Call Diversion (e.g., Call Capture) Patents (Class 379/211.01)
  • Patent number: 9716788
    Abstract: To control secondary devices of a subscriber whose primary device is subscribed to a mobile network, a secondary mobile directory number (“MDN”) and secondary device identifiers are employed. After the primary device is rung, an Authentication and Call Waiting Engine receives a request from a Telephony Gateway to retrieve identifiers of any secondary devices that are linked to a primary MDN of the primary device. Next, the Authentication and Call Waiting Engine retrieves a secondary device identifier for each secondary device that is paired with the primary device by searching a secondary device identifier database with the primary MDN to find all linked secondary device identifiers. A rules database may be applied to exclude secondary device identifiers based on time of day and day of the week. The Authentication and Call Waiting Engine transmits the list of qualified secondary device identifiers to the Telephony Gateway for ringing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: VERIZON PATENT AND LICENSING INC.
    Inventors: Sethumadhav Bendi, Amir Mayblum, Jerry Kupsh
  • Patent number: 9706375
    Abstract: Disclosed is an apparatus and method of communicating with a user of a wireless device and processing message delivery. One example method of operation may include identifying a group of participants to receive a broadcast message transmitted from a wireless device, transmitting at least one broadcast message from the wireless device to a plurality of computing devices corresponding to the group of participants, receiving a plurality of response messages responsive to the at least one transmitted broadcast message, examining the plurality of response messages and extracting content of the plurality of response messages, generating a summary message based on the extracted content of the plurality of response messages, the summary message comprising portions from all of the plurality of response messages and also comprising information unique to each of the plurality of response messages, and displaying the summary message on a display interface of the wireless device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Open Invention Network LLC
    Inventor: David Gerard Ledet
  • Patent number: 9635488
    Abstract: A method of delivering an instruction (206) to a mobile user device (106) connected to a network (110) is disclosed. The method comprising the steps of receiving an interactive workflow (202), translating the interactive workflow into the instruction (206) in a form executable by the mobile user device (106), and sending a message (208) including the instruction (206) to the mobile user device (106).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Inventor: Duc Anh Ngo
  • Patent number: 9591142
    Abstract: A method of resolving by an original network/domain of a telephone number of a called party, belonging to a recipient network/domain. The method includes: a) a calling party, belonging to the original domain dispatches a message using the telephone number of the called party as routing identifier; b) a server of the original domain in charge of routing the message, or a DNS server, produces an interrogation key dependent on the telephone number and on a penultimate domain name; c) a DNS request is sent to a DNS server associated with the penultimate domain; d) the DNS server associated with the penultimate domain performs, by using the interrogation key, a search in a database ENUM associated therewith; e) the search provides at least one record containing a return network/domain including the recipient domain; and f) a DNS request is sent to the return domain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignee: ORANGE
    Inventors: Goar Haspekian, Philippe Fouquart, Olivier Cleuziou
  • Patent number: 9585010
    Abstract: A vehicle includes a touchscreen configured to receive a touch input of a driver and display image information corresponding to the touch input, a passenger sensing unit configured to sense whether the passenger is present in the vehicle, a communication unit configured to communicate with a mobile terminal of the driver, and a controller configured to display a call request reception message and identification information of a third party when a call request is received from the third party via the mobile terminal and to provide an audio function of a hands-free service. When the passenger is sensed and the call request of the third party is received in a privacy mode, the controller displays the call request reception message and limits displaying of the identification information of the third party and the audio function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY
    Inventor: Jeong Hun Kim
  • Patent number: 9553901
    Abstract: In at least some embodiments, a system includes at least one server to manage voice over internet protocol (VOIP) services. The managed VOIP services provided by the at least one server include a telephony service to establish a calling phase between an initiator device and a mobile target device in response to a call command received from the initiator device, and a streamline call transfer service to transfer a call from the mobile target device to a transfer target device in response to a one-touch transfer command received from the mobile target device during the calling phase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2017
    Assignee: CREXENDO, INC.
    Inventors: Satish Bhagavatula, Manish Rao
  • Patent number: 9515970
    Abstract: Techniques are provided for delivering messages to users of client devices in a network. At a server device in a network, location information of each of a plurality of client devices is obtained. Each of the client devices runs a presence application for a user in the network and is configured to log-in with one or more resources. A message is received from a sender device in the network. The message is intended to be presented to the user via the presence application and one or more of the resources. Based on the location information of the client devices, one or more designated client devices are selected to which the message is to be sent such that the message is presented to the user via the presence application running on the one or more designated client devices and via one or more of the resources.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2016
    Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Haihua Huang, Yong Qian, Zhao Jiayu, Kejun Xia
  • Patent number: 9497321
    Abstract: A system and method for a selective ring silencer that prevents people from having to listen to the telephone ring on and on with nuisance calls. The ringer silencer can be: (1) discretely constructed from a telephone, (2) part of a telecommunication device, or (3) part of a central telephone network construction. A receiver demodulates an incoming call. Control logic reads at least a portion of the called identification (CID) data and determines an action based on the reading. A switch in communication with the control logic is actuated to a first state that allows the communication data to be output from the ring silencer, and a second state that blocks the communication data from being output from the ring silencer to a user's communication device. The control logic blocks toll-free area codes originated calls from ringing a user's telephone, optionally forwarding the call to a voice mail module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Inventor: Steve Cha
  • Patent number: 9477734
    Abstract: One or more techniques and/or systems are disclosed for facilitating synchronizing of data between one or more servers and a mobile device. The mobile device can establish which servers comprise data that is to be synchronized, and inform the servers that a push notification gateway should be used to send notifications of a data state change. A connection can be opened between the mobile device and the push notification gateway so that when a data state change is detected by a server the server can send the notification to the gateway, which can forward it to the mobile device. The mobile device may then choose to initiate a data synchronization with the server. In this manner, an open connection is merely maintained between the mobile device and the gateway, as opposed to multiple resource intensive connections between the mobile device and multiple servers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Ashutosh Tewari, Gandhi Vaithilingam
  • Patent number: 9479491
    Abstract: Methods and systems for multiple channel authentication are described. In one embodiment, a request for a combined voice and data call is initiated from within a mobile application. The request may include authentication information and contextual information relating to a current exchange between the mobile application and an organization. The user may be authenticated with the authentication information and the combined voice and data call may be routed to a representative based on the contextual information to continue the exchange.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: United Services Automobile Association (USAA)
    Inventors: Anthony Scott Farnsworth, Zakery Layne Johnson, Joshua S. Kerr, Eric Smith, Charles Lee Oakes, III, Thomas Bret Buckingham, Maland Keith Mortensen, John Raymond Harris, Joshua Samuel Leonard, Vijay Jayapalan, Minya Liang, Justin Dax Haslam, Robert Barner, Ross Andrew Thiele
  • Patent number: 9344208
    Abstract: Systems and methods for performing timing offset and or fractional frequency offset for the purpose of time and/or frequency synchronization are provided. Timing packets are exchanged between a master device and a slave device. In addition, timing adjustment information is received by the slave device. The slave device uses the timing adjustment information in conjunction with the transmit and receive times for the timing packets to estimate at timing offset and/or fractional frequency offset.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2016
    Assignee: CORTINA SYSTEMS, INC.
    Inventors: Med Belhadj, Hojjat Salemi
  • Patent number: 9338290
    Abstract: When a first user is leaving a voicemail while a second user is attempting to call the first user back, the first user is given the option to ignore the second caller, delete the voicemail and connect with the second user, or hold while the second user reviews the voicemail. The voicemail may or may not be complete. This may avoid the need for the first user to repeat the information contained in the voicemail. In one embodiment, the voicemail message is played on the second user's device as a ring-back tone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2016
    Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC
    Inventors: Jerome O. Vogedes, Dean E. Thorson, Mark Lemke
  • Patent number: 9326098
    Abstract: An illustrative telecommunications analysis server analyzes telecommunications-event records and telecommunications-activity records associated with mobile stations operating in one or more wireless networks to infer whether a spike in initiated telecommunications activities occurred in a period of time and from a geographic area that closely correlate with the time and location of an audio incident. The server corroborates that the audio incident likely occurred based on the inferred spike in initiated telecommunications activities from one or more mobile stations. The illustrative server identifies the mobile stations that were likely within earshot of the incident and actively initiating telecommunications immediately thereafter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignee: Polaris Wireless, Inc.
    Inventor: Jeffrey Noel Wu
  • Patent number: 9042371
    Abstract: The present invention provides an effective technique for routing calls to one or more telephony terminals through a traditional telephony line as well as via a packet network. A terminal adapter is provided at a customer premise and supports multiple telephony terminals, which may be associated with the same or different directory numbers. For incoming calls, the telephony switch will determine whether to route the call over the traditional telephony line or through the packet network to the terminal adapter, which will facilitate the connection with one or more of the telephony terminals. The incoming calls can be routed to a specific telephony terminal based on incoming call indicia. The terminal adapter can initiate outgoing calls from the supported telephony terminals over the traditional telephony line or via the packet network to the telephony switch. Whether incoming or outgoing calls are routed through the telephony line or the packet network depends on system configuration and existing conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2015
    Assignee: RPX CLEARINGHOUSE LLC
    Inventor: Dany Sylvain
  • Patent number: 9036802
    Abstract: A method and system including receiving a communication from a source, the communication including a request to connect to a destination, connecting, via a communication link, to the destination, detecting an event on the communication link to the destination, and connecting the source to the destination after detecting the event.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignee: AT&T INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY II, L.P.
    Inventors: Giuseppe Di Fabbrizio, Bernard S. Renger, Benjamin J. Stern
  • Patent number: 9028577
    Abstract: A mobile network is adapted to provide a first mobile telephony service to a first group of subscribers and a second mobile telephony service to a second group of subscribers. The mobile network includes a home location register; at least one switching equipment cooperating with the home location register for providing the first mobile telephony service to the first group of subscribers; at least one adapter node cooperating with the home location register and with the switching equipment for providing the second mobile telephony service to the second group of subscribers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Telecom Italia S.p.A.
    Inventors: Guiliano Muratore, Pier Camillo Pelliccia
  • Patent number: 9031218
    Abstract: Agencies issue multiple devices to personnel for maintaining distinct identities over the course of assigned investigations. To provide flexible capabilities to agencies, a phone is converted for use with multiple attached telephone numbers. Accordingly, a single phone may be used to manage multiple identities over the course of one or more investigations. Using a multiple attached number, a given device can place and receive calls over the network to and from contacts. In addition to providing multiple attached numbers, calls using the multiple attached numbers may be monitored live and recorded to establish evidence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: World Emergency Network—Nevada Ltd.
    Inventor: Christopher Ryan Bennett
  • Patent number: 9020118
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide methods and systems for intelligent routing. An intelligent routing processing module sets at least one intelligent routing trigger condition and at least one corresponding intelligent routing policy in advance, and an incoming call or message is processed according to intelligent routing contact manners in the intelligent routing policy. The intelligent routing trigger condition includes relevant information of the incoming call or message and the intelligent routing policy may include more than one intelligent routing contact manner. The embodiments of the present invention may provide more intelligent routing contact manners and intelligent routing policies for communication routing technology and may make full use of subscriber presence information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Youzhu Shi
  • Patent number: 9014359
    Abstract: An analyzer resource receives call information about outbound phone calls from multiple phone numbers to target phone numbers in a phone network. The analyzer resource analyzes the call information to detect likely unwanted call activity. Based on the analyzing, the analyzer resource produces a list of phone numbers from which one or more entities originate unwanted calls to the subscribers in the phone network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC
    Inventors: Howard Leigh Pfeffer, Matthew John Cannon, Jeffrey James Lindsay
  • Patent number: 9001691
    Abstract: Apparatus, methods, and machine-readable articles of manufacture improve reliability and scalability of a messaging system. In some embodiments, the system's configuration data and subscriber information are stored in a central repository of a core node, and replicated to one or more non-core nodes. Data replication may be performed in real-time or near real-time, periodically, sporadically, or otherwise. Nodes may rely on the replicated data to provide the system's subscribers and outside callers with services that do not involve updating of configuration or subscriber data. In this way, the non-core nodes may continue to process calls when the core node is unavailable. For example, the non-core nodes can route calls to the appropriate subscribers without relying on the core. As another example, die non-core nodes can take messages from callers when the core node is unavailable. The messages may be queued for posting and delivery when the core node becomes available.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Applied Voice & Speech Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Douglas G. Murray, Steven J. Tindall, Roger E. Visser
  • Patent number: 8995639
    Abstract: A calling party is connected to a system of a called party without the calling party reaching the called party. A call diversion is triggered when a request to access a call diversion application is received. In response to receiving the request, the call diversion application at the direct-to-diverted call completion service server initiates a first call and a second call to a called party. The call diversion application detects when the second call is connected to a call completion system. In response to detecting when the second call is connected to a call completion system, the first call is terminated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: Cox Communications, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Colin Jaccino, Francisco Gonzalez, Compton Wharton, Jr., Michael Anthony Clark
  • Patent number: 8983506
    Abstract: A system, method and computer-readable medium for enforcing user telecommunication privileges on a per-schedule basis are provided. Enterprise members may have a schedule associated therewith that defines scheduled locations of the users. Telecommunication service privileges may be coordinated with the users' schedules such that communication services are disabled at particular times based on the users' schedules. In other implementations, particular users may have telecommunication services disabled by an administrator in the event of a catastrophe or emergency. By this mechanism, users that are not proximate to a particular catastrophe or emergency area according to the users' schedule may have services disabled while other users that are located more proximate to the emergency may have their telecommunication services enabled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Tango Networks, Inc.
    Inventor: Andrew Silver
  • Patent number: 8983054
    Abstract: A method for automatically routing a telephonic communication to at least one of a plurality of communication destination addresses is provided. The method is implemented by a computer readable medium having a plurality of code segments. The method comprises the step of receiving customer identifier and communicating with a customer history database configured to store historic data. The method also includes determining whether the received customer identifier corresponds to a stored customer identifier in the customer history database. Historic data corresponding to the stored customer number is identified based on the comparison of the received customer identifier and the stored customer identifier. The telephonic communication is associated with a predetermined communication destination based on the identified historic data. The associated communication data is transmitted to a switching signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Mattersight Corporation
    Inventors: Kelly Conway, Christopher Danson, Douglas Brown, David Gustafson
  • Patent number: 8972866
    Abstract: A system may include a communications device configured to select a contact from an address book, the contact including information descriptive of a user and including at least one address of the user. The communications device may be further configured to associate an outbound hunt group with the contact, the outbound hunt group configured to provide a list of addresses to be called in sequence to locate the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2015
    Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.
    Inventor: Richard Andrew Ramirez
  • Patent number: 8958539
    Abstract: A system and method for transferring calls between multiple devices. A call is communicated through a network device to a first phone utilizing a first communications service. The call is transferred from the first phone to a second phone. The call being transferred in response to a user selection associated with the second phone. The call is transferred from the second phone to a third phone. The second phone or the third phone utilizes a second communications service. The call being transferred in response to a user selection associated with the third phone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventor: David E. Emerson
  • Patent number: 8958782
    Abstract: Methods and systems are described for processing call blocking instructions and for managing mobile messaging. A method of processing call blocking instructions is described. A call processing system receives a call from a caller intended for a first user. A notification regarding the call is transmitted to a mobile device associated with the first user. A message from the user is received via the mobile device, wherein the message is a text or multimedia type message. At least partly in response to the message, the caller is placed on a blacklist indicating that future calls from the caller to the user are to be blocked.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: Callwave Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Leland W. Kirchhoff, Colin D. Kelley, David S. Trandal, David F. Hofstatter
  • Patent number: 8953765
    Abstract: According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of allocating calls coming into a call center from a caller location remote from the call center, receiving a call from a caller which includes information from an RFID chip located in close proximity to the caller location; decoding the information from the RFID chip to determine one or more parameters relating to the information; using said one or more parameters to allocate the call from the caller at the call center to ensure calls are handled in accordance with the parameters. This has the advantage of much more efficient management of the of the calls within the call center and ensures that the calls are sent to the agent with the most appropriate skill set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2015
    Assignee: Rockstar Consortium US LP
    Inventors: Neil O'Connor, Tony McCormack
  • Patent number: 8948360
    Abstract: A method and system for providing computer-network related information about a second party. First, the second party receives a telephone number of a first party. The second party's customer premises equipment (CPE) or elements in a telephone network then use the telephone number to index a database, which contains combinations of telephone numbers and computer-network addresses. Once the first party's computer-network address is retrieved, first-party-customized information present at the computer-network location specified by the computer-network address can be sent to and displayed on the second party's CPE. Also, the first party's telephone number can be sent to an application in the computer network, causing the first-party-customized information to be automatically displayed on the second party's CPE.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Rakuten, Inc.
    Inventor: Arnold M. Lund
  • Patent number: 8948365
    Abstract: The present invention includes a method and system for the management and routing of telecommunications information on data and telephone lines. In one exemplary embodiment in accordance with the present invention, a flexible system whereby business information is correlated to a user's telephone number is provided. In another exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides an on-line answering service in which the identification information of the called party can be maintained during call forwarding and/or diversion. In another exemplary embodiment, the identification information of the user called can be detected by the answering system. In addition, in another exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides answering services access to information about the called party as well as the calling party in order to facilitate the answering services' responses on behalf of their users.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Inventor: Francesco Ricci
  • Patent number: 8948359
    Abstract: A telephony system is presented that enables one user to monitor another user's extension and perform functions on calls destined for the other user's extension. The system includes a server with a telephony management software (TMS) unit, a telephony application programming interface (TAPI) unit, and an application unit. The application unit includes a control module, association module, presentation module, park module, monitoring device interface module, and storage interface module. A server sends information to a monitoring device regarding the status of a monitored extension and calls offering on that extension. A server also enables a user to navigate through multiple calls offering and park a selected call.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: ShoreTel, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael S. W. Tovino, Richard A. Winslow
  • Patent number: 8942368
    Abstract: Communication systems and methods are described that include call notification with rich caller identification. Components of the communication systems are configured to receive a call for a user via an enterprise voice channel. A call request is automatically generated in response to event data of the received call. The call request includes caller data from enterprise databases or directories. The caller data provides identifying information of the caller to the user via the call request. The call request can include response options by which the user can participate in the call. The call request is routed to a target device of the user via a data channel of the host enterprise. The target device provides the user with multiple action or response options via the call request. The response options include for example accepting the call, delaying the call, forwarding the call, ignoring the call, and ignoring the caller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Saurav Chatterjee, Josh Perfetto, Hemendra Rana, Paul Fullarton, Ankur Shah
  • Patent number: 8942687
    Abstract: Communication networks and methods are disclosed for selectively applying call forwarding between a mobile device and a fixed line device based on the location of the mobile device. A communication network includes a call control function that receives a call attempt to a mobile directory number. Responsive to the call attempt, the call control function identifies a location of the mobile device, and determines whether to apply call forwarding based on the location of the mobile device. If call forwarding is applied, then the call control function forwards the call attempt to the fixed line device instead of the mobile device. A similar process is performed for a call attempt to the fixed line device for forwarding the call to the mobile device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: Alcatel Lucent
    Inventors: Yigang Cai, Xiangyang Li
  • Patent number: 8942681
    Abstract: A multiparty call processing method and mobile terminal implemented with the multiparty call processing method is provided. A multiparty call processing method for a mobile terminal detects a call request to a first network, determines whether the mobile terminal is in a full state of the first network, and sends a call request message to a second network when the mobile terminal is in the full state of the first network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kwang Min Lee
  • Patent number: 8938059
    Abstract: The system and method identify a plurality of call flow events in a call analysis system. Call statistics are associated with the call flow events. The call flow events are organized into event groups each containing a plurality of call flow events. Once an event group is selected, call statistics for the events of the event group are displayed. In addition, the system and method allow for selection of individual call flow events in order to display calls associated with the events.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2015
    Assignee: Avaya Inc.
    Inventors: Fei Chen, Lorraine Denby, Wen-Hua Ju, James M. Landwehr, Holger Vatter
  • Patent number: 8934883
    Abstract: A vPBX server manages calls in a bridged line appearance (BLA) group. A BLA group can include extensions for location-aware mobile devices. The vPBX server contains location based forwarding rules that can be applied together with BLA redirection rules in managing incoming calls. A single extension can appear as a user interface element (e.g., an icon or button) on multiple mobile devices. Using the user interface element, a primary user can view a secondary user's status, including the secondary user's location information. The vPBX server allows the primary user to redirect the incoming calls to devices in accordance with the forwarding rules and the redirection rules.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: RingCentral, Inc.
    Inventors: Vlad Vendrow, Bruce Young, Praful Shah, Boris Elpiner, Vladimir Shmunis
  • Patent number: 8929527
    Abstract: A method is provided for allowing an exchange of context information within a group of users sharing one and the same identifier. The method includes transmitting information between at least one first terminal and a second terminal associated with a common identifier. The method includes a step of sending by the first terminal a notification of state intended at least for the second terminal and carrying an item of information relating to the context in which a user of the first terminal finds himself. The method allows members of a community of users, which is identified by a unique telephone number, to avail themselves of context information relating to the other members of the community at any moment, and in particular at the precise moment at which a setup request for establishing a communication is presented to them.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: France Telecom
    Inventors: Emmanuel Le Huerou, Eric Beaufils
  • Patent number: 8923497
    Abstract: Initiating a communication is disclosed. An identifier associated with an intended destination with which the calling party desires to establish communication is received from a calling party. Communication with a compliance node is established. An identifier is provided to the compliance node. The compliance node is configured to establish with the intended destination a communication session in which the compliance node, the intended destination, and the calling party are participants.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: EMC Corporation
    Inventors: Christopher H. Claudatos, William Dale Andruss
  • Patent number: 8913996
    Abstract: Apparatus and method for providing call connection notification. In order to provide a call connection notification service, a telephone number of a callee may be received when a caller transmits a call connection request to the callee. Based on the telephone number of the callee, public relations (PR) information may be searched for. A result of the searching may be provided to a user equipment of the caller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: KT Corporation
    Inventors: Hyuk-Shik Chung, Sung-Hee Jeon
  • Patent number: 8913732
    Abstract: A method and system for providing directory assistance to erroneous calls via location wearable devices. The method and system includes an intercept system that intercepts erroneous calls from a location aware wearable device and automatically routes them to a directory assistance service. The directory assistance service provides a least one advertisement and a variety of other services to the callers using current caller data and to one or more alternative numbers for the caller based in part on a determined physical location of the location aware wearable network device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Inventor: Blake Bookstaff
  • Patent number: 8903071
    Abstract: A determination of whether to perform telephone call blocking includes initiating a telephone call from a call server, determining whether the call is a solicitation call and determining the area code of the call and performing a lookup operation of the area code in a call suppression database. The process may also include retrieving a call block entry for a current day from the call suppression database, and comparing the area code to the call block entry for the current day to determine whether the call should be blocked.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2014
    Assignee: West Corporation
    Inventors: Rebekah Johnson, Baron Morvant, William Corey Howard
  • Patent number: 8891754
    Abstract: A method for automatically routing a telephonic communication to at least one of a plurality of communication destination addresses is provided. The method is implemented by a computer readable medium having a plurality of code segments. The method comprises the step of receiving customer identifier and communicating with a customer history database configured to store historic data. The method also includes determining whether the received customer identifier corresponds to a stored customer identifier in the customer history database. Historic data corresponding to the stored customer number is identified based on the comparison of the received customer identifier and the stored customer identifier. The telephonic communication is associated with a predetermined communication destination based on the identified historic data. The associated communication data is transmitted to a switching signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2014
    Assignee: Mattersight Corporation
    Inventors: Kelly Conway, Christopher Danson, Douglas Brown, David Gustafson
  • Patent number: 8885809
    Abstract: Techniques for bypassing call screening in a call messaging system. In one embodiment, for example, a method performed by one or more computing devices comprises: receiving an incoming call from a device of a caller; determining whether a bypass condition exists for the incoming call; and in response to determining that the bypass condition exists, causing the incoming call to be connected to a device of a callee without performing a call screening action of a call screening rule that, based at least in part on one or more conditions of the call screening rule, applies to the incoming call.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2014
    Assignee: RingCentral, Inc.
    Inventor: Vlad Vendrow
  • Patent number: 8885811
    Abstract: A conferencing system for an enterprise is disclosed. The conferencing system includes a management apparatus for managing conferencing resources in a premises. The management apparatus includes a communications link for communicating with a proximity announcing system, which indicates whether a portable communications device is near a conferencing device within the premises. The management apparatus can transmit a message to a proximate portable communication device indicating that a conferencing device is nearby. The proximity announcing system can include wireless transmitters and receivers associated with the premises and with portable communication devices used within the premises for tracking the location of the portable communication devices throughout the premises.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2014
    Assignee: Polycom, Inc.
    Inventor: Eran Knaz
  • Patent number: 8879541
    Abstract: A request destination management table that stores therein a service ID uniquely identifying a service being interrelated with a request destination to which execution of a service is requested and a report destination management table that stores therein a call ID uniquely identifying a call being interrelated with a report destination of a call state transition report indicative of state transition of the call are provided. An IP telephone receives a request for a supplementary service, obtains a request destination corresponding to a service ID of the supplementary service from the request destination management table, and transfers the request for the supplementary service to the request destination. The IP telephone receives a call state transition report, obtains a report destination corresponding to a call ID of the call state transition report from the report destination management table, and transfers the call state transition report to the report destination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventors: Masahide Noda, Kazuki Matsui, Satoshi Okuyama, Masahiko Murakami
  • Patent number: 8879545
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus to route a communication session directly to a voicemail mailbox are disclosed. An example method includes receiving a communication session initiation message from a caller at a source telephone number, the communication session initiation message including a destination telephone number and a direct voicemail feature identifier, determining that the direct voicemail feature identifier indicates that the caller requests that the call be sent to a voicemail mailbox associated with the destination telephone number, and forwarding the call directly to the voicemail mailbox associated with the destination telephone number without ringing the destination telephone number.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Assignee: AT&T Intelletual Property I, L.P.
    Inventors: James Jackson, Niral Sheth, Mehrad Yasrebi
  • Patent number: 8879707
    Abstract: An apparatus and methods are disclosed that provide a plurality of telecommunications management features to a telecommunications terminal that is associated with a corresponding terminal through a private branch exchange. In particular, the illustrative embodiment enables a user to manage the simultaneous use of and interaction between associated telecommunications terminals. This capability can be particularly advantageous when on-premises telecommunications terminals are associated with off-premises telecommunications terminals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Assignee: Avaya Inc.
    Inventors: Sandra R. Abramson, Stephen M. Milton, Emil F. Stefanacci
  • Patent number: 8873730
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for forwarding communications, such as telephone calls over a voice network, are provided. A user accesses a data network to specify one or more rules for forwarding telephone calls. For example, the user may use an electronic calendar to specify patterns for forwarding their telephone calls. These patterns may include one or more rules for determining a forwarding pattern, and one or more time periods specifying when the pattern is effective. The rules are provided to a service center which provides configuration information to the voice network. The voice network then forwards calls based on the configuration information for the time periods specified by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.
    Inventors: Alin D'Silva, Mahesh Rajagopalan, Anirudha Joshi, Reza Ghaffari
  • Patent number: 8868053
    Abstract: Messages received by a mobile device can be processed in one of at least two modes. In the normal mode, the messages are handled in accordance with the normal settings of the mobile device. In the filtered mode, or “night-time” mode, incoming messages are examined to determine if they are to be filtered or if they are exempt from filtering. If a message is exempt from filtering, it is processed in accordance with the normal mode. However, if the message is to be filtered, the mobile device is prevented from providing normal message reception alert notifications. Messages can be identified as being exempt to being filtered by editing an address book or selecting entries from an address book. All messages not identified as exempt then get filtered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2014
    Inventor: Raphael A. Thompson
  • Patent number: 8862109
    Abstract: Systems and methods for terminating telephony communications to a mobile telephony device that is roaming outside of its native service area make use of a mobile roaming termination service. The mobile roaming termination service causes the native mobile telephony service provider that provides service to the mobile telephony device to forward incoming telephony communications directed the native telephone number of the mobile telephony device to a forwarding access number. The mobile roaming termination service receives telephony communications directed to the forwarding access number, and then terminates the telephony communication to the mobile telephony device via any one of multiple different methods. The mobile telephony service provider can be instructed to implement and cancel call forwarding instructions by dialing a special character string on the mobile telephony device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2014
    Assignee: Vonage Network, LLC
    Inventor: Guy Fighel
  • Patent number: 8855290
    Abstract: A monitoring device 132 provides a shared call stack to a monitored extension and one or more proxy extensions. For example, the monitored extension is a boss' extension in a business environment, and the proxy extension is an extension for a boss' secretary. The monitoring device 132 detects an incoming call for the monitored extension. The incoming call is redirected, by the monitoring device 132, to a shared extension that is associated with the monitored extension. The shared extension has a shared call stack. The shared call stack has a call stack position that is shared with a proxy extension. The incoming call is made available as a call option in the call stack position so that the monitored extension and the proxy extension can user the monitoring device to perform call functions on the incoming call. The monitoring device can also perform call functions on outgoing calls.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: ShoreTel, Inc.
    Inventors: Pramod Madabhushi, Chakradhar Kondapalli, Glenn Hessler