Integrated multi-modal chat

• US 8,819,566 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2010
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qwest Communications International Incorporated (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Qwest Communications International Incorporated (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Mehin, Afshin Frederick, Venza, Valentina, Howard, Suzanne Gibbs, van der Flier, Astrid, Oberwelz, Elger, Zambetti, Nicholas, Tane, Jesse, Gosling, Katrin B., Stafford, Coe Leta Rayne, Heaton, Martin Nicholas John, Adams, Matthew Robert, Riering-Czekalla, Peter, Switky, Andrew Paul, Stillion, Daniel, Gibson, Michael, Cerami, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHOWDHURY, RAYEEZ R
• Application Number:
  US12/981,917
• Publication Number:
  US 20110276903A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,335 Days
• Field of Search: 715/758
• US Class Current: 715/758
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/226 Delivery according to priorities
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72427 for supporting games or graphical animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72439 for image or video messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/62 user interface aspects of conference calls

Abstract

Solutions for providing context-driven communications mode determinations. Some such solutions use a communications hub located in a home (e.g., a user supersystem) to facilitate context-driven, multi-modal communications. For example, a tablet system may be used as a graphical communications hub in a family'"'"'s home, used by the family to communicate to and from the home via multiple communications modes (e.g., family chat, family activities, user-based messaging, etc.) over one or more communications channels. Determination of an appropriate mode for communications may be driven by contextual (rather that channel-based) factors relating to the communications.

Claims

1. A multi-modal chat system for integrating interactions among a household comprising a plurality of household users, the system comprising:

a computing device, comprising at least one processor and at least one computer readable storage medium in communication with the at least one processor, the at least one computer readable storage medium having encoded thereon a set of instructions that are executable by the processor to cause the computer system to perform one or more operations, the set of instructions comprising;

instructions for receiving user input via a user interface, the user input comprising an indication that a first household user wants to send a communication to be received by one or more second household users that belong to the same household as the first household user, wherein the plurality of household users comprises an inner circle of users and an extended circle of users, the inner circle comprising a first set of users within the household, and the extended circle comprising the first set of users within the household and one or more additional users outside the inner circle;

instructions for determining, based on a context of the communication and without user interaction, whether the communication is time-sensitive;

instructions for determining, based on the context of the communication, a set of one or more recipients of the communication selected from among the first set of users within the household;

instructions for automatically selecting a mode for the communication, based on a first determination of whether the communication is time-sensitive and a second determination of the set of recipients, and without user selection of the mode for the communication; and

instructions for sending the communication to the set of recipients using the selected mode.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing device is part of a supersystem for providing interactive communications services within a local network, the supersystem comprising:

a tablet system, comprising a first client subsystem of the local network and a first user interface module configured to provide interactivity with first communications services provided by the first client subsystem;

a handset system, comprising a second client subsystem of the local network and a second user interface module configured to provide interactivity with second communications services provided by the second client subsystem; and

a base station system, comprising;

a first interface subsystem configured to communicatively and removably couple the base station with the tablet system;

a second interface subsystem configured to communicatively and removably couple the base station with the handset system; and

a communications subsystem configured to communicatively couple the base station with the local area network such that at least a portion of the first and second communications services are provided via the base station.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the base station system comprises the computing device.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the tablet system comprises the computing device.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the user input is received at the first user interface module on the tablet system.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein sending the communication to the set of recipients using the selected mode comprises displaying the communication with the first user interface module on the tablet system.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein sending the communication to the set of recipients using the selected mode comprises displaying the communication with the second user interface module on the handset system.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein sending the communication to the set of recipients using the selected mode of communication comprises sending the communication to be received by one or more member devices separate from the supersystem.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the set of one or more recipients is selected from the group consisting of the inner circle of users and the extended circle of users.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the set of users comprises one or more users outside of the extended circle of users.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected mode for the communication comprises voice communication.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the voice communication comprises video communication.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected mode for the communication comprises synchronous communication.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the synchronous communication is performed by a family chat application.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein:

a first subset of the determined set of recipients is available for synchronous communication;

a second subset of the determined set of recipients is not available for synchronous communication; and

the selected mode for the communication further comprises asynchronous communication with the second subset of the determined set of recipients, to provide the second subset with one or more updates of synchronous communication among the first subset.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected mode for the communication comprises asynchronous communication.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected mode for the communication is a task list application accessible at least from the computing device.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the task list is accessible from one or more member devices separate from the computing device.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is provided by an application running on a member device in communication with the computing device.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is provided by a touchscreen of the computing device.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions for receiving user input comprise instructions for providing a single interface for all possible modes of communication, such that the first household user can provide the user input through a single user interface irrespective of the selected mode for the communication.

22. An apparatus, comprising:

a non-transitory computer readable medium having encoded thereon a set of instructions executable by one or more computers to perform one or more operations for integrating interactions among a household comprising a plurality of household users, the set of instructions comprising;

instructions for receiving user input via a user interface, the user input comprising an indication that a first household user wants to send a communication to be received by one or more second household users that belong to the same household as the first household user, wherein the plurality of household users comprises an inner circle of users and an extended circle of users, the inner circle comprising a first set of users within the household, and the extended circle comprising the first set of users within the household and one or more additional users outside the inner circle;

instructions for determining, based on a context of the communication and without user interaction, whether the communication is time-sensitive;

instructions for determining, based on the context of the communication, a set of one or more recipients of the communication selected from among the first set of users within the household;

instructions for automatically selecting a mode for the communication, based on a first determination of whether the communication is time-sensitive and a second determination of the set of recipients, and without user selection of the mode for the communication; and

instructions for sending the communication to the set of recipients using the selected mode.

23. A method of integrating interactions among a household comprising a plurality of household users, the method comprising:

receiving, at a computer system, user input via a user interface, the user input comprising an indication that a first household user wants to send a communication to be received by one or more second household users that belong to the same household as the first household user, wherein the plurality of household users comprises an inner circle of users and an extended circle of users, the inner circle comprising a first set of users within the household, and the extended circle comprising the first set of users within the household and one or more additional users outside the inner circle;

determining, with the computer system and based on a context of the communication and without user interaction, whether the communication is time-sensitive;

determining, with the computer system and based on the context of the communication, a set of one or more recipients of the communication selected from among the first set of users within the household;

automatically selecting, at the computer system, a mode for the communication, based on a first determination of whether the communication is time-sensitive and a second determination of the set of recipients, and without user selection of the mode for the communication; and

sending the communication to the set of recipients using the selected mode.