Method and apparatus for selecting an internet/PSTN changeover server for a packet based phone call

• US 20010012357A1
• Filed: 03/30/2001
• Published: 08/09/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ITXC IP Holdings SARL (Tata Sons Pvt Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Al J. Simon, George L. Taylor, Jeffrey B. Sponaugle, John D. Elliott, Keith A. Pirkl, Kenneth L. Keeler, Mark D. Zuber, Michael F. Buondonno, Mojtaba Mirashrafi
• Inventors: Mirashrafi, Mojtaba, Zuber, Mark D., Elliott, John D., Keeler, Kenneth L., Taylor, George L., Simon, Al J., Buondonno, Michael F., Sponaugle, Jeffrey B., Pirkl, Keith A.
• Granted Patent: US 6,628,760 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/387.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1016 IP multimedia subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/401 wherein the services involve a main real-time session and one or more additional parallel real-time or time sensitive sessions, e.g. white board sharing or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4061 Push-to services, e.g. push-to-talk or push-to-video
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42323 PBX's with CTI arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42348 Location-based services which utilize the location information of a target
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5191 interacting with the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/527 Centralised call answering arrangements not requiring operator intervention
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1205 where the types of switching equipement comprises PSTN/ISDN equipment and switching equipment of networks other than PSTN/ISDN, e.g. Internet Protocol networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/90 Internet, e.g. Internet phone, webphone, internet-based telephony
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/908 Multimedia

Abstract

A method and apparatus for establishing a voice call to a PSTN extension for a networked client computer, and routing the voice call off of the network, is provided. In a first embodiment, the apparatus comprises a storage medium having stored therein a plurality of programming instructions for implementing a set of communication services for facilitating establishment of the voice call to the PSTN extension, and an execution unit, coupled to the storage medium, for executing the plurality of programming instructions. The set of communication services include services for receiving a Push-To-Talk™ request from the networked client computer, requesting the voice call, and in response, determining the PSTN extension. The Push-To-Talk™ request includes identification information of an originating web server of the Push-To-Talk™ option, and the determination of the PSTN extension is made in accordance with the originating web server'"'"'s identification information.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a storage medium having stored therein a plurality of programming instructions for implementing a set of communication services for establishing and facilitating a voice call to a PSTN extension for a client computer, wherein the communication services include services for receiving an event notification from the client computer denoting the client computer'"'"'s acceptance of an offer by a server to establish a voice communication session, and determining the PSTN extension in accordance with one or more attributes of the server; and

an execution unit coupled to the storage medium for executing the plurality of programming instructions.

2. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein

the event notification incldues identification information of the server, and

the communication services determine the PSTN extension in accordance with the identification information.

3. The apparatus of

claim 2

, wherein the communication services further include services for accessing a geographic location service, and the communication services access the geographic location service to determine a suitable voice call destination.

4. The apparatus of

claim 2

, wherein

the server is a web server having a URL,

the event notification incldues the URL of the web server, and

the communication services determine the PSTN extension in accordance with the URL of the web server.

5. The apparatus of

claim 4

, wherein the apparatus further includes a database of PSTN extensions associated with a plurality of URLs of web servers, and the communication services access the database to look up the PSTN extension.

6. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein

the communication services further include services for providing the client computer with a network address of the apparatus, and receiving a supplemental voice call request from the client computer, including a network address and one or more attributes of the client computer, and

the communication services perform said determination of the PSTN extension further in accordance with one or more of the included attributes of the client computer.

7. The apparatus of

claim 6

, wherein the communication services further include services for causing a packet/voice bridging driver to be launched on the client computer.

8. The apparatus of

claim 6

, wherein

the one or more attributes of the client computer include a zip code of an area where the client computer is located, and

the communication services perform said determination of the PSTN extension taking into consideration the zip code.

9. The apparatus of

claim 6

, wherein

the one or more attributes of the client computer include a telephone number associated with the client computer, and

the communication services perform said determination of the PSTN extension taking into consideration at least the area code of the telephone number.

10. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein the communication services further include services for soliciting inputs from one or more other apparatuses on one or more operating characteristics associated with establishing the voice call to the PSTN extension, selecting either itself or one of the other apparatuses to place the voice call to the PSTN extension, and identifying the selected apparatus to the client computer.

11. The apparatus of

claim 10

, wherein the communication services further include services for registering the voice call to the PSTN extension with the selected apparatus.

12. The apparatus of

claim 11

, wherein the communication services further include services for receiving registeration of the voice call to the PSTN extension.

13. The apparatus of

claim 10

, wherein the communication services further includes services for causing a packet based telephony application to be launched on the client computer.

14. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein the communication services further include services for receiving a packet based phone call from the client computer, placing the voice call to the PSTN extension, and bridging the packet based and voice calls.

15. The apparatus of

claim 14

, wherein the bridging services include services for converting and delivering call signals between the client computer and the PSTN extension.

16. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein the communication services further include telephony services for cooperating with telephony equipment coupled to the apparatus.

17. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein the storage medium further having stored therein programming instructions for implementing web server functions.

18. The apparatus of

claim 1

, wherein the storage medium further having stored therein programming instructions for implementing internet service provider functions.

19. A method for placing a voice call to a PSTN extension comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving an event notification from a client computer denoting the client computer'"'"'s acceptance of an offer by a server to establish a voice communication session, and

(b) determining the PSTN extension in accordance with one or more attributes of the server.

20. The method of

claim 19

, wherein

the step of receiving an event notification incldues receiving identification information of the server, and

the step of determining the PSTN extension is performed in accordance with the received identification information of the server.

21. The method of

claim 20

, wherein the step of determining the PSTN extension includes accessing a directory service to look up the PSTN extension using the received identification information.

22. The method of

claim 20

, wherein

the server is a web server having a URL,

the step of receiving an event notification incldues receiving the URL of the web server, and

the step of determine the PSTN extension is performed in accordance with the URL of the web server.

23. The method of

claim 22

, wherein the step of determining the PSTN extension includes accessing a database to look up the PSTN extension.

24. The method of

claim 19

, wherein

the method further comprises the steps of providing the client computer with a network address of the apparatus, and receiving a supplemental voice call request from the client computer, including a network address and one or more attributes of the client computer, and

the step of determining the PSTN extension is performed further in accordance with one or more of the included attributes of the client computer.

25. The method of

claim 24

, wherein the method further includes the step of causing a packet/voice bridging driver to be lauched on the client computer.

26. The method of

claim 24

, wherein

the one or more attributes of the client computer include a zip code of an area where the client computer is located, and

the step of determining the PSTN extension includes taking into consideration the zip code.

27. The method of

claim 24

, wherein

the one or more attributes of the client computer include a telephone number associated with the client computer, and

the step of determining the PSTN extension includes taking into consideration at least the area code of the telephone number.

28. The method of

claim 19

, wherein the method further includes the steps of

soliciting inputs from one or more apparatuses on one or more operating characteristics associated with establishing the voice call to the PSTN extension,

selecting one of the apparatuses to place the voice call to the PSTN extension, and

identifying the selected apparatus to the client computer.

29. The method of

claim 28

, wherein the method farther comprises the step of registering the voice call to the PSTN extension with the selected apparatus.

30. The method of

claim 29

, wherein the method further includes the step of receiving registeration of the voice call to the PSTN extension.

31. The method of

claim 28

, wherein the method further includes the step of causing a packet based telephony application to be lauched on the client computer.

32. The method of

claim 19

, wherein the method further includes the steps of

receiving a packet based phone call from the client computer,

placing the voice call to the PSTN extension, and

bridging the packet based and voice calls.

33. The method of

claim 32

, wherein the step of bridging includes converting and delivering call signals between the client computer and the PSTN extension.

34. An apparatus comprising:

a storage medium having stored therein a plurality of programming instructions for implementing a set of communication services for cooperating with a first bridging apparatus to establish and conduct a voice call with a PSTN extension, wherein the communication services include services for receiving an IP address of a second bridging apparatus, and in response, transmitting a call request for the voice call, including an IP address and other attributes of the apparatus for inclusion by the second bridging apparatus in determining the PSTN extension; and

an execution unit coupled to the storage medium for executing the plurality of programming instructions.

35. The apparatus of

claim 34

, wherein the attributes of the apparatus include a zip code of an area where the apparatus is located.

36. The apparatus of

claim 34

, wherein the attributes of the apparatus include a PSTN extension associated with the apparatus.

37. The apparatus of

claim 34

, wherein the communication services further include services for receiving an IP address of the first bridging apparatus, and lauching a packet based telephony application to place a packet based phone call to the first bridging apparatus.

38. The apparatus of

claim 37

, wherein the first and the second bridgiing apparatuses are the same apparatus.

39. A method for cooperating with a first bridging apparatus to establish and conduct a voice call with a PSTN extension, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving an IP address of a second bridging apparatus, and

in response, transmitting a call request for the voice call, including an IP address and one or more attributes of a host apparatus implementing the method, for inclusion by the second bridging apparatus in determining the PSTN extension.

40. The method of

claim 39

, wherein the attributes include a zip code of an area where the host apparatus is located.

41. The method of

claim 39

, wherein the attributes include a PSTN extension associated with the host apparatus.

42. The method of

claim 39

, wherein the method further includes the steps of:

receiving an IP address of the first bridging apparatus, and

lauching a packet based telephony application to place a packet based phone call to the first bridging apparatus.

43. The method of

claim 42

, wherein the first and the second bridging apparatuses are the same apparatus.