Source audio identifiers for digital communications

• US 8,565,397 B2
• Filed: 01/04/2010
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Appelman, Barry, Murphy, Stephen Vaughan
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Joseph T
• Application Number:
  US12/651,789
• Publication Number:
  US 20100104080A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,387 Days
• Field of Search: 379/82, 379/207.16
• US Class Current: 379/142.04
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2011 Service processing based on information specified by a party before or during a call, e.g. information, tone or routing selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6009 Personal information, e.g. profiles or personal directories being only provided to authorised persons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/02 Calling substations, e.g. by ringing selective calling H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42017 Customized ring-back tones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42042 Notifying the called party of information on the calling party details within substation equipment H04M1/57, signalling details H04Q3/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4211 where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42365 Presence services providing information on the willingness to communicate or the ability to communicate in terms of media capability or network connectivity
• 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 3/533 Voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53383 Message registering commands or announcements; Greetings

Abstract

Audibly informing a recipient of an arrival of a digital communication from a sender includes receiving a digital communication from a sender directed to a recipient and determining whether the digital communication is associated with an audio identifier that identifies the sender of the digital communication and that is designated by the sender of the digital communication. Perception by the recipient of the audio identifier is conditioned on whether the digital communication is determined to be associated with the audio identifier. The audio identifier is perceived prior to or concurrent with perception of the digital communication by the recipient.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a digital communication from a sender directed to a recipient;

determining whether the digital communication is associated with an audio identifier that identifies the sender;

accessing communication exchange preferences associated with the recipient;

determining whether the communication exchange preferences have been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communications from the sender;

if the communication exchange preferences have been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communications from the sender, rendering of the audio identifier prior to or concurrent with presentation of the digital communication for perception by the recipient; and

if the communication exchange preferences have not been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communication from the sender,

rendering a call notification user interface for perception by the recipient in response to the digital communication; and

conditioning the rendering of the audio identifier on whether the recipient, through interactions with the call notification user interface, enables the audio identifier designated by the sender to be rendered for digital communications from the sender.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio identifier is a spoken version of a user identifier of the sender.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio identifier includes a first sound designated by the sender concatenated with a second sound not designated by the sender.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the second sound is designated by the recipient.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio identifier includes a first sound designated by the sender concatenated with a second sound that identifies a group to which the sender belongs.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the group to which the sender belongs is a job group, an organization to which the sender belongs or works, or a buddy group in an instant messaging buddy list of the recipient.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio identifier includes a first sound designated by the sender concatenated with a second sound that identifies a location from which the sender is sending.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio identifier includes a first sound designated by the sender concatenated with a second sound that identifies an urgency or importance of the digital communication.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio identifier includes a first sound designated by the sender concatenated with a second sound that indicates whether the sender is currently online.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the digital communication is associated with an audio identifier comprises determining whether an audio identifier has been received from the sender.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein determining whether the audio identifier has been received from the sender comprises determining whether the audio identifier has been received in an MMS or SMS message prior to or concurrent to receiving the digital communication.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein determining whether an audio identifier has been received from the sender includes determining whether the audio identifier has been received with the digital communication.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the rendering of the audio identifier is allowed when communication exchange preferences of the recipient explicitly include a setting indicating that the recipient is allowed to perceive the audio identifier.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the setting is set by the recipient in response to a query.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the rendering of the audio identifier is not allowed when the communication exchange preferences explicitly include a setting indicating that the recipient is not allowed to perceive the audio identifier.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the setting is set by the recipient in response to a query.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

before rendering the call notification user interface, playing, in response to the digital communication, a special ring tone indicating to the recipient that the digital communication is associated with an audio identifier designated by the sender and that no communication exchange preferences have been setup for digital communications from the caller.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the rendering of the audio identifier also is conditioned on whether the recipient is available to receive the digital communication.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising rendering for perception by the recipient a sender profile.

20. A computer system comprising:

a data store configured to store audio identifiers; and

a digital communication processor configured to;

receive a digital communication from a sender directed to a recipient,

determine whether the digital communication is associated with an audio identifier that identifies the sender;

access communication exchange preferences associated with the recipient;

determine whether the communication exchange preferences have been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communications from the sender;

if the communication exchange preferences have been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communications from the sender, access the audio identifier from the data store and render the audio identifier prior to or concurrent with presentation of the digital communication for perception by the recipient; and

if the communication exchange preferences have not been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communication from the sender,

render a call notification user interface for perception by the recipient in response to the digital communication; and

condition the rendering of the audio identifier on whether the recipient, through interactions with the call notification user interface, enables the audio identifier designated by the sender to be rendered for digital communications from the sender.

21. An apparatus comprising:

means for receiving a phone call from a caller directed to a recipient;

means for determining whether the phone call is associated with an audio identifier that identifies the caller and that is designated by the caller;

means for accessing communication exchange preferences associated with the recipient;

means for determining whether the communication exchange preferences have been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communications from the sender;

if the communication exchange preferences have been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communications from the sender, means for rendering of the audio identifier prior to or concurrent with presentation of the digital communication for perception by the recipient; and

if the communication exchange preferences have not been setup to handle audio identifiers for digital communication from the sender,

means for rendering a call notification user interface for perception by the recipient in response to the digital communication; and

means for conditioning the rendering of the audio identifier on whether the recipient, through interactions with the call notification user interface, enables the audio identifier designated by the sender to be rendered for digital communications from the sender.