Patent Publication Number: US-2006004727-A1

Title: Text message system

Description:
The invention relates to a method for collecting information by text messages. The invention also relates to an arrangement for collecting information by text messages and a terminal device in which the arrangement is located.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      The text message function commonly included in mobile stations enables simple communication between the parties either by messages which are separately notified or in chat form. A drawback of using ordinary text messages is the fact that when a message received is related to a former message, this relationship is not always directly appeared. In addition, the message received can be an inadequately formulated reply to an inquiry containing several options, in such way that the desired information is not reliably obtained from the reply. Such drawbacks are emphasized in a terminal device in which the message traffic is heavy. It would be helpful if the message automatically would refer to a certain former message when required. Naturally, such referring presumes suitable identifiers in the messages. True, the text messages include a message-specific identifier, but it is only used within the network to control the proceeding of the message. Such identifiers cannot be used for references between the messages or for creating other interaction taking place in the terminal device. In addition, communication of the question-and-answer type has the drawback that the content of the message has a free form, in which case the device does not recognize separate questions or answers from the text content. In communication between several people, the system has the drawback that it is not directly seen from the messages who are participating in the conversation, and how each participant has participated in the conversation.  
      In the Internet world, many addresses and identifiers of different levels are included in the heading of the messages to be transmitted. From there we know open text message systems are known, in which a person can join a user group. Messages can be sent to the group for reading, and they can be answered. An e-mail program in the user&#39;s own computer shows which messages are still unread. The system can group the messages on the basis of their subjects into message threads, which facilitates showing related messages to the user. However, such a system is not very suitable for a query-type communication situation, in which answers to questions are collected from a certain group of people. The system also requires a server connected to the network, which saves the messages in its register and also maintains it otherwise.  
       FIG. 1  is an exemplary flow chart showing how a known text message system is used for collecting information from a plurality of people. In the preliminary stage, the person implementing the query draws up the question(s) and decides on the target persons. In step  101 , a text message containing the question is sent to selected persons&#39; terminal device, in most cases a mobile phone. In step  102 , reply messages come from the recipients of the query message. In step  103 , the person carrying out the query reads reply messages and manually copies the essential information from them on paper or into a computer. In step  104  it is checked whether the information gathered is sufficient and corresponding to the current situation. If not, the steps  101  to  103  are repeated until the gathered information is satisfactory.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      The object of the invention is to reduce said prior art drawbacks by implementing an interactive text message system utilizing query-specific identifiers in terminal devices. The method according to the invention is characterized in what is set forth in the independent claim  1 . The arrangement according to the invention is characterized in what is set forth in the independent claim  5 , and the terminal device in what is set forth in the independent claim  8 . Some preferred embodiments of the invention are set forth in the other claims.  
      The basic idea of the invention is the following: A query-specific identifier is included in a text message requiring a reply. Replying takes place by accepting or rejecting options mentioned in the received query message, and the same query-specific identifier is automatically included in the reply message. When the reply message has arrived, a program in the terminal of the originator of the query updates a table based on the original message for the replier&#39;s part in accordance with the acceptance information in the reply. When the query message is sent to more than one recipients, all reply messages cause the same table to be updated. The sender of the query messages can read the reply messages in the normal manner, and through the reply message or the original message he can also pass to reading the content of the table, or a summary of the replies.  
      An advantage of the invention is that the management of the information contained in the reply messages is improved as compared to the use of the known text message systems: Inadequate answers, at which it is uncertain what they are related to, do not occur, and the reply information need not be collected manually on paper or into a computer. Instead, the essential information is seen in compressed form in a specific table. The information in the table is also always up to date, even if the group to which the query is directed were large and the query process continued in a plurality of steps. In addition, the invention has the advantage that the system according to it can be implemented by relatively few additions to existing text message programs of mobile stations without a database in a separate server. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      In the following, the invention will be described in more detail. Reference will be made to the accompanying drawings, in which  
       FIG. 1  presents an exemplary flow chart of a prior art method for collecting information by text messages,  
       FIG. 2  presents an exemplary flow chart of the method according to the invention for collecting information by text messages,  
       FIG. 3  presents the principle of the operation according to the invention as a time chart,  
       FIG. 4  presents one of the operations according to the invention as a sequence diagram  
       FIG. 5  presents an exemplary layer diagram of the arrangement according to the invention for the part of one terminal device, and  
       FIG. 6  presents an example of the terminal device according to the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       FIG. 1  was already explained in connection with the description of the prior art.  
       FIG. 2  is an exemplary flow chart of the method according to the invention for collecting information by text messages. In the preliminary stage, the question(s) and the reply options are drawn up, the target persons are decided and this information is given to the software of the text message system. The steps of the method only concern program functions in terminal devices, or terminals, participating in the process. In step  201  of the method, a table is formed for the information to be collected. The question-specific table is e.g. two-dimensional; one variable is the target person of the query and the other one is the reply option. In step  202 , the original query message is formed. In this message is included an identifier, which is specific to the query, i.e. common to all the messages belonging to the information collecting process. In addition, in the original query message are included said reply options and a link to said table. Next, the query message is sent to the terminals of selected target persons, step  203 . If a target person opens the received query message, he has a possibility to make selections from the options included therein. The person can accept one or more option or reject them all. Accepting takes place, for example, by taking the cursor on top of the option and by pressing the OK key. The person then need not write anything. The program prepares the reply message according to the selections (step  204 ). The reply message is similar to the query message with its identifier, only the reply information has been added. In step  205 , the terminal program that sent the query message receives a reply message and finds the query-specific identifier in it. On the basis of this, the reply information in the reply message is transferred to the table at the name of the replier, step  206 . Steps  205  and  206  are repeated according to step  207  always when a new reply message comes from a target person. Before step  208 , the person carrying out the query checks whether the information gathered is sufficient and corresponding to the current situation. If not, the query message is possibly edited for re-transmission. In that case the program moves back to step  203 .  
      The link to the table in the query message is also utilized when reading the reply information contained by the table. When the query message is opened, the program shows the link to the user e.g. as a text “See the summary” on the upper or lower edge of the message. When this link is selected by the cursor, the program brings to the display the table, from which the overall situation of the query can be seen at one glance. The same link is also seen when the reply message is opened. As an alternative, the program arranges the table as a part of the actual query message itself so that the table is seen at once when the message is opened.  
      The query-specific identifier can be a consecutive number, a number based on time, a random number or a number selected on some other basis. In addition to that, among other things, an identifier unique to the transmitting terminal, such as a telephone number, is included in the original message as the address of the reply messages. The identifiers are placed in the heading or some other part of the message. As an example, the original message could be like the following in XML (eXtensible Mark-up Language):  
                                  &lt;message&gt;       &lt;identifier type=“original”&gt;                         &lt;device_id type=“phone_number”&gt;+3585551234&lt;/device_id&gt;           &lt;inquiry_id&gt;2412200314250002&lt;/message_id&gt;                 &lt;/identifier&gt;       &lt;parameter type=“select”&gt;                  
 
      Select the meeting days suitable for you from the following:  
                                                  &lt;option&gt;15.9.&lt;/option&gt;           &lt;option&gt;21.9.&lt;/option&gt;           &lt;option&gt;24.9.&lt;/option&gt;                         &lt;/parameter&gt;           &lt;message&gt;                      
 
      In addition to said identifiers, a question in the form of a request here and its reply options have been presented in it. In the example, the object of the option, or parameter, is the date of the planned meeting. The request sentence and the alternative dates are seen in the received and opened message. Let us assume that the replier selects the date 24.9. In that case, the description of the exemplary reply message is the following:  
                                                  &lt;message&gt;           &lt;identifier type=“reply”&gt;                         &lt;device_id type=“phone_number”&gt;deviceA&lt;/device_id&gt;           &lt;inquiry_id&gt;2412200314250002&lt;/message_id&gt;           &lt;reply_device_id type=“phone_number”&gt;deviceB&lt;/reply_device_id&gt;                         &lt;/identifier&gt;           &lt;parameter type=“select”&gt;                      
 
      Select the meeting days suitable for you from the following:  
                                                  &lt;option&gt;15.9.&lt;/option&gt;           &lt;option&gt;21.9.&lt;/option&gt;           &lt;option selected&gt;24.9.&lt;/option&gt;                         &lt;/parameter&gt;           &lt;/message&gt;                      
 
      It is seen from the description that the text message program of the replier&#39;s terminal also adds the telephone number of the replier&#39;s terminal (“device B”) to the reply message. As opened, the core part of the reply message is seen on the terminal of the originator of the query like the following, for example. The name of the replier is naturally found by the program from the normal list made by the user. 
          Active message:     original sent 2.7.2004     “Select the meeting days suitable for you from the following”    Pete selected the date 24.9.        

      If the originator of the query passes to check the overall situation by using the summary link, the view is like the following, for example:  
                                                       15.9.   21.9.   24.9.                                                            Aksu   x   o   x           Vesa   x   x   o           Tuuli   o   o   o           Pete   o   o   x           Harri   —   —   —           .           .           .                      
 
      Of the other repliers of the example, The dates 15 September and 24 September suit Aksu, and the dates 15 September and 21 September suit Vesa. None of the dates offered suit for Tuuli, and Harri has not answered yet.  
      The table can also be one-dimensional, containing only the reply option as a variable. In that case, the table is updated so that an acceptance mark in the reply message increases the number of votes for the option in question. In this case, the summary view is like the following:  
                                                       15.9.   21.9.   24.9.                                                            votes   7   2   5                      
 
      The summary could also be shown more simply so that the program only notifies of the option that received the largest number of votes and the number of votes it received. The program can include, as an extension, a result monitoring part, which automatically sends a notification of the end of the query to the participants, if, for example, the number of votes of an option has reached a predetermined limit. It is also possible to set an automatic time limit for taking the replies into consideration.  
       FIG. 3  shows a simple sequence diagram of the principle of the operation according to the invention. The originator of the query uses terminal A and a selected target of the query uses terminal B. The original query message addressed to terminal B and containing a query-specific identifier i leaves from terminal A. The user of terminal B opens the message received and makes selections in it required by the subject matter proper of the message. After this, terminal B forms a reply message and sends the identifier to terminal A. Terminal A finds the identifier i in the reply message and updates the content of the table referred to by the identifier by the reply information found in the reply message.  
       FIG. 4  shows an exemplary sequence diagram of a functionality according to the invention, in which a person being a target of the query extends the query to a new person. The originator of the query uses terminal A and a selected target of the query uses terminal B. The original query message addressed to terminal B and containing a query-specific identifier leaves terminal A. This identifier is also included in all the following messages. The user of terminal B opens the message received and makes selections in it required by the subject matter proper of the message. After this, terminal B forms a reply message and sends it to terminal A. Terminal A finds a query-specific identifier in the reply message and updates the content of the table referred to by the identifier by the reply information found in the reply message. In the diagram, this function is marked as “update 1”. In this example, the user of terminal B has a suitable new target person in mind to be joined to the query. He/she opens again the original message received and addresses it to the new target person. Terminal B sends the message as an unchanged forward message to new target person&#39;s terminal C. In addition, terminal B automatically sends a notification of the forward message to terminal A. This notification message includes information of the new target person, on the basis of which terminal A adds a new name to the table referred to by the query-specific identifier. In the diagram, this function is marked as “update 2”. The user of terminal C opens the message received and makes selections in it required by the subject matter proper of the message. After this, terminal C forms a reply message and sends it to terminal B. Terminal B finds a query-specific identifier in the reply message and forwards the message automatically to terminal A. Alternatively, the user of terminal B, after opening a reply message from terminal C, manually starts the forward sending. Terminal A finds a query-specific identifier in this second reply message again and updates the content of the table referred to by the identifier by the reply information found in the reply message. In the chart, this function is marked as “update 3”. Terminal B sends an ending message more to terminal A to notify it that no more reply messages are coming. Terminal A updates the status information of the process on the basis of the ending message. In the chart, this function is marked as “update 4”.  
       FIG. 5  shows an exemplary layer diagram of the arrangement according to the invention for the part of one terminal device. As a “bottom layer” in the figure is the physical part of the terminal device containing the arrangement. The physical part includes, among other things, the memory  501  of the device, in which the software of the device has been stored. Of the software, the operating system  510  of the device, an interface  512  and the text message programs  520  are seen in the figure. The interface is an adaptator program, through which the text message programs use the operating system services. The text message programs are divided into a known part  521  and parts  525 ,  526  according to the invention. Of the last mentioned, part  525  is function code and part  526  includes the messages formed during the information collecting process and a table in which query-specific information is stored in a centralized manner. The function code includes a program which implements the storing by updating the table by the reply information being located in the received messages. In addition, the function code has a portion which brings the table to the display of the device when a message belonging to the information collecting process is opened. Furthermore, the function code includes, among other things, a number generator for including in the query message to be sent a query-specific identifier, and an identifying part noticing detector for detecting a query-specific identifier in a received message.  
       FIG. 6  shows an example of a terminal device, which has an arrangement according to the invention. The terminal device MS has a memory  501  mentioned in the description of  FIG. 5 , which again includes the software according to the invention.  
      A method and arrangement for collecting information by text messages has been described above. The invention is not limited to the matters just explained. For example, the text message containing a question or an answer can be the text part of a multimedia message instead of an ordinary text message. The invention can be applied in different ways within the limits set by the independent claims  1 ,  5  and  8 .