System and method for communication between a telephone data repository and downstream data processing applications

• US 6,411,698 B1
• Filed: 10/13/1998
• Issued: 06/25/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Button, Ross Edward, Sauve, Steve, Sommers, Francis Cornelius, Holmes, Ralph, McQuigge Ernst, Susan Jane, Cavanagh, Mike, Kalyn, William, Germann, Kevin, Howlette, Samuel S., Bauer, Deborah
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Harry S.
• Application Number:
  US09/170,636
• Time in Patent Office: 1,351 Days
• Field of Search: 379/112, 379/113, 379/207, 379/211, 379/219, 379/220, 379/221, 379/229, 379/230, 707/1, 707/7, 707/10, 707/523
• US Class Current: 379/207.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/005 Personal communication services, e.g. provisions for portability of subscriber numbers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/951 Calendar or scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99937 Sorting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99955 Archiving or backup

Abstract

The present invention provides a system and method for achieving local number portability. Local number portability is a feature that allows a customer desiring to change local telephone service to maintain the same telephone number regardless of the service. To achieve local number portability, the present invention maintains and manages a communication scheme between and among regional telephone service providers throughout the country. The present invention includes interface applications between the invention and regional providers, regional telephone data repositories, invention telephone data repositories, and downstream data processing applications. The present invention is particularly directed towards the interface between the present scheme and the downstream processing applications. The interface includes subsystems which assist in communicating data records between the present scheme telephone data repositories and the downstream applications. The data records include, for example, activated, deactivated and modified telephone numbers.

Claims

1. A method of processing data records between a telephone data repository and at least one processing application, comprising the steps of:

(a) retrieving a data record from a data field in the telephone data repository and copying the data record into a storage medium;

(b) obtaining configuration data from the data record, the configuration data including an identity of one of the at least one processing application;

(c) formatting the data record into a message format to define a first message and routing the first message from the storage medium to a data pipe, the data pipe for communicating the telephone repository and the processing application; and

(d) repeating steps (a)-(c) until all data records stored in the data field in the telephone data repository have been retreived.

2. The method of processing data records as recited in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

(e) reading a second message containing a data record, the second message being routed from the processing application;

(f) obtaining configuration information from the second message, the configuration information including destination location within the telephone data repository for the data record in the second message;

(g) routing the second message to the destination location;

(h) updating the telephone data repository to include indication of the data record from the processing application; and

(i) repeating steps (e)-(h) until all the second messages have been read.

3. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 2, further comprising the steps of repeating steps (a)-(i) until a terminate signal is received.

4. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 3, wherein the second message corresponds to a previously routed first message.

5. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 4, wherein step (c) further comprises retrieving pipe identification from stored procedures and wherein the pipe is a dedicated pipe connecting the telephone data repository to one of the at least one processing application.

6. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 5, wherein steps (c) and (g) further comprise returning a status flag indicating success of each routing.

7. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 6, wherein steps (d) and (i) further comprise determining whether a data record is to be rerouted and additional first and second messages require routing based on the content of the status flag.

8. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 7, wherein step (h) further comprises assigning a tracking number to each of the first and second messages and tracking the first and second messages based on the assigned tracking number.

9. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises telephone porting data that defines how to route a call from a first service provider to a second service provider.

10. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises a change in the telephone data repository.

11. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises:

telephone network data; and

subscription information.

12. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises an activated telephone number.

13. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises a deactivated telephone number.

14. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises a modified telephone number.

15. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 1, wherein the data record comprises a local number portability request.

16. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 2, further comprising the step of routing first and second messages along a data distribution subsystem and application interface subsystem, the data distribution subsystem and application interface subsystem positioned between the telephone data repository and the at least one processing application.

17. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 16, wherein the data distribution subsystem comprising a plurality of dedicated data pipes facilitating linking of the telephone repository and the at least one processing application, a distribution application facilitating routing of data along the dedicated data pipes, and a message queue, associated with each data pipe and facilitating routing of data between the data distribution subsystem, application interface and at least one processing application.

18. The method for processing data records as recited in claim 17, wherein the application interface subsystem comprising a plurality of dedicated data pipes linking the data distribution subsystem and the at least one processing application, dedicated processing interface associated with each data pipe and facilitating connection to the at least one processing application.

19. A method of processing data records between a telephone data repository and at least one processing application, comprising the steps of:

(a) retrieving a data record from a data field in the telephone data repository and copying the data record into a storage medium;

(b) obtaining configuration data from the data record, the configuration data including an identity of one of the at least one processing application;

(c) formatting the data record into a message format to define a first message and routing the first message from the storage medium to a data pipe, the data pipe for communicating the telephone repository and the processing application;

(d) repeating steps (a)-(c) until all data records stored in the data field in the telephone data repository have been retreived.

(e) reading a second message containing a data record, the second message being routed from the processing application;

(f) obtaining configuration information from the second message, the configuration information including destination location within the telephone data repository for the data record in the second message;

(g) routing the second message to the destination location;

(h) updating the telephone data repository to include indication of the data record from the processing application;

(i) repeating steps (e)-(h) until all the second messages have been read; and

(i) repeating steps (a)-(i) until a terminate signal is received.

20. A data record processing system comprising:

a telephone data repository;

at least one downstream data processing application in communication with the telephone data repository;

a data pipe, dedicated to each of the at least one downstream application, for facilitating the communication between the telephone data repository and the at least one downstream data processing application; and

the telephone data repository configured to retrieve data records, to obtain configuration information about the data records, to format the data records into first messages, to route the first message to the downstream application along the data pipe and to repeat until no more first messages require retrieving.

21. The data processing system recited in claim 20, further comprising the telephone data repository configured to read second messages, located within the data pipes, obtaining configuration information about the second messages, to route the second messages from the data pipe into the telephone data repository and to repeat until no more second messages require reading.

22. The data processing system recited in claim 20, further comprising a universal interface for facilitating adding of additional data processing applications without changing the existing code of the data processing system.

23. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the telephone data repository is configured to continue to retrieve and read first and second messages until a terminate signal is sent by the data processing system.

24. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises telephone porting data that defines how to route a call from a first service provider to a second service provider.

25. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises a change in the telephone data repository.

26. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises:

telephone network data; and

subscription information.

27. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises an activated telephone number.

28. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises a deactivated telephone number.

29. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises a modified telephone number.

30. The data processing system recited in claim 20, wherein the data record comprises a local number portability request.