Systems and methods of conducting conference calls

• US 8,897,177 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2012
• Issued: 11/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vonage Business Inc (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Original Assignee: Vonage Network LLC (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Inventors: Arora, Nehar
• Primary Examiner(s): Pezzlo, John
• Application Number:
  US13/717,951
• Publication Number:
  US 20140169230A1
• Time in Patent Office: 707 Days
• Field of Search: 370260-269, 370/352, 370/401
• US Class Current: 370/261
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1818 Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5009 Adding a party to an existing conference
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5054 Meet-me conference, i.e. participants dial-in
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/563 User guidance or feature selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/129 Details of providing call progress tones or announcements

Abstract

Systems and methods performed by an IP telephony system allow a user to request that his IP telephony device be set into a conference calling mode for an indefinite period of time. When the user'"'"'s IP telephony device is in the conference calling mode, all parties that attempt to call the user'"'"'s IP telephony device are added to a conference bridge tied to the user'"'"'s IP telephony device. All incoming calls are treated in this fashion until the user cancels the conference calling mode and returns to a normal calling mode.

Claims

1. A method of managing telephony communications for an IP telephony device, the method being performed by at least an IP telephony system, the method comprising:

setting an account of an IP telephony device into a conference calling mode in response to a triggering event; and

handling an incoming telephony communication setup request directed to the account by directing each telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call with the IP telephony device until a request to set the account into a normal calling mode is received.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each time that a telephony communication setup request directed to the account is received, said handling comprises:

handling the incoming telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call with the IP telephony device if the account is set into the conference calling mode; and

handling the incoming telephony communication setup request as a normal telephony communication setup request if the account is set into the normal calling mode.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein handling the incoming telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call comprises:

determining whether the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication;

setting up a new telephony communication with the IP telephony device if the IP telephony device is not currently conducting a telephony communication; and

conferencing the party that sent the setup request into a current telephony communication being conducted by the IP telephony device if the IP telephony device is already conducting a telephony communication.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the triggering event is the receipt of a request to set the account of the IP telephony device into a conference calling mode.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the request is caused to be sent by a user of the IP telephony device.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the request is received from the IP telephony device itself.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the request is received from a web interface accessed by a user of the IP telephony device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein handling an incoming telephony communication setup request directed to the account comprises:

determining if the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication;

sending a query to a user of the IP telephony device if the account is set into the conference calling mode and the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication;

receiving a response to the query from the user of the IP telephony device; and

handling the communication setup request based on the received response to the query.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said sending comprises sending a query to the user of the IP telephony device which includes information obtained via data in the telephony communication setup request.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein handling an incoming telephony communication setup request directed to the account comprises:

determining if the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication;

sending a query to the party that sent the telephony communication setup request if the account is set into the conference calling mode and the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication;

receiving a response to the query from the party that sent the telephony communication setup request; and

handling the communication setup request based on the received response to the query.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said sending comprises sending a query to the party that sent the telephony communication setup request which includes information about the existing telephony communication.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the information about the existing telephony communication comprises information about an identity of at least one party to the existing telephony communication.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising setting the account into a normal calling mode distinct from the conference calling mode responsive to receipt of a request.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein incoming telephony communication setup requests are directed to the same origination identifier of the account regardless of whether the account is in the conference calling mode or the normal calling mode.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein handling the incoming telephony communication setup request when the account is in the conference calling mode comprises handling an incoming telephony communication setup request that is directed to the same origination identifier as would be used when the account is not in the conference calling mode.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein telephony communication setup requests that are directed to the account when the account is in the normal calling mode are directed to a telephone number associated with the account, and wherein handling the incoming telephony communications setup request while the account is in the conference calling mode comprises handling an incoming telephony communication setup request directed to the same telephone number used when the account is in the normal calling mode.

17. A system for managing telephony communications for an IP telephony device, comprising:

means for setting an account of an IP telephony device into a conference calling mode in response to a triggering event; and

means for handling an incoming telephony communication setup request directed to the account by directing each telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call with the IP telephony device until a request to set the account into a normal calling mode is received.

18. A system for managing telephony communications for an IP telephony device, comprising:

a conference call mode setting unit that sets an account of an IP telephony device into a conference calling mode in response to a triggering event; and

a conference call setup unit that handles incoming telephony communication setup requests directed to the account by directing each telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call with the IP telephony device until a request to set the account into a normal calling mode is received.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein each time that a telephony communication setup request directed to the account is received, the conference call setup unit handles the incoming telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call with the IP telephony device if the account is set into the conference calling mode, and handles the incoming telephony communication setup request as a normal telephony communication setup request if the account is set into the normal calling mode.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the conference call setup unit handles an incoming telephony communication setup request as a request to join a conference call by determining whether the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication, setting up a new telephony communication with the IP telephony device if the IP telephony device is not currently conducting a telephony communication, and conferencing the party that sent the setup request into a current telephony communication being conducted by the IP telephony device if the IP telephony device is already conducting a telephony communication.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein the conference call mode setting unit that sets an account of an IP telephony device into a conference calling mode when a request to set the account of the IP telephony device into a conference calling mode is received.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the request is one which was caused to be sent by a user of the IP telephony device.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the request is received from the IP telephony device itself.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein the request is received from a web interface accessed by a user of the IP telephony device.

25. The system of claim 18, wherein when the account of the IP telephony device is set into the conference calling mode, the conference call setup unit handles an incoming telephony communication setup request by determining if the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication, sending a query to a user of the IP telephony device if the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication, receiving a response to the query from the user of the IP telephony device, and handling the communication setup request based on the received response to the query.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the query sent to the user of the IP telephony device includes information obtained via data in the telephony communication setup request.

27. The system of claim 18, wherein when the account of the IP telephony device is set into the conference calling mode, the conference call setup unit handles an incoming telephony communication setup request by determining if the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication, sending a query to the party that sent the telephony communication setup request if the IP telephony device is currently conducting a telephony communication, receiving a response to the query from the party that sent the telephony communication setup request, and handling the communication setup request based on the received response to the query.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein the query sent to the party that sent the telephony communication setup request includes information about the existing telephony communication.

29. The system of claim 28, wherein the information about the existing telephony communication comprises information about an identity of at least one party to the existing telephony communication.

30. The system of claim 18, wherein the conference call mode setting unit sets the account of the IP telephony device into a normal calling mode distinct from the conference calling mode responsive to receipt of a request.