System and method for providing telephone service having private branch exchange features in a voice-over-data network telephony system

• US 6,804,224 B1
• Filed: 02/29/2000
• Issued: 10/12/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: 3Com Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Mahler, Jerry J., Dean, Frederick D., Grabiec, Jacek A., Sidhu, Ikhlaq S., Schuster, Guido M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tan, Dang
• Assistant Examiner(s): Phan, Tri H.
• Application Number:
  US09/515,365
• Time in Patent Office: 1,687 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88.17, 379/90.01, 379/93.01, 370/338, 370/352-353, 370/354, 370/400, 370/401, 370/395.2, 370/230, 370/389, 370/427
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1245 where a network other than PSTN/ISDN interconnects two PSTN/ISDN networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1285 Details of finding and selecting a gateway for a particular call

Abstract

A system and method for providing telephone service to a user of a telecommunications device using a data network service provider. The data network service provider has a local service host that is accessible by a local access identifier. A caller uses a telecommunications device to dial the local access identifier to connect to the local service host. In response to a prompt, the caller dials a telephone extension that identifies the callee'"'"'s telecommunications device. The local service host receives the telephone extension and verifies that the callee is a subscriber. The local service host then retrieves the gateway nearest the callee telecommunications device and opens a voice-over-data channel between the callee and caller gateways. The telephone conversation then proceeds between the callee and caller telecommunications devices over a public switched telephone network connection to the caller gateway, the voice-over-data channel and the PSTN connection to the callee telecommunications device.

Claims

1. A system for providing a telephone connection between a caller telecommunications device and a callee telecommunications device using a packet-switched data network, the system comprising:

a local service host having a user record to match an extension identifier to the callee telecommunications device, and a local access identifier to connect to the local service host from the caller telecommunications device;

a caller gateway having a network interface operable to connect to the packet-switched data network and a first public-switched telephone network (PSTN) interface operable to connect to the caller telecommunications device;

a callee gateway having a second network interface operable to connect to the packet-switched data network and a second PSTN interface operable to connect to the callee telecommunications device;

the caller gateway operable to open a first PSTN connection to the caller telecommunications device and a data channel to the local access host when the caller telecommunications device communicates the local access identifier;

the caller and callee gateways comprising a telephony signal to data packet converter to communicate voice signals from the caller and callee telecommunications devices as voice-over-data packets on the data network, and a data packet to telephony signal converter to communicate voice-over-data packets on the data network as voice signals to the caller and callee telecommunications devices; and

a telephone connection controller operable to receive the extension identifier on the data channel connection to the caller gateway, to open a second PSTN connection between the callee gateway and the callee telecommunications device, and to open a voice-over-data channel between the caller gateway and the callee gateway, wherein the telephone connection between the caller and callee telecommunications devices includes the first and second PSTN connections and the voice-over-data channel.

2. A local telephony server connected to a data network comprising:

a local access identifier comprising a sequence of alphanumeric characters to open a connection with a calling telecommunications device, the connection comprising a first PSTN connection between the calling telecommunications device and a data channel to the local telephony server, the connection used by the calling telecommunications device to communicate a callee extension identifier to the local telephony server;

a plurality of user account records to match the callee extension identifier to the callee telecommunications device; and

a telephone connection controller operable to receive the callee extension identifier on the connection to the caller telecommunications device, the telephone connection controller operable to open a second PSTN connection between a callee gateway and the callee telecommunications device when the caller telecommunications device communicates the extension identifier to the local telephony server;

the telephone connection controller operable to open a voice-over-data channel between the caller and callee gateways, wherein a telephone connection between the callee and caller telecommunications devices includes the first and second PSTN connections and the voice-over-data channel.

3. A method for providing a telephone connection between a callee telecommunications device and a caller telecommunications device using a packet-switched network comprising the steps of:

storing an extension identifier corresponding to the callee telecommunications device and a callee gateway near the callee telecommunications device in a local service host;

initiating a data connection between the calling telecommunications device and the local service host by the steps of;

dialing a local access identifier at the calling telecommunications device to establish a first public-switched telephone network (PSTN) connection between the calling telecommunications device and a caller gateway; and

connecting to the local service host from the caller gateway with a data connection comprising the first PSTN connection and the data communications channel;

dialing the extension identifier at the calling telecommunications device and sending to the local service host;

opening a voice-over-data channel between the caller gateway and the callee gateway to communicate voice signals from the caller and callee gateways as voice-over-data packets; and

opening a second PSTN connection between the callee gateway and the callee telecommunications device;

wherein the telephone connection between the calling and callee telecommunications devices comprises the first PSTN connection, the voice-over-data channel and the second PSTN connection.

4. A method for providing telephony service by a data service provider comprising the steps of:

providing a telephony service host having a telephony service database to store a user account record having an extension identifier corresponding to a callee telecommunications device, the telephony service host being accessible by a caller telecommunications device communicating a local access identifier via a caller gateway; and

providing a telephony connection controller to open a telephone connection between the caller and callee telecommunications devices using a method comprising the steps of;

receiving the extension identifier when the telephony service host connects to the caller telecommunications device in response to the local access identifier;

retrieving a telephone number corresponding to the extension identifier from the telephony service database;

retrieving a callee gateway identifier corresponding to a callee gateway near the callee telecommunications device;

opening a voice-over-data channel between the caller gateway and the callee gateway;

opening a second PSTN connection between the callee gateway and the callee telecommunications device; and

communicating voice signals between the callee and the caller telecommunications devices over the telephone connection comprising the first PSTN connection, the voice-over-data channel and the second PSTN connection.