Systems, methods and apparatus for transmitting data over a voice channel of a wireless telephone network

• US 8,867,571 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2008
• Issued: 10/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Dish Network Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Echostar Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Inventors: Manne, Gopi K., Beals, William
• Primary Examiner(s): AJIBADE AKONAI, OLUMIDE
• Application Number:
  US12/058,935
• Publication Number:
  US 20090249407A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,395 Days
• Field of Search: 725/62, 725/99, 725/106, 725/122, 725/68, 725/81, 455 301- 306, 455/11.1, 455/12.1, 455/41.2, 455/41.3, 455/67.7, 455/406, 455/408, 455418-420, 455/454, 455/509, 455/511, 455/550.1, 455/563, 455/68, 455/73, 455/88, 455/423, 455/557, 379/88.11, 379/88.12, 379/88.13, 370/352, 370/474, 370/493, 370/494
• US Class Current: 370/494
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72409 by interfacing with external accessories hands-free H04M1/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/062 using different frequency bands for speech and other data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 17/004 for digital television systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 17/04 for receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2007/1739 the upstream communication being transmitted via a separate link, e.g. telephone line
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/437 Interfacing the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. for transmitting client requests to a VOD server flow control in data networks H04L47/10; streaming protocols, e.g. RTP or RTCP, H04L65/65; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests in data packet switching networks H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44231 Monitoring of peripheral device or external card, e.g. to detect processing problems in a handheld device or the failure of an external recording device configuring of peripheral devices in general G06F9/4411; reporting information sensed by appliance or service execution status of appliance services in a home automation network H04L12/2823; monitoring the status of connected device in data switched networks H04L43/0817
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4424 Monitoring of the internal components or processes of the client device, e.g. CPU or memory load, processing speed, timer, counter or percentage of the hard disk space used error monitoring in general G06F11/30; arrangements for monitoring conditions of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/32; diagnosis, testing or measuring for television receivers H04N17/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4425 Monitoring of client processing errors or hardware failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4516 involving client characteristics, e.g. Set-Top-Box type, software version or amount of memory available
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6131 involving transmission via a mobile phone network wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6181 involving transmission via a mobile phone network arrangements for providing broadcast or conference services to substation in data switching networks in combination with wireless systems H04L12/189; wireless uplink channel access H04W74/004
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 : adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

The various embodiments described herein generally provide apparatus, systems and methods which facilitate the transmission of data between a client device and a remote device over a wireless telephone network. More particularly, data from a client device is modulated into an audio signal and transmitted to a wireless telephone. The wireless telephone receives the audio signal and places a phone call to a remote device over a wireless telephone network. During the phone call, the wireless telephone transmits the audio signal across a voice channel of the wireless telephone network to the remote device. The remote device receives and decodes the audio signal to extract the transmitted data.

Claims

1. A method for transmitting data from a client device to a remote device over a wireless telephone network, the method comprising:

modulating data from a client device into an audio signal for transmission across a voice channel of a wireless telephone network, the data including diagnostic information regarding the client device and at least one other device separate from the client device;

transmitting the audio signal from the client device to a wireless telephone; and

transmitting the audio signal from the wireless telephone to a remote device over the wireless telephone network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein modulating the data further comprises:

modulating the data into an audio signal having characteristics of human speech.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein modulating the data into an audio signal further comprises:

forming at least one packet from the audio signal, wherein a size of the at least one packet is selected to correspond with a size of a frame utilized by the wireless telephone network.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

receiving the at least one packet at the remote device;

demodulating the audio signal of the at least one packet at the remote device to extract the data; and

processing the extracted data.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the data comprises ordering information, and wherein processing the extracted data further comprises:

generating a bill for a user of the client device based on the ordering information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the audio signal from the client device to a wireless telephone further comprises:

transmitting the audio signal from the client device to the wireless telephone over a wireless communication link.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one other device separate from the client device includes a display device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one other device separate from the client device includes a satellite antenna device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one other device separate from the client device includes a weather collection device.

10. A call processing system comprising:

an interface module configured to receive a phone call, the phone call sent through a wireless telephone network from a wireless telephone coupled to a client device, the phone call including data modulated into an audio signal, the audio signal having characteristics of human speech and the data including diagnostic information regarding the client device and at least one other device separate from the client device, the diagnostic information related to an equipment failure;

a decoder communicatively coupled to the interface module and configured to parse the audio signal to extract the data and configured to convert the data into a digital format; and

a processor communicatively coupled to the decoder and configured to associate the digital format data with stored information regarding the client device.

11. The call processing system of claim 10, wherein:

the client device comprises an entertainment device;

the data includes video ordering information; and

the processor is configured to generate a bill for a user of the client device based on the video ordering information.

12. The call processing system of claim 10, wherein the processor is configured to generate second data for transmission to the client device, and wherein the interface module is configured to:

modulate the second data into a second audio signal, the second audio signal having characteristics of the human speech; and

transmit the second audio signal to the wireless telephone over the wireless telephone network, wherein the wireless telephone is further configured to transmit the second audio signal to the client device.