Communication App Mailbox Chaining for Storage Capacity

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Communication applications face limitations in data storage capacity, leading to user experience degradation as users reach predefined mailbox size thresholds, with conventional solutions like data export not providing seamless access to the communication application.

Innovation Solution

Implementing multiple online archive mailboxes that are transparently integrated into the communication application's architecture, allowing data to be stored and accessed across these mailboxes, effectively increasing storage capacity and managing large data volumes without user intervention.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Quantity of substance

If a single mailbox with predefined capacity is used, then the system structure remains simple, but the storage capacity is limited and users hit the limits fast degrading their user experience

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestorage capacityVSAvoidmailbox structure
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the storage system into multiple independent mailboxes (primary mailbox and multiple archive mailboxes) instead of using a single large mailbox. Each mailbox maintains its own predefined capacity limits, but collectively they provide expanded storage. The system automatically manages data distribution across these segmented mailboxes, transparently handling the complexity of multiple storage containers while providing users with effectively unlimited storage capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Quantity of substance

If data is exported to external storage, then storage capacity is extended, but the exported data is not readily available to the communication application

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestorage capacityVSAvoiddata accessibility
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple mailboxes (primary and archive mailboxes) into a unified communication system that remains fully integrated with the communication application. Unlike external exports, all mailboxes are managed by the same application infrastructure, ensuring that data stored in any mailbox is immediately accessible and searchable within the application. The system presents a unified view to users while maintaining separate storage containers, combining the benefits of expanded storage with seamless data accessibility.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Quantity of substance

If multiple archive mailboxes are created, then storage capacity increases, but the system complexity increases requiring transparent integration

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestorage capacityVSAvoidsystem architecture
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements automatic self-service mechanisms that monitor mailbox capacities and dynamically create additional archive mailboxes when needed without requiring user intervention. The system automatically manages data routing, distribution, and retrieval across multiple mailboxes, handling the architectural complexity internally while presenting a simplified interface to users. This self-managing approach allows the system to scale storage capacity dynamically while maintaining operational simplicity for end users.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP3269098B1Large data management in communication applications through multiple mailboxes
Publication Date: 2023.06.28 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC
  • EP3269098B1 patent drawingFigure 1A
  • EP3269098B1 patent drawingFigure 1B
  • EP3269098B1 patent drawingFigure 1C

AI summary

Technologies are described to increase a data limit for a user of a communication application by introducing additional archive mailboxes as the original archive fills up or subsequently added archive mailboxes fill up. Thus, a user's data limit may be effectively removed through the use of N additional archive mailboxes. The additional mailboxes may be integrated into the architecture of the communication application such that their use is transparent to the user and/or an administrator of the communication application or associated service. In other examples, additional mailboxes may be used to add to the capacity of the primary mailbox (cached) as well.