Distinctive ring tones prompted by call urgency and context

• US 20060045252A1
• Filed: 08/31/2004
• Published: 03/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Liu, Huitao, Gorti, Sreenivasa Rao, Mueller, Stephen Mark, Brandt, Jeffrey Lewis
• Granted Patent: US 8,867,724 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/201.20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/576 associated with a pictorial or graphical representation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/578 associated with a synthesized vocal announcement
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/041 Encoding the ringing signal, i.e. providing distinctive or selective ringing capability
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/048 Arrangements providing optical indication of the incoming call, e.g. flasher circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2038 Call context notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/02 Calling substations, e.g. by ringing selective calling H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42051 where the notification is included in the ringing tone
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4365 based on information specified by the calling party, e.g. priority or subject
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

Devices, methods and systems for enhanced ringing features on communications terminals. Flexible user-established rules, customized in a subscriber profile database, enable the ring-tone to vary based on caller-id, caller priority, call-urgency (as determined by caller), call context and so forth. Call set-up logic applies the profile rules prior to completing the call set-up. “Buzz-tones” extend the basic distinctive ringing feature to the “silent” mode that is currently available on cell-phones, which is of particular utility to subscribers with hearing disabilities. Other kinds of alerts (audio/motion/visual) like flashing colors on a display, moving pictures and the like, and any combination of notification modes, are contemplated by alternative embodiments.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising:

means for creating a user profile having user information, policies, and preferences, including notification mode preferences;

means for prompting a source of incoming communication to indicate the context of the incoming communications;

means for accepting a response to the prompt;

means for selecting a notification mode for the incoming communication based on the response to the prompt and the user profile; and

means for actuating the selected notification mode.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a mobile network terminal and wherein the means for actuating the selected notification mode resides in the terminal.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the means for creating a user profile comprises a Web interface.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the means for creating a user profile comprises an IVR interface.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the means for creating a user profile comprises a speech recognition interface.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the means for creating a user profile comprises a database that stores user information, policies, and preferences.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the database further stores notification mode preferences.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the means for prompting a source of incoming communication to indicate the context of the incoming communications comprises delivering a message to the source that requests a reply from source, which reply indicates the context.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the incoming communication comprises voice.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the incoming communication comprises VoIP.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the incoming communication comprises data.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the data comprises text.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the text comprises an instant message.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the notification mode comprises ringing.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the notification mode comprises vibration.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the notification mode comprises a visual alert.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the visual alert comprises animation.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the visual alert comprises flashing light.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the notification mode comprises a combination of two or more aural, visual and tactile alerts.

20. A method for alerting a user of a communications terminal of an incoming communications, the method comprising the steps of:

creating a user profile having user information, policies, and preferences, including alert mode preferences;

prompting an incoming communications source to indicate the context of the incoming communications;

accepting a response to the prompt;

selecting an alert mode for the incoming communication based the response to the prompt and the user profile; and

actuating the selected alert mode.

21. A system to notify a user of a communications terminal of an incoming communications, the system comprising:

a network component to route the incoming communication;

a communications terminal component to receive the routed incoming communication;

a user profile component to provide a user profile, including user notification mode preferences; and

an application server component to prompt the source of the incoming communication to indicate the context of the incoming communication, to process the reply to the prompt, and to select a notification mode to the user based on the user profile and the reply.

22. A network communication terminal comprising:

means for creating a terminal user profile having user information, policies, and preferences, including notification mode preferences;

means for selecting a notification mode for the incoming communication, whereby the notification mode indicates the context of an incoming communication as determined by input from a source of an incoming call and the user profile; and

means for actuating the selected notification mode.

23. The terminal of claim 22, further comprising a communication system that comprises:

means for prompting the source of incoming communication to indicate the context of the incoming communications; and

means for accepting a response to the prompt, whereby the notification mode indicates the context of the incoming communication on the basis of the response to the prompt and the user profile.

24. The terminal of claim 23, wherein the means for prompting and the means for accepting a response reside elsewhere in network other than in the terminal.

25. The terminal of claim 22, wherein the user profile resides in the terminal.

26. The terminal of claim 22, wherein the user profile resides elsewhere in the network other than in the terminal.