System and method for instantly accessing a message board server

• US 6,898,626 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2002
• Issued: 05/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Ohashi, Norio
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, VIET DUY
• Application Number:
  US10/152,618
• Publication Number:
  US 20020178165A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,097 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/205, 709/206, 709/217, 709/219, 709/223, 709/225, 709/226
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

When a message source user desires to advertise an object such as an event or a sight-seeing resort on an electronic board, a write request is formulated with a message and auxiliary information as to the position and state of affairs of the object, and transmitted to a server finder. Using the position information of the request, the server finder selects one of a number of message board servers for retransmission of the request. On receiving the write request, the selected server maps the contents of this request in a database. When a message recipient user desires to read a message, a read request is formulated with auxiliary information of a desired object and transmitted to the server finder, which retransmits it to one of the servers corresponding to its position information. On receiving the read request the selected server searches its database for messages having likeness to the auxiliary information of the request.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising:

a communications network;

a message source terminal for transmitting a write request containing a message of an advertised object and auxiliary information as to the position and state of affairs of the object;

a message recipient terminal for transmitting a read request containing auxiliary information as to the position and state of affairs of an object;

a plurality of message board servers connected to the network; and

a server finder for receiving said write request from the message source terminal via said network, selecting one of said servers based on the position information of the write request and retransmitting the write request via the network to the selected server, and for receiving said read request from the message recipient terminal via said network, selecting one of said servers based on the position information of the request and retransmitting the read request via said network to the selected server,

each of said servers receiving said write request from said server finder and storing contents of the write request in an entry of a database, and receiving said read request from said server finder and making a search through said database for detecting a plurality of messages having likeness to the contents of the received read request.

2. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the server finder selects a first one of the servers according to a location of the message source terminal and selects a second one of the servers according to a location of the message recipient terminal.

3. The communication system of claim 1, wherein each of the message board servers is arranged to:

detect a plurality of differences in quantitative terms between the auxiliary information contained in the read request and a plurality of auxiliary information stored in the database,

compare the differences with a decision threshold to select a group of the differences smaller than the decision threshold, and

read the group of messages from the database corresponding to the detected group of differences.

4. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request indicates the geographical location of said message source terminal.

5. The communication system of claim 4, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request further includes time of day at which the write request is transmitted from the message source terminal to the network.

6. The communication system of claim 4, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request indicates a weather condition of a tourist resort.

7. The communication system of claim 6, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request indicates a season of the year.

8. The communication system of claim 5, wherein the message of the write request advertises a public event.

9. The communication system of claim 7, wherein the message of the write request advertises a sight-seeing resort.

10. The communication system of claim 1, wherein said message source terminal and said message recipient terminals are wireless mobile terminals.

11. A method of advertising messages comprising the steps of:

a) transmitting a write request from a message source terminal to a server finder via a communications network, said write request containing a message and auxiliary information, the auxiliary information indicating the position of an object to be advertised and state of affairs of the object;

b) receiving, at the server finder, the write request, selecting one of a plurality of message board servers based on the position information of the write request and retransmitting the write request via the network to the selected server;

c) receiving, at the server selected by step (c), the retransmitted write request and storing the message and the auxiliary information contained in the write request in an entry of a database;

d) transmitting a read request from a message recipient terminal to the server finder via said communications network, said read request containing auxiliary information indicating the position of an advertised object and state of affairs of the object;

e) receiving, at the server finder, the read request, selecting one of the servers based on the position information of the read request and retransmitting the read request via the network to the selected server; and

f) receiving, at the server selected by step (e), the retransmitted read request and detecting a group of auxiliary information in said database having likeness to the auxiliary information contained in the received read request, and reading a group of messages from said database corresponding to said group of auxiliary information for transmission to said message recipient terminal.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein step (b) comprises selecting said one of the servers according to a location of the message source terminal and step (e) comprises selecting said one of the servers according to a location of the message recipient terminal.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein step (f) further comprises the steps of transmitting said group of messages to said server finder and transmitting the group of messages from the server finder to the message recipient terminal.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the step (f) comprises the steps of:

detecting a plurality of differences in quantitative terms between the auxiliary information contained in the read request and a plurality of auxiliary information stored in said database;

comparing said differences with a decision threshold to select a group of said differences smaller than the decision threshold; and

reading said group of messages from the database corresponding to the detected group of differences.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising the steps of:

displaying the transmitted group of messages at said message recipient terminal; and

choosing one of the displayed messages.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the position information of the write request indicates the location of said message source terminal.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request further includes time of day at which the write request is transmitted from the message source terminal to the network.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request further includes information as to a weather condition of a tourist resort.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the auxiliary information of the write request further indicates a season of the year.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the message of the write request advertises a public event.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein the message of the write request advertises a sight-seeing resort.

22. The method of claim 11, wherein said message source terminal and said message recipient terminals are wireless mobile terminals.