System and method for real-time communication by using a client application communication protocol

• US 10,819,757 B2
• Filed: 11/15/2018
• Issued: 10/27/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Twilio, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Twilio, Inc.
• Inventors: Lawson, Jeffrey, Wolthuis, John, Cooke, Evan, Borjesson, Jonas, Simutis, Rob, Tarricone, Brian, Kim, Edward, Lokare, Ameya
• Primary Examiner(s): Scott, Randy A
• Application Number:
  US16/192,365
• Publication Number:
  US 20190190963A1
• Time in Patent Office: 712 Days
• Field of Search: 709204, 709206, 709219, 709227, 709229, 370289, 370352, 370389, 379 87, 379 8813, 37921501
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0807 using tickets, e.g. Kerberos cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using tickets or tokens H04L9/3213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1023 Media gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1046 Call controllers; Call servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup

Abstract

A system and method for communicating with a client application that can include establishing a client signaling communication channel with a first client application; receiving a communication request from the first client application through the client signaling communication channel, wherein the communication request contains at least an authentication token and a specified communication destination; verifying the authentication token; if the authentication token is verified, at the system bridge, establishing a signaling communication channel with the communication destination and a second media communication channel with the specified communication destination; at the system bridge, establishing a first media communication channel with the client application; and merging the first media communication channel with the second media communication channel.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

establishing, by a system bridge, a client subscription channel, the client subscription channel being assigned a unique identifier;

subscribing a first client device to the client subscription channel;

receiving, by the system bridge, a first incoming communication from a second client device, the first incoming communication using a first communication protocol and including the unique identifier assigned to the client subscription channel;

identifying the client subscription channel based on the unique identifier included in the first incoming communication;

publishing an incoming communication notification to the client subscription channel identified based on the unique identifier included in the first incoming communication, the incoming communication notification causing client devices that are subscribed to the client subscription channel to transmit a communication to the system bridge;

receiving, at the system bridge, a second incoming communication from the first client device, the second incoming communication using a second communication protocol, the first client device having transmitted the second incoming communication to the system bridge as a result of having received the incoming communication notification published to the client subscription channel; and

merging, by the system bridge, the first incoming communication received from the second client device and the second incoming communication received from the first client device, yielding an established communication channel between the first client device and the second client device, the established communication channel converting communications between the first communication protocol and the second communication protocol to allow for communication between the first client device and the second client device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein merging the first incoming communication request and the second incoming communication request comprises:

opening a first audio channel between the first client device and the system bridge;

opening a second audio channel between the system bridge and a server; and

opening a third audio channel between the server and the second client device.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

providing voice media communication between the first client device and the second client device via the first audio channel, the second audio channel, and the third audio channel.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the second client device is a public switched telephone network (PSTN) service provider system, and the second client device opens a fourth audio channel between the PSTN service provider system and a PSTN user device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein voice media communication between the PSTN user device and the first client device is provided via the first audio channel, the second audio channel, the third audio channel, and the fourth audio channel.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the first audio channel between the first client device and the system bridge is a WebRTC audio channel.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

establishing a second client subscription channel, the second client subscription channel being assigned a second unique identifier;

subscribing a third client device to the second client subscription channel;

receiving a third incoming communication from a fourth client device, the third incoming communication including the second unique identifier assigned to the second client subscription channel;

identifying the second client subscription channel based on the second unique identifier included in the third incoming communication;

publishing a second incoming communication notification to the second client subscription channel identified based on the second unique identifier included in the third incoming communication, the second incoming communication notification causing client devices that are subscribed to the client subscription channel to transmit a communication to the system bridge;

receiving a fourth incoming communication from the third client device, the third client device having transmitted the fourth incoming communication to the system bridge as a result of having received the second incoming communication notification published to the second client subscription channel; and

merging the third incoming communication received from the fourth client device and the fourth incoming communication received from the third client device, yielding an established communication channel between the third client device and the fourth client device.

8. A system bridge comprising:

one or more computer processors; and

one or more computer-readable mediums storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more computer processors, cause the system bridge to perform operations comprising;

establishing a client subscription channel, the client subscription channel being assigned a unique identifier;

subscribing a first client device to the client subscription channel;

receiving a first incoming communication from a second client device, the first incoming communication using a first communication protocol and including the unique identifier assigned to the client subscription channel;

identifying the client subscription channel based on the unique identifier included in the first incoming communication;

publishing an incoming communication notification to the client subscription channel identified based on the unique identifier included in the first incoming communication, the incoming communication notification causing client devices that are subscribed to the client subscription channel to transmit a communication to the system bridge;

receiving a second incoming communication from the first client device, the second incoming communication using a second communication protocol, the first client device having transmitted the second incoming communication to the system bridge as a result of having received the incoming communication notification published to the client subscription channel; and

merging the first incoming communication received from the second client device and the second incoming communication received from the first client device, yielding an established communication channel between the first client device and the second client device, the established communication channel converting communications between the first communication protocol and the second communication protocol to allow for communication between the first client device and the second client device.

9. The system bridge of claim 8, wherein merging the first incoming communication request and the second incoming communication request comprises:

opening a first audio channel between the first client device and the system bridge;

opening a second audio channel between the system bridge and a server; and

opening a third audio channel between the server and the second client device.

10. The system bridge of claim 9, the operations further comprising:

providing voice media communication between the first client device and the second client device via the first audio channel, the second audio channel, and the third audio channel.

11. The system bridge of claim 9, wherein the second client device is a public switched telephone network (PSTN) service provider system, and the second client device opens a fourth audio channel between the PSTN service provider system and a PSTN user device.

12. The system bridge of claim 11, wherein voice media communication between the PSTN user device and the first client device is provided via the first audio channel, the second audio channel, the third audio channel, and the fourth audio channel.

13. The system bridge of claim 9, wherein the first audio channel between the first client device and the system bridge is a WebRTC audio channel.

14. The system bridge of claim 8, the operations further comprising:

establishing a second client subscription channel, the second client subscription channel being assigned a second unique identifier;

subscribing a third client device to the second client subscription channel;

receiving a third incoming communication from a fourth client device, the third incoming communication including the second unique identifier assigned to the second client subscription channel;

identifying the second client subscription channel based on the second unique identifier included in the third incoming communication;

publishing a second incoming communication notification to the second client subscription channel identified based on the second unique identifier included in the third incoming communication, the second incoming communication notification causing client devices that are subscribed to the client subscription channel to transmit a communication to the system bridge;

receiving a fourth incoming communication from the third client device, the third client device having transmitted the fourth incoming communication to the system bridge as a result of having received the second incoming communication notification published to the second client subscription channel; and

merging the third incoming communication received from the fourth client device and the fourth incoming communication received from the third client device, yielding an established communication channel between the third client device and the fourth client device.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more computer processors of a system bridge, cause the system bridge to perform operations comprising:

establishing a client subscription channel, the client subscription channel being assigned a unique identifier;

subscribing a first client device to the client subscription channel;

receiving a first incoming communication from a second client device, the first incoming communication using a first communication protocol and including the unique identifier assigned to the client subscription channel;

identifying the client subscription channel based on the unique identifier included in the first incoming communication;

publishing an incoming communication notification to the client subscription channel identified based on the unique identifier included in the first incoming communication, the incoming communication notification causing client devices that are subscribed to the client subscription channel to transmit a communication to the system bridge;

receiving a second incoming communication from the first client device, the second incoming communication using a second communication protocol, the first client device having transmitted the second incoming communication to the system bridge as a result of having received the incoming communication notification published to the client subscription channel; and

merging the first incoming communication received from the second client device and the second incoming communication received from the first client device, yielding an established communication channel between the first client device and the second client device, the established communication channel converting communications between the first communication protocol and the second communication protocol to allow for communication between the first client device and the second client device.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein merging the first incoming communication request and the second incoming communication request comprises:

opening a first audio channel between the first client device and the system bridge;

opening a second audio channel between the system bridge and a server; and

opening a third audio channel between the server and the second client device.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, the operations further comprising:

providing voice media communication between the first client device and the second client device via the first audio channel, the second audio channel, and the third audio channel.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the second client device is a public switched telephone network (PSTN) service provider system, the second client device opens a fourth audio channel between the PSTN service provider system and a PSTN user device, and voice media communication between the PSTN user device and the first client device is provided via the first audio channel, the second audio channel, the third audio channel, and the fourth audio channel.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the first audio channel between the first client device and the system bridge is a WebRTC audio channel.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, the operations further comprising:

establishing a second client subscription channel, the second client subscription channel being assigned a second unique identifier;

subscribing a third client device to the second client subscription channel;

receiving a third incoming communication from a fourth client device, the third incoming communication including the second unique identifier assigned to the second client subscription channel;

identifying the second client subscription channel based on the second unique identifier included in the third incoming communication;

publishing a second incoming communication notification to the second client subscription channel identified based on the second unique identifier included in the third incoming communication, the second incoming communication notification causing client devices that are subscribed to the client subscription channel to transmit a communication to the system bridge;

receiving a fourth incoming communication from the third client device, the third client device having transmitted the fourth incoming communication to the system bridge as a result of having received the second incoming communication notification published to the second client subscription channel; and

merging the third incoming communication received from the fourth client device and the fourth incoming communication received from the third client device, yielding an established communication channel between the third client device and the fourth client device.