Method and apparatus for routing a call to a number corresponding to a virtual public dial plan or to an existing dial plan
First Claim
1. In a telephone network having a number of telephone switching offices equipped with SSPs (Service Switching Points) operating with AIN (Advanced Intelligent Network) application software, and a remotely located SCP (Service Control Point) adapted to receive, when required, SS7 (Signalling System 7) messages from the SSPs to translate a dialed number to enable the routing of a call on the telephone network, a method of providing a parallel, non-intrusive virtual public dial plan (VPDP), co-existing with the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), to enable a calling party to dial a virtual, public telephone number having 1 to 10 digits, each digit ranging from 0 to 9, comprising the steps of:
- a) providing a VPDP access code which, when dialed by the user as a prefix to the virtual, public telephone number, enables a calling party to reach a destination station according to the VPDP, the VPDP access code comprising at least one diallable non-numeric character;
b) enabling one of the AIN capable SSPs to launch a query to the SCP when the VPDP access code is detected; and
c) providing a VPDP to NANP translation table at the SCP, such that when the virtual, public telephone number dialed by the calling party is received at the SCP, the dialed number can be translated to a network access node (NNA) of said NANP for routing to the destination station.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method for creating a virtual public numbering domain, which will coexist with and be parallel and non-intrusive to the existing geographic North American telephone network numbering plan is disclosed. It will have sufficient capacity to provide additional and more flexible numbering resources which will stimulate and enable many new service applications. The existing telephone network infrastructure has digital switching points and a database system. The method includes receiving at one of the digital switching points a called number, and verifying whether the number called is a number of the virtual public dial plan. If the number called is a number of the virtual public dial plan, the method includes forming with the number called a virtual public address of predetermined length, supplying the virtual public address to the database system to determine a corresponding network node address, supplying the corresponding network node address to the digital switching point and routing the call through the network infrastructure according to the existing dial plan. If the number called is a number of the existing dial plan, the call is routed through the network infrastructure according to the existing dial plan and the number called.
-
Citations
14 Claims
-
1. In a telephone network having a number of telephone switching offices equipped with SSPs (Service Switching Points) operating with AIN (Advanced Intelligent Network) application software, and a remotely located SCP (Service Control Point) adapted to receive, when required, SS7 (Signalling System 7) messages from the SSPs to translate a dialed number to enable the routing of a call on the telephone network, a method of providing a parallel, non-intrusive virtual public dial plan (VPDP), co-existing with the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), to enable a calling party to dial a virtual, public telephone number having 1 to 10 digits, each digit ranging from 0 to 9, comprising the steps of:
-
a) providing a VPDP access code which, when dialed by the user as a prefix to the virtual, public telephone number, enables a calling party to reach a destination station according to the VPDP, the VPDP access code comprising at least one diallable non-numeric character; b) enabling one of the AIN capable SSPs to launch a query to the SCP when the VPDP access code is detected; and c) providing a VPDP to NANP translation table at the SCP, such that when the virtual, public telephone number dialed by the calling party is received at the SCP, the dialed number can be translated to a network access node (NNA) of said NANP for routing to the destination station. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
-
Specification