Abstract:
A method and apparatus for selecting one of a plurality of delivery mechanisms for sending a message are disclosed. The illustrative embodiment enables the advantageous selection of the delivery mechanism for sending a message from a first telecommunications terminal to a second telecommunications terminal based on at least one of: (i) the location of the first terminal, (ii) the location of the second terminal, (iii) the time and date (i.e., the calendrical time) at the first terminal, (iv) the calendrical time at the second terminal, and (v) one or more properties of the message (e.g., the sending user, the receiving user, a message priority, the contents of the message, etc.). A delivery mechanism for sending a message comprises at least one of: a physical medium, a physical layer protocol, a medium access control, and a network for transport.

Description:
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of:
         i. PCT Patent Application PCT/US03/14041, filed on 6 May 2003, entitled “Intelligent Selection of Mode of Communication,” now pending,
 
which is itself a continuation-in-part of:
   ii. U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/380,140, filed on May 6, 2002, entitled “Method For Interception, Manipulations, and Usage of Bluetooth Voice Streams.”
 
Both of these applications are incorporated by reference.
       

    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to telecommunications in general, and, more particularly, to intelligent selection of a delivery mechanism for sending a message from a telecommunications terminal. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG. 1  depicts a schematic diagram of wireless local-area network  100  in the prior art, which comprises: stations  101 - 1  through  101 -N, wherein N is a positive integer, and access point  102 , interconnected as shown. Each station  101 - i , wherein i is a positive integer in the set {1, . . . N}, communicates wirelessly with other stations in local-area network  100  via access point  102 . Station  101 - i  must be located within a particular distance from access point  102  in order to communicate with access point  102  and other stations in wireless local-area network  100 . A popular standard for wireless local-area networks is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specification. 
       FIG. 2  depicts a schematic diagram of two cellular handsets  201 - 1  and  201 - 2  that transmit and receive signals via cellular wireless network  200 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , wireless network  200  comprises M wireless switching centers  210 - 1  through  210 -M, where M is a positive integer, and wireless switching center  210 - 3  communicates with K base stations  220 - 3 - 1  through  220 - 3 -K, where K is a positive integer. Each wireless switching center  210 - i  in wireless network  200  typically is connected to a plurality of base stations; however, for the purpose of clarity, base stations are shown only for wireless switching center  210 - 3  in  FIG. 2 . 
     A hybrid 802.11/cellular telecommunications terminal is a terminal that has both an IEEE 802.11 radio and a cellular radio (e.g., a Code Division Multiple Access radio, etc.), and therefore can send and receive signals either via an IEEE 802.11 local-area network or a cellular network. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention enables the advantageous selection of a delivery mechanism for sending a message from a hybrid telecommunications terminal. For the purpose of this specification, a delivery mechanism comprises at least one of:
         (i) a physical medium (e.g., copper, radio, etc.),   (ii) a physical layer protocol (e.g., Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum [DSSS], etc.),   (iii) a medium access control (e.g., Code Division Multiple Access [CDMA], etc.), and   (iv) a network for transport (e.g., Public Switched Telephone Network [PSTN], Internet, etc.).
 
Naturally, no selection is required for a particular category if only one choice is available (e.g., if radio is the only available physical medium, etc.).
       

     In particular, the illustrative embodiment enables the automatic selection of a delivery mechanism for a message sent from a first terminal to a second terminal based on at least one of:
         (i) the location of the first terminal,   (ii) the location of the second terminal,   (iii) the time and date (i.e., the calendrical time) at the first terminal,   (iv) the calendrical time at the second terminal, and   (v) one or more properties of the message (e.g., the sending user, the receiving user, a message priority, the contents of the message, etc.).
 
The following examples illustrate the desirability of automatic selection of a delivery mechanism based on (i) through (v) above.
       

     Example for (i): At certain locations in a hospital, placing a telephone call via a cellular phone might have deleterious effects on nearby medical equipment, while placing a telephone call via an IEEE 802.11 station might not interfere with the medical equipment (for example, because the 802.11 radio operates at a different frequency). Conversely, in an 802.11 “hotspot” (i.e., an 802.11 local-area network in a public location) it might be more desirable to send an email message via a cellular network than via the hotspot, since encryption and security typically are more robust in cellular networks. Thus, it would be advantageous to have automatic selection of the most desirable delivery mechanism for sending a message from a hybrid telecommunications terminal, where “most desirable” is based on the location of the terminal in combination with particular preferences (e.g., user-defined rules, etc.). 
     Example for (ii): An administrator in building A of a hospital places a call with a hybrid 802.11/cellular phone to a nurse in building B of the hospital, who also has a hybrid 802.11/cellular phone. Building B contains sensitive medical equipment, while building A does not. It would be advantageous if the call to the nurse were automatically transmitted over the hospital campus 802.11 local-area network, rather than a cellular network, when the nurse is in building B. Conversely, when the nurse is in building A, it might be more desirable for the call to be transmitted over a cellular network for increased security (e.g., to comply with federal privacy laws when discussing a patient&#39;s records, etc.) 
     Example for (iii): An employee places a telephone call via a hybrid 802.11/cellular phone from his or her office. The corporate 802.11 local-area network is connected to the Internet via a voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) gateway. It might be advantageous for calls to be transmitted via 802.11 and the Internet rather than via a cellular network during business hours when cellular “air time” is more expensive than landline telephone charges. Conversely, for an employee that works the night-shift or weekend-shift, it might be advantageous for calls to be transmitted by a cellular network when the cellular service provider offers “free nights and weekends.” 
     Example for (iv): In the example for (iii), if the employee is in New York and places a telephone call at 9:00 PM Eastern Standard Time to a person in San Francisco, it might be desirable to transmit the call over the 802.11 local-area network and Internet, rather than a cellular network, if the San Franciscan&#39;s cellular plan charges for incoming calls during peak periods (such as 6:00 PM Pacific Standard Time). 
     Examples for (v):
         Bob, who works for a defense contractor, places a telephone call via a hybrid 802.11/cellular phone to Colonel Flag, the Army representative on the corporate premises. Since the call is directed to Colonel Flag, the call should be transmitted over a cellular network for greater security.   Bob sends a high-priority unclassified email message to a co-worker using a hybrid telecommunications terminal. Bob&#39;s cellular provider&#39;s email system is not very reliable, and thus the email message is automatically sent via the corporate 802.11 local-area network, since reliability, and not security, is the most important criterion for a high-priority unclassified message.   Colonel Flag has a hybrid telecommunications terminal that can communicate either via a military satellite-based network, or a civilian cellular network. The terminal supports both voice and data communications, and has an operating system that requires a user to log in with a password. Colonel Flag&#39;s wife, who is a civilian, also has an account on this terminal. When Colonel Flag sends a message from the terminal, the message is automatically transmitted either via the satellite network or the cellular network, depending on the terminal&#39;s location and/or the calendrical time, as described above. When Colonel Flag&#39;s wife logs into the terminal and sends a message, however, the message is always transmitted via the civilian cellular network.   Colonel Flag sends an email message from the hybrid satellite/cellular telecommunications terminal to Colonel Blake. Based on the text of the message, the message is automatically transmitted either via the cellular network (e.g., the email discusses yesterday&#39;s Army-Navy football game, etc.) or the satellite network (e.g., the email discusses a planned military operation, etc.).       

     For the purposes of this specification, the term “calendrical time” is defined as indicative of one or more of the following:
         (i) a time (e.g., 16:23:58, etc.),   (ii) one or more temporal designations (e.g., Tuesday, November, etc.),   (iii) one or more events (e.g., Thanksgiving, John&#39;s birthday, etc.), and   (iv) a time span (e.g., 8:00-9:00, etc.).       

     The illustrative embodiment comprises: (a) determining the location of a first telecommunications terminal; and (b) selecting, based on the location, one of a plurality of physical media available to the first telecommunications terminal for sending a message to a second telecommunications terminal. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  depicts exemplary wireless local-area network  100  in the prior art. 
         FIG. 2  depicts exemplary cellular network  200  and cellular handsets  201 - 1  and  201 - 2  in the prior art. 
         FIG. 3  depicts the operation of hybrid telecommunications terminals  301 - 1  and  301 - 2  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  depicts a block diagram of the salient components of hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i , as shown in  FIG. 3 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  depicts a flowchart for selecting a physical medium, a physical layer protocol, a network, and a medium access control for sending a message from hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i , as shown in  FIG. 3 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 3  depicts a schematic diagram of in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 3  depicts wireless local-area network  300  centered at access point  302 , cellular network  310 , hybrid telecommunications terminals  301 - 1  and  301 - 2 , Internet  303 , and Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  304 , interconnected as shown. 
     Cellular network  310  is identical to cellular network  200 , as depicted in  FIG. 2 . 
     Access point  302  is identical to access point  202 , as depicted in  FIG. 2 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , access point  302  is connected to Internet  303  and Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  304 , thereby enabling stations in local-area network  300  to send and receive signals via Internet  303  or Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  304 , in well-known fashion. 
     Hybrid telecommunications terminals  301 - 1  and  301 - 2  are 802.11/cellular telecommunications terminals. As shown in  FIG. 3 , both telecommunications terminals  301 - 1  and  301 - 2  are within transmission range of cellular network  310 . Hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - 1  is also within transmission range of access point  302 , and thus has the capability of sending and receiving signals via local-area network  300  as well as cellular network  310 . Hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - 2 , however, is outside transmission range of access point  302  and thus can send and receive signals only via cellular network  310 . 
     As will be clear to those skilled in the art,  FIG. 3  illustrates merely one embodiment in which a hybrid telecommunications terminal might be able to send messages via a plurality of delivery mechanisms in accordance with the present invention. In the example of  FIG. 3 , hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - 1  can send messages via two different wireless networks (i.e., wireless local-area network  300  and cellular network  310 .) In some other embodiments, hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - 1  might be able to send messages (i) via three or more different networks; (ii) via two or more different physical media (e.g., copper, radio, etc.); (iii) via two or more different medium access controls (e.g., Code Division Multiple Access, Time Division Multiple Access, etc.); or (iv) via two or more different physical layer protocols (e.g., Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing, etc.). It will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use embodiments of the present invention for such alternatives. 
       FIG. 4  depicts a block diagram of the salient components of hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. Hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  comprises receiver  401 , processor  402 , memory  403 , transmitter  404 , and clock  405 , interconnected as shown. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , receiver  401  receives signals from a plurality of networks, including satellite-based, cellular, and wireless local-area networks. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, in some embodiments of the present invention receiver  401  might be a single physical receiver (e.g., a radio, etc.) for receiving signals from different networks, while in some other embodiments receiver  401  might be a composite receiver comprising a plurality of physical receivers (e.g., a radio and an Ethernet network interface card, two different radios, etc.). 
     Processor  402  is a general-purpose processor that is capable of executing instructions stored in memory  403 , of reading data from and writing data into memory  403 , of generating messages, and of executing the tasks described below and with respect to  FIG. 5 , described below. In some alternative embodiments of the present invention, processor  402  might comprise one or more special-purpose processors (e.g., a network processor, a dedicated processor for determining location from satellite signals, etc.). In either case, it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this disclosure, how to make and use processor  402 . 
     Memory  403  stores data and executable instructions, as is well-known in the art, and might be any combination of random-access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk drive, etc. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , transmitter  404  transmits signals to a plurality of networks, including satellite-based, cellular, and wireless local-area networks. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, in some embodiments of the present invention transmitter  404  might be a single physical transmitter (e.g., a radio transmitter, etc.) for transmitting signals via different networks, while in some other embodiments transmitter  404  might be a composite transmitter comprising a plurality of physical transmitters (e.g., a radio transmitter and an Ethernet network interface card, two different radio transmitters, etc.). 
     Clock  405  transmits the current date and time to processor  402  in well-known fashion. 
       FIG. 5  depicts flowchart  500  for selecting a physical medium, a physical layer protocol, a network, and a medium access control for sending a message from hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. As disclosed in the illustrative embodiment processor  402  of hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  executes the tasks of flowchart  500 ; however, it will be clear to those skilled in the art how to make and use alternative embodiments of the present invention in which another entity (e.g., an Internet server, an access point, a wireless switching center, etc.) performs some or all of the tasks of flowchart  500  (i.e., “infrastructure-based” embodiments). 
     At task  510 , a signal to send a message M from hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  to some other telecommunications terminal T (not necessarily hybrid) is received in well-known fashion. In the illustrative embodiment, processor  402  receives this signal (e.g., from a user input device [not shown in  FIG. 4 ], etc.), while in some other embodiments, another entity (e.g., an Internet server processor, an access point processor, etc.) might receive this signal. 
     At task  520 , the location of hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  is determined. In the illustrative embodiment, satellite signals received by receiver  401  are forwarded to processor  402 , and processor  402  performs the necessary computations to determine the location of hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i . In some other embodiments, hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  might have a dedicated Global Positioning System (GPS) processor for determining location, as is well-known in the art, while in some other embodiments, another entity such as a wireless base station might determine the location of hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i.    
     At optional task  530 , the location of hybrid telecommunications terminal T is determined. (In some embodiments it might not be desirable to implement task  530  [e.g., it might require too many changes to legacy equipment, etc.] and thus this task is depicted as optional via dotted lines.) In the illustrative embodiment, hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  determines the location of hybrid telecommunications terminal T by sending a query to the appropriate access point, server, wireless base station, etc. In some other embodiments, an access point, server, etc. might perform task  530 , possibly in addition to task  520 , as described above. It will be clear to those skilled in the art how to implement task  530  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment, or in accordance with alternative embodiments such as infrastructure-based implementations. 
     At task  540 , the calendrical time at hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  is determined. In the illustrative embodiment, processor  402  receives this information from clock  405 . In some other embodiments, processor  402  might receive this information from receiver  401 , which in turn receives this information from another entity (e.g., a wireless base station, etc.). In some other infrastructure-based embodiments, the wireless base station, access point, etc. that performs some or all of the tasks of flowchart  500  performs task  540  (e.g., via its own clock, etc.) 
     At optional task  550 , the calendrical time at telecommunications terminal T is determined. In the illustrative embodiment, processor  402  determines the calendrical time at hybrid telecommunications terminal T mathematically based on the results of task  530  and  540  (i.e., by determining the number of time zones separating terminals  301 - i  and T and accordingly adding or subtracting hours from the calendrical time determined at task  540 .) In some other embodiments, an access point, server, etc. might perform task  550 . It will be clear to those skilled in the art how to implement task  550  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment, or in accordance with alternative embodiments such as infrastructure-based implementations. 
     At task  560 , one or more properties of message M (e.g., priority, semantic content, the sending user, the receiving user, etc.) are determined in well-known fashion. In the illustrative embodiment processor  402  performs task  560 , while in some other embodiments an access point, server, etc. might perform task  560 . 
     At task  570 , a physical medium is selected from the set of physical media available to hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  for sending message M. (This set is based on transmitter  404 &#39;s capabilities and terminal  301 - i &#39;s location). The selection is based on one or more of the location(s), calendrical time(s), and properties obtained in tasks  520  through  560 , in accordance with one or more rules. In the illustrative embodiment task  570  is performed by processor  402 , while in some other embodiments an access point, server, etc. might perform task  570 . As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the rules for selecting a physical medium might be hard-coded (e.g., stored in a read-only portion of memory  403 , etc.), or might be defined by the user of terminal  301 - i  (e.g., via input means of terminal  301 - i , etc.). 
     At task  580 , a network is selected from the set of networks available to hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  for sending message M. (This set is based on the physical medium selected at task  570 , transmitter  404 &#39;s capabilities, and terminal  301 - i &#39;s location). The selection is based on one or more of the location(s), calendrical time(s), and properties obtained in tasks  520  through  560 , in accordance with one or more rules. In the illustrative embodiment task  580  is performed by processor  402 , while in some other embodiments an access point, server, etc. might perform task  580 . As described above, in some embodiments the rules for selecting a network might be hard-coded (e.g., stored in a read-only portion of memory  403 , etc.), or might be defined by the user of terminal  301 - i  (e.g., via input means of terminal  301 - i , etc.). 
     At task  590 , a physical layer protocol is selected from the set of physical layer protocol available to hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  for sending message M. (This set is based on the network selected at task  580 , transmitter  404 &#39;s capabilities, and potentially terminal  301 - i &#39;s location). The selection is based on one or more of the location(s), calendrical time(s), and properties obtained in tasks  520  through  560 , in accordance with one or more rules. In the illustrative embodiment task  590  is performed by processor  402 , while in some other embodiments an access point, server, etc. might perform task  590 . As described above, in some embodiments the rules for selecting a network might be hard-coded (e.g., stored in a read-only portion of memory  403 , etc.), or might be defined by the user of terminal  301 - i  (e.g., via input means of terminal  301 - i , etc.). 
     At task  595 , a medium access control is selected from the set of medium access controls available to hybrid telecommunications terminal  301 - i  for sending message M. (This set is based on the network and physical layer protocols selected at tasks  580  and  590 , respectively, and the capabilities of the software stored in memory  403 .) The selection is based on one or more of the location(s), calendrical time(s), and properties obtained in tasks  520  through  560 , in accordance with one or more rules. In the illustrative embodiment task  595  is performed by processor  402 , while in some other embodiments an access point, server, etc. might perform task  595 . As described above, in some embodiments the rules for selecting a network might be hard-coded (e.g., stored in a read-only portion of memory  403 , etc.), or might be defined by the user of terminal  301 - i  (e.g., via input means of terminal  301 - i , etc.). 
     It is to be understood that the above-described embodiments are merely illustrative of the present invention and that many variations of the above-described embodiments can be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. It is therefore intended that such variations be included within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.