Elastic buffer for data storage with speech data

• US 6,215,860 B1
• Filed: 09/16/1997
• Issued: 04/10/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Johanson, James A., Ubowski, Richard M., Ehrich, Glenn A.
• Primary Examiner(s): WEAVER, SCOTT LOUIS
• Application Number:
  US08/931,513
• Time in Patent Office: 1,302 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88.13, 379/88.28, 379/142, 379/90.01, 379/93.08, 379/88.14, 379/88.22, 379/88.27
• US Class Current: 379/88.28
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/576 associated with a pictorial or graphical representation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6505 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/36 Memories
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/22 Automatic class or number identification arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/72 Finding out and indicating number of calling subscriber

Abstract

A digital answering machine, electronic voice mail system, or any other voice messaging system integrating both non-speech data such as caller ID information or graphical or pictorial images together with associated speech data in common memory such that only one message table is necessary. The integrated common memory is divided into sectors, and each sector is divided into pages which each contain both speech and non-speech data. A single message table is associated with each corresponding set of speech and non-speech data, and includes an offset value indicating the beginning address of the speech data stored just above its associated non-speech data in the first linked page. The offset value is variable to provide an elastic non-speech data buffer to accommodate variable length non-speech data such as would be required by the various caller ID standards throughout the world.

Claims

1. A method of storing non-speech data with associated speech data, comprising:

storing non-speech data related to a received message in a memory;

storing associated speech data related to said received message in said memory; and

determining address information relating to one of said non-speech data and said speech data based on a length the other of said non-speech data and said speech data.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said speech data is stored in a sector adjacent to at least one sector corresponding to said non-speech data.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said step of storing said non-speech data occurs before said step of storing said speech data.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said step of storing said speech data occurs before said step of storing said non-speech data.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein:

said speech data is stored at a higher address than said on-speech data.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

providing a message table identifying a location of said speech data in said memory, said message table including an offset value.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

storing an offset value in said memory corresponding to a length of said non-speech data.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said memory is flash memory.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said non-speech data is caller ID information.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said non speech data includes call related information.

11. A method of storing non-speech data with associated speech data comprising:

dividing memory into a plurality of sectors;

storing non-speech data related to a message in one of said sectors wherein said non-speech data is an image;

storing associated speech data related to said message in said one of said sectors; and

identifying said one of said sectors using an offset value based on a length of said non-speech data.

12. A method of storing speech data and non-speech data both associated with a common message, comprising:

receiving said non-speech data and said speech data into a voice messaging system;

storing one of said non-speech data and said speech data in a memory of said voice messaging system; and

offsetting one of said non-speech data and said speech data from the other of said non-speech data and said speech data based on a length of at least one of said non-speech data and said speech data.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein said first storing step stores said non-speech data, said method further comprising:

storing an offset value in said memory corresponding to a length of said non-speech data.

14. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

integrating the other of said non-speech data and speech data in said memory to associate said speech data with said non-speech data as one message.

15. A method of organizing non-speech data with related speech data, comprising:

receiving non-speech data and speech data associated with a message into a voice messaging system;

storing said non-speech data in a memory of said voice messaging system;

storing said speech data in said memory, said speech data related to said non-speech data; and

revising only one table to associate non-speech data with said speech data such that said non-speech data and said speech data are related to a same message wherein said one table includes an offset value based on a length of said non-speech data.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein:

said speech data is stored immediately adjacent said non-speech data in said memory.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein:

said step of storing said non-speech data occurs before said step of storing said speech data.

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein:

said step of storing said speech data occurs before said step of storing said non-speech data.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein:

said speech data is stored at a higher address than said non-speech data.

20. The method according to claim 15, wherein:

said memory is flash memory.

21. The method according to claim 15, wherein:

said non-speech data is caller ID information.

27. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 21, wherein:

said speech data is stored in a sector of said memory adjacent to said non-speech data.

22. A method of organizing non-speech data with related speech data, comprising:

storing non-speech data in memory;

storing speech data related to said non-speech data in said memory wherein said non-speech data is an image; and

revising one table to associate said non-speech data with said speech data such that said non-speech data and said speech data are related to a same message wherein said one table includes an offset value based on a length of one of said non-speech data and speech data.

23. A voice messaging apparatus comprising:

a telephone line interface;

a processor connected to said telephone line interface;

a caller ID decoder connected to said telephone line interface;

a non-volatile memory connected to said processor, said non-volatile memory including a page containing both non-speech data decoded by said caller ID decoder and speech data associated with said non-speech data.

24. The voice messaging apparatus according to claim 23, wherein:

said non-volatile memory is flash memory.

25. A voice messaging portion of a memory in a voice messaging system consisting of:

non-speech data;

speech data related to said non-speech data wherein said non-speech data and said speech data are related to a same voice message; and

one table to associate said non-speech data with said speech data wherein said table includes an offset value based on a length of one of said non-speech data and said speech data.

26. A method of storing a message, comprising:

creating a single table in a memory of a voice messaging system;

receiving speech data and non-speech data related to said message in said voice messaging system; and

entering at least one entry into said single table, said at least one entry including an address of said speech data related to said message and an offset value from said address of said speech data, said offset value indicating a relative stored location of said non-speech data related to said message.

28. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 26, further comprising:

storing said associated non-speech data related to said message in one of a plurality of sectors of said memory; and

storing said speech data related to said message in said one of a plurality of sectors.

29. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 28, wherein:

said step of storing said associated non-speech data is performed before said step of storing said speech data.

30. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 28, wherein:

said step of storing said speech data is performed before said step of storing said associated non-speech data.

31. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 28, wherein:

said speech data is stored at a higher absolute address than that of said associated non-speech data.

32. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 26, wherein:

said offset corresponds to a length of said associated non-speech data.

33. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 26, wherein:

said memory is flash memory.

34. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 26, wherein:

said associated non-speech data is related to sender of said message.

35. The method of storing a message in accordance with claim 26, wherein:

said associated non-speech data is an image.