Method and apparatus for enhanced Internet Telephony
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of providing enhanced Internet telephony comprising steps of:
- (a) receiving a message from a source at an intermediate point between the source and a destination, said intermediate point including at least one port having a time out period within which the destination may send messages to the source via the intermediate point;
(b) sending at least a portion of the message from the intermediate point to the destination over the Internet;
(c) sending a response to the message from the destination to the intermediate point over the Internet within the time out period;
(d) sending the response from the intermediate point to the source;
(e) sending a reply to the response from the source to the intermediate point;
(f) preventing the port from timing out by repeatedly sending subsequent messages from the destination over the Internet to the intermediate point;
(g) sending at least a portion of corresponding ones of the subsequent messages from the intermediate point to the source; and
(h) sending replies to the portion of the subsequent messages from the source to the intermediate point, wherein the current time out period restarts upon arrival at the intermediate point of a message from the destination.
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for enhanced Internet telephony ensures that communication between a source and destination is not interrupted by common network address translation. According to one aspect of the invention, communication may continue through a router that employs network address translation.
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Citations
52 Claims
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1. A method of providing enhanced Internet telephony comprising steps of:
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(a) receiving a message from a source at an intermediate point between the source and a destination, said intermediate point including at least one port having a time out period within which the destination may send messages to the source via the intermediate point; (b) sending at least a portion of the message from the intermediate point to the destination over the Internet; (c) sending a response to the message from the destination to the intermediate point over the Internet within the time out period; (d) sending the response from the intermediate point to the source; (e) sending a reply to the response from the source to the intermediate point; (f) preventing the port from timing out by repeatedly sending subsequent messages from the destination over the Internet to the intermediate point; (g) sending at least a portion of corresponding ones of the subsequent messages from the intermediate point to the source; and (h) sending replies to the portion of the subsequent messages from the source to the intermediate point, wherein the current time out period restarts upon arrival at the intermediate point of a message from the destination. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method of providing enhanced Internet telephony comprising steps of:
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(a) receiving a message from a source at an intermediate point between the source and a destination, said intermediate point including at least one port having a time out period within which the destination may send messages to the source via the intermediate point; (b) sending at least a portion of the message from the intermediate point to the destination over the Internet; (c) sending a response to the message from the destination to the intermediate point over the Internet within the time out period; (d) sending the response from the intermediate point to the source; (e) sending a reply to the response from the source to the intermediate point; (f) preventing the port from timing out by repeatedly sending subsequent messages from the destination over the Internet to the intermediate point; (g) sending at least a portion of corresponding ones of the subsequent messages from the intermediate point to the source; and (h) sending replies to the portion of the subsequent messages from the source to the intermediate point, wherein the current time out period restarts upon arrival at the intermediate point of a reply from the source. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. An enhanced Internet telephony system comprising:
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a message source; an intermediate point between the message source and a destination, including at least one port having a time out period within which the destination may send messages to the source via the intermediate point, said intermediate point being coupled to receive a message from the source and to send at least a portion of the message to the Internet; the destination coupled to receive the message from the intermediate point, to send a response to the message to the intermediate point over the Internet within the time out period, and to prevent the port from timing out by repeatedly sending subsequent messages over the Internet to the intermediate point; wherein the message source is coupled to the intermediate point so as to send replies to the response message and the subsequent messages and wherein the current time out period restarts upon arrival at the intermediate point of a message from the destination. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. An enhanced Internet telephony system comprising:
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a message source; an intermediate point between the message source and a destination, including at least one port having a time out period within which the destination may send messages to the source via the intermediate point, said intermediate point being coupled to receive a message from the source and to send at least a portion of the message to the Internet; the destination coupled to receive the message from the intermediate point, to send a response to the message to the intermediate point over the Internet within the time out period, and to prevent the port from timing out by repeatedly sending subsequent messages over the Internet to the intermediate point; wherein the message source is coupled to the intermediate point so as to send replies to the response message and the subsequent messages and wherein the current time out period restarts upon arrival at the intermediate point of a reply from the message source. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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39. In an Internet telephony system comprising:
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a message source adapted to generate and receive call setup messages in a signaling packet protocol and to generate and receive communication packet streams in a packet stream protocol, an intermediate point coupled between the message source and a network, said intermediate unit including at least one port having a time out condition, and a signaling destination coupled to the network and adapted to generate and receive signaling messages according to the signaling packet protocol; the improvement wherein the signaling destination prevents the port from meeting the time out condition during a user telephony communication by repeatedly requesting signaling message replies from the message source via the intermediate point and wherein the current time out condition resets upon arrival at the intermediate point of the request for a signaling message reply from the signaling destination. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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46. In an Internet telephony system comprising:
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a message source adapted to generate and receive call setup messages in a signaling packet protocol and to generate and receive communication packet streams in a packet stream protocol, an intermediate point coupled between the message source and a network, said intermediate unit including at least one port having a time out condition, and a signaling destination coupled to the network and adapted to generate and receive signaling messages according to the signaling packet protocol; the improvement wherein the signaling destination prevents the port from meeting the time out condition during a user telephony communication by repeatedly requesting signaling message replies from the message source via the intermediate point and the current time out condition resets upon arrival at the intermediate point of a signaling message from the message source. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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Specification