Apparatus and method for voice message control

• US 6,781,962 B1
• Filed: 04/26/2002
• Issued: 08/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Jetque
• Original Assignee: Jetque
• Inventors: Eide, Dirk D., Williams, Tim A., Brookshire, Daniel A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kizou, Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Levitan, Dmitry
• Application Number:
  US10/133,018
• Time in Patent Office: 851 Days
• Field of Search: 370/259, 370/310, 379/67.1, 379/87, 379/88.08, 379/88.11, 379/88.12, 379/88.15, 379/88.17, 379/88.18, 379/88.22, 379/88.24, 379/88.25, 379/201.01
• US Class Current: 370/259
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72433 for voice messaging, e.g. dictaphones for answering incoming calls H04M1/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/74 with voice recognition means
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/10 Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-On-Call services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/45 for Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-to-Talk over cellular [PoC] services

Abstract

A communication system and method are described. In one embodiment, the method comprises a server determining to examine contents of audio files in a storage facility, the server accessing one or more audio files stored in the storage facility, and sending a text message over a packet data network channel, the text message containing information about the one or more accessed audio files.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a server determining to examine contents of audio files in a storage facility;

the server accessing one or more audio files stored in the storage facility; and

sending a text message over a packet data network channel, the text message containing information about the one or more accessed audio files;

the server determining one or more parameters of the one or more audio files retrieved from the storage facility, wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises audio file length;

the server causing the storage facility to skip ahead a period of time repeatedly while playing at least one of the one or more audio files and determining the audio file length based on the number of skips ahead each of the one or more audio files has and length of the period of time.

2. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising using the packet data network channel for controlling presentation of the one or more accessed audio files.

3. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the text message comprises a menu of selectable options with respect to the one or more accessed audio files.

4. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising controlling presentation of the one or more accessed audio files via the packet data network channel.

5. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising offering a call through an interface to a telephone switch coupled to the storage facility.

6. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the storage facility comprises a voice mail system.

7. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the server is coupled to the storage facility via an interface and a telephone switch.

8. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the text message includes a list of audio files selectable to access the audio file associated with each item in the list.

9. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the text message includes a set of icons representing the one or more audio files, each icon of the set of icons being selectable by a user to receive an audio file associated with said each icon.

10. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a selection of one or more audio files to be played sent over a packet channel and a network environment;

offering a call to a recipient at a predetermined number; and

playing a selected audio file as part of the call.

11. The method defined in claim 10 wherein offering a call is made by the server through a PRI interface to a phone number received by the server with the selection of the one or more audio files to be played.

12. The method defined in claim 10 wherein the call comprises a circuit switched call.

13. The method defined in claim 12 wherein the circuit switched call is a PSTN circuit switch call.

14. The method defined in claim 10 wherein the call comprises a packet switched call.

15. The method defined in claim 14 wherein the packet switched call is a VOP call.

16. The method defined in claim 10 wherein the packet channel comprises the packet data network channel and the network environment comprises the Internet.

17. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a selection of one or more audio files to be played sent from a user over a packet channel and a network environment; and

providing audio associated with a user selected one or more audio files via the packet data network channel as packetized voice.

18. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the server accessing the one or more audio files comprises a server providing the storage facility with a user'"'"'s mail box and identification information.

19. The method defined in claim 18 wherein the identification information comprises a PIN number.

20. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the server accessing the one or more audio files comprises the server generating DTMF tones.

21. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the server accessing the one or more audio files comprises the server using speech generated from a text-to-speech (TTS) portion of the server.

22. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising the server processing speech from the storage facility with using automatic speech recognition (ASR) to determine a number of the one or more audio files stored in the storage facility.

23. The method defined in claim 22 wherein the number of audio files comprises a number of new messages and a number of old messages.

24. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising the server causing the storage facility to play the one or more voice audio files.

25. The method defined in claim 24 wherein the server causing the storage facility to play the one or more audio files comprises generating DTMF tones to cause the storage facility to play the one or more audio files.

26. The method defined in claim 24 wherein the server causing the storage facility to play the one or more audio files comprises generating audio controls to cause the storage facility to play the one or more audio files.

27. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising the server recording the audio files into a storage area within the server.

28. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising the server determining one or more parameters of the one or more audio files retrieved from the storage facility.

29. The method defined in claim 28 wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises audio file length.

30. The method defined in claim 29 further comprising measuring the audio file length as each of the one or more audio files is played.

31. The method defined in claim 28 wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises audio file originator.

32. The method defined in claim 31 further comprising capturing and performing speech recognition on calling number identification information captured by the storage facility and spoken by the storage facility on playback of each of the one or more audio files to the server.

33. The method defined in claim 28 wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises message urgency.

34. The method defined in claim 33 further comprising performing speech recognition on an urgency level spoken by the storage facility.

35. The method defined in claim 28 wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises message arrival time.

36. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising aggregating the one or more audio files with at least one audio file from another storage facility.

37. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising the server dialing a voice mail server in the storage facility.

38. The method defined in claim 1 wherein examining the contents of the storage facility comprises polling the storage facility at intervals.

39. The method defined in claim 1 wherein examining the contents of the storage facility comprises the server detecting the presence of stutter tone.

40. The method defined in claim 1 wherein examining the contents of the storage facility comprises receiving the message waiting indicator from the storage facility.

41. An apparatus comprising:

means for determining to examine contents of audio files in a storage facility;

means for accessing one or more audio files stored in the storage facility; and

means for sending a text message over a packet data network channel, the text message containing information about, the one or more accessed audio files;

means for determining one or more parameters of the one or more audio files retrieved from the storage facility, wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises audio file length; and

means for causing the storage facility to skip ahead a period of time repeatedly while playing at least one of the one or more audio files and determining the audio file length based on the number of skips ahead each of the one or more audio files has and length of the period of time.

42. The apparatus defined in claim 41 further comprising means for using the packet data network channel to control presentation of the one or more accessed audio files.

43. The apparatus defined in claim 41 wherein the text message comprises a menu of selectable options with respect to the one or more accessed audio files.

44. The apparatus defined in claim 41 further comprising means for controlling presentation of the one or more accessed audio files via the packet data network channel.

45. The apparatus defined in claim 41 further comprising means for offering a call through an interface to a telephone switch coupled to the storage facility.

46. The apparatus defined in claim 41 wherein the storage facility comprises a voice mail system.

47. The apparatus defined in claim 41 wherein the server is coupled to the storage facility via an interface and a telephone switch.

48. The apparatus defined in claim 41 wherein the text message includes a list of audio files selectable to access the audio file associated with each item in the list.

49. The apparatus defined in claim 41 wherein the text message includes a set of icons representing the one or more audio files, each icon of the set of icons being selectable by a user to receive an audio file associated with said each icon.

50. The apparatus defined in claim 41 further comprising:

means for receiving a selection of one or more audio files to be played sent over a packet channel and a network environment;

means for offering a call to a user at a predetermined number; and

means for playing a user selected audio file as part of the call.

51. An apparatus comprising:

a server;

a voicemail system coupled to the server via a telephone switch, wherein the server determines contents of audio files in a storage facility, accesses one or more audio files stored in the storage facility, sends a text message over a packet data network channel, the text message containing information about the one or more accessed audio files,

determines one or more parameters of the one or more audio files retrieved from the storage facility, wherein one of the one or more parameters comprises audio file length, and

causes the storage facility to skip ahead a period of time repeatedly while playing at least one of the one or more audio files and determines the audio file length based on the number of skips ahead each of the one or more audio files has and length of the period of time.