Patent ID: 8908838

Claim:
A system for providing text captioned telephony services to an assisted user communicating with a hearing person, the system comprising: a relay; an assisted user's captioned device comprising: (1) a captioned device processor linkable to first and second communication links; (2) a visual display linked to the captioned device processor; (3) a microphone linked to the captioned device processor for receiving voice signals from the assisted user using the assisted user's captioned device; (4) a speaker linked to the captioned device processor for broadcasting voice signals received by the captioned device to the ear of the assisted user as voice signals from the hearing person are received at the captioned device; (5) an activator linked to the captioned device processor, the activator controllable by the assisted user to invoke a captioning service; the captioned device processor configured to perform the steps of: (i) establishing-the first communication link between the assisted user's captioned device and the hearing person; (ii) obtaining voice signals from the assisted user via the microphone; (iii) transmitting the assisted user's voice signals from the captioned device to the hearing person via the first communication link; (iv) receiving voice signals from the hearing person via the first communication link; (v) broadcasting the voice signals from the hearing person via the speaker to the assisted user as the voice signals from the hearing person are received at the captioned device; (vi) receiving a signal from the activator to invoke the captioning service; (vii) in response to receiving a signal from the activator: (a) transmitting the hearing person's voice signals received at the captioned device to the relay via the second communication link; (b) receiving text corresponding to the hearing person's voice signals from the relay via the second communication link; and (c) displaying the text received from the relay via the visual display for the assisted user to view; wherein the activator is activatable to establish the second communication link and invoke the captioning service subsequent to broadcasting at least some voice signals from the hearing person to the assisted user while a voice call between the assisted user and the hearing person is progressing; and wherein the activator is further activatable to establish the second communication link and invoke the captioning service prior to broadcasting any of the hearing person's voice signals to the assisted user.