Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US6510217?dq=5,890,152
Timestamp: 2016-05-01 13:47:07
Document Index: 397134539

Matched Legal Cases: ['arty 100', 'arty 102', 'arty 100', 'arty 102', 'arty 100', 'arty 102']

Patent US6510217 - Methods and systems for forwarding anonymous and unknown calls - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inPatentsMethods and systems for forwarding anonymous and unknown calls include a call forwarder that receives call signaling messages from a calling party end office. The call forwarder determines whether a call identified by the call signaling message is anonymous or unknown. In response to determining that...http://www.google.com/patents/US6510217?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US6510217 - Methods and systems for forwarding anonymous and unknown callsAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS6510217 B1Publication typeGrantApplication numberUS 09/535,196Publication dateJan 21, 2003Filing dateMar 27, 2000Priority dateMar 27, 2000Fee statusPaidPublication number09535196, 535196, US 6510217 B1, US 6510217B1, US-B1-6510217, US6510217 B1, US6510217B1InventorsJames Martin Welch, Aleeha Renee Travis, Janet LaCroix CattsOriginal AssigneeNortel Networks LimitedExport CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (4), Referenced by (14), Classifications (13), Legal Events (10) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetMethods and systems for forwarding anonymous and unknown calls
US 6510217 B1Abstract
Methods and systems for forwarding anonymous and unknown calls include a call forwarder that receives call signaling messages from a calling party end office. The call forwarder determines whether a call identified by the call signaling message is anonymous or unknown. In response to determining that the call is anonymous or unknown, the call forwarder determines whether the calling party has an anonymous call forwarding feature. In response to determining that a calling party has an anonymous call forwarding feature, the call forwarder forwards the call to a predetermined destination.
The present invention relates to methods and systems for processing anonymous and unknown calls in a telecommunications network. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and systems for forwarding anonymous and unknown calls to a predetermined destination, such as a voice mail system, without terminating the calls at the called party end office.
Telecommunications service providers currently allow subscribers to place anonymous calls, i.e., calls in which the calling party address cannot be displayed by the called party. In an SS7 network, an anonymous call is initiated by sending an initial address message (IAM) message with the calling party address field marked as private. Marking the calling party address as private prevents the called end user from using a caller identification feature to display the directory number from which the call originated. This is undesirable since the called end user may wish to identify and/or screen calls from undesirable sources, such as telemarketers.
When a called party end office receives an anonymous call and determines that the called party has the ACRJ feature, the called party end office either plays an announcement to the calling party or instructs the calling party end office to play an announcement to the calling party. The announcement might be, “the party whom you have called does not accept calls from anonymous sources. If you desire to contact this party, please unblock your number and call again.” Following the announcement the called party end office sends a release message to the calling party end office to disconnect the call. Thus, the calling party is required to unblock his or her directory number and attempt to reestablish the call.
A method for processing anonymous and unknown calls includes receiving a call signaling message for establishing a call with a calling party at a called party end office switch. The switch determines whether the call is anonymous or unknown based on the call signaling message. In response to determining that the call is anonymous or unknown, the switch forwards the call to a predetermined destination directory number.
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional telecommunications network. In FIG. 1 a calling party 100 attempts to establish a call with a called party 102. Calling party 100 is connected to calling party end office 104. Calling party end office 104 can comprise a service switching point (SSP). Called party 102 is connected to called party end office 106, which also comprises an SSP. Calling party end office 104 and called party end office 106 are connected to signal transfer point (STP) 108 via SS7 signaling links 110 and 112.
FIG. 3 illustrates a system for processing anonymous and unknown calls according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 3, calling party 100 is assumed to be an anonymous caller desiring to establish a call with called party 102. SSP 104 and STP 108 perform conventional call signaling functions as described with respect to FIG. 2. However, SSP 106A includes call forwarder 300 for processing anonymous and unknown calls. For example, rather than terminating unknown calls and instructing SSP 104 to play an announcement, call forwarder 300 can forward anonymous and unknown calls to voice mail system 302. An exemplary voice mail system suitable for use with the present invention is a Glenayre™ voice mail system. Voice mail system 302 can include an interface for communication with SSP 106A. For example, the interface can be a simplified message desk interface (SMDI) or an SS7 interface. An exemplary end office switch suitable for use as SSP 106A is the DMS family of switches available from Nortel Networks, Inc. of Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
Once the ANM message is received by SSP 104, a connection is established between VMX 302 and SSP 104. When the connection is established, voice mail system 302 first plays an announcement to the calling end user 100. Because the announcement is delivered by voice mail system 302 rather than an end office switch, the announcement can be customized by the called party. For example, the called party might record an announcement such as, “this destination does not accept anonymous calls. However, if you would like to leave a message, please do so at the tone.” After playing the announcement, voice mail system 302 can allow the called party to record a message.
According to another embodiment, the present invention includes methods and systems for performing selective call acceptance and rejection. For example, in conventional selective call acceptance and rejection systems, processing is similar to that illustrated in FIG. 2 where calls are either completed or terminated based on the calling party address. For example, if a called party has a selective call acceptance feature, the calling party address in an incoming call signaling message is compared to a predetermined list of addresses from which the called party desires to accept calls. If the incoming call is not on the list, the call is released. As with anonymous call rejection, the called party SSP can cause a message to be played to the calling party.
In step ST5, if call forwarder 300 determines that the call should be rejected, call forwarder 300 determines whether the called party has a rejected call forwarding feature. As with the anonymous call forwarding feature, the presence of the rejected call forwarding feature can be evinced by the presence of a rejected call forwarding indicator in the line options database. In step ST6 if call forwarder 300 determines that such a feature is not present, the call is processed as normal. In other words, call forwarder 300 functions similarly to the conventional case described above where the call is released. However, in step ST6, if rejected call forwarding feature is present in the database, in step ST7, call forwarder 300 forwards the call to a predetermined destination. Forwarding the call to a predetermined destination includes sending a message to the destination with a cause code that indicates selective call acceptance forwarding or selective call rejection forwarding. If the final destination is a voice mail system, the message can also include a redirection indicator that indicates the number that forwarded the call. In this case, the number would be the number of the called party. The redirection indicator in combination with the cause code can be used to play an appropriate message to the calling party, such as, “the party you are attempting to reach is unavailable. Please leave a message at the tone.” Thus, rather than terminating a call from a rejected party, the call forwarder according to the present embodiment forwards the call to a predetermined destination, such as a voice mail system, an attendant, or other suitable destination.
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25, 2003Mar 18, 2008Lucent Technologies Inc.Method and apparatus for anonymous call redirection in a wireless networkUS8190201Jan 25, 2010May 29, 2012Research In Motion LimitedVerifying and identifying incoming PBX calls on mobile devicesUS8428647Apr 23, 2013Research In Motion LimitedVerifying and identifying incoming PBX calls on mobile devicesUS8670541Jan 12, 2006Mar 11, 2014At&T Intellectual Property I, L.PMethod and system for providing enhanced caller identification information including total call control for all received callsUS8744054Jun 29, 2006Jun 3, 2014Apple Inc.Method and system for automatic call redialingUS9088646Mar 7, 2014Jul 21, 2015At&T Intellectual Property I, L.P.Method and system for providing enhanced caller identification information including total call control for all received callsUS20050113096 *Nov 25, 2003May 26, 2005Gayde Ruth S.Method and apparatus for anonymous call redirection in a wireless networkUS20060133592 *Jan 12, 2006Jun 22, 2006Sbc Properties, LpMethod and system for providing enhanced caller identification information including total call control for all received callsUS20060133593 *Jan 12, 2006Jun 22, 2006Sbc Properties, LpMethod and system for providing enhanced caller identification information including total call control for all received callsUS20080037746 *Jun 29, 2006Feb 14, 2008Nortel Networks LimitedMethod and system for automatic call redialingUS20110183657 *Jan 25, 2010Jul 28, 2011Research In Motion LimitedVerifying and identifying incoming pbx calls on mobile devicesUS20110299458 *Dec 8, 2011Runcom Technologies Ltd.VoIP CALL OVER WIRELESS SYSTEMS USING ANY PREFERRED DIALING NUMBER* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification379/211.02, 379/142.04, 379/197, 379/88.26International ClassificationH04M3/436, H04M3/54, H04M1/64Cooperative ClassificationH04M3/42059, H04M1/64, H04M3/54, H04M3/436, H04M2242/22European ClassificationH04M3/436Legal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionMar 27, 2000ASAssignmentOwner name: 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