METHOD FOR SENDING A PREVIOUSLY RECORDED PERSONALIZED MESSAGE TO A CALLER BY A NETWORK VOICE MAIL SYSTEM

• US 20100020944A1
• Filed: 07/25/2008
• Published: 01/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ray, Amar Nath
• Granted Patent: US 8,077,833 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/87
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/578 associated with a synthesized vocal announcement
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/64 Automatic arrangements for answering calls; Automatic arrangements for recording messages for absent subscribers; Arrangements for recording conversations centralised dictation systems H04M11/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42382 Text-based messaging services in telephone networks such as PSTN/ISDN, e.g. User-to-User Signalling or Short Message Service for fixed networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53391 dependent on calling party

Abstract

An embodiment of a method for providing a personalized greeting to a caller includes receiving an incoming call addressed to a first communication device from a caller using a second communication device, and determining a received caller identifier associated with the second communication device. The method further includes determining if the received caller identifier matches a pre-assigned caller identifier from a pre-assigned caller list. If the received caller identifier matches a pre-assigned caller identifier the method further includes playing an outgoing audio message associated with the pre-assigned caller identifier, recording an audio message from the caller, converting the audio message into a text message, and sending the text message to a user associated with the first communication device.

Claims

1. A method for providing a personalized greeting to a caller comprising:

receiving an incoming call addressed to a first communication device from a caller using a second communication device;

determining a received caller identifier associated with the second communication device;

determining if the received caller identifier matches a pre-assigned caller identifier from a pre-assigned caller list; and

if the received caller identifier matches a pre-assigned caller identifier;

playing an outgoing audio message associated with the pre-assigned caller identifier;

recording an audio message from the caller;

converting the audio message into a text message; and

sending the text message to a user associated with the first communication device.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving an outgoing text message from the user of the first communication device; and

converting the outgoing text message into the outgoing audio message.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

associating the outgoing audio message with the pre-assigned caller identifier; and

adding the outgoing audio message and the associated pre-assigned caller identifier to the pre-assigned caller list.

4. The method of claim 2 further comprising amplifying a signal level of the outgoing audio message to a predetermined threshold level.

5. The method of claim 2 further comprising reducing a noise level of the outgoing audio message to a desired level.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the text reply message to the user comprises sending the text message to the first communication device.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising playing a standard outgoing audio message if the received caller identifier does not match a pre-assigned caller identifier from the pre-assigned caller list.

8. A method for assigning a personalized greeting to a caller comprising:

receiving a text message from a first communication device;

determining a pre-assigned caller identifier from the text message;

determining outgoing message text from the text message;

converting the outgoing message text into an outgoing audio message; and

associating the outgoing audio message with a pre-assigned caller identifier.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

determining a user identifier associated with a user of the first communication device; and

adding the outgoing audio message and the associated pre-assigned caller identifier to a pre-assigned caller list associated with the user.

10. The method of claim 8 further comprising amplifying a signal level of the outgoing audio message to a predetermined threshold level.

11. The method of claim 8 further comprising reducing a noise level of the outgoing audio message to a desired level.

12. The method of claim 8 further comprising sending a confirmation text message to the user indicating that outgoing audio message has been associated with the pre-assigned caller identifier

13. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

receiving an incoming call addressed to a first communication device from a caller using a second communication device;

determining a received caller identifier associated with the second communication device; and

determining if the received caller identifier matches the pre-assigned caller identifier.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising playing the outgoing audio message associated with the pre-assigned caller identifier if the received caller identifier matches the pre-assigned caller identifier.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising:

recording an audio reply message from the caller;

converting the audio reply message into a text reply message; and

sending the text reply message to a user associated with the first communication device.

16. The method of claim 13 further comprising playing a standard outgoing audio message if the received caller identifier does not match the pre-assigned caller identifier.

17. A method for providing a personalized text greeting to a caller comprising:

receiving an incoming call addressed to a first communication device from a caller using a second communication device;

determining a received caller identifier associated with the second communication device;

determining if the received caller identifier matches a pre-assigned caller identifier from a pre-assigned caller list; and

if the received caller identifier matches a pre-assigned caller identifier;

sending an outgoing text message associated with the pre-assigned caller identifier to the caller.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein sending the outgoing text message further comprises sending the outgoing text message to the second communication device.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

playing a standard outgoing audio message if the received caller identifier does not match a pre-assigned caller identifier from the pre-assigned caller list.

20. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

receiving the outgoing text message from the user of the first communication device;

associating the outgoing text message with the pre-assigned caller identifier; and

adding the outgoing audio message and the associated pre-assigned caller identifier to the pre-assigned caller list.