Method and system for providing enhanced caller identification information

• US 8,085,916 B2
• Filed: 08/26/2009
• Issued: 12/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Walsh, Patrick J., Myers, Theodore J., Cruz, Jose M., Stuckman, Bruce E., Rauch, John G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Goins, Davetta W
• Assistant Examiner(s): ISLAM, MOHAMMAD K
• Application Number:
  US12/548,176
• Publication Number:
  US 20090316876A1
• Time in Patent Office: 853 Days
• Field of Search: 37914201-14205, 379/142.09, 379/88.19, 379/88.21, 379/93.23
• US Class Current: 379/142.05
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/57 Arrangements for indicating or recording the number of the calling subscriber at the called subscriber's set at the operator set in a manual exchange H04M5/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/436 Arrangements for screening incoming calls , i.e. evaluating the characteristics of a call before deciding whether to answer it based on the calling party profile H04M3/42059; based on location H04M3/42348; based on presence H04M3/42365; diversion H04M3/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53308 Message originator indirectly connected to the message centre, e.g. after detection of busy or absent state of a called party

Abstract

A tangible storage medium stores code which permits handling of unwanted calls from callers such as telemarketers, when caller identification is provided. In one embodiment, the called party adds the caller identification information for the telemarketer to a personal list after receiving the unwanted call. Subsequent calls from the telemarketer are intercepted. In a second embodiment, the called party identifies the telemarketer by detecting the caller identification information before answering the call. By providing a screen listing indication, the caller identification information is added to the called party'"'"'s personal list before the call is completed, permitting the call to be intercepted and while future calls from the telemarketer to be intercepted.

Claims

1. A call processing method for a telecommunications system, the method comprising:

processing a call between a calling party at calling communication station and a called party at a called communication station;

if standard caller identification information cannot be provided for the call, completing the call only after receiving spoken caller identification information from the calling party and acceptance thereof by the called party;

otherwise, determining if received caller identification information for the calling party or calling communication station is stored for interception of the call before completion of the call;

if the received caller identification is not stored, completing the call to the calling communication station; and

otherwise, processing the call according to predetermined intercept instructions from the called party.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein processing the call according to predetermined intercept instructions comprises:

processing the call as if the standard caller identification information cannot be provided for the call.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein processing the call according to predetermined intercept instructions comprises:

playing a predetermined message to the calling communication station; and

terminating the call.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein processing the call according to predetermined intercept instructions comprises:

routing the call to a voice mail system.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising:

playing a predetermined message to the calling communication station before routing the call to the voice mail system.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein processing the call according to predetermined intercept instructions comprises:

generating synthesized speech from the received caller identification information;

playing the synthesized speech to the called communication station;

if the call is accepted by the called party in response to playing the synthesized speech, completing the call; and

otherwise, terminating the call.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining if the standard called identification information cannot be provided for the call;

if the standard called identification information cannot be provided, prompting the calling communication station to provide the spoken caller identification information;

providing the spoken caller identification information to the called communication station for acceptance by the called party at the called communication station;

if the spoken caller identification information is accepted, completing the call; and

otherwise, ending the call without completion.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

after completing the call to the called communication station, determining if a screen listing indication was received from the called communication station;

if the screen listing indication was received, adding caller identification information for the calling party or the calling communication station to other caller identification information stored for interception of future calls; and

otherwise, ending the call.

9. A method for processing calls in a communications system, the method comprising:

ringing a called communication station with an incoming call;

receiving a screen listing indication entered at the called communication station and in response adding caller identification information for the incoming call to an intercept list for the called communication station;

upon receipt of a subsequent call from a caller at a calling communication station, comparing caller identification information for the subsequent call to the intercept list;

if the caller identification information for the subsequent call matches an entry on the intercept list, suspending the call and prompting the caller to provide spoken caller identification information;

otherwise, completing the call to the called communication station;

if the caller provides the spoken caller identification information, providing the spoken caller identification information to the called communication station by the called party;

otherwise, ending the call;

if the called party accepts the call in response to the spoken caller identification information, completing the call; and

otherwise, processing the call without completing the call to the called party.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein receiving a screen listing indication comprises detecting a string of digits corresponding to a predetermined screen listing indication.

11. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

upon receipt of the subsequent call, generating synthesized speech from the caller identification information for the subsequent call;

playing the synthesized speech to the called communication station;

if the call is accepted by the called party in response to playing the synthesized speech, completing the call; and

otherwise, terminating the call.

12. A communication system configured to process a call from a calling party at a calling communication station to a called party at a called communication station, the communication system comprising:

a database to store a personal list of the called party;

a first network element to control completion of the call between the calling communication station and the called communication station only after provision of spoken caller identification by the calling party when standard caller identification information for the call cannot be provided and after acceptance thereof by the called party;

a second network element to complete the call with the called communication station; and

a third network element to prompt the calling party for the spoken caller identification, to record the spoken caller identification and to play the spoken caller identification to the called party at the called communication station, and to detect acceptance of the spoken caller identification by the called party.

13. The communication system of claim 12 wherein the first network element comprises a service control point (SCP), the second network element comprises a service switching point (SSP) and the third network element comprises a service node (CSN).

14. The communication system of claim 12 wherein the first network element is configured to compare elements of a call processing query to contents of the personal list of the called party and to subsequently process the call.

15. The communication system of claim 14 wherein, if elements of the call processing query match an entry of the personal list of the called party, the first network element is configured to process the call as if standard caller identification information for the call cannot be provided.

16. The communication system of claim 15 wherein if elements of the call processing query match an entry of the personal list of the called party, the first network element is configured to pass the call to the third network element to prompt the calling part for the spoken caller identification and to play the spoken caller identification to the called party at the called communication station.

17. The communication system of claim 14 wherein, if elements of the call processing query match an entry of the personal list of the called party, the first network element is configured to end the call.

18. The communication system of claim 14 wherein, if elements of the call processing query match an entry of the personal list of the called party, the first network element is configured to route the call to a network element providing voice mail service for the called party.

19. The communication system of claim 14 wherein, if elements of the call processing query match an entry of the personal list of the called party, the first network element is configured to route the call to the third network element which is configured to generate synthesized speech from the standard caller identification information for the call, play the synthesized speech to the called party and determine if the called party accepts the call.