Calendar events and calendar-driven application technique

• US 6,988,128 B1
• Filed: 09/27/2000
• Issued: 01/17/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Sundstrom, Robert J., Kovales, Renee M., Ogle, David M., Doss, J. Smith, Pozefsky, Diane P., Alexander, Geoffrey D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim, Krisna
• Application Number:
  US09/670,844
• Time in Patent Office: 1,938 Days
• Field of Search: 709/207, 709206- 7, 709201-203, 709/213, 709217-219
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting

Abstract

The present invention provides a method, system, and computer program product for defining calendar events for users of electronic calendaring systems and using those calendar events to customize information pertaining to the user. A multi-level hierarchy of calendar events is defined, where a top level of the hierarchy is used for context events which have a relatively long duration and a lower level of the hierarchy is used for specific events which occur during context events. The calendar user may specify attribute values for attributes of context events and/or specific events, such as how the user can be reached when that event is active; whether, and how often, the user checks his e-mail or voice mail when that event is active; etc. Attribute values are hierarchically coalesced, with specific event attribute value taking precedence over the values of corresponding context attributes. Overrides may be provided for the context and specific event values as well, enabling a user to fine-tune his preferences. Use of the present invention enables other persons trying to contact a calendar owner to be informed of the calendar owner'"'"'s status for the applicable date and time, as well as information such as when the calendar owner will next be available or how he can be reached in the interim, without requiring the calendar owner to manually change configuration settings of his e-mail or greetings of his voice mail, etc. The techniques disclosed herein are also applicable to other scenarios such as instant messaging and project management.

Claims

1. A method of providing an electronic calendar-driven application, comprising:

creating time-dependent calendar events on an electronic calendar, the calendar events being organized according to a multi-level hierarchy comprising time-independent context events at an upper level of the hierarchy and time-independent specific events at a lower level of the hierarchy, wherein zero or more specific events may be scheduled on the electronic calendar during any particular context event;

interrogating the calendar events created for a user to provide information about the user; and

detecting an incoming electronic mail message or an instant message for the user, and wherein the interrogating further comprises;

determining whether the user'"'"'s electronic calendar indicates that he is currently available for checking his electronic mail or available for instant messaging, and if not, generating an automated response informing a sender of the electronic mail message or the instant message of the user'"'"'s current status using a currently-active context event for the user and, for particular context events, any currently-active specific event for the user, wherein a level of detail provided in the automated response varies, based on an identification of a sender of the incoming electronic mail message or instant message.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising automatically applying a default context during calendar periods when no other context event is active.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

detecting an incoming voice call for the user; and

wherein the interrogating further comprises;

generating, if the user does not answer the incoming voice call, an automated response informing a caller making the incoming voice call of the user'"'"'s current status using a currently-active context event for the user and, for particular context events, any currently-active specific event for the user.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request for project management information; and

wherein the interrogating interrogates the calendar events created for a plurality of users to provide information about the context events and specific events scheduled for the users at a target date and a target time period, and further comprising;

generating a response informing a requester of the project management information of the information for the users at the target date and the target time period using a result of the interrogating.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the request asks whether any team member is available at a particular location during a particular time period on a particular date.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein zero or more attribute values may be specified for each of the context events and each of the specific events.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the interrogating further comprises interrogating the specified attributes of a context event and of any specific event that are applicable to a target date and a target time or target time period.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the attribute values include information on how to immediately contact the user.

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein the attribute values include information on an alternative contact person for the user.

10. The method according to claim 6, wherein the attribute values include whether, and how often, the user checks electronic mail messages.

11. The method according to claim 6, wherein the attribute values include whether, and how often, the user checks voice mail messages.

12. The method according to claim 6, wherein the interrogating further comprises analyzing selected ones of the attribute values for the user.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein zero or more attribute values may be specified for each of the context events and each of the specific events and further comprising:

detecting an incoming voice call for the user; and

wherein the interrogating further comprises;

generating, if the user does not answer the incoming voice call, an automated response informing a caller making the incoming voice call of the user'"'"'s current status using a currently-active context event for the user, the specified attributes of the currently-applicable context event, any currently-active specific event for the user, and the specified attributes of any currently-applicable specific event.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein zero or more attribute values may be specified for each of the context events and each of the specific events and further comprising:

receiving a request for project management information for a target date and a target time period; and

wherein the interrogating interrogates the calendar events created for a plurality of users at the target date and the target time period to provide information about the context events and specific events scheduled for the users, the specified attributes of currently-applicable context events, and the specified attributes of any currently-applicable specific events, and further comprising;

generating a response informing a requester of the project management information of the information for the users using a result of the interrogating.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein default attribute values may be specified for context event types and for specific event types, and wherein a particular context event and/or a particular specific event may include attribute values which override the default attribute values.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the interrogating further comprises interrogating a specific event that is applicable to a target date and a target time or target time period.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the interrogating further comprises analyzing selected ones of the specific events for the user.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein interrogating further comprises analyzing selected ones of the context events for the user.