Call routing based on physical location of called party

• US 8,116,441 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2007
• Issued: 02/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Mergen, John-Francis
• Primary Examiner(s): TIEU, BINH KIEN
• Application Number:
  US11/690,268
• Publication Number:
  US 20080233969A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,789 Days
• Field of Search: 379/142.06, 379/142.07, 379/142.1, 379/142.15, 379/142.17, 379/88.01, 379/198, 379/201.07, 379/201.08, 379/201.09, 379/207.11, 379/209.01, 379/210.02, 379/216.01, 379/373.02, 379/373.04, 379/374.02, 379/903, 379/913, 379/914
• US Class Current: 379/198
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/20 Manipulation of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/903 Password
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/913 Person locator or person-specific

Abstract

A system may include a locator device to track a location of a user, store information identifying locations of a group of telephone devices, and identify one telephone device of the group of telephone devices based on the location of the one telephone device and the location of the user in response to an incoming telephone call request for the user.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a locator device to;

track a location of a user,

store information identifying locations of a plurality of telephone devices and a virtual extension number that corresponds to the user,

look up a PIN, based on the virtual extension number, of the user, and

identify, in response to an incoming telephone call request for the user, one telephone device of the plurality of telephone devices based on the PIN, a location of the one telephone device, and the location of the user.

2. The system of claim 1 where the locator device is further to:

store information identifying a ring signal for the user.

3. The system of claim 2 where the locator device is further to:

retrieve the information identifying the ring signal in response to the incoming call request for the user.

4. The system of claim 3 where the locator device is further to:

transfer information identifying the one telephone device and the information identifying the ring signal to a private branch exchange for routing the incoming telephone call request to the one telephone device and causing the one telephone device to ring based on the ring signal.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein where the locator device is further to:

transfer information identifying the one telephone device to a private branch exchange for routing the incoming telephone call request to the one telephone device.

6. The system of claim 5 where the private branch exchange is to:

route the incoming telephone call request to the one telephone device,

request, when a party answers the one telephone device, a code from the answering party,

receive the code from the one telephone device, and

establish a telephone call to the one telephone device when the code matches a code for the user.

7. The system of claim 1 where, when tracking the user, the locator device is to use one of radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking, global position satellite (GPS) tracking, beacon tracking, badge scanning, self-reporting, or biometric scanning.

8. The system of claim 1, where

the incoming telephone call request includes a user identifier that is associated with the user, and

the locator device uses the user identifier to retrieve the location of the user.

9. The system of claim 1 where the user identifier includes the virtual extension number.

10. The system of claim 1, where

the incoming telephone call request includes a user identifier that is associated with the user, and

the locator device is associated with a memory that associates the user identifier with a location of the user and a ring signal.

11. A method comprising:

receiving a user identifier that is associated with a user in connection with an incoming telephone call request;

retrieving information identifying a location of the user using the user identifier;

identifying a virtual extension number that corresponds to the user;

looking up a PIN, based on the virtual extension number, of the user;

identifying information identifying a telephone device based on the PIN and the information identifying a location of the user; and

forwarding the information identifying a telephone device to a private branch exchange for routing the incoming telephone call request to the telephone device.

12. The method of claim 11 where the user identifier includes the virtual extension number.

13. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

retrieving information identifying a manner in which the telephone device is to ring; and

forwarding the information identifying the manner in which the telephone device is to ring to the private branch exchange for causing the telephone device to ring according to the manner.

14. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

tracking the location of the user; and

associating the tracked location with the user identifier in a memory.

15. The method of claim 14 where the tracking includes performing at least one of radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking, global position satellite (GPS) tracking, beacon tracking, badge scanning, self-reporting, or biometric scanning.

16. A system comprising:

a locator device including;

a memory to;

associate a user identifier with a location of a user and a ring signal,

associate information identifying a plurality of telephone devices with locations of the plurality of telephone devices,

associate a virtual extension number with the user,

a processor to;

look up a PIN, based on the virtual extension number, of the user,

identify one telephone device of the plurality of telephone devices based on the PIN, a location of the one telephone device, and the location of the user, and

provide information relating to the one telephone device of the plurality of telephone devices and the ring signal in response to the identifying.

17. The system of claim 16 where the processor is further to:

track the location of the user, and

store the location of the user in the memory.

18. The system of claim 17 where, when tracking the location of the user, the processor is to:

perform at least one of radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking, global position satellite (GPS) tracking, beacon tracking, badge scanning, self-reporting, or biometric scanning.

19. The system of claim 16 where the user identifier includes the virtual extension number.

20. The system of claim 16 further comprising:

a private branch exchange to;

receive a telephone call request that is associated with the user identifier, send the user identifier to the locator device,

receive, from the locator device, the information relating to the one telephone device, the PIN, and the ring signal,

route the telephone call request and information relating to the ring signal to the one telephone device to cause the one telephone device to ring based on the ring signal,

request, when a party answers the one telephone device, a code from the answering party,

receive the code from the one telephone device, and

establish a telephone call to the one telephone device when the code matches a code for the user.

21. The system of claim 20 where the private branch exchange routes the telephone call request and the information relating to the ring signal to the one telephone device via a wired connection.