Method for push-to-talk pre-emption

• US 7,966,029 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2007
• Issued: 06/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nextel Communications (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Nextel Communications (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Choksi, Ojas T., Manroa, Arun
• Primary Examiner(s): FERGUSON, KEITH
• Application Number:
  US11/704,538
• Publication Number:
  US 20080194279A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,593 Days
• Field of Search: 455/518, 455/519, 455/500, 455/517, 455/512, 455/445, 455/403, 455/442.1, 455/550.1, 455/515, 455/508, 455/426.1, 455/426.2, 455/466, 4554141-4144, 370/260, 370/261, 370/262, 370/310, 370/312, 370/328, 370/329, 370/343
• US Class Current: 455/518
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1083 In-session procedures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4038 with floor control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4061 Push-to services, e.g. push-to-talk or push-to-video
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/30 Resource management for broadcast services

Abstract

Push-to-talk private call pre-emption may be applied in an application-to-person context or on a person-to-person context. A PTT subscriber may send a PTT server a pre-emption request indicating a desire to interrupt the application voice stream or another PTT subscriber, respectively. In an application-to-person context, the PTT server may revoke the floor from the application server and grant the floor to the requesting device. In a person-to-person context, the PTT server may send the other PTT subscriber a floor release request. Once the subscriber with the PTT floor releases it in response to the floor release request, the PTT server will be able to send an open floor signal back to the requesting subscriber.

Claims

1. A method for providing push-to-talk (PTT) pre-emption comprising:

establishing a PTT call between a subscriber device and an application server which implements a voice-enabled application over a wireless network;

granting a PTT floor to the application server to provide an application voice/data stream to the subscriber device;

detecting a pre-emption request by the subscriber device to interrupt the application voice/data stream;

revoking the PTT floor from the application server and interrupting the application voice/data stream in response to the pre-emption request; and

granting the PTT floor to the subscriber device upon interruption of the application voice/data stream in response to the pre-emption request.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the voice-enabled application comprises an application selected from the list consisting of:

a navigation application, a speech-to-text application and a voice translation application.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the pre-emption request is produced by at least one of depressing a PTT button on the subscriber device, depressing a soft button on a display of the subscriber device, and providing a voice command to the subscriber device.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving location information spoken by a user of the subscriber device, and wherein the application voice/data stream is based on said location information.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a pre-emption signal to the application server in response to the pre-emption request.

6. A push-to-talk (PTT) server for providing PTT pre-emption comprising:

a network interface configured to connect the PTT server to an application server which implements a voice-enabled application and a subscriber device;

a processor electrically coupled to the network interface; and

a memory electrically coupled to the processor, the memory containing processor-executable instructions, the server configured to;

establish a PTT call between the subscriber device and the application server over a wireless network,

grant a PTT floor to the application server to provide an application voice/data stream to the subscriber device,

detect a pre-emption request by the subscriber device to interrupt the application voice/data stream,

revoke the PTT floor from the application server and interrupt the application voice/data stream in response to the pre-emption request, and

grant the PTT floor to the subscriber device upon interruption of the application voice/data stream in response to the preemption request.

7. The PTT server of claim 6, wherein the voice-enabled application comprises an application selected from the list consisting of:

a navigation application, a speech-to-text application and a voice translation application.

8. The PTT server of claim 6, wherein the pre-emption request is produced by at least one of depressing a PTT button on the subscriber device, depressing a soft button on a display of the subscriber device, and providing a voice command to the subscriber device.

9. The PTT server of claim 6, further comprising receiving location information spoken by a user of the subscriber device, and wherein the application voice/data stream is based on said location information.

10. The PTT server of claim 6, further comprising providing a pre-emption signal to the application server in response to the pre-emption request.

11. A method for providing push-to-talk (PTT) pre-emption in a PTT call between a subscriber device and an application server over a wireless network, comprising:

granting a PTT floor to the application server to provide an application voice/data stream to the subscriber device;

interrupting the application voice/data stream and revoking the PTT floor from the application server when a pre-emption request from the subscriber device is detected; and

granting the PTT floor to the subscriber device when the application voice/data stream is interrupted.

12. A push-to-talk (PTT) server to provide pre-emption in a PTT call between a subscriber device and an application server over a wireless network, comprising:

a network interface configured to connect the PTT server to an application server and a subscriber device; and

a processor to control the network interface and configured to grant a PTT floor to the application server to provide an application voice/data stream to the subscriber device, to interrupt the application voice/data stream and revoke the PTT floor from the application server when a pre-emption request from the subscriber device is detected, and to grant the PTT floor to the subscriber device when the application voice/data stream is interrupted.