Engine to present a user interface based on a logical structure, such as one for a customer relationship management system, across a web site

• US 7,174,514 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2001
• Issued: 02/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Siebel Systems Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Subramaniam, Pavitra, Malden, Matthew S., Wang, Robert H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lo; Weilun
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, MYLINH T
• Application Number:
  US09/820,333
• Publication Number:
  US 20020140731A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,141 Days
• Field of Search: 345/853, 345/854, 715/604, 715/611, 715/650, 715/853, 715/854, 715/748, 715/749, 715/968, 715/744, 715/747, 715/705, 715/708, 715/704, 707/103, 707/104, 709/229
• US Class Current: 715/749
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 715/968 interface for database querying and retrieval

Abstract

A flowchart-based tool can be used to build a logical structure. In the context of a customer relationship management (CRM) system, the logical structure can comprise an ordered set of questions and branching logic that are presented to a customer of the business when the customer contacts the business with an inquiry, such as for a sale or service inquiry or other interaction. An engine can run a session associated with the logical structure, with the session presenting questions, text, graphics, and the like dynamically to customer across a network, such as the Internet and a web site. Branching logic determines the appropriate information to present to the user based on answers to previous questions. The engine allows presentation of the information to the user/customer, by generating hypertext markup language (HTML) files to display the questions or other elements of the logical structure as part of a user interface on a client terminal of the customer.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

loading a logical structure from a database, components of the logical structure comprising a logically linked set of questions to be presented to a user as part of a customer relationship management user interface;

associating components of the logical structure to an intermediate unit,

based at least in part on the logic linking the set of questions, executing the logical structure to determine a presentation sequence of the components associated to the intermediate unit; and

generating a file, representing the presentation sequence of the components, to transmit across a network to allow presentation of the components as part of a user interface on a client terminal.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein executing the logical structure to determine the presentation sequence of the components is further based at least in part on answers received from the client terminal.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the answers received from the client terminal are stored in an answer table separate from the intermediate unit or in a database table.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the intermediate unit comprises a logical entity having a virtual table, the virtual table capable to associate portions of the loaded definition to a single structure.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the generated file comprises a hypertext markup language (HTML) file.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein executing the logical structure to determine the presentation sequence of the components includes interacting with a set of rules at the intermediate unit to determine a number of components, including questions at branches of the logical structure, to present on the client terminal.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a first user interface component different from a second user interface component that generates the file to transmit across the network; and

using an element of the first user interface component to interact with the intermediate component to present the sequence at the first user interface component or to allow other manipulation related to the executed logical structure.

8. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions to;

load a logical structure from a database, components of the logical structure comprising a logically linked set of questions to be presented to a user as part of a customer relationship management user interface;

associate components of the logical structure to an intermediate unit,

based at least in part on the logic linking the set of questions, execute the logical structure to determine a presentation sequence of the components associated to the intermediate unit; and

generate a file, which represents the presentation sequence of the components, to transmit across a network to allow presentation of the components as part of a user interface on a client terminal.

9. The article of manufacture of claim 8 wherein the instructions to execute the logical structure to determine the presentation sequence of the components further includes instructions to determine the presentation sequence based at least in part on answers received from the client terminal.

10. The article of manufacture of claim 8 wherein the instructions to execute the logical structure to determine the presentation sequence of the components includes instructions to interact with a set of rules at the intermediate unit to determine a number of components, including questions at branches of the logical structure, to present on the client terminal.

11. The article of manufacture of claim 8 wherein the machine-readable medium further includes instructions stored thereon to use an element of a first user interface component to interact with the intermediate component to present the sequence at the first user interface component or to allow other manipulation related to the executed logical structure, the first user interface component being different from a second user interface component that generates the file to transmit across the network.

12. An apparatus, comprising:

a loader to load a definition associated with a logical structure from a storage location, components of the logical structure comprising a set of questions to be presented to a user as part of a customer relationship management user interface;

an intermediate unit to associate components of the logical structure to a logical entity of the intermediate unit,

an execution unit coupled to the intermediate unit to execute the logical structure to determine a presentation sequence of the components associated to the intermediate unit, based at least in part on the loaded definition; and

a user interface component coupled to the intermediate unit to generate a file, which represents the presentation sequence of the components, to transmit across a network to allow presentation of the components on a client terminal.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising an answer table or database table linked to the execution unit to store answers received from the client terminal in response to the presentation of the components, wherein presentation components of the logical structure is further based at least in part on the received answers.

14. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the intermediate unit includes a set of logical rules to determine a number of components, including questions at branches of the logical structure, to present on the client terminal.

15. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the user interface component comprises a first user interface component, the apparatus further comprising a second user interface component having an element to interact with the intermediate component to present the sequence at the second user interface component or to allow other manipulation related to the executed logical structure.

16. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the storage location comprises a database, the database having tables from which the definition is loaded by the loader.

17. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the storage location comprises a file system, the file system capable to store a definition file having the definition, the loader capable to load the definition file stored in the file system.

18. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the definition comprises a plurality of elements compiled into a single block of data stored in the storage location.