Method and apparatus for providing telecommuting virtual numbers for remote workers

• US 8,798,258 B1
• Filed: 09/30/2005
• Issued: 08/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Croak, Marian, Eslambolchi, Hossein
• Primary Examiner(s): AL AUBAIDI, RASHA S
• Application Number:
  US11/240,946
• Time in Patent Office: 3,231 Days
• Field of Search: 379/266.09, 379/142.06, 37920714-20715
• US Class Current: 379/266.09
• 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 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42306 Number translation services, e.g. premium-rate, freephone or vanity number services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42331 Direct inward dialling

Abstract

A method and apparatus for providing enterprises with the ability to provide telecommuting virtual number to these remote workers that are consistent with the dialing plans used internally at an enterprise location are disclosed. This telecommuting virtual number is routed through a packet network, e.g., a VoIP network, to allow calls placed to and from these workers to be treated as local calls.

Claims

1. A method for providing a telecommuting virtual number in a communication network, comprising:

receiving, by a call control element deployed in the communication network, an incoming call from an endpoint device of a remote worker in accordance with a telecommuting virtual number for use in initiating an outgoing call to a location of an enterprise that employs the remote worker, wherein the telecommuting virtual number is assigned to the remote worker where the telecommuting virtual number is considered to be a local phone number when compared to a location of the enterprise, wherein the outgoing call is treated as a local call for billing, wherein the communication network is a service provider internet protocol network, wherein the call control element comprises a media gateway controller, and wherein the receiving further comprises;

verifying the incoming call to the telecommuting virtual number as an outgoing call request from a telephony endpoint phone number registered by the remote worker; and

prompting the remote worker to enter a desired destination phone number; and

connecting, by the call control element, the outgoing call to the desired destination phone number using the telecommuting virtual number as a point of origination.

2. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by a processor of a call control element deployed in a communication network, cause the processor to perform operations for providing a telecommuting virtual number in the communication network, the operations comprising:

receiving, by the call control element, an incoming call from an endpoint device of a remote worker in accordance with a telecommuting virtual number for use in initiating an outgoing call to a location of an enterprise that employs the remote worker, wherein the telecommuting virtual number is assigned to the remote worker where the telecommuting virtual number is considered to be a local phone number when compared to a location of the enterprise, wherein the outgoing call is treated as a local call for billing, wherein the communication network is a service provider internet protocol network, wherein the call control element comprises a media gateway controller, and wherein the receiving further comprises;

verifying the incoming call to the telecommuting virtual number as an outgoing call request from a telephony endpoint phone number registered by the remote worker; and

prompting the remote worker to enter a desired destination phone number; and

connecting, by the call control element, the outgoing call to the desired destination phone number using the telecommuting virtual number as a point of origination.

3. An apparatus for providing a telecommuting virtual number in a communication network, comprising:

a processor deployed in the communication network; and

a computer-readable medium storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising;

receiving an incoming call from an endpoint device of a remote worker in accordance with a telecommuting virtual number for use in initiating an outgoing call to a location of an enterprise that employs the remote worker, wherein the telecommuting virtual number is assigned to the remote worker where the telecommuting virtual number is considered to be a local phone number when compared to the location of the enterprise, wherein the outgoing call is treated as a local call for billing, wherein the communication network is a service provider internet protocol network, wherein the processor comprises a processor of a call control element, wherein the call control element comprises a media gateway controller, and wherein the receiving further comprises;

verifying the incoming call to the telecommuting virtual number as an outgoing call request from a telephony endpoint phone number registered by the remote worker; and

prompting the remote worker to enter a desired destination phone number; and

connecting the outgoing call to the desired destination phone number using the telecommuting virtual number as a point of origination.