Method and system for content driven electronic messaging

• US 7,984,104 B1
• Filed: 04/22/2009
• Issued: 07/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: West Interactive Services Corporation (West Corporation)
• Original Assignee: West Corporation
• Inventors: Goren, Craig, Stark, Juergen
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh; Khanh Q
• Application Number:
  US12/428,080
• Time in Patent Office: 818 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/224, 709/228, 709/227, 707/1
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/117 Tagging; Marking up details of markup languages G06F40/143; Designating a block; Setting of attributes style sheets, e.g. eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation [XSLT], G06F40/154
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/154 Tree transformation for tree-structured or markup documents, e.g. XSLT, XSL-FO or stylesheets
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]

Abstract

A system and method for intelligent electronic message routing. An Informant server transmits an electronic message to be routed to a destination and stores a plurality of stylesheets containing routing information for the electronic message. The electronic message includes a reference to the plurality of stylesheets, and a service provider server receives the electronic message from the Informant server, processes the reference to the plurality of stylesheets included in the electronic message, and routes the electronic message to the destination based on the routing information contained in the plurality of stylesheets. A communications device, which defines the destination of the electronic message, receives the routed electronic message from the service provider server.

Claims

1. A system for intelligent electronic message routing, comprising:

an Informant server structured to transmit an electronic message to be routed to a destination, and structured to store a plurality of stylesheets containing routing information for the electronic message, the electronic message including a reference to the plurality of stylesheets stored on the Informant server;

a service provider server structured to receive the electronic message from the Informant server, to process the reference to the plurality of stylesheets included in the electronic message, and to route the electronic message to the destination based on the routing information contained in the plurality of stylesheets stored on the Informant server; and

a communications device defining the destination of the electronic message and structured to receive the routed electronic message from the service provider server.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of stylesheets includes an Informant stylesheet and a SmartMessage stylesheet, the Informant stylesheet defining meta-data about at least one of valid transmission sources and transmission locations for the electronic message, and the SmartMessage stylesheet defining at least one of an activity class and formatting information for the electronic message.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the activity class includes at least one event class associated with the activity class.

4. The system according to claim 3, wherein the at least one event class includes meta-data about at least one of purpose, sensitivity, reach, immediacy, and category of the electronic message.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the communications device comprises at least one of a mobile phone, a Personal Digital Assistant, a pager, a facsimile machine, an email inbox, and an instant messaging account.

6. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a web page structured to register the communications device with the service provider server.

7. A method for intelligent electronic message routing, comprising:

storing a plurality of stylesheets on an Informant server, the plurality of stylesheets containing muting information for an electronic message to be routed to a destination;

transmitting the electronic message from the Informant server to a service provider server, the electronic message including a reference to the plurality of stylesheets stored on the Informant server;

processing the reference to the plurality of stylesheets in the service provider server;

routing the electronic message from the service provider server to the destination based on the routing information contained in the plurality of stylesheets stored on the Informant server; and

receiving the routed electronic message in a communications device defining the destination of the electronic message.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of stylesheets includes an Informant stylesheet and a SmartMessage stylesheet, the Informant stylesheet defining meta-data about at least one of valid transmission sources and transmission locations for the electronic message, and the SmartMessage stylesheet defining at least one of an activity class and formatting information for the electronic message.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the activity class includes at least one event class associated with the activity class.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein the communications device comprises at least one of a mobile phone, a Personal Digital Assistant, a pager, a facsimile machine, an email inbox, and an instant messaging account.

11. The method according to claim 7, further comprising registering the communications device with the service provider server through a web page.

12. The method according to claim 7, further comprising processing pre-defined defaults and preferences of a user of the communications device.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the preferences include predetermined types of the electronic message to be routed to the communications device.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium for intelligent electronic message routing, the computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for execution by a processing system, the computer-executable instructions for:

receiving an electronic message from an Informant server, the electronic message to be routed to a destination and including a reference to a plurality of stylesheets stored on the Informant server, the plurality of stylesheets containing routing information for the electronic message;

processing the reference to the plurality of stylesheets included in the electronic message; and

routing the electronic message to a communications device based on the routing information contained in the plurality of stylesheets, the communications device defining the destination of the electronic message.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein the plurality of stylesheets includes an Informant stylesheet and a SmartMessage stylesheet, the Informant stylesheet defining meta-data about at least one of valid transmission

sources and transmission locations for the electronic message, and the SmartMessage stylesheet defining at least one of an activity class and formatting information for the electronic message.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 15, wherein the activity class includes at least one event class associated with the activity class.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein the communications device comprises at least one of a mobile phone, a Personal Digital Assistant, a pager, a facsimile machine, an email inbox, and an instant messaging account.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein the instructions are further for registering the communications device through a web page.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein the instructions are further for processing pre-defined defaults and preferences of a user of the communications device.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 19, wherein the preferences include predetermined types of the electronic message to be routed to the communications device.