Telephonic communications – Audio message storage – retrieval – or synthesis – Voice activation or recognition
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-14
2001-10-30
Tsang, Fan (Department: 2645)
Telephonic communications
Audio message storage, retrieval, or synthesis
Voice activation or recognition
C379S088260, C379S212010
Reexamination Certificate
active
06310939
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates generally to voice mail, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for screening messages as they are being transmitted for storage in a switch based voice mail system.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
As switch based voice mail services have evolved, there is one very advantageous service that customer premises equipment answering machines provide that switch based voice mail has lacked, namely the ability to listen and/or screen a call as a caller stores a message on the storage media. By listening and/or screening an incoming call, the called party has the option of interjecting himself or herself into the call at any time as a message is being stored and talking to the calling party immediately if it concerns a matter upon which the called party wishes to immediately discuss. This is most useful when family, friends or co-workers are traveling and they call from an unfamiliar number, such calls cannot be filtered for special attention by their ICLIDs so if the called party is busy, calls that the called party would typically answer are instead passed to the voice mail system and delayed.
A switch based voice mail screening service capability has been specified generically in BellCore Call Screening Capability GR-1512-Core. But an actual embodiment of such a switch based service is not presently available.
Thus, there is a long felt need in the art for a switch based method and apparatus for screening voice mail as the voice mail message is transmitted by the calling party to the storage medium. Furthermore, there is a long felt need for switch based method and apparatus for screening voice mail with a capability for interjection by the called party by listening and/or speaking to the calling party instead of leaving the calling party to transmit a message to the switch based voice mail system that will be heard and responded to later.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly stated in accordance with one aspect of the invention the aforementioned needs are fulfilled and a technical advance is achieved by providing a voice mail screening service using an advanced intelligent network (AIN) including a service node connected as a bridging point between a calling party, voice mail system, and called subscriber. AIN service switching point (SSP) Service Control Point (SCP) is used to route the calls to the appropriate location for screening as the calling party transmits a message. If the called party is a subscriber to switch based voice mail with screening and interjecting capabilities, the called party screens the call as the calling party transmits information to the switch based voice mail system. Further, the AIN service switching point (SSP) Service Control Point (SCP) is used to change the call characteristics, such as dialed number, calling number and redirecting number to work transparently with existing voice mail systems.
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“Call Screening FSD 01-02-2100, A Module of LSSGR, FR-NWT-000064”, Bellcore, Generic Requirements, GR-1512-Core, Issue, 2, Oct., 1994, 34 page Generic Requirements.
Lucent Technologies - Inc.
Penrod Jack R.
Putt Nora J.
Tsang Fan
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