Metro One Telecommunications, Inc.

Grape Technology Group, Inc.

Other

Christopher Alan Huey

Michael A Kepler

Patrick M Cox

Paul W Filliger

A Peter Powell

Timothy A Timmins

John S Miller

Philip A Ljubicich

Nicholas J Elsey

Runping Qi

Nathan Bryant Baker

Karen L Johnson

Corvin F Swick

Jonas S Reyes

Christopher A Wake

Gary E Henry

A user may utilize a communication device, e.g., a wireless phone, mobile device or personal digital assistant (PDA), to contact an information/call center where an operator provides personalized information and communications services to the user in accordance with the invention. Such services may include, e.g., private directory and calendar data synchronization, identity pre-validation, etc. To personalize the services, at least one profile record associated with the user which may specify, among others, the devices used by the user to communicate with the information/call center, and preferred information/call center to which an information assistance call is routed. Accordingly, services and service features provided to the user may be tailored for use with the specified devices. Security measures may also be instituted in the profile record to restrict use of certain services and service features.

Technique for effectively providing personalized communications and information assistance services

A method for providing a communication assistance service by a communication assistance service provider includes receiving a communication at the communication assistance service provider from a first person seeking a contact information to communicate with a second person and receiving from the first person identifying information associated with the second person. A profile of the second person is retrieved including at least one contact information and at least one contact preference associated with the contact information. Communication is provided between the first person and the second person in accordance with the contact preferences.

Technique for assisting a user with information services at an information/call center

Telephone users desiring directory assistance services are connected via standard telephone procedures to a directory assistance provider, such as an operator. An operator provides the destination number and initiates a connection to that number. Once that connection is initiated, the connection is monitored for the occurrence of a predetermined condition, such as a busy signal. If no such condition is detected, the caller proceeds with the call in the normal manner. If, however, such a condition is detected, the caller is automatically transferred to a directory assistance provider for further help.

Method and apparatus for monitoring telephonic members and providing directory assistance

A service providing information assistance may maintain for a subscriber contacts folders comprising private directories of the subscriber, and a personal profile containing the subscriber's preferences. When a user calls the service to attempt to communicate with a desired party through the service, the service can ascertain whether the desired party has a personal profile and/or a contacts folder associated with him/her. If so, the caller is allowed to communicate with the desired party on the terms and conditions defined by the desired party in his/her personal profile and/or contacts folder. For instance, the desired party may have defined therein who should be allowed to contact him/her, when he/she should be contacted, by what communication means, and whether the caller can be told any of the desired party's communication addresses (e.g., telephone number, email address, etc.).

A user while traveling may call an operator in an information/call center to request directions to a desired destination. In response, the operator obtains a directions file containing the requested directions. To facilitate the user receiving directions in installments in accordance with the invention, the directions file has an indicator associated therewith. The requested directions are read from the directions file to the user by an interactive voice response (IVR) unit via synthesized voice. The indicator is used to indicate in the file which direction is to be read to the user. The user may terminate the call after hearing a desired quantity of directions. When the user subsequently needs another installment of directions, the user may call back the IVR unit which then continues to read directions in the directions file from where the associated indicator indicates. The above process can be repeated, thereby enabling the user to controllably receive the directions in installments.

Text to speech conversion method

A system and method for searching, accessing updating database records on a plurality of geographically dispersed databases is provided. Update databases consisting of a plurality of update records having at least one field capable of being set to at least one particular value are used to update records in target databases. When a database search is conducted on one or more target databases, a search is also conducted on update databases associated with the target databases. The results of the searches are processed. If the at least one field in an update record is set to a predefined value, then all returned records equivalent to the update record are discarded. Otherwise, the update record is added to the search result.

Method and system for searching, accessing and updating databases

In an information assistance service environment, after information assistance is provided to a caller, the caller may request to have the information assistance service provider complete the call. In the prior art, the call was routed back to the carrier switch from which the information assistance service provider received the call, and that carrier completed the call. In the invention, the information assistance service provider chooses how to route the call to the destination requested by the caller. A routing database including routes available to terminate the call is searched and the call is routed after considering a number of criteria such as availability of routing trunks, the LATA (local access and transport area) within which the destination phone number resides, pricing information, or a combination of these criteria. Routing may be accomplished using a local exchange carrier (LEC), an inter-exchange (or long-distance) carrier (IXC), an inter-machine transfer trunk (IMT), which connects two or more information assistance service centers, or a combination of these.

Technique for enhanced information assistance call routing

A call management system is provided to manage the use of specified wireless telephones in order to limit or manage their use for unofficial calls and to report on official as well as unofficial uses. Calls originated from or directed to a controlled wireless telephone are routed to a call management center from a wireless central office. The call management center determines whether the call is approved by consulting a database of approved telephone numbers. If the call is approved it is completed normally. If the call is not approved, the caller is prompted to provide an access code. The call is completed if the access code matches a predetermined security code. Customizable exception reports are generated to reflect unofficial usage, incorrect access attempts, and other detailed information concerning the use of the specified wireless telephones.

Telephone call management system and method

A wireless telephone subscriber who wishes directory assistance in the form of directions from one specified location to another is connected to a directory assistance agent. The subscriber identifies a destination location and any requested travel criteria. The directory assistance agent collects the subscriber's travel parameters and a routing algorithm on the server draws upon geographic, transportation, and related information stored on the server to generate an appropriate route to the destination location. The selected route may be divided into multiple segments. Directions according to each segment are provided to the subscriber. The subscriber may remain connected to the directory assistance center for all or any portion of the travel, may disconnect and reconnect as necessary, or may receive the entire route of travel in a single communication. Upon reconnection to a directory assistance agent while travelling, the subscriber is recognized as a travelling subscriber based on his MIN, ESN, or unique traveller identification number, and the agent is furnished with the subscriber's travel information and current location. The route of travel may be updated or amended as desired or as made necessary due to closed routes of travel, congestion, etc.

Technique for continually providing directional assistance over a communication network to a user

Technique for effectively communicating travel directions

A search-routing database is used to direct database search requests to only those databases that may contain results to the search request. The search-routing database contains a subset of the data fields from the other databases in the network, along with a field indicating the database to which the search request should be routed. When a database search request is received, a modified search request is generated based on the overlap between the type of information contained in the search request and the type of information contained in the data-fields of the search routing database. This modified search request is submitted to the search-routing database, which returns a list of database candidates which could produce results to the original search request. The original search request is then submitted to those database candidates, and the results are returned to the user.

Growing community of inventors

Banks, OR, United States of America

Christopher Alan Huey