Wireless telephone communication for individual callers to contact remote telephone terminals through a public switched telephone network

• US 7,801,515 B1
• Filed: 01/26/2006
• Issued: 09/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Dot 23 Technologies, LLC
• Original Assignee: Mobile Telephone Technology, LLC
• Inventors: Nilsson, Byard G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Eng; George
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brandt; Christopher M
• Application Number:
  US11/340,173
• Time in Patent Office: 1,699 Days
• Field of Search: 455/406, 455/408, 455/563, 455/419, 379/114.01, 379/114.14, 379/114.15, 379/114.16, 379/114.17, 379/114.2, 379/88.03
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/47 Fraud detection or prevention means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/00 Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems using a coded card to authorise calls from a telephone set H04M1/675
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/10 Account details or usage
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/205 by calling a service number, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] or menu
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2017/241 by calling a service number IVR, menu
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0148 Fraud detection or prevention means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/74 with voice recognition means

Abstract

A telecommunication system incorporates individual station instruments simplified by wireless operation, voice dialing, prepaid accounting and out-call operation, all enabled by cooperative system operation including supporting central equipment. Wireless operation of the central equipment involves a multiple port wireless platform along with other units for interfacing a multitude of mobile station instruments simultaneously for interactive audio communication to, regulate control, monitor and record operations of the instruments, and bridge communication with selected remote terminals through the public switched telephone network. Message capability, emergency abort to an operator station and security features supplement the basic system.

Claims

1. A process of mobile wireless telephone communication for individual callers to contact remote telephone terminals through a central wireless station, a server and a public switched telephone network, comprising the steps of:

providing the individual callers with keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments including, transceiver apparatus for wireless telephonic communication, a manual activation switch, transducer apparatus for voice interface and a control unit for transmitting identification data for a keyless wireless mobile telephone instrument on activation by said manual activation switch to place a call and with cues for, and voice entry of a call number, to transmit calling signals to initiate a call;

providing a central station for wireless communication with said keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments operating on activation of said manual activation switch at a keyless wireless mobile telephone instrument functioning to receive identification signals and to cue for calling signals to selectively bridge an activated keyless wireless mobile telephone instrument through the central wireless station, a server and the public switched telephone network to a remote telephone terminal for communication, said central station selectively limiting the extent of use by the activated keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments as identified, based on a prepaid calling value subject to additions.

2. A process according to claim 1 wherein the limiting of use is further based on instrument authentication or verification for proper use.

3. A process according to claim 1 wherein the limiting of use is further based on dialing area.

4. A process according to claim 1 wherein the limiting of use is further based on time of day.

5. A process according to claim 1 wherein the limiting of use is further based on a prepaid monetary value stored by the central station.

6. A process according to claim 5 wherein the central station may be actuated to interface a keyless wireless mobile telephone instrument to increment the monetary stored value.

7. A process according to claim 1 wherein the provided central station further includes a memory for storing data on the keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments including a prepaid value.

8. A process according to claim 1 wherein the provided central station further includes a memory for storing data on the keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments including a record of data on calls made by keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments.

9. A process according to claim 1 wherein the provided central station further includes a memory for storing data on the keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments including messages.

10. A process according to claim 1 wherein the provided central station further includes a memory for storing data on the keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments including a record of personal data on an assigned user of the instrument.

11. A process using a central station for interfacing a plurality of keyless mobile telephone instruments through a public switched telephone network to communicate with remote terminals, comprising the steps of:

sensing the activation of a keyless mobile telephone instrument by a manual switch, thereby indicating a desire by a user to interface a select remote terminal and to activate voice interface and transmit identification data;

receiving a prompted user spoken telephone calling number at an activated keyless mobile telephone instrument to formulate representative calling number signals for a select remote terminal;

transmitting the representative calling number signals to a central station;

at the central station, receiving the representative calling number signals;

connecting the activated keyless mobile telephone instrument to the public switched telephone network and supplying dial-up calling number signal indicative of the representative calling number signals, to the public switched telephone network to dial-up the select remote terminal; and

limiting the use of the keyless mobile telephone instruments in accordance with prepaid use for the mobile telephone instruments by maintaining individual balances of use for the keyless mobile telephone instruments subject to increasing and decreasing value.

12. A process according to claim 11 wherein the step of limiting the use of a keyless mobile telephone instrument comprises maintaining individual records of use for the keyless mobile telephone instruments.

13. A process according to claim 11 wherein the central station comprises a cellular central station and a server.

14. A process according to claim 11 wherein the dial-up calling number signals comprise DTMF calling signals.

15. A system of mobile telecommunication through a public switched telephone network, comprising:

a plurality of keyless, wireless mobile telephone instruments including, a manual activation switch to activate operation of an instrument, a transceiver for wireless communication, transducer apparatus coupled to the transceiver for enabling a user to receive vocal transmissions and to provide vocalized calling signals, and a control unit coupled to said transceiver and said transducer apparatus, said control unit operable for an activated keyless wireless mobile telephone instrument to control on activated operation to transmit an identification signal;

the reception of vocal cues, the transmission of vocalized calling signals, responsive to said vocal cues, for a select remote telephone terminal and to sequence the voice interface operation of an activated keyless wireless mobile telephone instrument to accomplish telephonic communication with said select remote telephone terminal;

a central station including wireless apparatus for communication with activated keyless wireless mobile telephone instruments including control apparatus to accordingly connect such an instrument through a public switched telephone network to said select remote telephone terminal; and

memory capability for storing prepaid calling balances for the keyless, wireless mobile telephone instruments to limit the use thereof and to account for calls.

16. A system according to claim 15 wherein said memory capability further includes a capability to add value to said balances.

17. A system according to claim 15 wherein said memory capability is remote from said keyless, wireless mobile telephone units.

18. A system according to claim 17 wherein said memory capability is addressed by said identification data to access prepaid calling balances.

19. A system according to claim 17 wherein said memory is located at said central station.

20. A system according to claim 15 wherein said memory capability accounts for use of said keyless, mobile wireless telephone instruments in units of monetary value.

21. A system according to claim 15 wherein said calling signals are converted to DTMF signals.

22. A system according to claim 21 wherein said calling signals are converted to DTMF signals at said central station.

23. A mobile wireless telephone system for enabling users to communicate with remote terminals via the public switched telephone network by voice dialing to attain a connection, comprising:

keyless mobile wireless telephone instruments having a memory to store individual identification data and further including a transceiver with transducers for converting received spoken sounds to representative signals and converting received spoken word signals to vocalized words, the mobile wireless telephone instruments further including a control with a manual switch to activate a mobile wireless telephone instrument to transmit representations of the individual identification data, and to provide voice recognition operation identified with transmitted individual identification data for the active mobile wireless telephone instrument;

a central station for wireless communication with the keyless mobile wireless telephone instruments to attain a connection to a select remote terminal for an active keyless mobile wireless telephone instrument and including, a memory to store individual prepaid call balances for the mobile wireless telephone instruments, a communication platform with control for communication with active mobile wireless telephone instruments to receive individual identification data from an active mobile wireless telephone instrument and thereby verify the sufficiency of the prepaid call balance for a call, the central station further including controlled voice activation capability to cue a verified active mobile wireless telephone instrument and to receive representations of a spoken call number, to dial up the call number through the public switched telephone network and to bridge the dialed connection to the active mobile wireless telephone instrument.

24. A mobile wireless telephone system according to claim 23 wherein the mobile wireless telephone instruments further include a signal device to indicate the occurrence of an incoming call.