Email Notification Connector System for Inbox Integration

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Users face cluttered and unmanageable email experiences due to receiving undifferentiated notifications from multiple services, which disrupt focus and require navigation away from their email system to perform actions, leading to a degraded user experience.

Innovation Solution

A connector system that allows users to select notifications from services, integrating them into their email inbox with actionable messages, enabling actions to be performed directly within the inbox without leaving the email system, using a configuration user experience and actionable message processing logic.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If services send notifications to users' email addresses, then users can receive updates from multiple services, but the email inbox becomes cluttered and unmanageable

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification deliveryVSAvoidemail management

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments notifications by service source and integrates them into a unified email inbox interface. The email service separates notification delivery from general email traffic, allowing users to receive service updates without mixing them with personal emails, thus maintaining inbox manageability while ensuring reliable notification delivery.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The email service acts as an intermediary between external services and the user's email system. It receives notifications from various services, processes them through a standardized interface, and delivers them to the user's inbox in a unified format, reducing clutter while maintaining delivery reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Loss of information

If users receive notifications from multiple services, then they stay informed about various services, but user focus is disrupted

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinformation completenessVSAvoiduser focus

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges notifications from multiple different services into a single unified email inbox interface. Instead of receiving separate notifications from each service that could disrupt focus, users receive all service updates in one standardized location, maintaining information completeness while reducing cognitive load and preserving user focus.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Adaptability or versatility

If services control what email messages subscribers receive, then services can send relevant updates, but users have no control over message volume

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveservice notification capabilityVSAvoiduser control

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent inverts the control model by allowing users to subscribe to specific services through their email interface rather than services pushing notifications to users. Users actively choose which services to receive notifications from, giving them control over message volume while services maintain their notification capabilities.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

4Adaptability or versatility

If users must navigate to service sites to perform actions, then services can provide full functionality, but users must leave their email system

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveservice functionalityVSAvoiduser convenience

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent makes the email service universal by enabling it to not only receive and display notifications but also to execute service actions directly from the email interface. Users can perform service functions without leaving their email system, combining the convenience of email with full service functionality in a single platform.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS10645052B2Service integration into electronic mail inbox

Publication Date: 2020.05.05 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC

AI summary

A connector surfaces a configuration user experience that allows a user to select notifications that a user wishes to receive from a service. The user's e-mail system has a URL endpoint identifier, and the service sends the selected notifications to the URL endpoint. The notifications are integrated into the user's inbox, as e-mail messages.