Resolution of abbreviated text in an electronic communications system

• US 7,640,233 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2006
• Issued: 12/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Mysak, John Stephen, Illg, Jason J., Baartman, Randall Paul, Carey, James Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): Vital; Pierre M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nofal; Christopher P
• Application Number:
  US11/468,193
• Publication Number:
  US 20080059421A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,218 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/232 Orthographic correction, e.g. spell checking or vowelisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

Electronic messaging systems, a machine-accessible medium, and methods for text-based electronic communication. In one embodiment, a plurality of databases are provided. The databases each define shorthand terms with one or more longhand terms. A shorthand term is targeted within a text message, and the databases are searched for corresponding longhand terms. The longhand terms are selected for display according to factors such as user preferences, the identities of participants to the text communication, and the context of the text message. Abbreviations, shorthand, and other jargon sent by one user is thereby interpreted. For example, one of the longhand terms may be substituted in-line with the text message. Alternatively, all matches for the shorthand term found in the databases may be listed in descending order according to relevancy.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of automatically determining the meaning of a shorthand notation in an electronic communication, the method comprising:

receiving, on a recipient messaging device, a text communication sent from a sender messaging device, wherein the text communication comprises at least one shorthand term;

automatically analyzing, on the recipient messaging device, the context of the text communication to automatically select one or more shorthand target terms from the text communication;

searching one or more databases from a plurality of databases to obtain one or more longhand terms for the one or more shorthand target terms, wherein the one or more longhand terms are defined with respect to the one or more shorthand target terms and wherein the one or more databases are selected from the group consisting of a personal database, a general purpose database, and a specialty database;

automatically evaluating the one or more longhand terms to determine whether the one or more shorthand target terms is ambiguous in the context of the communication, wherein the evaluating comprises determining a number of matching longhand terms to identify one or more unambiguous alternative longhand terms; and

automatically displaying, on the recipient messaging device, one or more of the unambiguous longhand terms proximate to, or within, the original text communication, wherein the displaying further comprises ranking the unambiguous longhand terms obtained from the one or more databases according to at least one of a sender identity and a recipient identity.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a name of each database in which each of the unambiguous longhand terms was obtained.

3. A machine-accessible medium containing instructions, which when executed by a recipient messaging device, causes the recipient messaging device to perform operations comprising:

receiving, on the recipient messaging device, a text communication sent from a sender messaging device, wherein the text communication comprises at least one shorthand term;

automatically analyzing the context of the text communication to automatically select one or more shorthand target terms from the text communication;

searching one or more databases from a plurality of databases to obtain one or more longhand terms for the one or more shorthand target term, wherein the one or more longhand terms are defined with respect to the one or more shorthand target terms and wherein the one or more databases are selected from the group consisting of a personal database, a general purpose database, and a specialty database;

automatically evaluating the one or more longhand terms to determine whether the one or more shorthand target terms is ambiguous in the context of the communication, wherein the evaluating comprises determining a number of matching longhand terms to identify one or more unambiguous alternative longhand terms; and

automatically displaying, on the recipient messaging device, one or more of the unambiguous longhand terms proximate to, or within, the original text communication, wherein the displaying further comprises ranking the unambiguous longhand terms obtained from the one or more databases according to at least one of a sender identity and a recipient identity.

4. The machine-accessible medium of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise displaying a name of the database in which each of the unambiguous longhand terms was obtained.