Voice IP approval system using voice-enabled web based application server

• US 6,507,817 B1
• Filed: 06/27/2000
• Issued: 01/14/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Danner, Ryan Alan, Dodrill, Lewis Dean, Wolfe, William M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dorvil, Richemond
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nolan, Daniel A.
• Application Number:
  US09/604,657
• Time in Patent Office: 931 Days
• Field of Search: 704/258-275, 345/448-473, 707/513, 707/5, 358/407
• US Class Current: 704/260
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/30 Distributed recognition, e.g. in client-server systems, for mobile phones or network applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/253 where a visual mode is used instead of a voice mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4509 Unified messaging with single point of access to voicemail and other mail or messaging systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4938 comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53 Centralised arrangements for recording incoming messages , i.e. mailbox systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5307 for recording messages comprising any combination of audio and non-audio components
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/12 for working between exchanges having different types of switching equipment, e.g. power-driven and step by step or decimal and non-decimal

Abstract

A web-based voice messaging system uses an application server, configured for executing a voice application defined by XML documents, that accesses subscriber attributes from a standardized information database server (such as LDAP), and messages from a standardized messaging server (such as IMAP). The application server, upon receiving a request from a browser serving a subscriber, accesses an IP based messaging server to obtain a stored message for the subscriber from a second party. The stored message identifies a text-based form. The application server converts the text-based form into an audible format. The application server generates an HTML document to present to the subscriber the form in audible format with audible prompts, based on the HTTP request and the text-based form. The application server then updates the text-based form based on an input from the subscriber. Thus, text-based forms can be retrieved and acted on via a telephone.

Claims

1. A method in an application server for executing a messaging application, the method comprising:

receiving an HTTP request for execution of a prescribed messaging application operation for a subscriber;

accessing an IP-based messaging server to obtain a stored message for the subscriber from a second party, the stored message identifying a text-based formn;

converting the text-based form into an audible format;

generating an HTML document to present the form in audible format with audible prompts based on the HTTP request and the text-based form; and

updating the text-based form based on an input from the subscriber.

2. The method of claim 1, further including accessing attribute information for the subscriber from an Internet Protocol (EP) based database server configured for storing subscriber attributes, the step of accessing the messaging server being based on the accessed attribute information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving step includes recovering within the HTTP request a browser configuration.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the recovering step includes identifying the browser configuration as one of a computer browser configuration configured for parsing a prescribed group of media tags and presenting a prescribed group of media types, and a lightweight browser configuration configured for parsing a prescribed portion of the prescribed group of media tags.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the generating step includes generating the HTML document by selectively supplying media tag types based on the identified browser configuration.

6. The method of claim 1, further including retrieving the text-based form from a data store prior to the converting step.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the accessing step includes accessing the IP-based database server according to LDAP protocol.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the converting step includes executing a text to speech resource for converting the text-based form into an audio file.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the message from the second party includes instructions for the subscriber to approve or deny a request, and the audible prompts include options for approving or denying the request.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of generating an HTML document provides XML tags that specify the playing of the form in the audible format.

11. An application server configured for executing a messaging application, the application server including:

an application runtime environment configured for dynamically generating a hypertext markup language (HTML) document to present to a subscriber a text-based form, identified in a stored message from a second party, in audible format with audible prompts, by converting the text based form into audible format and providing the prompts, the application run time environment being configured to update the text-based form based on an input from the subscriber.

12. The server of claim 11, wherein the application runtime environment is configured to access attribute information for the subscriber from an Internet Protocol (EP) based database server configured for storing subscriber attributes, the application runtime environment accessing the stored message from a messaging server based on the accessed attribute information.

13. The server of claim 11, wherein the application runtime environment accesses the IP-based database server and the IP-based messaging server according to LDAP protocol and IMAP protocol, respectively.

14. The server of claim 12, wherein the application runtime environment is configured for converting the text based form into an audio file playable by a browser and inserting the audio file into the HTML document.

15. The server of claim 14, wherein the application runtime environment is configured for converting the text based form into an audio file using a text to speech routine.

16. The server of claim 11, wherein the HTML document includes XML tags that specify the playing of the form in the audible format.

17. A computer readable medium having stored thereon sequences of instructions for executing a messaging application, the sequences of instructions including instructions for performing the steps of:

receiving an HTTP request for execution of a prescribed messaging application operation for a subscriber;

accessing an IP-based messaging server to obtain a stored message for the subscriber from a second party, the stored message identifying a text-based form;

converting the text-based form into an audible format;

generating an HTML document to present the form in audible format with audible prompts based on the HTTP request and the text-based form; and

updating the text-based form based on an input from the subscriber.

18. The medium of claim 17, further including accessing attribute information for the subscriber from an Internet Protocol (IP) based database server configured for storing subscriber attributes, the step of accessing the messaging server being based on the accessed attribute information.

19. The medium of claim 17, wherein the receiving step includes recovering within the HTTP request a browser configuration.

20. The medium of claim 19, wherein the recovering step includes identifying the browser configuration as one of a computer browser configuration configured for parsing a prescribed group of media tags and presenting a prescribed group of media types, and a lightweight browser configuration configured for parsing a prescribed portion of the prescribed group of media tags.

21. The medium of claim 19, wherein the generating step includes generating the HTML document by selectively supplying media tag types based on the identified browser configuration.

22. The medium of claim 17, wherein the accessing step includes accessing the IP-based database server according to LDAP protocol.

23. The medium of claim 17, wherein the converting step includes executing a text to speech resource for converting the text based form into an audio file.

24. The medium of claim 17, wherein the stored message of the second party includes instructions for the subscriber to approve or deny a request, and the audible prompts include options for approving or denying the request.

25. The server of claim 17, wherein the HTML document includes XML tags that specify the playing of the form in the audible format.

26. An application server configured for executing a messaging application, the application server including:

means for dynamically generating a hypertext markup language (HTML) document to present to a subscriber a text-based form, identified in a stored message from a second party, in audible format with audible prompts, by converting the text based form into audible format and providing the prompts, the generating means being configured to update the text-based form based on an input from the subscriber.

27. The server of claim 26, wherein the generating means includes means for accessing the IP-based database server and the IP-based messaging server according to LDAP protocol and IMAP protocol, respectively.

28. The server of claim 26, wherein the generating means is configured for converting the text based form into an audio file playable by a browser and inserting the audio file into the HTML document.

29. The server of claim 26, wherein the generating means is configured for converting the text based form into an audio file using a text to speech routine.

30. The server of claim 26, wherein the HTML document includes XML tags that specify the playing of the form in the audible format.