METHOD, DEVICE AND SYSTEM FOR VOICE COMMUNICATION

• US 20140323166A1
• Filed: 01/21/2014
• Published: 10/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tencent Technology Company Limited (Tencent Holdings Limited)
• Original Assignee: Tencent Technology Company Limited (Tencent Holdings Limited)
• Inventors: ZHANG, BIN, LIU, YUEJUN, WENG, YUETENG, ZHANG, YUEXIN, CHEN, YUEWEI, LIU, KAI, LIU, JINHAI, FAN, LIANGLIANG, LIU, CHENGLIN, ZHU, YAXUAN, HE, QING, LIN, JIN, LIN, QIANYA, LI, KAI, DAN, YI
• Granted Patent: US 9,065,788 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/258 Client or end-user data management, e.g. managing client capabilities, user preferences or demographics, processing of multiple end-users preferences to derive collaborative data arrangements for services using the result on the distributing side of broadcast systems H04H60/66; profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42684 Client identification by a unique number or address, e.g. serial number, MAC address, socket ID network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming H04L61/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6137 involving transmission via a telephone network, e.g. POTS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements

Abstract

A method is performed at a computer server for enabling voice communication between two terminals through IM service. Upon receiving a message from a remote computer, the message including an IM identifier of a callee terminal user and a mobile device identifier of the terminal, the computer system updates an entry for the callee terminal user in a database. Upon receiving a request from a caller terminal user at a caller terminal to start voice communication with the callee terminal user, the computer server identifies the entry that includes the IM identifier of the callee terminal user and sends a voice communication request to a service control point (SCP) in a switched telephone network. The SCP then returns an IP address and a port number of the callee terminal and launches a call request against the callee terminal. The computer server establishes a voice communication channel between the two terminals.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for enabling voice communication between two terminals through instant messaging (IM) service, the method comprising:

at a computer server having one or more processors and memory storing programs to be executed by the one or more processors;

receiving a message from a remote computer, the message including an IM identifier of a callee terminal user of the IM service and a mobile device identifier of the callee terminal;

updating an entry for the callee terminal user of the IM service in a database at the computer server, the entry including the IM identifier of the callee terminal user and the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal;

receiving a voice communication request from a caller terminal user of the IM service at a caller terminal to start voice communication with the callee terminal user of the IM service, the request including the IM identifier of the callee terminal user; and

in response to the voice communication request;

identifying the database entry that includes the IM identifier of the callee terminal user;

sending a voice communication request to a service control point in a switched telephone network, the voice communication request including the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal, wherein the service control point is configured to return an IP address and a port number of the callee terminal in accordance with the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal and launch a call request against the callee terminal; and

establishing a voice communication channel between the caller terminal and the callee terminal using the IP address and the port number of the callee terminal.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the caller terminal includes an application enabling a user to access the IM service directly from the caller terminal and the callee terminal does not include the application.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the caller terminal is a smart phone and the callee terminal is a feature phone.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the database includes multiple entries associated with the callee terminal user of the IM service and there is no more than one callee terminal that is configured to establish a voice communication channel with the caller terminal.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, further comprising:

upon receiving the request from the caller terminal user;

identifying the multiple entries associated with the callee terminal user of the IM service and their associated status information;

determining whether there is a callee terminal that is ready to establish a voice communication channel with the caller terminal based on the status information; and

returning a response to the caller terminal user of the IM service if no callee terminal is in an active status.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

upon receiving multimedia data from the caller terminal;

determining whether the callee terminal has the capability of processing the multimedia data;

in accordance with a determination that the callee terminal does not have the capability of processing the multimedia data;

storing the multimedia data in a database entry corresponding to the callee terminal; and

sending a text-based hyperlink to the stored multimedia data to the callee terminal; and

in accordance with a determination that the callee terminal has the capability of processing the multimedia data, forwarding the multimedia data to the callee terminal.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the multimedia data is one selected from the group consisting of text, image, video, and audio.

8. A computer system for enabling voice communication between two terminals through instant messaging (IM) service, comprising:

one or more processors;

memory; and

one or more programs stored in the memory and configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including instructions for;

receiving a message from a remote computer, the message including an IM identifier of a callee terminal user of the IM service and a mobile device identifier of the callee terminal;

updating an entry for the callee terminal user of the IM service in a database at the computer server, the entry including the IM identifier of the callee terminal user and the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal;

receiving a voice communication request from a caller terminal user of the IM service at a caller terminal to start voice communication with the callee terminal user of the IM service, the request including the IM identifier of the callee terminal user; and

in response to the voice communication request;

identifying the database entry that includes the IM identifier of the callee terminal user;

sending a voice communication request to a service control point in a switched telephone network, the voice communication request including the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal, wherein the service control point is configured to return an IP address and a port number of the callee terminal in accordance with the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal and launch a call request against the callee terminal; and

establishing a voice communication channel between the caller terminal and the callee terminal using the IP address and the port number of the callee terminal.

9. The computer system of claim 8, wherein the caller terminal includes an application enabling a user to access the IM service directly from the caller terminal and the callee terminal does not include the application.

10. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the caller terminal is a smart phone and the callee terminal is a feature phone.

11. The computer system of claim 8, wherein the database includes multiple entries associated with the callee terminal user of the IM service and there is no more than one callee terminal that is configured to establish a voice communication channel with the caller terminal.

12. The computer system of claim 11, wherein the one or more programs further comprises instructions for:

upon receiving the request from the caller terminal user;

identifying the multiple entries associated with the callee terminal user of the IM service and their associated status information;

determining whether there is a callee terminal that is ready to establish a voice communication channel with the caller terminal based on the status information; and

returning a response to the caller terminal user of the IM service if no callee terminal is in an active status.

13. The computer system of claim 8, wherein the one or more programs further comprises instructions for:

upon receiving multimedia data from the caller terminal;

determining whether the callee terminal has the capability of processing the multimedia data;

in accordance with a determination that the callee terminal does not have the capability of processing the multimedia data;

storing the multimedia data in a database entry corresponding to the callee terminal; and

sending a text-based hyperlink to the stored multimedia data to the callee terminal; and

in accordance with a determination that the callee terminal has the capability of processing the multimedia data, forwarding the multimedia data to the callee terminal.

14. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the multimedia data is one selected from the group consisting of text, image, video, and audio.

15. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, storing one or more programs for execution by one or more processors of a computer system, the one or more programs including instructions for:

receiving a message from a remote computer, the message including an IM identifier of a callee terminal user of the IM service and a mobile device identifier of the callee terminal;

updating an entry for the callee terminal user of the IM service in a database at the computer server, the entry including the IM identifier of the callee terminal user and the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal;

receiving a voice communication request from a caller terminal user of the IM service at a caller terminal to start voice communication with the callee terminal user of the IM service, the request including the IM identifier of the callee terminal user; and

in response to the voice communication request;

identifying the database entry that includes the IM identifier of the callee terminal user;

sending a voice communication request to a service control point in a switched telephone network, the voice communication request including the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal, wherein the service control point is configured to return an IP address and a port number of the callee terminal in accordance with the mobile device identifier of the callee terminal and launch a call request against the callee terminal; and

establishing a voice communication channel between the caller terminal and the callee terminal using the IP address and the port number of the callee terminal.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the caller terminal includes an application enabling a user to access the IM service directly from the caller terminal and the callee terminal does not include the application.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the caller terminal is a smart phone and the callee terminal is a feature phone.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the database includes multiple entries associated with the callee terminal user of the IM service and there is no more than one callee terminal that is configured to establish a voice communication channel with the caller terminal.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the one or more programs further comprises instructions for:

upon receiving the request from the caller terminal user;

identifying the multiple entries associated with the callee terminal user of the IM service and their associated status information;

determining whether there is a callee terminal that is ready to establish a voice communication channel with the caller terminal based on the status information; and

returning a response to the caller terminal user of the IM service if no callee terminal is in an active status.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more programs further comprises instructions for:

upon receiving multimedia data from the caller terminal;

determining whether the callee terminal has the capability of processing the multimedia data;

in accordance with a determination that the callee terminal does not have the capability of processing the multimedia data;

storing the multimedia data in a database entry corresponding to the callee terminal; and

sending a text-based hyperlink to the stored multimedia data to the callee terminal; and

in accordance with a determination that the callee terminal has the capability of processing the multimedia data, forwarding the multimedia data to the callee terminal.