System and method for providing service provider configurations for telephones using a central server in a data network telephony system

• US 6,856,616 B1
• Filed: 11/30/2000
• Issued: 02/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Uniloc 2017 LLC (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: 3Com Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Schuster, Guido M., Sidhu, Ikhlaq S., Bezaitis, Andrew, Gentles, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Wellington
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fox, Jamal A.
• Application Number:
  US09/728,833
• Time in Patent Office: 1,538 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352, 370/389, 370/357, 370/270, 370/271, 370/353, 370/354, 370/420, 370/355, 370/356, 370/395.52, 370/395.5, 455/435.1, 455/414.1, 455/423, 455/425, 379/201.01, 379/201.02, 379/201.03, 379/201.05
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1043 Gateway controllers, e.g. media gateway control protocol [MGCP] controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1096 Supplementary features, e.g. call forwarding or call holding systems providing special services or facilities to telephony subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1106 Call signalling protocols; H.323 and related
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42272 whereby the subscriber registers to the terminals for personalised service provision
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0025 Provisions for signalling

Abstract

A system and method for providing service provider configured telephone service to a user of a data network telephone. The user connects a data network telephone to the data network. The data network telephone may establish a connection to a telephone configuration server. The data network telephone may communicate a part number, such as a serial number, to the telephone configurations server. The telephone configuration server retrieves a service provider configuration, such as a service provider proxy address to send to the data network telephone. The data network telephone may use the service provider proxy address to register and provision the data network telephone for service.

Claims

1. A system for configuring a telephone for service comprising:

a data network to provide data connectivity for a plurality of data communications channels using data transport protocols;

at least one data network telephone connected to the data network, the data network telephone operable to communicate voice signals as data packets on a voice over data channel, the voice over data channel being one of the plurality of data communications channels on the data network containing packetized voice signals, the data network telephone being operable to convert data packets communicated on the voice over data channel to voice;

a telephone configuration server connected to the data network, the telephone configuration server comprising at east one service provider configuration comprising at least one voice communications function; and

a telephone part number comprising any combination of alphanumeric characters, the telephone configuration server being operable to associate the telephone part number with a selected one of the at least one service provider configurations, wherein the selected one of the at least one service provider configuration includes a service provider proxy address associated with a telephone service provider, and wherein the telephone configuration server provides the service provider proxy address to the at least one data network telephone in response to receiving the telephone part number the data network telephone.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the service provider server includes a network telephony connection server operable to perform registration functions, the registration functions being operable to enable the data network telephone to communicate on the data network.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the network telephony connection server uses a call management protocol perform registration functions.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the call management protocol is a protocol selected from the group consisting of:

Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), H.323, MGCP and MEGACO.

5. The system of claim 1 further comprising a telephone service mapping system operable to associate the telephone part number with the service provider configuration.

6. A telephone for communicating voice signals on a data network telephony system, the telephone comprising:

a network interface to sense a network connection;

a signaling stack operable to perform call initiation functions;

a media engine operable to perform data communications functions, the media engine comprising a voice function operable to communicate digitized voice signals on data packets;

a telephone configuration identifier operable to establish a connection to a telephone configuration server comprising at least one service provider configuration; and

a telephone part number comprising any combination of alphanumeric characters associated with a selected one of the at least one service provider configurations in the telephone configuration server, wherein the selected one of the at least one service provider configurations includes a service provider proxy address associated with a service provider server operable to configure a data network telephone, the data network telephone being operable to provide the telephone part number to the telephone configuration server and, in response to providing the telephone part number, to receive the selected one of the at least one service provider configurations during the connection with the telephone configuration server.

7. The telephone of claim 6, further comprising:

a service initialization function operable to establish a connection to the telephone configuration server an to receive configuration information from the telephone configuration server.

8. The telephone of claim 7 wherein the telephone receives a service provider proxy address from the telephone configuration server, the service provider proxy address associated with a service provider server, the telephone further comprising a register function to connect to the service provider server to obtain a telephone configuration.

9. The telephone of claim 8 wherein:

the telephone includes a display device;

wherein, the telephone configuration includes a service provider logo and the registration function displays the service provider logo on the display.

10. A telephone configuration server comprising:

a phone configuration database comprising a plurality of data network telephone part numbers; and

at least one service provider configuration comprising features in accordance with a telephone service provider, wherein the at least one service provider configuration includes a service provider proxy address associated with a service provider server, the telephone configuration server operable to communicate the service provider configuration to a data network telephone associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of telephone part numbers in response to receiving the corresponding one of the plurality of telephone part numbers from the data network telephone.

11. The telephone configuration server of claim 10 wherein the service provider configuration includes a service provider proxy address associated with a service provider server, the telephone configuration server operable to communicate the service provider proxy address to the data network telephone.

12. The telephone configuration server of claim 10 further comprising a mapping function operable to receive at least one telephone part number associated with at least one service provider configuration.

13. A method of configuring a data network telephone to perform telephone service function in accordance with a telephone service provider, the method comprising the steps of:

connecting to a telephone configuration server;

sending a telephone part number associated with the data network telephone to the telephone configuration server;

receiving a service provider configuration corresponding to the telephone part number, wherein the service provider configuration includes a service provider proxy address associated with a service provider server operable to configure the data network telephone; and

configuring the data network telephone in accordance with the service provider configuration.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of receiving the service provider configuration includes step of receiving a service provider proxy address.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the step of configuring the data network telephone includes the step of connecting to a service provider server associated with the service provider proxy address.

16. The method of claim 13 further comprising the step of mapping the service provider configuration to the hone part number, the step of mapping comprising the steps of:

sending the telephone phone part number associated with the data network telephone to the telephone configuration server; and

sending the service provider configuration corresponding to the telephone part number to the telephone configuration server.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the step of mapping is performed in a method for manufacturing the data network telephone.

18. A method of providing service provider selected configurations of a data network telephone from a central server, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a telephone part number corresponding to the data network telephone;

receiving a service provider configuration corresponding to the telephone part number from a telephone configuration database, wherein the service provider configuration includes a service provider proxy address associated with a service provider server operable to configure the data network telephone; and

sending the service provider configuration to the data network telephone.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising, before the step of receiving the telephone part numbers the step of mapping at least one telephone part number to a corresponding service provider configuration.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the step of mapping the telephone part number comprises the step of:

connecting to data network telephone;

receiving a selected telephone part number corresponding to the data network telephone;

receiving selected service provider configuration corresponding to the telephone part number; and

storing the selected telephone part number in correspondence with the service provider configuration.