Voice print access to computer resources

• US 7,054,819 B1
• Filed: 02/11/2000
• Issued: 05/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Loveland, Shawn D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chawan, Vijay B.
• Application Number:
  US09/502,515
• Time in Patent Office: 2,300 Days
• Field of Search: 704/258, 704270-275, 704/246, 370/352, 370/760, 370/401, 370/408, 370/350, 345/419, 345/756, 379/52, 379/88.21, 379/88.14, 709/206, 340/7.28
• US Class Current: 704/273
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 17/24 the user being prompted to utter a password or a predefined phrase
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231
• 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 3/38 Graded-service arrangements, i.e. some subscribers prevented from establishing certain connections queuing arrangements H04Q3/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/385 using speech signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals

Abstract

A dual-access communications server system is disclosed for enabling communication between server resources and a wide spectrum of end-terminals to enable users access to the resources of both converged and non-converged networks via voice and/or electronically generated commands. Server resources are provided through a converged computer/telephony system interface such that the data and resources are readily accessed by either voice or data calls. A set of applications provide dual interfaces for rendering services and data based upon the manner in which a user accesses the data. A user is authenticated by receiving vocal responses by a user to one or more requests variably selected and issued by a speaker recognition-based authentication facility. Thereafter, an application proxy is created. The application proxy acts on behalf of the authenticated authorized user in accessing applications via the dual-access communications interface.

Claims

1. A method for authenticating a user for access to a computer network via a network access server including a dual-access communications interface supporting both data calls and voice calls over a same physical input, the method comprising:

receiving, via the dual-access communications interface, a user identification from a user seeking access to the computer network via the dual-access communications interface;

issuing a variable challenge query;

receiving, via the dual-access communications interface, a voice response to the challenge query; and

selectively logging the user onto the computer network utilizing a logon request that includes the user identification and a password, the logon request based at least in part on a comparison of the challenge query with a stored voice sample sequence that corresponds to the user identification and the challenge query.

2. The method of claim 1, the variable challenge query is selected from a set of potential queries, the variable challenge query determined in a manner such that the user cannot determine, in advance of the issuing, the challenge query.

3. The method of claim 1, the logging on procedure comprises submitting a stored computer network user identification and password by the network access server to a network security server.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising receiving, in response to the submitting, a set of credentials for a logged on user.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising creating an application proxy having the set of credentials for the logged on user, the application proxy carrying out requests on behalf of the user seeking access to the computer network.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising receiving a notification of successful logging onto the computer network and thereafter executing an application in accordance with vocal commands received by the dual-access communications interface.

7. The method of claim 6, the application comprises a personal interactive voice response application.

8. The method of claim 6, the application comprises a distributed conference bridge.

9. The method of claim 6, the application comprises an instant messaging application.

10. The method of claim 1, the challenge query is a request to repeat a phrase transmitted by the dual-access communications interface.

11. The method of claim 10, the phrase transmitted by the dual-access communications interface generated by a text to speech synthesizer based upon alphanumeric values.

12. The method of claim 1, the challenge query is a question for which a corresponding vocal response has been recorded in an authentication database entry keyed to an identified user and the question.

13. A system for authenticating a user for access to a computer network, the system comprising:

a user authentication database including for each registered user an identification and a set of vocal samples corresponding to the identification;

a network access server, including a dual-access communications interface supporting both data calls and voice calls over a same physical input, that receives a user identification from a user seeking authentication via the dual-access communications interface, issues a variable challenge query, compares a received response to the challenge query and to a stored voice sample sequence corresponding to the user identification and the challenge query, and issues a logon request, including a user identification and password, on behalf of an authenticated user determined by the comparison of the received response to the stored voice sample sequence;

a logon server coupled to the network access server and configured to receive the user identification and password from the network access server and in response provides a set of corresponding credentials for use by an application proxy.

14. The system of claim 13, the variable challenge query is obtained from a set of potential queries wherein the variable challenge query is determined in a manner such that a user cannot determine, in advance of issuing the challenge query, the challenge query.

15. The system of claim 13 further comprising a voice applications server that supports a set of voice applications.

16. The system of claim 15, the voice applications include a personal interactive voice response application.

17. The system of claim 15, the voice applications include a distributed conference bridge.

18. The system of claim 13 further comprising an electronic personal assistant platform that supports an extensible set of voice accessed applications.

19. A computer-readable media including computer-executable instructions for authenticating a user for access to a computer network via a network access server including a dual-access communications interface supporting both data calls and voice calls over a same physical input, including:

receiving, via the dual-access communications interface, a user identification from a user seeking access to the computer network via the dual-access communications interface;

issuing a variable challenge query;

receiving, via the dual-access communications interface, a voice response to the challenge query;

comparing the received voice response to the challenge query with a stored voice sample sequence corresponding to the user identification and the challenge query;

generating a logon request that includes the user identification and a password based at least in part on the comparison of the received response with the stored voice sample sequence; and

selectively logging the user onto the computer network.