IP Verse

Bot Group Messaging Using General Voice Libraries

Patent No. US10897433 (titled "Bot Group Messaging Using General Voice Libraries") was filed by Orion Labs Tech Llc on Mar 27, 2018.

What is this patent about?

’433 is related to the field of group messaging and, more specifically, to systems and methods for integrating software bots into group messaging environments. The background acknowledges the increasing use of bots to automate tasks and provide services over the internet, including communication via instant messaging and voice-activated personal assistants. The patent addresses the need for improved messaging services that allow users to interact with both user-oriented and group-oriented bots within group messaging platforms.

The underlying idea behind ’433 is to enable seamless integration of bots into group messaging services, allowing users to interact with these bots using voice commands. The system receives a voice message from a user, converts it into text using a voice library (speech-to-text engine and natural language unit), and then sends the text to a bot for processing. The bot performs a task based on the text and sends a reply back to the group messaging service, which then relays the reply to the user and other members of the group.

The claims of ’433 focus on a method, a memory device, and a computing system that perform the following steps: receiving a voice message from a user in a group, selecting a voice library to convert the audio into enhanced text, processing the audio to produce the enhanced text, sending the enhanced text to a bot, receiving a reply from the bot indicating completion of a request, and sending a group reply to the user and other members of the group. The claims emphasize the use of a voice library with both speech-to-text and natural language processing capabilities.

In practice, a user speaks a command into their device, which is then transmitted as recorded audio to a group messaging service. The service identifies the intended bot and selects an appropriate voice library to transcribe and interpret the audio. The resulting enhanced text, representing the user's request, is then forwarded to the bot. The bot executes the request, potentially interacting with external commercial services, and sends a confirmation back to the group messaging service. This confirmation is then relayed to the user and other group members, informing them of the request's completion.

This approach differentiates itself from prior solutions by providing a structured way to integrate bots into group messaging, particularly with voice input. Instead of relying on direct text input or simple keyword recognition, the system uses a voice library to perform natural language understanding , allowing for more complex and nuanced interactions. Furthermore, the concept of shared and per-user bots allows for flexible bot configurations, catering to different group and individual needs, and enabling integration with commercial services for tasks like order management and financial transactions.

How does this patent fit in bigger picture?

Technical landscape at the time

In the late 2010s when ’433 was filed, at a time when bot-based platforms were gaining traction, systems commonly relied on voice-activated services to provide consumer-oriented services. Hardware or software constraints made it non-trivial to create messaging services that allowed groups of users to interact with both user-oriented bots as well as group-oriented bots.

Novelty and Inventive Step

The examiner allowed the application because they considered the applicant's arguments and amendments filed on 08/11/2020 to be persuasive. The examiner determined that the claimed invention is patentably distinct from the prior art of record.

Claims

This patent contains 20 claims, with independent claims 1, 10, and 17. The independent claims are generally directed to a method, a memory device, and a computing system for processing audio messages within a group messaging service using voice libraries and bot interactions. The dependent claims generally elaborate on and refine the specifics of the method, memory device, and computing system described in the independent claims.

Key Claim Terms New

Definitions of key terms used in the patent claims.

Term (Source)Support for SpecificationInterpretation
Bot software application member node
(Claim 1, Claim 10, Claim 17)		“In an implementation, a method may include one or more of receiving, by a group messaging service coupled to the internet and a group including one or more user nodes, a message including recorded audio, a message address and a first group identifier, and determining that the group includes a bot, the bot including a software application for performing one or more tasks over the internet.”A software application that is a member of a group and performs one or more tasks over the internet.
Enhanced text
(Claim 1, Claim 10, Claim 17)		“The method may also include selecting a voice library to process the recorded audio, processing, by the selected voice library, the recorded audio to produce enhanced text, determining whether the bot is a user bot responsive to a user node in the group or a group bot responsive to each of the one or more user nodes, and sending, by the group messaging service, the enhanced text to the determined user bot or group bot.”Text produced by processing recorded audio using a voice library, comprising the request from the user node, and in a format suited to processing by the bot.
Group messaging service
(Claim 1, Claim 10, Claim 17)		“With increasing interest in bot-based platforms and internet ease of use, it is desirable to create a new generation of messaging services that allow groups of users to interact with both user-oriented bots as well as group-oriented bots. The present disclosure provides advantages for bot environments. Methods, apparatuses, and computing systems are provided for bot messaging.”A service that manages audio messaging between a plurality of user nodes in a group.
Group reply
(Claim 1, Claim 10, Claim 17)		“In an implementation, a method may include one or more of receiving, by a group messaging service coupled to the internet and a group including one or more user nodes, a message including recorded audio, a message address and a first group identifier, and determining that the group includes a bot, the bot including a software application for performing one or more tasks over the internet.”A reply sent to the user node and the second user node, indicating completion of the request.
Selected voice library
(Claim 1, Claim 10, Claim 17)		“The method may also include selecting a voice library to process the recorded audio, processing, by the selected voice library, the recorded audio to produce enhanced text, determining whether the bot is a user bot responsive to a user node in the group or a group bot responsive to each of the one or more user nodes, and sending, by the group messaging service, the enhanced text to the determined user bot or group bot.”A voice library selected from a plurality of voice libraries to process recorded audio, including both a speech-to-text engine and a natural language unit configured to convert a received message into enhanced text in a format suited to processing by the bot.

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US10897433

ORION LABS TECH LLC
Application Number
US15936941
Filing Date
Mar 27, 2018
Status
Granted
Expiry Date
Oct 3, 2038
External Links
Slate, USPTO, Google Patents