment, or highlighted content;

meta data describing the annotation, modification, or comment;

key words from the highlighted content;

meta data of a highlighted section; and

meta data describing the item being modified in an info-graphic interface.

8. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the user profile is stored in a database and modified at least one of:

periodically at defined intervals;

after each user interaction;

after a defined number of user interactions; and

after a number of user interactions supersede a predetermined threshold number of interactions.

9. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein one of:

the user accesses the item via a web site, a mobile application, or interactive email;

the item is provided to the user via the recommendation engine; and

the item is accessed from a database.

10. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein:

the item comprises an info-graphics chart with weighted data elements;

the user interaction comprises modification of one or more weights assigned to the data elements.

11. A method in accordance with claim 10, wherein:

the info-graphics chart may comprise an X axis and a Y axis;

the X axis and the Y axis each correspond to weighted sums of sub scores along multiple sub-dimensions;

weights are assigned to each sub-dimension;

user modification of the weight for a particular sub-dimension indicates a relative priority of the particular sub-dimension to the user.

12. A method in accordance with claim 11, wherein:

user modification of the one or more weights is enabled via an interactive graphics display comprising one of a slidebar for each of the weights, a clickable weight scale for selecting the desired weight for each sub-dimension, a user interface embedded in a web page providing the info-graphic, and an editable table listing the weights for each sub-dimension.

13. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

providing at least one of items or peer recommendations to the user based on the modified user profile.

14. A method in accordance with claim 13, wherein items or peer recommendations provided to the user are modified based on the modified user profile.

15. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein modifications to the items or peer recommendations comprise at least one of highlighting of key words in a recommended document, creating a custom view in an info-graphics chart, re-ordering of text elements in the recommended document, inserting annotations into an item, cropping or customizing of the info-graphics chart, providing customized contextualized comments to the recommendations which relates the recommendations to the modified user profile, and re-ordering a list of recommendations.

16. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the user profile in an unmodified state comprises at least one of an explicit profile comprising data entered by the user and an implicit profile comprising information obtained from user behavior.

17. A method in accordance with claim 16, wherein the user behavior comprises at least one of key words used in key word searches, articles reviewed, web pages reviewed, articles purchased, discussions reviewed, discussions participated in, peer profiles selected for connection, articles or web pages saved or downloaded, and items clicked on in an info-graphics chart.

18. An apparatus for modifying a user profile for a recommendation algorithm, comprising:

a user interface providing a user with electronic access to an item, the item comprising one of a document, an article, a chart, a graphic, a report, and a web page, and enabling user interaction with the item;

a software application for electronically tracking the user interaction with the item;

a database for storing the user interaction with the item;

a database for storing a user profile;

wherein;

the software application modifies the user profile based on the tracked user interactions; and

the modified user profile is used by a recommendation engine to serve items or peer recommendations to the user tailored to the modified user profile.

19. A method for providing recommendations using a continuously modifiable user profile, comprising:

entering an initial user profile;

providing a user with electronic access to an item, the item comprising one of a document, an article, a chart, a graphic, a report, and a web page;

enabling user interaction with the item;

electronically tracking and storing the user interaction with the item;

modifying the initial user profile based on the tracked user interactions; and

serving one or more items or peer recommendations to the user based on the modified user profile.

20. A method in accordance with claim 19, wherein the one or more items or peer recommendations served to the user are at least one of modified and customized by the recommendation engine based on the modifications to the user profile.

22. A system in accordance with claim 20, wherein the one or more items or peer recommendations served to the user are at least one of modified and customized by the recommendation engine based on the modifications to the user profile.

21. A system for providing recommendations using a continuously modifiable user profile, comprising:

a user interface providing a user with electronic access to an item, the item comprising one of a document, an article, a chart, a graphic, a report, and a web page and enabling user interaction with the item;

a software application for electronically tracking the user interaction with the item;

a database for storing the user interaction with the item;

a database for storing a user profile;

a recommendation engine for serving items to users based on the user profile;

wherein;

the software application modifies the user profile based on the tracked user interactions; and

the modified user profile is used by a recommendation engine to serve one or more items or peer recommendations to the user tailored to the modified user profile.