Method and apparatus for forcing a call to a carrier provided voice mail facility

• US 8,605,869 B1
• Filed: 08/08/2008
• Issued: 12/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mobilesphere Limited
• Original Assignee: Mobilesphere Limited
• Inventors: Mobarak, Toufic Boutros, Han, Ashou
• Primary Examiner(s): Gauthier, Gerald
• Application Number:
  US12/188,821
• Time in Patent Office: 1,950 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88.04, 379/88.13, 379/88.14, 379/88.17, 379/88.19, 379/217.01, 379/221.01, 379/221.02, 379/67.1, 379/133, 382/115, 455/67.11, 455/412.2, 455/418, 455/433, 455/519, 455/450, 455/427, 713/170, 713/182, 726/13, 370/260, 370/335, 370/324, 370/338, 370/352, 707/999.01, 711/161
• US Class Current: 379/88.17
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42289 with carrierprovider selection by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53316 Messaging centre selected by message originator
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53325 Interconnection arrangements between voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53366 Message disposing or creating aspects

Abstract

Disclosed are systems and techniques by which a caller may specify a callee'"'"'s telephone number and be connected directly to a carrier provided voice mail facility associated with the identified the telephone number, even though the callee'"'"'s carrier may not be the same as the caller'"'"'s carrier. In the disclosed technique, a telephony server places a “Send a call” request to a server which then sends a signaling call that busies out the channel associated with the callee. The telephony server places a second call (the actual voice message) upon confirmation that the signaling call has been initiated, forcing the second call to the carrier'"'"'s voice mail facility associated with the callee, since the first signaling call busied the first channel. Prior to sending the signaling call, a database look up is performed to determine which carrier services the callee number. Once the carrier is determined, another memory look up is performed to determine the time delay associated with that carrier. The time delay is then counted upon initiation of the first signaling call and the signaling call terminated upon expiration of the delay period. A user interface is provided by which a caller may specify the number of the intended callee by either a web interface, an external telephony interface such as an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) facility, an interface mechanism internal to a caller'"'"'s private telephony network, or an automated number capture mechanism.

Claims

1. A method for communicating directly to a carrier provided voicemail facility associated with a call destination channel comprising:

A) Initiating a first communication connection with a call destination channel associated with one of a plurality of carriers;

B) prior to the first communication connection being terminated, simultaneously initiating a second communication connection to the same call destination channel; and

C) terminating the first communication connection within a predetermined time period following initiation of the first communication connection,

wherein the predetermined period of time is at least partially determined by which of the plurality of carriers is associated with the call destination channel.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first communication connection comprises only signal data.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the second communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel within a predetermined period of time after the first communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the second communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel upon confirmation that the first communication connection has been established with the destination channel.

6. A method for forcing a communication connection with a carrier provided voicemail facility associated with a call destination channel comprising:

(a) busying with a first communication connection, a call destination channel associated with one of a plurality of carriers without alerting a callee associated therewith;

(b) prior to the first communication connection being terminated, simultaneously initiating a second communication connection to the same call destination channel; and

(c) establishing a voice communication connection with the carrier provided voicemail facility associated with the call destination channel.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein (a) further comprises:

(a1) terminating the first communication connection within a predetermined time period at least partially determined by which of the plurality of carriers is associated with the call destination channel.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein (b) comprises:

(b1) initiating a second communication connection to the call destination channel within a predetermined time period following initiation of the first indication connection.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein (b) comprises:

(b1) initiating a second communication connection to the call destination channel upon confirmation that a communication connection has been established with the destination channel.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.

12. The method of claim 6 wherein the first communication connection comprises only signal data.

13. A computer program product for use with a computer system operatively coupled to a communication network, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium having program code embodied thereon comprising:

(a) program code for initiating a first communication connection to a call destination channel associated with one of a plurality of carriers;

(b) program code for, prior to the first communication connection being terminated, simultaneously initiating a second communication connection to the same call destination channel; and

(c) program code for terminating the first communication connection within a predetermined period of time after the first communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel,

wherein the predetermined period of time is at least partially determined by which of the plurality of carriers is associated with the call destination channel.

14. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein (a) further comprises:

(a1) program code for receiving an identifier of the call destination channel.

15. The computer program product of claim 14 wherein (a) further comprises:

(a2) program code for determining from the identifier of the call destination channel, a carrier associated with the destination channel.

16. The computer program product of claim 15 wherein (a) further comprises:

(a3) program code for determining, from the identified carrier associated with the destination channel, a predetermined time delay associated with the identified carrier.

17. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein the first communication connection comprises only signal data.

18. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.

19. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein the second communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel within a predetermined period of time after the first communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel.

20. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein the second communication connection is initiated to the call destination channel upon confirmation that a communication connection has been established with the destination channel.

21. A computer program product for use with a computer system operatively coupled to a communication network, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium having program code embodied thereon comprising:

(a) program code for busying with a first communication connection, a call destination channel associated with one of a plurality of carriers without alerting a callee associated therewith;

(b) program code for, prior to the first communication connection be terminated, simultaneously initiating a second communication connection to the same call destination channel; and

(c) program code for establishing a voice communication connection with the carrier provided voicemail facility associated with the call destination channel.

22. The computer program product of claim 21 wherein (a) further comprises:

(a1) program code for terminating the first communication connection within a predetermined time period at least partially determined by which of the plurality of carriers is associated with the call destination channel.

23. The computer program product of claim 21 wherein (b) comprises:

(b1) program code for initiating a second communication connection to the call destination channel within a predetermined time period following initiation of a first communication connection.

24. The computer program product of claim 21 wherein (b) comprises:

(b1) program code for initiating a second communication connection to the call destination channel upon confirmation that a communication connection has been established with the destination channel.

25. The computer program product of claim 24 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.

26. The computer program product of claim 23 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.

27. The computer program product of claim 24 wherein the first communication connection does not contain voice data.

28. The computer program product of claim 24 wherein the first communication connection comprises only signal data.

29. An apparatus for use with a communications network comprising:

(a) a processor;

(b) a memory coupled to the processor for maintaining a plurality of carrier identifiers, selected of the carrier identifiers having associated therewith at least one predetermined time delay value, the respective predetermined time delay values not being identical for all carrier identifiers;

(c) a network interface, coupled to the processor and the memory;

(d) program logic, responsive to an identifier of the call destination channel, for determining which of the plurality of carrier identifiers is associated with a call destination channel;

(e) program logic for initiating a first communication connection to the call destination channel;

(f) program logic for, prior to the first communication connection being terminated, simultaneously initiating a second communication connection to the same call destination channel; and

(g) program logic for terminating the first communication connection after expiration of a time period at least equal to the predetermined delay value associated with the identified carrier associated with the call destination channel.

30. A method for communicating directly with a carrier provided voicemail facility associated with a call destination channel comprising:

(a) maintaining in a memory a plurality of carrier identifiers, selected of the carrier identifiers having associated therewith at least one predetermined time delay value, the respective predetermined time delay values not being identical for all carrier identifiers;

(b) initiating first and second communication connections, to a call destination channel associated with one of the carrier identifiers; and

(c) terminating the first communication connection after expiration of the predetermined time delay value associated with the carrier identifier associated with the call destination channel.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein (b) further comprises:

(b1) receiving an identifier of the call destination channel.

32. The method of claim 31 wherein (b) further comprises:

(b2) determining from the identifier of the call destination channel the carrier associated with the destination channel.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein (b) further comprises:

(b3) determining from the identified carrier associated with the destination channel, a predetermined time delay value.

34. The method of claim 30 wherein the first communication connection comprises only signal data.

35. The method of claim 30 wherein the second communication connection comprises signal data and voice data.