Network based voice mail with call screening

• US 20060072711A1
• Filed: 11/03/2005
• Published: 04/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Urs A. Muller
• Original Assignee: Urs A. Muller
• Inventors: Muller, Urs A.
• Granted Patent: US 7,593,513 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/67.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/64 Automatic arrangements for answering calls; Automatic arrangements for recording messages for absent subscribers; Arrangements for recording conversations centralised dictation systems H04M11/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6505 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/652 Means for playing back the recorded messages by remote control over a telephone line H04M1/658 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/658 Means for redirecting recorded messages to other extensions or equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4563 Voicemail monitoring during recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/658 Combination of voice calls and paging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53333 Message receiving aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53358 Message preview
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/537 Arrangements for indicating the presence of a recorded message , whereby the presence information might include a preview or summary of the message
• 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

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention provide a network based voice mail system that includes advantages of traditional answering machines. When a call comes in that is not answered, a Remote Answering Device may pick up after a preselected number of rings and play a prerecorded greeting that is stored locally and then prompt the caller to wait for the beep. The Remote Answering Device may use three-way calling service to conference the user'"'"'s voice mail number into the call. When a conference call is established it plays the beep and then plays the message which is being recording live on the speaker. If a call is received by the network based voice mail system that did not first pass through the Remote Answering Device, the network based voice mail system may synchronize the Remote Answering Device with the network based voice mail system.

Claims

1. A voice mail system comprising:

a network based voice mail system including a user voice mail box;

a remote answering device coupled to a user'"'"'s incoming telephone line;

a telephone network that is to provide a three-way calling service, wherein the remote answering device answers an incoming call after a predetermined number of rings, and conferences in the user'"'"'s voice mail box in the network based voice mail system using the three-way calling service of the telephone network; and

a synchronization device that is to synchronize a network message count indicating a number of messages in the user'"'"'s voice mail box, with a remote answering device message count at the remote answering device when a message is received at the user'"'"'s voice mail box that has not been received at the remote answering device.

2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an Internet interface via which a user can access the user voice mail box.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the Internet interface comprises a World Wide Web site that the user can access using a personal computer running a Web browser to review messages in the user'"'"'s voice mail box in the network based voice mail system.

4. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of remote answering devices, each disposed at different locations and different incoming telephone lines, wherein each of the plurality of remote answering devices accesses the same user'"'"'s voice mail box.

5. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a wireless remote answering device being couplable to the network based voice mail system via a wireless communications network and including command functionality similar to the remote answering device coupled to the user'"'"'s incoming telephone line.

6. A remote answering device comprising:

a modem that is to answer an incoming call upon detecting a predetermined number of rings, dial a user'"'"'s voice mail box in a network based voice mail system using a three-way calling service and conference the incoming call with the user'"'"'s voice mail box;

a memory that is to store a local greeting that is played to a caller while the user'"'"'s mail box in the network based voice mail system is being conferenced; and

a paging receiver that is to receive a paging signal that indicates that a message exists in the network based voice mail system that was not received by the remote answering device, and to output a numerical code indicating a message count.

7. The device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a speaker coupled to the modem, wherein the modern is to output a voice signal from the incoming call to the speaker.

8. The device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a message number display coupled to the processor displaying a count of the messages in the network based voice mail system, wherein the paging receiver receives a page from the network based voice mail system indicating that a message has been received in the user'"'"'s voice mail box without passing through the remote answering device, and wherein the paging receiver outputs the message count to the processor which updates the message number display.

9. The device according to claim 6, wherein the processor that is to detect a change in an impedance of the telephone line which indicates that a telephone extension has been picked up, and wherein the processor is to output a signal to drop the voice mail box from the conference call in response to the change in the detected impedance.

10. The device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a plurality of control buttons coupled to the processor.

11. The device according to claim 10, wherein the plurality of control buttons include at least one selected from the group consisting of play, stop, delete, record, skip, fast, slow, save, and rewind.

12. The device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a telephone built into the device.

13. The device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a number keypad for entering in the predetermined telephone number of the user'"'"'s voice mail box and for entering in the optional predetermined access codes for accessing the user'"'"'s voice mail box.

15. The device according to claim 7, wherein the message being recorded by the caller is simultaneously being played over the speaker.

16. The device according to claim 6, further comprising.

a play button, wherein the processor initiates a call to the user'"'"'s voice mail box upon the play button being pressed and the processor queries the user'"'"'s voice mail box to determine how many messages remain in the user'"'"'s voice mail box, and if different than those contained in a count maintained by the processor, the processor synchronizes its count to that of the user'"'"'s voice mail box.

17. The device according to claim 16, wherein the modem receives data from the user'"'"'s voice mail box while simultaneously receiving voice signals.

18. The device according to claim 16, wherein the processor periodically calls in to the voice mail box to synchronize its message indicator.

19. The device according to claim 6, wherein the remote answering device further comprises a tape recorder, which records incoming messages simultaneously along with the network based voice mail system.

20. The device according to claim 6, wherein the network based voice mail system indicates to a caller that the call to the user did not go through if the call to the user does not get through to the remote answering device.

14. (canceled)

21. A method comprising:

receiving a call at a remote answering device;

establishing a communications bridge between the remote answering device and an Internet accessible voice mail system;

after the communications bridge is established, recording a message at the Internet accessible voice mail system;

playing the message at the remote answering device as the message is being recorded at the Internet accessible voice mail system; and

synchronizing a system message count, indicating a number of messages in the Internet accessible voice mail system, with a device message count at the remote answering device.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprises:

recording the message at the remote answering device.

23. The method of claim 21, further comprises:

transmitting a signal to the remote answering device indicating that a message has been recorded in the voice mail system, if the message has not previously passed through the remote answering device.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the signal is a paging signal.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

receiving the signal at the remote answering device;

updating the device message count at the remote answering device based on the signal received at the remote answering device.

26. The method of claim 21, further comprises:

receiving a request for the message recorded at the Internet accessible voice message system from a user via a World Wide Web site; and

transmitting the recorded message to the user in response to the request.

27. The method claim 21, further comprises:

playing a local greeting at the remote answering device while the communications bridge is being established.

28. A system comprising:

a remote answering device that is to receive an incoming call;

an Internet accessible voice mail system;

a communications bridge established between the remote answering device and the Internet accessible voice mail system, wherein the Internet accessible voice mail system is to record a message after the communications bridge is established and wherein the remote answering device is to play the message as the message is being recorded at the Internet accessible voice mail system; and

a synchronizing device that is to synchronize a system message count, indicating a number of messages in the Internet accessible voice mail system, with a device message count at the remote answering device.

29. The system of claim 28, wherein the synchronizing device comprises:

a paging transmitter, coupled to the Internet accessible voice mail system, wherein the paging is to transmit a signal indicating a system message count;

a paging receiver coupled to the remote answering device, wherein the paging receiver to receive the signal indicating the system message count.

30. The system of claim 29, further comprises:

an Internet interface, wherein a user can access the message stored at the Internet accessible voice mail system via the Internet accessible voice mail system.

31. A method comprising:

receiving a call at an Internet accessible voice mail system;

recording a message at the Internet accessible voice mail system;

receiving a query from a remote answering device via a communications bridge established by the remote answering device;

transmitting a signal indicating a number of messages recorded at the Internet accessible voice mail system via the communications bridge to the remote answering device in response to the query; and

transmitting the message recorded at the Internet accessible voice mail system via the communications bridge to the remote answering device in response to the query.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the signal indicating the number of messages recorded and the recorded message are transmitted simultaneously to the remote answering device.

33. The method of claim 31, further comprises:

receiving a request for the message recorded at the Internet accessible voice message system from a user via a World Wide Web site; and

transmitting the recorded message to the user in response to the request.