Call queue in a wireless device

• US 20030114197A1
• Filed: 12/13/2001
• Published: 06/19/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Wireless Services Incorporated (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Stine, Ted, Speeney, Joseph A.
• Granted Patent: US 7,373,179 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/564
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2746 Sorting, e.g. according to history or frequency of use
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2749 Automatic dialling or redialling systems, e.g. on off-hook or redial on busy

Abstract

A wireless phone includes a memory, a processor, and a call queue function, the call queue function to enable the configuration and storage in the memory of a call queue, the call queue comprising an ordered list of entries to dial, wherein the processor and the memory cooperate to enable the call queue function.

Claims

1. A wireless phone comprising:

a memory;

a processor; and

a call queue function, the call queue function to enable the configuration and storage in the memory of a call queue, the call queue comprising an ordered list of entries to dial;

wherein the processor and the memory cooperate to enable the call queue function.

2. The phone of claim 1 further comprising:

a queue dial function which, when operated, results in a dialing of a next entry of the call queue.

3. The phone of claim 2 further comprising:

the queue dial function which, when operated, results in removing the next entry from the call queue.

4. The phone of claim 1 further comprising:

the queue dial function which, when operated once, results in dialing all entries of the call queue in the order of the ordered list.

5. The phone of claim 2 further comprising:

an address book function to enable the configuration and storage of an address book in the memory, the address book comprising a collection of at least one names and associated dialable numbers; and

the queue dial function to cooperate with the address book to locate a dialable number associated with a name in the call queue.

8. The communication system of claim 5, further comprising:

a second computer system to receive queue entries from a client device; and

the second computer system to communicate the queue entries to the first computer system.

10. The communication system of claim 5 wherein the queue management function removes the next number to dial from the call queue as a result of providing the number.

6. A communication system of a communication service provider, comprising:

a first computer system, comprising

a call queue for a wireless device, the call queue indexed by an identification of the wireless device;

a queue management function to provide a next number to dial from the call queue in response to receipt of a queue dial request from the wireless device.

7. The communication system of claim 6 further comprising:

a user database, the user database comprising the call queue.

9. The communication system of claim 7 wherein the second computer system comprises an Internet server.

11. The communication system of claim 6 further comprising:

a mobile switching center to receive the next number from the first computer system and to connect a call to the next number with the wireless device.

12. The communication system of claim 6, the queue management function to provide each number of the call queue in a dial order, in response to receipt of the queue dial request from the wireless device.

13. The communication system of claim 12, wherein the dial order is provided from the wireless device.

14. The communication system of claim 12 wherein the dial order is one of the order and the reverse order of an order in which the call queue numbers were specified by the wireless device.

15. A method comprising:

dialing a first number of a call queue stored by a wireless communication device in response to a first operation of a queue dial function;

removing the first number from the call queue; and

dialing a next number of the call queue in response to a second operation of the queue dial function.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein operating the queue dial function further comprises:

operating a single button of the wireless communication device.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein operating the queue dial function further comprises:

speaking a queue dial command to the wireless communication device.

18. A method comprising:

dialing a first number of a call queue stored by a wireless communication device, in response to an operation of a queue dial function; and

dialing a next number of the call queue in response to the operation of the queue dial function.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

removing the first number from the call queue as a result of dialing the first number; and

removing the second number from the call queue as a result of dialing the second number.

20. A wireless device, comprising:

a call queue comprising an ordered set of entries; and

a queue dial function which, when operated, results in a dialing of a next entry in the call queue.

21. The wireless device of claim 20 further comprising:

the queue dial function which, when operated, results in removing the next entry from the call queue.

22. The wireless device of claim 20 further comprising:

the queue dial function which, when operated once, results in dialing all entries of the call queue in the order of the ordered set.