Abstract:
A method of managing communications in a communications network and a program product therefore. Users provide lists of expected future locations, e.g., Serial Ringing (SR) lists. As each call traverses a user&#39;s SR-list to contact a respective user, the user&#39;s current location (i.e., the endpoint at which a call is answered) is noted and the list is automatically altered (e.g., reordered or timeouts shortened) to shorten the time between receiving an incoming call at the system and ringing the answering endpoint. Thereafter, the altered SR-list is used to locate the respective user.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention is related to telecommunications systems and networks and more particularly, to managing calls in public and/or private telecommunications networks. 
         [0003]    1. Background Description 
         [0004]    Serial Ringing (SR) has proven to be a useful feature in modern private telecommunications systems such as the HiPath 8000 from Siemens Communications Inc. When a user expects to be away from his/her desk, for example, the user can setup an SR-list of numbers in expected locations, e.g., the lab, a co-worker&#39;s extension, home and cell phone. With the SR feature activated, when calls to the user (called party) arrive at the system, the system rings each location in the order listed until someone answers. 
         [0005]    Currently, the system sequentially forwards each incoming call in the order presented in the SR-list. The forwarded call rings for a selected number of rings or a certain amount of time at each location along the way. Each caller has to wait for a time out at each listed location, e.g., for 4 rings (or 1 minute for each location), until the user answers. Even with calls placed to the user one right after the other, to reach the same location, each call traverses the SR-list in the same order, ringing each location for the same time until the user finally answers. 
         [0006]    For example, the user may be at the third SR-list entry location with the SR-feature activated. Each time someone (a calling party or caller) calls the user, the system rings at the first SR-entry a selected number of rings (i.e., until a time out occurs); then, rings at the second SR-entry until a time out; and, finally, rings the third SR-entry where the user answers. As long the user is at this third listed location, any caller must wait for time-outs at the first and second locations before reaching the user at the third. The delay from pausing at each intermediate location unnecessarily wastes the caller&#39;s time and telecom system resources as well as. Further, with too many intermediate locations callers may become frustrated and hang up or transfer to voice mail before reaching the user, again wasting time and resources as well as frustrating the purpose of serial calling. 
         [0007]    Thus, there is a need for reducing the delay in connecting calls to users through serial ringing. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    It is a purpose of the invention to improve communications system efficiency; 
         [0009]    It is another purpose of the invention to quickly connect callers with users that are away from their normal network endpoints; 
         [0010]    The present invention relates to a method of managing communications in a communications network and a program product therefore. Users provide lists of expected future locations, e.g., Serial Ringing (SR) lists. As each call traverses a user&#39;s SR-list to contact a respective user, the user&#39;s current location (i.e., the endpoint at which a call is answered) is noted and the list is automatically altered (e.g., reordered or timeouts shortened) to shorten the time between receiving an incoming call at the system and ringing the answering endpoint. Thereafter, the altered SR-list is used to locate the respective user. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The foregoing and other objects, aspects and advantages will be better understood from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention with reference to the drawings, in which: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  shows an example of a communications system administering Serial Ringing (SR) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  shows an example of serial ringing for an in-network call. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0014]    Turning now to the drawings and more particularly,  FIG. 1  shows an example of a communications system  100  including a digital call capable network  102 , e.g., an Internet Protocol (IP) based network capable of Voice over IP (VoIP) communications network (e.g., a session initiation protocol (SIP) network), administering Serial Ringing (SR) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The system  100  includes with digital telephony devices (e.g., SIP devices or VoIP phones) and Multimedia Terminal Adapters (MTA) at End Points (EP)  104 ,  106 ,  108 ,  110  at private network locations, e.g., keysets at the EPs  104 ,  106 ,  110 . Since an attached network device defines an EP, each EP and a device(s) at the EP are referred to herein interchangeably. 
         [0015]    A suitable proxy server  112  provides a router function to private network  102 . A gateway  114 , e.g., a state of the art media gateway controller such as a SIP enabled private branch exchange (PBX), connects the network  102  externally. Typically, for example, the gateway  114  connects to a public switched telephone network/public land mobile network (PSTN/PLMN)  116  supporting typical connected telephones, e.g., land line telephones  118  and/or cell phones  120 . The MTA  108  may be a SIP-MTA, connecting to the IP-network  102  at one side and one or more regular analog phones  119 . One or more softswitch(s)  122 , acting alone or in cooperation with each other, may perform network tasks e.g., routing, subscriber-features, administering the network, creating Call Detail Records (CDR), and acting as a Media Gateway Controller (MGC) remotely located in a data center. 
         [0016]    Moreover, the softswitch(s)  122  manages calls to/from keysets  104 ,  106 ,  110  and telephones  119  (at MTA endpoint  108 ) from/to each other or through the gateway  114 , e.g., to land line telephone  118 . SR lists  124  for each user may be stored, e.g., in storage  126  at softswitch  122 . Each SR list  124  includes a contact number for each of a number, e.g., six (6), of expected locations in an order selected by the respective user, e.g., the order in which the user expects to visit those locations or based on the likelihood that the user will be present in any one location. It should be noted that, although described herein with reference to a private network and more particularly to a private network supported by a SIP PBX, the present invention has application to any suitable communications system or network, private or public. 
         [0017]    According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the preferred system  100  has an enhanced serial ringing feature, e.g., in software in softswitch  122 , such that the system  100  adapts itself to the most recent user location. In particular, after ringing through and connecting with a user (called party) that has activated the SR feature, the softswitch  122  shortens connection time for subsequent calls. This adaptive serial ringing feature may behave subject to user subscription and setup. Further, this adapted serial ringing may temporarily change the ringing order or ringing time with the SR-list reverting to its original order or ring times when, for example, the softswitch  122  detects any activity at the user&#39;s first original EP. 
         [0018]    In one preferred embodiment, the softswitch  122  notes the user&#39;s current location and reorders the SR-list to reduce system resource usage. Thus, the softswitch  122  may place the SR-entry at which the system last reached the user, i.e., the user&#39;s current location, at the top of the reordered list. The softswitch  122  may just reorder the list by moving the single entry for the last location to the top of the list. Alternately, the system may move all of the entries listed before that last location to the end of the list, i.e., rotate the listed entries, such that any listed entries after the current location ring before moved entries. 
         [0019]    In another preferred embodiment, the softswitch  122  shortens the ringing time at each intervening EP, i.e., the EP entries listed before that last location ring twice. Thus, subsequent forwarded calls pause at each intervening EP briefly on the way to the last answering location. Thereafter, once the system detects activity in the user&#39;s home location or in intervening locations, the system may reset/restore the original ring time. Such activity may include, for example, checking voice mail from an intervening end point or at the user&#39;s home location. Answering from one of those intervening locations may also triggers restoring the original order or resetting ringing. 
         [0020]      FIG. 2  shows an example of serial ringing for an in-network call in the system  100  of  FIG. 1 . In this example, the user normally associated with digital telephone  104  has activated his/her serial ringing feature. Also, the user has setup the SR-list  124  with 4 entries in this example. So, the first call, originating  130  from another endpoint (e.g.,  106 ) or from an external device (e.g.,  118  or  120  through gateway  114 ) to the user (called party), to digital telephone  104  is forwarded normally. The softswitch  122  rings the call  132  at the first listed location  104 . If the user does not answer at the first location  104  a timeout occurs in the softswitch  122  for the call processing task. The softswitch  122  sends a release message  134  to the first listed location  104  and rings  136  the second listed location, e.g.,  110 . If the user does not answer at the second listed location  110  another timeout occurs. The softswitch  122  sends another release message  138  to the second listed location  110  and the call rings  140  at the third listed location, e.g.,  108 . When the user answers, an answer message  142  is sent from the answering location  108 . When the softswitch  122  receives the answer message  142 , the softswitch  122  adapts the SR list  124 ′ to shorten the serial ring time for the next and subsequent call. In this example, the softswitch  122  places the third, answering location  108  (identified as the user&#39;s current location) at the top of the list  124 ′. When the user completes the call  144 , the endpoint device  108  sends a release message  146  to the softswitch  122 . The switch  122  sends a release message  148  to the calling endpoint  106  or the gateway  114 . 
         [0021]    Thereafter, when the softswitch  122  receives the next call  150  to the user, since the SR list  124 ′ was adapted based on the most recent call answered, the softswitch  122  forwards that call  152  directly to that answering location  108 , where the user answers  154 . If the user fails to answer at that location  106 , the switch continues forwarding to listed locations  104 ,  110  in the reordered list  124 ′ with changes in user location noted and the list adjusted. 
         [0022]    Advantageously, the present invention provides adaptive serial ringing that learns where users currently can be reached and temporarily changes the SR-list to shorten the time to the called party, e.g., changing the SR order or shortening the ringing time for intervening EPs. Thus, delay from pausing at each intermediate or intervening location is eliminated or dramatically reduced to avoid unnecessarily wasting the caller&#39;s time and telecom system resources and frustrating callers. 
         [0023]    While the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. It is intended that all such variations and modifications fall within the scope of the appended claims. Examples and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive.