Methods and systems for voice activated dialing

• US 7,356,131 B2
• Filed: 12/09/2003
• Issued: 04/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: At&T Delaware Intellectual Property, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bishop, Michael, Koch, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang, Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): SING, SIMON P
• Application Number:
  US10/731,307
• Publication Number:
  US 20050123104A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,582 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88.01, 379/88.03, 379/218.01
• US Class Current: 379/88.03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4931 Directory assistance systems

Abstract

Methods and systems for routing a call based on voice activated dialing (VAD). A VAD device module may respond to a VAD instruction, or to a call received with a VAD instruction with a corresponding call destination number obtained from a personal VAD directory. If the personal VAD directory fails to include the call destination number, the VAD device module may route the call or initiate a call through a gateway to a VAD network module. The VAD network module may obtain call destination information from the VAD instruction, and may use the call destination information obtain the call destination number. The VAD network module may obtain additional information from the call or other source, and use the additional information to obtain the call destination number. The call then is routed to the call destination number. The call destination number may be added to the personal VAD directory.

Claims

1. A system for voice activated dialing (VAD), comprising:

a VAD device module located in a customer premises and operative to respond to a VAD instruction, after failing to find a call destination number by causing the call to be routed to a gateway communicatively connected to a VAD network module; and

the VAD network module being operative to use at least part of the VAD instruction to obtain the call destination number from a directory, and to cause the call to be routed to the call destination number.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway comprises a voice/data gateway.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the VAD network module is operative through the gateway to obtain additional information and to use the additional information to obtain the call destination number from the directory.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the VAD network module is operative to update the VAD device module with the call destination number.