Patents by Inventor Michael Justin Smathers

Michael Justin Smathers has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11989659
    Abstract: Artificial intelligence methods and systems for triggering the generation of narratives are disclosed. Specific embodiments relate to real-time evaluation and automated generation of narrative stories based on received data. For example, data can be tested against data representative of a plurality of story angles to determine whether a narrative story incorporating one or more such story angles is to be automatically generated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2024
    Assignee: Salesforce, Inc.
    Inventors: Nathan Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Lawrence Birnbaum, Kristian Hammond, Lawrence E. Adams
  • Patent number: 11989519
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is computer technology that applies natural language processing (NLP) techniques to training data to generate information used to train a natural language generation (NLG) system to produce output that stylistically resembles the training data. In this fashion, the NLG system can be readily trained with training data supplied by a user so that the NLG system is adapted to produce output that stylistically resembles such training data. In an example, an NLP system detects a plurality of linguistic features in the training data. These detected linguistic features are then aggregated into a specification data structure that is arranged for training the NLG system to produce natural language output that stylistically resembles the training data. Parameters in the specification data structure can be linked to objects in an ontology used by the NLG system to facilitate the training of the NLG system based on the detected linguistic features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2024
    Assignee: Salesforce, Inc.
    Inventors: Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Jared Lorince
  • Publication number: 20240135114
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for integrating NLG-based natural language narrative story generation with story sharing. A processor can (1) generate a plurality of natural language narrative stories based on a plurality of semantic source models for the natural language narrative stories, (2) analyze the semantic source models to determine a plurality of users to whom the natural language narrative stories that are generated from the analyzed semantic source models are to be shared, and (3) share the generated natural language narrative stories with their determined users. In this fashion, stories can be posted to user-customized newsfeeds in a manner that can more reliably capture stories that are of interest to the users.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2023
    Publication date: April 25, 2024
    Inventors: Nathan William Krapf, Michael Justin Smathers, Nathan Drew Nichols, Matthew Lloyd Trahan
  • Patent number: 11816435
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an NLP system that is able to extract meaning from a natural language message using improved parsing techniques. Such an NLP system can be used in concert with an NLG system to interactively interpret messages and generate response messages in an interactive conversational stream. The parsing can include (1) named entity recognition that contextualizes the meanings of words in a message with reference to a knowledge base of named entities understood by the NLP and NLG systems, (2) syntactically parsing the message to determine a grammatical hierarchy for the named entities within the message, (3) reduction of recognized named entities into aggregations of named entities using the determined grammatical hierarchy and reduction rules to further clarify the message's meaning, and (4) mapping the reduced aggregation of named entities to an intent or meaning, wherein this intent/meaning can be used as control instructions for an NLG process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2023
    Assignee: Narrative Science Inc.
    Inventors: Maia Lewis Meza, Clayton Nicholas Norris, Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols
  • Publication number: 20230109572
    Abstract: Artificial intelligence methods and systems for triggering the generation of narratives are disclosed. Specific embodiments relate to real-time evaluation and automated generation of narrative stories based on received data. For example, data can be tested against data representative of a plurality of story angles to determine whether a narrative story incorporating one or more such story angles is to be automatically generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2022
    Publication date: April 6, 2023
    Inventors: Nathan Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Lawrence Birnbaum, Kristian Hammond, Lawrence E. Adams
  • Patent number: 11521079
    Abstract: Method and Apparatus for Triggering the Automatic Generation of Narratives Artificial intelligence methods and systems for triggering the generation of narratives are disclosed. Specific embodiments relate to real-time evaluation and automated generation of narrative stories based on received data. For example, data can be tested against data representative of a plurality of story angles to determine whether a narrative story incorporating one or more such story angles is to be automatically generated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: Narrative Science Inc.
    Inventors: Nathan Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Lawrence Birnbaum, Kristian Hammond, Lawrence E. Adams
  • Patent number: 11341330
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is computer technology that provides adaptive mechanisms for learning concepts that are expressed by natural language sentences, and then applies this learning to appropriately classify new natural language sentences with the relevant concept that they express. The computer technology can also discover the uniqueness of terms within a training corpus, and sufficiently unique terms can be flagged for the user for possible updates to an ontology for the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Jared Lorince
  • Patent number: 11334726
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is computer technology that applies natural language processing (NLP) techniques to training data to generate information used to train a natural language generation (NLG) system to produce output that stylistically resembles the training data. In this fashion, the NLG system can be readily trained with training data supplied by a user so that the NLG system is adapted to produce output that stylistically resembles such training data. In an example, an NLP system detects a plurality of linguistic features in the training data. These detected linguistic features are then aggregated into a specification data structure that is arranged for training the NLG system to produce natural language output that stylistically resembles the training data. Parameters in the specification data structure can be linked to objects in an ontology used by the NLG system to facilitate the training of the NLG system based on the detected linguistic features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2022
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Jared Lorince
  • Patent number: 11232270
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is computer technology that applies natural language processing (NLP) techniques to training data to generate information used to train a natural language generation (NLG) system to produce output that stylistically resembles the training data. In this fashion, the NLG system can be readily trained with training data supplied by a user so that the NLG system is adapted to produce output that stylistically resembles such training data. In an example, an NLP system detects a plurality of linguistic features in the training data. These detected linguistic features are then aggregated into a specification data structure that is arranged for training the NLG system to produce natural language output that stylistically resembles the training data. Parameters in the specification data structure can be linked to objects in an ontology used by the NLG system to facilitate the training of the NLG system based on the detected linguistic features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2022
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Jared Lorince
  • Patent number: 11182556
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an NLP system that is able to extract meaning from a natural language message using improved parsing techniques. Such an NLP system can be used in concert with an NLG system to interactively interpret messages and generate response messages in an interactive conversational stream. The parsing can include (1) named entity recognition that contextualizes the meanings of words in a message with reference to a knowledge base of named entities understood by the NLP and NLG systems, (2) syntactically parsing the message to determine a grammatical hierarchy for the named entities within the message, (3) reduction of recognized named entities into aggregations of named entities using the determined grammatical hierarchy and reduction rules to further clarify the message's meaning, and (4) mapping the reduced aggregation of named entities to an intent or meaning, wherein this intent/meaning can be used as control instructions for an NLG process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2021
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Maia Lewis Meza, Clayton Nicholas Norris, Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols
  • Patent number: 11126798
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an NLP system that is able to extract meaning from a natural language message using improved parsing techniques. Such an NLP system can be used in concert with an NLG system to interactively interpret messages and generate response messages in an interactive conversational stream. The parsing can include (1) named entity recognition that contextualizes the meanings of words in a message with reference to a knowledge base of named entities understood by the NLP and NLG systems, (2) syntactically parsing the message to determine a grammatical hierarchy for the named entities within the message, (3) reduction of recognized named entities into aggregations of named entities using the determined grammatical hierarchy and reduction rules to further clarify the message's meaning, and (4) mapping the reduced aggregation of named entities to an intent or meaning, wherein this intent/meaning can be used as control instructions for an NLG process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Maia Lewis Meza, Clayton Nicholas Norris, Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols
  • Patent number: 11042713
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is computer technology that applies natural language processing (NLP) techniques to training data to generate information used to train a natural language generation (NLG) system to produce output that stylistically resembles the training data. In this fashion, the NLG system can be readily trained with training data supplied by a user so that the NLG system is adapted to produce output that stylistically resembles such training data. In an example, an NLP system detects a plurality of linguistic features in the training data. These detected linguistic features are then aggregated into a specification data structure that is arranged for training the NLG system to produce natural language output that stylistically resembles the training data. Parameters in the specification data structure can be linked to objects in an ontology used by the NLG system to facilitate the training of the NLG system based on the detected linguistic features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 22, 2021
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENC INC.
    Inventors: Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Jared Lorince
  • Patent number: 11030408
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an NLP system that is able to extract meaning from a natural language message using improved parsing techniques. Such an NLP system can be used in concert with an NLG system to interactively interpret messages and generate response messages in an interactive conversational stream. The parsing can include (1) named entity recognition that contextualizes the meanings of words in a message with reference to a knowledge base of named entities understood by the NLP and NLG systems, (2) syntactically parsing the message to determine a grammatical hierarchy for the named entities within the message, (3) reduction of recognized named entities into aggregations of named entities using the determined grammatical hierarchy and reduction rules to further clarify the message's meaning, and (4) mapping the reduced aggregation of named entities to an intent or meaning, wherein this intent/meaning can be used as control instructions for an NLG process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2021
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Maia Lewis Meza, Clayton Nicholas Norris, Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols
  • Patent number: 10990767
    Abstract: Applied Artificial Intelligence Technology for Adaptive Natural Language Understanding Disclosed herein is computer technology that provides adaptive mechanisms for learning concepts that are expressed by natural language sentences, and then applies this learning to appropriately classify new natural language sentences with the relevant concept that they express.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Jared Lorince
  • Publication number: 20200334418
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is computer technology that applies natural language processing (NLP) techniques to training data to generate information used to train a natural language generation (NLG) system to produce output that stylistically resembles the training data. In this fashion, the NLG system can be readily trained with training data supplied by a user so that the NLG system is adapted to produce output that stylistically resembles such training data. In an example, an NLP system detects a plurality of linguistic features in the training data. These detected linguistic features are then aggregated into a specification data structure that is arranged for training the NLG system to produce natural language output that stylistically resembles the training data. Parameters in the specification data structure can be linked to objects in an ontology used by the NLG system to facilitate the training of the NLG system based on the detected linguistic features.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 30, 2020
    Publication date: October 22, 2020
    Inventors: Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Jared Lorince
  • Patent number: 10755046
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an NLP system that is able to extract meaning from a natural language message using improved parsing techniques. Such an NLP system can be used in concert with an NLG system to interactively interpret messages and generate response messages in an interactive conversational stream. The parsing can include (1) named entity recognition that contextualizes the meanings of words in a message with reference to a knowledge base of named entities understood by the NLP and NLG systems, (2) syntactically parsing the message to determine a grammatical hierarchy for the named entities within the message, (3) reduction of recognized named entities into aggregations of named entities using the determined grammatical hierarchy and reduction rules to further clarify the message's meaning, and (4) mapping the reduced aggregation of named entities to an intent or meaning, wherein this intent/meaning can be used as control instructions for an NLG process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Maia Lewis Meza, Clayton Nicholas Norris, Michael Justin Smathers, Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols
  • Patent number: 10706236
    Abstract: Applied Artificial Intelligence Technology for Using Natural Language Processing and Concept Expression Templates To Train a Natural Language Generation System Disclosed herein is computer technology that applies natural language processing (NLP) techniques to training data to generate information used to train a natural language generation (NLG) system to produce output that stylistically resembles the training data. In this fashion, the NLG system can be readily trained with training data supplied by a user so that the NLG system is adapted to produce output that stylistically resembles such training data. In an example, an NLP system detects a plurality of linguistic features in the training data. These detected linguistic features are then aggregated into a specification data structure that is arranged for training the NLG system to produce natural language output that stylistically resembles the training data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2020
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Daniel Joseph Platt, Nathan D. Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Jared Lorince
  • Publication number: 20200082276
    Abstract: Method and Apparatus for Triggering the Automatic Generation of Narratives Artificial intelligence methods and systems for triggering the generation of narratives are disclosed. Specific embodiments relate to real-time evaluation and automated generation of narrative stories based on received data. For example, data can be tested against data representative of a plurality of story angles to determine whether a narrative story incorporating one or more such story angles is to be automatically generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 18, 2019
    Publication date: March 12, 2020
    Inventors: Nathan Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Lawrence Birnbaum, Kristian Hammond, Lawrence E. Adams
  • Patent number: 10482381
    Abstract: Artificial intelligence methods and systems for triggering the generation of narratives are disclosed. Specific embodiments relate to real-time evaluation and automated generation of narrative stories based on received data. For example, data can be tested against data representative of a plurality of story angles to determine whether a narrative story incorporating one or more such story angles is to be automatically generated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2019
    Assignee: NARRATIVE SCIENCE INC.
    Inventors: Nathan Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Lawrence Birnbaum, Kristian Hammond, Lawrence E. Adams
  • Publication number: 20160086084
    Abstract: Artificial intelligence methods and systems for triggering the generation of narratives are disclosed. Specific embodiments relate to real-time evaluation and automated generation of narrative stories based on received data. For example, data can be tested against data representative of a plurality of story angles to determine whether a narrative story incorporating one or more such story angles is to be automatically generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 7, 2015
    Publication date: March 24, 2016
    Inventors: Nathan Nichols, Michael Justin Smathers, Lawrence Birnbaum, Kristian Hammond, Lawrence E. Adams