System and method for analyzing communications

• US 9,619,575 B2
• Filed: 07/09/2014
• Issued: 04/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Isaacs, Ellen, Nardi, Bonnie A., Whittaker, Stephen
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Jimmy H
• Application Number:
  US14/327,216
• Publication Number:
  US 20140344381A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,007 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0666 worn on the head or face, e.g. combined with goggles or glasses
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 33/004 comprising two separate lenses joined by a flexible bridge
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/26 Visual data mining; Browsing structured data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/284 Relational databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/226 Delivery according to priorities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes

Abstract

The invention provides a system and method for analyzing a collection of communication messages. The communication messages may be any one of a collection of electronic mail messages, voicemail messages, instant messaging dialogs and other forms of communications. The collections of communications, such as electronic mail messages, may be selected by a user and then subsequently processed to determine the identity of any of the user'"'"'s contacts within the communications. The contacts may then be arranged in a relative priority arrangement whereby contacts which have been identified as engaging in prior reciprocal communications with the user are given higher priority. Higher priority may also be given to contacts which engage in more recent communications with the user. Specific contact relationships may be inferred from the communications depending on whether specific contacts are repeatedly mentioned within the communication messages.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

accessing, by at least one computing device comprising a processor, a plurality of communications corresponding to a plurality of contacts associated with a user;

analyzing, by the at least one computing device, the plurality of communications to determine scores for a plurality of factors relating to the user and each contact of the plurality of contacts;

assigning an overall score to each contact of the plurality of contacts based on the scores for the plurality of factors, wherein the overall score for each contact of the plurality of contacts is a cumulative score determined by a combination of two or more scores corresponding to two or more of the plurality of factors; and

ranking, based on the overall score for each contact, the plurality of contacts relative to one another.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of factors comprise at least one of communication frequency, communication reciprocity, communication recency, communication duration, communication response rapidity, or communication formality.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of factors comprise at least two of communication frequency, communication reciprocity, communication recency, communication duration, communication response rapidity, or communication formality.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of factors comprise at least three of communication frequency, communication reciprocity, communication recency, communication duration, communication response rapidity, or communication formality.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of factors comprise at least four of communication frequency, communication reciprocity, communication recency, communication duration, communication response rapidity, or communication formality.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of factors comprise communication frequency, communication reciprocity, and communication recency.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of factors comprise communication frequency, communication reciprocity, communication recency, and communication duration.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the overall score is determined at least in part by analyzing a content portion of one or more of the plurality of communications.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein assigning the overall score to each contact of the plurality of contacts based on the scores for the plurality of factors comprises weighting at least one of the plurality of factors differently than at least one other of the plurality of factors.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising, for each of the plurality of contacts, identifying communications from the plurality of communications that are specific to the contact.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein assigning the overall score to each contact of the plurality of contacts comprises assigning the score based on an analysis of the identified communications that are specific to the contact.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising, for each of the plurality of contacts, identifying at least one of a number of the identified communications that are specific to the contact, a recency of the identified communications that are specific to the contact, or a reciprocity of the identified communications that are specific to the contact.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising, for each of the plurality of contacts, analyzing the identified communications that are specific to the contact to determine whether the identified communications that are specific to the contact satisfy one or more predetermined thresholds.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the one or more predetermined thresholds comprise a threshold number of communications or a threshold recency of communications.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein ranking the plurality of contacts relative to one another comprises:

identifying one or more contacts that have communicated relatively frequently with the user;

identifying one or more contacts that have communicated relatively infrequently with the user; and

ranking the one or more contacts that have communicated relatively frequently with the user higher than the one or more contacts that have communicated relatively infrequently with the user.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein ranking the plurality of contacts relative to one another comprises:

identifying one or more contacts that have participated in relatively recent communications with the user;

identifying one or more contacts that have not participated in relatively recent communications with the user; and

ranking the one or more contacts that have participated in relatively recent communications with the user higher than the one or more contacts that have not participated in relatively recent communications with the user.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a listing of the ranked plurality of contacts.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying one or more additional communications;

updating the ranking of the plurality of contacts based on an analysis of the one or more additional communications.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein updating the ranking comprises:

identifying, from the one or more additional communications, one or more additional contacts;

analyzing, by the at least one computing device, the one or more additional communications to determine scores for the plurality of factors relating to the user and each contact of the one or more additional contacts;

assigning an overall score to each contact of the one or more additional contacts based on the scores for the plurality of factors; and

ranking, based on the overall score for each contact of the plurality of contacts and the overall score for each contact of the one or more additional contacts, the plurality of contacts and the one or more additional contacts relative to one another.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein ranking the plurality of contacts relative to one another comprises ranking the plurality of contacts relative to one another with specific respect to the user.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing, for each of the plurality of contacts, a selectable option to add the contact to or remove the contact from a contact network for the user.

22. A system comprising:

a computing device including at least one processor; and

at least one non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions thereon that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the system to;

access a plurality of communications corresponding to a plurality of contacts associated with a user;

analyze the plurality of communications to determine scores for a plurality of factors relating to the user and each contact of the plurality of contacts;

assign an overall score to each contact of the plurality of contacts based on the scores for the plurality of factors, wherein the overall score for each contact of the plurality of contacts is a cumulative score determined by a combination of two or more scores corresponding to two or more of the plurality of factors; and

rank, based on the overall score for each contact, the plurality of contacts relative to one another.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the plurality of factors comprise at least one of communication frequency, communication reciprocity, communication recency, communication duration, communication response rapidity, or communication formality.

24. The system of claim 23, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the system to:

identify, for each of the plurality of contacts, communications from the plurality of communications that are specific to the contact; and

assign a score to the contact based on an analysis of the identified communications that are specific to the contact.

25. The system of claim 22, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the system to:

identify one or more contacts that have communicated relatively frequently with the user;

identify one or more contacts that have communicated relatively infrequently with the user; and

rank the one or more contacts that have communicated relatively frequently with the user higher than the one or more contacts that have communicated relatively infrequently with the user.