Method and system for interfacing systems unified messaging with legacy systems located behind corporate firewalls

• US 20040234046A1
• Filed: 06/30/2004
• Published: 11/25/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RPX Clearinghouse LLC (RPX Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Northern Telecom Limited and SBC Properties LP
• Inventors: Ng, Alexander Siu-Kay, Skladman, Julia, Chatterley, Bruce A., Peterson, Bruce L., Thornberry, Robert J. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,162,014 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/88.13
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4509 Unified messaging with single point of access to voicemail and other mail or messaging systems unified messaging in packet switching networks H04L51/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53 Centralised arrangements for recording incoming messages , i.e. mailbox systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/908 Multimedia

Abstract

A system and method for interfacing unified message processing systems with legacy voice mail, e-mail and facsimile systems, located behind corporate firewalls. The system includes a unified message server, a proxy interface and a message protocol converter. The proxy interface is configured to access the legacy system in response to a request from a unified message server. Messages stored on the legacy system are converted by a protocol converter to a predetermined format compatible with the unified message server. The converted messages are then transferred to a unified message server which is capable of providing messages from different messaging system, such as voice mail, e-mail and facsimile to users in a predetermined format. The invention permits enterprise wide communication systems to provide unified messaging without abandoning pre-existing legacy messaging system.

Claims

1. Software for providing user access, through a unified messaging system, to messages obtained from one or more legacy message systems, the one or more legacy message systems being independently incompatible with the unified messaging system, and where the software is embodied in computer readable and when executed operable to direct a computer to:

retrieve one or more messages from the one or more legacy message systems in response to detection of at least one message on the one or more legacy message systems;

convert at least one message retrieved from the one or more legacy message systems to a protocol compatible with a protocol of the unified messaging system; and

filter at least one retrieved message for processing in accordance with a predetermined message processing attribute stored in a user profile.

2. The software of claim 1, further operable to poll the one or more legacy message systems to detect whether at least one message for at least one user has been received by the legacy message systems.

3. The software of claim 1, further operable to permit user definition of a user profile and selection of one or more predetermined message processing attributes.

4. The software of claim 3, further operable to permit definition of a user profile and selection of one or more predetermined message processing attributes through a unified messaging system web-based interface.

5. The software of claim 3, further operable to permit definition of a user profile and selection of one or more predetermined message processing attributes through an interactive voice response system.

6. The software of claim 1, further operable to communicate with one or more legacy message systems located beyond a firewall separating the one or more legacy message systems from the unified messaging system.

7. The software of claim 1, further operable to convert the one or more messages retrieved from the one or more legacy message systems to a protocol compatible with a protocol of the unified messaging system in a middleware server.

8. A messaging system, comprising:

one or more legacy message systems;

a unified messaging system operably coupled to the one or more legacy message system, the unified messaging system operating on a protocol incompatible with a protocol of the one or more legacy message systems; and

the unified messaging system operable to retrieve one or more messages maintained by the one or more legacy message systems in response to a user request for message reporting, convert one or more messages retrieved from the one or more legacy message systems from a legacy message system protocol to a unified messaging system compatible protocol and provide the converted one or more messages to the user in accordance with one or more message delivery settings in a unified messaging system user profile.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising a middleware server operably coupled to the unified messaging system and the one or more legacy message systems, the middleware server operable to convert the one or more messages maintained by the one or more legacy message systems into a protocol compatible with the unified messaging system.

10. The system of claim 9, further comprising the middleware server operable to record and digitize one or more messages retrieved from a voicemail-based legacy message system.

11. The system of claim 9, further comprising the middleware server operable to negotiate one or more firewalls separating the unified messaging system and the one or more legacy message systems.

12. The system of claim 8, further comprising the unified messaging system operable to provide to the one or more legacy messaging systems account access authorization information maintained in the user profile.

13. The system of claim 8, further comprising the unified messaging system operable to communicate one or more notifications to a message indicator associated with a user communication device.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising the unified messaging system operable to communicate a message indicator in response to retrieval of a message from the one or more legacy message systems.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising the unified messaging system operable to communicate a message indicator in response to a query received from the user communication device.

16. A method for presenting a message from one or more legacy message systems to a user through a unified messaging system, the unified messaging system and the legacy message system operating on incompatible protocols, comprising:

retrieving from the one or more legacy message systems one or more messages belonging to a user requesting message reporting;

converting each message retrieved from a legacy message system protocol to a protocol compatible with the unified messaging system; and

delivering the converted message to a user communication device in accordance with one or more settings in a user profile defining user preferences for message delivery.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising contacting the one or more legacy message systems to determine the presence of one or more user messages in response to a user request for message reporting.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising contacting the one or more legacy message systems to determine the presence of one or more user messages in response to a request for message reporting from a user communication device.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

storing converted messages retrieved from the one or more legacy message systems; and

communicating a message indicator to a user communication device indicative of a stored message awaiting user review.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising enabling retrieval of one or more messages by the unified messaging system from one or more legacy message systems maintained behind a firewall.