Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Message storage or retrieval
Reexamination Certificate
1998-09-25
2003-08-26
Nguyen, Lee (Department: 2683)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Message storage or retrieval
C379S071000, C379S079000, C455S462000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06611681
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to wireless information communication systems, and in particular to cordless telephones with integral telephone answering devices (TADs).
2. Description of the Prior Art
The present invention relates to telephone answering machines, but also to telephone functions now commonly available in personal computers equipped with voice/fax modems.
Heretofore, telephone answering devices and other voice messaging solutions, including computer implemented voice mail functions (hereinafter collectively referred to as “TAD”), could be answered by someone other than the intended called party. In other words, when a calling party attempting to reach a called party called the TAD, some other person could inadvertently pick up the telephone during the outgoing message (OGM) and interrupted the message recording process. Typically, the OGM would be interrupted so that the calling party and the answering party could speak to one another immediately without the noise and inconvenience of the OGM playing over their conversation, such as seen in U.S. RE 33,507 issued to Hashimoto for cordless TADs or other methods related to conventional corded TADs such as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,451,707 issued to Hanscom. However, this was inconvenient for both the party answering the called parties' line and also inconvenient for the calling party, for a number of reasons. one case, the answering party would be then required to manually take a message from the calling party, which may lead to inaccuracies in the message being conveyed to the called party because of errors by the answering party in transcribing the message or due to message complexity. In another case, the calling party would then have to call the TAD again in order to record a complete message, in hopes that the call would not be again answered by the wrong person. Or in the case where the answering party returned the telephone to an on-hook condition in an attempt to return control to the TAD for message handling, the on-hook condition would be detected and the calling party would be disconnected from the TAD. Another problem occurs when the proper called party answers the telephone and interrupts the message handling of the TAD and does not have time to talk to the calling party.
In an attempt to alleviate the problem, Hashimoto U.S. Pat. No. 5,138,652 teaches the use of a line monitoring circuit that detects an initial off-hook condition by the answering party and measures a predetermined period of time (for example, 3 seconds) to see if an on-hook condition occurs within the predetermined period of time. The line monitoring circuit detects that the telephone has been taken off-hook by the answering party (as opposed to the intended called party) in response to the incoming call. Then, a timer is started to monitor for a subsequent detection of an on-hook condition by the answering party after it is discovered the call was answered in error. If the on-hook condition occurs within the predetermined time period, the TAD is then allowed to continue in completing the message process and a message from the calling party is recorded on tape or digital memory such as a memory IC or analog tape. The problem with this approach is that in the event the answering party takes longer than the predetermined time period to return the telephone to an on-hook condition, the TAD cannot be returned to take control of the message process.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to solve the foregoing problems, an objective of the present invention is to provide a means for allowing an improved call intercept function in which the control of the message handling function by the TAD can be reestablished without dependence upon a predetermined time period after an off-hook condition has occurred.
It is a further objective of the invention to allow for a specific predetermined DTMF or voice signal or command to be received by the TAD from either the calling party, or the answering party, after an off-hook condition so that message handling may be returned to the TAD to record a message after an on-hook condition.
It is also an objective of the invention to allow any general DTMF signal to be depressed from an extension or cordless telephone which will allow the answering party who may not be familiar with specific codes for the called party TAD to reestablish call control to the TAD prior to placing the telephone in an off-hook condition.
IMPROVED CALL INTERRUPT FEATURE:
It is one objective of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for an improved call interrupt feature in cordless TAD, in the preferred embodiment, consisting of the following steps:
(1) a ringing signal is received at a base unit.
(2) the base unit transmits a wireless signal to a cordless handset.
(3) the cordless handset receives the wireless signal from the base, and initiates a local ringer.
(4) the base unit TAD counts a predetermined number of rings.
(5) the base unit TAD initiates an off-hook condition in response to detection of a predetermined number of rings.
(6) the OGM is played at the base unit TAD.
(7) the called party presses the “TALK” button in response to ringing signal, but after the OGM has started.
(8) the base unit receives a wireless talk request signal (TRS) from cordless handset, initiates an OGM end detection means, and continues to play the OGM for the calling party.
(9) upon detection of end of the OGM by OGM end and detection means, the base unit inhibits the start of the ICM means and connects the calling party with the called party at the cordless handset.
TALK REQUEST CONFIRMATION:
In a first alternative embodiment, in response to Step (7) above, and simultaneous with the continuation of the OGM played separately for the calling party, the base unit transmits a wireless signal back to the called party at the cordless handset (hereafter known as a “Talk Request Confirmation Signal” or TRCS) to verify receipt of the Talk request by the base unit. Such a TRCS means could be a voice annunciation such as “Please hold, you will be connected shortly”, generated by a synthesized voice from the base unit, or a display of a predefined message on a display at the cordless handset.
The TRCS signaling means created at the base unit could be comprised of a synthesized voice that also incorporated caller ID data received between the ringing signals at the base unit in the conventional manner that was then synthesized and included in the talk request response signal to be sent back to the cordless handset. In this example, a called party might hear, “You will be connected with John Doe calling from 555-1212”.
Finally, a music on hold version of the TRCS signal, or some other TRCS alerting means, such as a textual display, could be transmitted from the base unit to the cordless handset until the OGM end detection means detected the end of the OGM. Then, the calling party and the called party would be connected and a voice communication could occur.
Alternatively, in response to a digital or analog TRCS transmitted from the base unit to the cordless handset, a vibration, light signal, audible response, or textual display could be generated for the called party by an alert generation means housed within the cordless handset.
In any case, the TRCS announcement means could be heard by the called party in response to a talk request from the called party that is generated by a signaling generator contained within the cordless handset, or by a signaling generator contained within the base unit. The talk request confirmation could be heard by the called party at the cordless handset up until conclusion of the OGM. The called party would then know that he or she would be connected immediately after conclusion of the OGM, or the TRCS could be immediately interrupted should the OGM conclude prior to conclusion of the TRCS.
HANG-UP DETECTION:
Should the calling party hang up prior to conclusion of the OGM, some means of detecting that the calling party was no longer on the li
Henderson Daniel A.
Hill-Hunn
Hunn Melvin
Nguyen Lee
Sobutka Philip J.
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