Methods for managing the exchange of communication tokens

• US 20060015566A1
• Filed: 09/20/2005
• Published: 01/19/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Scott E. Sampson
• Original Assignee: Scott E. Sampson
• Inventors: Sampson, Scott E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,051,172 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking

Abstract

A communication system issues tokens in order to control communication received by the system. The tokens are arbitrary symbols which are stored in one or more Token Logs (TLs) for future reference. Those to whom the tokens are issued use specific tokens by including them in messages sent to the token issuer. The communication systems belonging to the potential token users record tokens which they have been issued, so that those tokens may be included in subsequent communication to the token issuers. Incoming messages without tokens are given a tokenless status and possibly rejected. Token-request tokens are automatically issued to allow other individuals to request tokens which can be used in subsequent communication. Multiple Token Logs are synchronized across multiple devices. Functional and informational message address headers are employed when sending messages so that tokens issued to a given user are not divulged to other message recipients who are different from the given user and different from the token issuer.

Claims

1. A method in a communication system comprising:

identifying a communication to be sent to a recipient;

searching a token log for one or more tokens corresponding to an identifier of the recipient;

in response to finding no tokens which correspond to the identifier of the recipient, providing for the creation of a token as an arbitrary set of one or more symbols;

sending the communication and the token to the recipient; and

associating the token in a token log with the identifier of the recipient.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the identifier of the recipient comprises an address of the recipient.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the identifier of the recipient comprises a username of the recipient.

4. A method in a communication system comprising:

providing for the creation of a token as an arbitrary set of one or more symbols;

issuing the token to a potential user of the token;

associating the token in a token log with an identifier of the potential user to whom the token was issued;

identifying a communication to be sent to a recipient;

finding one or more tokens in the token log which correspond to the identifier of the recipient; and

sending the communication to the recipient with at least a subset of the one or more tokens which were found to correspond to the identifier of the recipient.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the identifier of the potential user is at least one of the following:

an address of the potential user, a username of the potential user, and a name of the potential user.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the identifier of the recipient is at least one of the following:

an address of the recipient, a username of the recipient, and a name of the recipient.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the communication to be sent to a recipient is also to be sent to one or more other recipients, and sending the communication to the recipient also includes sending identifiers of the one or more other recipients.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the identifiers of the one or more other recipients includes addresses of the one or more other recipients.

9. The method of claim 4 wherein the at least a subset of the one or more tokens is selected by the operator of the communication system.

10. The method of claim 4 wherein issuing the token to the potential user of the token comprises sending the token to the potential user of the token.

11. The method of claim 4 wherein issuing the token to the potential user of the token comprises sending the token to a system which is accessible by the potential user of the token.

12. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

associating the token in a token log with a designated folder, wherein an incoming message accompanied by the token will automatically be stored in the designated folder.

13. The method of claim 4 further comprising:

receiving a message that includes a second token;

verifying that the second token is valid by locating the second token in a token log; and

processing the message based on the second token being found in the token log.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein processing the message comprises accepting the message.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein processing the message comprises:

attaching a flag to the message indicating that the message is a newly received message, which flag allows a system operator to identify which messages are newly received; and

providing the system operator with a means for clearing the flag.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein processing the message includes changing the message account to which the message was originally received to a different message account.

17. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

associating the token with a customizable set of one or more actions in a token action log, wherein the token is to trigger the associated set of one or more actions in response to accompanying a communication that experiences an event.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the retrieved actions include changing the message account to which the message was originally received to a different message account.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

allowing a system operator to select between viewing messages for the original message account and viewing messages for the different message account.

20. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

storing the token in the one or more additional token logs.

21. The method of claim 4, wherein:

the token log is a data structure.

22. The method of claim 4, wherein the token log is an address book.

23. The method of claim 4, wherein associating the token in a token log with an identifier of the potential user to whom the token was issued comprises storing the token with an address book entry corresponding to the potential user to whom the toke was issued.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

storing the token in the one or more additional address books.

25. A method in a communication system comprising:

receiving an incoming communication;

detecting that the incoming communication does not contain a valid token previously stored in a token log that is utilized by the communication system;

retrieving from the system a set of one or more actions corresponding to incoming communications detected as not containing a valid token previously stored in a token log that is utilized by the communication system; and

executing the retrieved actions.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the retrieved one or more actions include automatically sending a reply message back to the sender of the incoming communication.

27. The method of claim 26 wherein the purpose of automatically sending a reply message back to the sender of the incoming message is informing the sender of the incoming message about the need for including an issued token communications sent to the receiver of the incoming message.

28. The method of claim 26 wherein the reply message includes an address that the sender of the incoming message might contact to receive information about sending messages to the recipient of the incoming communication.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein the address is a website address.

30. The method of claim 26 wherein sending a reply message includes:

creating a temporary token;

storing the temporary token in a token log as a token-request token; and

including the temporary token with the reply message which is automatically sent back to the sender of the incoming communication.

31. The method of claim 30 further comprising:

receiving a separate message containing the temporary token which was designated as a token-request token; and

presenting a system operator with an option of issuing a token to the sender of the separate message.

32. The method of claim 30 further comprising:

receiving a separate message containing the temporary token which was designated as a token-request token; and

issuing a token to the message sender.

33. The method of claim 26 wherein the automatic reply message includes a flag indicating that the message is an automatic reply message, and;

receiving a subsequent message containing a flag which indicates that the subsequent message is an auto-reply message;

inhibiting the action of automatically sending a reply in response to receiving the subsequent message.

34. A method in a communication system comprising:

receiving a message from a message sender, which message includes one or more tokens issued by the message sender;

associating the one or more tokens with an identifier of the message sender in a data store within the communication system.

identifying a communication to be sent to a recipient whose identifier is recorded in the data store within the communication system;

identifying one or more tokens associated with the recipient'"'"'s identifier in the data store; and

sending the communication to the recipient with at least a subset of the one or more tokens which were found to correspond to the identifier of the recipient.

35. The method of claim 34 wherein the identifier of the message sender is at least one of the following:

an address of the message sender, a username of the message sender, and a name of the message sender.

36. The method of claim 34 wherein the data store comprises an address book.

37. The method of claim 34 wherein the at least a subset of the one or more tokens is selected by the operator of the communication system.

38. The method of claim 34, wherein identifying one or more tokens associated with the recipient'"'"'s identifier in the data store comprises:

identifying within the data store an alternate identifier for the recipient; and

identifying one or more tokens associated with the recipient'"'"'s alternate identifier in the data store.

39. A method in a communication system comprising:

identifying a communication to be sent to a first recipient and to one or more other recipients;

identifying one or more tokens associated with an identifier of the first recipient in a data store within the communication system; and

sending the communication to the first recipient with identifiers of the one or more other recipients and with at least a subset of the one or more tokens which were associated with the identifier of the first recipient.

40. The method of claim 39 wherein the identifier of the first recipient is at least one of the following:

an address of the first recipient, a username of the first recipient, and a name of the first recipient.

41. The method of claim 39 wherein the data store comprises an address book.

42. The method of claim 39 where the identifiers of the one or other recipients include addresses of the one or more other recipients.

43. The method of claim 39 wherein the at least a subset of the one or more tokens is selected by the operator of the communication system.

44. A system comprising:

a token creation module to provide for the creation of one or more tokens;

a token issuance module to issue one or more tokens to one or more potential users of the tokens;

a token issuance log to associate one or more tokens with one or more potential users to whom specific one or more tokens are issued;

a user interface for identifying messages to be sent to designated recipients;

a lookup module to search the token issuance log for one or more tokens associated with the designated recipients; and

a message sending module for sending messages to designated recipients with at least a subset of one or more tokens which were associated with the designated recipients in the token issuance log.

45. A communication apparatus comprising:

means for creating a token as an arbitrary set of one or more symbols;

means for issuing the token to a potential user of the token;

means for associating the token in a token issuance log with an identifier of the potential user to whom the token was issued;

means for identifying a communication to be sent to a recipient;

means for finding one or more tokens in the token issuance log which correspond to the identifier of the recipient; and

,

means for sending the communication to the recipient with at least a subset of the one or more tokens which were found to correspond to the identifier of the recipient.

46. A communication apparatus comprising:

means for receiving a message from a message sender, which message includes one or more tokens issued by the message sender; and

means for associating the one or more tokens with one or more identifiers of the message sender in a data store within the communication system.

means for identifying a communication to be sent to a recipient whose identifier is recorded in the data store within the communication system;

means for identifying one or more tokens associated with the identifier of the recipient in the data store; and

means for sending the communication to the recipient with at least a subset of the one or more tokens which were found to correspond to the identifier of the recipient.

47. A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium, the computer readable medium including program code for causing a computing device to perform a method comprising:

providing for the creation of a token as an arbitrary set of one or more symbols;

issuing the token to a potential user of the token;

associating the token in a token log with an identifier of the potential user to whom the token was issued;

identifying a communication to be sent to a recipient;

finding one or more tokens in the token issuance log which correspond to an identifier of the recipient; and

,

sending the communication to the recipient with at least a subset of the one or more tokens which were found to correspond to the identifier of the recipient.