Telephone terminal and method of telephone communication between a calling terminal and a called terminal for optimizing a cost reduction of calls

• US 6,269,094 B1
• Filed: 01/08/1998
• Issued: 07/31/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Coudreuse, Michel, Lecomte, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Wellington
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pham, Brenda H.
• Application Number:
  US09/004,645
• Time in Patent Office: 1,300 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352, 370/356, 379/88.17, 379/93.05, 379/93.14, 379/219, 379/201, 379/100.01, 707/10, 707/9
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/65 Recording arrangements for recording a message from the calling party in the exchange H04M3/50

Abstract

A calling telephone terminal and a called telephone terminal optimize the cost reduction of real time communication via a first communication network operating in real time. The calling terminal recognizes the status of a called terminal as “real time communication” in the case of a called terminal requiring real time communication or “off-line communication” in the case of a called terminal tolerating off-line communications and constructs and temporarily stores a message off-line and then sends it to the called terminal via a second communication network operating off-line if the status of the called terminal is “off-line communication”. The called terminal sends a “real time communication” or “off-line communication” status signal to a calling terminal in response to detection of an incoming call and receives and optionally stores a message sent by the calling terminal via a second communication network operating off-line if the status of the called terminal is “off-line communication”.

Claims

1. A calling telephone terminal, comprising:

means for recognizing a status of a called terminal as “

real time communication”

when a called terminal requires real time communication or as “

off-line communication”

when said called terminal is able to tolerate off-line communication;

means for constructing and temporarily storing a message off-line and then sending it to said called terminal via a second communication network operating off-line if the status of said called terminal is “

off-line communication”

; and

means for real time communication with said called terminal via a first communication network operating in real time if the status of said called terminal is not “

off-line communication”

.

2. The terminal claimed in claim 1, wherein said first communication network is a switched telephone network.

3. The terminal claimed in claim 1, wherein said second communication network is an “

Internet”

type multimedia network.

4. The terminal claimed in claim 1, selected from the group comprising:

telephones;

telephone answering services;

videophones;

video answering services;

telematics terminals;

telematics answering services;

“

Internet”

type terminals;

“

Internet”

type servers; and

multifunction terminals that can be consulted remotely.

5. The terminal claimed in claim 1, wherein said message includes sound and/or images and/or data.

6. The terminal claimed in claim 1, including means for switching from real time communication via said first communication network to off-line communication via said second network and/or vice versa.

7. A called telephone terminal, comprising:

means for sending to a calling terminal, in response to detection of an incoming call, a “

real time communication”

status message when the called terminal requires real time communication or an “

off-line communication”

status message when the called terminal is able to tolerate off-line communication; and

means for receiving and optionally storing a message sent by said calling terminal via a second communication network operating off-line if a status of said called terminal is “

off-line communication”

; and

means for real time communication with said calling terminal via a first communication network operating in real time if the status of said called terminal is not “

off-line communication”

.

8. The telephone terminal claimed in claim 7, wherein said first communication network is a switched telephone network.

9. The terminal claimed in claim 7, wherein said second communication network is an “

Internet”

type multimedia network.

10. The terminal claimed in claim 7, selected from the group comprising:

telephones;

telephone answering services;

videophones;

video answering services;

telematics terminals;

telematics answering services;

“

Internet”

type terminals;

“

Internet”

type servers; and

multifunction terminals that can be consulted remotely.

11. The terminal claimed in claim 7, wherein said message includes sound and/or images and/or data.

12. The terminal claimed in claim 7, further comprising means for forcing the status of said called terminal to “

off-line communication”

.

13. The terminal claimed in claim 7, further comprising means for switching from real time communication via said first communication network to off-line communication via said second network and/or vice versa.

14. A method of telephone communication between a calling terminal and a called terminal, comprising the steps of:

sending a ringing signal from said calling terminal to said called terminal;

detecting of said ringing signal by said called terminal;

sending by said called terminal to said calling terminal of a “

real time communication”

status signal when said called terminal requires real time communication or of an “

off-line communication”

status signal when said called terminal is able to tolerate off-line communication; and

communicating between said terminals a call via said first network if said status is “

real time communication”

or if one of said terminals does not include means for distinguishing communication states, otherwise;

constructing and temporarily storing a message in said calling terminal;

sending said message to said called terminal via a second communication network operating off-line; and

receiving and optionally storing of said message by said called terminal.

15. The method claimed in claim 14, wherein said step of using a call via said first network is also executed before and/or after said step of sending said message via said second network.

16. A calling telephone terminal comprising:

real time communication circuitry for operating in real time via a first communication network;

circuitry operative to recognize the status of a called terminal as “

real time communication”

when a called terminal requires real time communication or as “

off-line communication”

when the called terminal is able to tolerate off-line communication;

a message generator operative to construct a message;

a memory able to temporarily store the message off-line; and

a transmitting circuit operative to send the message to the called terminal via a second communication network operating off-line if the status of the called terminal is “

off-line communication.”

17. A terminal as claimed in claim 16, wherein the first communication network is a switched telephone network.

18. A terminal as claimed in claim 16, wherein the second communication network is an “

Internet”

type multimedia network.

19. A terminal as claimed in claim 16, selected from the group comprising telephones, telephone answering services, videophones, video answering services, telematics terminals, telematics answering services, “

Internet”

type terminals, “

Internet”

type servers, and multifunction terminals that can be consulted remotely.

20. A terminal as claimed in claim 16, wherein said message comprises sound and/or images and/or data.

21. A terminal as claimed in claim 16, further comprising a switch operative to switch from real time communication via said first communication network to off-line communication via said second network and/or vice versa.

22. A called telephone terminal, comprising:

real time communication circuitry for operating in real time via a first communication network;

a detector that detects an incoming call from a calling terminal;

status transmission circuitry operative to send to the calling terminal, in response to the incoming call detection, a “

real time communication”

status message when the called terminal requires real time communication or an “

off-line communication”

status message when the called terminal can tolerate off-line communication;

a receiver that receives a message sent by the calling terminal via a second communication network operating off-line if the status of the called terminal is “

off-line communication”

.

23. A called terminal according to claim 22, further comprising a memory that stores the message sent by the calling terminal.

24. The telephone terminal claimed in claim 22, wherein the first communication network is a switched telephone network.

25. A terminal as claimed in claim 22, wherein the second communication network is an “

Internet”

type multimedia network.

26. A terminal as claimed in claim 22, the terminal selected from the group comprising telephones, telephone answering services, videophones, video answering services, telematics terminals, telematics answering services, “

Internet”

type terminals, “

Internet”

type servers, and multifunction terminals that can be consulted remotely.

27. A terminal as claimed in claim 22, wherein the message includes sound and/or images and/or data.

28. A terminal as claimed in claim 22, further comprising circuitry that forces the status of the called terminal to “

off-line communication.”

29. A terminal as claimed in claim 22, further comprising a switch operative to switch from real time communication via said first communication network to off-line communication via said second network and/or vice versa.