Peer-to-peer, internet protocol telephone system with auto-attendant

• US 8,737,384 B2
• Filed: 01/10/2011
• Issued: 05/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VTech Telecommunications Limited (VTech Holdings Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: VTech Telecommunications Limited (VTech Holdings Ltd.)
• Inventors: Rose, Christopher, Knopp, Gerry, Chitty, Jen T'ai
• Primary Examiner(s): Nawaz, Asad
• Assistant Examiner(s): PATEL, PARTHKUMAR
• Application Number:
  US12/987,862
• Publication Number:
  US 20120177031A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,233 Days
• Field of Search: 370/256, 370/260, 707/206, 707/622, 709/217, 709/225, 717/173, 380/279
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0823 characterised by the purposes of a change of settings, e.g. optimising configuration for enhancing reliability for optimising operational conditions of wireless networks H04W24/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0063 where the network is a peer-to-peer network

Abstract

Various embodiments of the invention provide a Peer-to-Peer (P2P, Internet Protocol (IP) telephone system. The telephone system includes a plurality of terminals coupled together via an IP network. The terminals cooperate with one another to provide telephony features without a dedicated central controller such as a PBX and/or a KSU controller. The terminals may store system-wide configuration data and files referenced by the system-wide configuration data. The terminals may further determine whether the system-wide configuration data references a file that is not stored in the terminal, and requesting the file from another terminal of the telephone system in response to determining the terminal does not have a copy of the file.

Claims

1. A telephone terminal of a peer-to-peer telephone system comprising a plurality of telephone terminals, the telephone terminal comprising:

circuitry configured to couple the telephone terminal to an Internet Protocol (IP) network of the peer-to-peer telephone system, store for the telephone terminal system-wide configuration data comprising data used to configure each telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system for one or more telephony features of the peer-to-peer telephone system, and store files for the telephone terminal; and

a server configured to determine whether the system-wide configuration data references a file not stored by the circuitry, wherein the file comprises further configuration data used to configure each telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system for one or more telephony features of the peer-to-peer telephone system, and request the file from another telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system in response to determining that the circuitry does not store the file;

wherein a second telephone terminal is configured to transmit to a first telephone terminal a master handoff request comprising a configuration identifier for the system-wide configuration stored by the second telephone terminal, and wherein the second telephone terminal, in response to changing the system-wide configuration data for the telephone system, is configured to update the configuration identifier;

wherein the circuitry is further configured to store a lock count for each stored file, wherein each lock count tracks active references to its respective stored file, and the server is further configured to increment the lock count of a file in response to determining that the system-wide configuration data newly references the file;

wherein the server is further configured to decrement the lock count of a file in response to determining that the system-wide configuration data no longer references the file, wherein the server is configured to establish an auto-attendant session in response to an inbound call, and to increment the lock count of a file associated with the auto-attendant session in response to establishing the auto-attendant session, and wherein the server is configured to decrement the lock count of a file associated with the auto-attendant session in response to terminating the auto-attendant session.

2. The telephone terminal of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to delete the file in response to determining that the lock count has a predetermined value.

3. The telephone terminal of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to delete the file in response to determining that the lock count has a predetermined value for a predetermined time period.

4. A method for maintaining configuration data in a peer-to-peer telephone system comprising a plurality of telephone terminals, the method comprising:

storing system-wide configuration data and files referenced by the system-wide configuration data in a telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system, wherein the system-wide configuration data and the referenced files comprise data used to configure each telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system for one or more telephony features of the peer-to-peer telephone system;

determining whether the system-wide configuration data references a file that is not stored in the telephone terminal;

requesting the file from another telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system in response to determining that the telephone terminal does not have the file stored;

storing a lock count for each stored file, wherein each lock count tracks active references to its respective stored file;

incrementing the lock count of a file in response to determining that the system-wide configuration data newly references the file;

decrementing the lock count of the file in response to determining that the system-wide configuration data no longer references the file;

establishing an auto-attendant session in response to the telephone terminal receiving an inbound call;

incrementing a lock count of a file associated with the auto-attendant session in response to establishing the auto-attendant session; and

decrementing the lock count of a file associated with the auto-attendant session in response to terminating the auto-attendant session.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising deleting a file in response to determining that the lock count for the file has a predetermined value.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising deleting a file in response to determining that the lock count for the file has a predetermined value for a predetermined time period.

7. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising a plurality of instructions, that in response to being executed, configure an Internet Protocol (IP) telephone terminal of a peer-to-peer telephone system comprising a plurality of telephone terminals to:

store system-wide configuration data and files referenced by the system-wide configuration data, wherein the system-wide configuration data and the referenced files comprise data used to configure each telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system for one or more telephone features of the peer-to-peer telephone system;

determine whether the system-wide configuration data references a file that is not stored in the IP telephone terminal;

request the file from another telephone terminal of the peer-to-peer telephone system in response to determining the IP telephone terminal does not have the file stored;

store a lock count for each stored file, wherein each lock count tracks active references to its respective stored file;

increment the lock count of a file in response to determining that the system-wide configuration data newly references the file;

decrement the lock count of the file in response to determining that the system-wide configuration data no longer references the file;

establish an auto-attendant session in response to the telephone terminal receiving an inbound call;

increment a lock count of a file associated with the auto-attendant session in response to establishing the auto-attendant session; and

decrement the lock count of a file associated with the auto-attendant session in response to terminating the auto-attendant session.

8. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7, wherein the plurality of instructions further configure the IP telephone terminal to delete a file in response to determining that the lock count for the file has a predetermined value.