CONVERSATION TIMELINE FOR HETEROGENEOUS MESSAGING SYSTEM

• US 20150222572A1
• Filed: 02/05/2014
• Published: 08/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RingCentral Incorporated
• Original Assignee: RingCentral Incorporated
• Inventors: Vendrow, Vlad, Khawam, Patrice
• Granted Patent: US 9,455,942 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/02 using automatic reactions or user delegation, e.g. automatic replies or chatbot-generated messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads

Abstract

A conversation timeline for a heterogeneous messaging system. In one embodiment, a method performed by one or more computing devices comprises: maintaining a conversation among users, the conversation comprising a plurality of messages between the users, each of the plurality of messages being a member of one of a plurality of predefined message classes, one of the plurality of messages being a member a different predefined message class of the plurality of predefined message classes than at least one other of the plurality of messages; causing display of a graphical representation of the conversation to one of the users; selecting a reply message class of the plurality of predefined message classes based on one or more reply control selection factors; and causing display, in association with display of the graphical representation of the conversation, reply message controls for adding a new message to the conversation in the reply message class.

Claims

1. A method for maintaining a plurality of conversations among users, the method comprising:

associating each conversation with an original message;

grouping together a plurality of messages between the users replying to the original message, wherein the plurality of messages includes messages belonging to two or more different message classes;

causing display at a computing device of a graphical representation of the plurality of conversations to one of the users;

upon detecting a selection of one of the plurality of conversations, causing display of a graphical representation of the selected conversation to the one of the users;

determining, based on one or more default reply control selection factors, a message class for a default reply message in the selected conversation; and

causing display at the computing device of a default reply message control for adding a new message to the selected conversation in the determined message class.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising causing display of a graphical representation of a conversation timeline to one of the users;

wherein the conversation timeline comprises a listing of a plurality of conversations in chronological order of most recent or least recent messages of the plurality of conversations.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of conversations comprises a plurality of messages between at least one user to which the graphical representation of the conversation is displayed and another of the users.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of messages is a predefined message class selected from a group consisting of voice, fax, and text.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein causing display of the graphical representation of the selected conversation comprises generating browser-executable instructions for execution by a browser application at a personal computing device of the user to which the graphical representation of the selected conversation is presented.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein graphical representation of the selected conversation comprises a listing of the plurality of messages of the selected conversation in chronological order of dates and times associated with the plurality of messages of the selected conversation.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the listing of the plurality of messages lists the plurality of messages in a chronological order from least recent to most recent according the dates and times associated with the plurality of messages.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a phone number associated with a message of the plurality of messages;

determining one or more user profile details associated with the phone number;

wherein causing display of the graphical representation of the selected conversation comprises causing display of the one or more user profile details.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein determining the one or more user profile details associated with the phone number comprises providing the phone number to a third-party service and obtaining the one or more user profile details from the third-party service in response to providing the phone number.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the one or more default reply control selection factors is a sender'"'"'s preferred reply message class;

and wherein the method further comprises the computing device selecting the reply message class based at least in part on data indicating a preferred reply message class of the sender.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the one or more default reply control selection factors is a sender'"'"'s device status;

and wherein the method further comprises the computing device selecting the reply message class based at least in part on data indicating a status of a device of the sender.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the one or more default reply control selection factors is a sender'"'"'s device location;

and wherein the method further comprises the computing device selecting the reply message class based at least in part on data indicating a location of a device of the sender of a message of the plurality of messages.

10. (canceled)

14. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions which, when executed by one or more computing devices, causes the one or more computing devices to perform a method for maintaining a plurality of conversations among users, the method comprising:

associating each conversation with an original message;

grouping together a plurality of messages between the users replying to the original message, wherein the plurality of messages includes messages belonging to two or more different message classes;

causing display at a computing device of a graphical representation of the plurality of conversations to one of the users;

determining, based on one or more default reply control selection factors, a message class for a default reply message in the selected conversation; and

causing display at the computing device of a default reply message control for adding a new message to the conversation in the determined message class.

15. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, the method further comprising:

causing display of a graphical representation of a conversation timeline to one of the users;

wherein the conversation timeline comprises a listing of a plurality of conversations in chronological order of most recent or least recent messages of the plurality of conversations.

16. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein the selected conversation comprises a plurality of messages between at least the user to which the graphical representation of the conversation is displayed and another of the users.

17. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein at least one of the plurality of messages is a predefined message class selected from a group consisting of voice, fax, and text.

18. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein causing display of the graphical representation of the selected conversation comprises generating browser-executable instructions for execution by a browser application at a personal computing device of the user to which the graphical representation of the selected conversation is presented.

19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein graphical representation of the conversation comprises a listing of the plurality of messages of the selected conversation in chronological order of dates and times associated with the plurality of messages of the selected conversation.

20. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 19, wherein the listing of the plurality of messages lists the plurality of messages in a chronological order from least recent to most recent according the dates and times associated with the plurality of messages.

21. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, the method further comprising:

determining a phone number associated with a message of the plurality of messages;

determining one or more user profile details associated with the phone number;

wherein causing display of the graphical representation of the selected conversation comprises causing display of the one or more user profile details.

22. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 21, wherein determining the one or more user profile details associated with the phone number comprises providing the phone number to a third-party service and obtaining the one or more user profile details from the third-party service in response to providing the phone number.

24. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein one of the one or more default reply control selection factors is a sender'"'"'s preferred reply message class;

and wherein the method further comprises selecting the reply message class based at least in part on data indicating a preferred reply message class of the sender.

25. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein one of the one or more default reply control selection factors is a sender'"'"'s device status;

and wherein the method further comprises selecting the reply message class based at least in part on data indicating a status of a device of the sender.

26. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein one of the one or more default reply control selection factors is a sender'"'"'s device location;

and wherein the method further comprises selecting the reply message class based at least in part on data indicating a location of a device of the sender of a message of the plurality of messages.

23. (canceled)

27. A computing device, comprising:

one or more processors;

memory for storing instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause performance of a method for maintaining a plurality of conversations among users, the method includes;

associating each conversation with an original message;

grouping together a plurality of messages between the users replying to the original message, wherein the plurality of messages includes messages belonging to two or more different message classes;

causing display of a graphical representation of the plurality of conversations to one of the users;

upon detecting a selection of one of the plurality of conversations, causing display of a graphical representation of the selected conversation to the one of the users;

determining, based on one or more reply control selection factors, a message class for a default reply message in the selected conversation; and

causing display of a default reply message control for adding a new message to the conversation in the determined reply message class.

28. A system comprising;

one or more processors;

memory for storing instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause performance of a method for maintaining a plurality of conversations among users, the method includes;

associating each conversation with an original message;

grouping together a plurality of messages between the users replying to the original message, wherein the plurality of messages includes messages belonging to two or more different message classes;

causing display of a graphical representation of the plurality of conversations to one of the users;

upon detecting a selection of one of the plurality of conversations, causing display of a graphical representation of the selected conversation to the one of the users;

determining, based on one or more reply control selection factors, a message class for a default reply message in the selected conversation; and

causing display of a default reply message control for adding a new message to the conversation in the determined message class.