US 9,882,849 B2Granted

Action assignment and tracking functionality for email

AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation

InventorsSamuel Mathew Jawaharlal, Bala Priyadarshini Muralidharan, Arunachalam Narayanan, Sathya Santhar, Balamurugaramanathan Sivaramalingam

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Abstract

In an approach to action assignment and tracking, a computer receives a first email from a first computing device, where the first email includes at least one action assigned by a sender of the first email to at least one recipient of the first email. The computer determines whether the sender specified a due date for the action. The computer determines whether the sender specified one or more time intervals for a status update of the action. In response to determining the sender specified at least one of a due date for the action and one or more time intervals for a status update of the action, the computer initiates a timer. In response to determining the sender specified one or more time intervals for a status update of the action, the computer provides a status of the action to the sender at the one or more time intervals.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A method for action assignment and tracking, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving, by one or more computer processors, a first email from a first computing device wherein the first email includes at least one action assigned by a sender of the first email to at least one recipient of the first email;
determining, by the one or more computer processors, whether the sender specified a due date for the at least one action;
determining, by the one or more computer processors, whether the sender specified one or more time intervals for a status update of the at least one action;
responsive to determining the sender specified at least one of the due date for the at least one action and the one or more time intervals for a status update of the at least one action, initiating, by the one or more computer processors, a timer;
responsive to determining the at least one action includes the due date, determining, by the one or more computer processors, whether the at least one recipient is available;
responsive to determining the at least one recipient is not available, determining, by the one or more computer processors, whether the at least one recipient will be available prior to the due date of the at least one action;
responsive to determining the at least one recipient is not available prior to the due date of the at least one action, notifying, by the one or more computer processors, via a short messaging service message, the at least one recipient that the first email is sent;
and
responsive to determining the sender specified the one or more time intervals for the status update of the at least one action, providing, by the one or more computer processors, a status of the at least one action to the sender at the one or more time intervals.

6 more elements

A computer program product for action assignment and tracking, the computer program product comprising:

one or more computer readable storage media and program instructions stored on the one or more computer readable storage media, the program instructions comprising:
program instructions to receive a first email from a first computing device wherein the first email includes at least one action assigned by a sender of the first email to at least one recipient of the first email;
program instructions to determine whether the sender specified a due date for the at least one action;
program instructions to determine whether the sender specified one or more time intervals for a status update of the at least one action;
responsive to determining the sender specified at least one of the due date for the at least one action and the one or more time intervals for a status update of the at least one action, program instructions to initiate a timer;
responsive to determining the at least one action includes the due date, program instructions to determine whether the at least one recipient is available;
responsive to determining the at least one recipient is not available, program instructions to determine whether the at least one recipient will be available prior to the due date of the at least one action;
responsive to determining the at least one recipient is not available prior to the due date of the at least one action, program instructions to notify via a short messaging service message, the at least one recipient that the first email is sent;
and
responsive to determining the sender specified the one or more time intervals for the status update of the at least one action, program instructions to provide a status of the at least one action to the sender at the one or more time intervals.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/659,900Filed 17 Mar 2015
Published: US 2016/0277330 A122 Sep 2016
Granted: 30 Jan 2018
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification5 codes

H04L 51/08
Characterised by the inclusion of specific contents: annexed information, e.g. attachments
H04L 51/18
Characterised by the inclusion of specific contents: commands or executable codes
H04L 51/234
Monitoring or handling of messages: for tracking messages
H04L 51/02
User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail: using…

Family

US 2016/0277330 A1Pre-grant publication · published 22 Sep 2016
US 9,882,849 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

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