Method and apparatus for controlling telephone calls using a computer assistant

• US 7,990,954 B2
• Filed: 11/01/2008
• Issued: 08/02/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Converged Data Solutions Inc.
• Inventors: Kamenetsky, Mark L., Okino, Lois M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sam, Phirin
• Application Number:
  US12/290,637
• Publication Number:
  US 20090185556A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,004 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/42 Graphical user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42323 PBX's with CTI arrangements

Abstract

Systems and methods for monitoring, making, managing and controlling telephone communications with a computer call assistant with an integrated voice/data communications system are disclosed. A call assistant computer application preferably runs on a personal computer (“PC”) coupled to the integrated system over a packet bus. The call assistant exchanges control and/or status packets with the integrated system preferably over a packet bus. The call assistant enables the user to make, receive and control telephone calls, monitor the status of the user'"'"'s extension, voice mail, etc., and preferably operates with integrated systems capable of transmitting and receiving voice and data in multiple modes. In preferred embodiments, the computer call assistant operates with systems that are capable of multiple native mode voice and data transmissions and receptions with a communications system having a multi-bus structure, including, for example, a time division multiplexed (“TDM”) bus, a packet bus, and a control bus, and multi-protocol framing engines, preferably including subsystem functions such as PBX, voice mail, file server, web server, communications server, telephony server, LAN hub and data router.

Claims

1. A method for initiating a voice communication using a call assistant program associated with a communications service providing voice communications, comprising the steps of:

initiating execution of the call assistant program on a computing system;

registering the call assistant program for a first user with the communications service, wherein status/control packets are periodically exchanged between the call assistant program and the communications service;

displaying at least one icon on the computing system that presents status information regarding the first user;

displaying content on the computing system with a program running on the computing system that is different from the call assistant program;

parsing the displayed content with the call assistant program to determine a telephone number of a second user contained within the displayed content;

in response to user activation, determining target information associated with a telephone of the second user;

sending a voice communications initiation control packet from the call assistant program to the communications service; and

initiating a voice communication via the communications service between the first user and the second user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing system comprises a personal computer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the telephone of the second user comprises a personal computer.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

determining a message waiting status by the call assistant program; and

displaying a message waiting indicator on the computing system based on the message waiting status.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising the step of:

periodically querying the communications service by the call assistant program for a current status information associated with the message waiting status.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

periodically querying the communications service by the call assistant program for a current status information associated with the computing system.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of:

periodically querying the communications service by the call assistant program for a current status information associated with the telephone of the second user.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining step further comprises detecting if user highlighted content contains alpha characters, wherein alpha characters contained are selectively converted to numerical digits.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications service comprises a registration of which of a plurality of users are executing corresponding instances of the call assistant program on corresponding computing systems, and wherein a plurality of status/control packets are selectively periodically exchanged between the corresponding instances of the call assistant program and the communications service only with respect to particular users whose telephone, extension and/or voicemail has changed status.

10. A method for providing a voice communication using a first computing system associated with a first user, comprising the steps of:

providing a communications service managing voice communications between a plurality of users;

providing a voice communications software application executing on the first computing system;

registering the voice communications software application with the communications service, wherein status/control packets are periodically exchanged between the voice communications software application and the communications service;

displaying at least one icon on the first computing system that presents status information regarding a second user;

displaying content on the computing system with a program running on the computing system that is different from the call assistant program;

parsing the displayed content with the call assistant program to determine a telephone number of a second user contained within the displayed content;

in response to user activation, determining target information associated with a second computing system associated with the second user from the displayed content;

sending a voice communications initiation control packet from the voice communications software application to the communications service; and

facilitating a voice communication via the communications service between the first computing system and the second computing system.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first computing system comprises a personal computer.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the second computing system comprises a personal computer.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising the steps of:

determining a message waiting status by the voice communications software application; and

displaying a message waiting indicator on the first computing system based on the message waiting status.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of:

periodically querying the communications service by the voice communications software application for a current status information associated with the message waiting status.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of:

periodically querying the communications service by the voice communications software application for a current status information associated with the first computing system.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of:

periodically querying the communications service by the voice communications software application for a current status information associated with the second computing system.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the determining step further comprises detecting if user selected content contains alpha characters, wherein alpha characters contained are selectively converted to numerical digits.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein the communications service comprises a registration of which users are executing corresponding instances of the voice communications software application on corresponding computing systems, and wherein a plurality of status/control packets are selectively periodically exchanged between the corresponding instances of the voice communications software application and the communications service only with respect to particular users for whom a user status has changed.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the user status comprises message waiting status.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the user status comprises a telephone status.