United States Patent [19J
`McMullin
`
`I IIIII IIIIIIII Ill lllll lllll lllll lllll lllll lllll lllll lllll 111111111111111111
`US005809128A
`[11] Patent Number:
`[45] Date of Patent:
`
`5,809,128
`Sep. 15, 1998
`
`[54] METHOD AND APPARATUS PERMITTING
`NOTIFICATION AND CONTROL OF
`BLOCKED INCOMING CALLS OVER A
`DATA NETWORK
`
`[75]
`
`Inventor: William P. McMullin, Bedford, Canada
`
`[73]
`
`Assignee: Interactive Telecom Inc., Bedford,
`Canada
`
`[21]
`
`Appl. No.: 742,052
`
`[22]
`
`Filed:
`
`Nov. 1, 1996
`
`Int. Cl.6
`............................ H04M 11/00; H04M 3/42
`[51]
`[52] U.S. Cl. ....................... 379/215; 379/93.35; 379/211;
`370/352
`[58] Field of Search ................................. 379/215, 93.35,
`379/93.01, 201, 209, 211; 370/352
`
`[56]
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`4,852,151
`4,873,719
`4,876,711
`4,947,421
`4,969,184
`4,995,074
`5,046,188
`5,195,130
`5,263,084
`5,287,401
`5,309,512
`5,343,516
`5,363,431
`5,425,092
`5,425,097
`5,432,616
`5,475,746
`5,491,744
`5,513,251
`5,519,767
`5,533,102
`5,533,110
`5,604,796
`
`7/1989 Dittakavi et al. .................... 379/93.35
`10/1989 Reese ...................................... 379/215
`10/1989 Curtin .
`8/1990 Toy et al. ................................ 379/215
`11/1990 Gordon et al. ..................... 379/100.13
`2/1991 Goldman et al. .
`9/1991 Molnar .
`3/1993 Weiss et al. .
`11/1993 Chaput et al. .......................... 379/215
`2/1994 Lin .
`5/1994 Blackmon et al.
`8/1994 Callele et al. .
`11/1994 Schull et al. .
`6/1995 Quirk .
`6/1995 Pula ........................................ 379/215
`7/1995 Fukao et al. ............................ 379/215
`12/1995 Miller et al. .
`2/1996 Kikinis .................................... 379/215
`4/1996 Rochkind et al.
`................... 379/93.35
`...................... 379/93.35
`5/1996 O'Horo et al.
`7/1996 Robinson et al.
`...................... 379/215
`7/1996 Pinard et al.
`........................... 379/201
`2/1997 Yamazaki ................................ 379/215
`
`..................... 379/215
`
`5,608,786
`5,610,910
`5,651,060
`5,706,336
`
`3/1997 Gordon ................................... 370/352
`3/1997 Focsaneanu et al. .
`7/1997 Cohn et al. .......................... 379/93.35
`1/1998 Kikinis ................................. 379/93.35
`
`FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`0732835 A2
`9609714
`9620553
`WO 96/38018
`Al
`WO 97/20424
`Al
`
`9/1996 European Pat. Off ..
`3/1996 WIPO ........................... H04M 11/00
`7/1996 WIPO ............................. H04M 3/50
`
`11/1996 WIPO .
`
`6/1997 WIPO .
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin vol. 37 No. 9 pp.
`101-104 Sep. 1994.
`IEEE Nov. 1989 Tencon '89, pp. 10---14, Shankar et al.
`IEEE Jan. 1993 Communications Magazine, pp. 15-19,
`Burson et al.
`
`Primary Examiner-Ahmad F. Matar
`Assistant Examiner-Scott Wolinsky
`Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Bennett, Jones, Vercheve
`
`[57]
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`Methods and apparatus are disclosed for providing auto(cid:173)
`matic redirection of an incoming voice telephone call from
`a caller to a subscriber proxy when an attempt by the caller
`to connect to a telephone link of a public switched telephone
`network (PSTN) is blocked due to the telephone link being
`occupied by a subscriber using the telephone link to estab(cid:173)
`lish communications between the subscriber's personal
`computer and a computer network. The subscriber proxy is
`connected to both the PSTN and the computer network, and
`produces audio interaction with the caller. The subscriber
`proxy also notifies the subscriber of the incoming call via the
`subscriber's computer. The subscriber's computer can
`optionally be used by the subscriber to control and interact
`with the incoming call by communicating with the computer
`proxy while the subscriber continues to occupy the tele(cid:173)
`phone link.
`
`50 Claims, 5 Drawing Sheets
`
`,------------1
`I
`
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`38
`
`LJ/v44a
`
`I
`L ____________ .J
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 1
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`l Central
`Office
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`54
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`Communications--(cid:173)
`Service
`
`Figure 1
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`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 2
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`r -
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`
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`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 3
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Sep. 15, 1998
`
`Sheet 3 of 5
`
`5,809,128
`
`DNIS
`26
`
`- -
`
`I
`:__r--314
`
`I
`
`No
`
`"busy call
`again
`later" 316
`
`Hang Up
`
`318
`
`No
`
`324
`To No Answer Handler
`
`Receive
`Incoming
`DNIS 310
`
`Lookup
`DNIS
`
`312
`
`es
`Lookup
`Status
`320
`
`Verify
`Status
`326
`
`330
`To Busy Data Handler
`
`Figure 3
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 4
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Sep. 15, 1998
`
`Sheet 4 of 5
`
`5,809,128
`
`No Answer Handler
`
`Provide
`Greeting
`410
`
`Take
`Message
`412
`
`No
`
`Yes
`
`Pager
`416
`
`Hang Up
`
`416
`
`Figure 4
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 5
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Sep. 15, 1998
`
`Sheet 5 of 5
`
`5,809,128
`
`Busy Data Handler
`
`Provide
`Greeting
`
`Obtain
`Subscriber
`Interaction
`
`512
`
`516
`- - - To No Answer Handler
`
`Network
`Message
`Handler 516
`
`Hang Up
`
`Figure 5
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 6
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`5,809,128
`
`1
`METHOD AND APPARATUS PERMITTING
`NOTIFICATION AND CONTROL OF
`BLOCKED INCOMING CALLS OVER A
`DATA NETWORK
`
`FIELD OF THE INVENTION
`
`This invention relates generally to public switched tele(cid:173)
`phone network (PSTN) telecommunications systems which
`provide incoming telephone call notification, identification
`and call handling features to telephone subscribers. More
`specifically, this invention relates to a computer-telephone
`interface and methods to provide notification, identification
`and control of blocked incoming telephone calls ( call
`attempts) for the subscriber when the subscriber is using the
`telephone link for computer dialogue over a dial-up data
`network to which the subscriber is connected either directly
`or indirectly.
`
`5
`
`2
`rectly through a commercial online service. Once connected
`to the DCS, the user's computer has access to the resources
`of the DCS and the user's computer literally becomes part of
`the DCS provider's network.
`Should the user be connected via a temporary dial up
`modem connection over the PSTN, then the telephone link,
`which is used to make this connection between the user's
`computer and the telephone company, is held in an off hook
`state, typically for an extended period of time. For example,
`10 in an average voice call, the hold time for the call is in the
`range of 3 minutes, while the average hold time for a data
`call for Internet access is over 20 minutes. In addition to the
`longer hold times, the use of a telephone line for a data call
`requires the exclusive use of the line. Unlike a conventional
`15 voice telephone call between two phones, a modem connec(cid:173)
`tion between two modems over the PSTN cannot be inter(cid:173)
`rupted or put in a held state while one of the parties to the
`call accepts a second incoming call. Where the off hook state
`is due to a voice based telephone interconnection, the caller
`20 receiving a second call attempt can be notified of the blocked
`call attempt through a feature known as "call waiting". The
`party receiving the call waiting notification can suspend the
`conversation with the first caller to engage in conversation
`with the incoming or second caller. On the other hand, where
`25 a data dialogue is occupying the subscriber's telephone link,
`the computers and modems managing the data dialogue are
`incapable of dealing with any audio notification of another
`call attempt through the "Call waiting" feature. Additionally,
`the computers or modems are not capable of suspending the
`30 current data dialogue to commence another voice or data
`communication with the inbound call. An attempt to do so
`would abort the existing connection between the two
`modems and computers as the protocol of communication
`between modems in a dial-up connection does not support
`35 any extended absence of end-to-end communications.
`Such a system suffers a significant drawback, namely, that
`a subscriber using the telephone link for a data dialogue
`consequently puts their telephone link in an occupied or
`busy, off-hook state, typically for an extended period of
`time, thus making it difficult or impossible to notify the
`subscriber of an incoming telephone call.
`The vast majority of persons connecting to a DCS do so
`through a temporary dial-up connection from their resi-
`45 dence. The vast majority of residences are equipped with a
`single telephone link and, when this link is used to dial up
`to the DCS, the residence becomes unreachable by other
`incoming telephone calls. Persons attempting to reach such
`a residence during a dial-up session to the DCS will receive
`50 a busy signal, typically for an extended period of time.
`Furthermore, persons who access the DCS from within an
`apartment complex may be unable to receive notification of
`persons awaiting entry through the main entrance, as many
`apartment complexes utilize the PSTN as a notification
`55 system between the main entrance and each individual
`apartment unit.
`A significant negative result of the above situation is that
`people become unreachable in emergencies and important
`situations unless there is intervention by the telephone
`60 company. Additionally, the telephone network is put under
`load by persons making many call attempts to reach the
`party whose telephone link is busy in an off hook state while
`connected to the DCS.
`A number of systems have been developed to notify a
`called party during an existing voice telephone call of a
`second incoming call attempted on that same telephone link.
`One such system is commonly known as "Call Waiting" and
`
`BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
`A subscriber can connect directly to a data network such
`as the Internet by establishing a telephone dial-up connec(cid:173)
`tion to a Data Communications Service (DCS) which is an
`Internet Service Provider (ISP). A subscriber can also con(cid:173)
`nect indirectly to a data network such as the Internet by
`establishing a telephone dial-up connection to a DCS service
`which is a commercial online data service such as Com(cid:173)
`puServe or America Online, then use the Internet intercon(cid:173)
`nection facilities of the commercial online data service to
`access the Internet. In either case, the subscriber establishes
`computer dialogue with the DCS via a dial-up connection
`using a telephone link connected to the Public Switched
`Telephone Network (PSTN).
`The telephone link used by the subscriber is capable of
`use either for voice communications with other telephone
`subscribers or for data communications with a data com(cid:173)
`munications service. Using the telephone link for voice or
`data communications occupies the telephone link and sub(cid:173)
`sequent call attempts to the subscriber's telephone link are
`blocked from completion.
`There are several types of dial-up connections possible
`depending on the type of service connection the subscriber
`has with the PSTN telephone service provider, or telephone
`carrier. For example, the subscriber can be provided with a
`telephone link that communicates over an analogue wire
`line, the so-called plain old telephone service or POTS.
`Alternately, the subscriber can be provided with a telephone
`link that communicates over a digital wire line such as the
`Integrated Services Digital Network or ISDN service offered
`by the telephone carriers. As a further alternative, the
`subscriber can be provided with a telephone link which
`communicates over a wireless radio band such as cellular
`telephone or personal communication service (PCS).
`The Internet is a network of computers around the world
`which has become increasingly popular over the last few
`years. Commercial online data services such as CompuServe
`and America Online are examples of private data commu(cid:173)
`nications networks which have also become very popular
`over the last few years. There are numerous methods which
`consumers and businesses utilize to connect to these data
`communications services. The two most popular methods
`are via a temporary dial up modem connection over the
`PSTN, or via a dedicated connection either through the
`PSTN or through a private telephone connection. In either
`case, the user must connect to a data communications 65
`service (DCS) in order to access the Internet directly by
`connection to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) or indi-
`
`40
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 7
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`5,809,128
`
`3
`has been discussed briefly above. Notification is typically
`via a series of audible tones delivered to the telephone
`handset of the subscriber that is receiving the incoming call.
`The subscriber is able to suspend the existing conversation
`to commence another conversation with the incoming caller. 5
`To accomplish this, the subscriber, if they wish to accept the
`second incoming call must put the first call on hold. This
`step is typically done by having the subscriber initiate a
`switch hook flash signal to the telephone company switch.
`This feature can only be used during a voice telephone call. 10
`An enhancement to the basic call waiting just described
`additionally delivers the calling party's telephone number to
`a telephone display provided on the subscriber's telephone
`handset equipment. This service is commonly known as
`visual call waiting and requires the subscriber to have 15
`special telephone equipment capable of receiving and dis(cid:173)
`playing the calling party's telephone number.
`The above systems all suffer the drawback that they
`cannot be used while the telephone link is busy on a dial-up
`connection to a DCS, as they are designed for use on a voice 20
`telephone connection only.
`
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`The present invention provides an improved telephone
`call notification, caller identification and control system
`which allows subscribers connected to a DCS through a
`dial-up connection over the PSTN to receive visual and/or
`audio notification, in real-time, of the call and to respond to
`the caller by making selections using computer input periph(cid:173)
`erals. This method provides advantages to subscribers over
`the current situation where no caller notification, identifica(cid:173)
`tion or call control is available, as it eliminates busy signals
`to the calling party and provides instantaneous notification
`to the called subscriber even while the called subscriber's
`telephone link is in an off-hook state connected to a DCS. 35
`In another manner of operation, the subscriber can be
`away from their home, while at work for example. Any calls
`to the subscriber's residence would be left unanswered. With
`the present invention, the subscriber could remotely monitor
`the unanswered calls from the second location by configur- 40
`ing and connecting their personal computer at work to the
`ISP which interconnects with the proxy of the present
`invention. In accordance with an illustrative embodiment of
`the present invention, a subscriber receives from a Message
`Transfer Point (MTP) incoming call notification to their 45
`computer screen while the dial-up connection to the DCS is
`maintained. The subscriber will receive notification of the
`call on their computer screen, and may optionally also
`receive information about the calling party, such as the
`calling party's telephone number, the calling party's name,
`and messages selected or input by the calling party through
`an Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS) at the MTP.
`The method provides the called subscriber with the ability to
`provide notification to the calling party, through the MTP,
`that the called subscriber's telephone link is busy on a
`dial-up connection to the DCS. The subscriber can, if they
`choose, acknowledge and control the incoming call through
`computer interaction with the MTP, via input and or output
`peripherals signifying to the calling party that the call has
`been acknowledged. Audio messages can be delivered to the 60
`calling party by way of subscriber interaction with the MTP
`which is connected to the IVRS, or which could be the same
`computer as the IVRS. The subscriber can ignore the incom(cid:173)
`ing call, accept the incoming call after terminating the
`dial-up connection, redirect the incoming call to a voice mail 65
`system, or redirect the incoming call to another telephone
`number on the PSTN.
`
`4
`In one of its aspects the invention provides for a public
`switched telephone network providing telephone link
`blocked call redirection, a method permitting notification
`and control of redirected calls over a data communications
`network, the method comprising the steps of activating
`blocked call forwarding for a subscriber telephone link
`having a dial number associated therewith; providing a
`second dial number corresponding to a subscriber proxy for
`redirection of blocked calls to said subscriber telephone link;
`using said telephone link to connect a computer to said data
`communications network and receiving a unique data net(cid:173)
`work address therefrom; establishing a data path over said
`data network to said subscriber proxy and providing said
`proxy with said subscriber dial number and said unique data
`network address; storing said subscriber dial number and
`said unique data network address; whereby blocked calls to
`said telephone link will be redirected to the subscriber proxy.
`The present invention is especially (but not exclusively)
`suited for permitting subscribers to a service, such as the
`Internet or other commercial online service, to be notified of,
`and have call handling control over, incoming telephone
`calls to the subscriber telephone which is being utilized to
`connect to the service.
`The present invention allows remote control of a tele(cid:173)
`phone link. A subscriber is provided with the ability to be in
`25 one location while controlling the calls terminating at
`another location. Also the subscriber can monitor and con(cid:173)
`trol calls to multiple lines simultaneously.
`One embodiment of the present invention permits the
`subscriber connected to the DCS to be notified of the
`30 incoming call on their computer while still maintaining an
`active connection to the DCS. The present invention also
`provides the method to deliver incoming call notification
`and control messaging over the same telephone link utilized
`by the subscriber to connect to the DCS without requiring
`the subscriber to hang up to free up the telephone link.
`Furthermore, the caller attempting to reach the subscriber
`does not receive a busy signal and the caller is able option(cid:173)
`ally to deliver a message to the subscriber by way of the
`service or otherwise interact with the subscriber in the
`manner hereinafter described.
`It will be apparent that additional call notification and
`control features can be accessed through the service. For
`example, incoming calls can receive different processing
`based on the originating number.
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`A further understanding of the nature and advantages of
`the invention may be realized by reference to the remaining
`portions of the specification and drawings in which:
`FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the
`50 physical components and telecommunications network that
`are used to support the preferred methods and processes of
`the present invention.
`FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram illustrating the
`logical elements of a preferred embodiment of the system of
`55 the present invention.
`FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an incoming caller handling
`process.
`FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a no answer handler
`process.
`FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a caller handler process
`where the called subscriber is occupying the telephone link
`on a data network call.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE
`INVENTION
`FIG. 1 illustrates a telecommunications system including
`local exchange central offices 30 and 42 connected by a
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 8
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`5
`trunk 20. The central offices 30 and 42 support a plurality
`subscribers each subscriber having a telephone link associ(cid:173)
`ated with telephones 34A, 34B, 44A, 44B, such links are
`shown at 32, 36 and 41. Modem 33 is also in communication
`with the central office over telephone link 36. The central 5
`offices 30 and 42 also support dedicated communications
`channels such as 18 and 54. The central offices 30 and 42
`may consist, for example, of telecommunications switches
`such as a Northern Telecom DMS-100 (trademark) or AT&T
`SESS (trademark) switch.
`An Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS) 14 is
`coupled to central office switch 30 through telephone link
`10. The IVRS includes audio playback and record capabili(cid:173)
`ties permitting recorded voice messages to be delivered to a
`caller's telephone 44A and to collect and store touch-tone
`entries made by callers using such telephones.
`The switch of central office 30 is connected to the IVRS
`14 by telephone link 10. The telephone link has an associ(cid:173)
`ated signaling channel lOA. The signaling channel is pro(cid:173)
`vided to communicate the called number to the IVRS to 20
`enable the IVRS to customize the interaction it has to relate
`to the subscriber line that the call was transferred from.
`There are several options for delivery of the called num(cid:173)
`ber to the IVRS. The called number information could be
`delivered during call setup by way of the Integrated Services
`Digital Network call setup signaling. For POTS telephone or
`centrex, the called number information could be provided
`using the Simplified Message Desk Interface (SMDI). Other
`options are available using the Advanced Intelligent Net(cid:173)
`work interface. Any of these options may be advantageously
`employed by one skilled in the art to obtain delivery of the
`called number to carry out the process of the present
`invention.
`The switch of central office 30 is also connected to the
`Data Host (DH) 16 by dedicated communications channel
`18 and to the Data Communications Service (DCS) 50 over
`telephone link 52. The switch of central office 42 is con(cid:173)
`nected to the DCS by dedicated communications channel 54.
`A Message Transfer Point (MTP) 12 is directly connected
`to the IVRS 14 and the DH 16 and functions as an inter(cid:173)
`mediary by translating and transferring messages between
`the DH 16 and the IVRS 14. The MTP 12 accesses sub(cid:173)
`scriber records from customer record file 26 which contains
`records for subscribers that are authorized to use the service.
`In addition, each subscriber's DNIS record contains real(cid:173)
`time subscriber information relating to the status of the
`subscriber's telephone link (for example, link 36). Each
`subscriber link has a real-time record stored in the data store
`accessed by the MTP 12 so in the event a message or call is
`received by the IVRS 14 the MTP 12 can control the manner
`in which the IVRS 14 processes the message or call accord(cid:173)
`ing to the status of the subscriber telephone link 36.
`DH 16 is a computer host with a dedicated communica(cid:173)
`tions link to the DCS 50 through the switch of central office
`30 which is coupled to the switch of central office 42 which
`has a dedicated communications channel 54 to the DCS. The
`dedicated link allows the DH and the DCS to communicate
`by providing a continuous communications path.
`The DCS, through a data channel such as telephone link 60
`52 also allows a subscriber using a dial-up data channel such
`as telephone link 36 to establish temporary dial-up data
`connections to the DCS 50, over the PSTN.
`Table 1 is a flow listing which provides an overview of the
`steps associated with providing incoming call notification
`and control options in accordance with a preferred embodi(cid:173)
`ment of the present invention. The steps of Table 1 should
`
`50
`
`45
`
`5,809,128
`
`6
`be considered with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 in order to
`maintain a visual perspective of the elements and the steps.
`
`TABLE 1
`
`(1) A subscriber 31 desires to a make data connection to
`a data communications service (DCS) 50, such as that
`provided by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) or Commer(cid:173)
`cial Online Service (COS).
`(2) The subscriber 31, using a computer 35, modem 33
`10 and a telephone link 36 connected to the PSTN, connects to
`the DCS 50 which is connected to the public switched
`telephone network through central office or CO 30, by
`dialing a predetermined dial number (DN).
`(3) The subscriber 31 initiates a modem 33 call to the
`15 DCS 50 by instructing the computer 35 to dial a predeter-
`mined DN.
`( 4) The subscriber's local central office (CO) 30 routes the
`call to the DN of the DCS 50 service point over a telephone
`link 52 which connects the DCS 50 to the CO 30.
`(5) The DCS 50 responds by accepting the call and going
`in an off hook state thereby establishing a circuit 53 through
`co 30.
`(6) The modem 33 and computer 35 of the subscriber 31
`25 and the DCS 50 negotiate a connection protocol and speed
`over a circuit 53 bridging the subscriber telephone link 36
`and a telephone link 52 of the DCS 50.
`(7) Upon successful establishment of the connection
`protocol and speed over circuit 53, the subscriber 31 is
`30 requested to enter user identification and password informa(cid:173)
`tion into the computer 35 which is communicated to DCS
`50.
`(8) Upon entry of such information, the DCS 50 authen(cid:173)
`ticates the computer 35 of the subscriber and if successful,
`35 the subscriber computer 35 is granted access to the DCS 50.
`(9) Immediately upon authentication of the subscriber
`provided information, the access granted over the data
`connection is assigned either an Internet Protocol (IP)
`address or other type of alphanumeric network address
`40 identifier as so chosen by the DCS 50. A numerical address
`identifier of either form is used to achieve successful routing
`of information between the subscriber's computer 35 and the
`DCS 50.
`(10) The subscriber's computer 35 transmits through the
`modem 33, by way of the circuit 53, to the DCS 50 host by
`way of the dedicated communications channel 54 a message
`to the Data Host (DH) 16 located at the MTP 12, indicating
`that the subscriber's computer 35 has successfully initiated
`a connection to the DCS 50. The message may contain a
`subscriber identifier assigned the DCS in addition to the
`subscriber's network address as assigned by the DCS 50.
`(11) The DH 16 in turn transmits a message to the MTP
`12 where it is authenticated against an existing customer
`55 record file 26. If the subscriber identifier is found in the
`customer record file 26 at the MTP 12, a message is
`transmitted via the DCS 50 to the subscriber computer 35
`indicating that subscriber information was received and
`authenticated successfully.
`(12) Then, in the event a telephone call is attempted to the
`DN of the telephone link 36 of the subscriber, the CO 30
`serving that DN prepares to forward the call to call busy
`forward dial number of the IVRS 14 by way of the PSTN.
`(13) The CO 30 delivers, over signaling channel lOA,
`65 information about the original destination of the call through
`a service known as Dialed Number Identification Service
`(DNIS). The CO 30 may also deliver information identifying
`
`YMAX CORPORATION v. FOCAL IP, LLC
`FOCAL IP, LLC EX2053 - 9
`U.S. Patent No. 5,809,128
`IPR2016-01260
`
`

`

`5,809,128
`
`7
`the origin of the call through a service known as Automatic
`Number Identification (ANI). Both DNIS and ANI are well
`known and will not be described here.
`(14) Upon reception of DNIS and any supplied ANI
`information, and prior to the IVRS 14 accepting the call, 5
`IVRS validates the DNIS information against the subscriber
`records located in the customer record file 26 of the MTP 12
`to ensure that the subscriber DN is a valid subscriber DN
`authorized to use the service. The DN is also used to validate
`the existence of an active modem connection between the
`subscriber computer 35 and the DCS 50.
`(15) If the DNIS information is validated, the IVRS 14
`transmits a message over the signaling channel lOA to the
`CO 30 acknowledging and accepting the call.
`(16) If the existence of an active modem connection on 15
`circuit 53 was established, concurrent with acceptance of the
`call, the IVRS 14 delivers to the MTP 12 notification that a
`call has been established with the caller's telephone 44A in
`addition to delivering the ANI of the caller's telephone 44A.
`(17) The MTP 12, once again, validates the existence of 20
`a modem connection on circuit 53 between the subscriber
`and the DCS 50.
`(18) If circuit 53 is still established, the MTP 12 sends a
`message by way of the DH 16 to the subscriber computer 35
`over the dedicated network circuit bridging dedicated com(cid:173)
`munications channels 18 and 54. This may occur through
`one CO 30 or by way of a plurality of COs such as CO 30
`and CO 42 which are coupled together by trunk 20 as
`illustrated in FIG. 1.
`(19) Upon acceptance of the call, a voice path is estab- 30
`lished over telephone link 10 between the caller's telephone
`44A and the IVRS 14.
`(20) The IVRS 14, immediately upon acceptance of the
`call, delivers an audio message to the caller's telephone
`44A, which can optionally be prerecorded by the subscriber.
`(21) In the event the ANI information was not delivered
`from the CO 30, or is not available, the IVRS 14 can produce
`an audio message audible from caller's telephone 44A
`requesting the caller to input their originating telephone
`number using a touch-tone phone. The caller entry will
`replace the previously absent ANI information.
`(22) Upon delivery of the notification message to the
`subscriber computer 35, the subscriber software residing on
`the subscriber's computer 35, notifies the subscriber 31 by
`way of visual and or audio notification. The audio notifica(cid:173)
`tion could include a tone signal while the visual notification
`will include presentation of the ANI information as captured
`and delivered by the IVRS 14.
`(23) Upon presentation of the caller information, the
`subscriber 31 can utilize a computer input device to select or
`input a response to be delivered to the caller's telephone
`44A. The input device used by the subscriber 31, in con(cid:173)
`junction with the subscriber software, can select a number of
`predefined options. Each option directly correlates to a
`specific identifier which is delivered to the DH 16.
`(24) Upon successful receipt of the identifier by the DH
`16, the DH 16 delivers the identifier to the MTP 12. The
`MTP 12 validates the identifier and determines whether the
`identifier correlates to an audio message or to a call handling 60
`instruction.
`(25) In the event the identifier correlates to an audio
`message, a signal is transmitted to the IVRS 14 from the
`MTP 12, which executes the delivery of a specific audio file
`over the voice path to the caller which is a bridging of
`telephone link 10 and telephone link 41 through CO 42 and
`30 connected by trunk 20.
`
`8
`(26) If the identifier correlates to a call handling
`instruction, a signal is transmitted to the IVRS 14 which
`redirects the voice path to a voice mail system at the IV