Device and method for mediating between questioners and answerer by using mobile telephone

• US 20030092455A1
• Filed: 10/30/2002
• Published: 05/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Natsuno, Takeshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,069,028 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6009 Personal information, e.g. profiles or personal directories being only provided to authorised persons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0036 where the data service is an information service

Abstract

The present invention enables questioners to ask questions easily without limitation of time and place, and enables answerers to register as answerers without complicated processes and much time consumption. A mediation center apparatus 1 receives registration as answerers from mobile phones 9 owned by answerers. On the other hand, the mediation center apparatus 1 provides, responding to requests from a mobile phone 10 owned by a questioner, candidate list information of suitable answerers among answerers who are registered in the mediation center apparatus 1, for the mobile phone 10. Then when the mediation center apparatus 1 receives, from the mobile phone 10, information which instruct a selection of answerers, the mediation center apparatus 1 establishes a circuit connection between the mobile phones 9 owned by the selected answerers and the mobile phone 10 owned by the questioner. According to the operations explained above, the present invention enables questions and answers between the answerers and the questioner, and provides a mediation consultancy service.

Claims

1. A mediation apparatus, said apparatus comprising:

a registration request receiving unit, which receives, from mobile phones of answerer candidates, registration requests which contain telephone number data and answer field data of said answerer candidates, via a mobile telecommunication network;

a storing unit, which stores candidate data which contain at least said telephone number data and said answer field data;

a mediation request receiving unit, which receives, from a mobile phone of a questioner, a mediation request which contains telephone number data and question field data of said questioner, via said mobile telecommunication network;

an acquiring unit, which selects, from said candidate data stored by said storing unit, candidate data which contain answer field data corresponding to said question field data, and acquires, from the selected candidate data, telephone number data of mobile phones of answerers; and

,

a connection establishing unit, which establishes communication circuit connections in said mobile telecommunication network between mobile phones of said answerers and a mobile phone of said questioner, on the basis of the telephone number data acquired by said acquiring unit and the telephone number data contained in said mediation request.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said acquisition unit comprises:

an extracting unit, which extracts, from said candidate data stored by said storing unit, one or more items of candidate data which contain answer field data corresponding to said question field data;

a candidate data providing unit, which provides the candidate data extracted by said extracting unit for mobile phones of said questioner, via said mobile telecommunication network;

an appointment data receiving unit, which receives, from the mobile phone of said questioner, appointment data which appoint one or more desired candidates among candidates who are shown in said candidate data, via said mobile telecommunication network; and

,

a telephone number acquiring unit, which acquires, from said candidate data stored by said storing unit, telephone number data of mobile phones of said answerers, on the basis of said appointment data.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said acquisition unit comprises:

an extracting unit, which extracts, from said candidate data stored by said storing unit, two or more items of candidate data which contain answer field data corresponding to said question field data;

a condition data receiving unit, which receives, from the mobile phone of said questioner, condition data concerning conditions for dividing said two or more items of candidate data extracted by said extracting unit into groups, via said mobile telecommunication network;

a guide data sending unit, which divides said two or more items of candidate data into groups on the basis of said condition data, and sends guide data which show each of said groups to the mobile phone of said questioner;

an appointment data receiving unit, which receives, from the mobile phone of said questioner, appointment data which appoint desired groups among one or more groups shown in said guide data, via said mobile telecommunication network; and

,

a telephone number acquiring unit, which acquires, from said candidate data stored by said storing unit, telephone number data of mobile phones of said answerers, on the basis of said appointment data.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said connection establishing unit comprises:

a first connecting unit, which sends calls to mobile phones of said answerers on the basis of the telephone number data acquired by said acquiring unit, and establishes communication circuit connections in said mobile telecommunication network with mobile phones of said answerers;

a second connecting unit, which sends a call to mobile phones of said questioner on the basis of the telephone number data contained in said mediation request, and establishes a communication circuit connection in said mobile telecommunication network with the mobile phone of said questioner; and

,

a third connecting unit, which interconnects the communication circuit connections established by said first connecting unit and the communication circuit connection established by said second connecting unit.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said first connecting unit comprises:

a re-connecting unit, which, in the case that two or more items of telephone number data are acquired by said acquiring unit, and that a communication circuit connection on the basis of one item of the telephone number data acquired by said acquiring unit fails, sends a call to a mobile phone on the basis of another item of said telephone number data acquired by said acquiring unit, and establishes a communication circuit connection in said mobile telecommunication network with said mobile phone.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a part or whole of said mobile telecommunication network is a packet data communication network.

7. A mediation method, said method comprising:

a registration request receiving step, in which registration requests, which contain telephone number data and answer field data of said answerer candidates, are received from mobile phones of answerer candidates via a mobile telecommunication network;

a storing step, in which candidate data, which contain at least said telephone number data and said answer field data, are stored;

a mediation request receiving step, in which a mediation request, which contains telephone number data and question field data of a questioner, are received from a mobile phone of said questioner via said mobile telecommunication network;

an acquiring step, in which candidate data, which contain answer field data corresponding to said question field data, are selected from said candidate data stored by said storing step, and telephone number data of mobile phones of answerers are acquired from the selected candidate data; and

,

a connection establishing step, in which communication circuit connections in said mobile telecommunication network between mobile phones of said answerers and the mobile phone of said questioner are established on the basis of the telephone number data acquired by said acquiring step and the telephone number data contained in said mediation request.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein said acquisition step comprises:

an extracting step, in which one or more items of candidate data, which contain answer field data corresponding to said question field data, are extracted from said candidate data stored by said storing step;

a candidate data providing a step, in which the candidate data extracted by said extracting step are provided for the mobile phone of said questioner via said mobile telecommunication network;

an appointment data receiving step, in which appointment data, which appoint one or more desired candidates among candidates who are shown in said candidate data, are received from the mobile phone of said questioner via said mobile telecommunication network; and

,

a telephone number acquiring step, in which telephone number data of mobile phones of said answerers are acquired from said candidate data stored by said storing step on the basis of said appointment data.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein said acquisition step comprises:

an extracting step, which extracts, from said candidate data stored by said storing step, two or more items of candidate data which contain answer field data corresponding to said question field data;

a condition data receiving step, which receives, from the mobile phone of said questioner, condition data concerning conditions for dividing said two or more items of candidate data extracted by said extracting step into groups, via said mobile telecommunication network;

a guide data sending step, which divides said two or more items of candidate data into groups on the basis of said condition data, and sends guide data which shows each of said groups to the mobile phone of said questioner;

an appointment data receiving step, which receives, from the mobile phone of said questioner, appointment data which appoint desired groups among one or more groups shown in said guide data, via said mobile telecommunication network; and

,

a telephone number acquiring step, which acquires, from said candidate data stored by said storing step, telephone number data of mobile phones of said answerers, on the basis of said appointment data.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein said connection establishing step comprises:

a first connecting step, in which calls are sent to mobile phones of said answerers on the basis of the telephone number data acquired by said acquiring step, and communication circuit connections are established in said mobile telecommunication network with mobile phones of said answerers;

a second connecting step, in which a call is sent to the mobile phone of said questioner on the basis of the telephone number data contained in said mediation request, and communication circuit connections are established in said mobile telecommunication network with the mobile phone of said questioner; and

,

a third connecting step, in which the communication circuit connections established by said first connecting step and the communication circuit connection established by said second connecting step are interconnected.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein said first connecting step comprises:

a re-connecting step, in which, in the case that two or more items of telephone numbers data acquired by said acquiring step, and that a communication circuit connection on the basis of one item of the telephone number data acquired by said acquiring step fails, a call is sent to a mobile phone on the basis of another item of said telephone number data acquired by said acquiring step, and a communication circuit connection is established in said mobile telecommunication network with said mobile phone.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein a part or whole of said mobile telecommunication network is a packet data communication network.