Integrating multimedia capabilities with legacy networks

• US 7,646,761 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2002
• Issued: 01/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: RPX Clearinghouse LLC (RPX Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Pyke, Craik R., Taylor, Richard C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Jayanti K
• Assistant Examiner(s): SOL, ANTHONY M
• Application Number:
  US10/262,022
• Publication Number:
  US 20040062230A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,660 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1016 IP multimedia subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1094 Inter-user-equipment sessions transfer or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0027 Collaboration services where a computer is used for data transfer and the telephone is used for telephonic communication

Abstract

A communications system that supports multimedia components is easily adapted to existing network elements. Voice components arriving at or coming from a user having multimedia capabilities are referred from a telephony server serving the user to a multimedia server. A determination is made as to whether the other party supports multimedia capabilities. If that determination is negative, the component is passed back to the telephony server with an indication that the session is coming from the multimedia server to avoid an infinite loop. If the determination is positive, a parallel multimedia component is established between the parties while the multimedia server remains aware of the bearer path.

Claims

1. A multimedia server comprising:

a server associated with a telephony server in a packet network and adapted to;

receive a request for a voice component for a target user from the telephony server;

send an invite to the target user via blender software associated with the server;

create a multimedia component in parallel with the voice component for the target user;

pass the voice component through the telephony server;

pass the voice component back to the telephony server along with a loopback indication that causes the telephony server to not send the voice component back to the multimedia server;

send the multimedia component to a computing device associated with the target user via the blender software; and

maintain association with signaling paths of both the voice component and the multimedia component such that multimedia services may be provided during the course of the voice component.

2. The multimedia server of claim 1 wherein said voice component is selected from a group consisting of:

incoming and outgoing.

3. The multimedia server of claim 1 wherein said server communicates with the computing device of the target user.

4. The multimedia server of claim 1 wherein said server communicates with the telephony server via Session Initiation Protocol.

5. A telephony server in a packet network comprising:

a server associated wit a multimedia server and adapted to;

receive a call request having a dialed number;

reference a database server to determine if the dialed number supports blended services;

pass a voice component of the call request to the multimedia server for management of parallel voice and multimedia components;

receive the voice component back from the multimedia server; and

evaluate whether a component arriving at said server is a new component, a component arriving from the multimedia server, or a component passed back from the multimedia server.

6. The telephony server of claim 5 wherein said server communicates with the multimedia server via Session Initiation Protocol.

7. The telephony server of claim 5 wherein said voice component is selected from a group consisting of:

incoming and outgoing.

8. A method of communicating comprising:

receiving, at a multimedia server, a voice component for a target user from a telephony server in a packet network;

sending an invite to the target user via blender software associated with the multimedia server;

creating a multimedia component in parallel with the voice component for the target user;

passing the voice component back through the telephony server;

indicating to the telephony server that said passing comes from the multimedia server to alert the telephony server not to send the voice component back to the multimedia server;

sending the multimedia component to a computing device associated with the target user via the blender software; and

maintaining association at the multimedia server with a signaling path associated with the voice component and the multimedia component such that multimedia services may be provided during the course of the voice component.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein receiving, at the multimedia server, the voice component comprises receiving the voice component selected from a group consisting of:

incoming and outgoing.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein said creating occurs in the blender software associated with the multimedia server.

11. The method of claim 8 further comprising communicating from the multimedia server to the telephony server using Session Initiation Protocol.

12. A method of communicating comprising:

associating a telephony server in a packet network with a multimedia server;

receiving a call request having a dialed number;

referencing a database server to determine if the dialed number supports blended services;

passing a voice component of the call request to the multimedia server;

receiving the voice component back from the multimedia server with a loopback indication; and

evaluating whether a component arriving at said telephony server is a new component, a component from the multimedia server, or a component passed back from the multimedia server based on the loopback indication.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising communicating between the telephony server and the multimedia server via Session Initiation Protocol.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein passing the voice component comprises passing the voice component selected from a group consisting of:

incoming and outgoing.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein said voice component is generated initially at said telephony server.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein said voice component is generated initially at a blender associated with the multimedia server.

17. A method of communicating comprising:

receiving, at a multimedia server, a multimedia component for a target user;

sending an invite to the target user via blender software associated with the multimedia server;

creating a voice component in parallel with the multimedia component for the target user;

passing the voice component to a telephony server with an indication of origin from the multimedia server to alert the telephony server not to send the voice component back to the multimedia server;

sending the multimedia component to a computing device associated with the target user via the blender software; and

maintaining association at the multimedia server with a signaling path associated with the voice component and the multimedia component such that multimedia services may be provided during the course of the voice component.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein said telephony server directs the voice component to the target user based on the indication of origin.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising using the blender software associated with the multimedia server to create the voice component in parallel with the multimedia component.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein receiving, at the multimedia server, the multimedia component for the target user comprises receiving the multimedia component for the target user selected from a group consisting of:

incoming and outgoing.

21. A computer readable medium embodied with blender software adapted to:

receive a session request for a target user;

send an invite to the target user;

separate the session request into a voice component and a multimedia component; and

contact the target user for establishment of the voice component and the multimedia component;

wherein the blender software contacts the target user for establishment of the voice component though a telephony server and a multimedia server and the blender software sends the multimedia component to a computing device associated with the target user.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 21 wherein said blender software is further adapted to function on the multimedia server.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 21 wherein said blender software is further adapted to receive the session request for the target user from the telephony server.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 21 wherein said blender software is further adapted to receive the session request for the target user from the multimedia server.

25. The computer readable medium of claim 21 wherein said blender software is further adapted to respond to SIP commands.