System and method for assisting a callee and a caller in establishing telephonic communications

• US 9,172,812 B2
• Filed: 02/16/2012
• Issued: 10/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/16/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Concert Technology Corporation
• Original Assignee: Modena Enterprises, LLC (Concert Technology Corporation)
• Inventors: Katpelly, Ravi Reddy, Kandekar, Kunal
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Duc
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mohammed, Assad
• Application Number:
  US13/398,361
• Publication Number:
  US 20120207294A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,349 Days
• Field of Search: 379/207.08, 379/207, 379/9, 379/211.01, 379/212.01, 379/201.01, 455/417, 455/414.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2094 Proximity
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42357 where the information is provided to a monitoring entity such as a potential calling party or a call processing server
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/54 Arrangements for diverting calls for one subscriber to another predetermined subscriber based on the calling party profile H04M3/42059; based on location H04M3/42348; based on presence H04M3/42365; to voice mail H04M3/53308

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed to assist a caller and a callee in establishing successful telephonic communications. In embodiments of the systems and methods, a telephonic call set-up network node or a callee user device of the callee may receive a call set-up request to establish a telephonic call between the caller user device of the caller and the callee user device. If the call-set up request is determined to be unsuccessful, one or more proximate user devices nearby the callee user device may be identified. Another telephonic call may be induced, this time between the caller user device and one of the proximate user devices identified to be nearby the callee user device. In this manner, success telephonic communications may be established despite the callee not being able to answer the callee user device during the original telephonic call set-up request.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a call setup request to establish a telephonic call between a caller user device of a caller and a callee user device of a callee;

determining whether the call setup request was unsuccessful;

as a result of determining that the call setup request was unsuccessful, identifying a plurality of proximate user devices that are nearby the callee user device;

receiving device context information for each of the plurality of proximate user devices, the device context information including user identification information that identifies a user of a different one of the plurality of proximate user devices;

selecting one of the plurality of proximate user devices for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices by;

obtaining one or more proximate user criteria including a relationship restriction that identifies a relationship restriction between the user of the different one of the plurality of proximate user devices and the callee; and

determining that the device context information of the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices complies with the one or more proximate user criteria; and

inducing an other telephonic call between the caller user device and the selected proximate user device of the plurality of proximate user devices.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the call setup request further comprises obtaining call context information for the call setup request.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, prior to identifying the one or more proximate user devices that are nearby the callee user device, the method further comprises:

determining that the call context information complies with one or more callee attention restrictions.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the call context information includes caller identification information that identifies the caller and wherein the one or more callee attention restrictions include a relationship restriction that identifies a required relationship between the caller and the callee.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining that the call context information complies with the one or more callee attention restrictions comprises:

determining that the caller complies with the relationship restriction by identifying the caller on a list of users having the required relationship with the callee based on the caller identification information that identifies the caller.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the callee user device comprises one or more sensors that measure one or more physical ambient quantities so that the callee user device generates one or more sensor level parameters indicating the one or more physical ambient quantities, wherein the call context information includes the one or more sensor level parameters, and wherein the one or more callee attention restrictions comprise one or more minimum sensor level requirements each describing a minimum level of one of the one or more physical ambient quantities for inducing the other telephonic call.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein determining that the call context information complies with the one or more callee attention restrictions comprises determining that the one or more sensor level parameters comply with the minimum sensor level requirements.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the device context information of the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices complies with the relationship restriction comprises:

determining that the user of the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call complies with the relationship restriction by identifying the user of the proximate user device on a list of users having the required relationship with the callee based on the user identification information that identifies the user of the proximate user device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call comprises one or more sensors that measure one or more physical ambient quantities so that the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call generates one or more sensor level parameters indicating the one or more physical ambient quantities, wherein the device context information includes the one or more sensor level parameters, and wherein the one or more proximate user criteria comprise one or more minimum sensor level requirements each describing a minimum level of one of the one or more physical ambient quantities for inducing the other telephonic call.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein determining that the device context information complies with the one or more proximate user criteria comprises determining that the one or more sensor level parameters comply with the minimum sensor level requirements.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein inducing another telephonic call between the caller user device and the selected proximate user device of the one or more proximate user devices comprises sending a call-reroute request.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein inducing another telephonic call comprises sending contact information for the selected proximate user device of the one or more proximate user devices to the caller user device.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein inducing another telephonic call between the caller user device and the selected proximate user device of the one or more proximate user devices is performed by the callee user device.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein inducing another telephonic call between the caller user device and the selected proximate user device of the one or more proximate user devices is performed by a telephonic call setup network node.

15. A computer device, comprising:

one or more communication interface devices operable to communicate with a network;

a controller having at least one processor and operably associated with the one or more communication interface devices and configured to;

receive a call setup request to establish a telephonic call between a caller user device of a caller and a callee user device of a callee;

determine whether the call setup request was unsuccessful;

as a result of determining that the call setup request was unsuccessful, identify a plurality of proximate user devices that are nearby the callee user device;

receive device context information for each of the plurality of proximate user devices, the device context information including user identification information that identifies a user of a different one of the plurality of proximate user devices;

select one of the plurality of proximate user devices for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices by;

obtaining one or more proximate user criteria including a relationship restriction that identifies a relationship restriction between the user of the different one of the plurality of proximate user devices and the callee; and

determining that the device context information of the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices complies with the one or more proximate user criteria; and

induce an other telephonic call between the caller user device and the selected proximate user device of the plurality of proximate user devices.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the computer device is one of either the callee user device or a telephonic call set-up network node.

17. A non-transitory computer readable medium that stores computer executable instructions, wherein the computer executable instructions are operable to instruct one or more microprocessors to:

receive a call setup request to establish a telephonic call between a caller user device of a caller and a callee user device of a callee;

determine whether the call setup request was unsuccessful;

as a result of determining that the call setup request was unsuccessful, identify a plurality of proximate user devices that are nearby the callee user device;

receive device context information for each of the plurality of proximate user devices, the device context information including user identification information that identifies a user of a different one of the plurality of proximate user devices;

select one of the plurality of proximate user devices for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices by;

obtaining one or more proximate user criteria including a relationship restriction that identifies a relationship restriction between the user of the different one of the plurality of proximate user devices and the callee; and

determining that the device context information of the proximate user device for inducing the other telephonic call from the plurality of proximate user devices complies with the one or more proximate user criteria; and

induce an other telephonic call between the caller user device and the selected proximate user device of the plurality of proximate user devices.