System and method for determining and communicating presence information

• US 9,942,394 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2016
• Issued: 04/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Twilio, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Twilio, Inc.
• Inventors: Lawson, Jeff, Cooke, Evan, Simutis, Robert J., Malatack, Patrick, Conroy, Kyle
• Primary Examiner(s): DEAN, JR, JOSEPH E
• Application Number:
  US15/337,087
• Publication Number:
  US 20170048386A1
• Time in Patent Office: 529 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/043 using or handling presence information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42374 where the information is provided to a monitoring entity such as a potential calling party or a call processing server
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold

Abstract

A system and method for communicating presence information that can include at a first server of a communication platform, receiving an authorization token of a first client application; verifying at least one permission associated with the authorization token; registering a presence status of the first client application upon verifying the at least one permission of the authorization token; at a second server of the communication platform, accepting an incoming communication request; retrieving communication instructions according to the incoming communication request; identifying an instruction to communicate with a communication destination of the first client application; accessing the presence status resource of the first client application; establishing communication with the first client application according to the accessed presence status resource.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

responsive to a presence status change of a first client application of a first client device, the first client device providing presence information of the first client application for a first account to an external presence server via an API of the presence server;

the first client device providing a first presence request to the presence server via the API, the first presence request being a request for presence information for a first contact list of a plurality of accounts specified by the first presence request;

the first client device receiving the presence information for the first contact list from the presence server via the API;

the first client device processing the presence information of the first presence request by using the first client application;

the first client device providing a second presence request to the presence server via the API, the second presence request being a request for presence information for the first contact list;

the first client device receiving the presence information of the second presence request from the presence server via the API;

the first client device processing the presence information of the second presence request by using a second client application of the first client device; and

responsive to a presence status change of a third client application of a second client device of a second account, the second client device providing presence information of the third client application for the second account to the presence server via the API of the presence server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the presence server stores first presence information for the first account.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first presence information for the first account includes the presence information of the first client application.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the presence information of the first client application indicates whether the first client application for the first account is available for communication.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the presence information of the first presence request indicates each client application available for communication for each account of the first contact list, wherein the presence information of the second presence request indicates each client application available for communication for each account of the first contact list, and wherein the second client application is different from the first client application.

6. The method of claim 5,

wherein the first client application of the first client device provides the first presence request to the presence server via the API, and

wherein the second client application of the first client device provides the second presence request to the presence server via the API.

7. The method of claim 6,

wherein the presence information of the third client application for the second account indicates whether the third client application for the second account is available for communication,

wherein the presence server stores second presence information for the second account,

wherein the second presence information for the second account includes the presence information of the third client application, and

wherein the presence information of the first presence request includes the second presence information for the second account.

8. The method of claim 7,

wherein the presence information of the first presence request includes presence information of a plurality of accounts, and for each account, the presence information of the first presence request includes presence information for each client application and each device of the account, and

wherein the presence information of the second presence request includes presence information of the plurality of accounts included in the presence information of the first presence request, and for each account, the presence information of the first presence request includes presence information for each client application and each device of the account.

9. The method of claim 5,

further comprising:

responsive to a presence status change of a client application of a second client device of the first account, the second client device providing presence information of the client application of the second client device for the first account to the presence server via the API of the presence server,

wherein the presence server stores the presence information of the client application of the second client device in association with the first presence information for the first account, and

wherein the presence information of the client application of the second client device for the first account indicates whether the client application of the second client device is available for communication.

10. The method of claim 8,

further comprising:

responsive to a presence status change of a client application of a second client device of the first account, the second client device providing presence information of the client application of the second client device to the presence server via the API of the presence server,

wherein the presence server stores the presence information of the client application of the second client device in association with the first presence information for the first account, and

wherein the presence information of the client application of the second client device for the first account indicates whether the client application of the second client device is available for communication.

11. The method of claim 5,

wherein the presence information of the third client application for the second account indicates whether the third client application for the second account is available for communication,

wherein the presence server stores second presence information for the second account,

wherein the second presence information for the second account includes the presence information of the third client application, and

wherein the presence information of the first presence request includes the second presence information for the second account.

12. The method of claim 5, wherein the presence information of the second presence request includes the second presence information for the second account.

13. The method of claim 11,

further comprising:

the second client device providing a third presence request to the presence server via the API, the third presence request being a request for presence information for a second contact list of a plurality of accounts specified by the third presence request, wherein the first account is included in the second contact list,

the second client device receiving the presence information for the second contact list from the presence server via the API, and

the second client device processing the presence information of the second contact list by using the third client application,

wherein the received presence information for the second contact list includes the first presence information for the first account.

14. The method of claim 1,

wherein the presence information of the third client application for the second account indicates whether the third client application for the second account is available for communication,

wherein the presence server stores second presence information for the second account,

wherein the second presence information for the second account includes the presence information of the third client application, and

wherein the presence information of the first presence request includes the second presence information for the second account.

15. A method comprising:

responsive to a presence status change of a first client application of a first client device, the first client device providing presence information of the first client application for a first account to an external presence server via an API of the presence server;

the first client device providing a first presence request to the presence server via the API, the first presence request being a request for presence information for a first contact list of a plurality of accounts specified by the first presence request;

the first client device processing the presence information of the first presence request by using the first client application;

the first client device receiving the presence information for the first contact list from the presence server via the API;

the first client device processing the presence information of the first presence request by using the first client application;

the first client device providing a second presence request to the presence server via the API, the second presence request being a request for presence information for the first contact list;

the first client device receiving the presence information of the second presence request from the presence server via the API;

the first client device processing the presence information of the second presence request by using a second client application of the first client device; and

responsive to a presence status change of a third client application of the first client device, the first client device providing presence information of the third client application for the first account to the presence server via the API of the presence server.

16. The method of claim 15,

wherein the presence server stores the presence information of the third client application in association with the first presence information for the first account, and

wherein the presence information of the third client application for the first account indicates whether the third client application for the first account is available for communication.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the presence server stores the presence information of the third client application in association with the first presence information for the first account, and wherein the presence information of the third client application for the first account indicates whether the third client application for the first account is available for communication.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

responsive to a presence status change of a fourth client application of a second client device of the first account, the second client device providing presence information of the fourth client application for the first account to the presence server via the API of the presence server, wherein the presence server stores the presence information of the fourth client application of the second client device in association with the first presence information for the first account, wherein the presence information of the fourth client application of the second client device indicates whether the fourth client application of the second client device is available for communication.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising responsive to a presence status change of a fifth client application of a third client device of a second account, the third client device providing presence information of the fifth client application for the second account to the presence server via the API the presence server, the third client device providing a third presence request to presence server via the API, the third presence request being a request for presence information for a second contact list of a plurality of accounts specified by the third presence request, wherein the first account is included in the second contact list, the third client device receiving the presence information for the second contact list from the presence server via the API, and the third client device processing the presence information of the second contact list by using the fifth client application, wherein the received presence information for the second contact list includes the first presence information for the first account, wherein the presence information of the fifth client application indicates whether the fifth client application is available for communication, wherein the presence server stores second presence information for the second account, wherein the second presence information for the second account includes the presence information of the fifth client application, and wherein the presence information of the first presence request includes the second presence information for the second account.