Off-Hook Triggered Cellular-Landline Conference Call

• US 20120034914A1
• Filed: 10/17/2011
• Published: 02/09/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Zhou, Tong, Hou, Jiongkuan
• Granted Patent: US 8,254,897 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/426.2
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/246 specially adapted for base stations

Abstract

A method and system for conferencing a landline telephone into a cellular telephone call is disclosed. In response to a landline telephone going off-hook, a cellular telephone corresponding to the landline telephone is identified. When a determination is made that the corresponding cellular telephone is currently engaged in a call, the landline telephone is conferenced into the cellular call. If the cellular telephone is subsequently disengaged from the call, the original cellular call has been effectively transferred to the landline telephone. The inventive method and system may be linked to a cellular-landline conference call service. For example, a user may subscribe to such a service so that the user may automatically transfer a call from the user'"'"'s cellular telephone to the user'"'"'s home or office landline telephone when that landline telephone is taken off-hook.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a network switch detecting transition of a landline telephone from an on-hook state to an off-hook state at a time when a call is not being placed to the landline telephone;

responsive to the detecting, ascertaining, by querying a subscription profile that is associated with the landline telephone to determine that the subscription profile includes a subscription to a cellular-landline conference call service;

responsive to the ascertaining, making a determination of whether the cellular telephone is currently engaged in a call, by querying call-state data to determine call-state of the cellular telephone; and

responsive to the determination being that the cellular telephone is currently engaged in a call, engaging in a conferencing process to conference the landline telephone into the call.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the landline telephone is served by the network switch.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the network switch comprises an entity selected from the group consisting of a public switched telephone network (PSTN) switch and a private branch exchange (PBX) server.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining the call-state data at a call-state server; and

receiving at the call-state server a message to notify the call-state server that the cellular telephone is currently engaged in a call, and responsively updating the call-state data to indicate that the cellular telephone is currently engaged in a call.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein engaging in the conferencing process to conference the landline telephone into the call comprises:

engaging in call signaling to set up a call between the landline telephone and the cellular telephone, and thereby joining the landline telephone into the call.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending an alert to the cellular telephone to provide notice that a conference with the landline telephone is being invoked.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the alert to the cellular telephone comprises an announcement audible to a user of the cellular telephone while the cellular telephone is engaged in the call.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

receiving a message from the cellular telephone, and responsive to the received message, aborting the conferencing process.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the landline telephone and the cellular telephone are co-owned.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

completing the conferencing process, and then disengaging the cellular telephone from the call.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting digit dialing by the landline telephone, and responsive to the digital dialing, aborting the conferencing process.

12. A service controller comprising:

a processor;

memory; and

machine language instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor;

(i) to detect a transition of a landline telephone from an on-hook state to an off-hook state at a time when no call is being placed to the landline telephone, (ii) responsive to the detection, to query a subscription profile that is associated with the landline telephone so as to ascertain that the subscription profile includes a subscription to a cellular-landline conference call service, (iii) responsive to the ascertaining, to query call-state data, and to thereby determine that the cellular telephone is currently engaged in a call, and (iv) responsive to determining that the cellular telephone is currently engaged in the call, to engage in a conferencing process to conference the landline telephone into the call.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the machine language instructions are further executable by the processor (i) to maintain call-state data at a call-state server, (ii) to receive a message notifying the call-state server that the cellular telephone is currently engaged in the call, and (iii) responsive to the received message, to update the call-state data to indicate the cellular telephone is currently engaged in the call.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the machine language instructions are further executable by the processor to send an alert to the cellular telephone to provide notice that a conference with the landline telephone is being invoked.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the alert to the cellular telephone comprises an announcement audible to a user of the cellular telephone while the cellular telephone is engaged in the call.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the machine language instructions are further executable by the processor to receive a message from the cellular telephone, and responsive to the received message, to abort the conferencing process.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the machine language instructions are further executable by the processor to complete the conferencing process, and then to disengage the cellular telephone from the call.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the machine language instructions are further executable by the processor to detect digit dialing by the landline telephone, and responsive to the digital dialing, to abort the conferencing process.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein the landline telephone and the cellular telephone are co-owned.

20. The system of claim 12, wherein the landline telephone is served by a network switch comprising an entity selected from the group consisting of a public switched telephone network (PSTN) switch and a private branch exchange (PBX) server.