Patent ID: 7006832
Filing Date: 2006-02-28
Classification: H04L,H04M

Abstract:
1. A method for managing telephone service for a plurality of persons sharing a common telephone line based on determining whether a person sharing the common telephone line is at the location served by the common telephone line and for restricting completion of a telephone call from the common telephone line to permit said telephone call to be completed only when a required person is present at the location served by the common telephone line, comprising the steps of periodically transmitting a unique signal from a transmitter adapted to accompany the person; receiving said signal in a base station serving each person sharing the common telephone line at the location served by the common telephone line, the base station containing a processor, a receiver, and for each person sharing the common telephone line, a database record unique to the person; the signal emitted by said transmitter having sufficient strength to be received by said base station receiver only when said transmitter is in close proximity to said receiver; processing said unique signal within the base station; correlating said unique signal to the unique record maintained for each person in the base station database; recording a receipt of said signal in said base station database record; recording a failure to receive said signal in said base station database record; whereby the base station database maintains a record for each person sharing the common telephone line indicating whether that person is or is not at the location served by the common telephone line; upon detecting a change in at least one of said records in said base station database, initiating a wire line telephone call over the common telephone line to a local telephone network controller located in the telephone network providing telephone service to the common telephone line; uploading said changed records in the base station database via the wire line telephone call into a network database maintained by the local telephone network controller, thereby to record in the network database whether each of the persons sharing the common telephone line is or is not at the location served by the common telephone line; after uploading said base station database, disconnecting said telephone call to the local telephone network controller; maintaining in the network database records a database of subscriber numbers including the subscriber number associated with the common telephone line and at least one subscriber telephone numbers including the subscriber number associated with the common telephone line that have restrictions on outbound telephone calls; maintaining, in the network database records, for each of said subscriber telephone numbers that have restrictions on outbound telephone calls, a list of at least one restricted outbound telephone numbers; maintaining within the base station database records a list of at least one restricted outbound telephone numbers associated with at least one of the persons sharing the common telephone line; upon detecting a change in at least one of the records in said base database list of restricted outbound telephone numbers, initiating a wire line telephone call over the common telephone line to the local telephone network controller; uploading said changed restricted outbound telephone number list records in the base station database via the wire line telephone call into the network database records, thereby to record in the network database an updated list of restricted outbound telephone numbers associated with persons sharing the common telephone line; after uploading said base station database, disconnecting said telephone call to the local telephone network controller; receiving an outbound telephone call from the subscriber number of the common telephone line; checking the network database to determine whether said outbound telephone call is from one of said subscriber telephone numbers that has restrictions on outbound telephone calls; checking the updated network database list of restricted outbound telephone numbers to determine whether a number being called may be completed only if at least one required person is present; checking the updated network database to determine whether said at least one required person is present at the location served by the common telephone line; and permitting said outbound telephone call to be completed only if said at least one required person is present at the location served by the common telephone line.