Flexible call alerting

• US 20040114733A1
• Filed: 12/17/2002
• Published: 06/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sbc Knowledge Ventures, L.P.
• Original Assignee: SBC Properties, L.P.
• Inventors: Mueller, Stephen M., Scruggs, Jeffrey Lee, Mosley, Gail D., Lawson, Debra K.
• Granted Patent: US 7,042,989 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/88.18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways

Abstract

A subscriber implements and access telecommunications services, using a graphical user interface (GUI) via the Internet, and an interactive voice response (IVR) system via the public switched telecommunications network (PSTN). The subscriber can schedule, create, and edit call alert messages to be sent by a flexible call alert service to multiple recipients at a subscriber described time.

Claims

1. A method for implementing a flexible call alert comprising:

receiving, from a subscriber via a web client, a message, information of a plurality of recipients, and a time when the message is to be delivered to the plurality of recipients over a telephone system;

determining that the time input by the subscriber has been reached; and

initiating the delivery of the message to the plurality of recipients when the time has been determined to have been reached.

2. The method of claim 1 in which the initiating further comprises using a plurality of addresses for a recipient of the plurality of recipients;

and

stopping the delivery of the message to the recipient after the recipient has received the message.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

repeating the initiating at a default repeat time, default repeat time interval, subscriber set repeat time, or subscriber set repeat time interval when the subscriber does not receive the message; and

terminating the repeating at a subscriber set terminating time, previously set terminating time, or a set number of repeats.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

obtaining a dual tone multi-frequency input or voice input over a telephone for the receiving.

5. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

retrieving the plurality of addresses for the recipient from an ENUM enabled directory.

6. The method of claim 2 in which the initiating further comprises sequencing the plurality of addresses for the recipient.

7. The method of claim 2 in which the initiating further comprises broadcasting simultaneously to the plurality of addresses for the recipient.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

logging event information of the initiating; and

storing the event information for use in billing and presentment.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

billing the subscriber for using flexible call alert in response to the message, information, and time being received from the subscriber.

10. A method for implementing a flexible call alert comprising:

receiving subscriber information and a message by an intelligent peripheral;

storing the received information and the message in a recordings database;

setting an alert time based on the received information;

determining by the intelligent peripheral that the alert time has been reached;

obtaining the information and the message from the recordings database; and

initiating the delivery of the message to a plurality of recipients based on the alert time.

11. The method of claim 10 in which the initiating further comprises using a plurality of addresses for a recipient of the plurality of recipients;

and

stopping the delivery of the message to the recipient after the recipient has received the message.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

repeating by the intelligent peripheral the initiating at a default repeat time, default repeat time interval, subscriber set repeat time, or subscriber set repeat time interval when the subscriber does not receive the message; and

terminating by the intelligent peripheral the repeating at a subscriber set terminating time or previously set terminating time.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

billing the subscriber for using flexible call alert in response to the message and information being received from the subscriber.

14. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

retrieving by the intelligent peripheral the plurality of addresses for the recipient from an ENUM enabled directory based on the obtained information.

15. The method of claim 11 in which the initiating further comprises sequencing by the intelligent peripheral the plurality of addresses for the recipient.

16. The method of claim 11 in which the initiating further comprises broadcasting, by the intelligent peripheral, to the plurality of addresses for the recipient.

17. A computer readable medium with instructions to implement a flexible call alert comprising:

receiving, from a subscriber via a web client, a message, information of a plurality of recipients, and a time when the message is to be delivered to the plurality of recipients over a telephone system;

determining that the time input by the subscriber has been reached; and

initiating the delivery of the message to the plurality of recipients when the time has been determined to have been reached.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 17 in which the initiating further comprises using a plurality of addresses for a recipient of the plurality of recipients;

and

stopping the delivery of the message to the recipient after the recipient has received the message.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 18 further comprising:

retrieving the plurality of addresses for the recipient from an ENUM enabled directory.

20. A flexible call alert system comprising:

a recording database; and

an intelligent peripheral that receives subscriber information and a message from a web client, sends the subscriber information and the message to the recording database, sets a timer based on the subscriber information, retrieves at least part of the subscriber information and the message from the recording database when a time on the timer has expired, and sends the message to a plurality of recipient communications devices based on the subscriber information.

21. The system of claim 20 further comprising:

a directory that sends a plurality of addresses for a recipient of the plurality of recipients to the intelligent peripheral.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the intelligent peripheral further sequentially sends a message using the plurality of addresses for the recipient and stops sending using the plurality of addresses when the recipient receives the message.

23. The system of claim 20 further comprising:

an SCP that receives from the intelligent peripheral transaction information and stores the transaction information.

24. A method for alerting a subscriber, comprising:

prompting the subscriber to enter a time to send a call alert in response to the subscriber having dialed a vertical service code;

receiving from the subscriber the time to send the call alert; and

sending the call alert to the subscriber based upon the received time.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising sending another call alert at another time, in response to the caller responding to the sent call alert.

26. The method of claim 24, further comprising preventing the sending of the call alert when the subscriber has dialed another vertical service code.

27. The method of claim 24, further comprising billing the subscriber for sending the call alert after the call alert has been sent.