DIAL UP TELEPHONE CONFERENCING SYSTEM CONTROLLED BY AN ONLINE COMPUTER NETWORK

• US 20120140909A1
• Filed: 11/30/2011
• Published: 06/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hanger Solutions, LLC (IP Investments Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Xugave Holding DE LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Solomon, Richard J., DeYoung, Tice F., Farber, David J., Johnson, Clark E. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 8,855,278 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/93.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/00 Telephonic communication systems specially adapted for combination with other electrical systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5009 Adding a party to an existing conference conducting a computer conference, e.g. admission detection H04L12/1822
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5027 Dropping a party from a conference conducting a computer conference, e.g. admission detection H04L12/1822
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5054 Meet-me conference, i.e. participants dial-in
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/12 intelligent networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/16 with computer telephone integration
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/563 User guidance or feature selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0009 where voice calls remain entirely in the telephone network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0012 Details of application programming interfaces [API] for telephone networks; Arrangements which combine a telephonic communication equipment and a computer, i.e. computer telephony integration [CPI] arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/06 using auxiliary connections for control or supervision , e.g. where the auxiliary connection is a signalling system number 7 link
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/126 Interworking of session control protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/128 Details of addressing, directories or routing tables

Abstract

In a telephone conferencing system, a digital communication network such as the Internet is used to establish and control the telephone connections between multiple conferees with the telephone network being the means of exchanging verbal information. Each conferee may have a computer connected to the digital network, and each has an independent telephone instrument connected to the public switched telephone network. An in-charge conferee utilizes his computer containing appropriate software to initiate the conference and to control the participation of the conferees. The in-charge conferee sends digital control signals to a switch interface controlling a telephone switch as a gateway to the telephone network using SS7 control signals. These SS7 control signals include the commands by which the conferee telephones are rung up, brought on line, or dropped from the conference.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a telephone, on an SS7 controlled network, such telephone to be used in exchanging audio information, the method comprising:

receiving, over an IP network, digital control signals relating to a telephone number of the telephone;

transmitting SS7 commands over an SS7 controlled network in response to the digital control signals to control the telephone;

obtaining connection status information relating to the telephone from the SS7 controlled network; and

transmitting the connection status information over the IP communication network.