Profile Card for Direct Person-to-Person Interaction in Search Results

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional search systems do not facilitate direct person-to-person contact or interaction from search results pages, requiring users to navigate away from search results to initiate communication.

Innovation Solution

Incorporating a method to display a profile card within search results pages that includes graphical representations of interaction channels, allowing users to initiate interactions such as email, chat, or video conferencing directly from the search results page, using contact data from various data sources while respecting privacy settings.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If contact information is displayed within search results page, then user interaction efficiency is improved, but page complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser interaction efficiencyVSAvoidpage complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides contact information into separate profile cards that are segmented from the main search results page. Each profile card is an independent, self-contained unit displaying specific contact data and interaction options, allowing the main page to remain organized while providing comprehensive contact capabilities through modular additions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces profile cards as a new dimensional layer overlaying or adjacent to the traditional search results page. This additional dimension allows contact information to be displayed without fundamentally restructuring the existing search results layout, maintaining page simplicity while enhancing functionality.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Loss of information

If multiple data sources are integrated, then information completeness is improved, but data processing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinformation completenessVSAvoiddata processing complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a universal profile card structure that can accommodate contact information from multiple different data sources (email services, contact management services, social networking services, public repositories). This single multi-functional template handles diverse data types uniformly, reducing the need for separate processing logic for each source while maintaining information completeness.

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

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses standardized profile card templates that copy and adapt contact information from various data sources into a consistent format. This templating approach allows diverse data to be processed through a uniform structure, simplifying integration while preserving the completeness of information from different sources.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

3Ease of operation

If interaction channels are provided directly on search results page, then user convenience is improved, but privacy management complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser convenienceVSAvoidprivacy management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies different privacy management approaches to different profile cards based on their data sources and content characteristics. Each profile card can have customized visibility and interaction options tailored to its specific data type and source, allowing granular privacy control without requiring complex system-wide privacy management.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS10061851B1Encouraging inline person-to-person interaction
Publication Date: 2018.08.28 GOOGLE LLC
  • US10061851B1 patent drawing
  • US10061851B1 patent drawing
  • US10061851B1 patent drawing

AI summary

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for receiving a search query from a searching user, receiving contact data associated with a user that is determined to be responsive to the search query, the contact data being provided from one or more data sources, and providing an electronic document including instructions to display a search results page including search results responsive to the search query and a profile card associated with the user, the profile card including one or more graphical representations associated with an interaction channel, each interaction channel being associated with respective contact data of the contact data, and each graphical representation being operable to receive user input and initiate execution of an associated interaction from the search results page, an interaction interface used to execute the associated interaction being displayed concurrently with the search results page.