System and method for automatically transferring a call from a first telephone to a designated telephone in close proximity

• US 7,593,741 B1
• Filed: 12/28/2006
• Issued: 09/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kamdar, Ketan, Holmes, David William, Blumstein, Glenn, Amin, Umesh J., Shah, Hitesh
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; CongVan
• Application Number:
  US11/617,392
• Time in Patent Office: 999 Days
• Field of Search: 455/462, 455/417, 455/428, 455/445, 455/41.2, 455/39, 379/211.01, 379/211.02, 379/212.01
• US Class Current: 455/462
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/58 Arrangements for transferring received calls from one subscriber to another; Arrangements affording interim conversations between either the calling or the called party and a third party substation line holding circuits H04M1/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold

Abstract

A system and method of automatically transferring a call between telephones based on the distance between the two telephones is provided. First the proximity of a first telephone to a second telephone is determined. If the proximity is within a predetermined limit or threshold, calls directed to the first telephone are transferred to the second telephone. Security of the transfer may be ensured to prevent fraudulent use of the subscription of either telephone. Procedures are provided which permit any the above-mentioned steps to be performed either at the level of the individual telephones involved in the transfer, or by an element of the network, such as an SC or HLR.

Claims

1. A method for transferring telephone calls, the method comprising:

determining, at one of a first telephone and a second telephone, that the proximity of the first telephone to the second telephone is within a predetermined proximity threshold, wherein the first telephone and the second telephone each comprise a short-range transceiver, and the proximity is determined through communications between the first and second telephones using the short-range transceivers;

initiating, at one of the first telephone and the second telephone, a transfer of calls intended for the first telephone from the first telephone to the second telephone, the initiation being made automatically in response to the proximity being within the proximity threshold; and

nullifying, at one of the first telephone and the second telephone, the transfer of calls when the first telephone and the second telephone are no longer within the proximity threshold.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the short-range transceivers are selected from the group consisting of Bluetooth, infra-red, Home RF, wireless LAN, and radio transceivers.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the first telephone is a portable telephone and the second telephone is a mobile telephone.

4. In a communications network connecting telephones, a system for transferring telephone calls, the system comprising:

a first telephone communicatively linked to the communications network, the first telephone comprising a short-range transceiver;

a second telephone communicatively linked to the communications network, the second telephone comprising a short-range transceiver; and

a call transfer mechanism for;

automatically transferring telephone calls intended for the first telephone from the first telephone to the second telephone in response to the proximity of the first telephone to the second telephone being within a predetermined proximity threshold, wherein the proximity of the first telephone to the second telephone is determined through communications between the first and second telephones using the short-range transceivers; and

nullifying the transfer of calls when the first telephone and the second telephone are no longer within the proximity threshold.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the short-range transceivers are selected from the group consisting of Bluetooth, infra-red, Home RF, wireless LAN, and radio transceivers.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein the first telephone is a portable telephone and the second telephone is a mobile telephone.