Method and system for searching and processing contacts

• US 8,843,582 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2005
• Issued: 09/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wilhelm, Albert P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Greene, Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): WIDHALM, ANGELA M
• Application Number:
  US11/304,965
• Publication Number:
  US 20070143500A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,204 Days
• Field of Search: 709/213, 709/217, 709/227, 709/203, 709/216, 709/219
• US Class Current: 709/213
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4228 in networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4931 Directory assistance systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/183 Processing at user equipment or user record carrier

Abstract

A system and method are disclosed for searching and processing contacts. A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a mobile communication device (MCD) (116) has a transceiver (202), and a controller (212) for controlling operations thereof. The controller is programmed to receive (302) from an end user of the MCD a request for a contact, and search (304) for the contact in a phonebook of the MCD. If the entry cannot be found in the MCD, the controller is programmed to search (318) for the contact in a phonebook of a local communication device (LCD). If the contact cannot be found in the LCD, the controller is programmed to search (330) for the contact in a directory of an enterprise server. Additional embodiments are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A machine-readable storage device comprising instructions which, responsive to being executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

searching a phone number in a phonebook of a mobile communication device responsive to a request to initiate a mobile originated call from the mobile communication device;

if the phone number cannot be found in the phonebook of the mobile communication device;

scanning for a wireless local communication device comprising a phonebook;

detecting, when available, the local communication device;

responsive to succeeding in the detecting of the local communication device;

searching for the phone number in the phonebook of the local communication device;

responsive to finding the phone number in the local communication device, retrieving the phone number from the local communication device responsive to a selection and initiating a mobile originated call corresponding to the phone number without storing the phone number in the phonebook of the mobile communication device; and

responsive in failing to find the phone number in the local communication device, requesting service from a phonebook directory proxy server;

responsive to failing in the detecting of the local communication device, requesting service from the phonebook directory proxy server; and

retrieving the phone number from the phonebook directory proxy server;

transmitting details, including a caller identification of the mobile communication device and an enterprise identification of the mobile communication device, to establish connectivity with a terminal device corresponding to the phone number,

wherein transmitting the details causes the phonebook directory proxy server to determine if the enterprise identification of the mobile communication device is an abbreviated-length phone number, and responsive to the caller identification being the abbreviated-length phone number, retrieving a full-length network identification comprising a full-length phone number corresponding to the abbreviated-length phone number as the enterprise identification;

wherein transmitting the details causes the phonebook proxy server to replace the caller identification of the mobile communication device with a corresponding caller identification that emulates the enterprise identification as if the mobile originated call originated from within the enterprise when the mobile communication device is not located within a vicinity of the enterprise, to transmit a first network originated call to the terminal device over a first voice channel, to transmit a second network originated call to the mobile communication device over a second voice channel, and to link the first and second voice channels,

wherein the first network originated call is over a packet-switched network, and

wherein the second network originated call is over a circuit-switched network.

2. The machine-readable storage device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

establishing a data channel with the phonebook directory proxy server;

transmitting on the data channel a request for access to the directory;

transmitting to the phonebook directory proxy server a request for the phone number; and

receiving from the phonebook directory proxy server a successive portion of the directory corresponding to the phone number requested.

3. The machine-readable storage device of claim 2, wherein the operations further comprise:

transmitting to the phonebook directory proxy server on the data channel a mobile originated call corresponding to the phone number to establish voice connectivity with a terminal device.

4. The machine-readable storage device of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise suppressing an audible alert responsive to the network originated call.

5. The machine-readable storage device of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving an acknowledgment from the phonebook directory proxy server corresponding to a voice channel connection with the terminal device; and

terminating the connection to the data channel.

6. The machine-readable storage device of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

displaying the successive portion of the directory at the mobile communication device;

receiving an identifier selected from the successive portion of the directory; and

transmitting in the mobile originated call an abbreviated third party identifier corresponding to the identifier for identifying the terminal device.

7. A mobile communication device, comprising:

a transceiver;

a memory to store instructions; and

a controller comprising a processor in communication with the memory, wherein the processor, responsive to executing the instructions performs operations comprising;

receiving a request for a phone number to initiate a mobile originated call;

searching for the phone number in a phonebook of the mobile communication device in response to the request for the phone number to initiate the mobile originated call;

if an entry cannot be found in the mobile communication device;

detecting over a wireless medium presence of a local communication device comprising a phonebook;

responsive to the detecting of the local communication device;

communicatively coupling to the local communication device over a data channel of the wireless medium;

searching for the phone number in the phonebook of the local communication device;

responsive to the searching succeeding in finding the phone number in the local communication device, retrieving the phone number from the local communication device responsive to a selection and initiating the mobile originated call corresponding to the phone number without storing the phone number in the phonebook of the mobile communication device;

responsive to the searching failing in finding the phone number in the local communication device, searching for the phone number in a phonebook directory of an enterprise server; and

responsive to failing in detecting a local communication device, searching for the phone number in a phonebook directory of an enterprise server;

responsive to locating the phone number in the phonebook directory of the enterprise server, transmitting details, including a caller identification of the mobile communication device and an enterprise identification of the mobile communication device, to establish connectivity, by way of a phonebook director proxy server, with a terminal device corresponding to the phone number,

wherein transmitting the details causes the phonebook directory proxy server to determine if the enterprise identification of the mobile communication device is an abbreviated-length phone number, and responsive to the caller identification being the abbreviated-length phone number, retrieving a full-length network identification comprising a full-length phone number corresponding to the abbreviated-length phone number as the enterprise identification,

wherein transmitting the details causes the phonebook proxy server to replace the caller identification of the mobile communication device with a corresponding caller identification that emulates the enterprise identification as if the mobile originated call originated from within the enterprise when the mobile communication device is not located within a vicinity of the enterprise, to transmit a first network originated call to the terminal device over a first voice channel, to transmit a second network originated call to the mobile communication device over a second voice channel, and to link the first and second voice channels,

wherein the first network originated call is over a packet-switched network, and

wherein the second network originated call is over a circuit-switched network.

8. The mobile communication device of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

searching for the local communication device;

detecting the local communication device;

establishing a data channel connection with the local communication device;

detecting the phone number in the phonebook of the local communication device; and

retrieving the phone number from the local communication device.

9. The mobile communication device of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

searching for the enterprise server;

detecting the enterprise server;

establishing a data channel connection with the enterprise server;

detecting the phone number in the directory of the enterprise server; and

retrieving the phone number from the enterprise server.

10. The mobile communication device of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise initiating the mobile originated call to a fixed base station corresponding to the phone number.

11. The mobile communication device of claim 7, wherein the enterprise server comprises a phonebook directory proxy server, and wherein the operations further comprise:

establishing a data channel connection with the phonebook directory proxy server;

transmitting on the data channel a request for access to a directory of the phonebook directory proxy server;

transmitting to the phonebook directory proxy server a request for the phone number; and

receiving from the phonebook directory proxy server a successive portion of the directory corresponding to the phone number requested.

12. The mobile communication device of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise transmitting to the phonebook directory proxy server a registration request on the data channel.

13. The mobile communication device of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise transmitting to the phonebook directory proxy server on the data channel a mobile originated call corresponding to the phone number to establish voice connectivity with a terminal device.

14. The mobile communication device of claim 13, further comprising an audio system, wherein the operations further comprise suppressing an audible alert responsive to the network originated call.

15. The mobile communication device of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving an acknowledgment from the phonebook directory proxy server corresponding to an accepted voice channel connection with the terminal device; and

terminating the connection to the data channel.

16. The mobile communication device of claim 13, comprising a user interface, wherein the operations further comprise:

presenting the successive portion of the directory at the mobile communication device;

receiving an identifier selected from the successive portion of the directory; and

transmitting in the mobile originated call an abbreviated third party identifier corresponding to the identifier for identifying the terminal device.

17. A method, comprising:

searching, by a system comprising a processor, a phone number in a phonebook of a mobile communication device in response to a request to initiate a mobile originated call from the mobile communication device to the phone number;

if the phone number cannot be found in the phonebook of the mobile communication device;

detecting, by the system, a local communication device comprising a phonebook, when available;

responsive to succeeding in the detecting of the local communication device;

searching, by the system, for the phone number in the phonebook of the local communication device;

in response to succeeding to find the phone number in the local communication device, retrieving the phone number from the local communication device; and

in response to failing to find the phone number in the local communication device, contacting, by the system, a phonebook directory proxy server;

responsive to failing in the detecting of the local communications device, contacting, by the system, the phonebook proxy server;

searching, by the system, the phone number in a phonebook directory of the phonebook directory proxy server;

finding, by the system, the phone number in the phonebook directory;

retrieving, by the system, the phone number from the phonebook directory;

initiating, by the system, a mobile originated call corresponding to the phone number without storing the phone number in the phonebook of the mobile communication device; and

at the phonebook directory proxy server, receiving from the mobile communication device on a data channel the mobile originated call comprising a caller identification of the mobile communication device according to the phone number for connecting to a terminal device and an enterprise identification of the mobile communication device;

determining if the enterprise identification of the mobile communication device is an abbreviated-length phone number, and responsive to the caller identification being the abbreviated-length phone number, retrieving a full-length network identification comprising a full-length phone number corresponding to the abbreviated-length phone number as the enterprise identification;

replacing the caller identification of the mobile communication device with a corresponding caller identification that emulates the enterprise identification as if the mobile originated call originated from within the enterprise when the mobile communication device is not located within a vicinity of the enterprise;

transmitting, by the system, a first network originated call to the terminal device over a first voice channel;

transmitting, by the system, a second network originated call to the mobile communication device over a second voice channel, wherein the first network originated call is over a packet-switched network, and wherein the second network originated call is over a circuit-switched network; and

causing, by the system, the first and second voice channels to be linked.

18. The method of claim 17, comprising at the mobile communication device, suppressing, by the system, an audible alert responsive to the second network originated call, wherein the first and second voice channels are linked using a media gateway.

19. The method of claim 18, comprising:

at the mobile communication device,

transmitting, by the system, in the mobile originated call an abbreviated third party identifier corresponding to an identifier selected from the phone number;

at the phonebook directory proxy server; and

transmitting, by the system, the first network originated call according to the abbreviated third party identifier and the caller identification.