Mutual scheduling of events on handheld computers

• US 7,975,072 B2
• Filed: 07/15/2009
• Issued: 07/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Access Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Access Company Limited
• Inventors: Canova, Francis J. Jr., Lunsford, Eric Michael, Osborn, Neal A.
• Primary Examiner(s): DENNISON, JERRY B
• Application Number:
  US12/503,802
• Publication Number:
  US 20090276494A1
• Time in Patent Office: 720 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/248, 715/753
• US Class Current: 709/248
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting

Abstract

An embodiment of the invention provides a method for scheduling an event. The method includes signaling a request from a first computer to schedule an event to a second computer. A schedule is then received from the second, the schedule includes indicators of available time periods in the calendar period from the second computer. A consolidated schedule is then generated. The consolidated schedule comprises information comparing the indicators of available time periods from the second computer with indicators of available time periods from the first computer.

Claims

1. A method for scheduling an event between at least two computer devices through a peer to peer communication network, the method comprising:

polling by one of the at least two computer devices for presence of other computer devices of the at least two computer devices;

initiating a request to schedule the event on the at least two computer devices;

in response to initiating the request,

exchanging available time slots and non-available time slots among the at least two computer devices, wherein one or more of the available time slots and non-available time slots are from a first computer device of the at least two computer devices, and wherein one or more others of the available time slots and non-available time slots are from a second different computer device of the at least two computer devices;

generating at least one consolidated schedule by comparing the available time slots and the non-available time slots; and

displaying the consolidated schedule on the user interfaces of the at least two computer devices in order to allow the users of the at least two computer devices to confirm the scheduling of the event within the consolidated schedule;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprises the step of displaying at least one of the non-available time slots of the users of the at least two computer devices with the consolidated schedule on the displays of the at least two computer devices.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the consolidated schedule displayed on the user interfaces is a time block on the displays of the at least two computer devices, and wherein said time block comprises calendar periods selectable by the users of the at least two computer devices.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the time block further comprises a selection box or button to be used by the users of the at least two computer devices.

5. The method according to claim 1, further includes displaying to a user another user'"'"'s name with a mutually scheduled event name on one of the user interfaces of the at least two computer devices.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the time slots of the one or more other computer devices include at least one available time slot.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the time slots of the one or more other computer devices include at least one unavailable time slot.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the time slots of the computer device include at least one available time slot.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the consolidated schedule is displayed on a different user interface of one of the one or more other computer devices for a different user to confirm whether the consolidated schedule is acceptable to the different user.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising communicating with the one or more other computers using a wireless network.

12. The method according to claim 1, further comprising communicating with the one or more other computers using a wide area network.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the consolidated schedule is generated by each of at least two of the computer device and the one or more other computer devices.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein the consolidated schedule is generated by the computer device, and further comprising communicating the consolidated schedule by the computer device to at least one of the one or more other computer devices.

15. The method according to claim 1, further comprising receiving a message from one of the one or more computer devices, wherein the message comprises an identifier of a user of the one of the one or more computer devices.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the one or more other computers are a subset of all computers that receive the request to schedule the event.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the consolidated schedule displayed on the user interface is a time block format comprising calendar periods selectable by the user of the computer device.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the time block format further comprises a selection box to be used by the user of the computer device.

19. The method according to claim 1, further includes displaying to the user another user'"'"'s name together with a mutually scheduled event name on the consolidated schedule.

6. A method for scheduling by a computer device an event with one or more other computer devices, the method comprising:

detecting presence of the one or more other computer devices;

receiving a request, initiated by one of users of the computer device and the one or more other computer devices, to schedule the event;

in response to receiving the request,

receiving time slots of the one or more other computer devices from the one or more other computer devices, wherein one or more of the time slots are from a first computer device of the at least two computer devices, and wherein one or more others of the time slots are from a second different computer device of the at least two computer devices;

generating a consolidated schedule by comparing time slots of the computer device and the time slots of the one or more other computer device; and

displaying the consolidated schedule on a user interface of the computer device for a user of the computer device to confirm the scheduling of the event within the consolidated schedule;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

20. A system for scheduling an event, comprising:

a peer to peer communication network;

at least two computer devices coupled to the peer to peer communication network;

at least two or more computer processors;

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising stored sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more of the at least two or more processors, cause the one or more of the at least two or more processors to carry out the steps of;

polling by one of the at least two computer devices for presence of other computer devices of the at least two computer devices;

initiating a request to schedule the event on the at least two computer devices;

in response to initiating the request,

exchanging available time slots and non-available time slots among the at least two computer devices, wherein one or more of the available time slots and non-available time slots are from a first computer device of the at least two computer devices, and wherein one or more others of the available time slots and non-available time slots are from a second different computer device of the at least two computer devices;

generating at least one consolidated schedule by comparing the available time slots and the non-available time slots; and

displaying the consolidated schedule on the user interfaces of the at least two computer devices in order to allow the users of the at least two computer devices to confirm the scheduling of the event within the consolidated schedule.

21. The system according to claim 20, wherein the stored sequences of instructions comprise instructions which, when executed by one or more of the at least two or more processors, cause the one or more of the at least two or more processors to carry out displaying at least one of the non-available time slots of the users of the at least two computer devices with the consolidated schedule on the displays of the at least two computer devices.

22. The system according to claim 21, wherein the consolidated schedule displayed on the user interfaces is a time block on the displays of the at least two computer devices, and wherein said time block comprises calendar periods selectable by the users of the at least two computer devices.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein the time block further comprises a selection box or button to be used by the users of the at least two computer devices.

24. The system according to claim 21, wherein the stored sequences of instructions comprise instructions which, when executed by one or more of the at least two or more processors, cause the one or more of the at least two or more processors to carry out displaying to a user another user'"'"'s name with a mutually scheduled event name on one of the user interfaces of the at least two computer devices.

25. A computer device for scheduling an event with one or more other computer devices, comprising:

at least two or more computer processors;

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising stored sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more of the at least two or more processors, cause the one or more of the at least two or more processors to carry out the steps of;

detecting presence of the one or more other computer devices;

receiving a request, initiated by one of users of the computer device and the one or more other computer devices, to schedule the event;

in response to receiving the request,

receiving time slots of the one or more other computer devices from the one or more other computer devices, wherein one or more of the time slots are from a first computer device of the at least two computer devices, and wherein one or more others of the time slots are from a second different computer device of the at least two computer devices;

generating a consolidated schedule by comparing time slots of the computer device and the time slots of the one or more other computer device; and

displaying the consolidated schedule on a user interface of the computer device for a user of the computer device to confirm the scheduling of the event within the consolidated schedule.

26. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the time slots of the one or more other computer devices include at least one available time slot.

27. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the time slots of the one or more other computer devices include at least one unavailable time slot.

28. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the time slots of the computer device include at least one available time slot.

29. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the consolidated schedule is displayed on a different user interface of one of the one or more other computer devices for a different user to confirm whether the consolidated schedule is acceptable to the different user.

30. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the one or more stored sequences of instructions comprise instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out communicating with the one or more other computers using a wireless network.

31. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the one or more stored sequences of instructions comprise instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out communicating with the one or more other computers using a wide area network.

32. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the consolidated schedule is generated by each of at least two of the computer device and the one or more other computer devices.

33. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the consolidated schedule is generated by the computer device, and further comprising communicating the consolidated schedule by the computer device to at least one of the one or more other computer devices.

34. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the one or more stored sequences of instructions comprise instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out receiving a message from one of the one or more computer devices, wherein the message comprises an identifier of a user of the one of the one or more computer devices.

35. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the one or more other computers are a subset of all computers that receive the request to schedule the event.

36. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the consolidated schedule displayed on the user interface is a time block format comprising calendar periods selectable by the user of the computer device.

37. The computer device according to claim 36, wherein the time block format further comprises a selection box to be used by the user of the computer device.

38. The computer device according to claim 25, wherein the one or more stored sequences of instructions comprise instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out displaying to the user another user'"'"'s name together with a mutually scheduled event name on the consolidated schedule.

39. Non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions executed by two or more processors to carry out:

polling by one of at least two computer devices for presence of other computer devices of the at least two computer devices;

initiating a request to schedule an event on the at least two computer devices;

in response to initiating the request,

exchanging available time slots and non-available time slots among the at least two computer devices, wherein one or more of the available time slots and non-available time slots are from a first computer device of the at least two computer devices, and wherein one or more others of the available time slots and non-available time slots are from a second different computer device of the at least two computer devices;

generating at least one consolidated schedule by comparing the available time slots and the non-available time slots; and

displaying the consolidated schedule on the user interfaces of the at least two computer devices in order to allow the users of the at least two computer devices to confirm the scheduling of the event within the consolidated schedule.

40. The non-transitory computer-readable storage media according to claim 39, wherein the instructions comprise additional instructions executed by two or more processors to carry out displaying at least one of the non-available time slots of the users of the at least two computer devices with the consolidated schedule on the displays of the at least two computer devices.

41. The non-transitory computer-readable storage media according to claim 39, wherein the consolidated schedule displayed on the user interfaces is a time block on the displays of the at least two computer devices, and wherein said time block comprises calendar periods selectable by the users of the at least two computer devices.

42. The non-transitory computer-readable storage media according to claim 41, wherein the time block further comprises a selection box or button to be used by the users of the at least two computer devices.

43. The non-transitory computer-readable storage media according to claim 39, wherein the instructions comprise additional instructions executed by two or more processors to carry out displaying to a user another user'"'"'s name with a mutually scheduled event name on one of the user interfaces of the at least two computer devices.

44. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions executed by one or more processors of a computer device to carry out:

detecting presence of one or more other computer devices;

receiving a request, initiated by one of users of the computer device and the one or more other computer devices, to schedule an event;

in response to receiving the request,

receiving time slots of the one or more other computer devices from the one or more other computer devices, wherein one or more of the time slots are from a first computer device of the at least two computer devices, and wherein one or more others of the time slots are from a second different computer device of the at least two computer devices;

generating a consolidated schedule by comparing time slots of the computer device and the time slots of the one or more other computer device; and

displaying the consolidated schedule on a user interface of the computer device for a user of the computer device to confirm the scheduling of the event within the consolidated schedule.

45. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the time slots of the one or more other computer devices include at least one available time slot.

46. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the time slots of the one or more other computer devices include at least one unavailable time slot.

47. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the time slots of the computer device include at least one available time slot.

48. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the consolidated schedule is displayed on a different user interface of one of the one or more other computer devices for a different user to confirm whether the consolidated schedule is acceptable to the different user.

49. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the instructions comprise additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out communicating with the one or more other computers using a wireless network.

50. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the instructions comprise additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out communicating with the one or more other computers using a wide area network.

51. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the consolidated schedule is generated by each of at least two of the computer device and the one or more other computer devices.

52. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the consolidated schedule is generated by the computer device, and further comprising communicating the consolidated schedule by the computer device to at least one of the one or more other computer devices.

53. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the instructions comprise additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out receiving a message from one of the one or more computer devices, wherein the message comprises an identifier of a user of the one of the one or more computer devices.

54. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the one or more other computers are a subset of all computers that receive the request to schedule the event.

55. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the consolidated schedule displayed on the user interface is a time block format comprising calendar periods selectable by the user of the computer device.

56. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 55, wherein the time block format further comprises a selection box to be used by the user of the computer device.

57. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 44, wherein the instructions comprise additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out displaying to the user another user'"'"'s name together with a mutually scheduled event name on the consolidated schedule.

58. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out:

transmitting a signal between a first computer and a second computer to request to schedule one or more new events;

wherein a first scheduling application that resides on the first computer has a first set of events;

wherein a second scheduling application that resides on the second computer has a second set of events;

programmatically generating a consolidated schedule of available time periods of the first scheduling application and available time periods of the second scheduling application;

wherein programmatically generating a consolidated schedule includes comparing versions of different sets of events, said versions including a version of the first set of events and a version of the second set of events;

using the consolidated schedule to schedule a proposed event;

wherein the proposed event is not a member of any version of any set of events compared to generate the consolidated schedule;

the first computer transmitting a request to the second computer to schedule the proposed event;

the first computer receiving a message from the second computer;

if the message indicates that the proposed event can be scheduled, causing the first computer to update the first scheduling application to reflect that the proposed event is scheduled,

wherein the second scheduling application has been updated to reflect that the proposed event is scheduled; and

if the message indicates that the proposed event cannot be scheduled, then the first computer causing no update to the first scheduling application.

59. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 58, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out displaying a calendar period having graphic indications of available time periods based on the available time periods of the first computer and the second computer.

60. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 58, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out displaying a calendar period with at least one of shading, coloring, or patterning that indicates the available time periods of the first computer and the second computer.

61. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 60, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out displaying the calendar period with a first graphic indication of available time periods of only the first computer, a second graphic indication of available time periods of only the second computer, and a third graphic indication of available time periods of both the first computer and the second computer.

62. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 61, wherein the first graphic indication is at least one of shading, coloring, or patterning showing unavailable time periods on the first computer, the second graphic indication is at least one of shading, coloring, or patterning showing unavailable time periods on the second computer, and the third graphic indication is at least one of shading, coloring, or patterning showing the unavailable time periods of both the first computer and the second computer.

63. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out ranking available time periods as a function of an attribute.

64. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein the attribute is at least at least one of a geographic location, an event priority, time proximity to a preceding event or time proximity to a proceeding event.

65. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein the attribute is a plurality of attributes.

66. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out displaying a ranking of available time periods in at least one of a graphical, graphical indicator or an alphanumeric format.

67. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 58, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out receiving a selection of an available time period for the event.

68. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 67, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out signaling the available time period to the second computer.

69. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 67, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out receiving a selected available time period from the second computer.

70. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 58, wherein:

the first computer and the second computer are handheld computers;

the steps of the method further include the first computer transmitting signals to poll other handheld computers;

wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out said signaling to a second computer a request to schedule one or more new events; and

wherein the signals are directly transmitted, via a wireless connection, to the other handheld computers without participation of another computer in transmitting the signals.

71. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 70, wherein the instructions further includes additional instructions executed by one or more processors to carry out automatically operating a consolidated schedule comprising conflicting events that overlap a time period.