Portal Social Backend Integration for Dynamic Data Sync

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing portal environments have a static integration of external content, leading to broken portlets when underlying social data changes, requiring manual maintenance and lacking dynamic adaptation to user interactions, resulting in outdated and incomplete data representation.

Innovation Solution

A portal system connected to a social backend with an integration component that listens for events, synchronizes portal applications with social backends, and creates portal objects associated with social objects, enabling automatic reflection of changes and dynamic integration of social data.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If portal integrates external content using dedicated integration portlets that retrieve feed driven information from external websites, then the portal can display external data, but the integration becomes static and requires manual maintenance when underlying data changes

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedynamic adaptation to social data changesVSAvoidmanual maintenance requirement

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements dynamic integration by replacing static feed-driven portlets with a social backend integration layer that automatically detects and adapts to changes in social data structures. The system dynamically generates portal pages based on current social artifacts, enabling automatic adaptation when social media platforms change their data formats or structures.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The social backend integration component automatically retrieves, processes, and displays external social data without requiring manual intervention. The system self-updates its content based on changes in the social backend, eliminating the need for administrators to manually maintain integration portlets when external platforms change their APIs or data structures.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Loss of information

If portal uses feed driven information retrieval from external websites, then the portal can aggregate external content, but the data representation becomes outdated and incomplete

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata freshness and completenessVSAvoidautomatic synchronization capability

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the social backend continuously provides updated information about social artifacts, and the portal automatically reflects these changes. The system monitors changes in social data and automatically updates portal content, ensuring data freshness and completeness without requiring manual synchronization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The social backend integration layer establishes preliminary connections and subscriptions to social data streams before changes occur. The system is pre-configured to automatically detect and respond to data changes, ensuring that the portal always has access to the most current information without requiring reactive manual updates.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Adaptability or versatility

If portal creates static portal pages from templates, then the portal structure is stable and manageable, but the portal cannot reflect the volatile character of user interaction

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvereflection of volatile user interactionVSAvoidportal structure complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the portal into two distinct layers: a stable portal framework that handles structure and navigation, and a dynamic social backend integration layer that handles content. This segmentation allows the portal to maintain structural stability while the content layer dynamically adapts to volatile user interactions and social media changes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The social backend integration component acts as an intermediary between the stable portal structure and the volatile social data sources. This intermediary layer absorbs the complexity of dynamic social interactions and translates them into manageable portal updates, allowing the portal to reflect volatile user behavior without compromising its structural integrity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS10366139B2Portal connected to a social backend

Publication Date: 2019.07.30 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINE CORPORATION

AI summary

A portal system comprises a portal connected to at least one social backend, a portal object generator for creating a page in the portal, and a backend processing component. The portal system further performs a method comprising: integrating functionality of said at least one social backend into said portal system; implementing association information as meta data entries containing information about a social object of said at least one social backend; receiving a notification about creation of new portal objects by an integration component; creating a new instance of a social object within said at least one social backend by said integration component; receiving a new identification from a newly created social object by said integration component; inserting new social object identification into meta data of said newly created social object; and representing said social object as a portal object to a portal user.