Message filtering

• US 7,523,208 B2
• Filed: 12/14/2001
• Issued: 04/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Auerbach, Joshua S, Holdsworth, Simon Antony, Young, Neil George
• Primary Examiner(s): Blair; Douglas B
• Application Number:
  US10/017,728
• Publication Number:
  US 20030115336A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,685 Days
• Field of Search: 709217-218, 709/245, 709/228, 709/246, 705/14, 707/10
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

The invention relates to a communications manager, method and computer program for receiving publications and forwarding these on to parties who have subscribed to receive such publications. A subscription request of a first type is received and includes a filter expression having at least one attribute. It is possible to map at least part of such an attribute(s) to a generic format (generic format filter attribute(s)). It is also possible to receive a publication message of a second type and to compare the publication received with the subscription request to determine whether the publication is appropriate for forwarding onto the subscriber originating the request. To enable such a comparison, a generic format filter attribute(s) is identified and is mapped to a format corresponding to the second message type. Once a match is found, the publication can then be transmitted to the originating subscriber.

Claims

1. A method for receiving publications and forwarding said publications on to parties who have subscribed to receive such publications, said method comprising:

receiving a subscription request of a first filter expression format type, said request including a filter expression having at least one attribute;

mapping at least part of the at least one attribute to a generic format;

receiving a publication message of a second filter expression format type;

comparing the publication message received to the subscription request to determine whether to forward the publication message to a subscriber originating the request, the comparing comprising;

identifying a generic format filter attribute; and

mapping the generic format filter attribute to a format corresponding to the second filter expression format type, the method further comprising;

transmitting said publication message to the originating subscriber, wherein

the first filter expression format type is different than the second filter expression format type.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

preparing the publication message for transmission to said originating subscriber.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the preparing the publication message for transmission to said originating subscriber comprises:

creating a substantially empty message of said first filter expression format type;

extracting information from the message of said second filter expression format type; and

inputting said information into said substantially empty message.

4. The method of claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the mapping at least part of an attribute to a generic format comprises:

invoking a first component capable of understanding messages of said first filter expression format type.

5. The method of claim 1, 2 or 3, comprising:

storing said generic format filter attribute.

6. The method of any of claims 1, 2 or 3, wherein the mapping a generic format filter attribute to a format corresponding to the second filter expression format type comprises:

invoking a second component capable of understanding messages of said second filter expression format type.

7. The method of any of claims 1, 2 or 3, wherein said format corresponding to the second message type is held in temporary storage until said comparison is complete.