Data communication

• US 8,983,043 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2013
• Issued: 03/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Metaswitch Networks Limited (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Metaswitch Networks Limited (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Mairs, Chris, Palmer, Felix, Drysdale, David, Crampton, Shaun, Pearl, Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): El-Zoobi, Maria
• Application Number:
  US13/865,300
• Publication Number:
  US 20130230158A1
• Time in Patent Office: 698 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 379/93.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/401 wherein the services involve a main real-time session and one or more additional parallel real-time or time sensitive sessions, e.g. white board sharing or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4025 where none of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. downloading a file in a parallel FTP session, initiating an email or combinational services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0036 where the data service is an information service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0057 Services where the data services network provides a telephone service in addition or as an alternative, e.g. for backup purposes, to the telephone service provided by the telephone services network

Abstract

A method of establishing a communications session for data with respect to at least two user devices in a packet switched communications network in parallel to a voice session via a circuit switched network. Call party details of a telephony call are received. The telephony call involves at least a first telephony user device and a second telephony user device. The call party details include a first identity associated with the first telephony user device and a second identity associated with the second telephony user device. A separate communications session is established on the basis of the first and second identities received in the call party details and depending on the capabilities of the user devices. The communications session is separate from the telephone call, for the communication of data to and/or from at least two user devices.

Claims

1. A method of establishing a communications session for communication of data with respect to at least two user devices in a data communications network, the method comprising:

receiving call party details of a telephone call, the telephone call involving at least a first telephony user device and a second telephony user device, said call party details including a first identity associated with said first telephony user device and a second identity associated with said second telephony user device;

establishing, on the basis of said first and second identities received in said call party details, a separate communications session, separate from said telephone call, for the communication of data to and/or from said at least two user devices;

receiving, from one of said at least two user devices, an identifier identifying a software component to be used in said separate communications session; and

enabling the download of said software component to another of said at least two user devices, in response to the receipt of said software component identifier.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said method comprises conducting a capability check to determine whether said another of said at least two user devices is initially enabled with said software component, and conducting said enabling if the capability check indicates that said another of said at least two user devices is not initially enabled with said software component.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein said method comprises storing capability data indicating capabilities of a plurality of user devices in a data store accessible by a server, and conducting said capability check at said server.

4. A method according to claim 2, wherein said capability check comprises transmitting a capability query to said another of said at least two user devices, and receiving a response indicating whether said another of said at least two user devices is initially enabled with said software component.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein said separate communications session is established using a session establishment software application or operating system function on said another of said at least two user devices, and wherein said software component is a software application which interoperates with said session establishment software application or operating system function.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein establishing said session comprises receiving a client-server connection request from, and establishing a client-server connection with, said another of said at least two user devices, and transmitting said software application via said client-server connection.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein said client-server connection request is transmitted in response to said telephone call being established.

8. A method according to claim 6, wherein said client-server connection request is transmitted in response to a notification received during said telephone call, after the telephone call is established.

9. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said first and second identities comprises a telephone dialling number.

10. A server system arranged to perform a method of establishing a communications session for communication of data with respect to at least two user devices in a data communications network, the method comprising:

receiving call party details of a telephone call, the telephone call involving at least a first telephony user device and a second telephony user device, said call party details including a first identity associated with said first telephony user device and a second identity associated with said second telephony user device;

establishing, on the basis of said first and second identities received in said call party details, a separate communications session, separate from said telephone call, for the communication of data to and/or from said at least two user devices;

receiving, from one of said at least two user devices, an identifier identifying a software component to be used in said separate communications session; and

enabling the download of said software component to another of said at least two user devices, in response to the receipt of said software component identifier.

11. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer readable instructions stored thereon, the computer readable instructions being executable by a computerized device to cause the computerized device to perform a method of establishing a communications session for communication of data with respect to at least two user devices in a data communications network, the method comprising:

receiving call party details of a telephone call, the telephone call involving at least a first telephony user device and a second telephony user device, said call party details including a first identity associated with said first telephony user device and a second identity associated with said second telephony user device;

establishing, on the basis of said first and second identities received in said call party details, a separate communications session, separate from said telephone call, for the communication of data to and/or from said at least two user devices;

receiving, from one of said at least two user devices, an identifier identifying a software component to be used in said separate communications session; and

enabling the download of said software component to another of said at least two user devices, in response to the receipt of said software component identifier.

12. A telephony user device capable of establishing a communications session for communication of data with respect to at least one other user device in a data communications network, the telephony user device being arranged to:

transmit call party details of a telephone call, the telephone call involving at least said telephony user device, said telephony user device being a first telephony user device, and a second telephony user device, said call party details including a first identity associated with said first telephony user device and a second identity associated with said second telephony user device, at least one of said first and second identities comprising a telephone dialling number;

establishing, on the basis of said first and second identities received in said call party details, a separate communications session, separate from said telephone call, for the communication of data to and/or from said at least one other user device; and

enabling the download of a software component to be used in said separate communications session to said at least one other user device, said enabling comprising transmitting an identifier identifying a software component to be used in said separate communications session.