Authentication mechanism for telephony devices

• US 20040180646A1
• Filed: 03/10/2003
• Published: 09/16/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Donley, Christopher J., Shipley, Tobert G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,190,948 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/411
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/66 with means for preventing unauthorised or fraudulent calling verifying user identity or authority in secret or secure digital communications H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2094 Proximity
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/382 using authorisation codes or passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42272 whereby the subscriber registers to the terminals for personalised service provision
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42365 Presence services providing information on the willingness to communicate or the ability to communicate in terms of media capability or network connectivity
• 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

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a presence aware network 100 that includes a plurality of communication devices 124a-n and 128a-n, associated with a plurality of subscribers. Each communication device may be configured automatically according to a first set of preferences associated with a first subscriber when the first subscriber performs a telephony function on the communication device and according to a second set of preferences when a different second subscriber performs the telephony function on the communication device. The first and second sets of preferences are different from one another.

Claims

1. A method for serving a plurality of communication devices associated with a plurality of subscribers, comprising:

determining that at least first and second subscribers are in the vicinity of a selected communication device at least once during a defined time interval; and

configuring the selected communication device according to a first set of preferences associated with the first subscriber before the first subscriber causes the selected communication device to perform a telephony function and according to a second set of preferences associated with the second subscriber before the second subscriber causes the selected communication device to perform the telephony function, wherein the first and second sets of preferences being different from one another.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining step comprises:

receiving first and second sets of credentials, respectively, from the first and second subscribers;

authenticating each of the first and second sets of credentials;

when a set of credentials is successfully authenticated, permitting the corresponding subscriber to perform a telephony operation with the selected communication device; and

when a set of credentials is not successfully authenticated, not permitting the corresponding subscriber to perform the telephony operation with the selected communication device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein in the receiving step at least one of the first and second sets of credentials is received by means of a wireless signal.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein in the receiving step at least one of the first and second sets of credentials is received by means of a card reader.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second sets of preferences each comprise a plurality of the following:

ring volume level, ring tone, speaker volume level, microphone volume level, a selected telephony function associated with one or more keys, ring duration and frequency, speed dial information, handicap accessibility, and call logs and further comprising;

providing the first and second sets of preferences corresponding to the first and second subscribers to the selected communication device during the defined time interval.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring step comprises:

querying at least one of the first and second subscribers for an associated identity in response a request from the at least one of the first and second subscriber to perform the telephony function; and

configuring the selected communication device in accordance with the set of preferences associated with the identity received in response to the query.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the telephony function is receiving an incoming contact and, in the configuring step, the selected communication device is configured to present an indicator to the first and second subscribers associated with the intended recipient of the incoming contact.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the indicator is one or more of illumination of a selected light, a display of a text message, a distinctive ring, a voice announcement, and a graphical representation on a graphical user interface.

9. A computer readable medium for performing the steps of claim 1.

10. A logic circuit for performing the steps of claim 1.

11. A method for routing an incoming contact, comprising:

receiving a first wireless signal at a first communication device, the first wireless signal being emitted by a first emitter carried by a first subscriber and comprising a first set of credentials associated with the first subscriber;

authenticating the first set of credentials;

when the authentication of the first set of credentials is successful, granting access to a telephony function of the first communication device; and

when the authentication of the first set of credentials is unsuccessful, denying access to the telephony function of the first communication device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the telephony function is receiving a contact and further comprising:

receiving an incoming contact for the first subscriber;

directing the incoming contact to the first communication device;

thereafter receiving a second wireless from the first emitter at a second communication device, the first and second communication devices being geographically dislocated from one another; and

transferring the incoming contact from the first communication device to the second communication device.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving a second wireless signal at a first communication device, the second wireless signal being emitted by a second emitter carried by a second subscriber and comprising a second set of credentials associated with the second subscriber;

authenticating the second set of credentials;

when the authentication of the second set of credentials is successful, granting access to the telephony function of the first communication device; and

when the authentication of the second set of credentials is unsuccessful, denying access to the telephony function of the second communication device.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

providing first and second sets of preferences corresponding to the first and second subscribers to the first communication device during the defined time interval, the first and second sets of preferences being different from one another; and

configuring the first communication device according to the first set of preferences when the first subscriber performs a telephony function and according to the second set of preferences when the second subscriber performs the telephony function.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first and second sets of preferences each comprise a plurality of the following:

ring volume level, ring tone, speaker volume level, microphone volume level, a selected telephony function associated with one or more keys, ring duration and frequency, and disability settings.

16. A presence aware network, comprising:

a presence server operable to access presence information associated with a plurality of network subscribers;

a plurality of communication devices connected to the network and associated with the plurality of subscribers;

a subscriber location table listing available communication devices, including, for at least one of the listed communication devices, a listing of two or more subscribers concurrently registered with the at least one of the listed communication devices.

17. The presence aware network of claim 16, wherein the subscriber location table is stored in a presence information database associated with the presence server.

18. The presence aware network of claim 16, wherein a first portion of the network is packet-switched and a second portion of the network is circuit-switched and further comprising:

a gateway operable to provide signal conversion between the first and second portions of the network; and

at least one of a telephony switch and server for directing contacts to the plurality of communication devices.

19. The presence aware network of claim 18, wherein the subscriber location table is stored in memory of the at least one of a telephony switch and server.

20. A presence aware network, comprising:

a plurality of communication devices, at least one of the communication devices being simultaneously associated with at least first and second subscribers, the at least one communication device being operable to be configured according to a first set of preferences associated with a first subscriber, when the first subscriber performs a telephony function on the at least one of the communication devices and according to a second set of preferences when a second subscriber performs the telephony function on the at least one of the communication devices, wherein the first and second sets of preferences are different from one another.

21. The presence aware network of claim 20, wherein each communication device comprises a proximity detector operable to determine that at least first and second subscribers are in a predetermined range of a selected communication device at least once during a defined time interval.

22. The presence aware network of claim 21, further comprising a presence aware telephony agent operable to provide the first and second sets of preferences corresponding to the first and second subscribers to the communication device during a defined time interval.

23. The presence aware network of claim 21, wherein each proximity detector is operable to receive a set of credentials from an emitter carried by a subscriber and further comprising:

an authentication server operable to authenticate the received set of credentials.

24. The presence aware network of claim 23, wherein a communication device associated with the proximity detector is operable to permit the corresponding subscriber to perform a telephony operation with the communication device, when the received set of credentials is successfully authenticated, and not permit the corresponding subscriber to perform the telephony operation with the communication device, when the received set of credentials is not successfully authenticated.

25. The presence aware network of claim 23, further comprising:

a certification server operable to provide a certificate to a communication device when an associated subscriber is successfully authenticated by the authentication server.

26. The presence aware network of claim 20, wherein the first and second sets of preferences each comprise a plurality of the following:

ring volume level, ring tone, speaker volume level, microphone volume level, a selected telephony function associated with one or more keys, and ring duration and frequency.

27. The presence aware network of claim 20, wherein the at least one of the communication devices is operable to query at least one of the first and second subscriber for an associated identity in response a request from the at least one of the first and second subscriber to perform the telephony function and configure the selected communication device in accordance with the set of preferences associated with the identity received in response to the query.

28. The presence aware network of claim 20, wherein the telephony function is receiving an incoming contact and the at least one of the communication devices is configurable to present a first indicator to the first subscriber and a different second indicator to the second subscriber, the indicator being indicative of an intended recipient of the incoming contact.

29. The presence aware network of claim 28, wherein the indicator is one or more of illumination of a selected light, a display of a text message, and a distinctive ring.