Personalized recorded message via message delivery system

• US 6,912,271 B1
• Filed: 03/13/2001
• Issued: 06/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Emergency Communications Network LLC (Onsolve, LLC)
• Original Assignee: The Broadcast Team Incorporated
• Inventors: Tuttle, Robert J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang, Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Phan, Joseph T
• Application Number:
  US09/805,064
• Time in Patent Office: 1,568 Days
• Field of Search: 379/67.1, 379/69, 379/70, 379 8816- 8825, 379/51, 37935501-3551
• US Class Current: 379/69
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2749 Automatic dialling or redialling systems, e.g. on off-hook or redial on busy
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/65 Recording arrangements for recording a message from the calling party in the exchange H04M3/50
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2016 Call initiation by network rather than by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2027 Live party detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/002 Applications of echo suppressors or cancellers in telephonic connections in two-way loud-speaking telephone systems H04M9/08, echo suppressors or cancellers per se H04B3/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5158 in combination with automated outdialling systems devices for signalling identity of wanted subscriber H04M1/26

Abstract

Message delivery system primarily for answering machines which provides a realistic sounding recorded message containing an individualized personal greeting which can be delivered onto one or more answering machines. This automated method of delivering a recorded personalized information message via an automated dialing system to automated recorders involves a series of steps of: forming a database of first names, determining frequency of occurrence of greatest number of the first names in the database; recording individual personal greetings to the first names having the greatest frequency of occurrence and, playing the individualized personally greeting without truncation onto answering machines associated with the first names having the greatest frequency of occurrence. This system provides a preliminary personalized greeting to the beginning of the generic message being delivered so that the recipient believes the message is coming from a real person.

Claims

1. An automated method of delivering a recorded personalized information message via an automated dialing system to automated recorders, comprising the steps of:

(a) forming a database of first names and telephone numbers associated with the first names;

(b) determining the greatest frequency of occurrence of of the first names in the database;

(c) recording individual personal greetings to the first names having the greatest frequency of occurrence;

(d) placing a call to a telephone number selected from the database and receiving a response;

(c) determining if the response is from an answering machine signal;

(f) playing the individualized personal greeting onto the answering machine, wherein each of the individualized personal greetings is delivered once in a nontruncated form; and

(g) repeating steps (d), (e) and (f) until at least a single pass through of all the telephone numbers associated to the first names having the greatest frequency of occurrence have been called.

2. The automated method of delivering the recorded personalized information message of claim 1, wherein the database is approximately 10 to approximately 100,000 first names.

3. The automated method of delivering the recorded personalized information message of claim 1, wherein the determining step further includes:

determining the occurrence of approximately ⅔

of all the commonly occurring first names in the database.

4. The automated method of delivering the recorded personalized information message of claim 1, wherein the step of playing further includes:

playing a generic information message immediately after the individualized

personal greeting onto the answering machine.

5. The automated method of delivering the recorded personalized information message of claim 4, wherein the individualized personal greeting and the generic information message are from an identical voice.