Input method editor user profiles

• US 9,116,548 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2008
• Issued: 08/25/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Hong, Feng
• Primary Examiner(s): Baturay, Alicia
• Application Number:
  US12/595,187
• Publication Number:
  US 20100217795A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,695 Days
• Field of Search: 707/4, 709/217
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/018 Input/output arrangements for oriental characters
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/023 Arrangements for converting discrete items of information into a coded form, e.g. arrangements for interpreting keyboard generated codes as alphanumeric codes, operand codes or instruction codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/129 Handling non-Latin characters, e.g. kana-to-kanji conversion

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer program products, in which an input method editor (IME) communicates with a central data store and stores user data, e.g., typing patterns and user-generated words associated with the user, in a user profile. A client device associated with the user may instantiate an IME environment and access the user profile by a client login over a network.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

storing, at an input method editor server, one or more user profiles for an input method editor, each of the one or more user profiles corresponding to a particular user and including user composition data utilized to modify behavior of the input method editor for the particular user;

receiving, at the input method editor server, a notification of an input method editor user instantiation from a client computer device associated with a first user, the notification of the input method editor user instantiation including a user identifier corresponding to the first user;

identifying, at the input method editor server, a first user profile of the one or more user profiles corresponding to the first user based on the input method editor user instantiation;

providing, from the input method editor server, the first user profile to the input method editor user instantiation on the client device, wherein user composition data of the first user profile is usable by the input method editor user instantiation on the client device to modify behavior of the input method editor user instantiation to be tailored for the first user;

receiving, at the input method editor server, an updated first user profile for the first user from the client device, the updated first user profile including updated user composition data related to behavior of the first user and the input method editor user instantiation; and

storing, at the input method editor server, the updated first user profile as the first user profile,

wherein receiving the notification of the input method editor user instantiation comprises receiving a request to download the user composition data of the first user profile, and

wherein the composition data for the particular user comprises at least one of;

(i) data defined by behavior of the particular user, (ii) user-generated words associated with the particular user, (iii) typing patterns associated with the particular user, (iv) frequently used phrases of the user, and (v) search history data of the user.

2. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

storing, at an input method editor server, one or more user profiles for an input method editor, each of the one or more user profiles corresponding to a particular user and including user composition data utilized to modify behavior of the input method editor for the particular user, wherein the user composition data for the particular user comprises data defined by behavior of the particular user including at least one of (i) user-generated words associated with the particular user and (ii) typing patterns associated with the particular user;

receiving, at the input method editor server, a notification of an input method editor user instantiation from a client computer device associated with a first user, the notification of the input method editor user instantiation including a user identifier corresponding to the first user;

identifying, at the input method editor server, a first user profile of the one or more user profiles corresponding to the first user based on the input method editor user instantiation;

providing, from the input method editor server, the first user profile to the input method editor user instantiation on the client device, wherein user composition data of the first user profile is usable by the input method editor user instantiation on the client device to modify behavior of the input method editor user instantiation to be tailored for the first user;

receiving, at the input method editor server, an updated first user profile for the first user from the client computer device, the updated first user profile including updated user composition data related to behavior of the first user and the input method editor user instantiation; and

storing, at the input method editor server, the updated first user profile as the first user profile.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein receiving the notification of the input method editor user instantiation comprises receiving a request to download the user composition data of the first user profile.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein receiving a notification of an input method editor user instantiation comprises receiving an input method editor profile synchronization request.

5. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

generating, at a client computer device associated with a user, an input method editor instance;

transmitting, from the client computer device, a notification of the generation of the input method editor instance to an input method editor server, wherein receipt of the notification of the generation of the input method editor instance causes the input method editor server to identify a first user profile of one or more user profiles corresponding to the user based on the input method editor user instance, each user profile including user composition data comprising data defined by behavior of the user including at least one of (i) user-generated words associated with the user and (ii) typing patterns associated with the user;

in response to transmitting the notification of the generation of the input method editor instance, receiving, at the client computer device and from the input method editor server, the first user profile corresponding to the user, the first user profile including user composition data that is usable by the client computer device to modify behavior of the input method editor user instance to be tailored for the user;

storing, at the client computer device, the first user profile including the user composition data;

receiving, at the client computer device, updated user composition data related to behavior of the user and the input method editor user instance; and

transmitting, from the client computer device to the input method editor server, the updated user composition data, wherein receipt of the updated user composition data causes the input method editor server to (i) update the first user profile to obtain an updated first user profile and (ii) store an updated first user profile as the first user profile.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein:

generating the input method editor instance comprises (i) launching an input method editor, and (ii) accessing a user identifier associated with the input method editor instance, the user identifier corresponding to the user; and

transmitting the notification of the generation of the input method editor instance to the input method editor server comprises transmitting the user identifier to the input method editor server.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein generating the input method editor instance comprises transmitting a synchronization request with a user identifier to the input method editor server, the user identifier associated with the input method editor instance and corresponding to the user.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the user composition data further comprises frequently used phrases of the user.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the user composition data further comprises search history data of the user.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein transmitting the notification of the generation of the input method editor instance to the input method editor server comprises requesting to download the user composition data of the user profile.

11. A system, comprising:

a data store configured to store input method editor user profiles, each of the input method editor user profiles corresponding to a particular user and including user composition data utilized to modify behavior of an input method editor for the particular user, wherein the user composition data for the particular user comprises data defined by behavior of the particular user including at least one of (i) user-generated words associated with the particular user and (ii) typing patterns associated with the particular user; and

an input method editor server comprising one or more computers and in data communication with the data store, the input method editor server being configured to;

(i) receive, from one or more client computer devices, a notification of an input method editor instance associated with a first user,

(ii) provide a first input method editor user profile associated with the first user to the one or more client computer devices, wherein the provided first input method editor user profile is usable by the input method editor instance on the one or more client computing devices to modify behavior of the input method editor instance to be tailored for the first user, and

(iii) receive, from the one or more client computer devices, an updated first input method editor user profile for the first user from the one or more client computer devices, the updated first input method editor user profile including updated user composition data related to behavior of the first user and the input method editor user instance, and

wherein the data store is further configured to store the updated first input method editor user profile as the first input method editor user profile.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the notification of the input method editor instance comprises a request to download user composition data of the first input method editor user profile.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the notification of the input method editor instance comprises an input method editor profile synchronization request.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the user composition data further comprises frequently used phrases of the user.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the user composition data further comprises search history data of the user.