Voice synthesis of e-mail for delivery to voice pager or voice mail

• US 6,313,734 B1
• Filed: 07/03/1996
• Issued: 11/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Weiss, Louis H., Lang, Michael S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Holloway, III, Edwin C.
• Application Number:
  US08/675,011
• Time in Patent Office: 1,952 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.44, 340/311.1, 340/7.28, 340/7.29, 340/7.57, 379/67, 379/88, 379/88-2-, 455/31.3, 455/413, 455/89, 455/11.1, 709/206
• US Class Current: 340/7.29
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/023 with message or information receiving capability

Abstract

A voice paging system includes a computer for receiving an electronically transmitted text message and controlling the voice paging system, a text-to-voice converter for converting the text message to a voiced message, a transmitter for transmitting the voiced message in a wireless manner, and a voice pager unit for receiving the transmitted voiced message and broadcasting the voiced message.

Claims

1. A voice paging system comprising:

a control computer located at a voice paging service center for receiving a text message, a destination address and a voice mail recorder address transmitted through a computer network;

a wireless transmitter located at the voice paging service center and controlled by the control computer;

a voice mail recorder;

a text-to-voice converter located at the voice paging service center and controlled by the control computer for receiving the text message from the control computer and for converting the text message to a voice message, wherein the text-to-voice converter automatically sends the voice message to the wireless transmitter for transmitting the voice message in a wireless manner in accordance with the destination address and to the voice mail recorder in accordance with the voice mail recorder address for recording the voice message for later retrieval; and

a voice pager unit having the destination address for receiving the voice message transmitted in the wireless manner and producing the voice message for listening by a user thereof,

wherein the control computer controls the text-to-voice converter to deliver the voice message only to the voice mail recorder in accordance with the voice mail recorder address and controls the wireless transmitter to transmit in a wireless manner an alerting signal to the voice pager unit having the destination address to indicate that the voice message has been recorded.

2. A voice paging system according to claim 1, wherein the computer network is a local area network.

3. A voice paging system according to claim 1, wherein the computer network is an external network.

4. A voice paging system according to claim 1, further comprising a source computer for receiving an electronic mail (e-mail) message as a text message and automatically forwarding a copy of the text message to the control computer through the computer network.

5. A voice paging system comprising:

a source computer for generating an electronic mail (e-mail) message as a text message, a destination address and a voice mail recorder address and automatically forwarding a copy of the text message, destination address and voice mail recorder address through a computer network;

a control computer located at a voice paging service center for receiving the text message transmitted through the computer network;

a voice mail recorder;

a wireless transmitter located at the voice paging service center and controlled by the control computer for transmitting a notification signal in a wireless manner to the destination address selected by the source computer;

a text-to-voice converter located at the voice paging service center and controlled by the control computer for receiving the text message from the control computer and for converting the text message to a voice message, wherein the text-to-voice converter automatically sends the voice message to the wireless transmitter for transmitting the voice message in a wireless manner in accordance with the destination address and to the voice mail recorder for recording the voice message in accordance with the voice mail recorder address for later retrieval; and

a voice pager unit having the destination address for receiving the notification signal transmitted in the wireless manner and broadcasting the notification signal to a user of the voice pager unit to indicate that the voice mail recorder has recorded therein the voice message ready for retrieval,

wherein the control computer controls the text-to-voice converter and the wireless transmitter to automatically transmit the voice message to the voice pager unit having the destination address upon conversion of the text message and to automatically record the voice message in accordance with the voice mail recorder address in the voice mail recorder.

6. A voice paging method comprising the steps of:

generating a text message, destination address and a voice mail recorder address using a source computer;

receiving the text message, destination address and the voice mail recorder address transmitted through a computer network to a voice paging service center;

converting the received text message to a voice message using a text-to-voice converter located at the voice paging service center and controlled by a control computer;

transmitting an alerting signal using a wireless transmitter at the voice paging service center to a voice pager unit having the destination address to indicate that the voice message is about to be transmitted;

transmitting the voice message automatically to the voice pager unit having the destination address using the wireless transmitter at the voice paging service center and controlled by the control computer; and

recording the voice message on a voice mail recorder in accordance with the voice mail recorder address for later retrieval.