System and apparatus for adapting operations of a communication device

• US 10,652,747 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2018
• Issued: 05/12/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Robbins, William Stanley, Pearson, Larry B., Wallis, R. Tyler, Ryan, Mark
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Tri H
• Application Number:
  US15/966,208
• Publication Number:
  US 20180249337A1
• Time in Patent Office: 743 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/045 using private Base Stations, e.g. femto Base Stations, home Node B
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/22 with access to wired networks

Abstract

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, at a base station, communicating with a mobile phone where the base station comprises a premises wireless access point, at the base station, communicating with a mobile communication system by way of a broadband connection, and instructing a landline phone communicatively coupled to the base station to communicate with a remote end user device via the mobile communication system utilizing identification information of the mobile phone and responsive to communications between the base station and the mobile phone. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A landline phone device, comprising:

a processing system including a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, comprising;

receiving, from an access point device, a query to ascertain whether to enable the landline phone device to conduct call sessions using a cellular network associated with a cellular device;

transmitting an affirmative response to the query to the access point device, wherein the affirmative response directs the access point device to provide a request to a server to enable the landline phone device to conduct the call sessions using the cellular network according to identification information of the cellular device; and

initiating a first cellular call session with a remote end user device over the cellular network via a broadband interface between the access point device and the server.

2. The landline phone device of claim 1, wherein the access point device sends the query responsive to detecting the cellular device within a communication range threshold of the access point device.

3. The landline phone device of claim 2, wherein use of the cellular network by the landline phone device is disabled responsive to the access point device detecting the cellular device being outside of a communication range threshold of the access point device.

4. The landline phone device of claim 2, wherein the use of the cellular network by the landline phone device is disabled responsive to the access point device detecting the cellular device being turned off.

5. The landline phone device of claim 1, wherein the identification information of the cellular device comprises an electronic serial number.

6. The landline phone device of claim 1, wherein the identification information of the cellular device comprises an international mobile equipment identity.

7. The landline phone device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

presenting, at a user interface, information associated with the query to ascertain whether to enable the landline phone device to conduct the call sessions using the cellular network associated with a cellular device;

receiving, at the user interface, user input responsive to the presenting of the query; and

generating the affirmative response to the query based on the user input.

8. The landline phone device of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise presenting an in-coming call alert at the user interface.

9. The landline phone device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving, at a user interface, a user input to request termination of the use by the landline phone device of the cellular network associated with the cellular device to conduct the call sessions; and

transmitting a request to the access point device for the termination of the use by the landline phone of the cellular network associated with the cellular device responsive to the receiving of the user input.

10. A method comprising:

receiving, by a processing system including a processor, from an access point device, a query to ascertain whether to enable a landline phone device to conduct call sessions using a cellular network associated with a cellular device;

transmitting, by the processing system, an affirmative response to the query to the access point device, wherein the affirmative response directs the access point device to provide a request to a server to enable the landline phone device to conduct the call sessions using the cellular network according to identification information of the cellular device; and

initiating, by the processing system, a first cellular call session with a remote end user device over the cellular network via a broadband interface between the access point device and the server.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the identification information of the cellular device comprises an electronic serial number, an international mobile equipment identity, or any combination thereof.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the access point device sends the query responsive to detecting the cellular device within a communication range threshold of the access point device.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein use of the cellular network by the landline phone device is disabled responsive to the access point device detecting the cellular device being outside of a communication range threshold of the access point device, being turned off, or any combination thereof.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the server is in communication with the access point device over the broadband interface.

15. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processing system including a processor of a landline phone device, facilitate performance of operations comprising:

receiving, from an access point device, a query to ascertain whether to enable the landline phone device to conduct call sessions using a cellular network associated with a cellular device, wherein the access point device sends the query responsive to detecting the cellular device within a communication range threshold of the access point device; and

transmitting an affirmative response to the query to the access point device, wherein the affirmative response directs the access point device to provide a request to a server to enable the landline phone device to conduct the call sessions using the cellular network according to identification information of the cellular device.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise initiating a first cellular call session with a remote end user device over the cellular network via a broadband interface between the access point device and the server.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

presenting, at a user interface, information associated with the query to ascertain whether to enable the landline phone device to conduct the call sessions using the cellular network associated with a cellular device;

receiving, at the user interface, user input responsive to the presenting of the query; and

generating affirmative response to the query based on the user input.