Method and system for accessing declined event invitations

• US 7,933,789 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2006
• Issued: 04/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Browne, Garreth, Delhaye, Marie Helene Brohan, Boland, Conor Terance, O'Sullivan, Patrick Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayes; John W
• Assistant Examiner(s): JOSEPH, TONYA S
• Application Number:
  US11/564,837
• Publication Number:
  US 20070198316A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,609 Days
• Field of Search: 705/5, 705/9, 709/204
• US Class Current: 705/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups

Abstract

A method and system for accessing declined invitations is provided. The method includes receiving notification of an available time slot, retrieving stored declined event invitations, and presenting the declined event invitations to a user. The user can accept of a previously declined event invitation for the available time slot. When the user receives an event invitation and declines the event invitation, the method includes saving the declined event invitation to a data store from which it may be retrieved. Stored declined event invitations are deleted once the time of the event has passed.

Claims

1. A method, embodied in at least one computer system, for accessing declined event invitations, including steps performed by said computer system comprising:

detecting that a user has declined at least one event invitation sent to the user inviting the user to at least one associated event occurring during a time slot that is unavailable in the user'"'"'s calendar;

storing the declined event invitation to a data store, in response to detecting that the user declined the event invitation;

determining, by the computer system, that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available;

receiving notification that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available;

retrieving, in response to receiving the notification that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available, the stored declined event invitation; and

presenting, by the computer system, the retrieved declined event invitation to the user for acceptance by the user.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of retrieving accesses all previously declined event invitations.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of retrieving includes identifying and retrieving previously declined event invitations for events at times overlapping the available time slot.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising presenting event invitations which have not been responded to to the user for acceptance of an event invitation for the available time slot.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the notification of an available time slot is a cancellation or rescheduling of a previously accepted event invitation.

6. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the data store for storing declined event invitations is independent of the original received invitation.

7. A method as in claim 1, wherein the stored declined event invitations are deleted once the time slot has passed.

8. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the method is carried out in a messaging system.

9. A method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the messaging system includes the user'"'"'s calendar, and the method includes generating the notification when an entry in the user'"'"'s calendar is deleted.

10. A computer program product including a non-signal computer readable storage medium, the computer readable medium having program code stored thereon for accessing declined event invitations, the program code comprising:

program code for detecting that a user has declined at least one event invitation sent to the user inviting the user to at least one associated event occurring during a time slot that is unavailable in the user'"'"'s calendar;

program code for storing the declined event invitations to a data store, in response to detecting that the user declined the event invitations;

program code for determining that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available;

program code for receiving notification that the of an available time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available;

program code for retrieving, in response to receiving the notification that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available the stored declined event invitations; and

program code for presenting the retrieved declined event invitations to the a user for acceptance by the user.

11. A system comprising:

at least one processor and a computer readable memory, the computer readable memory having program code stored thereon for, when executed on the at least one processor, accessing declined event invitations, the program code comprising;

program code for detecting that a user has declined at least one event invitation sent to the user inviting the user to at least one associated event occurring during a time slot that is unavailable in the user'"'"'s calendar;

program code for storing the declined event invitations to a data store, in response to detecting that the user declined the event invitations;

program code for determining that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available;

program code for receiving notification that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available;

program code for retrieving, in response to receiving the notification that the time slot in the user'"'"'s calendar has become available, the stored declined event invitations; and

program code for presenting the declined event invitations to the user for acceptance by the user.

12. A system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the program code for retrieving accesses all previously declined event invitations.

13. A system method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the program code for retrieving identifies and retrieves invitations to previously declined event invitations for events at times overlapping the available time slot.

14. A system as claimed in claim 11, the program code further comprising program code for presenting event invitations which have not been responded to to the user for acceptance of an event invitation for the available time slot.

15. A system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the notification of an available time slot is a cancellation or rescheduling of a previously accepted event invitation.

16. A system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the data store for storing declined event invitations is independent of the original received invitation.

17. A system as in claim 11, wherein the stored declined event invitations are deleted once the time slot has passed.

18. A system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the program code is executed within a messaging system.

19. A system as claimed in claim 18, wherein the messaging system includes a the user'"'"'s calendar, and the program code includes program code for generating the notification when an entry in the calendar is deleted.