Verizon Services Corporation

Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc.

Verizon Network Services Inc.

Other

Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.

Barry Paul Pershan

Robert D Farris

Michael G Pilkerton

Raymond F Albers

Charles H Eppert, Iii

Daniel C Michaelis

John R Reformato

Jayant M Naik

Kay Lynn Bechtel

William F Diede

Joseph Mitchell West

Phil Biedronski

Michael W McKeehan

Christine W Huff

Scott Alexander McAlily

Dale Lee Bartholomew

Thomas A Nolting

Kevin V Bohn

Jay C Lodsun

Euguene Lubchenko

Christine Huff

Walter Pomykacz

Elizabeth A Geddes

Eugene Lubchenko

William A Kay

Von K McConnell

Robert H Montgomery

George Hasenauer

Dorsey P Brown

David A Dague

Scott Alexander McAliley

Lisa M Phillips

AIN based methods and apparatus for authenticating and authorizing people to register information corresponding to a telephone number, e.g., in an ENUM database, are described. The methods of the invention may be used to authenticate a party seeking to register telephone number related information with ENUM. A trigger is set on an ENUM registration line. Calls to the ENUM registration line activate the trigger causing LIDB information corresponding to the calling party number to be retrieved. The retrieved information, e.g., name, address and/or phone number is supplied to an ENUM registration service which returns a password to be used when updating or supplying ENUM registration information corresponding to the phone number from which the registration call is placed at some future time, e.g., via the Internet. Assigned ENUM passwords can be obtained when forgotten by placing a call to the registration service from the registered or associated phone number.

Methods and apparatus for authenticating and authorizing ENUM registrants

AIN based methods and apparatus for transitioning telephone numbers and customers from the PSTN to a VOIP network are described. AIN line number portability features are used to allow a few gateway switches that interconnect the PSTN and VOIP networks to service customers whose telephone numbers were originally serviced by several remote PSTN switches. AIN LNP triggers are used to forward PSTN calls, directed to the PSTN switch previously used to service a telephone number, to the gateway switch assigned to route such calls to the IP network. AIN triggers set at the gateway switch insure that the subscriber with the ported telephone number continues to receive AIN services provided before the telephone number was ported to the IP network. Calls from ported telephone numbers to telephones in the PSTN are billed from PSTN switches through the use of AIN functionality and triggers set at the gateway switch.

Methods and apparatus for transferring from a PSTN to a VOIP telephone network

Methods and apparatus for billing communications services through the use of AIN functionality are described. Billing information is communicated to a service control point by placing one or two calls to a service subscriber to be billed for a service. The calls encounter a trigger set at a switch. In response to trigger activation the switch sends a message to the service control point. The message includes billing information placed into a billing data field of the call. The service control point extracts the billing information received in the message or messages from the switch and bills the called service subscriber based on the received billing information. In the single billing call embodiment the device initiating the billing call is responsible for determining the amount of time for which the service is to be billed, e.g., conference duration, in addition to other billing information.

Methods and apparatus for billing conference calls

Methods and apparatus for implementing call forwarding services using AIN techniques and next event list messages are described. Methods of notifying a subscriber of a call forwarded using AIN techniques are also described. In accordance with one feature of the present invention, a subscriber is allowed to set the number of rings which are allowed to occur prior to a call being forwarded. The number of rings, e.g., the ring count, is stored as part of a customer's call processing record (CPR) which is used by a service control point (SCP) to implement the call forwarding service. The ring count information may be updated via the Internet or via a dial-up telephone connection. Call forwarding customers are provided with a distinctive ring, e.g., a ring shorter than an ordinary telephone ring, to notify them when a call is being forwarded. Distinctive rings may be used to distinguish between different forwarding services. For example a different ring may be used for forwarding to voice mail than for selective call forwarding or follow-me call forwarding. The distinctive ring may be implemented by using an SCP to instruct a telephone switch to provide any one of a plurality of different rings which are supported by the telephone switch or by simply causing the subscribers phone to ring for different periods of time which are shorter than a normal ring.

Methods and apparatus for enabling/disabling calling forwarding service

Communications methods for allowing groups of individuals, such as family members, to contact one another when no one is available to answer calls to a primary, e.g., family, telephone number are described. Calls which go unanswered are connected to a telephony device capable of storing messages and initiating conference calls. If the calling party is determined to be a family member the telephony device accesses a table of contact information corresponding to the unanswered telephone number and offers the caller the opportunity to hear messages from other family members and/or initiate a conference call to one or more family members who have supplied a contact telephone number. Family members can access and update the table of messages and contact number information by telephone or the Internet. Table information can be accessed and updated remotely thereby providing a method of communicating with family members even when no one is at home.

Methods and apparatus for connecting family members

Methods and apparatus for implementing communication services such as voice dialing services are described. In one Centrex based voice dialing embodiment, voice dialing service subscribers are given access to personal voice dialing records including calling entries via the Internet as well as via telephone connections. Each calling entry normally includes the name and, optionally nickname, of a party to be called. It also includes one or more telephone numbers associated with each name. Different telephone number identifies, e.g. locations, can be associated with different names. A user can create or update entries in a voice dialing directory using text conveyed over the Internet or speech supplied via a telephone connection. In order to facilitate updating and maintenance of voice dialing directories over the Internet speaker independent (SI) speech recognition models are used. When a calling entry is created via the Internet the text of the name is processed to generate a corresponding speech recognition model there from. When an entry is created via speech obtained over the telephone, a speech recognition model is generated from the speech and a text name is generated is generated using speech to text technology. To avoid having to hang-up and initiate a new voice dialing call the outcome of a voice dialing call is monitored and the subscriber is provided the opportunity to initiate another call using voice dialing if the first call did not complete successfully e.g., goes unanswered.

Voice dialing using text names

AIN based call routing, transfer and conferencing methods and apparatus are disclosed. In various embodiments initial call routing is based on the availability of a party to service a call as determined from a computer system associated with the party selected to service the call. The party's computer system supports a telephone application programming interface (TAPI) which allows a telephone network server to determine the availability of the party selected to service the call from, in part, TAPI obtained telephone line status information. The network server supplies call related data to the computer system of the party assigned to service the call. Call transfer and conferencing operations along with the transfer of call related data are also supported. AIN mid-call triggers are used in some embodiments to support call transfer and conferencing operations.

Methods and apparatus for using AIN techniques to facilitate servicing of calls by a group of users

AIN based call routing, transfer and conferencing methods and apparatus are disclosed. In various embodiments initial call routing is based on the availability of a party to service a call as determined from a computer system associated with the party selected to service the call. The party's computer system supports a telephone programming application interface (TAPI) which allows a telephone network server to determine the availability of the party selected to service the call from, in part, TAPI obtained telephone line status information. The network server supplies call related data to the computer system of the party assigned to service the call. Call transfer and conferencing operations along with the transfer of call related data are also supported. AIN mid-call triggers are used in some embodiments to support call transfer and conferencing operations.

Methods and apparatus for facilitating the interaction between multiple telephone and computer users

AIN Monitor_For_Change functionality is used to implement an AIN based call retry service and an AIN based enhanced call waiting service. The AIN Monitor_For_Change functionality allows a service control point to obtain line status information, from a telephone switch. The same functionality used to provide the call retry service is combined with incoming call notification, and the collection of call disposition information from a called party, to provide the enhanced call waiting service. The enhanced call waiting service provides a called party on an existing call, incoming call notification with caller identification information. The called party is then provided the opportunity to accept the call, have the calling party wait, or send the call to voice mail. When the called party requests that the calling party wait, the calling party is notified of the called party's request and is connected to the called party once the ongoing call is completed.

Ain based call retry and enhanced call waiting services

Methods and apparatus for notifying subscriber's of forwarded calls

Using intelligent network processing, call notification allows a subscriber to determine the name and telephone number of one or more numbers of recent parties to call the subscriber. An incoming call to the subscriber's number activates a terminating attempt type trigger in the central office serving the subscriber. The trigger causes communication between that office and a service control point (SCP). Under instructions from the SCP, the central office indicates a disposition event regarding the call, e.g., whether the line was busy or there was no answer. If the subscriber's line is busy or does not answer, the SCP records at least the telephone number of the caller and the time and date of the call. Later, the subscriber dials a feature code, and the SCP instructs the central office to route the call to an intelligent peripheral (IP). The SCP polls a line identification database (LIDB) to obtain name information associated with the caller's number and supplies the number, name, date and time to the IP. The IP plays an announcement of the call information and offers the subscriber the option to place a call back to the number of the original caller and/or to initiate a call to voice mail.

Call notification service for use with call waiting

Voice dialing methods and apparatus implemented using AIN techniques

Call forwarding methods and apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Olney, MD, United States of America

Barry Paul Pershan