Acronym Identification and Definition in Messaging Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Acronyms in text-based messages can create confusion due to lack of clear definitions, especially in cross-departmental communications, and pose accessibility issues for screen readers and accessibility devices, which struggle to interpret or read these terms correctly.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that identifies acronyms in messages, provides definitions through a secondary task pane with editable text fields, converts acronyms to hyperlinks for user interaction, and uses local or global glossaries to suggest definitions, ensuring compatibility with accessibility devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If acronyms are used in text-based messages to improve communication efficiency, then productivity is improved, but clarity and understanding for recipients may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary system that automatically detects acronyms in messages and inserts contextual definitions or expansions between the acronym and the recipient's view. This mediator resolves the contradiction by maintaining the brevity of acronyms for sender efficiency while providing clear meaning for recipient understanding, without requiring manual intervention from either party.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-processing the message to identify acronyms and prepare appropriate definitions or expansions before the message is delivered to the recipient. This advance preparation ensures that clarity is built into the message structure itself, resolving the contradiction between efficient acronym usage and clear meaning transmission.
2Length of moving object
If acronyms are used without definitions to maintain message brevity, then message length is reduced, but accessibility for screen readers and accessibility devices deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system acts as an intermediary between the compact message format and accessibility devices by automatically inserting verbal definitions or expansions of acronyms that screen readers can pronounce and interpret. This maintains the visual brevity of the message while providing auditory clarity for accessibility devices, resolving the contradiction between short message length and ease of accessibility operation.
3Loss of information
If generic acronym resources are used to define acronyms, then information availability is improved, but context accuracy may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by providing different definition sources for different acronyms based on their contextual requirements. For well-known acronyms, it uses generic resources; for context-specific acronyms, it uses message-specific definitions or asks the sender for clarification. This differentiated approach resolves the contradiction between general availability and precise context accuracy.
4Measurement precision
If users manually search for acronym definitions using external tools, then definition accuracy may be improved, but operational continuity deteriorates due to application switching
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges the acronym definition search functionality directly into the messaging application interface, combining what were previously separate operations (messaging and dictionary lookup) into a unified workflow. Users can access acronym definitions without leaving the messaging application, maintaining operational continuity while providing accurate definitions through integrated search capabilities.
Data Source
AI summary
The present application relates to defining acronyms in messages between a sender device and a receiver device. The sender device receives a text content of a message from a user and parses the text content to identify one or more acronyms within the message. The sender device presents, to the user, a secondary task pane including the one or more acronyms present within the message and corresponding acronym definitions in editable text fields and receives, from the user, an update to one or more of the corresponding acronym definitions. The sender device sends the message and metadata including the corresponding acronym definitions to one or more other users. A receiver device receives the message and converts each of the acronyms to a respective hyperlink. The receiver device detects a user interaction with the respective hyperlink for a respective acronym and presents at least the respective first acronym definition.