Unified Presence Document Aggregation for Communication Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
In a multi-device context, third parties receive excessive presence information about a user's availability across various devices, making it difficult for them to select the appropriate device for message or session requests, complicating the process of managing and directing communications.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that aggregates presence information from multiple user devices to create a virtual device presence document, providing simplified unified presence information to third parties, allowing the communications server to control how messages and session requests are routed based on user preferences and policies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If presence information from multiple devices is provided to third parties, then user availability information is comprehensive and complete, but the quantity and complexity of information increases excessively
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges presence information from multiple devices (home telephone, work telephone, mobile devices, personal computer) into a single unified presence document. The communications server aggregates availability status and service class information from all devices and presents it as one consolidated data structure, eliminating the need for third parties to process separate presence information from each device individually.
Solution Approach 2:
The communications server acts as an intermediary between the multiple user devices and third parties. It receives presence information from all devices, processes and aggregates it, then delivers a simplified unified presence document to third parties. This intermediary function filters and consolidates information before it reaches the third party, reducing complexity.
2Loss of information
If detailed device information is provided in presence data, then third parties have complete information about user availability, but it becomes difficult for third parties to select appropriate devices for messages or session requests
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and presents only the essential information needed for third parties to make communication decisions. The unified presence document includes availability status and service class information but omits unnecessary device-specific details such as specific device identifiers, network addresses, and technical configuration data. This extraction leaves third parties with just the information needed to select appropriate communication devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The presence information is segmented into logical components: availability status, service class information, and device identification. This segmentation allows third parties to process information in manageable portions and makes it easier to implement filtering and selection logic for directing messages to appropriate devices based on service requirements.
3Reliability
If the system provides presence information for multiple devices, then user availability is accurately represented, but the complexity of managing and directing communications increases
Solution Approach 1:
The unified presence document serves multiple functions simultaneously: it represents availability across all devices, provides service class information for routing decisions, and maintains a simplified structure for easy processing. This universal document replaces multiple separate presence representations and handles various communication management tasks through a single data structure.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems for providing simplified presence for a user are described. The user has a plurality of associated communication devices registered with a communications server, and each communication device enables at least one communication service class. The server has a user data entry associating the user with each of the plurality of communication devices. To hide the details of the user-associated devices from third parties, a virtual device is defined and associated with the user. Presence information received at the server from the various devices is aggregated together to create aggregated presence information that indicates at least the service classes available from the user-associated devices based on the received presence information. A virtual device presence document is generated containing the aggregated presence information and is provided to a presence server as presence information associated with the user.