Telephonic communications – Audio message storage – retrieval – or synthesis – Message management
Reexamination Certificate
1997-10-02
2001-04-10
Weaver, Scott L. (Department: 2645)
Telephonic communications
Audio message storage, retrieval, or synthesis
Message management
C379S088120
Reexamination Certificate
active
06215859
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of telecommunications. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for delivering a voice-mail message to an intended recipient of the message.
2. Description of the Related Art
Voice-mail and voice-messaging systems are known in which a caller can record a message for an intended recipient of the message and select an urgent delivery status. The known systems then queue the recorded message so that when the intended recipient accesses the voice-mail system, the message is queued for delivery with an urgent status. Alternatively, a special message waiting indicator can also be activated by such a system emphasizing that a message having an urgent status is waiting. Nevertheless, urgent messages are not necessarily received by the intended recipient in a timely manner because the intended recipient is not adequately alerted to the urgent status of a waiting message.
What is needed is a way to deliver urgent voice-mail messages to an intended recipient in a timely manner by adequately alerting the recipient of the waiting urgent message.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a method for delivering urgent voice-mail messages to an intended recipient in a timely manner by adequately alerting the recipient of the urgent message. The advantages of the present invention are provided by a method in which a voice-mail message is recorded for a recipient of the message, an urgent status is determined for the voice-mail message, a signal is sent for activating a message waiting indicator for the recipient, and a call is generated to the message recipient for delivering the message. According to the invention, a call is generated to the message recipient immediately after a telephone line for the recipient becomes not busy when the telephone line for the message recipient is busy. Similarly, a call is generated to the message recipient based on a predetermined schedule when the call generated to the message recipient is unanswered. The predetermined schedule includes a predetermined call retry interval and a predetermined call retry duration with the predetermined call retry interval being a predetermined period of time between each call retry and the predetermined call retry duration being a predetermined period of time for which call retries are attempted.
When the message is intended for a plurality of recipients, an urgent status is determined for the voice-mail message for at least one of the plurality of recipients. A call is generated to each respective message recipient for which the message has an urgent status immediately after a telephone line for the recipient becomes not busy. A call is generated to each respective message recipient for which the message has an urgent status based on a predetermined schedule when the call generated to the message recipient is unanswered.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5128982 (1992-07-01), Dugdale et al.
patent: 5243643 (1993-09-01), Sattar et al.
patent: 5255305 (1993-10-01), Sattar
patent: 5375161 (1994-12-01), Fuller et al.
patent: 5390236 (1995-02-01), Klausner et al.
patent: 5423062 (1995-06-01), Sakakura
patent: 5452341 (1995-09-01), Sattar
patent: 5559611 (1996-09-01), Bloomfield et al.
patent: 5608786 (1997-03-01), Gordon
patent: 5617539 (1997-04-01), Ludwig et al.
patent: 5652789 (1997-07-01), Miner et al.
patent: 5717741 (1998-02-01), Yue et al.
patent: 5754628 (1998-05-01), Bossi et al.
patent: 5768356 (1998-06-01), McKendry et al.
patent: 5802466 (1998-09-01), Gallant et al.
patent: 5889839 (1999-03-01), Beyda et al.
patent: 5995594 (1999-11-01), Shaffer et al.
AT&T Corp.
Morgan & Finnegan L.L.P.
Weaver Scott L.
LandOfFree
Delivery of urgent messages by integrated forced delivery... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Delivery of urgent messages by integrated forced delivery..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Delivery of urgent messages by integrated forced delivery... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2500501