Interaction via short message service messages with wireless markup language based websites

• US 9,071,571 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2011
• Issued: 06/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bhide, Manish A., Gupta, Ajay K., Mohania, Mukesh K., Negi, Sumit
• Primary Examiner(s): Baderman, Scott
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kells, Asher
• Application Number:
  US13/173,842
• Publication Number:
  US 20130007589A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,461 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]

Abstract

A computational device receives a first text message in a text messaging format from a mobile device to access a website that stores information in a markup language format. The computational device converts one or more elements of the stored information from the markup language format to the text messaging format. The computational device sends a second text message that indicates how to interact with the website in the text messaging format to the mobile device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by an interface application executing in a computational device, a first text message in a text messaging format from a mobile device to access a website that stores information in a markup language format, wherein the information includes both static content and dynamic content, wherein the mobile device is not configurable to support a browser that is configurable to interact with the website in the markup language format, wherein the interface application comprises a parser, an input field extractor, and an input field converter for the information stored in the markup language format, wherein the parser parses tokens stored in a markup language deck to generate a data structure of the tokens and relationships among the tokens, wherein the input field extractor determines which of the tokens are inputs fields in the markup language format, and wherein the input field converter converts the input fields in the markup language format to input fields in the text messaging format;

sending, by the computational device, the static content of the stored information to the mobile device;

parsing and converting, by the computational device, one or more elements of the dynamic content of the stored information from the markup language format into corresponding static content that is usable via the text messaging format from the mobile device, wherein the dynamic content includes a drop down menu interface with a first plurality of selections and a radio button user interface with a second plurality of selections, and wherein the first and the second plurality of selections are parsed and converted into a plurality of numbers in the text messaging format; and

sending, by the computational device to the mobile device, the corresponding static content in a second text message that indicates how to interact with the website in the text messaging format, wherein;

the text messaging format is Short Message Service (SMS); and

the markup language is Wireless Markup Language (WML) format, wherein the information is stored via a WML deck comprising a plurality of WML cards, wherein a first WML card is for input of login and password information via the browser, and wherein a second WML card is for providing a plurality of selectable options to the browser.

2. The method of claim 1,

wherein the one or more elements of the dynamic content includes selections in a drop down menu interface and the corresponding static content is a list of numbers in the text messaging format;

and

wherein the second text message requests the mobile device to use the list of numbers in the text messaging format to interact with the website.

3. The method of claim 2,

wherein one or more elements of the dynamic content further includes fields corresponding to login and password information;

and

wherein the computational device indicates to the mobile device in the text messaging format, a mechanism to separate the login and password information in the text messaging format for sending to the computational device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least a processing power, a storage capacity and a bandwidth of the mobile device precludes a browser from being used in the mobile device to access the information stored in the markup language format.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein a first card is in the markup language format is for input of login and password information by the browser, and a second card in the markup language format is for providing options for choosing selections to a user who uses the browser.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the interface application identifies input fields in the first and the second card and reformats the input fields of the first and the second card into the text messaging format, and wherein the input fields of the second card are mapped to letters of the alphabet in the text messaging format.

7. A system configurable to communicate with a mobile device, the system comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the processor performs;

receiving, by an interface application, a first text message in a text messaging format from a mobile device to access a website that stores information in a markup language format, wherein the information includes both static content and dynamic content, wherein the mobile device is not configurable to support a browser that is configurable to interact with the website in the markup language format, wherein the interface application comprises a parser, an input field extractor, and an input field converter for the information stored in the markup language format, wherein the parser parses tokens stored in a markup language deck to generate a data structure of the tokens and relationships among the tokens, wherein the input field extractor determines which of the tokens are inputs fields in the markup language format, and wherein the input field converter converts the input fields in the markup language format to input fields in the text messaging format;

sending the static content of the stored information to the mobile device;

parsing and converting one or more elements of the dynamic content of the stored information from the markup language format into corresponding static content that is usable via the text messaging format from the mobile device, wherein the dynamic content includes a drop down menu interface with a first plurality of selections and a radio button user interface with a second plurality of selections, and wherein the first and the second plurality of selections are parsed and converted into a plurality of numbers in the text messaging format; and

sending to the mobile device, the corresponding static content in a second text message that indicates how to interact with the website in the text messaging format, wherein;

the text messaging format is Short Message Service (SMS); and

the markup language is Wireless Markup Language (WML) format, wherein the information is stored via a WML deck comprising a plurality of WML cards, wherein a first WML card is for input of login and password information via the browser, and wherein a second WML card is for providing a plurality of selectable options to the browser.

8. The system of claim 7,

wherein the one or more elements of the dynamic content includes selections in a drop down menu interface and the corresponding static content is a list of numbers in the text messaging format;

and

wherein the second text message requests the mobile device to use the list of numbers in the text messaging format to interact with the website.

9. The system of claim 8,

wherein one or more elements of the dynamic content further includes fields corresponding to login and password information;

and

wherein the computational device indicates to the mobile device in the text messaging format, a mechanism to separate the login and password information in the text messaging format for sending to the computational device.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein at least a processing power, a storage capacity and a bandwidth of the mobile device precludes a browser from being used in the mobile device to access the information stored in the markup language format.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein a first card is in the markup language format is for input of login and password information by the browser, and a second card in the markup language format is for providing options for choosing selections to a user who uses the browser.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the interface application identifies input fields in the first and the second card and reformats the input fields of the first and the second card into the text messaging format, and wherein the input fields of the second card are mapped to letters of the alphabet in the text messaging format.

13. A computer program product, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code executed by a computational device to communicate with a mobile device and to perform operations, the operations comprising:

receiving, by an interface application executing in the computational device, a first text message in a text messaging format from the mobile device to access a website that stores information in a markup language format, wherein the information includes both static content and dynamic content, wherein the mobile device is not configurable to support a browser that is configurable to interact with the website in the markup language format, wherein the interface application comprises a parser, an input field extractor, and an input field converter for the information stored in the markup language format, wherein the parser parses tokens stored in a markup language deck to generate a data structure of the tokens and relationships among the tokens, wherein the input field extractor determines which of the tokens are inputs fields in the markup language format, and wherein the input field converter converts the input fields in the markup language format to input fields in the text messaging format;

sending, by the computational device, the static content of the stored information to the mobile device;

parsing and converting, by the computational device, one or more elements of the dynamic content of the stored information from the markup language format into corresponding static content that is usable via the text messaging format from the mobile device, wherein the dynamic content includes a drop down menu interface with a first plurality of selections and a radio button user interface with a second plurality of selections, and wherein the first and the second plurality of selections are parsed and converted into a plurality of numbers in the text messaging format; and

sending, by the computational device to the mobile device, the corresponding static content in a second text message that indicates how to interact with the website in the text messaging format, wherein;

the text messaging format is Short Message Service (SMS); and

the markup language is Wireless Markup Language (WML) format, wherein the information is stored via a WML deck comprising a plurality of WML cards, wherein a first WML card is for input of login and password information via the browser, and wherein a second WML card is for providing a plurality of selectable options to the browser.

14. The computer program product of claim 13,

wherein the one or more elements of the dynamic content includes selections in a drop down menu interface and the corresponding static content is a list of numbers in the text messaging format;

and

wherein the second text message requests the mobile device to use the list of numbers in the text messaging format to interact with the website.

15. The computer program product of claim 14,

wherein one or more elements of the dynamic content further includes fields corresponding to login and password information;

and

wherein the computational device indicates to the mobile device in the text messaging format, a mechanism to separate the login and password information in the text messaging format for sending to the computational device.

16. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein at least a processing power, a storage capacity and a bandwidth of the mobile device precludes a browser from being used in the mobile device to access the information stored in the markup language format.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein a first card is in the markup language format is for input of login and password information by the browser, and a second card in the markup language format is for providing options for choosing selections to a user who uses the browser.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the interface application identifies input fields in the first and the second card and reformats the input fields of the first and the second card into the text messaging format, and wherein the input fields of the second card are mapped to letters of the alphabet in the text messaging format.