Information distributing system and storage medium recorded with a program for distributing information

• US 6,178,424 B1
• Filed: 05/14/1998
• Issued: 01/23/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Ikeda, Takahiro, Okumura, Akitoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Breene, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEWIS, CHERYL RENEA
• Application Number:
  US09/078,681
• Time in Patent Office: 985 Days
• Field of Search: 707/103, 707/10, 707/513, 707/102, 707/4, 709/201
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

An information activity management unit records an item characterizing information and an item of a user thereof per information collected. A user attribute information storage unit records a user attribute characterizing each user. When an information collecting unit fetches the information from a database system, a similar information user common attribute extracting unit obtains a user of information similar to the above information and obtains a user attribute common to the users from the user attribute information storage unit. An information distributing unit obtains all the users having this common user attribute from the user attribute information storage unit and distribute the collected information to these users. An activity state registering unit, when notified from the user of an effect that the distributed information is useful, registers the information activity management unit with this user as a user of the distributed information.

Claims

1. An information distributing system comprising:

information collecting means for fetching information out of a database system;

information activity management means for recording some predetermined information attributes containing an item characterizing the information and an item identifying a user or users of the information for each information fetched;

user attribute information storage means for recording for each user some user attributes characterizing the user;

similar information user common attribute extracting means for retrieving from said information activity management means recorded information having characteristics similar to characteristics of the information fetched by said information collecting means, and, when a plurality of users are recorded in said information activity management means as the users of the recorded information, obtaining a user attribute common to all the users with reference to said user attribute information storage means;

information distributing means for obtaining all users having the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means with reference to said user attribute information storage means, and distributing the fetched information to these users; and

activity state registering means for registering, when notified, from the users to whom the information is distributed, that the information is useful, these users in the item identifying the user or users of the distributed information in said information activity management means.

2. An information distributing system according to claim 1, wherein an item characterizing the information in said information activity management means includes an item of keyword contained in the information, an item of provider of the information and an item of providing location of the information, and

said similar information user common attribute extracting means specifies most similar information by examining a degree of similarity in terms of the keyword contained in the information fetched by said information collecting means, the provider of the information, the providing location of the information, the item of keyword per information recorded in said information activity management means, the item of provider of the information and the item of the providing location of the information.

3. An information distributing system according to claim 2, further comprising:

user profile storage means for storing a text issued in the past by each user,

wherein said similar information user common attribute extracting means is constructed to extract, if there exists no characteristics in the recorded information that are similar to the characteristics of the information fetched by said information collecting means, and if, even when such information might exist, there are not a plurality of users thereof, the user issuing the text including the keyword contained in the information fetched by said information collecting means, by examining the issued texts of the respective users stored in said user profile storage means, and obtain, if there are the plurality of such users, the user attribute common to all the users with reference to said user attribute information storage means and notify said information distributing means of the common user attribute.

4. An information distributing system according to claim 3, wherein said information distributing means is constructed to distribute to the users the fetched information while adding a distribution reason containing the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means to the fetched information.

5. An information distributing system according to claim 4, further comprising:

distribution unnecessary condition storage means for storing a distribution unnecessary condition for each user,

wherein said activity state registering means is constructed to register, when notified from the user to whom the information is distributed of an effect that the information is unnecessary, the distribution unnecessary condition in said distribution unnecessary condition storage means based on the distribution reason of this time as a distribution unnecessary condition relative to this user, and

said information distribution means is constructed to exclude, from distributing target users, even the user having the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means if the distribution reason of this time meets with the distribution unnecessary condition relative to the relevant user stored in said distribution unnecessary condition storage means.

6. An information distributing system according to claim 4, further comprising:

distribution necessary condition storage means for storing a distribution necessary condition for each user,

wherein said information distribution means is constructed to include, into distributing target users, even the user having the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means if the distribution reason of this time meets with the distribution necessary condition relative to the relevant user stored in said distribution necessary condition storage means.

7. An information distributing system according to claim 3, wherein said information distributing means is constructed to determine a distributing target user corresponding to the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means, so long as this common user attribute meets with a predetermined distribution condition.

8. An information distributing system according to claim 3, wherein said information distributing means is constructed to distribute the information in such a way as to re-express and summarize a content of the fetched information, depending on the user attribute stored in said user attribute information storing means.

9. A computer-readable medium recorded with a program for enabling a computer to function as:

information collecting means for fetching information out of a database system;

information activity management means for recording some predetermined information attributes containing an item characterizing the information and an item identifying a user or users of the information for each information fetched;

user attribute information storage means for recording for each user some user attributes characterizing the user;

similar information user common attribute extracting means for retrieving from said information activity management means recorded information having characteristics similar to characteristics of the information fetched by said information collecting means, and, when a plurality of users are recorded in said information activity management means as the users of the recorded information, obtaining a user attribute common to all the users with reference to said user attribute information storage means;

information distributing means for obtaining all users having the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means with reference to said user attribute information storage means, and distributing the fetched information to these users; and

activity state registering means for registering, when notified, from the users to whom the information is distributed, that the information is useful, these users in the item identifying the user or users of the distributed information in said information activity management means.

10. A computer program embodied in an electrical signal for enabling a computer to function as:

information collecting means for fetching information out of a database system;

information activity management means for recording some predetermined information attributes containing an item characterizing the information and an item identifying a user or users of the information for each information fetched;

user attribute information storage means for recording for each user some user attributes characterizing the user;

similar information user common attribute extracting means for retrieving from said information activity management means recorded information having characteristics similar to characteristics of the information fetched by said information collecting means, and, when a plurality of users are recorded in said information activity management means as the users of the recorded information, obtaining a user attribute common to all the users with reference to said user attribute information storage means;

information distributing means for obtaining all users having the common user attribute obtained by said similar information user common attribute extracting means with reference to said user attribute information storage means, and distributing the fetched information to these users; and

activity state registering means for registering, when notified, from the users to whom the information is distributed, that the information is useful, these users in the item identifying the user or users of the distributed information in said information activity management means.

11. A method of distributing information comprising the steps of:

fetching information out of a database system;

recording some predetermined information attributes containing an item characterizing the information and an item identifying users of the information for each information fetched;

recording for each user some user attributes characterizing the user;

retrieving recorded information having characteristics similar to characteristics of the fetched information, and obtaining one or more user attributes that are common to all the users of the retrieved information; and

determining users having the one or more common user attributes, and distributing the fetched information to these users.