Systems and methods for user interface presentation of virtual agent

• US 9,148,394 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2012
• Issued: 09/29/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Lynch, Timothy, Harper, Kenneth S., Radebaugh, Carey
• Primary Examiner(s): Pollack, Melvin H
• Application Number:
  US13/711,069
• Publication Number:
  US 20140164533A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,022 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services

Abstract

Systems, methods, and apparatus for use in connection with at least one virtual agent. In some embodiments, at least one processor is programmed to present the at least one virtual agent as a participant in a multiparty conversation taking place via a messaging application.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising at least one hardware processor programmed by one or more executable instructions to implement at least one virtual agent, the at least one hardware processor being further programmed to:

present the at least one virtual agent as a participant in a multiparty conversation taking place via a messaging application, wherein;

at least a first person and a second person different from the first person participate in the multiparty conversation;

the at least one hardware processor is programmed to inject the virtual agent into the multiparty conversation after the first and second persons began conversing;

the messaging application has a visual user interface to be displayed on a display screen of a user'"'"'s device;

the at least one hardware processor is programmed to present the at least one virtual agent'"'"'s contribution to the conversation at a first portion of the display screen; and

the at least one hardware processor is programmed to present the one or more persons'"'"' contribution at a second portion of the display screen different from the first portion.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one virtual agent'"'"'s contribution to the conversation is presented using at least one first color and the one or more persons'"'"' contribution is presented using at least one second color different from the at least one first color.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the messaging application is a text-based messaging application.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the text-based messaging application is selected from a group consisting of:

Short Message Service (SMS), Instant Messaging (IM), and email.

5. A method performed by at least one hardware processor in connection with at least one virtual agent, the method comprising an act of:

presenting, by the at least one hardware processor, the at least one virtual agent as a participant in a multiparty conversation taking place via a messaging application, wherein;

at least a first person and a second person different from the first person participate in the multiparty conversation;

the act of presenting the at least one virtual agent as a participant comprises injecting the virtual agent into the multiparty conversation after the first and second persons began conversing;

the messaging application has a visual user interface to be displayed on a display screen of a user'"'"'s device;

the at least one virtual agent'"'"'s contribution to the conversation is presented at a first portion of the display screen; and

the one or more persons'"'"' contribution is presented at a second portion of the display screen different from the first portion.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the at least one virtual agent'"'"'s contribution to the conversation is presented using at least one first color and the one or more persons'"'"' contribution is presented using at least one second color different from the at least one first color.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the messaging application is a text-based messaging application.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the text-based messaging application is selected from a group consisting of:

Short Message Service (SMS), Instant Messaging (IM), and email.

9. At least one computer-readable storage device having encoded thereon instructions that, when executed by at least one hardware processor, perform a method for use in connection with at least one virtual agent, the method comprising an act of:

presenting, by the at least one hardware processor, the at least one virtual agent as a participant in a multiparty conversation taking place via a messaging application, wherein;

at least a first person and a second person different from the first person participate in the multiparty conversation;

the act of presenting the at least one virtual agent as a participant comprises injecting the virtual agent into the multiparty conversation after the first and second persons began conversing;

the messaging application has a visual user interface to be displayed on a display screen of a user'"'"'s device;

the at least one virtual agent'"'"'s contribution to the conversation is presented at a first portion of the display screen; and

the one or more persons'"'"' contribution is presented at a second portion of the display screen different from the first portion.

10. The at least one computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the at least one virtual agent'"'"'s contribution to the conversation is presented using at least one first color and the one or more persons'"'"' contribution is presented using at least one second color different from the at least one first color.

11. The at least one computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the messaging application is a text-based messaging application.

12. The at least one computer-readable storage device of claim 11, wherein the text-based messaging application is selected from a group consisting of:

Short Message Service (SMS), Instant Messaging (IM), and email.