System and method for enhanced communications via small data rate communication systems

• US 8,374,636 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2008
• Issued: 02/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shorthand Mobile, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Shorthand Mobile, Inc.
• Inventors: McDonough, John
• Primary Examiner(s): PHUONG, DAI
• Application Number:
  US12/122,619
• Publication Number:
  US 20080305815A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,733 Days
• Field of Search: 4554121-4143, 455/466
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/254 where the visual mode comprises menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/355 Interactive dialogue design tools, features or methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/556 Statistical analysis and interpretation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42382 Text-based messaging services in telephone networks such as PSTN/ISDN, e.g. User-to-User Signalling or Short Message Service for fixed networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals

Abstract

A system and method for interacting with an interactive communication system include processing a profile associated with an interactive communication system; generating a user interface based on the processing of the profile to solicit a user response correlating to a response required by the interactive communication system; receiving the user response via the user interface; updating the user interface using the profile based on the user response; and sending a signal to the interactive communication system based on one or more user responses.

Claims

1. A method for a mobile device to interact with a plurality of interactive services from one or more interactive response services using the short message service (SMS) and profiles stored on the mobile device, each profile storing information related to one or more of the interactive services, the method comprising:

receiving at the mobile device a user'"'"'s selection of one of the profiles stored on the mobile device;

processing at the mobile device the selected profile, the profile having an SMS address associated therewith and user interface information associated with the interactive service, the user interface information including information to be displayed on the mobile device, the profile being one of a plurality of profiles stored on the mobile device, each profile having information specific to one or more of the plurality of interactive services for providing interactions with the services via the mobile device;

prior to receiving a response from the interactive service, generating and displaying a user interface at the mobile device based on the user interface information including displaying at least some of the information to be displayed from the profile, the user interface soliciting a user input;

receiving the user input via the user interface at the mobile device;

prior to receiving a response from the interactive service, the mobile device updating the user interface based upon the user input, and including displaying at least some of the information to be displayed;

the mobile device processing the user input in accordance with the profile to generate an SMS message;

sending the SMS message to the SMS address associated with the profile, the sent SMS message initiating an interaction with the interactive service;

receiving a responsive SMS message at the mobile device; and

after receiving the responsive SMS message from the interactive service, updating the user interface at the mobile device based upon the responsive SMS message.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving more than one user input.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the SMS message sent to the SMS address associated with the profile includes data not provided by user input.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of processing the profile further comprises executing a profile processing application.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the SMS message further comprises the user selecting an SMS address from a plurality of SMS addresses presented in the user interface.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein generating and sending the SMS message to the SMS address associated with the profile further comprises including in the SMS message an identifier of the interactive service.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

saving the user input; and

using the saved user input in a subsequent processing of the profile.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a second SMS message and wherein each of the SMS messages includes an identifier of the order in which the content of the SMS messages should be concatenated for display at the mobile device.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising additionally processing the profile in conjunction with information contained in the responsive SMS message.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the SMS address associated with the profile is an SMS address for communicating with an intermediate server in communication with the interactive service.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the user input in a location where it is accessible by a different profile.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein updating the user interface at the mobile device based upon the responsive SMS message comprises displaying an alert indicating that the responsive SMS message has been received.

13. A mobile device having a system for interacting with an interactive response system via a short message service (SMS), the mobile device comprising:

a profile processing application which processes a profile stored on the mobile device and associated with an interactive response system, the profile having an SMS address associated therewith and user interface information associated with the interactive response system including information to be displayed, the profile being one of a plurality of profiles stored on the mobile device, each profile having information specific to one or more interactive response systems for providing interactions with one of the interactive response systems via the mobile device;

a user interface module configured to at least

receive at the mobile device a user'"'"'s selection of one of the profiles stored on the mobile device,

prior to the mobile device sending a text message to the interactive response system, generate a user interface based on the processing of the profile, including displaying at least some of the information to be displayed from the profile, the generated user interface soliciting a user response correlating to an input required by the interactive response system,

receive the user response via the user interface,

process the user response in accordance with the profile,

prior to the mobile device initiating an interaction with the interactive response system, cause an updated user interface to be generated based upon the profile and including the display of at least some of the information to be displayed contained in the profile,

after receiving a response from the interactive response system, updating the user interface at the mobile device based upon the response from the interactive response system; and

a sending module which generates a text message based on the user response and based on the profile and sends the text message to an SMS address associated with the profile, the sent text message initiating an interaction with the interactive response system.

14. The mobile device of claim 13, wherein the profile processing application is configured to determine from the profile whether the user response requires the text message to be sent to the interactive response system.

15. The mobile device of claim 13, further comprising a formatting module configured to parse and display a responsive text message received from the interactive response system, the formatting and display taking into account information in the profile.

16. The mobile device of claim 13, wherein the sending module is further configured to insert information into the text message which identifies the interactive response system.

17. A method for a mobile device to interact with a plurality of interactive communication systems using the short message service (SMS), with each interactive communication system having an associated profile, the method comprising:

receiving at the mobile device a user'"'"'s selection of a profile from a plurality of profiles stored on the mobile device, the profile associated with one of the plurality of interactive communication systems and wherein the profile defines a plurality of menus configured to provide choices to a user of the mobile device for interacting with the associated interactive communications system;

processing on the mobile device the selected profile;

prior to the mobile device transmitting an SMS message to the interactive communication system, generating at the mobile device a user interface including displaying one or more of the plurality of menus defined in the profile based on the processing of the profile to solicit at least one user response correlating to a response required by the interactive communication system;

receiving the at least one user response via the user interface;

the mobile device generating and transmitting a text message, via the SMS, to the interactive communication system based on the at least one user response and information in the profile;

receiving at the mobile device, a text message from the interactive communication system; and

the mobile device updating the user interface based on the received text message and information in the profile.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising determining from the profile whether the at least one user response requires the text message to be sent to the interactive communication system.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising saving user entered information and modifying the profile using the saved information.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the text message to the interactive communication system is transmitted to an intermediate server which in turn transmits a communication to the interactive communication system.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the text message from the interactive communication system is received at the mobile device from the intermediate server.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising modifying the profile using information provided by at least one of the interactive communication system and the intermediate server.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein the profile specifies an SMS address to which the text message is sent.

24. The method of claim 17, further comprising displaying an advertisement with the user interface.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising receiving input from the user by the user interacting with the displayed advertisement.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the advertisement is at least one of a dynamic advertisement and a static advertisement.

27. The method of claim 17, wherein the text messages include a control channel used to provide additional communication, the control channel comprising an unused portion of the text message.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein information transmitted to the interactive communication system using the control channel includes information regarding at least one of:

deletion of a profile, a request for a new profile, profile usage statistics, a user display event, a user click event, a user advertisement event, a confirmation of enabling a profile, a confirmation of disabling a profile, a user initiation of a URL, a user initiation of a phone call, and an alive status.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein information received using the control channel in the received text message includes information regarding at least one of:

a dynamic advertisement, disabling an application, enabling a profile, disabling a profile, hiding a profile, and modifying a profile.

30. The method of claim 17, further comprising processing on the mobile device a second profile associated with a second interactive communication system, wherein the profile defines one or more menus configured to provide choices to a user of the mobile device for interacting with the associated second interactive communications system.