Patents Examined by Beth V. Boswell
  • Patent number: 9811793
    Abstract: A system for information technology (IT) process management. The system comprises a processor, one or more memory storage devices coupled to the processor, and a document composer tool comprising a plurality of enterprise use case documents to locate an enterprise use case document relevant to an IT project based on input keywords and to link an enterprise use case document to at least one relevant enterprise business process document when an enterprise use case document is updated, wherein an enterprise use case document comprises a link referring to at least one enterprise business process document. The system further comprises an enterprise business process repository stored in at least one of the memory storage devices comprising a plurality of enterprise business process documents, wherein an enterprise business process document comprises a set of steps to accomplish a specific organizational goal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignee: Sprint Communications Company L.P.
    Inventors: Patrick M. O'Kane, Hanumantha R. Saripalli
  • Patent number: 9805316
    Abstract: A planning system (201) for scheduling the operation of autonomous entities within a defined geographical region. The planning system operates at a region plan level (301) for strategic planning across the geographical region, at an operation plan level (302) for operations to be performed by autonomous entities in localized zones having operation-defined geographical boundaries, and at a task plan level (303) in which processing is undertaken in respect of specific tasks to be performed by the autonomous entities, in undertaking the operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignee: The University of Sydney
    Inventors: Eric Nettleton, Ross Hennessy, Hugh Durrant-Whyte, Ali Haydar Göktogan
  • Patent number: 9805388
    Abstract: Monetizing on-line communications includes: assigning a price to become a buddy of a publisher in an on-line chat board; advertising the price to prospective subscribers of the publisher; receiving a bid from a prospective subscriber; and transmitting the bid offer to the publisher such that the publisher can accept or decline the bid offer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignee: EXCALIBUR IP, LLC.
    Inventor: Rekha Joshi
  • Patent number: 9798988
    Abstract: A method, computer program product, and system for selecting collaborators is described. A set of candidates for collaboration with an initiator is received. Initial contact scores for one or more member of the set of candidates are determined based upon, at least in part, one or more of initial availability and initial willingness. An initial ranking order for the set of candidates is determined. A member is selected from the set based upon, at least in part, the initial ranking order. An invitation to collaborate is provided to the selected member. If the invitation is accepted, a communication channel connection is established between the initiator and the selected member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: James P. Galvin, Jr., Andrew L. Schirmer
  • Patent number: 9799043
    Abstract: Systems and methods for an accredited advisor management are provided. First information enabling unique identification of a first advisor may be processed. The first advisor may be matched to a first category of advising services. Input from the first advisor may be processed based at least in part on the first category. Data sources corresponding to accrediting authorities may be selected. Credential information that came electronically from the data sources may be processed. A first set of advisor information may be consolidated at least partially based on the input and on the credential information. A second set of advisor information may be prepared for exposure to advisees. At least part of the second set of advisor information may be transmitted to an end-user communication device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: YP LLC
    Inventor: Mehul Jain
  • Patent number: 9798989
    Abstract: A method, computer program product, and system for selecting collaborators is described. A set of candidates for collaboration with an initiator is received. Initial contact scores for one or more member of the set of candidates are determined based upon, at least in part, one or more of initial availability and initial willingness. An initial ranking order for the set of candidates is determined. A member is selected from the set based upon, at least in part, the initial ranking order. An invitation to collaborate is provided to the selected member. If the invitation is accepted, a communication channel connection is established between the initiator and the selected member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: James P. Galvin, Jr., Andrew L. Schirmer
  • Patent number: 9792565
    Abstract: A technique for determining and presenting marketing scenarios based on market characteristics are described herein. The technique includes receiving data regarding market environment and an expected change in the market environment. A number of market characteristics are calculated based on the collected data for a number of alternative marketing scenarios for addressing the change. A number of graphical objects corresponding to the marketing scenarios are displayed in a coordinate system to show correlation between a number of selected market characteristics. A number of additional components are assigned to the graphical objects to indicate additional characteristics of the presented marketing scenarios.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: SAP SE
    Inventors: Andreas Vogel, Zhe Pu, Hariharan Vijayaraghavan
  • Patent number: 9785898
    Abstract: Systems and methods for determining product arrangement are provided. The method includes: receiving one or more images, the one or more images reflecting a retail arrangement of at least one product, processing, with a processor executing code, the one or more images to: (a) identify the at least one product, and (b) determine the retail arrangement of the at least one product, computing, based on (a) an identification of the at least one product and (b) a determination of a retail arrangement of the at least one product, one or more performance indicators, the one or more performance indicators reflecting compliance with one or more retail arrangement guidelines established with respect to the at least one product, and providing feedback based on the one or more performance indicators. Other embodiments of the various aspects include corresponding systems, apparatus, and computer program products.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2017
    Assignee: Hi-Tech Solutions Ltd.
    Inventors: Yoram Hofman, Meta Rotenberg
  • Patent number: 9779375
    Abstract: Aspects described herein relate to a flexible order fulfillment management system that utilizes predefined fulfillment workflows including common business processes. By utilizing predefined workflows including common business processes, the order fulfillment management system is able to drive store-based fulfillment programs efficiently as multiple fulfillment workflows may utilize the same common business processes and a single fulfillment management system may operate workflows in parallel. In addition, such an order fulfillment management system may also be more easily adapted for different retail store environments as the system allows a designer to easily create or modify a fulfillment workflow by selecting predefined common business processes or creating any additional custom business processes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
    Inventors: Vadim Grabovski, Larry Christopher Venable, John Kevin Collier
  • Patent number: 9760900
    Abstract: A computer determines an RFM score for each of a plurality of contacts, each RFM score comprising a recency score, a frequency score and a monetary score respectively based on assigning recency values, frequency values, and monetary values of the plurality of contacts to groups. The computer generates trend factors, wherein the trend factors are based on the monetary values and timestamps of each of a plurality of transactions for each contact of the plurality of contacts. The computer generates a mean trend factor, based on the trend factors generated for each of the plurality of transactions for each contact of the plurality of contacts, and determines, by one or more processors, a trend adjusted RFM (tRFM) score based on applying the mean trend factor to at least one of the recency score, the frequency score, and the monetary score, for each contact of the plurality of contacts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Mohit Sewak
  • Patent number: 9760898
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus to detect engagement with media presented on a wearable media device are disclosed. An example method includes determining a degree of opacity of a media presentation displayed on a wearable media device; and calculating an engagement score for media presented via the media presentation based on the degree of opacity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLC
    Inventors: Jan Besehanic, Arun Ramaswamy
  • Patent number: 9754276
    Abstract: A method for providing a promotion to a user to do commerce at a physical location includes offering a right to a particular piece of digital content to the user as an incentive to a commercial transaction that occurs at least partly at the physical location, discerning that the user is located at the physical location, and in response to the discerning, interacting with the user to provide the digital content to the user on a mobile device associated with the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: PAYPAL INC.
    Inventor: German Carlos Scipioni
  • Patent number: 9754313
    Abstract: A system for mobile devices that facilitates the creation and dissemination of user interest surveys to a plurality of mobile devices and PCs/laptops that comprise a user interest survey client component. A computer or PC comprising an user interest survey generator is used to generate audio assisted user interest surveys and communicate it to a distribution server for dissemination. Recipient devices, such as PCs and Mobile devices comprise an user interest survey client component to receive and present user interest survey to a user, gather user interest information, and to send it back to the distribution server or an alternate destination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: QUALTRICS, LLC
    Inventor: Bindu Rama Rao
  • Patent number: 9740991
    Abstract: Metrics are calculated from information acquired during execution of transactions for transactions that cannot be identified during execution. In-flight or execution related metrics are grouped by transaction type and time period. The transaction name is associated with the metrics once the transaction has completed, and data is reported for the time period once all transactions executing in that time period have completed. When a transaction has completed execution, in-flight metrics may be determined for the transaction for each time period in which other transactions executing in that time period have completed. When all transactions executing during a particular time period are complete, the in-flight metrics for transactions executing during that time period are determined and stored. The in-flight metrics may include concurrency, stalls and other data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: CA, Inc.
    Inventor: David Isaiah Seidman
  • Patent number: 9727838
    Abstract: A system to be installed on a merchandising unit having one or more inventory zones, one or more units of product, one or more product sensors, a mounting structure, and an electromagnetic signal processor. The one or more inventory zones can present the one or more units of product in several different arrangements. The one or more product sensors, each at least associated operatively with one of the one or more inventory zones, converts a sensed quantity of the one or more units of product into a respective analog electromagnetic signal. The mounting structure secures the one or more product sensors to the merchandising unit relative to the one or more units of product so that the one or more product sensors sense a quantity of the one or more units of product. The electromagnetic signal processor in communication with the one or more product sensors can sample output from the one or more product sensors periodically and converts the analog signal into a digital signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: Triangle Strategy Group, LLC
    Inventor: Patrick Campbell
  • Patent number: 9727832
    Abstract: A method, non-transitory computer readable medium, and a mobile computing device comprises obtaining one or more databases from one or more sources; identifying one or more items in the obtained one or more databases; determining a fee for the identified one or more items based on one or more fee setting parameters; and generating a work-order in real-time based on the determined fee.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: Profit Strategies, Inc.
    Inventors: James W. D'Amico, Paul M. Baccaro, Matthew Smith
  • Patent number: 9720731
    Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for allocation of resources under the control of resource managers and the choice and coordination of resource acquisition protocols to communicate with these resource managers. The resource managers may be distributed and heterogeneous. For example, a technique for use by a service provider for allocating one or more resources from multiple resources associated with multiple resource managers based on at least one service agreement offer from a service client comprises the following steps/operations. At least one service agreement offer is obtained. A resource allocation is automatically determined based on the obtained service agreement offer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Asit Dan, Henner Gimpel, Heiko Ludwig
  • Patent number: 9715693
    Abstract: An exemplary method for distributing an offer to a mobile device includes identifying a location of a first mobile device, identifying offer preferences for a user of the first mobile device, and distributing the offer to the first mobile device. The offer is an offer for the purchase of goods or services, the offer meets the offer preferences of the user of the first mobile device, and the offer is encoded with a first offer identifier corresponding to the user of the first mobile device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: MASTERCARD INTERNATIONAL INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Peter D. Kaulbach, Mostafa Sabet, Joshua Kessler, Stephen Toner, Stephen Hendrix, Matthew Richard Stocke, Adam Kenneth Hosp
  • Patent number: 9697556
    Abstract: The invention synthesizes a social network, an electronic commerce (including a performance based advertisement and electronic payment), a mobile internet device and a machine learning algorithm(s). The synthesized social commerce further dynamically integrates stored information, real time information and real time information/data/image(s) from an object/array of objects. The machine learning algorithm(s) can include a software agent, a fuzzy logic algorithm, a predictive algorithm, an intelligence rendering algorithm and a self-learning (including relearning) algorithm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2017
    Inventors: Mohammad A. Mazed, Sayeeda Mazed
  • Patent number: 9692657
    Abstract: A connected directed graphical representation of a process model that includes a plurality of process nodes and interconnections between the process nodes of the process model is displayed. A user selection of a subset of the process nodes of the displayed connected directed graphical representation of the process model is received. A process scope definition represented as at least one begin-end node pair is computed. The at least one begin-end node pair is usable to identify all selected nodes and interconnection path links that are reachable in a traversal from a begin node to an end node of each of the at least one begin-end node pair of the received user selection of the subset of the process nodes. The computed process scope definition is stored.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Allen V. C. Chan, Tak S. Chau, Phil S. Coulthard, Hans-Arno Jacobsen, Vinod Muthusamy