Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc.

Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.

Verizon Services Corporation

Verizon Communications Inc.

David E Young

Eric Albin Voit

William David Goodman

Patrick E White

Jayant G Gadre

Edward E Balkovich

Robert D Farris

Nabil N Bitar

Michael Alan Weintraub

Raymond F Albers

Rajesh Yadav

Alex McAllister

John P Hanle

Edward F Balkovich

Frank Cheston

A communication system providing telephony communication across combined circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as a telephone network and the Internet, which are connectable to terminals, such as telephones and computers, for selective communication therebetween. The communication system includes an authorization and account control object in the packet switched network, multiple gateways between the circuit switched and packet switched networks providing controlled connectivity between those networks, and an information retrieval object in the packet switched network.

Network session management for telephony over hybrid networks

A system includes a policy enforcement point that is located within a first network. The policy enforcement point is configured to connect the first network to a second network via a secure connection. The policy enforcement point is configured to receive traffic from a first device via the first network or a second device associated with the second network via the secure connection, determine whether to apply a policy to the received traffic, and discard the received traffic when a policy is determined to apply to the received traffic.

Secure and reliable policy enforcement

A communication system providing telephony communication across combined circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as a telephone network and the Internet, which are connectable to terminals, such as telephones and computers, for selective communication therebetween. The communication system includes an authorization and account control object in the packet switched network, multiple gateways between the circuit switched and packet switched networks providing controlled connectivity between those networks, and an information retrieval object in the packet switched network, wherein the authorization and account control object maintains a substantially real time record of user accounts and usage, and the information and retrieval object provides substantially real time retrieval of selected information from the authorization and account control object. The retrieval object provides on demand to terminals which provide authentication for access to an identified account information regarding that account. The information regarding the account is substantially real time information including information with respect to communications in progress, which are chargeable to the account which has been authenticated. The authorization and account control object is preferably a unitary logical object having distributed instances thereof handling multitudinous accounts of widely separated terminals. The retrieval object provides isolation of the authorization and account control object permitting simultaneous multitasking by the authorization and account control object and the retrieval object respectively.

Network session management

A communication system providing telephony communication across combined circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as a telephone network and the Internet, which are connectable to terminals, such as telephones and computers, for selective communication therebetween. The communication system includes an authorization and account control object in the packet switched network, multiple gateways between the circuit switched and packet switched networks providing controlled connectivity between those networks, and an information retrieval object in the packet switched network, wherein the authorization and account control object maintains a substantially real time record of user accounts and usage, and the information and retrieval object provides substantially real time retrieval of selected information from the authorization and account control object. The retrieval object provides on demand to terminals which provide authentication for access to an identified account information regarding that account. The information regarding the account is substantially real time information including information with respect to communications in progress which are chargeable to the account which has been authenticated. The authorization and account control object is preferably a unitary logical object having distributed instances thereof handling multitudinous accounts of widely separated terminals. The retrieval object provides isolation of the authorization and account control object permitting simultaneous multitasking by the authorization and account control object and the retrieval object respectively.

In recent years, the world-wide packet data network, commonly known as the Internet, has grown exponentially. The data network now reaches virtually all businesses, most schools and an increasing number of homes. To provide an alternative to all or portions of the carrier-based telephone network, a number of companies have developed equipment and software that enable voice telephone-like communications via the Internet. Severs are now coming on line, which enable calls over the Internet to go off-net to end user stations still coupled to the local telephone network. A number of situations arise where a telephone service subscriber wants to allow callers to call the subscriber's equipment and have part or all of the communication charges billed to and paid by the subscriber. The invention enables such billing to the called party, for calls routed partially or entirely via the Internet. In one example, a caller with a multimedia PC and Internet access uses the subscriber's Internet address plus the subscriber's telephone number. The address identifies a gateway serving the subscriber, and the gateway places a telephone call to the subscriber's telephone. The network accumulates all billing information in records for application against the called subscriber's account.

Reverse billing of internet telephone calls

An internetwork (such as the Internet) telephony system and method incorporating architecture and methodology which facilitates a high degree of scalability. The scalability provides improvement dealing with usage recording, usage pricing, billing account management, and fraud control. The scalability is achieved primarily by bundling of usage recording, pricing, authorization and billing practices in one logical database object which may be physically distributed. A predefined set of network elements are provided access to the database object to obtain authorization for a call along with limitations on the maximum cost or duration of the call for the particular account involved. The database object records usage statistics relating to the completed call, including pricing, and this data is available for virtually immediate billing. The database object provides to customers on a virtual real time basis the customer's usage statistics, including statistics for a call in progress. The operation proceeds in the following manner. Each Internet telephone service subscriber will have at least one billing and authorization account maintained in a database on the Internet. During set-up of a call, the hop-off gateway will obtain identification and password information from the caller. The gateway then communicates with the database to determine if the call is authorized and to negotiate the overall billing algorithm. When the call if finished, the gateway will report usage data to the database for billing purposes.

Enhanced signaling for terminating resource

A communication system providing telephony communication across combined circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as a telephone network and the Internet, which are connectable to terminals, such as telephones and computers, for selective communication therebetween. The communication system provides an architecture and methodology for implementing initiation of establishment of a communication path between called and called terminals from a telephone terminal. The architecture and methodology facilitates communication across carriers or service providers, settlements between carriers and service providers, usage accounting across carriers and service providers, and usage allocation among carriers or service providers. Upon a terminal requesting connection to a gateway to establish a communication path between that terminal and a designated destination terminal, there occurs within the circuit switched network and a gateway to the packet network a transfer of an information package which identifies the calling station, the called station, and the identity of the responsible origination carrier or service provider. An authentication database of this carrier is accessed and authorization of the requested communication is secured. The second carrier or service provider is requested to complete the communication path. The second carrier or service provider consults a database of carriers or service providers, determines whether to authorize the communication, and upon arriving at an affirmative conclusion establishes the communication path, completes the communication, and compiles a charge to the first service provider and a statement of usage and presents the same to the first service provider.

Inbound gateway authorization processing for inter-carrier internet telephony

A communication system providing telephony communication across combined circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as a telephone network and the Internet, which are connectable to terminals, such as telephones and computers, for selective communication therebetween. The communication system provides an architecture and methodology for handling resource allocation across carriers or service providers, settlements between carriers and service providers, usage accounting across carriers and service providers, and usage allocation among carriers or service providers. A first provider of packet switched services controls a directory of addresses of gateways between the packet switched and data switched networks, and an authentication database of account data. A second provider of packet switched services controls a multiplicity of the gateways and a database of addresses of authentication databases.

Inter-carrier signaling and usage accounting architecture for internet telephony

A communication system providing telephony communication across combined circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as a telephone network and the Internet, which are connectable to terminals, such as telephones and computers, for selective communication therebetween. The communication system includes a directory object in the packet switched network, multiple gateways between the circuit switched and packet switched networks providing controlled connectivity between those networks, and an interface between the directory object and the gateways. The directory object is preferably provided in hierarchical architecture as a unitary logical object having distributed instances. In addition to the customary address translation capability the directory object polls or communicates with the gateways through the additional interface and provides an intelligent routing function. The directory object is of an enhanced type with access to a storage of customer routing and handling selections. It includes routing algorithms for determining best routing based on customer prescribed parameters, and also based on provider parameters in the absence of customer preferences. Reservability of communication paths and/or bandwidth may be provided. The system architecture and methodology permits provision of specified bandwidth either on a subscribed basis or on point of call demand. Terminal to terminal communication paths of specified parameters may be reserved in advance.

A number of gateway objects interconnect circuit switched and packet switched networks, such as the telephone network and the Internet, for example to enable telephony communication across the combined networks. A directory object coupled to the packet network provides address translation capability, and the directory object polls or communicates with the gateways to provide an intelligent selection of one of the gateway objects, typically for egress to the telephone network. The system also includes an authorization control object. After gateway selection, a calling terminal attempts communication through the gateway object. The gateway object then queries the authorization control object, which instructs the gateway object to proceed only if the requested communication between the calling terminal and the destination terminal is authorized.

Network session management with gateway-directory services and

In a switching system for connecting a call between a calling station and a called station, a system and method of voice recognition using a concentrated or distributed multiplicity of voice recognition and other resources with a facility for selecting an initial resource on the calling station going off-hook by sensing an image of the calling party accessing a demographic database and a biometric database using common channel signaling and sensing biometric information regarding the caller, and selecting a prompt to be delivered to the caller from a multiplicity of preselected prompts, and reacting to a response by the caller with further addressing of database information to continue to select from the multiplicity of resources the most appropriate resource or resources in reaction to caller utterances. According to another feature the selection of resources is aided by optical means at the calling station delivering information regarding characteristics of the caller including lip movement to permit lip reading.

Growing community of inventors

Silver Spring, MD, United States of America

David E Young