Chat system, dummy client system for chat system, and computer readable medium storing dummy client program

• US 7,013,326 B1
• Filed: 09/27/2000
• Issued: 03/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Suzuki, Norihiko, Hirabayashi, Toshihiko, Yamada, Noboru, Nakai, Eri, Kamiya, Miki, Hashimoto, Ichiroh, Hida, Toshihide, Kawata, Minoru, Eto, Toshihisa, Itakura, Yukiko, Zukeran, Shin, Kamioka, Kentaro
• Primary Examiner(s): Jean, Frantz B.
• Application Number:
  US09/671,101
• Time in Patent Office: 1,994 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/223, 709/224, 709/206, 709/218, 709/203, 709/205, 709/227
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1813 for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms instant messaging H04L51/04; protocols for multimedia communication H04L65/1101; arrangements for multi-party communication H04L65/403; telephonic conference arrangements H04M3/56; television conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding

Abstract

A dummy client accesses each channel of a chat system. When a message is transmitted from a client to a channel, the dummy client checks the content of the message. If the message satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, the dummy client executes a process corresponding to the sentence condition and to the content of each sentence segment included in the message.

Claims

1. A dummy client device for conducting a chat with at least one client device though a chat server, the dummy client device comprising:

a monitoring part monitoring the content of an utterance sent to said chat server from a client device;

a determination part determining whether the content of the utterance monitored by the monitoring part satisfies a predetermined sentence condition; and

a process execution part, when the determination part determines that the utterance satisfies the predetermined sentence condition, executing a process corresponding to the predetermined sentence condition in accordance with the content of the utterance.

2. The dummy client device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined sentence condition is that a predetermined word or sentence segment is included in the utterance.

3. The dummy client device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined sentence condition is that a predetermined word or sentence segment is located at a predetermined position in the utterance.

4. The dummy client device according to claim 1, wherein said determination part determines whether the content of the utterance satisfies the predetermined sentence condition only when the utterance is addressed to itself.

5. The dummy client device according to claim 1, further comprising a message table for storing a correspondence between a message to be conveyed and its forwarding address,

wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client device satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part registers a message to be conveyed and its forwarding address that are included in the utterance into said message table.

6. The dummy client device according to claim 5, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client device satisfies another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part sends out to said chat server a message to be forwarded to the client device as an utterance, the process execution means thereafter deleting the message sent out and its forwarding address from said message table.

7. The dummy client device according to claim 6, wherein when said determination means determines that an utterance from a client satisfies still another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part sends out, as an utterance, to said chat server messages that are currently registered in said message table among messages included in utterance that had been transmitted by said client in the past.

8. The dummy client device according to claim 6, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies still another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part deletes messages included in utterance that had been transmitted by said client in the past from said message table.

9. The dummy client device according to claim 5, wherein when a predetermined condition is satisfied, said process execution part sends out message information to said chat server as an utterance, the message information indicating that there is a message to be forwarded to the forwarding address registered in said message table.

10. The dummy client device according to claim 9, wherein said predetermined condition is that a client that has been registered in said message table as the forwarding address transmits an utterance to said chat server.

11. The dummy client device according to claim 5, further comprising a date and time specified message table for storing a message to be conveyed, its forwarding address, and a specified date/time associated with one another,

wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part registers a message to be conveyed, its forwarding address, and its specified date/time that are included in the utterance into said date and time specified message table, and

wherein when a current time reaches said specified date/time, said process execution part moves said message to be conveyed and its forwarding address that have been registered in the said date and time specified table corresponding to said specified date/time to said message table.

12. The dummy client device according to claim 1, further comprising management part, when an utterance from client monitored by said monitoring part includes a keyword indicating a termination of a chat, recording identification information of the client and the keyword spoken by the client,

wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part sends out to said chat server, as an utterance message information indicating whether a client whose identification information is included in said utterance is still accessing said chat server in accordance with the content recorded in said management part.

13. The dummy client device according to claim 1, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part sends out a message included in such an utterance to all channels of said chat server.

14. The dummy client device according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined sentence condition is that one or more of keywords that has been registered in advance is included in the utterance.

15. The dummy client device according to claim 14, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies said predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, message information that has been associated with said one or more of keywords included in the utterance in advance.

16. The dummy client device according to claim 14, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies said predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, the content of a document file specified by message information that has been associated with said one or more of keywords included in the utterance in advance.

17. The dummy client device according to claim 16, wherein when said message information includes an file name of said document file and a special character string, said process execution part sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, a part of the content of a document file having said file name.

18. The dummy client device according to claim 15 or 16, further comprising a keyword registry table for storing a correspondence between said one or more of keywords and said message information on demand, said determination part and said process execution part referencing the keyword registry table.

19. The dummy client device according to claim 18, wherein said keyword registry table further registers a specified channel of said chat server in which the correspondence between said one or more keywords and said message information is effective,

wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies said predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part executes said process as long as correspondence of one or more of keywords contained in the utterance and a message information is not specified as effective in a channel that is different from a channel in which the utterance is transmitted.

20. The dummy client device according to claim 19, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part registers one or more of keywords included in the utterance, said message information, and at least one said specified channel into said keyword registry table with them associated with one another.

21. The dummy client device according to claim 18, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part registers one or more of keywords included in the utterance and said message information into said keyword registry table with them associated with each other.

22. The dummy client device according to claim 1, wherein when said determination pat determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part executes a process corresponding to the predetermined sentence condition by cooperating with a back-end server connected via communication.

23. The dummy client device according to claim 22, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part requests a predetermined back-end server to transmit a message included in the utterance to a contact address of an addressee specified in the utterance.

24. The dummy client device according to claim 23, further comprising a contact registry table for registering said addressee, a communication method and a contact address in a mutually associated manner,

wherein said process execution part requests a back-end server to transmit said message to said contact address that is associated in said contact registry table with said addressee specified in said utterance, the back-end server being selected in accordance with the communication method that is associated with said addressee in the contact registry table.

25. The dummy client device according to claim 24, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part registers an addressee, a communication method, and a contact address that are included in the utterance into said contact registry table with them associated with one another.

26. The dummy client device according to claim 22, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part requests a predetermined back-end server to search for items in accordance with letters included in the utterance.

27. The dummy client device according to claim 26, wherein said process execution part requests a dictionary server to translate the letters included in said utterance, and sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, message information based on a response from the dictionary server.

28. The dummy client device according to claim 26, wherein said process execution part requests a portal site to search for URL of a home page relating to letters included in said utterance, said process execution means converting a response from the portal site to an HTML document and sending out a URL of the HTML document to said chat server as an utterance.

29. The dummy client device according to claim 26, wherein said process execution part requests a personal information management server to search for personal information based on a search condition included in said utterance, and sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, message information based on a response from the personal information management server.

30. The dummy client device according to claim 22, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part requests a calendar server that is managing a place specified in the utterance to reserve said place for a time specified in the utterance.

31. The dummy client device according to claim 22, wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part requests a calendar server that is managing a facility specified in the utterance to check a reservation status of said facility for a time specified in the utterance, and sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, message information based on a response from the calendar server.

32. The dummy client device according to claim 22, wherein when said determination means determines that an utterance from a client satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part requests a calendar server that is managing a schedule of an individual specified by an individual name included in the utterance to check said schedule of the individual for a time specified in the utterance and sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, message information based on a response from the calendar server.

33. The dummy client device according to claim 1, further comprising an alarm table for storing an alarm message and a specified date/time associated with each other,

wherein when said determination part determines that an utterance from a client satisfies another predetermined sentence condition, said process execution part resisters an alarm message and a specified time that are included in the utterance into said alarm table, and

wherein when a current time reaches said specified time, said execution part sends out to said chat server, as an utterance, said alarm message that has been registered in said alarm table as corresponding to said specified time.

34. A computer readable medium storing a dummy client program, the dummy client program causing a computer that is capable of communication via a communication channel to perform the steps of:

having a chat with other clients through a chat server;

monitoring the content of utterance sent to said chat server from said other clients;

determining whether the content of said utterance satisfies a pre-determined sentence condition; and

executing, when the utterance satisfies the predetermined sentence condition, a process corresponding to the predetermined sentence condition in accordance with the content of the utterance.

35. A chat system comprising:

a chat server to which a plurality of clients is able to access via a communication channel, and which provides a chat environment where an utterance transmitted from any one of clients is sent out to other clients, and

a dummy client device including a communication part accessing the chat server as a client through a communication channel, a monitoring part monitoring the content of utterances set to said chat server from said other clients, a determination part determining whether the content of the utterance monitored by the monitoring part satisfies a predetermined sentence condition, and a process execution part, when the determination part determines that an utterance satisfies the predetermined sentence condition, executing a process corresponding to the predetermined sentence condition in accordance with the content of the utterance.