US6505167B1
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US
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Systems and methods for directing automated services for messaging and scheduling
Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC
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Filing: 1999-04-20
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Granted: 2003-01-07
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Expires: 2019-04-20
Abstract
Abstract Directing automated services for messaging and scheduling. In one embodiment, a computer-implemented method first determines a message to analyze. The method then determines the probability that the user would like to review a calendar or to schedule an appointment based on information in the message, based on the message, and based on the scheduling probability, selects one of the following options: (1) inaction, (2) automatic action, or (3) suggested action with user approval. Upon the method selecting either the (1) automatic action option or the (2) suggested action with user approval option—the latter also in conjunction with receiving actual user approval—the method performs a scheduling action based on the message in a manner that takes into consideration the precision and confidence of the scheduling action.
Inventors
- 👤 Eric Horvitz
- 👤 Andrew W. Jacobs
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 17:54
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06Q; G06Q10/00; G06Q10/10; G06Q10/109; G06Q10/06; G06Q10/063; G06Q10/0631; G06Q10/06314; G06Q10/0637; G06Q10/06375; G06Q10/1097; H; H04; H04M; H04M1/00; H04M1/72; H04M1/724; H04M1/72403; H04M1/7243; H04M1/72448; H04M1/72451
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 36
Claim 1
Independent Claim
143 words
A computer-implemented method comprising: determining a message to analyze; determining a probability that the message should be scheduled based at least in part on the message and contextual information; providing a selection option of at least one of: (1) inaction, (2) automatic action, and (3) suggested action with user approval; and performing a scheduling action based at least in part on the scheduling probability and a selected option, wherein selecting an option comprises: associating a boundary between the (1) and the (2) options with a first probability threshold, and a boundary between the (2) and the (3) options with a second probability threshold; upon determining that the scheduling probability is less than the first probability threshold, selecting the (1) option; upon determining that the scheduling probability is greater than the second probability threshold, selecting the (3) option; and, othewise, selecting the (2) option.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
143 words
A computer-implemented method comprising: determining a message to analyze; determining a probability that the message should be scheduled based at least in part on the message and contextual information; providing a selection option of at least one of: (1) inaction, (2) automatic action, and (3) suggested action with user approval; and performing a scheduling action based at least in part on the scheduling probability and a selected option, wherein selecting an option comprises: associating a boundary between the (1) and the (2) options with a first probability threshold, and a boundary between the (2) and the (3) options with a second probability threshold; upon determining that the scheduling probability is less than the first probability threshold, selecting the (1) option; upon determining that the scheduling probability is greater than the second probability threshold, selecting the (3) option; and, othewise, selecting the (2) option.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein suggested action with user approval comprises a dialog with the user about desirability of the automatic action.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein suggested action comprises seeking confirmation from the user to take action.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein scheduling probability comprises an inferred probability that the user has a goal of at least one of scheduling and reviewing calendar information.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein the contextual information comprises information regarding recent user activity.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein determining a message to analyze comprises determining a message having focus.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein determining the scheduling probability based on the message comprises inputting the message into a text classification system.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 7 , wherein inputting the message into a text classification system comprises initially generating the text classification system.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 8 , wherein initially generating the text classification system comprises; performing a feature-selection phase; and performing a model-construction phase based on the feature-selection phase.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
44 words
The method of claim 9 , wherein performing a feature-selecting phase comprises training the text classification system by inputting a plurality of messages based on which scheduling is to occur and inputting a plurality of messages based on which scheduling is not to occur.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
19 words
The method of claim 9 , wherein performing a feature-selection phase comprises seeding the feature-selection phase with domain-specific knowledge.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
56 words
The method of claim 11 , wherein the domain-specific knowledge comprises at least one of: multiword phrases, nature of a relationship between a sender and a receiver, a number of recipient of the message, and Boolean combinations of variables composed by joining multiword phrases with at least one of a date variable and a tie variable.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
50 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein associating a boundary between the (1) and the (2) options with a first probability threshold, and a boundary between the (2) and the (3) options with a second probability threshold comprises utilizing decision theory to determine the first and the second probability thresholds.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein utilizing decision theory comprises utilizing cost/benefit analysis.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
19 words
The method of claim 14 , wherein utilizing cost/benefit analysis comprises utilizing the cost/benefit analysis in a contextual manner.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
41 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein performing a scheduling action comprises: determining an anchor date of the message; and, parsing a text of the message relative to the anchor date against typical commonsense patterns and assumptions of typical language usage.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
148 words
A machine-readable medium having processor instructions stored thereon for execution by a processor to cause performance of a method comprising: determining a message to analyze; determining a probability that the message should be scheduled; providing a selection option of at least one of: (1) inaction, (2) automatic action, and (3) suggested action with user approval; and performing a scheduling action based at least in part on the scheduling probability and a selected option, wherein selecting an option comprises: associating a boundary between the (1) and the (2) options with a first probability threshold, and a boundary between the (2) and the (3) options with a second probability threshold; upon determining that the scheduling probability is less than the first probability threshold, selecting the (1) option; upon determining that the scheduling probability is greater than the second probability threshold, selecting the (3) option; and, otherwise, selecting the (2) option.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
148 words
A machine-readable medium having processor instructions stored thereon for execution by a processor to cause performance of a method comprising: determining a message to analyze; determining a probability that the message should be scheduled; providing a selection option of at least one of: (1) inaction, (2) automatic action, and (3) suggested action with user approval; and performing a scheduling action based at least in part on the scheduling probability and a selected option, wherein selecting an option comprises: associating a boundary between the (1) and the (2) options with a first probability threshold, and a boundary between the (2) and the (3) options with a second probability threshold; upon determining that the scheduling probability is less than the first probability threshold, selecting the (1) option; upon determining that the scheduling probability is greater than the second probability threshold, selecting the (3) option; and, otherwise, selecting the (2) option.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
18 words
The medium of claim 17 , wherein determining a message to analyze comprises determining a message having focus.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
20 words
The medium of claim 17 , wherein determining the scheduling probability comprises inputting the message into a text classification system.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
22 words
The medium of claim 19 , wherein inputting the message into a text classification system comprises initially generating the text classification system.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
28 words
The medium of claim 20 , wherein initially generating the text classification system comprises: performing a feature-selection phase; and, performing a model-construction phase based on the feature-selection phase.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
44 words
The medium of claim 21 , wherein performing a feature-selecting phase comprises training the text classification system by inputting a plurality of messages based on which scheduling is to occur and inputting a plurality of messages based on which scheduling is not to occur.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
19 words
The medium of claim 21 , wherein performing a feature-selection phase comprises seeding the feature-selection phase with domain-specific knowledge.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
50 words
The medium of claim 17 , wherein associating a boundary between the (1) and the (2) options with a first probability threshold, and a boundary between the (2) and the (3) options with a second probability threshold comprises utilizing decision theory to determine the first and the second probability thresholds.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
14 words
The medium of claim 24 , wherein utilizing decision theory composes utilizing cost/benefit analysis.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
19 words
The medium of claim 25 , wherein utilizing cost/benefit analysis comprises utilizing the cost/benefit analysis in a contextual manner.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
39 words
The medium of claim 25 , wherein performing a scheduling action comprises: determining an anchor date of the message; and, parsing a text of the message relative to the anchor date against typical patterns and assumptions of common-sense language.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
40 words
A scheduling system, comprising: a message with associated content; an analyzing component that determines a probability that the message should be scheduled based on the message content; and a scheduling component that configures a schedule based on the scheduling probability.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
40 words
A scheduling system, comprising: a message with associated content; an analyzing component that determines a probability that the message should be scheduled based on the message content; and a scheduling component that configures a schedule based on the scheduling probability.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
146 words
A scheduling system, comprising: a message with associated content; an analyzing component that determines a probability that the message should be scheduled based on the message content; and a scheduling component that configures a schedule based On the scheduling probability, the analyzing component employing the following equation in determining the scheduling probability: u ( A|E )= p ( G|E ) u ( A,G )+[1 −p ( G|E )] u ( A , not G ), u(A|E) is an expected utility of taking an autonomous action (A) given observed evidence (E); p(G|E) is a probability of goal (G) of a user given observed evidence (E); u(A,G) is an expected utility of taking an autonomous action (A) when goal (G) of the user is true; and u(A, not G) is an expected utility of talking an autonomous action (A) when goal (G) of the user is not true.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
146 words
A scheduling system, comprising: a message with associated content; an analyzing component that determines a probability that the message should be scheduled based on the message content; and a scheduling component that configures a schedule based On the scheduling probability, the analyzing component employing the following equation in determining the scheduling probability: u ( A|E )= p ( G|E ) u ( A,G )+[1 −p ( G|E )] u ( A , not G ), u(A|E) is an expected utility of taking an autonomous action (A) given observed evidence (E); p(G|E) is a probability of goal (G) of a user given observed evidence (E); u(A,G) is an expected utility of taking an autonomous action (A) when goal (G) of the user is true; and u(A, not G) is an expected utility of talking an autonomous action (A) when goal (G) of the user is not true.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
13 words
The system of claim 28 , the analyzing component is a text classifier.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
27 words
The system of claim 28 , the scheduling component is an electronic calendar adapted to configure the schedule based on the scheduling probability being above a threshold.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
35 words
The system of claim 28 , further comprising a user interface to provide at least one of the following scheduling options: inaction, automatic action, and suggested action with user approval, based on the scheduling probability.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2006-01-06 | 2006-07-08 | 2007-01-07 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2010-01-06 | 2010-07-08 | 2011-01-07 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2014-01-06 | 2014-07-08 | 2015-01-07 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |