Communication circulation system and method for communication in a network

• US 6,219,691 B1
• Filed: 11/19/1997
• Issued: 04/17/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Youn, Sunny M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Philip B.
• Application Number:
  US08/974,537
• Time in Patent Office: 1,245 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/251, 709/252, 709/238, 709/204, 709/206, 709/205, 370/256, 370/260, 370/408
• US Class Current: 709/200
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail

Abstract

A communication circulation system in a network that includes a communication circulation device coupled to a plurality of terminals. The communication circulation device receives a content message from one of the terminals and circulates the content message in a content space established by the communication circulation device. The content message has a tag that corresponds to an area of interest. When another content message is encountered that has a tag that matches the tag of the content message, subscribers of both content messages are informed so that communication between the subscribers may be established.

Claims

1. A method of communication in a network, comprising:

receiving a content message in a content space established in the network by a communications circulation device, the content message, having content directed to an area of interest and further not requiring a specified destination address, being transmitted by one of a plurality of terminals coupled to the communication circulation device; and

transmitting information from the communication circulation device to at least one of the terminals based on the content of the content message.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tagging the content message with an identifier;

propagating the content message in the communication circulation device based on the identifier; and

generating the information as the content message propagates.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the tagging step comprises:

generating the identifier;

encoding the identifier into a tag; and

associating the content message with the tag.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the tagging step is performed in either a control unit of the communication circulation device or a terminal coupled to the control unit.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the propagating step comprises:

receiving the content message in a control unit of the communication circulation device;

retrieving redirection data from a circulation database;

analyzing the redirection data to determine a next control unit of the communication circulation device to transmit the content message; and

transmitting the content message to the next control unit.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the redirection data indicates control units of the communication circulation device that are desirable as the next control unit based on predetermined criteria, the analyzing step determining the next control unit based on a predetermined algorithm and the control units.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the content message includes a circulation history, the analyzing step further determining the next control unit taking into account control units that have already been traversed.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the predetermined criteria includes a number of content messages that have passed through a control unit having an identifier that is within a preset number of items in a table of categories of identifiers.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the generating step comprises:

retrieving message data from a circulation database;

searching the message data for other content messages having identifiers that match the identifier of the content message;

identifying the other content messages that match the content message; and

generating destination messages destined to addresses associated with each of the other content messages and the address of the content message as the information.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the content message comprises:

a tag, the tag corresponding to an area of interest of the content message; and

a message.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the content message further comprises:

a time-to-live value, the time-to-live value indicating the amount of time remaining before the content message dies; and

a circulation history that includes identification of control units where the content message has traversed.

12. A communication system operating in a network, comprising:

a communication circulation device establishing a content space and receiving a content message having content directed to an area of interest, the content message not requiring a specified destination address; and

a plurality of terminals coupled to the communication circulation device, the communication circulation device transmitting information to at least one of the terminals based on the content of the content message.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the content message is tagged with an identifier, the communication circulation device propagating the content message based on the identifier and generating the information as the content message is propagated.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein either a control unit of the communication circulation device or one of the terminals tags the content message by generating the identifier, encoding the identifier into a tag, and associating the content message with the tag.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the communication circulation device receives the content message in a control unit of the communication circulation device, retrieves redirection data from a circulation database, analyzes the redirection data to determine a next control unit of the communication circulation device to transmit the content message, and transmits the content message to the next control unit.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the redirection data indicates control units of the communication circulation device that are desirable as the next control unit based on predetermined criteria, the analyzing step determining the next control unit based on a predetermined algorithm and the control units.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the content message includes a circulation history, the analyzing step further determining the next control unit taking into account control units that have already been traversed.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the predetermined criteria includes a number of content messages that have passed through a control unit having an identifier that is within a preset number of items in a table of categories of identifiers.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein the communication circulation device retrieves message data from a circulation database, searches the message data for other content messages having identifiers that match the identifier of the content message, identifies the other content messages that match the content message and generates destination messages destined to addresses associated with each of the other content messages and the address of the content message as the information.

20. The system of claim 12, wherein the content message comprises:

a tag, the tag corresponding to an area of interest of the content message; and

a message.

21. The system of claim 12, wherein the content message further comprises:

a time-to-live value, the time-to-live value indicating the amount of time remaining before the content message dies; and

a circulation history that includes identification of control units where the content message has traversed.

22. A method of communication in a network, comprising:

receiving a content message in a content space of the network from a first terminal, the content message having an indication of an area of interest of the first terminal and further not requiring a specified destination address, the content space being a portion of the network established by a communication device wherein similar content messages are matched with each other based on a degree of similarity between compared content messages; and

establishing a communication between the first terminal and at least one other terminal when a degree of similarity between the content messages of the terminals exceeds a predetermined threshold.