Selective call waiting
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of processing a call from a calling party to a called party, comprising:
- determining whether a called party is busy on another call;
receiving a pass code from the calling party;
enabling provision of a call waiting signal to the called party if the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined pass code associated with the called party; and
terminating the call if the pass code does not correspond to the at least one predefined pass code within a predetermined period of time.
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Abstract
A method and system of processing a call from a calling party to a called party are provided to enable selective call waiting which involves determining whether the called party is busy on another call; receiving a password from the calling party; and providing a call waiting signal to the called party only if the password corresponds to at least one predefined password associated with the called party.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A method of processing a call from a calling party to a called party, comprising:
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determining whether a called party is busy on another call;
receiving a pass code from the calling party;
enabling provision of a call waiting signal to the called party if the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined pass code associated with the called party; and
terminating the call if the pass code does not correspond to the at least one predefined pass code within a predetermined period of time. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. An apparatus for processing a call from a calling party to a called party, comprising:
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means for determining whether a called party is busy on another call;
means for receiving a pass code from the calling party;
means for enabling provision of a call waiting signal to the called party if the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined pass code associated with the called party; and
means for terminating the call after (1) a predetermined period of time and the calling party has not entered a predefined pass code or (2) a maximum number of invalid pass code entries have been attempted. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. An apparatus for processing a call from a calling party to a called party, comprising:
processor for determining whether a called party is busy on another call, receiving a pass code from the calling party, and enabling provision of a call waiting signal to the called party if the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined pass code associated with the called party wherein the pass code maybe spoken and identified using voice recognition for authentication, said processor terminating the call after (1) a predetermined period of time and the calling party has not entered a predefined pass code or (2) a maximum number of invalid pass code entries have been attempted. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of notifying a called party of an incoming call comprising:
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receiving a pass code from a calling party associated with an incoming call directed to a called party wherein the pass code maybe spoken and identified using voice recognition for authentication;
notifying the called party of the incoming call only if the pass code corresponds to a predefined pass code associated with the called party; and
terminating the call after (1) a predetermined period of time and the calling party has not entered a predefined pass code or (2) a maximum number of invalid pass code entries have been attempted. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
transmitting a busy signal to the calling party responsive to detection of the incoming call prior to receiving the password from the calling party.
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20. The method according to claim 19, further comprising:
receiving an instruction from the called party to transmit a busy signal in the event any incoming call is detected.
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21. A method of notifying a called party of an incoming call from a calling party, comprising:
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inhibiting notification of the incoming call to the called party;
transmitting to the calling party a signal simulating that the called party is busy on another call, even though the called party is not busy on another call;
receiving a pass code from the calling party wherein the pass code maybe spoken and identified using voice recognition for authentication;
terminating the call after (1) a predetermined period of time and the calling party has not entered a predefined pass code or (2) a maximum number of invalid pass code entries have been attempted; and
notifying the called party of the incoming call if the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined pass code associated with the called party.
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22. A method of processing a call from a calling party to a called party, comprising:
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receiving a request from a calling party to connect with a called party;
determining whether a called party is busy;
entering a pass code by the calling party wherein the pass code maybe spoken and identified using voice recognition for authentication;
determining whether the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined password associated with the called party is valid;
permitting additional pass code entry attempts if the pass code is invalid;
implementing call waiting if the pass code is valid; and
terminating the call if the pass code is invalid. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25)
providing a maximum number of pass code entry attempts.
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24. The method of claim 22 further comprising:
terminating the call if the additional pass code entry attempts exceed a threshold.
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25. The method of claim 22 further comprising:
terminating the call if the calling party does not enter a pass code within a predetermined period.
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26. A method of inhibiting notification of an incoming call to a called party, comprising:
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receiving an incoming call from a calling party and inhibiting notification to the called party;
transmitting to the calling party a signal simulating that the called party is busy on another call, even though the called party may not be busy on another call;
receiving a pass code from the calling party wherein the pass code maybe typed, spoken or any format that can be detected and identified for use in authentication;
terminating the call if the pass code is not received within a predetermined period;
providing additional pass code entries if the pass code is invalid;
terminating the call after a maximum number of invalid pass code entries have been attempted; and
notifying the called party of the incoming call if the pass code corresponds to at least one predefined pass code associated with the called party.
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Specification