Out of Office Presence Indication via Location and Calendar Triggers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current messaging applications, especially email systems, do not effectively integrate presence status, limiting users' ability to determine if recipients are available before sending messages, which hinders seamless communication.
Innovation Solution
The integration of an out-of-office presence status system that allows users to enable or disable their presence status, which is then shared with other users' devices and messaging servers, providing visual indications in user interfaces to inform senders about recipients' availability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If presence status integration is added to messaging applications, then communication efficiency is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a presence information server as an intermediary component that manages presence status data centrally. This server acts as a mediator between messaging applications and presence status information, allowing applications to query and display presence status without complex direct integration between all system components. The server receives presence status from various sources and provides it to messaging applications through standardized interfaces, thus improving communication efficiency while managing system complexity through centralized management.
2Loss of information
If presence status information is made more accessible, then user awareness of recipient availability is improved, but information management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments presence information management into distinct functional components: presence information collection, presence status determination, and presence data distribution. Each component handles specific aspects of presence information independently. The system divides presence status into different types (e.g., available, busy, away) and manages them separately, allowing targeted retrieval and display of relevant presence information without managing all possible information types, thus reducing overall management complexity while improving accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The presence information server serves as an intermediary that centralizes the management of presence status data. Instead of each messaging application independently managing presence information, the server consolidates collection, processing, and distribution functions. This intermediary approach allows multiple applications to access presence information through standardized interfaces without each application needing to implement complex presence management logic, thereby improving information accessibility while reducing individual application complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If real-time presence status is integrated into email messaging, then messaging functionality is enhanced, but integration effectiveness varies across applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal presence information server that serves multiple messaging applications and types through a single centralized system. This server provides presence status information to various applications (email, instant messaging, voice communication) through standardized interfaces, enabling real-time presence integration across different messaging platforms without requiring separate integration solutions for each application. The multi-functional server handles diverse presence information requirements, enhancing messaging functionality while reducing the need for application-specific integration complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method is provided comprising automatically enabling an out-of-office utility for a mobile communication device based on a trigger condition, the trigger condition being location of the mobile communication device or a calendar event stored on a calendar application on the mobile communication device.