Patents by Inventor Kelly Winters

Kelly Winters 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: 10540692
    Abstract: A social networking system suggests deals relevant to a user. The deals are selected for suggestion based on social information associated with the user. Social information used for selecting candidate deals for a user includes information describing other users connected to the user and their associations with the candidate deals or with related deals, for example, deals from the same provider. Associations of connections of the user with the candidate deals may be determined based on actions associated with the candidate deals performed by the connections. The actions performed by the connections may be weighted based on types of the actions to determine a measure of relevance of the candidate deal for the user. Candidate deals are selected from a set of deals by applying deal targeting criteria received from deal providers. The deal targeting criteria specify attributes describing users to be targeted for a particular deal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2020
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, Emily Clark White, Evan Sharp
  • Patent number: 10504152
    Abstract: A social networking system acts as a platform for distributing deals from one or more deal providers. The users of the social networking system can interact with information describing the deals via a dashboard user interface provided by the social networking system. When users purchase deals on the social networking system's platform, the social networking system receives a portion of the deal price called the platform share and compensates the users for purchasing deals via the social networking system. The compensation may be funded from the revenue received by the social networking system for the purchases (the platform share). The compensation provided to a user may depend on social information associated with the user, such as the number of the user's connections also participating in the deal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Kelly Winters, Bo Hu, Emily Clark White, Koun Han
  • Patent number: 10346880
    Abstract: Social networking systems allow deal providers to provide social deals that require participation by users connected via the social networking system for activation. A social deal is activated for a user based on actions performed by other users connected to the user. The actions performed by a participant of the social deal include actions related to the social deal as well as actions related to objects associated with the social deal, for example, purchasing an item, associated, checking in to a location associated with the social deal, or recommending the social deal. The social networking system may suggest potential participants in the social deal for a user. The deal may be activated by performing actions of one or more type. A threshold number of actions of each type may be required for activating the deal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, Emily Clark White
  • Patent number: 9818129
    Abstract: One variation of a method for calculating advertisement effectiveness includes: posting an advertisement for a product to a social feed within a social networking system; tracking a view of the advertisement by a user; determining a proximity of the user to a store of a merchant; in accordance with a privacy setting of the user, selecting personal data of the user from data stored in the social networking system, the personal data including an identity of the user and an interest of the user; in response to the determined proximity of the user to the store, transmitting the selected personal data to the store; and, in response to a transaction between the user and the store, assessing an effectiveness of the advertisement according to a determined correlation between the transaction and the view of the advertisement by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2017
    Assignee: FACEBOOK, INC.
    Inventors: Abheek Anand, Neville Bowers, Ram Vaidyantathan, Sohan Mazumdar, Ted Zagat, Kelly Winters
  • Patent number: 9725861
    Abstract: A snow-to-slurry conversion apparatus can include a chassis, a collection device, a holding tank, a conveying system, and a spraying system. The collection device can be mounted on the chassis and extend between a collection inlet to a collection outlet. The holding tank can be mounted on the chassis. The holding tank can include a tank inlet and a tank outlet. The conveying system can extend between a conveying inlet communicating with the collection outlet and a conveying outlet communicating with the tank inlet. The spraying system can extend along the conveying system between the conveying inlet and the conveying outlet. The conveying system can extend along a tortured path and include a plurality of sections extending in opposite directions. The spraying system can include spray jets disposed along the plurality of sections extending in opposite directions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Inventors: Cam Winters, James Clark Hogan, Kelly Winters
  • Publication number: 20160369468
    Abstract: A snow-to-slurry conversion apparatus can include a chassis, a collection device, a holding tank, a conveying system, and a spraying system. The collection device can be mounted on the chassis and extend between a collection inlet to a collection outlet. The holding tank can be mounted on the chassis. The holding tank can include a tank inlet and a tank outlet. The conveying system can extend between a conveying inlet communicating with the collection outlet and a conveying outlet communicating with the tank inlet. The spraying system can extend along the conveying system between the conveying inlet and the conveying outlet. The conveying system can extend along a tortured path and include a plurality of sections extending in opposite directions. The spraying system can include spray jets disposed along the plurality of sections extending in opposite directions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 19, 2015
    Publication date: December 22, 2016
    Inventors: CAM WINTERS, JAMES CLARK HOGAN, KELLY WINTERS
  • Publication number: 20140278896
    Abstract: One variation of a method for calculating advertisement effectiveness includes: posting an advertisement for a product to a social feed within a social networking system; tracking a view of the advertisement by a user; determining a proximity of the user to a store of a merchant; in accordance with a privacy setting of the user, selecting personal data of the user from data stored in the social networking system, the personal data including an identity of the user and an interest of the user; in response to the determined proximity of the user to the store, transmitting the selected personal data to the store; and, in response to a transaction between the user and the store, assessing an effectiveness of the advertisement according to a determined correlation between the transaction and the view of the advertisement by the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: FACEBOOK, INC.
    Inventors: Abheek Anand, Neville Bowers, Ram Vaidyantathan, Sohan Mazumdar, Ted Zagat, Kelly Winters
  • Publication number: 20140040030
    Abstract: A mobile application enables an administrator of a page in a social networking system to manage the page from a mobile device, separate from a mobile application used to consume content on the social networking system. The administrator application may be used to post content on the page, add fans to the page, delete content posted by fans of the page, generate deals, manage advertising campaigns, and access real-time metrics and insights for the page. The administrator application may also enable a user to manage multiple pages that the user has been designated as an administrator. Loyalty programs may also be designed and implemented in real-time using the administrator application, enabling business owners to customize rewards for users generating check-in events at the place of business.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2012
    Publication date: February 6, 2014
    Inventors: Kelly Winters, Changhao Jiang, Yuankai Ge, Rohit Dhawan
  • Publication number: 20130179268
    Abstract: A social networking system suggests deals relevant to a user. The deals are selected for suggestion based on social information associated with the user. Social information used for selecting candidate deals for a user includes information describing other users connected to the user and their associations with the candidate deals or with related deals, for example, deals from the same provider. Associations of connections of the user with the candidate deals may be determined based on actions associated with the candidate deals performed by the connections. The actions performed by the connections may be weighted based on types of the actions to determine a measure of relevance of the candidate deal for the user. Candidate deals are selected from a set of deals by applying deal targeting criteria received from deal providers. The deal targeting criteria specify attributes describing users to be targeted for a particular deal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Publication date: July 11, 2013
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, Emily Clark White, Evan Sharp
  • Publication number: 20120259790
    Abstract: Social networking systems allow users to track deals offered by deal providers. A user can send a request to follow a deal to the social networking system. The social networking system sends information describing actions associated with the deal performed by other users connected to the user via the social networking system. The actions associated with the deals can be interactions of users with the deal or interactions of users with objects associated with the deal. Examples of interactions with a deal include liking the deal, commenting on the deal, and recommending the deal. Examples of interactions with objects associated with the deal include commenting on a business profile associated with the deal and being tagged in an image of a location associated with the deal. The social networking system may provide information describing these interactions via a channel used for reporting information, for example, newsfeed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 4, 2011
    Publication date: October 11, 2012
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, Evan Sharp, Emily Clark White
  • Publication number: 20120239494
    Abstract: Social networking systems determine price of a deal for a user based on social information associated with the user. For example, multiple users connected via the social networking system may participate in a deal. The price of a deal for a particular user may be determined based on the actions of that user to promote the deal and/or the deal's provider. A user may promote the deal or its provider, for example, by sending explicit messages describing the deal to the user's connections or by posting to a newsfeed that is sent by the social networking system on behalf of the user to the user's connections. Factors considered in determining a price of a deal may include information describing the connections of the user, the actions associated with the deal performed by the user, the connections of the user participating in the deal, and the locations of the user's connections.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 22, 2011
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, David Ferguson, Emily Clark White
  • Publication number: 20120239466
    Abstract: Social networking systems allow deal providers to provide social deals that require participation by users connected via the social networking system for activation. A social deal is activated for a user based on actions performed by other users connected to the user. The actions performed by a participant of the social deal include actions related to the social deal as well as actions related to objects associated with the social deal, for example, purchasing an item, associated, checking in to a location associated with the social deal, or recommending the social deal. The social networking system may suggest potential participants in the social deal for a user. The deal may be activated by performing actions of one or more type. A threshold number of actions of each type may be required for activating the deal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, Emily Clark White
  • Publication number: 20120239485
    Abstract: Social networking systems create representations of events associated with deals and populate attributes of the event based on information associated with the deal. Examples of attributes populated based on the deal include location for the event, potential participants for the event, or time for the event. The deal can be a social deal that is activated by participation of multiple users of the social networking system. The social networking system synchronizes potential or actual participants for the event with potential or actual participants of the social deal. The social networking system identifies events represented in the social networking system that are associated with the deal and suggests possible interactions with the entities to users associated with the deal. For example, the social networking system may request the user to become member of a social group associated with the deal, or purchase another deal associated with the current deal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 4, 2011
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Evan Sharp, Kelly Winters
  • Publication number: 20120239467
    Abstract: A social networking system acts as a platform for distributing deals from one or more deal providers. The users of the social networking system can interact with information describing the deals via a dashboard user interface provided by the social networking system. When users purchase deals on the social networking system's platform, the social networking system receives a portion of the deal price called the platform share and compensates the users for purchasing deals via the social networking system. The compensation may be funded from the revenue received by the social networking system for the purchases (the platform share). The compensation provided to a user may depend on social information associated with the user, such as the number of the user's connections also participating in the deal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Kelly Winters, Bo Hu, Emily Clark White, Koun Han
  • Publication number: 20120239505
    Abstract: Social networking systems allow users to initiate a deal associated with a provider. A user sends a deal proposal to the social networking system and provides information describing connections of the user that are potential participants of the deal. The social networking system may propose potential participants of the deal to the user. The social networking system determines whether the proposal is acceptable to the provider. The social networking system may send a request to the provider to determine whether the deal is acceptable to the provider. If the proposal is acceptable to the provider, information indicating acceptance of the proposal is sent to the user. If the proposal is not acceptable to the provider, a modified deal proposal may be sent to the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 23, 2011
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, David Ferguson, Emily Clark White
  • Publication number: 20120239495
    Abstract: A social networking system suggests deals relevant to a user. The deals are selected for suggestion based on social information associated with the user. Deals presented to the user are categorized based on social information associated with the user including actions taken by connections of the user. Deals that are closely associated with each other based on social information are presented together via a user interface. For a particular deal, social information relevant to that deal is presented, including connections associated with the deal, social groups, social events, images, as well as other deals. Presentation of deals and information associated with the deals in a social context increases the likelihood of the user getting interested in the deal and performing actions related to the deal, for example, purchasing the deal or recommending the deal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Bo Hu, Kelly Winters, Evan Sharp, Emily Clark White