Method and apparatus for constructing and maintaining a user knowledge profile

• US 7,814,121 B2
• Filed: 07/22/2004
• Issued: 10/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Wang, Eric, Gilmour, David L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Truong; Cam Y T
• Application Number:
  US10/897,768
• Publication Number:
  US 20050004874A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,273 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/5, 707/9, 707/10, 707/6, 707/102, 709/217, 713200-201
• US Class Current: 707/784
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/30 of unstructured textual data document management systems G06F16/93
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06393 Score-carding, benchmarking or key performance indicator [KPI] analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

A method of constructing an entity profile, having private and public portions with different access restrictions, commences with the assignment of a confidence level to content within an electronic document. The electronic document may be associated with a first entity. The content may be descriptive of the first entity. If the confidence level assigned to the content is less than a predetermined threshold, the content is automatically rejected for inclusion within the entity profile. If the confidence level assigned to the content exceeds the predetermined threshold, the content is included within the private portion of the entity profile. Thereafter, the content can be automatically presented to the first entity for authorization, by the first entity, for inclusion of the content within the public portion of the profile. The public portion of the entity profile may be freely accessible by other entities, whereas the private portion may have access restrictions.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of constructing a profile of an entity, the method comprising:

intercepting, by a computer, an electronic document while the electronic document is being transmitted on a network by the entity;

determining that particular content within the electronic document is potentially descriptive of knowledge possessed by the entity, by executing an algorithm within the computer to analyze the electronic document, wherein making the determination comprises assigning a figure of merit to the particular content, and wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises determining a frequency with which the particular content occurs in the electronic document;

in response to the determining the particular content, enabling the entity to provide an authorization to the computer, the authorization indicates whether the particular content is to be included in at least a particular portion of the profile associated with the entity; and

including the particular content within said at least a particular portion of the profile only if the entity provides the authorization.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the enabling the entity to provide an authorization comprises indicating the particular content to the entity for authorization.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the entity is a person.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the entity is a group of people.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the profile comprises a first portion and a second portion.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the first portion and the second portion have different access restrictions with respect to another entity.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein the first portion is a private portion.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein the second portion is a public portion.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises identifying parts of speech comprising the particular content.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises counting a number of words within the particular content.

11. A data processing system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled with the processor and storing instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processing system to perform a process that includes

intercepting an electronic document while the electronic document is being transmitted on a network by an entity;

determining that particular content within the electronic document is potentially descriptive of knowledge possessed by the entity, by executing an algorithm to analyze the electronic document, wherein making the determination comprises assigning a figure of merit to the particular content, and wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises determining a frequency with which the particular content occurs in the electronic document;

prompting the entity to provide an authorization regarding the particular content in response to the determining the particular content, the authorization indicating whether the particular content is to be included in at least a particular portion of a profile of the entity;

including the particular content within said at least a particular portion of the profile only if the entity provides the authorization.

12. The data processing system of claim 11 wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the data processing system to indicate the particular content to the entity for authorization.

13. The data processing system of claim 11 wherein the entity is a person.

14. The data processing system of claim 11 wherein the entity is a group of people.

15. The data processing system of claim 11 wherein the profile comprises a first portion and a second portion.

16. The data processing system of claim 15 wherein the first portion and the second portion have different access restrictions with respect to another entity.

17. The data processing system of claim 15 wherein the first portion is a private portion.

18. The data processing system of claim 15 wherein the second portion is a public portion.

19. A machine-readable storage medium, storing instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a process that comprises:

intercepting an electronic document while the electronic document is being transmitted on a network by an entity;

determining that particular content, within the electronic document, is potentially descriptive of a knowledge base of the entity, by executing an algorithm to analyze the electronic document, wherein making the determination comprises assigning a figure of merit to the particular content, and wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises determining a frequency with which the particular content occurs in the electronic document;

in response to the determining the particular content, enabling the entity to provide an authorization that indicates whether the particular content is to be included in a public portion of a profile of the entity; and

including the particular content within the public portion of the profile only if the entity provides the authorization, wherein the profile includes the public portion and a private portion.

20. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein the enabling the entity to provide an authorization comprises indicating the particular content to the entity for authorization.

21. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein the entity is a person.

22. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein the entity is a group of people.

23. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein the public portion and the private portion have different access restrictions with respect to another entity.

24. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises identifying parts of speech comprising the particular content.

25. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19 wherein the assigning the figure of merit to the particular content comprises counting a number of words within the particular content.