Adaptive Task Framework for Life Events

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Solution Overview

Problem

Digital assistants often provide generic or single-task suggestions without addressing the complex, related tasks associated with life events, such as emergencies or planned events, which can be inefficient for users.

Innovation Solution

A system and method that utilize historical task data to create a personalized task board by identifying associations between tasks and life events, allowing for adaptive updating based on user interactions, and incorporating data from other users to provide a comprehensive interface for addressing life events.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If digital assistants provide generic or single-task suggestions, then the system complexity is low and ease of operation is maintained, but the productivity and effectiveness of addressing life events deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveeffectiveness of addressing life eventsVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments life events into discrete task components that can be individually identified, stored, and retrieved. By breaking down complex life events into manageable task units with defined relationships (parent-child, sequential, parallel), the system can provide comprehensive assistance without requiring overly complex overall architecture. Each task segment is processed independently but contributes to the holistic solution.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary actions by pre-processing and storing task associations during idle periods. Historical task data is analyzed in advance to build knowledge graphs and establish task relationships before they are needed. When a life event occurs, the system can quickly retrieve pre-established task associations rather than computing them in real-time, thus improving productivity without proportionally increasing operational complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Adaptability or versatility

If digital assistants provide generic suggestions, then the ease of operation is maintained, but the adaptability to individual user needs deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepersonalization to user needsVSAvoiduser interface complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements self-service by automatically analyzing user behavior patterns and adapting task suggestions without requiring explicit user programming. The digital assistant monitors and learns from historical task completion patterns, preferences, and behaviors, then autonomously generates personalized task recommendations. This adaptability is achieved through passive learning rather than active user configuration, maintaining ease of operation while improving personalization.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where user interactions with suggested tasks are continuously monitored and fed back into the learning model. When users complete, modify, or reject suggested tasks, this feedback refines the task association models and improves future recommendations. The feedback loop enables progressive personalization without requiring users to manually adjust system parameters, thus maintaining operational simplicity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

3Productivity

If digital assistants focus on one specific task, then the ease of operation is maintained, but the productivity in handling related tasks deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveefficiency of handling related tasksVSAvoidtask management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges related tasks into unified task associations that represent complete life event workflows. Instead of treating tasks as isolated units, the system combines parent tasks with child tasks, sequential tasks, and parallel tasks into integrated associations. This merging allows the system to manage multiple related tasks through a single coherent framework, improving productivity without proportionally increasing management complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The task association framework serves multiple functions simultaneously: it stores task relationships, determines execution sequences, manages dependencies, and provides user interfaces. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate specialized systems for each aspect of task management, thereby improving overall productivity while limiting the growth of system complexity through functional consolidation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS11169660B2Personalized adaptive task framework for user life events
Publication Date: 2021.11.09 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC
  • US11169660B2 patent drawing
  • US11169660B2 patent drawing
  • US11169660B2 patent drawing

AI summary

Methods and systems for providing digital assistance. One system includes at least one electronic processor configured to access data representing historical tasks performed by a user through at least one user device, determine, based on the data, a first plurality of tasks associated with a life event of the user, and store an association between the first plurality of tasks and the life event. The electronic processor is also configured to, in response to a current occurrence of the life event experienced by the user, retrieve the association and generate a user interface for display to the user, the user interface including a second plurality of tasks for addressing the current occurrence of the life event based on the first plurality of tasks.