A flexible, event driven and conditional rule based mail messaging system which can be transparently implemented for use in electronic mail applications. A rule mechanism is implemented having a "When-If-Then" event-driven, conditional, action-invoking paradigm or "triplet" which permits definition of a repertoire of events considered to be significant events upon which to trigger actions in the electronic mail messaging system. Each particular event may be associated with a specific mail message and/or rules to promote efficient mapping of messages, events and rules so that only rules associated with a specific event are invoked upon occurrence of the event. Only relevant rules, i.e. those associated with a satisfied event, need be further processed. A graphical user interface to a structured rule editor facilitates synthesis of rules by a user via a substantially transparent rule engine.

Event-driven rule-based messaging system

This is a method provided for performing focus detection, ambiguity resolution and mood classification (815) in accordance with multi-modal input data, in varying operating conditions, in order to provide an effective conversational computing environment (418, 422) for one or more users (812).

System and method for multi-modal focus detection, referential ambiguity resolution and mood classification using multi-modal input

A system for applying artificial intelligence technology to data stored in databases and generates diagnostics that are user definable interpretations of information in the database. The diagnostics are stored in a database which can be queried with downdrilling to the associated data which generated the diagnostic. A set of bidirectional links is maintained between selected data items in the first database and the corresponding diagnostics in the second database. The system acts as an information compiler in developing a map of the raw data dimension into the structured dimension of intelligent interpretation of the data in the diagnostic database.

Method and apparatus for applying if-then-else rules to data sets in a relational data base and generating from the results of application of said rules a database of diagnostics linked to said data sets to aid executive analysis of financial data

A method and apparatus for closed loop, automatic processing a loan, including completion of the application, underwriting, and transferring funds, includes use of a programmed computer (34) to interface with an applicant, obtain the information needed to process the loan, determine whether to approve the loan, and effect electronic fund transfers to the applicant's deposit account and arrange for automatic withdrawals to repay the loan. Information is received from the applicant preferably by using voice recognition technology (30) but alternatively by entering the alpha-numeric information using a personal computer (34) keyboard or using buttons on a telephone (12). The loan approval determination is made using a neural network (17) with input obtained in part from the applicant and in part from databases (14) accessed by the computer (34), such as a credit bureau (16), to obtain a credit report. The loan agreement is transmitted by facsimile to and from the applicant when the applicant has access to a facsimile machine (18) of data field to be printed (37) or to an agent (22) who delivers the agreement to the applicant when the applicant does not have access. In a preferred embodiment, the applicant accesses the computer (34) from a kiosk (40) where the complete transaction can take place as the applicant waits.

Closed loop financial transaction method and apparatus

A method and apparatus for closed loop, automatic processing of typical financial transactions, including loans, setting up checking, savings and individual retirement accounts, obtaining cashier's checks, ordering additional checks, issuing credit and debit cards, wire transfering money, and so on. The transactions are provided from a kiosk and controlled by a computer controller interacting with the consumer. In the case of loans, a computer controller helps the consumer in the completion of the application, performs the underwriting, and transfers funds. The computer controller obtains the information needed to process the application, determines whether to approve the loan, effects electronic fund transfers to the applicant's deposit account and arranges for automatic withdrawals to repay the loan. The computer controller reviews documentation requirements including consumer lending and other required documentation with the consumer and obtains acknowledgment of acceptance of terms by having the consumer sign an electronic signature pad. Copies of documents with a digital photograph are printed out by a printer in the kiosk for the consumer. Finally, the kiosk has the capability of imprinting a credit or debit card in response to a consumer request.

Automatic financial account processing system

Apparatus for preventing unauthorized use of a voice dialing system and, particularly, a call forwarding feature associated with the system whereby system users may forward a telephone number respectively associated therewith to a remote location in order to receive phone calls at the remote location, comprises: a database for pre-storing telephone numbers of system users and for pre-storing acoustic models respectively representative of speech associated with each system user, the acoustic models respectively corresponding to the telephone numbers; and a speaker identification module operatively coupled to the database for obtaining and decoding a speech sample from a potential system user during the potential users' attempt to make a telephone call, the speaker identification module comparing the decoded speech sample obtained with the pre-stored acoustic model associated with the telephone number dialed by the potential user; whereby if the decoded speech sample substantially matches the pre-stored acoustic model, then the phone call attempted by the potential user is terminated.

Apparatus and methods for user identification to deny access or service to unauthorized users

An expert system is provided which can be accessed by other application programs operating within any of the available operating environments in a general purpose computer system. In this architecture, an expert system consultation subsystem provides the means for performing expert consultations. Included within the expert system subsystem is a task manager which initiates and manages a plurality of concurrent consultations. Interface programming provides the capability for the expert system consultation subsystem to communicate and pass data and commands between it and other application programs operating within the computer system. Further, means are provided to allow the expert system subsystem to access data stored on database management systems.

Expert system architecture

A group of object servers configured for workload management is described wherein the group exports an object reference to clients that may want to call the group in order to perform some work. The object reference has a field which points to a workload management unit which performs workload management among the group at the Internet Protocol (IP) level.

Workload management amongst server objects in a client/server network with distributed objects

Voice dialing system for preventing unauthorized use of a call forwarding feature

We describe our development work on a telephonebased conversational system in the domain of mutual fund transactions. This system uses several components including robust large vocabulary continuous speech recognition, natural language understanding, dialog management, and text-to-speech synthesis technologies.

Kenneth Davies

Papers

Apparatus and methods for user identification to deny access or service to unauthorized users

Expert system architecture

Workload management amongst server objects in a client/server network with distributed objects

Voice dialing system for preventing unauthorized use of a call forwarding feature

The IBM conversational telephony system for financial applications.