Network-independent communications system

• US 6,400,816 B1
• Filed: 05/08/1997
• Issued: 06/04/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hjalmtysson, Gisli, Jain, Ajay
• Primary Examiner(s): Matar, Ahmad
• Assistant Examiner(s): BUI, BING Q
• Application Number:
  US08/848,457
• Time in Patent Office: 1,853 Days
• Field of Search: 273/439, 379/157, 379/207, 379/211, 379/233, 379/88.1, 379/67.1, 379/201, 379/206, 379/355, 379/399, 379/201.02, 379/201.03, 379/201.05
• US Class Current: 379/201.03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5063 Centrally initiated conference, i.e. Conference server dials participants computer conference organisation arrangements H04L12/1818
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0057 Services where the data services network provides a telephone service in addition or as an alternative, e.g. for backup purposes, to the telephone service provided by the telephone services network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13095 PIN / Access code, authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13096 Digital apparatus individually associated with a subscriber line, digital line circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13098 Mobile subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13199 Modem, modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13204 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13248 Multimedia
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13337 Picturephone, videotelephony
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13374 Paging
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13383 Hierarchy of switches, main and subexchange, e.g. satellite exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13389 LAN, internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0016 Arrangements providing connection between exchanges
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/72 Finding out and indicating number of calling subscriber

Abstract

A communications system is designed to receive programmed instructions from an end-user device, invoke within the system the necessary processes needed to execute these instructions, and to marshal and allocate the needed resources to deliver a communications service requested by the sender of the programmed instructions

Claims

1. A method of providing a communications service to a user, comprising the steps of:

receiving in a communications system from an end-user device of a subscriber a set of programmed instructions which include a) software programs and b) corresponding data parameters for use with said programmed instructions; and

executing at a processor of said communications system at least one of said software programs using said data parameters in order to direct said communications system to deliver an outgoing communications service based on the execution of the at least one of said software programs, said communications service being delivered substantially immediately after receiving said programmed instructions, said software program identifying a sequence in which a plurality of addresses are to be reached to allow the subscriber to communicate with a receiving party at one of the addresses.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said communications system is a network comprised of interconnected nodes selected from a group which includes communications switches and routers.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said communications system is a Private Branch Exchange.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the communications system is a POTS communications network and wherein the end-user device is a unit capable of encoding and transmitting encoded data in the frequency range of a telephone microphone.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the programmed instructions are designed to implement protocol conversion.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the addresses are telephone numbers and wherein the communications system ignores remaining numbers in a sequence once a call is completed to the receiving party.

7. A method of delivering a customized communication service to a user, comprising:

receiving programmed instructions from an end-user device of a subscriber, said programmed instructions including software programs and corresponding data parameters for use with said software programs; and

executing said programmed instructions to deliver transparently an outgoing communication service requested by said programmed instructions, said communication service including at least one of a plurality of heterogeneous communications technologies, and said communications service being delivered substantially immediately after receiving said programmed instructions.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein one of said plurality of heterogeneous communications technologies is a POTS communications network, wherein the end-user device is capable of encoding and transmitting encoded data in the frequency range of a telephone microphone.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein one of said plurality of heterogeneous communications technologies is an Internet access service.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein one of said plurality of heterogeneous communications technologies is a paging service.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein one of said plurality of heterogeneous communications technologies is a multimedia communication service.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein one of said plurality of heterogeneous communications technologies is a Community Antenna TeleVision (CATV) service.

13. The method of claim 7 wherein the programmed instructions are designed to implement protocol conversion.

14. The method of claim 7 wherein the programmed instructions identify a sequence in which a plurality of addresses are to be reached to allow the subscriber to communicate with a receiving party at one of the addresses.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the addresses are telephone numbers and wherein the communications system ignores remaining numbers in a sequence once a call is completed to the receiving party.

16. The method of claim 7 wherein the programmed instructions request the delivery of a multimedia file.

17. The method of claim 7 wherein the programmed instructions request that an telephone call be routed over a particular communications carrier network.

18. The method of claim 7 wherein the programmed instructions request that a video call be routed over a particular communication carrier network.

19. The method of claim 7 wherein the programmed instructions request that an Internet connection to a specific Uniform Resource Locator (URL) be established.