IP telephone apparatus

• US 7,885,252 B2
• Filed: 09/27/2005
• Issued: 02/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Kazuto, Miyajima, Akira
• Primary Examiner(s): Flynn, Nathan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chu, Wutchung
• Application Number:
  US11/235,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20060083222A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,960 Days
• Field of Search: 370/395.54, 370/466, 370/467, 370/351, 370352-357, 370/389, 370/401
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4557 Directories for hybrid networks, e.g. including telephone numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2535 adapted for voice communication over an Internet Protocol [IP] network Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network equipment and services H04M7/006; implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP] H04L69/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2746 Sorting, e.g. according to history or frequency of use
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/55 for hybrid networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8044 Least cost routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2046 Hybrid network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/42 Least cost routing, i.e. provision for selecting the lowest cost tariff
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/745 Least cost routing, e.g. Automatic or manual, call by call or by preselection

Abstract

A source IP telephone inputs, from its numeric keypad, a telephone number of a call destination and obtains, from an ENUM server, a NAPTR record of the destination IP telephone based upon the input telephone number of the call destination. By referring to a search table, the source IP telephone retrieves, from the obtained NAPTR record, an available specific number in the ascending order of call rates from the lowest based upon communication services available to the source IP telephone. The source IP telephone transmits a call to the destination IP telephone by using the retrieved specific number.

Claims

1. An IP telephone apparatus comprising:

a dialing unit that is used to input a telephone number of a call destination;

a data obtainer that obtains, from an ENUM (Telephone Number Mapping) server, a NAPTR (Naming Authority Pointer) record of the call destination based on the input telephone number of the call destination, the NAPTR record comprising a list including at least one communication service available to the call destination, respectively associated with at least one specific number;

a table that stores at least one communication service available to the IP telephone apparatus, arranged in ascending order of call rates, from a lowest call rate to a highest call rate;

a retrieval unit that determines a lowest call rate communication service available to both the IP telephone apparatus and the call destination by sequentially searching the list of at least one communication service available to the call destination in the obtained NAPTR record, for each of the at least one communication service stored in the table, in ascending order of call rates, from the lowest call rate, and retrieves from the obtained NAPTR record, an available specific number that is associated with the determined lowest call rate communication service; and

a transmitter that transmits a call to the call destination by using the retrieved available specific number,

wherein the retrieval unit sequentially selects one of the at least one communication service available to the IP telephone apparatus stored in the table in ascending order of call rates from the lowest call rate, and determines whether the selected communication service is included in the list of at least one communication service available to the call destination in the obtained NAPTR record, and, upon determining that the selected communication service is included in the list of at least one communication service available to the call destination in the obtained NAPTR record, determines that the selected communication service is the lowest call rate communication service available to both the IP telephone apparatus and the call destination.

2. The IP telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when said retrieval unit retrieves a first specific number, said transmitter starts a transmission process by using the first retrieved specific number.

3. The IP telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one communication service available to the IP telephone apparatus stored in the table includes a communication service using an independent communication network, a communication network using a 050 number system and a communication service using a PSTN, and

said retrieval unit retrieves the available specific number associated with the at least one communication service included in the obtained NAPTR record matching the communication service using the independent communication network, the communication network using the 050 number system and the communication service using the PSTN in this order.

5. The IP telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the table stores a plurality of communication services available to the IP telephone apparatus in ascending order of call rates, from the lowest call rate to the highest call rate.

4. A communication service selection method performed by a source IP telephone apparatus, comprising:

storing, in advance, in the source IP telephone apparatus, a table that includes at least one communication service available to the source IP telephone apparatus, arranged in ascending order of call rates, from a lowest call rate to a highest call rate;

inputting a telephone number of a call destination;

obtaining, from an ENUM (Telephone Number Mapping) server, a NAPTR (Naming Authority Pointer) record of the call destination based on the input telephone number of the call destination, the NAPTR record comprising a list including at least one communication service available to the call destination respectively associated with at least one specific number;

determining a lowest-cost communication service available to both the IP telephone apparatus and the call destination by sequentially searching the list of at least one communication service available to the call destination in the obtained NAPTR record, for each of the at least one communication service stored in the table, in ascending order of call rates, from the lowest call rate;

retrieving, from the obtained NAPTR record, an available specific number that is associated with the determined lowest-cost communication service; and

transmitting a call to the call destination by using the retrieved available specific number;

wherein the determining comprises;

sequentially selecting one of the communication services available to the IP telephone apparatus stored in the table in ascending order of call rates from the lowest call rate,

determining whether the selected communication service is included in the list of at least one communication service available to the call destination in the obtained NAPTR record, and,

upon determining that the selected communication service is included in the list of at least one communication service available to the call destination in the obtained NAPTR record, determining the selected communication service as the lowest call rate communication service available to both the IP telephone apparatus and the call destination.

6. The communication service selection method according to claim 4, wherein the storing stores, in the table, a plurality of communication services available to the IP telephone apparatus in ascending order of call rates, from the lowest call rate to the highest call rate.