Gateway apparatus, terminal specification method for gateway apparatus and computer-readable recording medium having recorded terminal-specifying program

• US 6,788,677 B1
• Filed: 12/31/1998
• Issued: 09/07/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Morinaga, Masanobu, Fukuyama, Noriyuki, Matsuda, Masahiro, Ohtsu, Kazuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Ton, Dang
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, PHUC H
• Application Number:
  US09/223,759
• Time in Patent Office: 2,077 Days
• Field of Search: 370/351, 370/352, 370/355, 370/356, 370/400, 370/401, 370/402, 370/403, 370/404, 370/405, 370/406, 370/270, 370/261, 379/201.07, 379/201.08, 379/265.01, 379/265.02, 379/67.1, 379/219, 379/265.09, 379/90.02, 379/88.17, 379/211.01, 379/207.06, 379/373.02, 379/374.03, 379/204.01, 379/215.01
• US Class Current: 370/355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1095 Inter-network session transfer or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/401 wherein the services involve a main real-time session and one or more additional parallel real-time or time sensitive sessions, e.g. white board sharing or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/465 Arrangements for simultaneously calling a number of substations until an answer is obtained
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/128 Details of addressing, directories or routing tables

Abstract

A gateway apparatus connects a packet-switched network to a PSTN, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto. The gateway apparatus includes a recognition operation, an incoming call notification operation and a connection operation. The gateway operates (or is configured) to recognize information terminals on the packet-switched network. The incoming call notification operation notifies all the recognized information terminals of an incoming call upon reception of an incoming call from the PSTN. The connection operation connects the PSTN to an information terminal that has responded to the incoming call notification first. An incoming call notification may be sent to all or a plurality of the information terminals on the packet-switched network in a point-to-multipoint communication using a broadcast address or a multi-cast address. Source-identifying information and destination telephone numbers on the PSTN may be allotted to the information terminals in advance so that the destination of an incoming call notification can be specified. Additionally, a telephone message recorder terminal may be used to receive incoming calls when no other terminal responds to the incoming call.

Claims

1. A gateway apparatus that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, comprising:

recognition means for storing identifiers of the information terminals on the packet-switched network and the addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network;

incoming call notification means for notifying each of the information terminals having the identifiers stored in said recognition means of an incoming call when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network;

connection means for connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification; and

sending means for sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network.

2. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said incoming call notification means notifies each of the information terminals on the packet-switched network of the incoming call in a point-to-multipoint communication using a broadcast address when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network.

3. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said incoming call notification means notifies a plurality of the information terminals on the packet-switched network of the incoming call in a point-to multipoint communication using a multi-cast address when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network.

4. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

said recognition means allocates an order to each of the information terminals; and

said incoming call notification means notifies each of the information terminals of the incoming call in accordance with the order that has been allocated thereto when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network, and repeats the incoming call notification to each information terminal in turn until a response to the incoming call notification is received.

5. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

said recognition means allocates source identifying information of the circuit-switched network to selected ones of the information terminals having the identifiers stored in said recognition means; and

said communication notification means selects an information terminal corresponding to the source-identifying information and notifies a selected information terminal of the incoming call when receiving the incoming call accompanying the source-identifying information from the circuit-switched network.

6. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the gateway apparatus supports a plurality of lines on the circuit-switched network;

said recognition means allots any one of the plurality of lines to each of the information terminals having the identifiers stored in said recognition means; and

when receiving the incoming call directed to one of the plurality of lines from the circuit-switched network, said incoming call notification means selects the information terminal allotted to the line to which the incoming call is directed and notifies the selected information terminal of the incoming call.

7. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the information terminals and said gateway apparatus can handle character communication with each other by using an application executing character communications substantially on a real-time basis;

said incoming call notification means notifies the information terminals having the identifiers stored in said recognition means of the incoming call by character communication when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network; and

said connection means connects to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification by said character communication.

8. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

at least one of the information terminals is a telephone message recorder terminal having communication recording means and being always available to receive incoming calls; and

said connection means connects the telephone message recorder terminal to the circuit-switched network if there is no response from any of the information terminals to which the incoming call notification has been sent.

9. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recognition means recognizes incoming-call-available information terminals.

10. The gateway apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

said recognition means maintains an incoming call status of the recognized information terminals; and

said incoming call notification means notifies the information terminals whose incoming call status is incoming-call-available of the incoming call.

11. A terminal specification method used for a gateway apparatus that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, the method comprising:

storing identifiers of the information terminals on the packet-switched network and addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network;

notifying information terminals having the stored identifiers of an incoming call when the incoming call is received from the circuit-switched network;

connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification;

sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the notifying of the information terminals except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network; and

transmitting the incoming call between the circuit-switched network and the information terminal through the gateway apparatus.

12. The terminal specification method according to claim 11, wherein said notifying of the information terminals on the packet-switched network of the incoming call is by a point-to-multipoint communication using a broadcast address when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network.

13. The terminal specification method according to claim 11, wherein said notifying of a plurality of the information terminals on the packet-switched network of the incoming call is by a point-to multipoint communication using a multi-cast address when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network.

14. The terminal specification method according to claim 11, wherein:

said storing further includes allocating an order to each of the information terminals; and

said notifying notifies each of the information terminals of the incoming call in accordance with the order that has been allocated thereto when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network, and repeats the incoming call notification to each information terminal in turn until a response to the incoming call notification is received.

15. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded a terminal-specifying program used for a gateway that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, the recording medium having recorded the terminal-specifying program for executing:

storing identifiers of the information terminals on the packet-switched network and addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network;

notifying information terminals having stored identifiers of an incoming call when the incoming call is received from the circuit-switched network;

connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification;

sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the notifying of the information terminals except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network; and

transmitting the incoming call between the circuit-switched network and the information terminal through the gateway apparatus.

16. A gateway apparatus that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, comprising:

recognition means for storing identifiers of the information terminals on the packet-switched network and the addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network;

incoming call notification means for notifying each of the information terminals having the identifiers stored in said recognition means of an incoming call when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network;

connection means for connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification such that the incoming call is transmitted between the circuit-switched network and the information terminal through the gateway apparatus; and

sending means for sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network.

17. A terminal specification method used for a gateway apparatus that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, the method comprising:

storing identifiers of the information terminals on the packet-switched network and addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network;

notifying information terminals having the stored identifiers of an incoming call when the incoming call is received from the circuit-switched network;

connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification;

sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network; and

transmitting the incoming call between the circuit-switched network and the information terminal through the gateway apparatus.

18. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded a terminal-specifying program used for a gateway that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, the recording medium having recorded the terminal-specifying program for executing:

storing identifiers of the information terminals on the packet-switched network and addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network;

notifying information terminals having stored identifiers of an incoming call when the incoming call is received from the circuit-switched network;

connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification;

sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network; and

transmitting the incoming call between the circuit-switched network and the information terminal through the gateway apparatus.

19. A gateway apparatus that connects a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, comprising:

a recognition unit storing identifiers of the information terminals and addresses of the information terminals;

an incoming call notification unit notifying each of the information terminals having the identifiers stored in the recognition unit of an incoming call when receiving the incoming call from the circuit-switched network;

a connection unit connecting to the circuit-switched network the information terminal that has responded first to the incoming call notification such that the incoming call is transmitted between the circuit-switched network and the information terminal through the gateway apparatus; and

a disconnection sending unit to send a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network.

20. A gateway apparatus having a recognition unit, the gateway apparatus connecting a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, the recognition unit storing identifiers corresponding to the information terminals and addresses of the information terminals on the packet-switched network, comprising:

an incoming call notification unit notifying each of the information terminals having the identifiers stored in the recognition unit of an incoming call received from the circuit-switched network;

a connection unit connecting the circuit-switched network and one information terminal that is first to respond to the incoming call notification such that the incoming call is transmitted between the circuit-switched network and the one information terminal through the gateway apparatus; and

a disconnection sending unit to send a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network.

21. A method of connecting a packet-switched network to a circuit-switched network, the packet-switched network having a plurality of information terminals connected thereto, comprising:

storing identifiers and addresses of each of the information terminals;

notifying the information terminals having the stored identifiers of an incoming call from the circuit-switched network;

connecting to the circuit-switched network one information terminal that is first to respond to said notifying;

sending a disconnection message to each of the information terminals that have responded to the incoming call notification except for the information terminal that has connected to the circuit-switched network; and

transmitting the incoming call between the circuit-switched network and the one information terminal through the gateway apparatus.