Apparatuses, methods and systems for information querying and serving on the internet based on profiles

• US 8,069,169 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Issued: 11/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Upland Software, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Augme Technologies Incorporated (Upland Software, Inc.)
• Inventors: Fitzpatrick, Dudley, Snyder, Jason Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): Trujillo, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chang, Jeffrey
• Application Number:
  US11/864,814
• Publication Number:
  US 20080201310A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,523 Days
• Field of Search: 707/767, 707/732
• US Class Current: 707/732
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063114 Status monitoring or status determination for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06398 Performance of employee with respect to a job function
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions

Abstract

The disclosure details the implementation of apparatuses, methods, and systems for information querying and serving on the internet based on profiles. Information and/or advertisement providers may use a code triggered information server to serve context, demographic, and behavior targeted information to users on the internet. Users, in turn, trigger the provision of information by scanning or observing codes or information, or by selecting web links. The triggers, together with geographic, temporal, and user-specific information, are obtained by the server that receives, processes, and records the message. Based on these messages and a user profile—which may include continuously updated user-specific behavior information, situational and ambient information, an accumulated history of trigger messages, and integration with outside database information—the server selects information to serve to a user on the internet from an information base. For example, a user with a recorded history of interest in coffee products may be served an advertisement for a nearby coffeeshop while browsing the web on his/her PDA. In one embodiment, information may also be served to users on the internet based solely on the user profiles, and without any initiating trigger. This is based on user trajectories or web-surfing habits deduced from the accumulated history of triggers. For example, a user known to routinely visit a music vendor website near the same time each day may be served an advertisement for the latest top-selling CD shortly before that time.

Claims

1. A processor-implemented method for tracking user information on the internet and serving information to users based thereon, comprising:

accumulating user content request trigger information via code captures from real world and online sources from a user device, associated with a user, requiring no ancillary software for providing the user content request trigger information;

accumulating user content request trigger situational metadata from the user device;

associating the user content request trigger information and user content request trigger situational metadata with a user profile;

generating user content request trends based on the accumulated user content request trigger information and the accumulated user content request trigger situational metadata;

updating the user profile with the associated information and trends in a database;

analyzing accumulated information and trends associated with the user profile;

querying an information database based on the analysis of the user profile;

receiving ambient conditions comprising non-spatiotemporal sensor-based ambient conditions and feed-based ambient conditions;

selecting information based on the user profile and the received ambient conditions to include in a message; and

serving the message on a website.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the information included in the message sent to the user is selected based on a ranking.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a relevance rating of the message sent to the user.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising updating an Ad profile based on the user content request trigger information and user content request trigger situational metadata.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the information included in the message sent to the user is selected based on ambient conditions.

6. The method of claim 1, further, comprising:

determining information to include in a message based on the querying of the information database.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the user content request trigger situational metadata includes geographic location.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the user content request trigger situational metadata includes geographic location at a given time.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the user content request trigger information is comprised of a code scanned by a mobile device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the user content request trigger information is comprised of an internet link chosen by the user.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the message sent to the user is sent to a mobile device.

12. A processor-implemented method for tracking user information on the internet and serving information to a mobile device based thereon, comprising:

receiving messages from a user device, associated with a user, comprised of user identification, mobile device identification, code captures from real world and online sources, times of the captures, and user geographic locations at the times of the captures, and wherein the user device requires no ancillary software for providing the messages;

associating the user identification with a user profile in a database;

generating message trends based on the received messages;

updating the user profile with the received messages and trends;

analyzing the accumulated messages and trends in the user profile;

receiving ambient conditions comprising non-spatiotemporal sensor-based ambient conditions and feed-based ambient conditions;

determining proper information to serve to the user based on the received message, the user profile, and the received ambient conditions;

selecting the information to serve to the user from a database;

incorporating the selected information into a reply message; and

serving the reply message on a website.

13. An apparatus for tracking user information on the internet and serving information to users based thereon, comprising:

a memory;

a processor disposed in communication with said memory, and configured to issue a plurality of instructions stored in the memory, wherein the instructions are issuable to;

accumulate user content request trigger information via code captures from real world and online sources from a user device, associated with a user, requiring no ancillary software for providing the user content request trigger information;

accumulate user content request trigger situational metadata from the user device;

associate the user content request trigger information and user content request trigger situational metadata with a user profile;

generate user content request trends based on the accumulated user content request trigger information and the accumulated user content request trigger situational metadata;

update the user profile with the associated information and trends in a database;

analyze accumulated information and trends associated with the user profile;

query an information database based on the analysis of the user profile;

receive ambient conditions comprising non-spatiotemporal sensor-based ambient conditions and feed-based ambient conditions;

select information based on the user profile and the received ambient conditions to include in a message; and

serve the message on a website.

14. A system for tracking user information on the internet and serving information to users based thereon, comprising:

means to accumulate user content request trigger information via code captures from real world and online sources from a user device, associated with a user, requiring no ancillary software for providing the user content request trigger information;

means to accumulate user content request trigger situational metadata from the user device;

means to associate the user content request trigger information and user content request trigger situational metadata with a user profile;

means to generate user content request trends based on the accumulated user content request trigger information and the accumulated user content request trigger situational metadata;

means to update the user profile with the associated information and trends in a database;

means to analyze accumulated information and trends associated with the user profile;

means to query an information database based on the analysis of the user profile;

means to receive ambient conditions comprising non-spatiotemporal sensor-based ambient conditions and feed-based ambient conditions;

means to select information based on the user profile and the received ambient conditions to include in a message; and

means to serve the message on a website.

15. A processor-accessible medium for tracking user information on the internet and serving information to users based thereon, comprising:

processor readable instructions stored in the processor-accessible medium, wherein the processor readable instructions are issuable by the processor to;

accumulate user content request trigger information via code captures from real world and online sources from a user device, associated with a user, requiring no ancillary software for providing the user content request trigger information;

accumulate user content request trigger situational metadata from the user device;

associate the user content request trigger information and user content request trigger situational metadata with a user profile;

generate user content request trends based on the accumulated user content request trigger information and the accumulated user content request trigger situational metadata;

update the user profile with the associated information and trends in a database;

analyze accumulated information and trends associated with the user profile;

query an information database based on the analysis of the user profile;

receive ambient conditions comprising non-spatiotemporal sensor-based ambient conditions and feed-based ambient conditions;

select information based on the user profile and the received ambient conditions to include in a message; and

serve the message on a website.