Information processing apparatus for managing schedule data and a method therefor

• US 6,279,000 B1
• Filed: 12/29/1997
• Issued: 08/21/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Wakai, Masanori, Takayama, Masayuki, Jeyachandran, Suresh, Suda, Aruna Rohra
• Primary Examiner(s): Amsbury, Wayne
• Assistant Examiner(s): HAVAN, THU THAO
• Application Number:
  US08/998,927
• Time in Patent Office: 1,331 Days
• Field of Search: 707/10, 707/5, 707/530, 707/531, 707/9, 707/2, 707/3, 707/4, 707/8, 395/500, 709/246, 709/206, 709/207, 709/217, 709/208, 340/825, 345/333, 345/334, 345/335
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting

Abstract

When electronic mail is received, the contents of the electronic mail is analyzed, and an item concerning a schedule is extracted from the analysis results. When the date associated with the extracted item is advanced to the present time, the item is stored as a user'"'"'s schedule in a database employed for the storage of schedule data. Schedule data that conflict with the item are searched for in the database. To rearrange conflicting schedules, a change in a schedule is requested to the transmission source, or the priorities of the conflicting schedules are compared, and the cancellation of a schedule having a low priority is proposed to a user.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a database for storing schedule data of a user;

an inputter;

an analyzer arranged to receive a text input from said inputter, said analyzer analyzing the text;

an extractor that extracts, from the text analyzed by said analyzer, a word representing a time and a sentence representing an action to be performed by the user at the time; and

a processor that registers the time and the action represented by the word and sentence extracted by said extractor in said database as schedule data of the user.

2. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said processor compares the time represented by the extracted word with the present time and registers the time and the action represented by the extracted sentence if the represented time is advanced from the present time.

3. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said processor searches said database for schedule data that conflict with the time and the action represented by the extracted word and sentence, and registers the time and the action if there is no conflicting schedule data, while otherwise said processor rearranges conflicting schedules.

4. An information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said inputter comprises a receiver that receives a text, and said processor submits a request for a schedule change to a transmission source of the text to rearrange the conflicting schedules.

5. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, before performing a process, said processor issues a notification to a user for confirmation.

6. An information processing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:

an urgency determiner for employing the results of an analysis to determine the urgency of a process performed by said processor,

wherein, when said urgency is great, transmission of said notification for confirmation is omitted.

7. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising notification means for notifying a user that said process has been performed.

8. An information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said processor determines priorities for said conflicting schedules and proposes the cancellation of a schedule having a low priority.

9. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said inputter comprises a receiver that receives a text, and further comprising a determiner that employs the results of the analysis to determine whether or not a transmission of a notice to a transmission source of the text is required.

10. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said extractor extracts data concerning a person from said analysis results, and in said database said, processor registers, as personal data, said data concerning said person.

11. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

knowledge base for storing knowledge; and

a second analyzer, that analyzes for extracting, from said analysis results, an unknown item that is not present in said knowledge base, for inferring an attribute from a description including said item, and for registering said unknown item and said attribute in said knowledge base.

12. An information processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said item includes a plan.

13. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when there is no external input data, said input means initiates a search to obtain input information.

14. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when a process to be performed is not understood, said inputter issues a notification that said process can not be performed.

15. An information processing method comprising the steps of:

storing schedule data of a user in a database;

inputting a text;

analyzing the input text;

extracting, from the text analyzed in said analyzing step, a word representing a time and a sentence representing an action to be performed by the user at the time; and

registering the time and the action represented by the word and sentence extracted in said extracting step as schedule data of the user in the database.

16. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein said processing step includes comparing the time represented by the extracted word with the present time and registering the time and the action represented by the extracted sentence if the represented time is advanced from the present time.

17. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein said processing step includes searching the database for schedule data that conflict with the time and the action represented by the extracted word and sentence and registering the time and the action if there is no conflicting schedule data, while otherwise, conflicting schedules are rearranged.

18. An information processing method according to claim 17, wherein said inputting step includes receiving a text, and wherein said processing step includes submitting a request for a schedule change to a transmission source of the text to rearrange the conflicting schedules.

19. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein, before performing a process, at said processing step a notification is issued to a user for confirmation.

20. An information processing method according to claim 19, further comprising:

an urgency determination step of employing the results of an analysis to determine the urgency of a process performed at said processing step,

wherein, when said urgency is great, transmission of said notification for confirmation is omitted.

21. An information processing method according to claim 15, further comprising a notification step of notifying a user that said process has been performed.

22. An information processing method according to claim 17, wherein, at said processing step, priorities for said conflicting schedules are determined and the cancellation of a schedule having a low priority is proposed.

23. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein said inputting step includes receiving a text, and said method further comprising the step of performing a determination, based on the results of the analysis, as to whether or not a transmission of a notice to a transmission source of the text is required.

24. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein at said extraction step data concerning a person are extracted from said analysis results, and at said processing step registers, said data concerning said person are stored as personal data in said database.

25. An information processing method according to claim 15, further comprising:

a study step of extracting, from said analysis results, an unknown item that is not present in a knowledge base for the storage of knowledge, of inferring an attribute from a description including said item, and of registering said unknown item and said attribute in said knowledge base.

26. An information processing method according to claim 25, wherein said item includes a plan.

27. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein, when there is no external input data, at said input step a search is initiated to obtain input information.

28. An information processing method according to claim 15, wherein, when a process to be performed is not understood, at said input step a notification is issued that said process can not be performed.

29. A computer-readable storage medium storing a text processing program for controlling a computer to process the text of a user, said program comprising codes for causing the computer to perform the steps of:

inputting a text;

analyzing the text input in said inputting step;

extracting, from the text analyzed in said analyzing step, a word representing a time and a sentence representing an action to be performed by the user at the time; and

registering the time and the action represented by the word and sentence extracted in said extracting step as schedule data of the user in a database in which schedule data of the user are stored.