At&t Bell Laboratories

Lucent Technologies Inc.

Francis J Pope

Gary L Dorst

Stuart Mandel Garland

Chinmei Chen Lee

ZhongJin Yang

Young-fu Chang

John Andrew Johnson

Robert J Abrams

William Walter Demlow

Richard A Kamieniecki

Jaap T Erne

David L Hurewitz

Marilyn A Wouda

Computers that exchange data over communication networks frequently wait for responses to messages and therefor use timers to control the amount of time that the computer will wait for a response to a command issued over a network. Communication network responsiveness varies as traffic loading on the network changes. Fixed-value timers that don't take network loading into account can inadvertently terminate communications if a response is not timely received. Varying or adjusting data communication timers according to data network responsiveness can prevent erroneous data communication session termination.

Dynamic adjustment of timers in a communication network

This invention relates to methods of providing information for display at a calling party telecommunications station or at an idle station. Two signaling arrangements are described, the D-channel of an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) channel, and an in-band frequency shift key signal. The information that is displayed is related to the called party (such as information identifying that party), the carrier of the conversation, or represents general information (an emergency announcement).

Information display provided to calling party

An operator assistance call handling arrangement is disclosed featuring the use of an intelligent telecommunications station (intelligent phone) for the collection and transmission of call data to an operator assistance system for setting up a call without the intervention of an operator. The intelligent phone is equipped to handle CCITT (International Consulative Committee for Telephone and Telegraph) standard Layer 3 (Q.931) call control messages defined for message associated user-to-user information (MA-UUI). The operator assistance system is part of a central telephone office switching system, and is connected to the intelligent phone via an integrated services digital network (ISDN) basic rate interface (BRI). For station-to-station (station) collect calls, person-to-person (person) calls including collect and calling card calls, and bill-to-third party calls, a calling (back) party enters information identifying the class of charge (COC) and other call data at the intelligent phone, which formats the information into a user-to-user information element (UUIE). The intelligent phone then places the UUIE comprising the call information into a Q.931 SETUP message and sends the SETUP message over a ISDN D-channel to the switching system system comprising the operator assistance system to set up an ISDN B-channel call between the back party and a called (forward) party. By utilizing the COC information, connections for collect, person and bill-to-third party calls are set up without the intervention of an operator. Later, when the operator assistance system seizes an operator position to service the call after the call has been answered by the forward party, the call data is automatically displayed for the operator.

Semi-automated operator assistance telecommunication calls

A time and charges information delivery arrangement is disclosed utilizing an intelligent telecommunications station (intelligent phone) for displaying that information after a termination of a call. The intelligent phone is equipped to handle CCITT (International Consultative Committee for Telephone and Telegraph) standard Layer 3 (Q.931) call control messages defined for message associated user-to-user information (MA-UUI), and is connected to a central telephone office switching system via an integrated services digital network (ISDN) basic rate interface (BRI). After an operator assistance call is terminated, the operator assistance system that processed the call sends a Q.931 SETUP message to the intelligent phone over an ISDN signaling channel (D-channel). The message includes a data block, comprising time and charges information. When the intelligent phone receives the message, it ignores the call setup request, and simply displays the information sent in the message. Thus, without any action by an operator, a public telephone customer receives time and charges information for the terminated call, without establishing a new call (B-channel call) between the operator assistance system and the intelligent phone.

Time and charges information delivery for operator assistance

An automatic call booking arrangement is disclosed for establishing a booked call between a back party and a forward party. A booked call is reserved by storing call booking ticket data regarding the call in a call booking database. A call booking scanning (CBS) process system continually scans call booking ticket data to determine whether it is time to establish a booked call. At the time a booked call is to be established, the CBS process sends the call booking ticket data to an automatic call booking (ACB) process. In response to receipt of the call booking ticket data, the ACB process uses the data to establish automatically a call between the back party and the forward party.

Automated booking of telecommunications calls

Growing community of inventors

Naperville, IL, United States of America

Francis J Pope