Mail reception notifying system and mail reception notifying method

• US 6,587,681 B1
• Filed: 02/17/1998
• Issued: 07/01/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Mobile Communications Network Inc. (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Sawai, Koichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hunter, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Pablo N.
• Application Number:
  US08/952,403
• Time in Patent Office: 1,960 Days
• Field of Search: 455/412, 455/413, 455/422, 455/514, 455/414, 455/426, 455/515, 455/466, 455/560, 455/567, 455/550, 455/575, 455/90, 379/93.24, 379/88.25, 379/88.27, 379/88.28, 379/88.12, 379/88.13, 379/88.15, 379/93.74, 379/89
• US Class Current: 455/413
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/7243 with interactive means for internal management of messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/46 Arrangements for calling a number of substations in a predetermined sequence until an answer is obtained
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5307 for recording messages comprising any combination of audio and non-audio components
• 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: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements

Abstract

When the telephone number of digital portable telephone A is notified to reception notifying apparatus 3 (S101), the telephone number is stored (S102), and is forwarded to digital portable telephone B (S103). Next, when digital portable telephone B transmits a CALL SETUP signal and a sending number to digital portable telephone A (S104, S105), digital portable telephone A transmits a CALL PROC signal and an ALERT signal to digital portable telephone B (S106-S109). After that, information indicating that the busy line display is ON is forwarded to reception notifying apparatus 3 (S110), and the telephone number is deleted (S111). Furthermore, reception notifying apparatus 3 transmits a voice guidance to digital portable telephone A (S114).

Claims

1. A mail reception notifying system comprising:

(a) a reception notifying apparatus that, when there is a mail to be delivered to a user, initiates a notifying call to a telephone number registered in relation to the user and, when the notifying call is answered, sends to the telephone number a message carrying information on the mail to be retrieved;

(b) a communication network that determines whether the telephone number is receptive to a call and progresses, if it is determined receptive, the notifying call to the telephone number in order to convey the message to the telephone number; and

(c) a portable telephone having the telephone number that is responsive to the notifying call while on-hook to visually notify the user that there is a mail to be retrieved and, when brought off-hook to answer the notifying call, acoustically notifies the user of the mail to be retrieved by reproducing the message by sound.

2. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, further comprising a mail communication processing apparatus that receives mails for users who are registered therein in relation to their telephone numbers, wherein when receiving a mail to one of the users, the mail communication processing apparatus provides the reception notifying apparatus with information on the telephone number of the one of the users and the mail to be delivered to the one of the users.

3. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 2, wherein the reception notifying apparatus comprises a storage device that stores the information on the telephone number provided from the all communication processing apparatus, and a deleting device that deletes the information stored in the storage device after recognizing that the portable telephone has received the notifying call to visually notify the user that there is a mail to be delivered.

4. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, wherein users are registered in the reception notifying apparatus in relation to their telephone numbers.

5. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, wherein the mail is at least one mail selected from the group of an e-mail, a voice mail and a facsimile mail.

6. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, wherein the number is determined unreceptive to a call when the portable telephone is in use, turned off or located outside a service area.

7. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 6, wherein when the telephone number is determined unreceptive to a call, the reception notifying apparatus will initiate the notifying call at fixed intervals until the telephone number becomes receptive.

8. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, wherein the portable telephone can be set unreceptive to calls from particular callers.

9. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 8, wherein if the portable telephone is set to be unreceptive to notifying calls from the reception notifying apparatus, the notifying calls are discontinued after the portable telephone visually notifies the user that there is a mail to be retrieved.

10. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, wherein when the telephone number is determined unreceptive to a call, but if a telephone answering service is available for the telephone number, the reception notifying apparatus uses the telephone answering service to deliver the message to the telephone number.

11. A mail reception notifying system according to claim 1, wherein the portable telephone initiates an inquiring call to the reception notifying apparatus, and the reception notifying apparatus in return sends the message to the portable telephone when there is a mail to be delivered to the user.

12. A mail reception notifying method using a portable telephone that can be communicated with over a communication network, comprising the steps of:

(a) initiating a notifying call to the portable telephone when there is a mail to be delivered to a user who has the portable telephone;

(b) determining at the communication network whether or not the portable telephone is receptive to a call;

(c) progressing the notifying call to the portable telephone if it is determined receptive to a call;

(d) in response to the notifying call, visually notifying the user at the portable phone while on-hook that there is a mail to be retrieved;

(e) when the portable telephone is brought off-hook to answer the notifying call, sending to the portable telephone a message carrying information on the mail to be retrieved; and

(f) acoustically notifying the user at the portable telephone of the mail to be retrieved by reproducing the message by sound.

13. A mail reception notifying method according to claim 12, wherein the mail is at least one mail selected from the group of an e-mail, a voice mail and a facsimile mail.

14. A mail reception notifying method according to claim 12, wherein the portable telephone is determined unreceptive in the above step (b) when the portable telephone is in use, turned off or located outside a service area.

15. A mail reception notifying method according to claim 14, further including the step of initiating the notifying call when the portable telephone is determined unreceptive to a call until it becomes receptive.

16. A mail reception notifying method according to claim 12, wherein if a telephone answering service is available for the portable telephone, the method includes the step of using the telephone answering service to deliver the message to the portable telephone if the portable telephone is determined unreceptive to a call in the above step (b).

17. A mail reception notifying method according to claim 12, further including the steps of sending an inquiring call from the portable telephone and sending, in return, the portable telephone the message carrying information on the mail to be retrieved if any.

18. A mail reception notifying method using a portable telephone that can be set unreceptive to calls from particular callers, comprising the steps of:

(a) initiating a notifying call to the portable telephone when there is a mail to be delivered to a user who has the portable telephone;

(b) in response to the notifying call, visually notifying the user at the portable telephone while on-hook that there is a mail to be retrieved;

(c) discontinuing the notifying call if the portable telephone is set unreceptive to calls from a caller of the notifying call;

(d) if the portable telephone is set receptive to calls from the caller of the notifying call, sending to the portable telephone a message carrying information on the mail to be retrieved when the portable telephone is brought off-hook to answer the notifying call; and

(f) acoustically notifying the user at the portable telephone of the mail to be retrieved by reproducing the message by sound.