Context Enriched Communication System and Method

• US 20070214238A1
• Filed: 03/12/2007
• Published: 09/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Coppens, Toon, De Mondt, Hans, Van Wonterghem, Geert Arthur Edith, Hemmeryckx-Deleersnijder, Bart Karel
• Application Number:
  US11/685,194
• Publication Number:
  US 20070214238A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• 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 65/1083 In-session procedures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal

Abstract

A communication system according to the current invention contains a context vault (104) and context community manager (105) for enriching a communication session between a first user (101) and second user (102) with context information. The context vault (104) maintains context information, e.g. location or agenda information, and/or context information locators in relation to users. The community context manager (105) maintains access rights in relation to the context information. During the communication session between the first user (101) and a second user (102), the communication server (103) retrieves context information in relation to the first user (101) from the context vault (104) and provides that context information or parts thereof to the second user (102) in accordance with the access rights kept in the community context manager (105), and vice versa.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising a communication network for interconnecting a plurality of users and a communication server (103;

203;

303) for establishing a communication session between at least a first user (101;

201;

301) and a second user (102;

202;

302) of said plurality of users,

CHARACTERIZED IN THAT said communication system further comprises;

a. a context vault (104;

204;

304) for maintaining context information and/or context locators in relation to one or more of said plurality of users; and

b. a community context manager (105;

205;

305) for maintaining access rights in relation to said context information; and

further in that;

c. said communication server (103;

203;

303) is adapted to retrieve context information in relation to said first user (101;

201;

301) from said context vault (104;

304) and provide said context information or parts thereof during said communication session to said second user (102;

202;

302) in accordance with said access rights, and vice versa.

2. A communication system according to claim 1,

CHARACTERISED IN THAT said communication system further comprises:

d. said context vault is a location context vault (204) for maintaining location context information and/or location context locators in relation to locations; and

e. said community context manager is a location context manager (205) further adapted to determine the location of a user; and

further in that;

f. said communication server (203) is adapted to retrieve location context information in relation to the location of said first user (201) from said location context vault (204) and provide said location context information or parts thereof during said communication session to said second user (202), and vice versa.

3. A communication system according to claim 1 CHARACTERISED IN THAT said communication system further comprises:

g. a context skin vault (306) for maintaining a plurality of context skins, a context skin being a set of rules for graphical representation of context information; and

h. a context composition engine (307) for composing during said communication session said context information in relation to said first user (301) in accordance with a context skin selected by said second user (302), and vice versa.

4. A communication system according to claim 3,

CHARACTERIZED IN THAT said context composition engine (307) is integrated in said communication server (303).

5. A communication system according to claim 1,

CHARACTERIZED IN THAT said context information comprises one or more of the following:

location information;

calendar information;

electronic programming guide information;

multimedia content;

sensor information.

6. A communication system according to claim 1,

CHARACTERIZED IN THAT said communication session corresponds to one of the following:

a voice communication session between fixed and/or mobile phone users;

a video communication session between fixed and/or mobile phone users;

a text communication session between fixed and/or mobile phone users;

a chat communication session between fixed and/or mobile phone users.

7. A context vault (104;

304) for use in the communication system of claim 1.

8. A community context manager (105;

305) for use in the communication system of claim 1.

9. A communication server (103;

203;

303) for use in the communication system of claim 1.

10. A location context vault (204) for use in the communication system of claim 2.

11. A location context manager (205) for use in the communication system of claim 2.

12. A context skin vault (306) for use in the communication system of claim 3.

13. A context composition engine (307) for use in the communication system of claim 3.

14. A communication method in a communication network having a plurality of users, said communication method comprising establishing a communication session between at least a first user (101;

201;

301) and a second user (102;

202;

302) through a communication server (103;

203;

303),

CHARACTERIZED IN THAT said communication method further comprises;

a. retrieving context information related to said first user (101;

201;

301) through a context vault (104;

204;

304) that maintains context information and/or context information locators related to one or more of said plurality of users; and

b. retrieving access rights to said context information related to said first user (101;

201;

301) from a context community manager (105;

305) that maintains access rights in relation to said context information related to one or more of said plurality of users; and

c. providing said context information related to said first user (101;

201;

301) or parts thereof during said communication session to said second user (102;

202;

302) in accordance with said access rights;

and vice versa.