GB2424143A

GB2424143A - Prioritising messages in a communication system

Info

Publication number: GB2424143A
Application number: GB0504894A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Achim Ackermann-Markes; Michael Brust; Peter Glasl; Thomas Joachim
Original assignee: Siemens AG
Current assignee: Siemens AG
Priority date: 2005-03-10
Filing date: 2005-03-10
Publication date: 2006-09-13
Also published as: GB0504894D0

Abstract

In a communication system where messages are sent by a sender to a recipient a method of prioritising said messages and dealing with said messages according to previously determined sender profile. Preferably sender messages are assigned to one of at least three different priority categories. The messages are phone calls, emails, SMS messages or voice mail messages. The senders profile priority may be inferred.

Description

I

COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

This invention relates to communication systems where messages are sent from a sender to a recipient and includes email, voicemail, SMS, fax, and instant messaging etc. The term message may include normal phone call and should be interpreted hereinafter as such.

Recipients of such systems may receive dozens of e-mails, calls, faxes and voice mail messages every day. It is more and more difficult to cope with the flood of information and so to retain an overview in the daily work routine. The trend of the modern workplace is towards constant availability of a worker via telephone/e-majl,qIyjmobi1e telephone. When a recipient is unavailable (e.g. due to holidays), the messages pile up for processing, e.g. via mail distributors with various systems and various voice mailboxes.

Mailboxes with hundreds of e-mails after the holidays are commonplace and as a result, employees are typically only able to start work again after one to two working days.

It is difficult to distinguish between important/urgent, well-defined messages and time-consuming or unstructured messages.

The prioritisation of a message, at least in the case of e-mails, is usually done by the sender whose priorities are usually different from those of the recipient. Voice messages or calls can today be forwarded by the recipient according to certain criteria (e.g. a call from the boss is forwarded to the mobile telephone; other calls are forwarded to the mailbox). E-mails can likewise be put into various folders according to various criteria to be defined by the sender.

The disadvantage of these methods is, that criteria are not set by the recipient.

The invention concerns prioritisation of a message by the recipient who assigns a message a priority, eg., 3 classes of priority status unimportantJnormal/jmpoant Prioritisation of a message can also performed automatically according to the invention on the basis of the inferred behaviour of the message recipient when dealing with messages, that is to say how he subsequently deals with the message(s) from that sender.

This prioritisation may applied to all incoming, electronic messages (voice, e-mails, 1M, etc.) In a preferred embodiment there are three priority categories: important/urgent, normal, unimportant.

In a preferred embodiment the priority is determined by other inferences not just as to the treatment of the message by the recipient but also by the sender over time.

The priority can be altered manually via e.g. a Web interface.

The term "inferred" means that the priority is not explicitly set by a human operator, but is effectively calculated by the communication system according to how messages are dealt with.

Example 1

The sender initiates a "communication request" or sends some information.

A receiving system determines the sender from caller data/message data, e. g. from the telephone number/e-mail address.

The receiving system requests information about the sender from a communication profiler, which is a component part of the receiving system.

The communication profiler determines information about the sender. The communication profiler sends information about the sender (informationjmessages from this sender are classified as important, normal, and unimportant). If there is as yet no information about the sender in the database, his message is classified as normal or important.

On the basis of the information from the communication profiler concerning the probable priority of the message/information, the system can implement appropriate pre determined rules to assign the appropriate priority (e.g. importantlnorlmll/unimportant) In a preferred embodiment, calls with a low priority are automatically forwarded to voice mail for processing at a later time.

In another preferred embodiment calls classified as a high priority are also automatically forwarded to a mobile telephone for immediate attention.

In a preferred embodiment all calls not covered by a profile are assessed as having normal priority. All senders with this profile are put through, but e.g. not forwarded to the mobile telephone.

In a preferred embodiment low priority calls only hear a message on the voice mail but do not get the opportunity to leave a message and are referred to e-mail.

In a preferred embodiment low-priority e-mails are put in a special folder for unimportant e-mails.

In a preferred embodiment high-priority e-mails are automatically sent to the recipient's mobile telephone via SMS in case of absence.

In a preferred embodiment the availability status of the recipient is indicated to low-priority subscribers as to the effect that the recipient is e.g. "absent, only available via e-mail" but to high-priority subscribers as "present, available via telephone, mobile,...".

The system may be set up such that depending on the priority, communication is initiated via a pre-selected communication system (PBX, e-mail server, voice mail,...) and then the selected communication system establishes conmrnnjcation with the recipient or delivers the message to the recipient.

In a preferred embodiment the recipient evaluates the priority of the message and assigns an appropriate priority to the sender by pressing appropriate function keys on the telephone or on the screen.

This priority information is forwarded to the communication profiler.

In a further embodiment the method uses inferred methods of assigning priority. These may include the following: e-mails which are deleted unread set low priority; e-mails are replied to immediately or after set time are set as a high priority; e-mails are not read for longer time (e. g several days) are set as a low priority; a voice mail deleted unheard is set as a low priority; a voice mail is listened to, and the recipient contacts the sender after a short time/immediately is set as a high priority; instant messages are replied to immediately/after short time are set a high priority; and instant messages are not replied to are set a low priority.

In other words the senders priority is statistically evaluated by the communication profiler depending on the receivers treatment of message and saved. After a certain number of incoming messages from a sender, a priority profile of this sender emerges more accurate from the point of view of the recipient. Additional parameters may also be sent (message frequency, average message length, etc.) and can be saved and evaluated.

In a preferred embodiment, priority information with a more recent date is more important than priority information from an earlier date. This ensures that the priority information about a sender is dynamically adjusted to altered circumstances.

Claims

1. In a communication system where messages are sent by a sender to a recipient a method of prioritising said messages and dealing with said messages according to previously determined sender profile.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said sender messages are assigned to one of at least three different priority categories.

3. A method as claimed in claims 1 or 2, wherein said messages are phone calls, emails, SMS messages or voice mail messages.

4. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 3 wherein the senders profile priority is inferred.

5. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 4 and where messages are phone calls, and if determined to be low priority, the caller is sent to voicemail.

6. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 5 wherein the messages are phone calls and if categorised as low priority, the caller cannot leave a voice or other message.

7. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 4 where said messages are phone calls and if categorised as high priority, said message are transferred to a mobile phone.

8. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 4 wherein the messages are emails and categorised to be high priority, are sent to the recipients mobile phone.

9. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 8 wherein said messages are emails and if previous emails from the sender are deleted unread the priority is categorised as the lowest.

10. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 4 where messages are emails and if those from a sender and are not read within a certain time, the sender is assigned a low priority.

11. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 4 wherein said messages are voicemail messages and if deleted without being heard the sender is assigned a low priority.

12. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 4 wherein messages are instant message and if replied to after a predetermined time the sender is set a high priority.

13. A method as claims in claims 1 to 3 where message are instant and if not replied to after a set time, the sender is set a low priority.

14. A method as claimed in any preceding claim wherein all messages not previously profiled are categorised as medium priority.

15. A method as claim in any preceding claim wherein the priority profile of the sender is determined after a predetermined amount of messages from that sender is received.

16. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 3 wherein the senders profile priority is inferred from the senders behaviour in messages sent.

17. A method as claimed in claim 4, said inference involves ascertaining the length of time message is unread after being received and using this in determining priority.

18. A communication system arranged to implement any of methods 1 to 17.