Methods and apparatus for integrated voice communication

An integrated voice communication system is provided which includes first circuitry for delivering a stored message to a subscriber calling party upon the receipt of a first command. Second circuitry is coupled to the first circuitry and is operable to create a direct connection with a selected called party without exiting the system upon the receipt of a second command.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates generally to voice communication systems and 
more particularly to methods and apparatus for integrated voice 
communications. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Voice communications have become an important factor in increasing the 
productivity of modern day business concerns. Newly developed voice 
communication systems, including voice messaging and call delivery 
systems, have allowed the efficient transfer of information without the 
need of paperwork or specialized computer equipment. These systems have 
become more expanded in scope, such that the number of subscribing users 
able to link up to a particular system as well as the number of 
convenience features available have both significantly increased. Research 
and development efforts continue, however, in search of new ways to 
increase the efficiency of voice communication systems while at the same 
time allowing such systems to be "user-friendly" to the average 
subscriber. 
Even with the technical expansion of the voice communication industry, 
existing voice message and call delivery systems available on the market, 
still retain substantial inconveniences. One such inconvenience is 
encountered when a subscriber receives a voice message from a calling 
party and desires to promptly answer it with a return direct telephone 
call. In currently available voice communication systems, the subscriber 
must exit the voice messaging system in order to place a direct dial 
outside telephone call. The subscriber is therefore faced with the choice 
of either listening to all his voice messages and then exiting the system 
to make the required outside telephone call, or immediately leaving the 
voice communication facility, making the telephone call and then 
reentering the voice communication system to retrieve the remaining voice 
messages. Neither of these options is very efficient. In the first option, 
the subscriber may need to write down the name and number of the calling 
party so that the information will not be forgotten during the period in 
which the remaining messages are being retrieved. In the second option, 
the subscriber must subject himself to the entire process of reentering 
the system, which may include regaining access through the associated 
security steps as well as retracing through the system menus and 
associated command inputs to reach the stored information. 
Another significant disadvantage with presently available voice 
communication systems is encountered when a voice message is deposited in 
the voice mailbox of another subscribing user. In this case, the message 
may remain in the voice mailbox for an undesirable long period of time 
until finally retrieved by the called party. This problem becomes acute 
when important information must be delivered and it is difficult or 
impossible for the calling subscriber to continue to try and establish 
direct contact. One means of alleviating this problem is to direct the 
voice mail system to automatically and periodically query the telephone of 
the called party until a recorded voice message can be directly delivered. 
This system is efficient as long as the called party returns to the area 
of the telephone within a reasonable period of time. Otherwise, the 
extension will be queried without avail. 
Thus, a voice communication system is needed which provides a more 
efficient use of the communication system. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
According to the invention, an integrated voice communications system is 
provided which includes first circuitry for delivering a stored message to 
a subscriber calling party upon the receipt of a first command. Second 
circuitry is provided coupled to the first circuitry and is operable to 
create a direct connection with a selected called party without exiting 
the system upon the receipt of a second command. 
According to other aspects of the invention, the subscriber calling party 
is returned to that point in the system where the calling party may listen 
to a second message stored in the system. In addition, the subscriber 
calling party may deliver a voice message to another subscribing party 
using a rapid call delivery option. Under the rapid delivery option, a 
subscriber calling party leaves a message with the system, the system then 
both deposits the message with the voice mailbox of the subscriber called 
party while simultaneously attempting to deliver the message via the 
establishment of a direct connection to the called party's telephone. 
The present invention provides the significant advantage of allowing 
subscriber calling party to place a direct telephone call without the need 
for exiting the voice communication system itself. This feature allows the 
calling party to immediately respond to each voice message as it is 
received. Further, by using the rapid call delivery option, the 
probability is increased that important information can be transferred to 
the called party, even if that called party is away from the area of their 
telephone.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Referring first to FIG. 1, a top level block diagram is shown depicting the 
interface between an integrated voice communication system 10 and a 
calling subscriber 12 through telephone switching equipment 18. A 
non-subscribing telephone is shown at 14, while a second subscriber 
telephone is shown at 16. Telephones of subscribers 12 and 16 voice 
messaging (voice mailbox) services. 
FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a communications system 10. The 
communications system 10 comprises a telephony control section 20 
connected to a T1 line, a service control section 22 connected to the 
telephony control section 20 and a database management system (DBMS) 24. 
In operation, the DBMS 24 is a mainframe computer which maintains customer 
records, billing information, voice mail files, and other data requiring a 
larger database system. The service control section 22 provides the 
interface between the database management system 24 and the users of the 
communications system. For example, the service control section 22 would 
oversee the voice mail system. This would entail retrieving messages from 
the DBMS 24, prompting the caller for instructions, and so on. The 
telephony control section 20 interfaces with the T1 line, performing the 
actual sending and receiving of voice data to the caller and managing the 
communications protocols. 
FIG. 3 illustrates a more detailed block diagram of the communications 
system 10 of FIG. 1. A bus 26, preferably conforming to the NU-BUS 
standard, is coupled to a host CPU 28, a communications carrier 30, a disk 
interface 32, and a plurality of voice processing boards 34. The host CPU 
28 is coupled to a program memory 36. The disk interface is coupled to a 
hard disk 38, or other mass storage device. The VPBs are also connected to 
the T1 line via a T1 bus 39. The communications carrier 30 is connected to 
the DBMS. 
The VPBs 34 comprise the telephony control section 20. Each VPB 34 
comprises a plurality of digital signal processors (DSPs). Each VPB board 
is preferably a multi-tasking system, such that each VPB 34 handles 
multiple channels on the T1 line. 
The CPU 28 preferably comprises a microprocessor, for example, the Motorola 
68030. The program memory 36 stores program routines and data parameters 
which are transferred to the VPBs 34 under control of the CPU 28. The CPU 
28 also contains a local program memory (not shown) which provides 
instructions for the microprocessor. 
The communications carrier 30 provides the communications functions to 
transfer information between the bus 26 to the DBMS 24. The disk interface 
32 provides an interface between the bus 26 and a mass storage device, 
such as hard disk 38. 
In operation, the CPU 28 transfers program routines and data parameters 
from the program memory 36 to the VPBs 34. The VPBs 34 execute the program 
routines downloaded by the CPU 28. When execution of the program routines 
is complete, the CPU 28 is notified at this time via bus 26, and the CPU 
may download another program routine. 
Each program routine may be thought of as a portion of an application 
program. By executing only a portion of an application program in the VPB 
34, two advantages are evident. First, the program routines allow an 
execution of an application program which has memory requirements much 
greater than the local memories contained in the VPBs 34. Further, an 
application program may be dynamically adjusted during runtime by 
modifying the order of program routines transferred to the VPBs 34. 
FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of a VPB 34. Each VPB 34 comprises a 
plurality of DSPs 32 (shown individually as DSP 32a-c). Each DSP 32a has a 
respective DSP memory 35a-c and a respective T1 buffer 36a-c. The DSP 
memories 34a-c are cross-coupled between the DSPs 32a-c such that 
communication between the DSPs is possible. 
Referring next to FIG. 4, a top level flow chart is given which describes 
the overall operation of integrated voice communication system 10. 
Subscriber 12 first gains access to integrated voice communication system 
10 by inputting an access number at step 40 which will create the required 
connection through telephone switching equipment 18. The access number may 
be for example an "800 number" well known in the communications art. 
Following connection to system 10, subscriber 12 inputs a personalized 
code at step 42 to access operational features of system 10, such as the 
voice mailbox of subscriber 12. The personalized code may be, for example, 
a series of numbers or letters identifying subscriber 12. Further, the 
code may be entered as an intent phrase voice command; subscriber 12 may 
vocally enter the code as a series of words and numbers indicating the 
intent to gain access. 
Next, system 10 issues a vocal prompt at step 44 indicating the number of 
messages, if any, that may have been left for subscriber 12 in voice 
mailbox designated for subscriber 12. In response, subscriber 12 enters a 
service selection command at step 46 through which subscriber 12 requests 
one of the options of: listening to any stored messages directed to 
subscriber 12, directly placing a telephone call, or sending a voice 
message to a subscriber 18. The service selection command may be a DTMF 
signal produced by telephone of subscriber 12 following a pushbutton 
input, or may be an intent driven voice phrase command phrase, such as 
"listen to messages." 
If subscriber 12 has entered a service select command at step 46 requesting 
playback of any stored voice messages (the "listen to messages" option), 
the first message available is retrieved at step 48 from the designated 
voice mailbox and played back to subscriber 12. Following the playback of 
voice message at step 48, a voice message disposal menu is issued at step 
50 by system 10. Subscriber 12 can then selectively respond to the 
information distributed by the voice message in accordance with the 
options presented by the menu. In the first option, a call command may be 
entered at step 52. Under this command, subscriber 12 can place a direct 
telephone call to a non-subscribing called party 14 or a subscribing 
called party 16 without leaving the services of voice communication system 
10. Once the telephone call is completed at step 60, subscriber 12 
automatically receives the next message in the voice mailbox, or, if no 
voice messages remain, is returned to step 46 to input an alternate 
service selection command. In the second option, subscriber 12 enters a 
"send message" command at step 54 which allows the delivery of a message 
to a subscriber 18 within the system, as will be discussed in more detail 
below. 
Besides the options of responding to a voice message by either a direct 
telephone call or a voice message, subscriber 12 additionally has options 
for disposing of the message itself. The voice message may be saved by the 
entry of a "save" command at step 56 or erased with the entry of an 
"erase" command at step 58. Each of these steps may also be implemented by 
intent driven voice phrase commands. Following disposition of the message, 
the processing again continues at step 60 at which time subscriber 12 can 
receive the next message in the voice mailbox, or if no messages remain, 
is brought back to step 46 for the input of an alternate service selection 
command. 
If subscriber 12 has entered a service command at step 46 requesting a 
direct connection to a selected non-subscriber 14 or subscriber 16, 
subscriber 12 enters the telephone number of the desired called party at 
step 62. Voice communication system 10 then directs the dial out through 
switching equipment 18 to the called party at step 64. If a connection is 
established to the called party, the desired conversation occurs at step 
66. If, however, the called party is busy or does not answer, subscriber 
12 is given the option of selecting call delivery at step 68. If call 
delivery is selected, at step 70 subscriber 12 leaves a message in voice 
communication system 10. A delivery option menu is provided at step 72 
giving subscriber 12 the option of having the message delivered to the 
desired called party under either a normal delivery protocol at step 74 or 
a rapid delivery protocol at step 76. 
Under normal delivery protocol, if the called party is a subscriber 16, the 
message is delivered to the voice mailbox of the selected subscriber 16. 
If the called party is a non-subscriber 16, system 10 will try to deliver 
the message by automatically querying the called party telephone, once per 
hour, up to eight times if the telephone continues to remain unanswered. 
Under the rapid delivery protocol of step 76, with either a non-subscriber 
called party 14 or a subscriber called party 16, voice communication 
system 10 will try to deliver the message, in the preferred embodiment, 
once every fifteen minutes, up to eight times. The subscriber may be given 
the option in other embodiments to specify the number of tries and the 
period between them for customized rapid delivery. Additionally, if the 
called party is a subscriber 16, the message will also be deposited in the 
voice mailbox of the called subscriber 16. If the called subscriber 16 
receives the message via a direct call delivery, the message in the voice 
mailbox is automatically erased. If, on the other hand, subscriber 16 
retrieves the message from the voice mailbox prior to the last attempt to 
deliver the message via direct call delivery, the call delivery attempts 
will be automatically terminated. 
When subscriber 12 enters a service selection command at step 46 directing 
system 10 to "send a message", system 10 prompts subscriber 12 at step 78 
to input either the a telephone number of an individual called subscriber 
16 or a distribution list of a number of called subscribers 16. If the 
telephone number or distribution list is valid, i.e., all the called 
parties are subscribers of system 10, then subscriber 12 is permitted to 
record his message at step 80. After completion of recording step 80, 
processing proceeds to step 72 wherein subscriber 12 can select between 
the normal delivery option at step 74 or the rapid delivery option at step 
76 as discussed above. 
Thus, the present invention provides facilities by which a subscriber 12 
may listen to any messages stored for that particular subscriber in a 
system 10 mailbox, and then directly place a telephone call out of the 
system without the need to exit the system itself. This features allows 
subscriber 12 to efficiently respond to each stored message immediately 
after receiving it. Further, the present invention allows subscriber 12 to 
send a voice message to another subscriber using either a normal delivery 
mode or a rapid delivery mode. In the rapid delivery mode, a message is 
both deposited in the called subscriber 16 voice mailbox, while 
simultaneously periodic attempts to deliver the message directly to 
delivery subscriber 16 are made. This increases the probability of having 
the stored information relayed to called subscriber 16, since even if 
called subscriber 16 is not in the area of his telephone, the message will 
still be available for retrieval through the voice mail facility. 
Although the present invention has been described in detail, it should be 
understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made 
herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as 
defined by the appended claims.