MXPA02008080A

MXPA02008080A - Method and system for interactive collection and distribution of information relating to products and services.

Info

Publication number: MXPA02008080A
Application number: MXPA02008080A
Authority: MX
Inventors: Michael Emmett Doherty
Original assignee: Procter & Gamble
Priority date: 2000-02-18
Filing date: 2001-02-15
Publication date: 2003-02-27
Also published as: AU4527701A; CA2397192A1; EP1275057A1; JP2003523579A; WO2001061541A2; ZA200205756B

Abstract

An interactive system for transferring information relating to products or services comprising: a user interface; a relationship director in communication with a personal data store and the user interface, wherein the relationship director comprises executable instructions for determining a user's current stage in at least part from user information from the personal data store; and a reciprocity module in communication with the relationship director comprising executable instructions for determining triggers for availability of related items for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director.

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR THE COLLECTION AND INTERACTIVE DISTRIBUTION OF INFORMATION RELATED TO PRODUCTS AND SERVICES TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates generally to the administration of interactions with the client, and to re-recote, transfer, and share information related to products and services, and more specifically to a particular method and system for the interactive collection and distribution of information, related with products and services, which determines the current state of user interaction, for its use in the direction of an adequate dialogue of interaction and exchange and selective offer of available articles BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION.

The virtual explosion of technical advances in microelectronics, digital computers and computer packages has changed and continues to change the face of modern society. In fact, these technological advances have become so important and pervasive that this explosion is sometimes referred to as the "information revolution". Through telephone lines, networks, satellite and other .J ^ .- *. A ^. ^^ ub ^ k ^^ i ^^^ i ^ J ^^ J ^ wireless communications and similar, information and resources are increasingly accessed and shared. The successful development and marketing of products, and especially consumer products, requires a deep understanding of the needs and attitudes of the consumer by the company. The study of samples from a consumer population, often referred to as panels, focus groups or test markets, is a typical approach to collecting such information in, for example, the consumer area. By collecting such data from a large number of individuals (rather than from 10 only one sample), will allow to capture an exceptional penetration and the most individual differences. Traditional approaches such as telephone interviews • or in person, they can be very sophisticated through elaboration according to specifications and adaptation by the human agent. However, no 15 allow a large-scale number of one-to-one interactions. Additionally, well-known devices such as paper (or electronic) questionnaires can be sent to large numbers of individuals, but are limited to a rather rigid design, and make no sense (or To reality) of the interpersonal relationship. 20 Currently, the internet network provides jurisdiction to involve large numbers of individuals and exchange information. In many cases, it has become just a modern channel to implement an old instrument such as the survey questionnaire. The mail electronic is similarly increasingly used as a substitute for postal mail. The "chat" on the internet between two humans is fundamentally identical to the teletype machine of a few decades ago, although much more temporally related to a live conversation. In addition, web pages are often seen as electronic versions of journal pages that typically offer a static presentation, but sometimes dynamic information. The implantations • More advanced ones increase the coupling by providing interaction with multimedia. Some user interfaces include virtual characters (VC) 10 that provide a character to the user. With the increasing advance of the "information revolution", there is A need to improve the quantity and efficiency quality of interactive systems to transfer information related to products and services, ideas, needs, desires and preferences. The present invention provides 15 a particular way to facilitate such transfer and interaction, which builds relationships between the client and the company.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In this way, it is an object of the present invention to provide novel methods and systems for the collection, exchange and interactive distribution of information, related to products and services for consumers, which overcomes one or more disadvantages of the prior art. Is Another object of the invention, to provide novel methods and apparatus to provide an interactive system, to transfer information related to products or services. These objects and advantages and other additional ones are provided by the methods and systems for the interactive collection and distribution of information in relation to the products and services of the present invention. It is another object of the present invention to provide a particular method and apparatus for gaining unprecedented access to insights and information related to products and / or services that are 10 is based on the construction of an individual relationship with a user, and allows essentially unlimited variations of some particular relationship together with parameters and conditions related to areas of interest. • One aspect of the present invention is the interactive system for transferring information related to products or services. In a In the preferred embodiment, the system comprises a user interface; a relationship manager in communication with a personal database and the user interface, where the relationship manager understands executable instructions to determine a current user stage, in at least part of the ^ user information, personal data store; and a module 20 reciprocity in communication with the relationship director, and comprising executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of related articles, for selective distribution to the user by a relationship director.

Another aspect of the present invention is the interactive system for transferring information that is not related to products or services. In a preferred application, the system comprises a user interface; a relationship manager in communication with a personal data store and the user interface 5, wherein the relationship manager comprises executable instructions to determine the current status of the user, in at least a part of the user information of the data warehouse personal and a # external information module in communication with the relationship director and comprising executable instructions to determine triggers for 10 the availability of unrelated items for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director. In still another aspect of the present invention, there is the • interactive system for transferring information related to products or services, comprising a user interface, a relationship director in 15 communication with a personal data store and the user interface, where the relationship director comprises executable instructions to determine a current user status, a reciprocal module in communication with the relationship director comprising instructions • Executables to determine triggers for the availability of items 20 related to selective distribution to the user by the relationship director, and an external information module in communication with the relationship director that includes executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of non-related items for Selective custody to the user by the relationship director. Another aspect of the present invention is the method for the interactive collection and distribution of information related to products and services. In a preferred application, the method comprises the steps of providing a user interface, a relationship manager in communication with the personal data store and the user interface, wherein the relationship manager comprises executable instructions to determine a current state of the user, and a reciprocity module in communication with 10 the director of relationship and comprises executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of related articles for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director. The method • also includes interaction with the user using a dialogue script. The user's entry is recorded in the personal data store. He 15 relationship manager determines the current user status that corresponds to the user's current input, and selects an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current status. The relationship director will offer the user a related article directly following the trigger determination. The method is repeated until the end of the • 20 user. Yet another aspect of the present invention is the method for the interactive collection and distribution of information unrelated to products and services. In a preferred application, the method comprises the stages of providing a user interface, a relationship director in communication with a personal data store, and the user interface, wherein the relationship director comprises executable instructions to determine the user's current stage, and an external information module in communication with the relationship director comprising executable instructions to determine activators for the availability of unrelated items for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director. The method further comprises interaction with the user using a dialog script. The user's entry is recorded in a personal data store, and the relationship director determines the user's current state that corresponds to the user's input, and selects an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current state. The relationship director periodically offers the user an unrelated available item, after the trigger determination and repeats the method until the user completes. Another aspect of the present invention comprises a computer reader. The computer reader means contains instructions to control a computer system, to interact with a user for the interactive collection and distribution of information. The instructions include the steps of: interacting with the user, using a dialogue script; register the user's entry in a personal data store; determine the current state of the user that corresponds to the user's input; select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the state current of the user; determine the triggers for the availability of items; periodically offer the user an article available after the trigger determination; and repeat until the user completes. Yet another aspect of the present invention is network-based method 5 for interactive collection and distribution of information. The method comprises the step of: providing a site in the network that has a user interface; receive in the user interface one or more articles of • user input from a user; register the user's entry in a personal data store; determine the current state of a user from 10 of the user's entry; select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current stage; periodically offer the user an article available through the user interface; and repeat until the • user termination. Still other objectives, advantages, and novel features of The present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which is simply by way of illustration, various modes contemplated to carry out the invention. As you will notice, the invention is capable of other obvious, different aspects, all without departing from the invention. In this way, the 20 drawings and descriptions are illustrative in nature and not restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Although the specification concludes with the claims that point particularly and differently to the claim of the present, invention, it is believed that it will be understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of an interactive system for the collection and distribution of information in accordance with the present invention. Figure 2 is a schematic illustration of an exemplary decision tree for a relationship director of an interactive system of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a schematic illustration of another embodiment of an interactive system for collecting and distributing information in accordance with the present invention. Figure 4 is a schematic illustration of an exemplary dialog script of an interactive system for collecting and distributing information in accordance with the present invention. Figure 5 details an illustration of an exemplary user interface comprising a virtual character of the present invention. Figure 6 details an illustration of another exemplary user intent comprising a virtual character of the present invention.

Figure 7 details a flowchart of an interactive information collection and distribution method in accordance with the present invention. Figure 8 is a schematic illustration of an exemplary client / server network embodiment of the present invention. Figure 9 details a flow chart of another embodiment of the interactive information collection and distribution method in accordance with the present invention. Figure 10 is a schematic illustration of an interactive system for collecting and distributing information in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITIES Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the invention, various examples of which accompanying drawings are illustrated, wherein similar numbers indicate corresponding elements through the views. One embodiment of the present invention is illustrated schematically in Figure 1, which details an interactive system 1 for transferring information related to products or services in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. The interactive system 1 is shown as comprising preferably a user interface 2, a relationship manager 5, a personal data store 10 and a reciprocal module 8 as will be described later herein. The relationship manager 5, for example, would probably preferably comprise a set of executable instructions such as in the form of computation packets, routines, programs, algorithms, s and the like, which would determine, inter alia, a current relationship stage with the user at some given time. One of the important differentiating features of the present invention includes the focus and the ability to establish and nurture a cybernetic, individual relationship with each individual user, such personal, particular relationship being guided by the interaction between that user and the user. 10 system. Consequently, it is important that a user's stage is known at some given point in the continuous interaction. The relationship stage is preferably related to the overall installation / purpose of the system • (for example, it would be related in some way to relevant products or services, and would typically have a psychological basis related to it). A user will be a person who is subjected to an interaction with a system (for example 1) or interface with the system as part of the method of the present invention. The current stage of a particular user to be determined is simply an identifiable placement of that user within a ? m plurality of possible "stages" provided in the system, as 20 will describe whereby the relationship manager prepares ongoing interactions, makes decisions to offer articles available to the user, and builds the relationship in an appropriate and natural way.

The connection manager 5 is preferably provided in communication, such as by means of a coin telephone, ethernet, modem to telephone connection, radio or microwave connection, parallel cables, serial cables, telephone lines, universal common serial link 5"USB", thermosensitive wire, personal identification number, optical fiber, infrared "IR", radio frequency "RF" and the like, or combinations thereof, with the personal data store 10 and the user interface 2. The director of relationship 5, can use at least in part, the user input of personal data store 10, to determine the user's status, In one embodiment of the present invention, the user can be assigned a user name and a key to identify the user with the director of "k" interactive system relationship Another means of potential identification includes icons, IP addresses, biomedical, user cards, or other means of identification known in the art.15 The relationship director 5 compares the identification data containing the user input with the user's entry stored in the personal data store 10. If a match is found, the relationship manager 5 will retrieve the user's input and determine theS. • current user status. If correspondence is not found, the director of 20 relationship 5, preferably sends a command to the personal data store 10 to create a new user entry record in the personal data store 10. The relationship manager 5, preferably sends some data identifying the personal data store to be associated with the registration ? áá * i Jd: to you, ü-: tof '.... ^ Jt'.amh .. ^ Jhai Mi.? *. *? - newly created. Preferably, the relationship manager 5 will create an "icon" or a similar type file and store the file on the user's computer to increase the user identification procedure. The user input may be any information obtained from a user, and may preferably comprise information, suggestions, preferences, ideas, attitudes, questions, answers, tone, actions, or lack thereof (for example interaction / participation results) . There may be different ways to determine the current state of the user. As an example, the user's input may correspond against one or more trees 10 of decision. A decision tree is typically a set of categories / characteristics / responses against which the user's input can be compared. For example, a decision tree comprises * preferably all the combination of possible user inputs. The user input is then compared against the decision tree for a The correspondence branch and the correspondence branch provide additional instructions to be executed as a result of correspondence. Such decision trees would preferably comprise potential combinations of the user's input with the interactive system, which has been designed with the intended application of the system in question. # 20 mind, so that the appropriate stages can be established that refer to the desired exchange of information. Preferably, the decision trees are converted to mathematical algorithms that then process the decision tree comparisons or "decisions" electronically to determine the current appropriate stage to assign to the user at that moment. The decision trees for the initial stages of our example consumer products are preferably based on focus groups or user survey research. A focus group, typically comprises surveying a group of users about their attitudes and preferences with a proposed product or service, to refine and develop • also the proposed product and / or service. For example, the user can be assigned to various user stage subcategories that correspond to 10 personality characteristics, related information, external information, demographic information and the like. Personality characteristics may include attitude information about personality and user habits, such as being a "clean" person or having a "type A" personality. The related information, includes some and 15 all information related to the products and / or services of the company. The external information includes some and all the information not related to the products and / or services of the company, such as entertainment, news of movies, news of music, advances of ^ soap operas, chatter and the like. The subcategories of information 20 demographic may contain special scripts for certain demographic areas, such as rural products and / or services, owners, housewives with a baby and / or pets or the like. For example, you can assign a user to "stage 3" for related information, "stage 6, for external information, and" stage 2"for demographic information, although the examples are provided in relation to consumer products such as detergents, soaps and the like, it is contemplated that the present invention applies equally to other products and services, which may have distinctive customers, users and concerns that may affect the applicable stages and / or the advancement of the user through the stages.

• As used herein, the term "company" is used to indicate the person, company, business unit, cause or affiliation for which the The system and method of the invention will be employed. For example, in our modalities related to soap, detergents and consumer products, the company could be a manufacturer of consumer products or a consumer research company interested in such products. The reciprocity module 8, is illustrated as being in 15 communication with the relationship director 5. The reciprocity module 8, similarly, preferably comprises executable instructions for determining the triggers of the availability of related items for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director 5. As used herein , the term "article" includes physical things such as 20 products, prices, coupons, or other rewards or things of equal value, that can be currently granted, as well as non-physical things such as advice, acknowledgments, entertainment, additional conversation or other things that may be of value in establishing a relationship and / or demonstrate M? íMá? ^ ^ ,. . ^ Jtttt ^ ^ £ i? M ..?. AI ^ A. ^ M, li í «w #» appreciation. Exterm "related articles" is used to indicate generally some and all articles that have a certain relationship, value or perceived connection with the products or services of the company. Examples of related items include consumer demographic information, 5 cleaning preferences, cleaning suggestions, coupons, product samples, merchandise related to the product, which relates # reasonably with the intended application of the system - as in our example, products to the consumer. Preferably the triggers in the system are some device or procedure that indicate "availability" 10 of an article to be offered to a particular user that corresponds to one or more decision trees and / or availability algorithms used. , j ^ Typically, the reciprocity module determines whether an article is available based on an availability algorithm. For example in a preferred embodiment, when the user has found certain 15 requirements of the decision tree, you can offer a related article. In one embodiment of the present invention for example, the selective distribution comprises the computer assignment of a probability percentage, such as 70% (that is, any percentage between j 0 and 100%), and using a generator of a random number to determine if 20 actually distributes or offers the article related to the user. For example, the relationship manager will send an instruction command to the CPU to generate a random number between 0 and 100%. If the resulting number that returns to the CPU relationship director is around 70%, the item will not be offered to the user at that time. If the number returned to the relationship director is 70% or less, then the relationship director will offer the item to the user. An example of the decision tree for the way in which the relationship director 5 can interact with the reciprocity module 8 is shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 details four potential, exemplary current stages (stage? stage 3) that the user can classify at some given time. As will be understood, for each relationship stage, a set of one or more items that will be selectively offered to the user, a set of desired information, will most preferably be designed. 10 (including input, preferences, suggestions or attitudes) to obtain from the user, a set of conditions (for example, exchanges of articles and information and time) that help determine the status or progress of the stage, and an agenda for interactions (for example dialog scripts and the like) with the user. In this way, the decision tree has certain 15 requirements that must be met before the user is assigned a higher stage. For example, a new user (first time) who initially interacts with the interactive system will be assigned stage 0. In the tree Decision figure of figure 3, the user through the dialogue scripts of the 20 interactive system 12, you would be required to determine your name and some basic information such as age, gender, zip code and possibly other similar data. Preferably, the requirements or criteria to advance to additional stages are transparent to the user, and the user is not -4 aware of the requirements to move to the next efepa. Only with the completion of the requirements (for example, answer to the questions, provide required actions, etc.) will it be an eligible user to advance to another stage. In one embodiment of the present invention, 5 uses a random factor in the decision to move to a different stage. Preferably, the relationship director 5 can be configured with a probability percentage assigned to each stage level. For example, a user may have completed the requirements to move to stage 1, but the relationship manager 5 will still use a number generator 10 random, to determine if the user actually moves to the next stage. This feature helps maintain all system relationships as particular and in some way unpredictable, what has been found • It really better measures natural relationships and adds to the overall experience of system interaction for users. The relationship director 15 can understand instructions to avoid "disconnections" during interactions and in the overall relationship that is built. For example, in addition to ensuring that the answers correspond precisely to the user's questions and input, the relationship director can trace the progression to ^. of the user through the current state and still possibly decide to move to the 20 user to a lower stage based on the progress (or regression) of the interaction. The relationship director preferably analyzes not only the user's responses, but also the response tone and response time. For example, the relationship director may comprise a data analyzer íb L ± iSLL ** * .-, .. .- ^ siiii ^^^.,. ^^ language, to analyze the user's input, for their attitude and personality characteristics. The director of relationship can try to imitate a natural relationship better, by incorporating elements of attitude psychology in the algorithms to further develop a one-to-one relationship. For example, a 5 language analyzer can determine if the user has a persona dominant and does not prefer chattering. The relationship director can minimize the amount of chatter that goes to the particular user. ^ p In one embodiment of the present invention, the relationship manager is in communication with an external communication module 16 10 as detailed in Fig. 3. The external information module 16, preferably comprises executable instructions for determining the triggers for the availability of external or unrelated articles for selective distribution to the user by the relationship manager. As used in the present the term "unrelated article" includes such physical things 15 as products, prices, coupons or other rewards or things of value, that can be currently granted, as well as non-physical things such as advice, acknowledgments, social talk, entertainment, additional conversation or other things that may be of value in establishing a relationship and / or show appreciation. Preferably, the external information module 16 20 determines triggers for the availability of unrelated stimuli. As used herein, the term "stimulus" includes entertainment, games, discussions, unrelated web sites and unrelated articles. The term unrelated items is used to mean generally some or all articles that have little or no relation * value or perceived connection determined with the products or services of the companies. Examples of unrelated items include games, music, videos, tickets to events / movies, links to other websites and clothing. Preferably, the triggers in the system are any device or method that indicates the "availability" of an unrelated item to offer to a particular user that corresponds to * one or more decision trees and / or availability algorithms employed. Typically, the external information module determines whether an unrelated item is available based on an availability algorithm. For example, in a preferred embodiment, when the user has satisfied certain requirements of the decision tree, an unrelated item may be offered. In one embodiment of the present invention, for example, the selective distribution comprises assigning a probability percentage, such as 70% and using a random number generator to determine whether it actually distributes or offers the item unrelated to the user. For example, the relationship director will select 70% of the numbers from 1 to 255, preferably the relationship director selects 1 to 180 as corresponding to 70% of the number range. The relationship manager then sends an executable instruction to the CPU to select a random number between 1 and 255. If the number selected by the CPU matches the numbers selected by the relationship manager such as 75, the unrelated item can be Offer to the user. However, if the CPU Select a number that the relationship director did not select such as 200, the relationship director will not offer the item to the user at that time. Preferably, the relationship director at a later point in the interaction will repeat the random probability procedure to determine if the item will be offered to the user. In another embodiment of the present invention, the relationship manager 5 is part of a more general or inclusive administration system 18 as detailed in Fig. 3. In such an application the administration system 18 comprises executable instructions for supervising and directing the flow of information between the relationship director 5, the user interface 2 and other elements of the interactive system 1. For example the administration system 18 may comprise a set of executable instructions such as computer package, routines, programs, algorithms, codes and the like, which would direct inter alia, the flow of information to the relationship director, the user interface and other elements of the interactive system such as the network server in a worldwide network mode of the present invention. In another embodiment, the administrative user, preferably through an administrative interface 23, can selectively configure the probability levels in decision trees 5 of the relationship director. This capability allows the administrative user to make changes in real time to the relationship director. In this way, the impossibility of predicting aggregate, correcting "bugs", updating / improving functionality of the functionality director, and / or additional stages or The requirements of the stage can be implemented as desired, and preferably in a non-intrusive and uniform way to the system. An exemplary demonstration of this modality is presented in Example III. In another embodiment of the present invention, the method 5 further comprises having access to the storage of personal data for the information of the continuous development of the product. For example, the storage of personal data may contain survey results # of users regarding the difficulties they have experienced with current cleaning problems, in which no product or The known cleaning procedure is effective. An administrative user can access the storage of personal data, and use the user input to develop or improve products or services of the company to meet the user's requirements. This penetration that is gained from the user, can provide very beneficial information for the development and 15 improvement of the company's products and services. It can also be contemplated that a company can make its results from the interactive database, analysis of the data, available to other entities. This may involve allowing such entities access to such data, through the Internet, through printed reports, through packages of 20 computer interactive calculations, periodic data subscription services or similar. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the interactive system also comprises a director of technical information 20. The relationship director 5 can send the user's input that comprises a request for information about a product or service of the company. The technical information is contemplated here as comprising any reference or beneficial information for the products or services of the company. The company's products or services may include past, present and future products and services of the company. Preferably, the director of technical information 20 is in communication with one or more technical data stores 21, which comprise technical information regarding the company's products and services. For example, the warehouse 10 of technical data 21 may comprise a database about cleaning suggestions including cleaning information from various sources such as Rodale Press. The director of technical information, for example, "Would probably include preferably a set of executable instructions such as computer packages, routines, programs, algorithms, 15 codes and similar, which would seek, inter alia, the storage of technical data or other sources such as the internet, for information in response to a question from a user regarding the product or service of the company. The technical director would then compile the response information J j 'appropriate, and would send those results to the relationship director for use in 20 a further interaction with the user. In order to provide a continuous natural relationship with the user, one embodiment of the present invention comprises the decision trees or algorithms of the relationship manager 5 updated by a network nervous. The nervous network 25, evaluates the user's input in the storage of personal data, to determine if some changes to the mathematical algorithms or dialog scripts are needed to facilitate or optimize the interaction with the user. For example, a nervous network can continually update its decision-making algorithm by incorporating user input such as feedback, frequency of visit, number of visits, and length of visits in the decision-making process.

• In accordance with Haykin, S. (1994), Nervous Networks: A Comprehensive Foundation, NY: Macmillan, p. 2, a nervous network is a processor 10 distributed massively parallel, which has a natural inclination to store knowledge of experience and make it available for use. It resembles the brain in two aspects: 1) Knowledge is acquired through the network through a learning process; and 2) The connection between neurons strengthens what is known as synaptic weights are used to store the 15 knowledge. The nerve network analyzes the personal data store 12 for trends, feedback data, demographic data and other additional data to develop and refine algorithms for decision making. In a preferred embodiment, a nerve network would automatically make changes ^ to the decision 5 trees of the relationship director or to the algorithms based 20 on the increasing basis of user input and interaction data. For example, the nervous network may change the amount of initial "chatter" or marginally related discussion for a certain current stage, if the user's input indicates a diminished desire to chatter with the system. interactive. Similarly, in one embodiment of the present invention, the relationship director may comprise genetic algorithms. A genetic algorithm preferably modifies its parameters based on performance feedback. The method is metaphorically similar to the natural genetic selection. The relationship director can contain one or more genetic algorithms while the interactive system allows a large number of experiences in an automated environment. As shown in Figure 2 and as described above, the reciprocity module 8, preferably puts into play its own 10 algorithms to selectively trigger the availability of different items that correspond to each user stage. For example, in the decision tree of Figure 2, in step 0, the user is offered F only chatter articles, problem solving and suggestions. While under stage 3, the user is offered chatter, resolution of 15 problems, suggestions, coupons, suggestions by email, various prizes, samples and other bonuses. As mentioned, once the reciprocity module activates the availability of an article, the relationship director will generally have the final discretion as to whether and when the article should be offered to the user. Often, the relationship director will pass 20 automatically the offer to the user, immediately with the trigger, although the delay or stoppage of the offer may result in where the relationship manager sees an opportunity to expand the relationship in other ways (for example, conversation e ^ endida, program of questions or answers or listening to the user) or where a random generator blocks the offer. In a consumer product application, the user interface 2 may preferably comprise a kiosk, a computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a device with wireless application programs (WAP) such as a cell phone, a computer or a PDA. , Interactive TV, or an internet device, or similar. The user interface 2 allows the user to communicate and interact with the interactive system 1 and, as will be understood, can take any of an unlimited number 10 virtually in alternative ways. In a preferred embodiment, the user interface 2 may comprise a computer system comprising a CPU, memory, a visual display device and an input means. The preferred input means comprises a board or a mouse or other input means, such as speech recognition and / or visual input using 15 a camcorder. In a preferred embodiment, the user interface 2 comprises a computer connected to the Internet through a communication link and running a network browser such as Microsoft Corp. Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator from Netscape Communications Corp. Preferably, the interface of user 2 further comprises one or more ^ 20 virtual characters. A virtual character comprises an image, figure or static or dynamic animation, preferably having a recognizable character. For example, the virtual character can be an image of a * ate¿ - ^^^^^ - ^^^ Á ^^^^^^ ^^^^ tíM teacher for educational information, a chef for kitchen information, or a Mr.Clean® cleaning icon for household cleaning information. In another embodiment of the present invention, the relationship manager 5 is provided with access to one or more scripts or pre-determined dialogue protocols 12 to direct the interaction with the user. The Dialogs 12 includes the use of language to interact with the user. Preferably, through its executable instructions, the ^ w ^ relationship director 5 determines the current state of the user as described above, and selects corresponding dialog scripts 12 to interact 10 with the user. The dialogue scripts 12 may comprise humor, chatter, help in solving problems, surveys, and the like. Preferably, F the dialog scripts 12 are stored in a database. In a preferred embodiment, dialog scripts 12 can be edited and maintained by a remote administrative user. The administrative user can connect 15 directly to the script script database 12 or have access to the Dialog script database 12 through the administration system 18 and the user administrative interface 23. Preferably, the dialogue scripts 12 further comprise external information such as entertainment, ? f social conversation, music, games, travel information and other stimuli 20 unrelated As shown in the example in Figure 4, the script for Dialogue can comprise related articles, humor and unrelated articles. Preferably, article dialog scripts MA im.LA.iA.ld. Et *. . .,. * ,: .. -. . J ..,. ,.? .. A * m ^ Wm. *? IkmL ^ Mm, X? .i 43 related are categorized by user stages 44, which can further be broken down into stages (46) of the interactions. In one embodiment, the dialog scripts of the unrelated article can be categorized by the user stages and the user stage for unrelated items for a particular user, may differ from the user stage for related articles for the same user . As described above, for example, the user stage 3 may be assigned to the user for the related items, and the user stage 4 for the unrelated items. In addition, the dialog scripts of the unrelated articles can comprise universal scripts that can be used by the relationship director regardless of the current stage of the user. Preferably, the relationship director 5 can choose any stage 46 and the interaction is not required to advance in a sequential order through stages 46. A decision tree can be used by the relationship director to choose the stage of the storyboards. dialogue for additional interaction. For example, the user input may correspond to the "stage 23" dialog although the previous stage was "stage 2". The relationship director 5 can select the dialogue script for "stage 23" and also interact with the user. For example, as detailed in Figure 4, "stage 11" of stage 0 of the related articles 43, may be presented to the user after an interaction about the company's products or services. The script includes asking the user if he would like a coupon 47 to be sent to him. If he answers yes, the director of relationship 5 checks to determine if the user's address is contained in the personal data store 10. The relationship manager 5 preferably interacts with the user by informing the user that he is searching the records to see if the user's address is there. It should be understood that in faster systems, the user can simply inquire as to the address in the system and ask to verify that information to mail the article. If the user's address ^ f is contained in the personal data store 10, the relationship manager 5 would then select the dialogue script under "Yes". If the director of relationship 5 10 determines that the user's address is unknown, the relationship manager 5 will select the "No" dialog script and will ask the user for his or her email address. This user entry is then stored in the personal data store 10. At that point, the relationship manager 5 would send a communication to the administrative user interface 23, to send it to the 15 user the selected coupon, and the relationship director can take note in the user data store to request that coupon in the future.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the personal data store 10 comprises a relational database system or a distributed directory such as Novell Directory Services (NDS). 20 Preferably, when currently using the available technology, the base of Dialog script data 12 comprises a distributed directory. A system of administration of a relational database (RDBMS) is a management system of a computer database that uses techniques relationships to store and retrieve data. The relationship techniques preferably comprise providing common fields, such as the user's name, interaction length, date of interaction, etc., for each entry in the database. These common fields allow comparison between different users of the interactive system. A relational system has the flexibility to take two or more files and generate a new file from the records that meet the correspondence criteria. For example, an administrative user may want a list of all users who have reached "stage 3" and have interacted with the system in the last 60 days. A relational system allows you to easily create this list from the main relational database. The relational databases are an in store. { computerized pruning and recovery systems, in which data in the form of tables, are typically stored for use in disk readers or similar mass data stores. A "table" includes a set of rows that distribute several columns. Each column in a table includes "restrictions" on the data contents of the same and can be designated as a primary or external key. In another embodiment of the present invention, the interactive system 1 comprises executable instructions for selectively providing one or more virtual characters through the user's interfaces. As previously mentioned, virtual characters can comprise one or more static or dynamic images. Preferably, a Virtual character would include dialog capabilities, which can be generalized using Microsoft Corp.'s Microsoft Agent or other similar virtual program known or accessible in the art. Similar programs are known in the art including Live Comics by Extempo, Inc., Flash of 5 Macromedia, and the like. Typically, the virtual character comprises one or more animations that interact with the user through the interface of f user 2. The interaction is directed by a relationship director 5. Preferably, the virtual character comprises at least part of an identifiable body to interact with the user and which can help develop 10 the relationship by literally placing a face (and preferably a body) to the system, and making the interaction experience more personal and natural. The F virtual characters would also preferably be provided with additional effective elements (such as suitable flattery, user style matching and interest) to enrich the 15 interpersonal user experience and promote cooperation with relationship development and progress through the stages of the plan. Virtual characters can include family and friends of the virtual character. for example, the Mr.Clean® virtual character can invite the type of Pampers® ^ to talk about diapers. The virtual character can be visually 20 observed or not observed and preferably can be in multiple dimensions such as 3D and 2D, depending on the user interface and the application. An example of the user interface comprises a virtual character detailed in figures 5 and 6.

In one embodiment, the VC would comprise a body element (which can typically take the form of a cartoon character or living type figure), a voice element (typically generated from a dialogue or author's text), and a brain element (which analyzes and determines which 5 actions to take next). For the body element, you can use various technologies currently available or further developed. For example, the Live Comics application? can provide static results of the cartoony type in two dimensions of the characters or figures, while the Microsoft Agent application can provide animations 10 animated close to the three-dimensional for characters and figures more than live type. The implantation of such technologies for the creation of the body element of a VC generally begins with an artistic work such as F drawings, photographs or sculptures. For the voice element of VC, applications such as 15 True Voice text for the speech machine of Lernout & Hauspie can be used. The True Voice application or tool is usually integrated with the Microsoft Agent application and is used to implement the author's text dialog as desired. As will be understood, it can be -áF wish that the VC can not really talk, but that the text dialogue is 20 can add in a static way or as a mobile bar on the computer screen. It is also contemplated that text databases or "knowledge bases" can be used to correspond with a free-form interrogation with an adequate response in some Applications. Various such search technologies are available such as the Inquizit context option search machines. Verity and Oracle. Similarly, for the brain element of the VC, the editor of 5 characters Imp is available from Extempo, Inc. In this regard, confidentiality would be required in the character author of the Extempo, Inc. system of Imp character editor, and the application structure would be used for the • Network guide provided by Extempo. In such a scenario, "Web Stops" is presented in the Extempo toolkit as templates for 10 an information that provides VC in the content of various pages of 5 the network, would be used to model the engineering relationships required to ? A > this aspect of the VC. For example, a stoppage of the network would be created for each stage of relationship beyond stage 0 in the examples set forth herein, naming each network stop ratio 1, ratio 2, etc. A strike 15 of the network called "dispatch" could also be preferably created together with another stoppage of the network called "auxiliary". The preconditions for each of the stoppages in the network would be defined by specifying the logical conditions under which the articles would become available to a user as ^ will be discussed further herein. For example, "article ofertable 20 Premium-2"could be defined by the logical condition" Premium-2 article is NOT accepted AND the relationship stage is beyond stage 2. "In an Extempo Imp character editor, such definition would be encoded as follows: $ lnt = & ($ lnt = ($ String = UserAtribute (gift.premiun2")! = $ String =" accepted "), $ lnt = ($ lnt = UserAttribute! RelationshípStage") > 2))) The preconditions for each stop of the network would be defined by specifying the logical conditions under which the VC can attempt to advance the relationship from one given stage to the next. For example, 5"try the relation 2" could be defined by the logical condition "the user is in stage 1 and has made 3 or more visits to the site". In the Extempo Imp character editor, such a definition would be encoded as follows: $ lnt = $$ ($ lnt = NLGPrecondition ("Relation1") $ lnt = NLGPrecondition ("Visit3plus")) 10 Stoppage of the "Dispatch" network it will preferably provide a control point for the management of the system's relationship schedule. Most author dialogue sequences must end with a * # address "go to stop", specifying "Dispatch" Within the network stop "Dispatch" in the itinerary of the network guide, you could preferably use the following agenda: 1. Create a stage with a null dialogue (that is, nothing is said, but a branch point is created in the computation packet) and an "Auxiliary" Go to Stop, conditioned by the precondition that is set to "true" ^ f if the administration relationship should be suspended For example, if the user 20 is in a hurry to have your question answered and does not want a discussion or perceived superfluous activity, the implementation of a work relations agenda can be counterproductive to build the relationship and for a positive experience for the user. ; .i ** j. i *! ** , .. * ^ ^ &? LA ^^ M ^ I. ^^. L ^ *. 2. Create additional stages with dialog sequences for each item that can be ofd to the user, conditioning one of the stages with an appropriate corresponding precondition. 3. Create additional stages with any independent dialog 5 of the stage, which may be suitable for interaction (that is, they are stages that can be used in any of the stages for predetermined interactions given). 4. Create a stage with a null dialogue (that is, nothing is said but a branch point is created) and an "n-relation" Go to Stop 10 each value of n desired by the system, conditioning each of such steps with a corresponding suitable precondition (that is, if that stage can be attempted at a given point in time). * F The "relationship-n" network stop is prebly created to provide context to create additional dialogs that are unique 15 for a specific stage of relationships and / or leading the user to meet conditions to advance to the next stage. For example, the "refactor > 3" of the network stoppage in the -n relation may contain two stages. First, a friendly and flattering dialogue can be provided, followed by a second stage that includes a request for the user to participate 20 in a section of chary. If the user accepts the request, then the user has fulfilled one of the requirements for that particular relationship stage and to move to the next higher relationship stage. Of course, there may be any number of other requirements such as additional actions that must be fulfilled, articles that must be accepted by the user, and / or number of prerequisite visits to the site for the particular user. Finally, the stoppage of the "auxiliary" network prebly provides a control point for the VC to suspend the management agenda of the relationship. Such a stoppage of the network would include a dialog that states that VC is ready for the next user requests. Another key feature of the present invention is its overall method for the interactive collection and distribution of information as 10 details in the flow chart of Figure 7. The method comprises the steps of: providing the interactive system to the user (shown as step 50) r áF comprising a user interface 2, a relationship director 5 in communication with a user personal data store 10 and the user interface 2, and a reciprocity module 8 in communication with the relationship director 15 5, as discussed above. The method further comprises interacting with the user through a dialogue script (52), based on the previously determined stage of the user. As discussed, the relationship director 5 controls the interaction through the appropriate dialogue scripts, and ^ records user input (step 54) of the user in the data store 20 personnel 12. The relationship manager 5 then determines the current state of a user from the user's entry in the personal data store 12 (step 56). Once the current stage of the k "user, the relationship director 5 selects an additional dialogue script t2 to continue the courage interaction (step 58) The relation director 5 periodically and selectively of articles to the user following the determination of the trigger (step 60) for him 5 reciprocity module. The method is repeated until the termination of the user (step 62), which can be induced in various ways, including the user's exit signature, communication interruption, user failure to F response, or other termination of the interaction. In one modality, the Articles comprise related articles as described above. In other 10 modality, the articles comprise unrelated items such as define above. In a preferred embodiment, there may be a mixture of * F related and unrelated items used from time to time by the system.

Computers often telecommute with one another and 15 share information, applications and / or services. Sometimes in this parameter the different computers are referred to as nodes, which is a generic term that refers to an access point in an interconnected system. A type of computer network employs an architecture client / server, where the portions of the network applications that ^ l 20 interact with human users, they are typically separated from the portions of the network applications that process the requests and information. TO Often, portions of an application that interacts with users or network access resources are called client or package applications of client computation, and portions of an * application that processes requests and information are called server applications or server compute package. The client machines tend to operate client computing packages and the server machines tend to operate 5 server computing packages, however a server can also be a "client". In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the user interface would typically be provided on a client machine (which can be any of the user interface alternatives contemplated and exemplified above such as a network computer, a computer 10 self-supported, interactive kiosk, etc.) and the computer package containing the instructions of the computer comprising the methods of In accordance with the present invention, it would be located on a server computer, separate from the client's machine. Figure 8 schematically shows a sample network 15 client / server 35, which may be employed to implement an embodiment of the present invention. As someone with ordinary technical expertise will readily appreciate, a network / client server is just one type of network, and a variety of other configurations, such as peer-to-peer connections, • They are also considered networks. In a client server network, they are interconnected 20 a plurality of nodes such that various nodes send and / or receive information to / from one another. As shown here, a server node (38) interconnects with a plurality of client nodes (40) using a connection (39) such as a coin telephone, modem connection to telephone, radio or microwave connection, parallel cables, serial cables, telephone lines, universal serial link, "UBS", thermosensitive wire, personal identification number, fiber optic, infrared "IR", radiofrequency "RF", and the like or combinations thereof. A computer reading medium, shown here as CD ROM (22), retains information that is read by computer such as programs, data, files, etc. As will be readily appreciated, the computer reading medium can take a variety of forms, including magnetic storage (such as hard drives, floppy disks, etc.) optical storage (such 10 such as laser discs, compact discs, DVDs, etc.). electronic store (such as random access memory "RAM", memory reading "ROM", programmable read-only memory "PROM", etc.) and the like. # Still in another embodiment of the present interactive method detailed in Figure 9, it comprises a network-based configuration for the 15 interactive collection and distribution of information. The method comprises the steps of: providing a site in the network having a user interface (step 65); receiving in the user interface 2, one or more articles of the user's input from a user (step 67); register the entry of '?? user in a personal data store 10 (step 54); determine the state 20 of the user input (step 56); selecting an additional dialog script corresponding to the current user stage (step 58); periodically offering the user an article available through the user interface 2 (step 60); and repeating until the termination of the user (step 62). This The mode is particularly preferred for using interactive system in a web site on the internet or similar. Preferably, the network site is housed in a network such as a wide area network, local area network or the internet and the like. The internet and the world network operate on a client / server model and the user operates a network client, or a search engine, on an electronic device such as a computer, PDA, cell phone or television tuner and the like. The network searcher makes contact with a network server and requires data information, in the form of a uniform locator. 10 resources (URL). This data information comprises the user interface of the interactive system of the present invention. Typically, URLs are entered in the search engine to access web pages, and F URLs are hosted within the same pages to provide hypertext links to other pages. A hypertext link allows the 15 user point in fa league and redirect to the network site corresponding to the URL of the hypertext link. Many search engines exist to access the global network, such as Netscape Navigator from Netscape Communications Corp. and Microsoft Corp. Internet Explorer. Similarly, *, various servers in the network exist to provide content to the network 20 such as Apache Internet Information Server from Microsoft Corp., Lotus Domino Go Webserver from IBM, Netscape Enterprise Server from Netscape Communications Corp. and Oracle Web Application Server from Oracle Corp. These search engines and servers on the network can be used to allow Access to the present invention from virtually any device has access to the network. An exemplary network system is detailed in Figure 13. Network system 74 comprises a server 81, such as a Dell® PowerEdge7 8450. 5 The PowerEdge7 8450 preferably comprises up to 8 Intel® Pentium® III Xeon processors? and up to 16GB of ECC memory capacity. The server is in communication with the personal data store 10, which preferably is a relational database such as the database of Oracle® 8i. As shown in Figure 13, the personal data store 10 10 is connected to the server through a connection node 39 in a network. Someone in the art will appreciate that server 81 can comprise the warehouse -A personal data 10. Alternatively, the personal data store 10 can be located anywhere in the world that is in communication with the internet 78. Internet 78 comprises various networks of connections that 15 cover the entire world allowing the user to interact with the interactive system through a computer 84 anywhere in the world, provided the computer connects to the internet. The home computer 84 preferably is a Dell® computation system XPS T750r dimension with • an ADSL or cable modem connection to the internet 78. Alternatively, 1a The home computer 84 may comprise a modem for a dial-up connection to a local internet service provider that connects to the internet 78. The interactive system 74 further comprises an administrative computer 88 that allows an administrative user to access the Internet. teÍ Liii¿¿i¿ * fi ^ .- ^^ personal data store 10 and the relationship manager 5 is located on the server 81. The administrative computer 88 preferably is a Dell® Dimension XPS T750r computer system with a network interface card connected to an internet network 39 comprising a connection to the internet 5 78. This mode allows an administrative user to access the user data and the relationship director 5 from any location in the world. • In one embodiment of the present invention, a virtual character interacts with the user through the network browser. The entry of The user is received through a proprietary access line through a network browser and transmitted to the network server. Preferably, the ? fc * - server of the network then passes the user input directly to the director of relation 5. As described herein, the director of relationship 5 preferably comprises an application that provides one or more 15 basic cognitive functions for a virtual character, such as a natural conversion of language, real-time selection of actions, gestures and expressions, social skills, and affects. In this regard, the director of relationship 5, may include the Imp Engine of Extempo, Inc. or others 'f' similar programs known in the art. Like scripts, actions, Gestures, expressions and the like could preferably be constructed within the character of the virtual character, and can also be governed to some degree by the user's relationship stage. The relationship manager 5 registers the user input in a data store 10 and determines the stage of the user and select a corresponding dialog script í2. The relationship director 5 also preferably periodically sends an instruction command to the reciprocity module 8 to determine if an item is available for distribution. In the illustrated modes, the reciprocity module 8 analyzes the user input through one or more decision trees, to determine if an article can be offered. If the reciprocity module 8 determines that an article can be offered to the user (ie, availability of the article "triggers"), the reciprocity module 8 sends an instruction command to the relation director 5, indicating that an article 10 is available for distribution. The director of relationship 5 in his discretion, can then select a corresponding dialogue script 12 for the article to be offered, and offer the article to the user. As mentioned, the relationship director 5 may also preferably comprise a randomness component, in which a random number generator and 15 a percentage of predefined probability are used to determine if and when to offer the item to the user for distribution.

EXAMPLES B 20 The following examples detail three typical user scenarios that interact with the interactive system of the present invention. Table 1 details an exemplary interaction by a fictional user "Pat". Table 2 details an exemplary interaction of a fictional user "Bill". Picture three details an interaction between an administrative user "Mike". The interactions detailed in table 1 and table 2 preferably take place over several visits to an exemplary interactive system network site related to consumer products.

EXAMPLE ! As detailed in table 1, relationship director 5 ("relationship agent") begins the interaction by welcoming the user of the 10 interactive system. The interactive system operates on a standard computer server for the network. The network server connects to the Internet.

• J Pat uses an ordinary home computer that includes a CPU and memory. The network server sends all user interaction to the relationship director. The relationship director includes a computer package that 15 operates on the computer of the network server or in communication with the server computer of the network. Pat connects the Internet through its Internet Service Provider and opens the search engine Internet Explorer network computer package on your computer. Pat enters the URL address of http://www.mrclean.com. The search engine the network sends the URL request to the 20 server computer the network through the Internet. The server computer sends a command prompt back to Pat's computer to verify the presence of an icon corresponding to the interactive system. When not finding an icon the server the network sends a command to relationship director identifying Pat as a new unknown user for the first time. The relationship director determines that Pat is in an etrepa of relation 0 and selects the corresponding introduction dialog script. 5 The relationship director then sends the dialogue script to the server, the network that incorporates the script into the page, the network, and then the server sends the network page to Pat through its web browser. Pat • recognizes the welcome and then proceeds to ask "How can I get the ink stains out of my tablecloth?". The relationship director 5 10 analyzes the user's input and determines the user's input as a request for technical information. In this way, the relationship director 5 transmits the request to the director of technical information 20. The director of technical information 20 searches for one or more data warehouses for information regarding the elimination of fabric ink spots, and transmits the data. 15 search results that may involve one or more responses to the relationship director 5. The relationship director 5 then transmits the results to the server the network that sends the results to Pat's computer. The relationship director then asks how useful the results of the search were. If Pat gives a low rating, the director of • 20 ratio 5 will offer to have someone call or email Pat for additional help. If Pat gives a high rating, the relationship director will preferably send a command to the director of technical information, noting that the search results were particularly effective. Director of Teonic information can use this feedback data to develop a fufuro search scheme. The relationship director 5 can then ask Pat for his first name. If Pat responds when entering with his first name, the user input is saved in the personal data store 10. The interactions will subsequently be designed to include the user name of "Pat" in the dialog. The relationship director 5 can then request additional information about Pat. The algorithms of the relationship director and a random probability generator determine whether they request additional information from Pat. The additional information may include purchasing trends, personal data such as income, F civil status, favorite products and the like. If Pat agrees to provide additional information, the relationship director 5 will apply dialog scripts 12 requesting basic demographic information from the user. Once this demographic information is obtained from Pat, it is stored in the personal data store 10. In this example, the relationship manager 5 then determines that the relationship with Pat has advanced to the next etefa (moving from a user of first time or stage 0 to the stage of ^ relationship 1). The relationship director 5 then requests the 8 reciprocity module 8 to determine if some related items are available for Pat. In this example, the reciprocity module 8 determines that a generic coupon is currently available to Pat and passes a command of * ?. instruction to the director of rotation 5. The reciprocity manager may determine to offer a specific coupon such as 75 cents of the normal size of a Mr. Clean® cleaning product, or a generic coupon that allows the relationship director to determine which product or Service must be 5 related to the coupon. The relationship director 5 selects a corresponding dialog script 12 to offer the coupon to Pat. Dialog script 12 may include "Would you like a coupon?". The director of relationship 5 waits • then for the user input of Pat. In the example in table 1, Pat responds that she would like a coupon. The director of relationship 5 records the entry 10 of the user and determines whether the required personal data (such as the mailing address) is contained in the data store 10 for Pat. If the personal data required is not in the personal data store 10, the # Relationship Manager 5 will select a 12 dialogue script to obtain personal data. Dialog script 12 can include "please give me 15 your home address, so I can mail you the coupon. "The required personal data is obtained after Pat and stored in the personal data store.After all the required personal information has been obtained, the director of relationship 5 notifies an administrative user that 20 send a coupon for Pat. Relationship director 5 then asks Pat to complete a survey. If Pat agrees to take the survey, the relationship manager 5 determines from the personal data store 10, which surveys Pat still has to complete. The relationship director 5 then select a corresponding dialogue guide 12 that contains an appropriate survey and press || § the survey to Pat. Each response to the survey is recorded in a personal data store 10. When the survey is complete in this example, the relationship manager 5 determines 5 that Pat has advanced to stage 2. The relationship manager 5 passes a command command to the reciprocity module 8 to determine if some items are available in stage 2 for Pat, and the reciprocity module • 8 determines which past items have been offered to you and which items have been accepted by Pat from the personal data store 10. 10 In this example, the reciprocity module 8, determines that Pat can be offered a free sample of a related product and pass a command instruction to the relationship director 5. The relationship director 5 F determines if and when to submit the offer of the item to Pat. In this particular example, Pat then asks a non-hurried question concerning another 15 product. The relationship director 5 analyzes the request preferably using keywords, and determines that the technical relationship director 20 can better answer Pat's question about the product. After the search results were provided by the director of technical information and presented to Pat, the relationship director asks if Pat 20 would like a free sample of the product that was the subject of the question. If Pat accepts, the relationship manager 5 checks the personal data store 10 to determine if the required address information is present. Since the required information is previously gathered during the offer of the * '• coupon, the relationship director selects a dialogue script 12 that confirms Pat's email address. Any correction to the address is saved in the personal data store 10. Pat then indicates that the network should go to a meeting and sign out of the site. 5 All interaction data with Pat are now available in the data warehouse for use in the system. That additional use includes the availability of access by researchers and to prepare reports of consumer entries, to compare with other data, to sell to users of a third party, or for other applications for which consumer input may be valuable.

F F TABLE 1 r2 Dialogue Notes In relation to User-I Tat "first meeting Hello and welcome ... Hello, how can I remove ink stains from my tablecloth? information (tel Try using this procedure with bleaching agent ... etc Pat request What is your name? It's okay Could you give me some basic demographic information? 45211 1. What is your zip code? 34 2. What is your age? F 3. What is your gender? next stage Thank you very much! sure! reward Do you want a coupon? Mrs. Pat Jonson personalized It's okay, Pat, one will be sent! Please give me your address ... It's okay Petition Would you take a survey please? Yes I. Do you have pets? No 2. Do you have a dishwasher? Tide 3. What detergent do you use? Next stage Thank you, we have done the survey Is product X according to the ambient? Yes, and it is also biodegradable. Reward Pat, would you like a free sample? Yes personalized Okay, I already have your address Etc. Etc.

EXAMPLE 2 The detailed example in Table 2 starts in a similar way to Example 1. The name of the user in this example, however, is Bi. The 5 relationship director welcomes Bill and Bill proceeds to ask the same cleaning question regarding ink spots on fabric as in example 1. The relationship director 5 passes the command to the director of technical information • 20 similar to example 1. The relationship manager can compare the user's entry in the personal data store to determine if Bill had 10 previously asked the same question before. The relationship director 5 then asks for the user's name. Bill enters his name and the relationship manager 5 saves the user's entry in the personal data store 10. The relationship manager 5 asks Bill later if he would like to give some basic demographic information. Bill responds that he would not like to provide the 15 demographic data currently. The relationship director 5 registers the refusal to provide demographic data in the personal data store 10. Bill then asks another cleaning question. The relationship director 5 determines Bill's request for technical information and passes the request to the director of technical information 20. Bill then ends his interaction with the system. 20 At a later date, Bill revisits the interactive system on the website. The relationship manager 5 obtains user input data to identify Bill (such as user ID, keyword, icon information »or similar) and determines its current user status of the data warehouse staff 10. Relationship director 5 welcomes Bul back to the site. Since the store of 10 contains Bill's name, the relationship director 5 prepares the 12 dialogue scripts to include his name where appropriate, of ratio 5 can then ask you 5 * to Bill some basic demographic data. If Bill responds positively, the director of relationship 5 proceeds to obtain the demographic data as described in example 1. After obtaining the demographic data, the f 'director of relationship 5 determines that Bill has advanced to the next stage of relationship, stage 1. The director of relationship 5, then passes an instruction of 10 command to external information module 16 to determine which items (if any) are available to be offered to Bill. In this example, the external information module 16 determines that Bill can be offered entertainment. The relationship director 5 selects a corresponding dialogue script 12, to offer entertainment to Bill. The script of 15 dialogue can include "Would you like to play a game and have a chance to win free tickets to the cinema?". The relationship director 5 waits later for Bill's user input. In the example in figure 2, Bill replies that he would like to play the game. The relationship manager 5 records the user's entry and determines the personal data store, which is 20 that there is some, games has previously played Bill. After determining the previous games, the relationship director 5 selects a dialogue script for a game that Bill has not yet played. The dialogue script 12 may comprise a simple trivia game such as asking "Who was the first President of the Unified Stats *? "The relationship director 5 specifies the Bill user login. After a few questions, the relationship director 5 can determine that Bill has won the game and select the corresponding dialogue script 12 to inform Bill that he has won 5 free movie tickets. The dialogue script 12 can include "Good job BHI! You have won two tickets for the cinema, I will know how to verify my user database to determine if I have your correct email address at home". The wfr relationship manager 5 determines whether the personal data required (such as mailing address) is contained in the data warehouse 10 for Bill. Yes 10 the personal data required are not in the personal data store * 10, the relationship manager 5 will select a dialogue script 12 to obtain the F personal data. The dialogue script 12 may include "please provide me with your address at home so that I can send you free tickets for the cinema by mail". The required personal data is obtained 15 after Pat and saved in the personal data store 10. The relationship manager 5 can then pass a command command to the reciprocity module 8 to determine which items, if any, are available to be offered to Bill. In this example, ^ the reciprocity module 8 determines that a coupon can be offered to Bill. 20 The relationship director 5 as described in example 1 can offer a coupon to Bill. As can be seen from the first two examples, the interactive system is at least partly based on a system of the type gift / reward Such configurations have been found to facilitate the collection of valuable information, and stimulate natural relationship building models to establish the trust, confidentiality and empathy necessary for a reliable and honest exchange of information. When a certain user input has been collected, the user is rewarded with a gift offer. The gift offers may vary by level, and the reciprocity module 8 and the personal data store 10, track the gifts that have been offered and accepted by the user.

• TABLE 2 Dialog Notes Relationship Agent User-2"Bill" First meeting Hello and welcome Hello, how can I remove Information Agent Try using this procedure with ink stains from my tablecloth bleach? What is his first name? * Request Would you provide me with some basic demographic information? No, not for now Reject It's okay, right Can you tell me how 10 Sure, try this technique to clean semolina? It's fine F% See you later, Bill. Nice to say hello Goodbye - later on another day Hi Bill, Nice to see you again Etc ... Etc ... 15 Would you give me some information Is it good demographic? Yes 1. What is your zip code? 30321 2. How old are you? 26 3. What is your sex? M Thank you! Would you like to play a game? Yes 20 Bill, you won two tickets for Mr. Bill Smith cinema, give me your address please etc.

EXAMPLE 3 As detailed in Table 3, the fellatio director ("relationship agent") begins the interaction by welcoming the user to the interactive system. The interactive system operates on a server the standard computer network. The network server connects to the Internet. Mike is using an ordinary computer that comprises a CPU and a memory. The network server sends all user interaction to the relationship director. The relationship manager comprises a computer package that operates in a 10 computer with network server or in communication with * the server computer of the network. Mike connects to the Internet through his Internet service provider, or through a local area network (LAN) connected to the Internet and opens the Internet Explorer Internet Explorer browser package on his computer. Mike enters the URL address of http://www.mrclean.com. He 15 network browser sends the URL request to the server of the computer network through the Internet. The network server computer sends an instruction command back to Mike's computer to verify the presence of an icon corresponding to the interactive system. At not finding an icon, the network server sends a command to the relationship director, 20 identifying Mike as a new unknown first-time user. The relationship director determines that Mike is in the "stage 0" relationship and selects the corresponding introductory dialogue script. The director of the network then sends the dialogue script to the network server that incorporates the script into the network page, and then the network server sends the network page to Mike through its search engine. net. Mike acknowledges the welcome and then proceeds to enter 5 an administrative command such as "sys survey" to change the current survey of the interactive system. The relationship director 5 analyzes the user's input and determines that the user's input is an administrative command. The relationship manager 5 selects a dialog script 12 to authenticate the administrative user. The dialogue script can include "tell me 10 authenticate first. "Mike enters an administrative command such as" authenticate sys "to begin the authentication procedure.

F director of relationship 5 analyzes the user's input and then selects a dialogue script 12 to continue the authentication procedure. The dialogue script can include "please enter your keyword". 15 Mike introduces his keyword that is usually masked to prevent others in the same area as Mike from seeing his keyword. The relationship manager 5 then checks the personal data store 10 for the keyword entered by the administrative user to determine if the administrative user is allowed to make changes to the interactive system. To the 20 find that Mike is an authorized administrative user, the relationship manager 5 selects a dialogue script informing that Mike has been authenticated. The relationship director 5 waits later for Mike's login. At any time during the interaction with the portion administrative system of the interactive system, the administrative user has the ability to ask questions and interact as a normal user would. Mike enters an administrative command to change the current survey of the interactive system. The administrative command can include "5 sys survey". The relationship director 5 receives the administrative command and retrieves the available dialog scripts from surveys that can be presented to users. Relationship Manager 5 then displays a list of available surveys to the administrative user, and asks Mike which survey he would like to select. Mike selects "survey 7" and the relationship director 5 10 makes the appropriate changes in the algorithms and / or decision trees to use "survey 7". Mike then enters another administrative command to change the current coupon offered to users. The administrative command can include "sys coupon". The relationship director 5 receives the user's input and determines that the user's input is a command 15 to change the current coupon. The relationship director 5 sends a command to the reciprocity module to determine the coupons that are currently offered. The reciprocity module 8 determines the coupons that are currently offered and sends a command to the relation director 5 that contains the coupon list. The director of relationship 5 then displays the 20 list of current coupons to administrative user Mike and asks Mike if you would like to change the coupon. Mike replies that he would like to change the coupon, and the relationship manager asks Mike for a new description for the coupon he offers. Mike enters the new description of the coupon, such as "75 cents discount the big size. "The relation director 5 receives the entry for the administrative user and sends a command to the reciprocity module 8 to change the current coupon to the description fed by the administrative user The relationship director 5 selects a dialog script 12 to &inform the administrative user that the required changes have been made The dialogue script can comprise "Sir, a new coupon is in effect." Mike then feeds an administrative command to end the administrative session.The administrative command can comprise "sys goodbye." As can be seen under the present invention, an administrative user can make changes in real time to the interactive system, and these changes can be done virtually anywhere in the world and do not require any special compute packet other than a standard browser application for the network and an Internet connection.

TABLE 3 Dialog Notes Agent Relationship Manager ("Mike") Hello and welcome Hello Tell me your cleaning problem Survey sys (security) You must first authenticate your password Authenticate sys ******** (masked) Ad mode Thank you, sir . It is authenticated The survey sys «Available surveys are survey 4, survey 7 and survey 12 ... 10 Review which ones do you want? Survey 7 Master Effect, survey 7 is now in immediate force. The description of the current coupon sys Coupon # is ... "50 cents discount of any size", change? Review Introduce a new description 75 cents discount 15 large size Master Effect, the new immediate description of the coupon is in effect The examples and specific modalities established in the The present invention is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to limit the scope of the methods and fabrics of the invention. Additional methods and fabrics within the scope of the claimed invention will be apparent. for someone with ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein established. F

Claims

NO ED ^ P DB LAINVgNC? TN CLAIMS 1. An interactive system for transferring information related to products or services, characterized in that it comprises: a user interface; a relationship manager in communication with a personal data store and the user interface, where the relationship manager understands executable instructions to determine the current status of a user in 10 less part of the user information of the personal data store; and a reciprocity module in communication with the relationship director, which comprises executable instructions to determine triggers for the # Availability of related articles, for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director. 2. The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that the relationship director is provided with access to one or more predetermined dialog scripts to direct interaction to the user. 3. The system according to claim 1, 20 further characterized in that the interactive system further comprises executable instructions for selectively providing one or more virtual characters through the user interface. ^ r-i 4. - The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that e? Director of relationship is part of a management system that includes executable instructions to monitor and direct the flow of information between the relationship director, the data interface, and the 5 user, and other elements of the interactive system. 5. The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that it comprises a director of technical information in communication with one or more information data stores, the director of technical information comprises executable instructions for 10 provide technical information through the user interface. 6. The system according to claim 5, further characterized in that the technical information director is provided with access to technical information in the form of frequently asked questions and answers (FAQ), suggestions related to the product, 15 technical information of the product and the like. 7. The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that the items related to selective distribution include coupons, products and other bonuses. 8. The system according to claim 1, 20 further characterized in that the relationship director further comprises a language analyzer comprising executable instructions for determining one or more personality aspects of the user based on the user's input. 9. - The system according to claim 8, further characterized in that it comprises one or more predetermined dialog scripts for one or more determined aspects of the personality. 10. The system according to claim 2, further characterized in that the relationship director comprises executable instructions for selecting a predetermined dialog script corresponding to the current state of the user. b '11. The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that the reciprocity module comprises executable instructions for selectively implementing predetermined time parameters, random parameters and bid conditions. 12. The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that the user information comprises data related to the previous interactions through the user interface. 13. The system according to claim 1, further characterized in that it comprises an external information module in communication with a relationship director and comprises executable instructions for determining triggers for the availability of unrelated items * for selective distribution to the user. by the director of 20 relationship. 14. An interactive system for transferring information related to products or services, characterized in that it comprises: a user interface; a relationship manager in communication with a warehouse of personal data and the user interface, wherein the relationship manager comprises executable instructions for determining the current status of a user in at least part of the information of the user of the data store - personal; and an external information module in communication with the relationship director 5, comprising executable instructions for determining triggers for the availability of unrelated items, for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director. 15. The system according to claim 14, further characterized in that the relationship director is provided with access 10 to one or more predetermined dialog scripts to direct the interactions - > of the user. s A 16.- The system according to claim 14, further characterized in that articles not related to the selective distribution comprise the user's access to unrelated stimuli. 17. The system according to claim 14, further characterized in that the triggers correspond to one or more predetermined user stages. 18. The system according to claim 14, ? T further characterized because it comprises a reciprocal module in 20 communication with the relationship director and includes executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of related articles for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director. 19. - An interactive sisipma to transfer information related to products characterized in that it comprises: a user interface; a relationship manager in communication with a personal data store and the user interface, wherein the relationship director 5 comprises executable instructions to determine the current status of a user; a reciprocity module in communication with the director * of relationship, comprising executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of related articles, for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director; and a module 10 external information in communication with the relationship director, which includes executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of unrelated items, for selective distribution to the * user by the relationship director. 20. The system according to claim 19, 15 further characterized in that the relationship manager deflects user interaction through one or more predetermined dialog scripts. 21.- A method for the interactive collection and distribution of information in relation to products and services, characterized in that A comprises the steps of: providing a user interface, a director of The relationship in communication with a personal data store and the user interface, where the relationship manager comprises executable instructions to determine the current status of a user, and a reciprocity module in communication with the relationship director and comprises instructions 2f Executables for certain pdteparádsrls pafa ta availability of related articles for selective distribution to the user by the relationship director; interact with the user using a dialogue script; register the user's entry in a personal data store; determining the current state 5 of the user that corresponds at least in part to the user's input; select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the client's current stage; periodically offer the user a related article available after trigger determination; and repeating the previous steps until the termination of the user. 22. The method according to claim 21, further characterized in that it comprises the steps of: providing an external information module in communication with the relationship director comprising executable instructions to determine triggers for the availability of unrelated items for the selective distribution to 15 user by the relationship director; and periodically offering the user an available item not related after the trigger determination. 23. The method according to claim 21, further characterized in that it comprises the step of having access to the user input ifi in the personal data store for development of 20 product or improvement of products and services. 24.- A method for the interactive collection and distribution of information in relation to products and services, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: providing a user interface, a director of IAii ÉÉto * aiu, relationship in communication with a personal data store and the user interface, where the director "Élirefa? ón understands executable instructions to determine the current state of a user, and an external information module in communication with the relationship director and comprises 5 executable instructions for determining triggers for the availability of unrelated items for selective distribution to the user by the relationship manager, interacting with the user using a dialogue script; 9 register the user's entry in a personal data store; determine the current state of the user that corresponds to the user's input; 10 select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current stage; periodically offer the user an unavailable item available after the trigger determination; and repeat the stages • previous to the user's termination. 25. The method according to claim 24, 15 further characterized in that it comprises the steps of: providing a reciprocity module in communication with the relationship director, comprising executable instructions for determining triggers for the availability of related items for selective distribution to the user p by the relationship director; and periodically offer the user an article 20 available related after trigger determination. 26.- A method for product development, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: accessing the personal data store that comprises the input of the user gathered by the method such as the one claim in claim 21; and use the user input for the development or improvement of products and servlü ^ of a company. 27. A method for product development, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: accessing the personal data store 5 comprising the input of the user gathered by the method of the following steps: interacting with the user using a dialog script; register the user's entry in a personal data store; determine the current state of the user that corresponds to the user's input; select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current stage; 10 periodically offer the user an unavailable item available after the trigger determination; and use the user's input in the personal data store for product development or improvement of products and services of a company. 28.- A means to read on a computer that contains Instructions for controlling a computer system for interacting with a user for the interactive collection and distribution of information related to products and services, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: interacting with the user using a dialogue script; register ta F user input in a personal data store; determine the state 20 current user that corresponds to the user's input; select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current stage; determine triggers for the availability of related items; periodically offer the user an available item related after Ü K bAÜ¿ > . -JMtl l. of trigger determination; and repeat the arterial stages until termination of the user. - 29.- A network-based method for the interactive collection and distribution of information related to products and services, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: providing a site for the network having a user interface; receive in the user interface one or more articles of a user's user input; register user input in a personal data store; determine the current user status of the user input; select an additional dialog script 10 which corresponds to the current stage of the user; periodically offer the user an unrelated item available through the user interface; and Repeat the previous stages until the end of the user. 30. The method according to claim 21, further characterized in that it comprises the step of providing others 15 access to data from the personal data store. 31. The method according to claim 30, further characterized in that the step of providing access to others, comprises analyzing at least portions of the personal data store to f identify information of interest. 20 32.- A computer data signal housed in a carrier wave to transmit executable instructions for the collection and interactive distribution of information related to products and services, said signal characterized by comprising the instructions of: interacting with the user using a data warehouse corresponds to the user's input; select an additional dialog script that corresponds to the user's current stage; determine 5 triggers for the availability of related articles; periodically offer the user a related article available after trigger determination; and repeating the previous steps until the termination of the user. 33.- A method of using the user interface for the 10 interactive collection and distribution of information related to products and services, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: interacting with the user using a dialogue script; register the user's entry in a personal data store; determine the current state of the user that corresponds to the user's input; select a dialog script 15 additional that corresponds to the current stage of the user; determine triggers for the availability of related items; periodically offer the user a related article available after trigger determination; and repeating the previous steps until the termination of the user. 20 34.- A means for reading on a computer, characterized in that it comprises one or more pieces of the user input from a personal data store assembled from the method as claimed in claim 21. 35. - A propagated data record housed in a carrier orde to have access to information about an Fd, characterized in that it comprises one or more pieces of user input from a store - ~ - "- of personal data gathered from the method as which is claimed in claim 5 • » «I j i • • *" J »