Real-time communications enhanced search

• US 8,145,659 B1
• Filed: 09/09/2004
• Issued: 03/27/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Smith, Jeffrey A., Deep, Rohit
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly, Cheyne
• Application Number:
  US10/938,234
• Time in Patent Office: 2,756 Days
• Field of Search: 707/2, 707/722, 707/728, 707/759, 707/765, 707/767, 709/206
• US Class Current: 707/765
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment

Abstract

One embodiment disclosed relates to a method of providing a real-time communications enhanced search service. When a search request from a client application, a search is obtained based on the search request. In addition, information as to relevant real-time communications channels, if any, is determined based on the search request. The results of the search and the information as to the relevant real-time communications channels may be combined and returned to the client application. Upon receiving a request from the client application to initiate opening of a relevant real-time communications channel, the relevant real-time communications channel may be established by communications with a second client application of a third party. Other embodiments are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of providing a real-time communications enhanced search service, the method comprising:

receiving over a network, at a search application server, a search request from a client application, wherein the search request includes one or more keywords;

sending, by the search application server, the search request to an Internet search engine to search the Internet using the one or more keywords;

obtaining first search results based on the search of the Internet;

sending, by the search application server, the search request to a real-time communications relationship manager for a live communications database;

causing at least some of the first search results based on the search of the Internet to be sent to the real-time communications relationship manager for the live communications database, the at least some of the first search results to be used to expand the one or more keywords to produce an expanded set of keywords;

obtaining second search results based on a search of the live communications database for real-time communications channels using the expanded set of keywords; and

returning the first search results and the second search results to the client application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the returning further comprises:

combining the first search results and the second search results; and

returning the combined results to the client application.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the client application comprises a web browser, and the combined results comprise an HTML page with embedded tags linking to the real-time communications channels, if any.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second search results are displayed in a separate area from the first search results, by the client application.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from the client application to initiate opening of a real-time communications channel.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

establishing the real-time communications channel by communications with a second client application.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the real-time communications channel is established by using a central server.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the live communications channel is established by using a peer-to-peer connection.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the determination of the real-time communications channels utilizes an intelligent filter to filter out less relevant real-time communications channels.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the second search results remain persistent at the client application until a next search request from the client application.

11. The method of claim 6, further comprising charging a customer a “

click-thru”

charge each time a real-time communications channel of the customer is established.

12. The method of claim 6, further comprising charging a customer a “

per time”

charge based on a time that an established channel is kept open.

13. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

charging a customer both a “

click-thru”

charge each time a real-time communications channel of the customer is established and a “

per time”

charge based on a time that an established channel is kept open.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein a real-time communications channel is a real-time video or audio communications channel between the user and a live salesperson.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein the real-time communications channels comprise one or more video conferencing channels, audio conferencing channels, text messaging channels, or application sharing channels, in which two or more persons communicate with each other.

14. A system configured to provide a real-time communications enhanced search service to a client application, the system comprising:

a search engine configured to receive a search request that includes one or more keywords and to search the Internet and provide first search results based on the one or more keywords in the search request;

a live communications relationship manager configured to search a live communications database and to provide second search results as to real-time communications channels, based on an expanded set of keywords that are derived from the one or more keywords in the search request and from at least some of the first search results from the search engine configured to search the Internet; and

an enhanced search application server configured to combine the first and second search results and to return the combined results to the client application.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the client application comprises a web browser, and wherein the first search results and the second search results are combined and the combined results comprise an HTML page with embedded tags linking to the real-time communications channels, if any.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the enhanced search application server is further configured to establish a live communications channel with a second client application of a third party upon receiving a request to initiate opening of said channel from the client application.

19. A method comprising:

receiving, at a search application server, a search request from a client application that includes one or more keywords;

providing, by the search application server, the search request to an Internet search engine to search the Internet using the one of more keywords and to produce first search results;

providing, by the search application server, the search request to a search engine for real-time communications channels;

causing at least some of the first search results based on the search of the Internet to be sent to the search engine for real-time communications channels, the at least some of the first search results to be used to expand the keywords to produce an expanded set of keywords;

obtaining second search results from the search engine for real-time communications channels based on a search of real-time communications channels using is the expanded set of keywords; and

returning the second search results to the client application, wherein the second search results include indications of one or more real-time communications channels.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the returning further comprises:

combining the first search results and the second search results; and

returning the combined results to the client application.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the client application is a web browser, and wherein the second search results are represented as an HyperText Markup Language (HTML) page linking to the one or more real-time communications channels.

22. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

receiving a request from the client application to establish one of the one or more real-time communications channels.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

establishing the real-time communications channel by communications with a second client application.

24. The method of claim 19 wherein the real-time communications channels comprise one or more video conferencing channels, audio conferencing channels, text messaging channels, or application sharing channels, in which two or more persons communicate with each other.

25. A system comprising:

a search engine configured to receive a search request that includes one or more keywords from a client application, and to search the Internet and provide first search results based on the one or more keywords in the search request;

a search engine for real-time communications channels configured to search real-time communications channels and to provide second search results that indicate real-time communications channels, based on an expanded set of keywords derived from the one or more keywords in the search request and from at least some of the first search results from the search engine configured to search the Internet; and

an enhanced search application server configured to obtain second search results from the search engine for real-time communications channels and return the second search results to the client application, wherein the second search results include indications of one or more real-time communications channels.

26. The system of claim 25 wherein the enhanced search application server is configured to return the second search results by combination of the first search results and the second search results and return of the combined results to the client application.