Urgent communications that overcome receiving device impediments

• US 8,285,839 B2
• Filed: 03/02/2009
• Issued: 10/09/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Butterfield, Daniel J., Cheng, Tsz S., Fitzpatrick, Gregory P.
• Primary Examiner(s): WANG, LIANG CHE A
• Application Number:
  US12/395,910
• Publication Number:
  US 20100222084A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,317 Days
• Field of Search: 709/202, 709204-205, 709/224, 709238-239
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/651 Text message transmission triggered by call automatic reactions in messaging within packet-switching networks H04L51/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42382 Text-based messaging services in telephone networks such as PSTN/ISDN, e.g. User-to-User Signalling or Short Message Service for fixed networks

Abstract

A communication attempt directed towards a recipient device can be identified. At least one proximate device geographically proximate to the recipient device can be automatically detected. Responsive to the determining of the proximate devices, a digitally encoded message can be wirelessly conveyed to one or more of the determined proximate devices. In various embodiments the message can be a text message, an instant message, and/or a voice message. The digitally encoded message can direct a user of the proximate device to inform a user of the recipient device of the communication attempt.

Claims

1. A method for directing communications to a receiving communication device proximate to an impeded communication device comprising:

identifying a communication attempt directed towards a recipient device;

detecting an impediment to the communication attempt, wherein the impediment comprises one of the recipient device being in a concealed state, the recipient device having a muted ringer state, and the recipient devices being powered off;

responsive to detecting the impediment, detecting one or more communication devices proximate to the recipient device, each of the one or more communication devices being able to receive the communication attempt;

accessing a contact list associated with the recipient device;

filtering the detected one or more proximate communication devices using the contact list to ensure only those one or more proximate communication devices that are associated with a contacts of the contact list are conveyed messages relating to the communication attempt;

conveying a digitally encoded message to at least one of the one or more proximate communication devices resulting from the filtering, wherein said digitally encoded message informs a user that receives the message via that user'"'"'s communication device, wherein that user'"'"'s communication device is one of the filtered, proximate communication devices, of the communication attempt that was directed towards the recipient device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the detected impediment is the recipient device being powered off.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the conveyed message is at least one of a text message or an instant message.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the service provider determining a geographic location of the recipient device based upon at least one of GPS data provided by the recipient device, location data provided by a presence server, and location information ascertained by wireless signals conveyed to and from the recipient device and at least one wireless transceiving node having a known fixed geographic location; and

the service provider accessing a presence database accessible by the service provider to determine the proximate one or more communication devices based upon devices in the presence database proximate to the determined geographic location.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the detected impediment is the recipient device being in the concealed state.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising, wherein said impediment decreases a likelihood that a user of the recipient device will be successfully notified of the identified communication attempt.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein existence of the impediment is based upon a condition detected by at least one sensor of the recipient device.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to detecting the impediment, adjusting a behavior characteristic of the recipient device to increase a prominence of a notification issued by the recipient device to a user to inform the user of the communication attempt, wherein the adjusting of the behavior characteristic comprises at least one of;

increasing a ringer volume of the recipient device;

toggling a ring state of the recipient device from non-active to active; and

altering a ring tone of the recipient device.

9. A mobile communication device comprising:

a network transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication system;

a personal area network transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate with proximate devices;

a memory comprising a contact list, said contact list comprising a plurality of contacts, wherein said computer program product is configured to filter detected proximate devices using the contact list to ensure only those detected proximate devices associated with one of the plurality of contacts are conveyed messages;

a computer program product executed by the mobile communication device configured to detect proximate devices within range of a personal area network associated with the personal area network transceiver and to wirelessly convey digitally encoded messages to at least one of the detected proximate devices via the personal area network, wherein said digitally encoded messages directs a user of the proximate device to inform a user of the recipient device of a communication attempt directed towards the mobile communication device from the communication system; and

a condition detector configured to detect whether an impediment to a communication attempt exists, wherein said computer program product executes only when the condition detector detects an impediment, wherein the impediment comprises one of the recipient device being in a concealed state, the recipient device having a muted ringer state, and the recipient devices being powered off, wherein existence of the impediment is based upon a condition detected by at least one sensor of the recipient device, wherein the sensor is at least one of a light sensor and a motion sensor, wherein said light sensor is used to detect an impediment of the recipient device being concealed, and wherein the motion sensor is used to detected an impediment of the recipient device being located within a moving vehicle.

10. The mobile communication device of claim 9, wherein the communication system is a mobile telephony system, wherein the network transceiver is a mobile telephony transceiver, wherein the personal area network transceiver conforms to a standardized protocol comprising at least one of BLUETOOTH, WIRELESS USB, ZIGBEE, and WIFI, wherein the sensor is the motion sensor, wherein the impediment is that the recipient device is within a moving vehicle, and wherein the proximate device is a sound system of the moving vehicle that audibly presents the digitally encoded message.

11. The mobile communication device of claim 9, wherein said impediment decreases a likelihood that a user of the recipient device will be successfully notified of an incoming communication attempt.

12. A computer program product comprising:

a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer usable program code embodied therewith, the computer usable program code comprising;

computer usable program code configured to identify a communication attempt directed towards a recipient device;

computer usable program code configured to detecting an impediment to the communication attempt, wherein the impediment comprises one of the recipient device being in a concealed state, the recipient device having a muted ringer state, and the recipient devices being powered off;

computer usable program code configured to, responsive to detecting the impediment, detect one or more communication devices proximate to the recipient device, each of the one or more communication devices being able to receive the communication attempt;

computer usable program code configured to accessing a contact list associated with the recipient device;

computer usable program code configured to filter the detected one or more proximate communication devices using the contact list to ensure only those one or more proximate communication devices that are associated with a contacts of the contact list are conveyed messages relating to the communication attempt;

computer usable program code configured to convey a digitally encoded message to at least one of the one or more proximate communication devices resulting from the filtering, wherein said digitally encoded message informs a user that receives the message via that user'"'"'s communication device, wherein that user'"'"'s communication device is one of the filtered, proximate communication devices, of the communication attempt that was directed towards the recipient device.

13. An apparatus comprising:

one or more processors;

a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer usable program code embodied therewith, wherein said one or more processors are operable to execute the computer usable code, the computer usable program code comprising;

computer usable program code configured to identify a communication attempt directed towards a recipient device;

computer usable program code configured to detecting an impediment to the communication attempt, wherein the impediment comprises one of the recipient device being in a concealed state, the recipient device having a muted ringer state, and the recipient devices being powered off;

computer usable program code configured to, responsive to detecting the impediment, detect one or more communication devices proximate to the recipient device, each of the one or more communication devices being able to receive the communication attempt;

computer usable program code configured to accessing a contact list associated with the recipient device;

computer usable program code configured to filter the detected one or more proximate communication devices using the contact list to ensure only those one or more proximate communication devices that are associated with a contacts of the contact list are conveyed messages relating to the communication attempt;

computer usable program code configured to convey a digitally encoded message to at least one of the one or more proximate communication devices resulting from the filtering, wherein said digitally encoded message informs a user that receives the message via that user'"'"'s communication device, wherein that user'"'"'s communication device is one of the filtered, proximate communication devices, of the communication attempt that was directed towards the recipient device.