Techniques for combining voice with wireless text short message services

• US 7,725,116 B2
• Filed: 11/25/2006
• Issued: 05/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Multimodal Media LLC (Quest Patent Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kirusa Inc.
• Inventors: Uppaladadium, Prasanna, Moorthy, Raja, Mumick, Inderpal Singh, Anderl, Ewald
• Primary Examiner(s): RAMPURIA, SHARAD K
• Application Number:
  US11/604,088
• Publication Number:
  US 20070082686A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,277 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 455/412.2, 455/414.1, 455/563, 455/426.1, 379/88.17, 379/88.16, 709/206, 709/203, 704/201
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/184 Messaging devices, e.g. message centre

Abstract

Combining speech with existing text wireless Short Message Service (SMS) to create a multimodal SMS service. A user of standard SMS text service is provided with a link within each message that allows adding or retrieval of a voice message associated with an SMS text message. A speech server in the wireless network may be used for recognition of voice commands, rendering of text into speech, and recording or playing back voice recordings. The messages may be retrieved or sent using any wireless handset. Additional services that may be used include message lists, prerecorded messages, integration with voicemail systems, image and video messages, cross-functional applications with Multimedia Messaging Services (MMS) and Enhanced Message Services (EMS), and extensions of the combination of voice with text SMS to other computing devices such as PDAs and PCs.

Claims

1. A method of communicating in a plurality of communication modes between a first device and a second device, comprising the steps of:

creating a first SMS (Short Message Services) message in the first device, and addressing and transmitting said first SMS message to the second device;

embedding a link in the first SMS message;

receiving the first SMS message with said embedded link at the second device;

responding to the first SMS message at the second device by clicking on the embedded link, replying with an audio input, and transmitting said audio input to a speech server;

recording said audio input at said speech server and

transmitting a second SMS message with a link embedded from the second device to the first device, wherein by clicking on said link said recorded audio input is retrieved.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of responding to the first SMS message comprises deleting said first SMS message.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of forwarding said second SMS message at the first device.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

including an image in the second SMS message by including in the second SMS message a link, which when activated, causes said image to be retrieved from a device, wherein the device is neither the first device nor the second device.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

including video data in the second SMS message by including in the second SMS message a link which when activated, causes said video data to be retrieved from a device, wherein the device is neither the first device nor the second device.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

at said speech server, converting underlying text in said second SMS message to speech; and

,

performing at least one of the following;

including said speech in said audio input, whereby said speech is retrieved upon activation of said link as part of said audio input, or, storing said speech at said speech server and including a link to the stored speech in the second SMS message.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of recording said audio input at said speech server comprises storing said recorded audio input as an audio message in a database associated with said speech server.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprises responding to said second SMS message, comprising deleting said second SMS message and its associated audio message.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

creating said audio message as part of an MMS (Multimedia Message Services) or EMS (Enhanced Message Services) message;

storing the part of said MMS or EMS message that includes said audio message on said speech server; and

including in the second SMS message a link to the stored part of said MMS or EMS message.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at said first device, text to be included in the first SMS message; and

including said text in said first SMS message.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

storing one or more pre-recorded messages which is not changeable by user input;

including in the second SMS message a link to at least one of the pre-recorded messages.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said action comprises requesting that said text be synthesized as audio, and wherein, in response to the request, said speech server obtains said text and sends synthesized speech based on said text to said recipient device via a voice circuit.

12. A method of multi-modal communication comprising:

generating an SMS message in a sender device, wherein the underlying content that is to be represented in the form of an SMS message comprises at least one of;

text or audio;

accessing a link in said sender device for connecting to a speech server for recording an audio message, wherein said audio message is recorded at said speech server using said audio provided as input at said sender device;

addressing said SMS message with address of a recipient device in said sender device;

sending the SMS message to said recipient device;

opening the SMS message on said recipient device that supports the rendering of both said text and said audio to retrieve the content of the SMS message, wherein at least one of the following holds;

the underlying content represented in the form of the SMS message comprises said audio, and wherein the SMS message comprises a link to listen to said recorded audio message;

the underlying content represented in the form of the SMS message comprises said text and said audio, and wherein the SMS message comprises said text and a link to listen to said recorded audio message; and

the underlying content represented in the form of the SMS message comprises said text and the recipient takes an action to have the text synthesized as audio.