Communication processing system

• US 6,985,850 B1
• Filed: 09/10/1999
• Issued: 01/10/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Transperfect Technologies, LLC
• Original Assignee: Worldlingo Automated Translations, LLC
• Inventors: Scanlan, Phillip Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Dorvil, Richemond
• Assistant Examiner(s): SPOONER, LAMONT M
• Application Number:
  US09/394,968
• Time in Patent Office: 2,314 Days
• Field of Search: 704 2- 7, 704/200, 704/201, 704/203, 704/8
• US Class Current: 704/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

A method and apparatus are described for automatic processing of electronic communications in a networked computer environment. The invention facilitates the appropriate form of translation of the communication to suit the circumstance. The communication is identified as a foreign language communication, a quotation program is optionally applied to calculate the cost of a human translation and a machine translation program is optionally applied to the foreign language communication. The communication, optional quotation and optional machine translation are forwarded to a recipient. The method is transparent to the sender and receiver.

Claims

1. A system for automatic processing of a foreign language communication, the system comprising:

first means for sending a communication over a communications network;

second means for receiving said communication and identifying said communication as a foreign language communication;

third computer-implemented means for generating a quotation for human translation of said foreign language communication to a native language;

fourth means for generating a machine translation of the foreign language communication to the native language;

fifth means for forwarding said communication, said machine translation and said quotation to an intended recipient; and

sixth means for said intended recipient to receive said communication, said machine translation and said quotation;

wherein the fifth means forwards the communication, the machine translation and the quotation substantially simultaneously.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the first and sixth means are personal computers.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said second and fifth means is a network server computer configured as a mail server.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said third means is a computer configured as a quotation server.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said second, third, fourth and fifth means is a single network server computer.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the first and sixth means are the same personal computer.

7. A method for automatic processing of electronic communication including the steps of:

sending a communication from a sender in a first language;

identifying the communication as a foreign language communication;

in response to one or more previously provided instructions by a recipient, automatically applying a translation program to the communication to generate a machine translation of the communication to a second language;

in response to one or more previously provided instructions by a recipient, automatically applying a quotation program to the communication to generate a quotation for a human translation of the communication to the second language; and

automatically forwarding the communication and the machine translation and the quotation to the recipient;

wherein the communication and the machine translation and the quotation are forwarded substantially simultaneously to the recipient.

8. A method for automatic processing of electronic communication including the steps of:

sending a communication from a sender in a first language;

identifying the communication as a foreign language communication;

automatically applying a translation program to the communication to generate a machine translation;

automatically applying a quotation program to the communication to generate a quotation for a human translation; and

automatically forwarding the communication, the machine translation, and the quotation to a recipient;

wherein the communication, the machine translation, and the quotation are forwarded substantially simultaneously to the recipient.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the steps of:

performing a human translation of certain keywords contained in the communication, wherein the keywords are predefined by the recipient; and

forwarding the human translation of the keywords to the recipient substantially simultaneously with the communication, the machine translation and the quotation.