Telecommunication call management and monitoring system with voiceprint verification

• US 9,686,402 B2
• Filed: 09/25/2015
• Issued: 06/20/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Global Tel-Link Corporation
• Original Assignee: Global Tel-Link Corporation
• Inventors: Hodge, Stephen Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin, Jean
• Application Number:
  US14/865,779
• Publication Number:
  US 20160021243A1
• Time in Patent Office: 634 Days
• Field of Search: 455565, 455405, 455410, 455411, 455415, 455418, 455419, 455420, 455563, 455569, 379114, 379118, 379191, 379 9302, 37914205, 379 8826, 379 8802, 379200, 379188, 704244, 704270, 704207, 704208, 704246
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/08 Speech classification or search
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/083 Recognition networks G10L15/142, G10L15/16 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/088 Word spotting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/28 characterised by path configuration, e.g. LAN [Local Area Networks] or WAN [Wide Area Networks] wireless communication networks H04W ; arrangements for dividing the transmission path H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/126 the source of the received data
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/67 by electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/673 the user being required to key in a code
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/677 Preventing the dialling or sending of predetermined telephone numbers or selected types of telephone numbers, e.g. long distance numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/305 Wireless codes, e.g. Bluetooth or RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/41 using speaker recognition speaker recognition per se G10L17/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6054 Biometric subscriber identification
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/12 Language recognition, selection or translation arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/2218 Call detail recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/2281 Call monitoring, e.g. for law enforcement purposes; Call tracing; Detection or prevention of malicious calls
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/38 Graded-service arrangements, i.e. some subscribers prevented from establishing certain connections queuing arrangements H04Q3/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/382 using authorisation codes or passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/385 using speech signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4211 : where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 : Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1295 : Details of dual tone multiple frequency signalling
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 : Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 : Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/10 : Integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/72 : Subscriber identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 : Negotiating wireless communication parameters

Abstract

A secure telephone call management system is provided for authenticating users of a telephone system in an institutional facility. Authentication of the users of the telephone call management system is accomplished by using a personal identification number, biometric means, and/or radio frequency means. The secure telephone call management system includes accounting software capable of limiting access to the system based on funds in a user'"'"'s account, and includes management software capable of implementing widespread or local changes to the system. The system monitors a conversation in the telephone call to detect a presence of a first characteristic in audio of the conversation, and terminates the telephone call if the first characteristic does not match a second characteristic of biometric information of a user or a called party.

Claims

1. A call management system for detecting an unauthorized party to a telephone conversation between a local user and a remote user, the system comprising:

a voiceprint database; and

a control platform configured to;

store voiceprints of authorized local users in the voiceprint database;

monitor audio information of the telephone conversation;

detect a first characteristic of the local user in the audio information;

search the stored voiceprints for a first matching voiceprint based on the first characteristic;

identify the local user based on the first characteristic;

detect a second characteristic in the audio information;

identify the second characteristic as belonging to a second local user based on a comparison of the second characteristic to the first matching voiceprint;

search the stored voiceprints for a second matching voiceprint based on the second characteristic; and

determine whether the second local user is authorized to participate in the telephone conversation based on results of the search.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the first characteristic and the second characteristic is at least one of a pitch, a loudness, a frequency or a timbre.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the control platform is further configured to terminate the telephone conversation in response to determining that the second local user is not authorized.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the control platform is further configured to:

adjust a stored voiceprint using a sample of the audio information; and

store the adjusted voiceprint.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein, to adjust the stored voiceprint, the control platform is configured to extract a current voiceprint from the audio information and compute an average value of the current voiceprint and the stored voiceprint.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the control platform is further configured to monitor the audio information for predetermined keywords.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the monitored audio information is only a local side of the telephone conversation.

8. A call management system for detecting an unauthorized party to a telephone conversation between a local user and a remote user, the system comprising:

a voiceprint database; and

a control platform configured to;

store voiceprints of authorized remote users in the voiceprint database;

monitor audio information of the telephone conversation;

detect a first characteristic of the remote user in the audio information;

search the stored voiceprints for a first matching voiceprint based on the first characteristic;

identify the remote user based on the first characteristic;

detect a second characteristic in the audio information;

identify the second characteristic as belonging to a second remote user based on a comparison of the second characteristic to the first matching voiceprint;

search the stored voiceprints for a second matching voiceprint based on the second characteristic; and

determine whether the second remote user is authorized to participate in the telephone conversation based on results of the search.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein each of the first characteristic and the second characteristic is at least one of a pitch, a loudness, a frequency or a timbre.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the control platform is further configured to terminate the telephone conversation in response to determining that the second remote user is not authorized.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the control platform is further configured to:

adjust a stored voiceprint using a sample of the audio information; and

store the adjusted voiceprint.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein, to adjust the stored voiceprint, the control platform is configured to extract a current voiceprint from the audio information and compute an average value of the current voiceprint and the stored voiceprint.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the control platform is further configured to monitor the audio information for predetermined keywords.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the monitored audio information is only a remote side of the telephone conversation.

15. A method of call management to detect an unauthorized party to a telephone conversation, the method comprising:

storing voiceprints including voiceprints of users authorized to participate in the telephone conversation;

monitoring audio information of the telephone conversation;

detecting a first characteristic of a first user in the audio information;

searching the stored voiceprints for a first matching voiceprint based on the first characteristic;

identifying the first user based on the first characteristic;

detecting a second characteristic in the audio information;

identifying the second characteristic as belonging to a second user based on a comparison of the second characteristic to the first matching voiceprint;

searching the stored voiceprints for a second matching voiceprint based on the second characteristic; and

determining whether the second user is authorized to participate in the telephone conversation based on results of the search.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the monitored audio information is only a local side.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the monitored audio information is only a remote side.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein each of the first characteristic and the second characteristic is at least one of a pitch, a loudness, a frequency or a timbre.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising terminating the telephone conversation in response to determining that the second user is not authorized.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising monitoring the audio information for predetermined keywords.