Method and apparatus for communicating information about a called party to a calling party

• US 5,978,806 A
• Filed: 06/30/1997
• Issued: 11/02/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Rakuten, Inc. (Rakuten Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Ameritech Corp. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lund, Arnold M.
• Primary Examiner(s): HO, RUAY L
• Application Number:
  US08/884,830
• Time in Patent Office: 855 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707/5, 707/10, 707/100-104, 707/200-206, 370/384, 379/10, 379/220, 395/200.3, 395/200.54
• US Class Current: 707/812
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/247 Telephone sets including user guidance or feature selection means facilitating their use user interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones H04M1/724
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2478 Telephone terminals specially adapted for non-voice services, e.g. email, internet access centralized arrangements where telephones services are combined H04M7/0024; for recording text messages H04M3/5322; for accessing Internet H04M3/4938
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/56 Arrangements for indicating or recording the called number at the calling subscriber's set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/575 Means for retrieving and displaying personal data about calling party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/38 Displays
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/354 Reverse directory service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/22 Automatic class or number identification arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42017 Customized ring-back tones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42042 Notifying the called party of information on the calling party details within substation equipment H04M1/57, signalling details H04Q3/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42076 where the identifier is a Uniform Resource Locator
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42093 Notifying the calling party of information on the called or connected party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4211 where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42119 where the identifier is a Uniform Resource Locator
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4228 in networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42323 PBX's with CTI arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4931 Directory assistance systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/12 for working between exchanges having different types of switching equipment, e.g. power-driven and step by step or decimal and non-decimal
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13039 Asymmetrical two-way transmission, e.g. ADSL, HDSL
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13091 CLI, identification of calling line
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13096 Digital apparatus individually associated with a subscriber line, digital line circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13103 : Memory
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13166 : Fault prevention
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13167 : Redundant apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13175 : Graphical user interface [GUI], WWW interface, visual indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13204 : Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13209 : ISDN
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13345 : Intelligent networks, SCP
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13389 : LAN, internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13546 : Intelligent Peripheral
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 : Provisions for intelligent networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/72 : Finding out and indicating number of calling subscriber

Abstract

A method and apparatus is provided for automatically retrieving and displaying supplemental information about a called party on the customer premise equipment (CPE) of a calling party. When a caller places a call, the number called is used to look up and return to the caller the Universal Resource Locator (URL) of the called party. Application software resident in the caller'"'"'s CPE uses the URL to retrieve the home page of the called party from the Internet.

Claims

1. A method of communicating information about a called party to a calling party comprising a sequence of the following steps:

collecting a number of the called party;

accessing a database to retrieve an address for locating a customized file of the called party;

transmitting the address to a telephone at the calling party'"'"'s premises, the telephone including a keyboard for entering said number and a display for displaying said customized file;

retrieving the customized file for use by the calling party'"'"'s telephone; and

connecting the called party with the calling party over a telephone network using the number of the party called.

2. The invention defined by claim 1 wherein said telephone includes a microcomputer and a modem for connecting with the Internet, said address is the Universal Resource Locator (URL) associated with the called party'"'"'s telephone number, and said file is the World Wide Web Page of the called party.

3. The invention defined by claim 1 wherein said telephone includes a microcomputer connected with the Internet via a signal switching point (SSP) of an advanced intelligent network (AIN)-based telephone network, said address is the Universal Resource Locator (URL) associated with the called party'"'"'s telephone number stored in a database connected with the Internet, and said file is the World Wide Web Page of the called party.

4. The invention defined by claim 1 wherein said telephone includes a microcomputer connected with the Internet via a central office of a telephone network, said address is the Universal Resource Locator (URL) associated with the called party'"'"'s telephone number stored in a database connected with the Internet, and said file is the World Wide Web Page of the called party.

5. The invention defined by claim 1 wherein said calling party'"'"'s telephone is located at the calling party'"'"'s premises and is used to generate the number.