Automatic travel content capture tool for address book entries

• US 7,689,595 B2
• Filed: 05/30/2007
• Issued: 03/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Boss, Gregory J., Waters, Timothy M., Hamilton, Rick A. II, Doran, James R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu; Kuen S
• Application Number:
  US11/755,064
• Publication Number:
  US 20080301144A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,035 Days
• Field of Search: 707/104.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A method of and system for capturing and updating travel directions in a user'"'"'s local address book application. The method comprises the steps of determining a current location profile of the user, calculating a user trajectory using that profile and an intended destination, and adding the current location profile and the intended destination into a historical database. The user'"'"'s local address book is checked for an entry for the address of said intended destination; and if that entry is not in the address book, the entry is created in the address book. That entry is then checked to determine if a direction/map field of the entry contains directions/map information. If the entry does not contain this information, then this information is mined from a network source and added to the address book. This direction/map information is then displayed.

Claims

1. A method of capturing and updating travel directions in a user'"'"'s local address book application, wherein the address book application includes addresses for a multitude of locations, the method comprising the steps of:

determining a current location profile of the user;

calculating a user trajectory using said current location profile, an intended final destination, and a plurality of intermediate destinations between a current location of the user and said intended final destination;

adding said current location profile and said intended destination into a historical database;

checking the user'"'"'s local address book for an entry for the address of said intended destination;

if said entry for the address of said intended destination is not in the user'"'"'s local address book, then creating said entry in the local address book, said entry including a directions and map field;

checking to determine if the directions and map field of said entry contains directions and map information;

if said entry does not contain said directions and map information, then mining said information from a network source, and adding said mined information into the local address book; and

displaying said directions and map information; and

for each of the intermediate destinations, identifying all of said multitude of locations in the address book within a specified distance of said each intermediate destination; and

for each of said identified locations in the address book, adding to the address book directions and a map to said each identified location from said each intermediate destination.

2. A method according to claim 1, comprising the further step of updating the local address book by using the historical database.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein the step of updating the local address book includes the steps of:

periodically scanning the address book for entries that have not been updated since a predefined and programmable threshold;

for each entry in the address book that has not been changed since said predefined and programmable threshold;

using the historical database to gather the current location profile for the entry;

plotting a trajectory for the entry by using the current location profile for the entry;

uploading said trajectory to an Internet travel service provider to determine directions for the entry; and

if said determined directions are different than the directions in the entry, then adding said determined directions to said entry.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the step of using the historical database includes the step of gathering the current location profile for the entry based on the frequency of use of that location profile.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein said specified distance is determined, for each of the intermediate destinations, based on a specified amount of time the user intends to stay at said each intermediate destination.