Data processing: database and file management or data structures – Database design – Data structure types
Reexamination Certificate
1998-06-05
2001-09-18
Amsbury, Wayne (Department: 2171)
Data processing: database and file management or data structures
Database design
Data structure types
C707S793000, C707S793000, C379S088180, C379S088020, C379S088190
Reexamination Certificate
active
06292799
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to voice messaging, and in particular to a method and apparatus for responding to both internal (those from within the same voice messaging system) and external voice messages (those from outside the voice messaging system).
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A voice mail system (VMS) provides a voice mailbox that allows an inbound voice message to be stored when the user is away from the receiving telephone or in the event a busy signal is encountered by a caller, so that the recipient can learn of the call. The caller may also choose to leave a message directly in the voice mailbox of the recipient of the call when a “live call” is not necessary or desired.
One additional feature of a VMS allows a recipient of an internal call (from another person having an account on the same VMS) to listen to a message stored in his or her voice mailbox and, by operating the keys on a telephone keypad, to initiate a reply to the message. To initiate a reply to the internal message, the recipient does not need to identify the extension of the source of the call because the VMS supplies the source extension. However, an internal call is generally identified by the extension from which the call was placed (source/extension), not the caller. Thus, if the caller did not use his or her own phone, a reply would be sent to the calling extension, not to caller's personal extension.
A receiver can reply with a “live call” to the calling extension by pressing keys on the number pad and being directly connected. Alternatively, a message direct to the voice mail box of the calling extension can be created by pressing the appropriate keys to initiate the reply command; the recipient records the reply message and hangs up; the VMS automatically sends the recorded reply message to the voice mailbox of the calling extension. Again, this reply feature is only available for calls between users having accounts on the same VMS (internal callers), and only when the voice message includes a return voice mailbox address of the original calling location. Recipients of calls from external callers (people external to the VMS), such as cellular phone users, etc., cannot automatically send a reply to such messages since the reply feature cannot identify the source of the call. Rather, the recipient must listen to the message, write down the name and number of the caller and then after hanging up, call back the person who left the message.
Voice messaging also allows internal communication from one caller to multiple recipients on the same VMS system without the caller initiating a call to each individual recipient's voice mailbox.
Two or more VMSs of a similar type may be connected together to operate as a single VMS. The two VMSs can be at different locations. The network may operate through, for example, a dial up (e.g., analog line) connection, or a digital connection (e.g., an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) lines).
Sending messages and replies in a voice message network requires a protocol for communicating between the separate VMS systems. A widely-used protocol for distributing voice messages using analog lines between networked VMS systems is the Audio Messaging Interchange Specification (AMIS), available for analog telephone lines (AMIS-A) or for a digital network (AMIS-D). The AMIS-A protocol distributes messages via a voice dial-up line; Dual Tone Multi Frequency (DTMF) tones are used for signaling.
Individual VMS companies have also developed their own proprietary protocols to use between their own VMS systems. However, due to the proprietary nature, these protocols only work between VMS systems made by the same company; VMS equipment from different companies, each with its own proprietary protocol, are unable to communicate with one another.
Currently, voice message networking does not allow a receiver of a message to automatically reply to caller on a different VMS. Therefore, a person on a VMS can receive an internal message (i.e., from a caller on a same VMS or VMS network) and an external message (i.e., from a different VMS, mobile phone, home phone, etc.), but cannot reply in the same manner to each type of message.
What is needed is a system that allows a recipient to reply to any internal or external voice message in a common manner. Additionally, a system is needed to return a call to an actual caller, not just the location (calling extension) from which the message or call is sent.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In one embodiment of the present invention, a recipient of a call is provided with the ability to reply to an internal or external voice message in a common manner.
In another embodiment, a caller generated identifier is used to search a database for caller information.
In another embodiment, a method is provided for forming a reply to a voice message on a first voice mail system, including the steps of identifying a caller, retrieving information related to the identified caller, and providing the retrieved information to a second voice mail system information to enable a call recipient to reply to the voice message.
In another embodiment, a method of retrieving information about a caller is provided and includes the steps of identifying a calling location of the caller, recording a vocal utterance made by the caller and accessing a database as a function of the identified calling location and the recorded vocal utterance.
In another embodiment, a method of replying to a caller includes the steps of identifying a calling location of the caller, storing a vocal utterance made by the caller, accessing a database as a function of the identified calling location and the recorded vocal utterance to retrieve caller information, wherein the caller information includes a caller reply location and sending a reply to the caller reply location.
In another embodiment, a method of storing a single voice mail message from a caller includes the steps of identifying a calling location of the caller, recording a spoken name uttered by the caller, accessing a database as a function of the identified location and the recorded spoken name to retrieve the caller information and recording a message uttered by the caller and storing the recorded spoken name and the recorded message information together as a single voice mail message.
In another embodiment, a system for retrieving information about a caller includes means for identifying a calling location of the caller, means for storing a vocal utterance made by the caller and means for accessing a database as a function of the identified calling location and the recorded vocal utterance.
In another embodiment, a system for replying to a caller includes means for identifying a calling location of the caller, means for recording a vocal utterance made by the caller, means for accessing a database as a function of the identified calling location and the recorded vocal utterance to retrieve caller information, wherein the caller information includes a caller reply location and means for sending a reply to the caller reply location.
In one embodiment, the calling location is different from the caller reply location.
In another embodiment, the reply is an electronic mail message or a recorded message.
In another embodiment, the caller reply location is a voice mailbox.
In another embodiment, the vocal utterance is converted to a string of characters, wherein the database is accessed as a function of the string of characters.
In another embodiment the voice utterance is identified using speaker verification or speech recognition to access the database.
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patent: 569203
Finnigan Paul F.
Garcia Rosanna
Peek David P.
Amsbury Wayne
NetNumber.com, Inc.
Pardo Thuy
Wolf Greenfield & Sacks P.C.
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