Messaging system involving wireless communications and methods therefor

• US 20040058694A1
• Filed: 06/06/2003
• Published: 03/25/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dennis Mendiola, Joseph Michael C. Garrovillo, Samuel S. Montecastro
• Original Assignee: Dennis Mendiola, Joseph Michael C. Garrovillo, Samuel S. Montecastro
• Inventors: Montecastro, Samuel S., Garrovillo, Joseph Michael C., Mendiola, Dennis
• Granted Patent: US 7,319,882 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: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/105 Financial transactions and auctions, e.g. bidding auctioneering devices in packet switching networks H04L12/1804
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4536 Voicemail combined with text-based messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/382 using authorisation codes or passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5322 for recording text messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

A messaging system (11) for conveying messages between a host server (15) and a client (13a) that is part of a GSM network and a method therefor. The GSM network includes an SMS facility to convey messages between its clients using an SMSC (25), each wireless client having a network identifying number (NIN) associated with it to uniquely identify the client within the GSM network. Each message comprises a message packet (43) including the address (49) of an intended recipient, the address (47) of the sender of the message and the message itself (51). The host server (15) may be selectively connected to a plurality of different client types (13) via the Internet (19) to convey messages therebetween. Each client has a client identifying number (CIN) associated with it to uniquely identify it to the host server (15). The host server (15) and the SMSC (25) are interconnected by the Internet (19) or another computer network to provide for communications therebetween. One of the clients (13) of the host server (15) is a wireless client (13a) and has its CIN corresponding to its NIN. The host server (15) has an access code (AC) to uniquely identify it to the SMSC (25) and a unique identification number (UIN) ascribed to: (i) a prescribed action performed by it, and (ii) an entity that is the subject of the prescribed action. The messages sent in message packet (43) between the host server (15) and the wireless client (13a) in connection with a particular prescribed action and entity include: (i) a combination of the AC and the UIN ascribed to the particular action and entity as the address of the host server (15); and (ii) the NIN as the address of the wireless client. The SMSC (25) also uses the AC in the address of the intended recipient or the sender to recognise messages sent to or received from the host server (15) and routs messages accordingly.

Claims

1. A messaging system for conveying messages between a host server and a client that is part of a wireless communication network including a plurality of wireless clients having a messaging service to convey messages wirelessly therebetween using a messaging service server, each wireless client having a network identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client within the wireless communication network, and each message comprising a message packet including the address of an intended recipient of the message packet and the address of the sender of the message;

the messaging system comprising;

a host server to which a plurality of clients may be selectively connected via a computer network to convey messages therebetween, each of the clients having a client identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client to the host server;

the host server and the messaging service server being interconnected by a further computer network to provide for communications therebetween;

one of the clients of the host server being a wireless client and having the client identifying number corresponding to the network identifying number thereof;

the host server having an access code to uniquely identify the host server to the messaging service server and a unique identification number ascribed to;

(a) a prescribed action performed by the host server, and (b) an entity that is the subject of the prescribed action;

wherein messages sent between the host server and the one client in connection with a particular prescribed action and entity include;

(i) a combination of the access code and the unique identification number ascribed to the particular action and entity as the address of the host server in message packets sent to or from the one client as the sender or the intended recipient, respectively, and

(ii) the network identifying number as the address of the one client in message packets sent to or from the host server as the sender or the intended recipient, respectively;

and wherein the messaging service server uses the access code in the address of the intended recipient or the sender to recognise messages sent to or received from the host server and rout messages accordingly.

2. A messaging system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the host server has processing means to:

(i) validate a client identifying number from the address of the sender of a message packet received from a client;

(ii) process the unique identification number from the address of the recipient in the message packet having a valid client identifying number associated therewith; and

(iii) perform the prescribed action with the entity specified by the unique identification number, having regard to any accompanying message included within the message packet.

3. A messaging system as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the host server has message compilation means to compile a message and send it to a client using the client identifying number thereof as the address of the intended recipient, or message transferring means to transfer a message received thereby from a client and sending it to another client using the client identifying number thereof as the address of the intended recipient, in accordance with the prescribed action and entity specified by a unique identification number processed thereby.

4. A messaging system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the host server has identifying means to identify a network identifying number from a client identifying number in the address of an intended recipient of a message either compiled by said message compilation means or received by said message transferring means, and transmission means to communicate the message intended for a wireless client to the messaging service server of that wireless client via the further computer network.

5. A messaging system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the messaging service server has processing means to process the address of the intended recipient of a message received from the host server as the network identification number of a wireless client of the wireless communication network thereof, and wirelessly transmit the message to the wireless client corresponding to the network identifying number.

6. A messaging service as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said prescribed action comprises invoking a routine on the host server associated with accessing an electronic bulletin board and the entity is the subject or topic to which the bulletin board relates.

7. A messaging service as claimed in claim 6, wherein the message is concerned with either reading, posting or responding to a message on the bulletin board.

8. A messaging service as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said prescribed action comprises invoking a routine on the host server associated with participating in a commercial transaction and the entity is a product or service that is the subject matter of the transaction.

9. A messaging service as claimed in claim 8, wherein the commercial transaction is an auction, the entity is a product or item that is being auctioned, and the message is concerned with a bid at the auction in relation to a specific product or item.

10. A messaging service as claimed in any one claims 1 to 7, wherein said prescribed action comprises invoking a routine on the host server associated with personal services and said entity is the particular type of personal service.

11. A messaging service as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein said prescribed action comprises invoking a routine on the host server associated with a chat room and said entity is the particular subject matter or topic of the chat room.

12. A messaging service as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said prescribed action comprises invoking a routine on the host server associated with transferring the message directly to another client or group of clients of the host server as specified in the message packet and said entity is the specific client or group of clients concerned.

13. A messaging system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the group of clients are those stored as buddies of the client sending the message in a database of the host server.

18. A messaging system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the host server has processing means to:

(i) validate the client identifying number from the address of the sender of a request message packet received from a client;

(ii) process the access code from the address of the recipient in the message packet having a valid client identifying number associated therewith; and

(iii) generate the information message packet in response to a received request message using the request message packet access code as the sender address in the information message packet.

14. A messaging system for conveying messages between a host server and a client that is part of a wireless communication network having a messaging service to convey messages wirelessly therebetween using a messaging service server, the client having a client identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client within the wireless communication network, and each message comprising a message packet including the address of an intended recipient of the message packet and the address of the sender of the message;

the messaging system comprising;

a host server to which a plurality of clients may be selectively connected to convey messages therebetween, each of the clients having a client identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client to the host server;

the host server and the messaging service server being interconnected to provide for communications therebetween;

whereby information regarding use of the messaging system can be sent from the host server to the client in response to a request from the client, the request comprising a message packet comprising an access code and data indicating the information requested, the access code uniquely identifying the host server to the messaging server, the host server being operable to return an information message packet to the client in response to the request message packet, the information message packet comprising the information requested by the client and an access code to be used by the client as a request message access code in response to the information message packet, the access code identifying the host server and including a portion determined by the information included in the information message packet.

15. A messaging system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the initial request message packet comprises a basic access code plus data indicating the information requested.

16. A messaging system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the data comprises a keyword of alphanumeric, or alphabetic characters.

17. A messaging system as claimed in claim 15 or claim 16, wherein subsequent request message packet access codes comprises the basic access code plus additional indices.

19. A method for requesting information regarding the use of a messaging system for conveying messages between a host server and a client that is part of a wireless communication network having a messaging service to convey messages wirelessly therebetween using a messaging service server, the client having a client identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client within the wireless communication network, and each message comprising a message packet including the address of an intended recipient of the message packet and the address of the sender of the message;

the method comprising;

ascribing a client identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client to the host server;

compiling and sending a request message packet from the client to the host server, the request comprising a message packet comprising an access code and data indicating the information requested, the access code uniquely identifying the host server to the messaging server,

returning an information message packet to the client from the host server in response to the request message packet, the information message packet comprising the information requested by the client and an access code to be used by the client as a request message access code in response to the information message packet, the access code identifying the host server and including a portion determined by the information included in the information message packet.

20. A method as claimed in claim 19, further including the steps of:

validating the client identifying number from the address of the sender of a request message packet received from a client;

processing the access code from the address of the recipient in the message packet having a valid client identifying number associated therewith; and

generating the information message packet in response to a received request message using the request message packet access code as the sender address in the information message packet.

21. A method as claimed in claim 19 or claim 20, further comprising exchanging a series of request and information message packets, each exchange relating to the selection of an option and the providing of a series of further options in relation to previous selection.

22. A method for conveying messages between a host server to which a plurality of clients may be selectively connected via a computer network to convey messages therebetween and a client that is part of a wireless communication network including a plurality of wireless clients having a messaging service to convey messages wirelessly therebetween using a messaging service server, each wireless client having a network identifying number associated therewith to uniquely identify the client within the wireless communication network, and each message comprising a message packet including the address of an intended recipient of the message packet and the address of the sender of the message;

the method comprising;

ascribing a client identifying number to each client of the host server to uniquely identify the client to the host server, whereby the client identifying number for the client that is part of the wireless communication network thereof;

ascribing an access code to the host server to uniquely identify the host server to the messaging service server, and a unique identification number indicative of;

(a) a prescribed action to be performed by the host server, and (b) an entity that is the subject of the prescribed action;

compiling messages sent between the host server and the client of the wireless communication network in connection with a particular prescribed action and entity to include;

(i) a combination of the access code and the unique identification number ascribed to the particular action and entity as the address of the host server in message packets sent to or from the one client as the sender or the intended recipient, respectively, and

(ii) the network identifying number as the address of the one client in message packets sent to or from the host server as the sender or the intended recipient, respectively; and

routing messages through the messaging service server using the access code in the address of the intended recipient or the sender to recognise messages sent to or received from the host server.

23. A method for conveying messages as claimed in claim 22, including hiding the client identifying number of a particular client from other clients receiving messages from, or sending messages to, the particular client is also a wireless client.

24. A messaging system for conveying messages between a host server and a client that is part of a wireless communication network, substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings as appropriate.

25. A method for conveying messages between a host server and a client that is part of a wireless communication network, substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings as appropriate.