Sender-based ranking of person profiles and multi-person automatic suggestions

• US 8,984,074 B2
• Filed: 12/13/2011
• Issued: 03/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yahoo Assets LLC
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Monaco, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): WANG, LIANG CHE A
• Application Number:
  US13/324,491
• Publication Number:
  US 20120150979A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,190 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/207, 709/245
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3322 using system suggestions G06F16/3325 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/337 Profile generation, learning or modification
• 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

Systems and methods for searching of information regarding persons or to provide assistance for completion during address input. In one embodiment, a method includes automatically generating profiles for persons identified in messages, such as outgoing emails. Based on how the addresses of the persons are used in outgoing messages, the relevancy scores of the addresses are determined. When a user is searching for information or typing an address, the profiles and the relevancy scores are used to identify and sort search results or suggestions for the completion of the address input.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

scanning, by a computing apparatus, a set of messages of a user to identify a plurality of addresses, wherein the user is associated with a plurality of messaging accounts including a first messaging account;

identifying, by the computing apparatus, names of persons at the addresses to generate a plurality of profiles for the persons, each profile of the plurality of profiles comprising a name of a respective person, and at least one address for the respective person;

making a determination that the user is composing a first message using the first messaging account; and

computing, by the computing apparatus, scores of the persons using data in the plurality of profiles to determine relevancy of the persons to the user, wherein the scores are based at least in part on the determination that the user is composing the first message using the first messaging account, and wherein the computing the scores comprises applying a time-decay factor to each message of the set of messages.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing the scores comprises applying an increased weighting factor to messages of the set of messages that have been sent by the user.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the computing the scores further comprises applying a weighting factor of zero to messages of the set of messages that have been received by the user.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to an incomplete input in an address field, identifying a set of persons in the plurality of profiles that matches the incomplete input;

presenting to the user, in an order determined by the scores, one or more suggestions to complete the incomplete input based on the set of persons; and

in response to the user selecting a suggestion from the one or more suggestions, replacing, by the computing apparatus, the incomplete input with an address corresponding to the suggestion selected by the user.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising in response to a search request from the user, presenting to the user, in an order determined by the scores, one or more results for the search request.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein each profile further comprises a date of last message sent to or received from the respective person, and a total number of messages sent to the respective person.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each profile of the plurality of profiles further comprises at least two addresses for the respective person.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-readable instructions, which when executed, cause a user terminal to:

receive an incomplete input from a user, wherein the user is associated with a plurality of messaging accounts including a first messaging account;

make a determination that the user is composing a message using the first messaging account;

determine a ranked order based on the determination that the user is composing the message using the first messaging account and further based on profile data, wherein the profile data comprises a profile for each of a plurality of persons, and the profile data is related to addresses used in messages from the user terminal, and wherein the ranked order is further based on application of a time-decay factor to each message of the messages;

present, via the user terminal, a plurality of suggestions to the user for completion of the input, wherein the plurality of suggestions is presented in the ranked order;

receive, via the user terminal, a selection by the user of a first suggestion from the plurality of suggestions; and

complete the input with the first suggestion.

9. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the incomplete input is a recipient name or address field of a message, the receiving the incomplete input is subsequent to entry of a first name or address in the name or address field, and the presenting the plurality of suggestions includes names of persons associated with the first name or address.

10. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the ranked order is further based on a particular client device currently being used for presenting the plurality of suggestions to the user, the particular client device being one of a plurality of client devices of the user.

11. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions further cause the user terminal to obtain the profile data by communicating with a plurality of servers over a network.

12. The storage medium of claim 11, wherein the obtaining the profile data further comprises searching a respective website of each of the plurality of servers to obtain information to include in the profile data.

13. The storage medium of claim 12, wherein the respective website for a first server of the plurality of servers is a social network site, and the obtaining the profile data further comprises obtaining information from the social network site to include in the profile data.

14. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the first messaging account is an email account.

15. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions further cause the user terminal to determine an identity of the first messaging account using a sender address of the message prior to sending the message.

16. A user terminal, comprising:

at least one processor; and

memory storing instructions configured to instruct the at least one processor to;

receive an incomplete input from a user, wherein the user has a plurality of messaging accounts including a first messaging account;

determine a ranked order based on usage of the first messaging account of the user to compose a message and further based on profile data, the profile data comprising a profile for each of a plurality of persons, each respective profile including at least one address associated with the respective person, and the profile data being related to persons used in messages from the user terminal, wherein the ranked order is further based on application of a time-decay factor to each message of the messages; and

present a plurality of results in response to the incomplete input, wherein the plurality of results is presented in the ranked order.

17. The user terminal of claim 16, wherein each respective profile further includes at least two addresses associated with the respective person.

18. The user terminal of claim 16, wherein the ranked order is further based on applying a weighting factor of zero to those of the messages that have been received by the user.