Apparatus and method for providing contact-related information items

• US 10,255,327 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2013
• Issued: 04/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Kuramura, Don Yamato, Biniak, Bryan Thomas, Mauro, Peter Matthew, Rainisto, Roope, Wendland, Melanie
• Primary Examiner(s): Trujillo, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Jessica N
• Application Number:
  US13/774,748
• Publication Number:
  US 20140244630A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,237 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

Mechanisms are provided for determining contact-related information items for presentation to a user, such that the user can refer to the information items to enhance the user'"'"'s communication with the contact. Contact-related information items that have a high relevance level may be accessed and presented to the user. In a case in which no or limited high relevance level information items exist, contact-related information items associated with incrementally lower levels of relevance may be accessed and presented. Moreover, according to some example embodiments, relevance may be derived based on the relationship of the user with the particular contact and/or the frequency of communications with the contact.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to:

apply a ranking algorithm to contact-related information items associated with a contact of a user according to predefined categories of relevance, wherein the ranking algorithm comprises a weighting algorithm configured to arrange different types of contact-related information items into different predefined categories of relevance;

determine whether a contact-related information item associated with a first relevance level based on the ranking algorithm is available;

in response to an incoming voice call from the contact, provide for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level by displaying the contact-related information item within a predefined display area of a user interface in an instance in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is available and determine whether sufficient contact-related information items associated with the first relevance level are available to fill the predefined display area; and

access, in response to the incoming voice call from the contact and also in response to a determination that the contact-related information items associated with the first relevance level that are available are insufficient to fill the predefined display area, a contact-related information item associated with a second relevance level based on the ranking algorithm and provide for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level by displaying the contact-related information item within the predefined display area of the user interface in an instance in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is unavailable,

wherein the contact-related information items provide information relating to the contact of the user other than the contact'"'"'s name and other than the contact'"'"'s phone number,

wherein the second relevance level is indicative of a lower level of importance of the contact-related information item in terms of contextual relevance as compared to the first relevance level and with respect to the contact, and

wherein at least one of the first relevance level or the second relevance level is based at least in part on input provided by the user or by the contact.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first relevance level or the second relevance level is predefined.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level comprises contact-specific data.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, in an instance in which the predefined display area is incomplete, the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to determine at least one additional contact-related information item,

wherein, in an instance in which an additional contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is unavailable, the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to access a contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level and to provide for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level within the predefined area.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to determine whether a contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is available in response to at least one of receipt of an incoming communication opportunity associated with the contact or receipt of a user request.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level is displayed in a space in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level would otherwise have been displayed if the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level had been available.

7. A method comprising:

applying a ranking algorithm to contact-related information items associated with a contact of a user according to predefined categories of relevance, wherein the ranking algorithm comprises a weighting algorithm configured to arrange different types of contact-related information items into different predefined categories of relevance;

determining whether a contact-related information item associated with a first relevance level based on the ranking algorithm is available;

in response to an incoming voice call from the contact, providing for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level by displaying the contact-related information item within a predefined display area of a user interface in an instance in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is available and determining whether sufficient contact-related information items associated with the first relevance level are available to fill the predefined display area; and

accessing, via a processor, in response to the incoming voice call from the contact and also in response to a determination that the contact-related information items associated with the first relevance level that are available are insufficient to fill the predefined display area, a contact-related information item associated with a second relevance level based on the ranking algorithm and providing for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level by displaying the contact-related information item within the predefined display area of the user interface in an instance in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is unavailable,

wherein the contact-related information items provide information relating to the contact of the user other than the contact'"'"'s name and other than the contact'"'"'s phone number,

wherein the second relevance level is indicative of a lower level of importance of the contact-related information item in terms of contextual relevance as compared to the first relevance level and with respect to the contact, and

wherein at least one of the first relevance level or the second relevance level is based at least in part on input provided by the user or by the contact.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein at least one of the first relevance level or the second relevance level is predefined.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level comprises contact-specific data.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein, in an instance in which the predefined display area is incomplete, the method further comprises determining at least one additional contact-related information item, and

wherein, in an instance in which an additional contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is unavailable, the method further comprises accessing a contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level and providing for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level within the predefined area.

11. The method of claim 7 further comprising determining whether a contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is available in response to at least one of receipt of an incoming communication opportunity associated with the contact or receipt of a user request.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level is displayed in a space in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level would otherwise have been displayed if the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level had been available.

13. A computer program product comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable program code portions stored therein, the computer-executable program code portions comprising program code instructions for:

applying a ranking algorithm to contact-related information items according to predefined categories of relevance, wherein the ranking algorithm comprises a weighting algorithm configured to arrange different types of contact-related information items into different predefined categories of relevance;

determining whether a contact-related information item associated with a first relevance level based on the ranking algorithm is available;

in response to an incoming voice call from the contact, providing for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level by displaying the contact-related information item within a predefined display area of a user interface in an instance in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is available and determining whether sufficient contact-related information items associated with the first relevance level are available to fill the predefined display area; and

accessing, in response to the incoming voice call from the contact and also in response to a determination that the contact-related information items associated with the first relevance level that are available are insufficient to fill the predefined display area, a contact-related information item associated with a second relevance level based on the ranking algorithm and providing for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level by displaying the contact-related information item within the predefined display area of the user interface in an instance in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is unavailable,

wherein the contact-related information items provide information relating to the contact of the user other than the contact'"'"'s name and other than the contact'"'"'s phone number,

wherein the second relevance level is indicative of a lower level of importance of the contact-related information item in terms of contextual relevance as compared to the first relevance level and with respect to the contact, and

wherein at least one of the first relevance level or the second relevance level is based at least in part on input provided by the user or by the contact.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein, in an instance in which the predefined display area is incomplete, the computer program portions are further configured for determining at least one additional contact-related information item, and wherein, in an instance in which an additional contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is unavailable, the computer program portions are further configured for accessing a contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level and providing for presentation of the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level within the predefined area.

15. The computer program product of claim 13 further comprising computer program portions are further configured for determining whether a contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level is available in response to at least one of receipt of an incoming communication opportunity associated with the contact or receipt of a user request.

16. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein at least one of the first relevance level or the second relevance level is predefined.

17. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein the contact-related information item associated with the second relevance level is displayed in a space in which the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level would otherwise have been displayed if the contact-related information item associated with the first relevance level had been available.