US 11036371

US patent 11036371, titled "Methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects," was filed on October 15, 2019, and issued on June 15, 2021. The current assignee is Cogmedia LLC, with Paul Erich Keel and Jeffrey Huang listed as inventors. The original assignee was "Individual."

Abstract:
The patent describes a computer-implemented method for interacting with data items by converting them into distinct information objects. This involves extracting a picture, a heading, and a link from each data item, storing this extracted data in a database, and then displaying these information objects in a uniform "card" format. Each card uniformly presents the extracted picture, heading, a set of indicators, and graphically accessible functions.

Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

• Claim 1 (Method): This claim outlines a computer-implemented process for managing information. It involves taking various data items (like web pages or documents) and automatically transforming each into a standardized "information object" (IO). This transformation includes extracting a visual element (picture), a title (heading), and a reference (link) to the original data. This processed information for each IO is then stored in a database. Finally, the system displays these IOs to a user, typically as visual "cards," where the picture, heading, status indicators, and interactive functions are always shown in consistent positions on each card.
• Claim 9 (System): This claim describes a computer system designed to facilitate conversations around information objects. The system stores details about these IOs, including links to associated documents and a list of people involved in a discussion about the IO. It also stores metadata related to the conversation itself and integrates a communication system (such as instant messaging) to connect participants to the IO. The system provides a user interface that displays a visual representation (icon) of the IO, a contact list, the specific participants linked to that IO, and a dedicated viewing area for the IO.
• Claim 16 (Computer Program Product): This claim covers a computer program stored on a computer-readable medium. When this program runs on a computer with a processor and display, it instructs the computer to perform the method steps detailed in Claim 1. Specifically, it enables the computer to configure data items into information objects, store their associated data, and display these objects in a uniform card format, complete with a picture, heading, indicators, and functions in consistent locations.

Legal Status and Litigation:
The patent's legal status is listed as "Expired - Fee Related."
Regarding litigation, the patent family has a "PTAB case IPR2026-00249 filed (Pending)" and a "US case filed in Massachusetts District Court (1:25-cv-12127)". A review of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) scheduled cases for May and June 2026 did not show patent 11036371 explicitly listed for oral arguments. However, the existence of the PTAB and Massachusetts District Court cases indicates ongoing legal activity related to the patent.

As a patent attorney, I have investigated litigation involving US patent 11036371.

Based on the available information, the following litigation is known:

• Case Number: IPR2026-00249

  • Status: Pending.
  • Jurisdiction: Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)
  • Petitioner: Unified Patents
  • Filing Date: The filing date for IPR2026-00249 is not explicitly stated, but the "IPR2026" designation indicates it was filed in 2026.
  • Outcome: Pending.

• Case Number: 1:25-cv-12127

  • Status: Active.
  • Jurisdiction: Massachusetts District Court.
  • Filing Date: The filing date for 1:25-cv-12127 is not explicitly stated, but the "25-cv" designation indicates it was filed in 2025.
  • Outcome: Active.

Proceedings overview

There is one AIA trial proceeding on file for US patent 11036371, which is currently active. The patent's claims remain untested by a final written decision, indicating that the patent has not yet been challenged to invalidation at the PTAB.

IPR2026-00249 — Meta Platforms, Inc. v. COGMEDIA LLC

• Type: Inter Partes Review
• Filed: 2026-03-18
• Status: Pending - The case has been filed and is awaiting an institution decision.
• Judge panel: Pending Judge Assignment
• Petition grounds: The petition challenges U.S. Patent No. 11,036,371. The specific claims challenged and statutory bases (§ 102 / § 103 / § 112) are not yet public, but the Petitioner has submitted prior art including U.S. Patent No. 7,310,612 to McQueen, III et al., U.S. Pre-grant Publication No. 2002/0069105 to do Rosario Botelho et al., U.S. Patent No. 7,293,074 to Jellinek et al., and U.S. Pre-grant Publication No. 2002/0091775 to Morehead et al.
• Institution decision: Not yet issued. The institution decision is pending.
• Final Written Decision (if issued): Not yet issued.
• Settlement / termination: No settlement or termination has been reported.
• Appeal: No appeal has been filed as a Final Written Decision has not yet been issued.
• Defensive value: This is an active IPR, meaning the validity of the patent is currently under review. For a defendant, this proceeding introduces uncertainty regarding the patent's claims. If the IPR is instituted and ultimately results in invalidated claims, it would significantly weaken any assertion built upon those claims. Conversely, if institution is denied or the claims are upheld, it could strengthen the patent owner's position.

Strategic summary

Currently, all claims of US patent 11036371 are UNTESTED by a Final Written Decision at the PTAB. The sole IPR proceeding, IPR2026-00249, is still in its early stages, with an institution decision pending. Therefore, there are no claims that have been CANCELED or SUSTAINED through PTAB trials.

Regarding the estoppel landscape, since IPR2026-00249 is ongoing, the full scope of prior-art grounds raised (or reasonably could have been raised) by Meta Platforms, Inc. will be subject to § 315(e)(2) estoppel upon the issuance of a Final Written Decision. For other defendants facing assertion of this patent, prior art grounds not included in Meta's petition or not reasonably discoverable by Meta would generally still be available for a new IPR petition.

At this time, there are no clear pattern signals of aggressive PTAB appeals by the patent owner or multiple IPRs from the same petitioner. Unified Patents is listed as the petitioner in the "PTAB proceedings on file" section of the prompt, but the detailed docket alarm link states the petitioner is Meta Platforms, Inc.. I will proceed with Meta Platforms, Inc. as the petitioner for this analysis.

Recommended next steps

The IPR2026-00249 proceeding is pending an institution decision. The PTAB has a statutory one-year deadline from institution to issue a Final Written Decision. Keep a close watch on the institution decision, as it will determine whether the IPR moves forward to a full trial. The institution decision will outline which claims, if any, the PTAB believes Meta Platforms, Inc. has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood of proving unpatentable. Monitoring the public docket for IPR2026-00249 on the USPTO PTAB E2E system (accessible via the USPTO Open Data Portal) for updates on the institution decision and subsequent trial-stage milestones is crucial.

Inventors

• Paul Erich Keel: At the time of the underlying priority application filing in 2004, Dr. Keel was conducting research at MIT's Design and Computation program, focusing on computer-supported collaborative work.
• Jeffrey Huang: No employer information at the time of filing is readily determinable from the provided search results. Jeffrey Huang is listed as a patent litigation lawyer in Los Angeles, CA, and a supervising attorney at Bay Immigration Law in Palo Alto, CA. However, this information pertains to his legal career and does not definitively indicate his employer at the time of the patent's priority filing.

Unusual patterns: The original priority date for this patent is April 29, 2004. The patent itself was filed on October 15, 2019, and granted on June 15, 2021. The period between the priority date and the filing date of the present patent is substantial (over 15 years). This long gap, coupled with the fact that Paul Erich Keel later assigned his interest to Cogmedia LLC (the current assignee), suggests a potential delay in commercialization by the original inventors or a strategic decision to hold the patent and then monetize it later.

Original assignee

The original assignee, as listed on Google Patents, appears to be "Individual". However, the patent's filing history indicates that the application was filed by "Individual" and later assigned to Paul Erich Keel in 2020. In 2024, it was assigned to Cogmedia LLC. The "Current Assignee" on Google Patents is Cogmedia LLC.

Cogmedia LLC has recently filed an infringement suit against Meta Platforms, Inc., asserting this patent. The lawsuit alleges that Meta's "Wall," "Timeline," and/or "Newsfeed" features infringe the patent claims. This indicates that Cogmedia LLC is asserting the patent claims rather than shipping a product embodying them. The primary line of business for Cogmedia LLC, based on the litigation, appears to be patent assertion. Its current status is operating, as it is actively engaged in litigation.

Assignment timeline

There are no recorded assignments for this patent in the USPTO Assignment Center search results beyond what is visible on Google Patents legal events. The Google Patents legal events indicate the following:

• 2020-01-17 / recorded 2020-01-17 (approximate, based on publication date and "Assigned to KEEL, PAUL ERICH" event on Google Patents)
  • Conveyance: Reassignment
  • Assignor: HUANG, JEFFREY
  • Assignee: KEEL, PAUL ERICH
  • Correspondent: Not specified in Google Patents event.
  • Context: Transfer of inventor's interest.
• 2024-08-13 / recorded 2024-08-13 (approximate, based on publication date and "Assigned to COGMEDIA LLC" event on Google Patents)
  • Conveyance: Reassignment
  • Assignor: KEEL, PAUL ERICH
  • Assignee: COGMEDIA LLC
  • Correspondent: Not specified in Google Patents event.
  • Context: Transfer from inventor to an LLC.
• 2025-07-29 / recorded 2025-07-29 (approximate, based on publication date and "Assigned to PLF 2025-A LP" event on Google Patents)
  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: COGMEDIA LLC
  • Assignee: PLF 2025-A LP
  • Correspondent: Not specified in Google Patents event.
  • Context: Securitization of the patent.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 11036371
    2004 : Priority application filed
    2019 : Application filed
    2020 : Assigned to Paul Erich Keel
    2021 : Patent issued
    2024 : Assigned to Cogmedia LLC
    2025 : Security interest to PLF 2025-A LP
         : Infringement suit filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present. The patent was transferred from individual inventor Paul Erich Keel to Cogmedia LLC in 2024. Cogmedia LLC has a principal place of business in the Boston metro area c/o Sunstein LLP, a law firm, which is a common indicator of a shell entity. Furthermore, Cogmedia LLC is currently asserting the patent in litigation against Meta Platforms, Inc. and does not appear to ship products embodying the claims.
2. Known asserter in the chain — unclear. While Cogmedia LLC is actively asserting the patent, it does not currently match any of the explicitly listed "known asserters" in the prompt's examples. However, RPX has noted Cogmedia LLC as an "Inventor-Controlled Plaintiff" that has launched litigation.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — unclear. The Google Patents legal events do not specify correspondent attorney information for the assignments listed.
4. Cascading transfers — not present. There are three transfers over a period of five years, which does not indicate multiple consecutive assignments through chained LLCs in a short timeframe.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — present. The patent was assigned to Cogmedia LLC on August 13, 2024. Cogmedia LLC filed an infringement suit against Meta Platforms, Inc. on July 30, 2025. This is within 12 months of the assignment to Cogmedia LLC, suggesting the transfer was arranged to enable assertion. RPX also explicitly states that the transfer prefigured the launch of litigation.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. There is no indication in the provided information that the original assignee or any subsequent assignor filed for bankruptcy.
7. Privateering — unclear. While Cogmedia LLC is asserting the patent, there is no explicit information in the provided context to suggest it is doing so on behalf of an operating company against competitors (i.e., privateering).
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The chain does not terminate at any known defensive aggregators.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The transfer from an individual inventor to Cogmedia LLC, a company whose address is a law firm, and its subsequent patent assertion against Meta Platforms Inc. are strong indicators. The pre-litigation transfer from Paul Erich Keel to Cogmedia LLC and the recognition by RPX of Cogmedia LLC as an "Inventor-Controlled Plaintiff" launching litigation further support this conclusion. The current litigation can be verified at the USPTO Assignment Center by searching for patent 11036371 (https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/).

For US patent 11036371, the most relevant prior art consists primarily of its own family members, explicitly cited and incorporated by reference within the patent document itself. These applications form the direct lineage of the patent and disclose highly similar subject matter.

Here is an analysis of the key prior art references derived from the "RELATED APPLICATIONS" section of US11036371B2:

Most Relevant Prior Art for US11036371

1. U.S. Patent No. 9,817,562

   • Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 9,817,562, titled "Methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects"
   • Publication/Filing Date: Granted November 14, 2017 (based on application Ser. No. 15/243,497, filed Aug. 22, 2016).
   • Brief Description: This patent describes methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects (IOs) and information views (IVs). It focuses on packaging and visualizing information in a standardized format, allowing IOs to be viewed and modified differently on various IVs, and enhancing collaborative use of information through functions like object-based communication. Given that US11036371 is a continuation of this patent's application chain, the subject matter is highly similar.
   • Potential Claim Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): As a direct parent in the continuation chain, U.S. Pat. No. 9,817,562 likely discloses much, if not all, of the subject matter claimed in US11036371. Therefore, it potentially anticipates many or all claims of US11036371, depending on the specific scope and new matter introduced (if any) in the later application.

2. U.S. Patent No. 9,524,090

   • Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 9,524,090, titled "Methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects"
   • Publication/Filing Date: Granted December 20, 2016 (based on application Ser. No. 14/664,178, filed Mar. 20, 2015).
   • Brief Description: This patent also covers methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects (IOs). It details the use of IOs as data files including other data files and metadata, and information views (IVs) for visualization, emphasizing customized formats and environments for specific tasks and collaboration. Being another direct parent, its disclosure is integral to the subsequent applications.
   • Potential Claim Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): Similar to U.S. Pat. No. 9,817,562, this patent is a direct ancestor and its comprehensive disclosure of information objects and views, and their management and exchange, very likely anticipates a significant portion of, or potentially all of, the claims in US11036371.

3. U.S. Patent No. 8,499,248

   • Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 8,499,248, titled "Methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects"
   • Publication/Filing Date: Granted July 30, 2013 (based on application Ser. No. 12/563,416, filed Sep. 21, 2009).
   • Brief Description: This patent further describes methods and apparatus for managing and exchanging information using information objects. It introduces the core concepts of IOs and IVs for organizing and identifying information sources in various formats, incorporating advanced graphical user interfaces and functions for collaborative use, such as object-based communication and synchronized IOs across views.
   • Potential Claim Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): As an earlier patent in the family, U.S. Pat. No. 8,499,248 contains foundational disclosures directly relevant to the core invention. It is highly probable that many, if not all, of the claims in US11036371 are anticipated by the disclosure of US8499248.

4. U.S. Patent No. 7,640,511

   • Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 7,640,511, titled "Methods and apparatus for managing and inferring relationships from information"
   • Publication/Filing Date: Granted December 29, 2009 (based on application Ser. No. 11/118,301, filed Apr. 29, 2005).
   • Brief Description: This patent details methods and apparatus for managing and inferring relationships from information. This is particularly relevant as US11036371 also discusses analyzing relations between information objects. It addresses deficiencies in conventional systems by analyzing relations (e.g., spatial, collaborative, chronological) between information sources associated with icons arranged by a user to determine other relevant information. This patent forms the basis for the relation manager (150) and related algorithms (155) described in US11036371.
   • Potential Claim Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent is a critical ancestor, particularly for claims in US11036371 related to the analysis and inference of relationships between information objects. It very likely anticipates claims pertaining to the system's ability to analyze spatial, contextual, and chronological relationships between IOs and to identify related information.

5. U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/566,723

   • Full Citation: U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/566,723, titled "METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR MANAGING AND INFERRING RELATIONSHIPS FROM INFORMATION"
   • Publication/Filing Date: Filed April 29, 2004.
   • Brief Description: This is the earliest priority document in the chain. It would have introduced the initial concepts for managing and inferring relationships from information, forming the fundamental disclosure upon which the entire patent family is built.
   • Potential Claim Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): As the priority document, this provisional application is fundamental. Any subject matter disclosed within this provisional application and carried forward into the subsequent non-provisional and continuation applications, including US11036371, would be considered anticipated by this earliest filing date. Therefore, it has the potential to anticipate a broad range of claims in US11036371, particularly those related to the core mechanisms of information management and relationship inference using information objects.

Based on the provided patent text for US11036371 and its identified prior art, an obviousness analysis under 35 U.S.C. § 103 reveals potential combinations of references that a person having ordinary skill in the art (PHOSITA) would have been motivated to combine. The core inventive concept of US11036371 revolves around Information Objects (IOs) displayed in a uniform "card" format with extracted content and various interactive and collaborative features, and Information Views (IVs) that render these IOs differently.

Understanding the Claims of US11036371 (as inferred from the Abstract and Description)

While the full claims of US11036371 are not provided, the abstract and detailed description highlight several key elements:

1. Information Objects (IOs): Data items configured into distinct objects.
2. Automated Extraction: Extracting a picture, heading, and a link from each data item to form an IO.
3. Standardized Representation: Displaying IOs in a uniform "card" format.
4. Uniform Layout: Within the card, uniform locations for the extracted picture, heading, a set of indicators, and a set of graphically accessible functions.
5. Database Storage: Storing data for IOs in a database.
6. Collaborative Features: IOs include features such as instant messaging, commenting, voting, and access logs, enabling hosted conversations among participants.
7. Information Views (IVs): IOs can be displayed and modified differently across various IVs (e.g., Workspace View, News View, Map View, Project View, Graph View, List View), which can be shared, visible, or private.
8. Spatial Relationship Analysis: The system analyzes the spatial arrangement of IOs in a Workspace View to infer relationships and suggest other relevant IOs.

Identified Prior Art

The patent US11036371 explicitly states that it is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/118,301, filed Apr. 29, 2005 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,640,511, issued Dec. 29, 2009), which itself claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/566,723, filed Apr. 29, 2004. The "Prior art date" listed for US11036371 is 2004-04-29. This establishes U.S. Patent 7,640,511 (hereinafter "Keel '511" or "US7640511B1") as prior art.

U.S. Patent 7,640,511 (Keel '511): This patent, titled "METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR MANAGING AND INFERRING RELATIONSHIPS FROM INFORMATION," discloses a system that manages information objects (referred to as "cards" or "IOs") displayed on a graphical user interface, typically a workspace view. It describes how users can arrange these information objects in a spatial manner, and how the system can infer relationships between these objects based on their spatial arrangement, as well as contextual and chronological factors. The system stores these relationships in a database and uses algorithms to suggest other related information objects to the user.

Key disclosures in Keel '511 pertinent to US11036371 include:

• Information Objects (IOs) / Cards: Represents various portions of information graphically, such as files, documents, applications, email messages, or appointments.
• Graphical User Interface (GUI): Allows users to spatially arrange these IOs on a "Workspace View."
• Spatial Relationship Analysis: Algorithms analyze spatial arrangements (proximity, alignment, overlap) to deduce relationships between IOs.
• Database: Stores IO records and discovered relations.
• Automated Information Retrieval: Based on the analyzed relationships, the system can identify and suggest other relevant information objects (IOs) from the database or other sources (e.g., news feeds) not currently displayed.
• Dynamic Content: IOs can dynamically update to reflect changes in their associated information sources.
• Collaborative Context: Mentions analysis of collaborative context, such as common access or sharing of cards by multiple users.

Obviousness Analysis: Keel '511 in combination with general knowledge and conventional GUI practices

A PHOSITA in the field of computer-implemented information management systems and graphical user interfaces, as of the 2004 priority date, would have been familiar with object-oriented programming, database management systems, and various graphical user interface paradigms.

Combination 1: Keel '511 + Conventional GUI Design Principles + Common Web Scraping/Parsing Techniques

• Keel '511's Foundation: Keel '511 already teaches the core concept of Information Objects (IOs) or "cards" that graphically represent information sources, are spatially arranged on a GUI, and whose relationships are analyzed by the system to suggest new information.
• Missing Elements from Keel '511: While Keel '511 describes IOs and their graphical representation, it does not explicitly detail the uniformity of format with automatically extracted picture, heading, and link within uniform locations on the card, as emphasized in US11036371's abstract. It also does not explicitly detail the array of "graphically accessible functions" on the card face.
• Motivation for Combination: A PHOSITA would be motivated to enhance the usability and clarity of the IOs in Keel '511.
  • Uniform Format for Comparisons: The problem of information existing in different formats and locations, making it difficult to compare, is acknowledged in US11036371. A standardized, uniform "card" format for presenting diverse information sources, as described in US11036371, would be an obvious design choice for improving user comprehension and comparison, especially in a system designed to help users "collect, compare, and organize" information, as explicitly mentioned in Keel '511. Standardizing the visual representation reduces cognitive load and distraction from format, allowing users to focus on content, a problem US11036371 itself highlights in conventional systems.
  • Automated Extraction: Given that IOs in Keel '511 can represent various information sources like web pages or documents, it would be a routine matter for a PHOSITA to implement automated content extraction (like title/heading, main image, and URL) from these sources. Techniques for web scraping, parsing documents, and automatically generating previews or summaries were well-known in 2004. Tools and libraries for extracting metadata and content from structured or semi-structured data (HTML, XML, document formats) were available. Automating this process reduces the manual burden on the user and enhances the "quick visual location" and "recollection of IO meanings and contents" that US11036371 emphasizes.
  • Uniform Placement of Elements: Once content (picture, heading, link) is extracted, placing it in consistent, uniform locations on the card (as in US11036371) is a basic principle of good GUI design. This improves learnability and usability, allowing users to quickly scan and understand information across many different IOs. This is analogous to how real-world index cards, credit cards, or business cards have standardized layouts for quick information retrieval, a concept US11036371 explicitly draws upon.
  • Graphically Accessible Functions/Indicators: Keel '511 describes IOs with attributes and functionality, including instant messaging capabilities. Making these functions "graphically accessible" via indicators (e.g., icons that change color based on status or display counters for messages/votes, as detailed in US11036371) is a common GUI technique for providing immediate feedback and access to features without requiring the user to open a separate editor. This enhances the interactive nature of the IOs, which Keel '511 already supports (e.g., users adding comments).

Therefore, the enhancements of a uniform "card" format with automatically extracted and uniformly placed content (picture, heading, link), along with graphically accessible functions, would be an obvious design improvement to the information objects (cards) described in Keel '511, driven by the desire to improve user experience, reduce cognitive burden, and facilitate information comparison and collaboration, using known GUI design principles and content extraction techniques.

Combination 2: Keel '511 + Existing Instant Messaging/Collaboration Systems

• Keel '511's Foundation: Keel '511 already teaches collaboration in the context of information objects, including the analysis of "collaborative context" (e.g., multiple users accessing the same cards) and the presence of an "instant messaging capability allowing to users in a distributed system to share access to an IO in order to exchange comments or messages between themselves concerning information associated with the IO."
• Missing Elements from Keel '511: While collaboration is mentioned, US11036371 elaborates on "hosted conversations," "threaded discussion windows," "lists of participants linked to the information object," "collaborative ratings," and "buddy lists" within the IO or IV context.
• Motivation for Combination: A PHOSITA, observing the existing instant messaging capability in Keel '511, would be motivated to integrate more robust and feature-rich collaboration tools, common in stand-alone instant messaging and groupware applications of the time, directly into the IO/IV framework.
  • Enhancing "Instant Messaging Capability": Keel '511 states that its IOs include an instant messaging capability. Expanding this to a full "hosted conversation" environment, as described in US11036371, is a natural progression. Features like threaded discussions, lists of participants, and collaborative ratings are standard in many collaboration platforms (e.g., forums, chat rooms, project management tools) prevalent before 2004. Integrating these features into the existing IO-based messaging system would make the collaboration more organized and effective, especially for "collaborative brainstorming, problem-solving, information collecting and decision-making processes" which Keel '511 aims to support.
  • Buddy Lists/Contact Lists: The concept of "buddy lists" or "contact lists" for managing communication partners was well-established in IM systems (e.g., AOL Instant Messenger, MSN Messenger) by 2004. Integrating these into the IO system allows users to easily manage participants for hosted conversations and exchange IOs. US11036371 explicitly mentions dragging and dropping an IO onto a user icon to send a copy, which directly leverages existing IM paradigms.
  • Collaborative Ratings/Voting: Keel '511 mentions analysis of "use patterns" and "activity associated with a card" to determine importance. Providing explicit voting or rating mechanisms (e.g., "vote function" in US11036371) for IOs is an obvious way to directly capture user feedback on relevance and importance, feeding into the system's ability to prioritize information or identify influential users.

Therefore, extending the existing "instant messaging capability" of Keel '511's information objects with well-known collaborative features from contemporary communication and groupware applications, such as threaded discussions, participant lists, and explicit rating/voting, would have been obvious to a PHOSITA aiming to enhance the collaborative aspects of the system.

Combination 3: Keel '511 + General Knowledge of Data Visualization and Information Filtering

• Keel '511's Foundation: Keel '511 discusses displaying IOs in different views (e.g., Workspace View, News View) and organizing them by time, information sources, or geographic locations. It also mentions filtering for user-specific keywords.
• Missing Elements from Keel '511: US11036371 introduces a broader and more diverse set of "Information Views (IVs)" beyond just Workspace and News, including Map View, Project View, Graph View, and List View, each tailored for different visualization and analysis tasks.
• Motivation for Combination: A PHOSITA would be motivated to provide different visual metaphors and analytical tools for viewing and interacting with the managed information, depending on the user's task or context.
  • Multiple Information Views (IVs): Given that Keel '511 already differentiates between a "Workspace View" and a "News View" for displaying IOs, it would be an obvious extension to create other specialized "views" (IVs) for visualizing information objects according to different attributes or analytical needs. For example, if IOs can be associated with geographic locations (as allowed by the "location function" in US11036371), displaying them on a map (Map View) is a straightforward application of geographical information systems. Similarly, if IOs have time-related parameters, a timeline-based "Project View" or "calendar display" would be a common visualization. Representing statistical data in graphs (Graph View) or displaying parameters in a spreadsheet-like format (List View) are standard data visualization and presentation techniques. The goal, as stated in US11036371, is to allow users to "manage information in a customized format and in environments suited to particular tasks and circumstances," which is a known benefit of offering multiple views of data.
  • Adaptors for News Feeds and Chronological Organization: Keel '511 already mentions a "News View" that provides information feeds and organizes IOs by time and information sources. The specific mention in US11036371 of a "News View having an adaptor for receiving news feeds and the user interface chronologically organizes information chronologically in a subject-time matrix" and "zoomable, graphical timeline including automatic compression" are specific implementations of known techniques for managing and visualizing dynamic, time-series data, particularly syndication feeds (RSS), which were common by 2004.

Therefore, the expansion of Keel '511's system to include a broader range of specialized "Information Views" (e.g., Map, Project, Graph, List) for visualizing IOs in task-specific ways, along with incorporating known data visualization and filtering techniques (like chronological organization of news feeds), would be obvious to a PHOSITA seeking to provide a more versatile and adaptable information management system.

Conclusion

Based on the analysis, a PHOSITA, starting with the robust information object and relationship management framework taught by Keel '511, would have been motivated to combine its teachings with conventional GUI design principles, existing collaboration software features, and common data visualization techniques to arrive at the inventions claimed in US11036371. The improvements in US11036371, such as the uniform "card" format with automated content extraction, enhanced collaborative tools, and a variety of specialized "Information Views," are extensions and applications of known technologies and design practices to address recognized usability and functionality challenges within the context of an information object management system already broadly disclosed in Keel '511.