System and method for dailing a telephone number

• US 20080064350A1
• Filed: 09/13/2006
• Published: 03/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Simphonick Holdings Limited
• Original Assignee: Simphonick Holdings Limited
• Inventors: Winkler, Yair
• Application Number:
  US11/519,776
• Publication Number:
  US 20080064350A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/187.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/154 Functional or symbolic dial plan such as license plate numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/206 composed of PSTN and wireless network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42008 Systems for anonymous communication between parties, e.g. by use of disposal contact identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4935 Connection initiated by DAS system

Abstract

A communication system and method for dialing a phone number by providing only a nickname. The user of a mobile terminal enters a nickname he wishes to dial to, then adapted software or hardware logic on the mobile terminal converts the nickname to a numeric code and broadcasts signals to a mobile switching center requesting to setup a call to said numeric code. The request to setup a call to the given numeric code is received by the mobile switching center, and is transferred to a communication server. The communication server looks up the numeric code in a translation database to recover the corresponding telephone number to the numeric code, and a call is setup between the corresponding telephone number retrieved and the mobile terminal.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising a mobile terminal originating a call by nickname request to a communication server, wherein the mobile terminal contains software or hardware logic adapted to generate a call by nickname request, wherein the interaction between said communication server and said mobile terminal is carried out by the following steps:

i) the user of the mobile terminal enters a nickname he wishes to dial to;

ii) the adapted software or hardware logic on the mobile terminal converts the nickname to a numeric code and broadcasts signals to a mobile switching center requesting to setup a call to said numeric code;

iii) the request to setup a call to said numeric code is received by said mobile switching center, and then said request is transferred to the communication server;

iv) the communication server looks up said numeric code in a translation database to recover the corresponding telephone number to said numeric code; and

v) a call is setup between said corresponding telephone number and said mobile terminal.

2. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said numeric code is composed of a predefined prefix and a numeric value.

3. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein communication between the mobile terminal and the mobile switching center is done by using the DTAP application protocol.

4. A communication system according to claim 2, wherein said numeric value is compressed to reduce its size.

5. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said nickname is alphabetic or alphanumeric.

6. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said nickname also serves as an identifier for additional applications.

7. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said additional applications include e-mail, instant messaging, VoIP applications and any other person-to-person communication application.

8. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein the mobile switching center, the TSC and the communication server exchange signals using ISUP.

9. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said call is managed by said communication server

10. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein billing of said call is performed by said communication server.

11. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said adapted software or hardware logic resides on a SIM card, within the mobile terminal'"'"'s internal memory, within a memory unit coupled with the mobile terminal or any combination thereof.

12. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein more than one nicknames are associated with a single corresponding telephone number.

13. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein the person receiving the call from the mobile terminal visualizes the caller'"'"'s nickname instead of the caller'"'"'s phone number.

14. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said corresponding telephone number extracted from said translation database is first passed to a TSC in order to establish a call with said mobile terminal.

15. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said call request is processed according to business rules.

16. A communication system according to claim 15, wherein said rules include:

letting the caller hear a standard or customized message, routing caller to voicemail depending on the time of call, forwarding the call to a different telephone number depending on the time of call, or forwarding the call to a different telephone number depending on the identity of the caller and automatically routing the caller to a specific telephone extension of said corresponding telephone number.

17. A communication system according to claim 1, further including means for replacing the corresponding telephone number associated with a given nickname with a new telephone number.

18. A communication system according to claim 1, wherein said communication server is connected to said mobile switching center via an intelligent network.

19. A communication system according to claim 18, wherein of billing said call is carried out by said mobile switching center.

20. A communication system according to claim 18, wherein call is managed by said mobile switching center.

21. A dialing method for originating a call by nickname request from a mobile terminal to a communication server, wherein the mobile terminal contains software or hardware logic adapted to generate a call by nickname request, the method comprising the steps of:

i) dialing a nickname on a mobile terminal;

ii) converting said nickname to a numeric code by said adapted software or hardware logic on the mobile terminal and broadcasting signals to a mobile switching center requesting to setup a call to said numeric code;

iii) receiving the request to setup a call to said numeric code by said mobile switching center, and then transferring said request to the communication server;

iv) looking up said numeric code in a translation database by the communication server and recovering the corresponding telephone number to said numeric code; and

v) setting up a call between said corresponding telephone number and said mobile terminal.

22. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said numeric code is composed of a predefined prefix and a numeric value.

23. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein communication between the mobile terminal and the mobile switching center is done by using the DTAP application protocol.

25. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said nickname is alphabetic or alphanumeric.

26. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said nickname also serves as an identifier for additional applications.

27. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said additional applications include e-mail, instant messaging, VoIP applications and any other person-to-person communication application.

28. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein the mobile switching center, the TSC and the communication server exchange signals using ISUP.

29. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said call is managed by said communication server

30. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein billing said of call is carried out by said communication server.

31. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said adapted software or hardware logic resides on a SIM card, within the mobile terminal'"'"'s internal memory, within a memory unit coupled with the mobile terminal or any combination thereof.

32. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said corresponding telephone number extracted from said translation database is first passed to a TSC in order to establish a call with said mobile terminal.

33. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein more than one nickname are associated with a single corresponding telephone number.

34. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein the person receiving the call from the mobile terminal visualizes the caller'"'"'s nickname instead of the caller'"'"'s phone number.

35. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said call request is processed according to business rules.

36. A dialing method according to claim 35, wherein said rules include:

letting the caller hear a standard or customized message, routing caller to voicemail depending on the time of call, forwarding the call to a different telephone number depending on the time of call, or forwarding the call to a different telephone number depending on the identity of the caller and automatically routing the caller to a specific telephone extension of said corresponding telephone number.

37. A dialing method according to claim 21, further including means for replacing the corresponding telephone number associated with a given nickname with a new telephone number.

38. A dialing method according to claim 21, wherein said communication server is connected to said mobile switching center via an intelligent network.

39. A dialing method according to claim 38, wherein billing said call is done by said mobile switching center.

40. A dialing method according to claim 38, wherein call is managed by said mobile switching center.

24. A dialing method according to claim 24, wherein said numeric value is compressed to reduce its size.