Resending a Message to a Message Center Based on a Signal Strength

• US 20070287425A1
• Filed: 06/12/2006
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bates, Cary Lee
• Granted Patent: US 7,610,042 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/412.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/14 using intermediate storage
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements

Abstract

In an embodiment, a message is sent from a source telephone to a message center if a message indication is received by the source telephone in response to a call from the source telephone directed to a target telephone. The message indication indicates that the target telephone does not answer the call. The message center saves the message. If a signal strength of a transmission between the source telephone and the message center during the sending of the message is below a low signal-strength threshold, then the message is recorded to an overlay message at the source telephone. Once the signal strength between the source telephone and the message center exceeds a high signal-strength threshold, an overlay package that includes the overlay message is sent from the source telephone to the target telephone, and the message center replaces the message with the overlay message if the message exists at the message center. In this way, the target telephone may retrieve the overlay message, which was sent with a greater signal strength.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

sending a message from a source telephone to a message center if a message indication is received by the source telephone from the message center in response to a call from the source telephone directed to a target telephone;

recording the message to an overlay message in an overlay package at the source telephone if a first signal strength of a transmission between the source telephone and the message center during the sending is below a low signal-strength threshold;

after the recording, determining whether a second signal strength between the source telephone and the message center exceeds a high signal-strength threshold; and

sending the overlay package from the source telephone to the message center if the second signal strength exceeds the high signal-strength threshold and if the overlay message was recorded.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the overlay package further comprises:

a source telephone identifier;

a target telephone identifier; and

a time that the message was sent to the message center.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the message center saves the message.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the message center receives the overlay package from the source telephone and replaces the message with the overlay message if the message exists at the message center, wherein the message exists at the message center if the message has not been deleted in response to a request from the target telephone.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the message center determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether the source telephone identifier in the overlay package matches the source telephone that sent the message.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the message center further determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether the target telephone identifier in the overlay package matches the target telephone of the message.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the message center further determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether the time in the overlay package matches the time that the message was sent.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the message center further determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether a length of the overlay message matches a length of the message.

9. A signal-bearing medium encoded with instructions, wherein the instructions when executed comprise:

sending a message from a source telephone to a message center if a message indication is received by the source telephone from the message center in response to a call from the source telephone directed to a target telephone, wherein the message indication indicates that the target telephone does not answer the call;

recording the message to an overlay message in an overlay package at the source telephone if a first signal strength of a transmission between the source telephone and the message center during the sending is below a low signal-strength threshold, wherein the recording further comprises saving a source telephone identifier, a target telephone identifier, and a time that the message was sent in the overlay package;

after the recording, determining whether a second signal strength between the source telephone and the message center exceeds a high signal-strength threshold, wherein the high signal-strength threshold exceeds the low signal-strength threshold; and

sending the overlay package from the source telephone to the message center if the second signal strength exceeds the high signal-strength threshold and if the overlay message was recorded.

10. The signal-bearing medium of claim 9, wherein the message center saves the message, and wherein the message center receives the overlay package from the source telephone and replaces the message with the overlay message if the message exists at the message center, wherein the message exists at the message center if the message has not been deleted in response to a request from the target telephone.

11. The signal-bearing medium of claim 10, further comprising:

sending a test message to the message center;

retrieving the test message from the message center; and

adjusting the low signal-strength threshold and the high signal-strength threshold based on a signal-strength of a transmission of the retrieving the test message.

12. The signal-bearing medium of claim 11, wherein the adjusting further comprises:

if the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving the test message is between the high signal-strength threshold and the low signal-strength threshold and the test message as retrieved is identical to the test message as sent, adjusting the high signal-strength threshold to below the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving of the test message.

13. The signal-bearing medium of claim 11, wherein the adjusting further comprises:

if the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving the test message is below the low signal-strength threshold and the test message as retrieved is identical to the test message as sent, adjusting the high signal-strength threshold and the low signal-strength threshold to below the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving of the test message.

14. The signal-bearing medium of claim 11, wherein the adjusting further comprises:

if the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving the test message is between the high signal-strength threshold and the low signal-strength threshold and the test message as retrieved is not identical to the test message as sent, adjusting the low signal-strength threshold to above the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving of the test message.

15. The signal-bearing medium of claim 11, wherein the adjusting further comprises:

if the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving the test message is above the high signal-strength threshold, adjusting the high signal-strength threshold and the low signal-strength threshold to above the signal strength of the transmission of the retrieving of the test message.

16. A source telephone comprising:

a processor; and

a storage device communicatively coupled to the processor, wherein the storage device is encoded with instructions, wherein the instructions when executed on the processor comprise;

sending a message from a source telephone to a message center if a message indication is received by the source telephone from the message center in response to a call from the source telephone directed to a target telephone, wherein the message indication indicates that the target telephone does not answer the call, wherein the message center saves the message,

recording the message to an overlay message in an overlay package at the source telephone if a first signal strength of a transmission between the source telephone and the message center during the sending is below a low signal-strength threshold, wherein the recording further comprises saving a source telephone identifier, a target telephone identifier, and a time that the message was sent in the overlay package,

after the recording, determining whether a second signal strength between the source telephone and the message center exceeds a high signal-strength threshold, wherein the high signal-strength threshold exceeds the low signal-strength threshold, and

sending the overlay package from the source telephone to the message center if the second signal strength exceeds the high signal-strength threshold and if the overlay message was recorded.

17. The source telephone of claim 16, wherein the message center receives the overlay package from the source telephone and replaces the message with the overlay message if the message exists at the message center, wherein the message exists at the message center if the message has not been deleted in response to a request from the target telephone.

18. The source telephone of claim 17, wherein the message center determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether the source telephone identifier in the overlay package matches the source telephone that sent the message.

19. The source telephone of claim 18, wherein the message center further determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether the target telephone identifier in the overlay package matches the target telephone of the message.

20. The source telephone of claim 18, wherein the message center further determines if the message exists at the message center by determining whether the time in the overlay package matches the time that the message was sent.