(12) United States Patent
`Banister et al.
`
`USOO6621892B1
`US 6,621,892 B1
`Sep. 16, 2003
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`(54) SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONVERTING
`ELECTRONIC MALTEXT TO AUDIO FOR
`TELEPHONIC DELIVERY
`
`(75) Inventors: Scott Banister, Menlo Park, CA (US);
`Wendell Brown, Las Vegas, NV (US)
`(73) Assignee: America Online, Inc., Dulles, VA (US)
`(*) Notice:
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 101 days.
`
`(21) Appl. No.: 09/616,492
`(22) Filed:
`Jul. 14, 2000
`(51) Int. Cl. ............................................... H04M 11/00
`(52) U.S. Cl. ................................ 379/88.14; 379/88.17;
`379/88.25; 455/412
`(58) Field of Search ........................... 379/88.13, 88.11,
`379/88.16, 88.17, 88.18, 93.24, 88.14; 455/412
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`5,475,738 A * 12/1995 Penzias ................... 379/88.13
`5,647.002 A * 7/1997 Brunson ........... ... 379/88.18
`5,987.508 A * 11/1999 Agraharam et al. ..... 379/93.24
`6,243,681 B1 * 6/2001 Guji et al. .................. 455/412
`6,246,983 B1 * 6/2001 Zou et al. ..
`... 379/88.16
`6,335,963 B1 * 1/2002 Bosco .............. ... 379/88.11
`6,353,852 B1 * 3/2002 Nestoriak et al......... 379/88.17
`* cited by examiner
`
`Primary Examiner Fan Tsang
`ASSistant Examiner-Gerald Gauthier
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Glenn Patent Group;
`Michael A. Glenn; Kirk D. Wong
`(57)
`ABSTRACT
`A System and method are provided for converting a textual
`portion of an electronic mail message into audio and deliv
`ering the audio through a telephone call to a recipient. An
`electronic mail Server is configured to receive a mail mes
`Sage and parse an address to retrieve a telephone number
`included in or associated with Said address. One or more
`textual portions of the mail message are converted to audio
`by a text-to-audio converter and combined into an audio
`message. The audio message may include an identifier of a
`Sender or originator of the mail message, a Subject of the
`mail message, text included in the body of the mail message,
`etc. An audio attachment included with the mail message
`may be included in the audio message. A call processor
`establishes a telephonic connection with the recipient, playS
`the audio message and may record a response from the
`recipient. If a response is provided, it is relayed back to the
`originator of the mail message. The recipient may be able to
`Specify circumstances (.g., time of day, different telephone
`number) or criteria (e.g., originator identity, Size of mail
`message) under which the recipient will or will not accept
`telephone delivery of audio forms of electronic mail mes
`Sages. The System may apply a set of rules to ensure that
`audio forms of mail messages are limited, or not sent at all,
`to emergency numbers, directory assistance, toll-free
`numbers, etc.
`
`22 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets
`
`RECWCTRONICMAL
`SSAGE
`200
`
`Apply frnG RES
`202
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`
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`ACCEPABE
`2
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`
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`As
`AACMEN
`208
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`Nd
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`For Arto RIGNAR
`SCT ANDOYO
`CNWRER
`2
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`PONE
`FORWARD
`Nusro CA
`Processor
`212
`
`Rec.SSAGE
`26
`
`orward ORIGNATOR
`ANSECTO
`cower:R
`24
`
`FoRWARDEPHONE
`Nuiser ANATACMEN
`to CAEROCSSOR
`28
`
`CONVErted ex
`Gryfares O CAL
`processor
`28
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`
`
`Ex. 1006
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`U.S. Patent
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`Sep. 16, 2003
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`Sheet 1 of 3
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`US 6,621,892 B1
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`OL
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`LNAIdIO3Y
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`SNOHdSTAL
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`Be
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`Be)ana”
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`L“Sis
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`Ex. 1006
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`Ex. 1006
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`U.S. Patent
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`Sep. 16, 2003
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`Sheet 2 of 3
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`US 6,621,892 B1
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`START
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`RECEIVE ELECTRONIC MA
`MESSAGE
`200
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`APPLY FILTERNG RUES
`202
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`ENO
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`ACCEPABLE
`204
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`NO
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`YES
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`AUDO
`ATAMENT
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`YES
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`NO
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`FORWARD ORIGINATOR,
`SUBJECT AND BODY TO
`CONVERTER
`210
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`FORWARD TELEPHONE
`NUMBER TO CAL
`PROCESSOR
`212
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`RELECT MESSAGE
`206
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`FORWARD ORGENATOR
`AND SUBJECTO
`CONVERTER
`214
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`FORWARD ELEPHONE
`NUMBER AND ATTACHMENT
`TO CAL PROCESSOR
`216
`
`CONVERTED EXT
`FORWARDED TO CAL
`PROCESSOR
`218
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`F.G. 2A
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`(a)
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`Ex. 1006
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`U.S. Patent
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`Sep. 16, 2003
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`Sheet 3 of 3
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`US 6,621,892 B1
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`
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`CAL PROCESSOR BUILDS
`CALO RECIPIENT
`220
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`CAL CONNECTED
`222
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`PAY AUDIO O RECIPIENT
`224
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`RESPONSE2
`226
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`RECORD RESPONSE
`228
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`RETURN RESPONSETO
`ELECTRONIC MA
`ORIGNATOR
`230
`
`F.G. 2B
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`US 6,621,892 B1
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`1
`SYSTEMAND METHOD FOR CONVERTING
`ELECTRONIC MALTEXT TO AUDIO FOR
`TELEPHONIC DELIVERY
`
`BACKGROUND
`This invention relates to the fields of computer systems
`and communications. More particularly, a System and meth
`ods are provided for converting an electronic mail message
`to audio for delivery via a telephone call.
`Electronic mail can be an effective method of communi
`cating information, but many users do not maintain con
`tinual connections with their electronic mail accounts.
`Therefore, a message may languish in a recipient's account
`or inbox for a significant period of time. AS one alternative,
`the information could be communicated telephonically but
`then generally only one perSon at a time can receive the
`information. Each recipient must be separately notified.
`In addition, telephone (e.g., voice) messages are static, So
`that whether the calling party reaches the intended recipient
`or leaves a message with the recipient's answering System,
`the calling party has only one chance to communicate the
`message clearly. Conversely, when the information is sent
`via electronic mail, the Sender can review and revise the
`message before actually Sending it.
`Existing message delivery Systems do not provide for the
`conversion of an electronic mail message into a voice
`message for delivery via telephone call. Although a text-to
`Speech converter may be available, present implementations
`require a user to first conduct an extended communication
`Session with a specified entity (e.g., a world-wide web site)
`providing the text-to-speech conversion. The user may then
`be able to enter his or her text for conversion to a voice
`message, which may then be sent to a recipient telephoni
`cally after the user provides a phone number. This System is
`inflexible, however, and requires a user to connect to the Site
`and enter one message at a time For one user. This System
`cannot accept electronic mail messages, particularly mes
`Sages addressed to multiple users and would be very inef
`ficient for Sending one message to many recipients or many
`messages to any number of recipients.
`What is needed then is a system and method for convert
`ing an electronic mail message into audio or voice form for
`telephonic communication to a recipient. Such a System may
`also allow for a confirmation message or response to be
`returned to the Sender of the electronic mail message.
`SUMMARY
`In one embodiment of the invention a System and methods
`are provided for receiving an electronic mail message,
`retrieving a telephone number associated with an intended
`recipient of the message, converting one or more textual
`portions of the message (e.g., Sender's identity, Subject,
`body) to audio, establishing a telephonic connection with the
`recipient and playing an audio form of the message text.
`If the received electronic mail message includes an audio
`attachment, it may be included in the audio message played
`for a recipient. In different embodiments of the invention the
`format of an audio attachment, the audio message played for
`a recipient, and the output of a text-to-audio converter may
`vary, and any Such format may be altered or converted
`before being played for a recipient.
`The address of the recipient may include the recipient's
`telephone number as a prefix, and the address need not be
`pre-registered or known on the electronic mail Server that
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`receives or processes the message. Alternatively, the mail
`Server may maintain a list or database of addresses with
`asSociated telephone numbers, in which case a message Sent
`to Such an address will be converted to audio and forwarded
`to the Specified number. An electronic mail address or prefix
`of an address may be run through a Series of filtering rules
`to ensure that the Sender of the message is not trying to have
`it delivered to restricted or prohibited numbers (e.g., an
`operator, emergency numbers, directory assistance, toll-free
`numbers, government offices).
`A call processor receives the telephone number identified
`by the mail Server, the output of the text-to-audio converter,
`and any audio attachment, establishes the telephonic con
`nection with the recipient and plays the audio message (e.g.,
`the converted text and/or audio attachment). The call pro
`ceSSor may attempt to reach the recipient multiple times if
`the number is busy or the line is not answered. The audio
`message may be left on an answering System or directions
`for calling in and retrieving the audio message may be left.
`In one embodiment of the invention a recipient may be
`able to provide a response to the audio message, which
`response may be recorded and returned to the Sender of the
`electronic mail message. The response may be provided as
`a sound file or may be converted to text or other form prior
`to being returned.
`
`DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
`FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting a System for convert
`ing an electronic mail into a Voice message in accordance
`with an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIGS. 2A-B comprise a flowchart illustrating one method
`of converting text from an electronic mail message into
`audio and telephonically delivering the audio to a recipient
`in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`The following description is presented to enable any
`perSon Skilled in the art to make and use the invention, and
`is provided in the context of particular applications of the
`invention and their requirements. Various modifications to
`the disclosed embodiments will be readily apparent to those
`skilled in the art and the general principles defined herein
`may be applied to other embodiments and applications
`without departing from the Spirit and Scope of the present
`invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be
`limited to the embodiments shown, but is to be accorded the
`widest Scope consistent with the principles and features
`disclosed herein.
`The program environment in which a present embodiment
`of the invention is executed illustratively incorporates a
`general-purpose computer or a special purpose device Such
`as a hand-held computer. Details of Such devices (e.g.,
`processor, memory, data storage, display) are omitted for the
`Sake of clarity.
`It should also be understood that the techniques of the
`present invention might be implemented using a variety of
`technologies. For example, the methods described herein
`may be implemented in Software executing on a computer
`System, or implemented in hardware utilizing either a com
`bination of microprocessors or other specially designed
`application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic
`devices, or various combinations thereof. In particular, the
`methods described herein may be implemented by a Series of
`computer-executable instructions residing on a storage
`medium Such as a carrier wave, disk drive, or computer
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`readable medium. Exemplary forms of carrier waves may
`take the form of electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals
`conveying digital data Streams along a local network or a
`publicly accessible network Such as the Internet.
`In one embodiment of the invention a System and method
`are provided for converting an electronic mail message into
`Voice or audio format and delivering the message to a
`recipient via a telephone call. In this embodiment a Sender
`of an electronic mail message addresses the message to an
`electronic mail Server of an organization providing the
`conversion Service. The prefix of the address may include
`the telephone number to which the resulting voice message
`is to be placed. In this embodiment the mail server is
`configured to accept the message and process it for conver
`Sion even if the prefix is not already known or registered on
`the Server. Thus, without first establishing an electronic mail
`account or address for a recipient of the message, an
`electronic mail message can be sent using the recipient's
`telephone number as an address, and the electronic mail
`message will be converted to audio and telephonically
`communicated to the recipient.
`In various embodiments of the invention a recipient may
`register his or her telephone number with the System and
`Specify when calls may or may not be placed to him or her,
`provide an alternative telephone number to call with mes
`Sages directed to the recipient's telephone number, and
`otherwise configure the System according to his or her
`desires. In one embodiment of the invention a recipient may
`provide an audio response to a message, which may be
`returned (e.g., in textual, audio or other form) to the Sender
`of the original electronic mail message.
`FIG. 1 depicts a System for converting an electronic mail
`message into an audio message for delivery via telephone
`according to one embodiment of the invention.
`System 100 of FIG. 1 includes an electronic mail gateway
`or Server 104 that receives electronic mail messages from
`electronic mail originatorS Such as originators 102a, 102b,
`102c. The mail server includes rules module 104a, which
`applies a set of rules or filters to determine whether a
`particular electronic mail message should be accepted for
`conversion or rejected, and possibly how to process or route
`the message. The System also includes text-to-audio con
`verter 106 for converting the text of all or part of an
`electronic mail message to audio form, and one or more call
`processors (e.g., call processor 108) for placing calls to
`recipients telephones. A first recipient of a converted elec
`tronic mail message is represented by recipient telephone
`110, which may be a wired or wireless device capable of
`receiving audio information.
`FIG. 1 depicts just one possible configuration of a System
`for converting an electronic mail message to voice. Other
`possible Systems may include different quantities of the
`components of System 10 and/or take other forms that may
`be derived from system 100.
`Electronic mail originators may employ virtually any
`device capable of initiating or forwarding an electronic mail
`message, Such as a computer, Smart phone, two-way pager
`or other intelligent processor-equipped) device. An elec
`tronic mail message converted to text for telephonic delivery
`in a present embodiment of the invention includes one or
`more addresses and may include any number of other fields
`or components, Such as a Subject, body, attachments,
`hyperlinks, etc.
`In one embodiment of the invention at least one address
`includes a telephone number. For example, an address may
`be similar to 650555 1234 (Ole voice.com, where
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`US 6,621,892 B1
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`“6505551234" is considered the prefix of the address and
`“evoice.com' identifies a domain of the electronic mail
`Server. The manner in which an electronic message is
`converted, delivered or processed may, in a present embodi
`ment of the invention, depend on the domain to which the
`message is directed.
`The telephone number may be expressed with or without
`an area code (i.e., ten or Seven digits), with or without a
`leading “1”, in international format (i.e., starting with
`“011”), or any other recognizable format. The rules used to
`filter a telephone number address may depend on the format
`of the number (e.g., different rules may be applied for
`different area codes, countries, etc.).
`In one alternative embodiment of the invention an address
`Specified by an originator of a message may be converted to
`a telephone number or used to look-up a telephone number
`when the message is received at electronic mail Server 104.
`Although system 100 depicts a single electronic mail
`Server, any number of mail or other Servers may be
`employed to receive electronic mail messages and/or deter
`mine a telephone number to which a message should be
`telephonically delivered. In particular, multiple Servers may
`be included in order to balance the load of processing
`messages. In addition, although Server 104 receives elec
`tronic mail messages that are to be converted to audio, it may
`also be configured to receive “regular messages, that is,
`messages that are not to be converted. Thus, one function of
`Server 104 may be to distinguish messages to be converted
`from messages that are not to be converted.
`Rules module 104a may be configured to process all
`electronic mail messages received at Server 104 or just those
`messages that are candidates for being partially or fully
`converted to audio for telephonic delivery. In one embodi
`ment of the invention a message received at Server 104 is
`first examined to determine if any of its addressees include
`what may be a telephone number. If not, it is treated as a
`regular message. However an address that does not include
`a telephone number may be mapped to an address compris
`ing a telephone number or Some other address (e.g., a
`forwarding address) that is mapped to a telephone number.
`An electronic mail message addressed to an address that
`does not include a telephone number, does not map to an
`address that includes a telephone number, and does not
`otherwise call for conversion of the message to audio format
`may be rejected unless the address is already registered or
`known on server 104. In other words, regular electronic mail
`messages may be accepted only for known users or
`acCOuntS.
`Conversely, however, if a message address includes a
`telephone number or otherwise calls for conversion to audio
`(e.g., the address maps to or is forwarded to an address
`including or associated with a telephone number), it may be
`accepted regardless of whether the address is already reg
`istered or known on server 104. Thus, an electronic mail
`message may be received, converted to audio and forwarded
`telephonically even if the prefix of an addressee of the
`message is unknown to the mail Server.
`The rules or filters used to Separate regular electronic mail
`messages from messages to be converted to audio may be
`merged with the rules or filters applied by rules module 104a
`to determine whether to accept and convert a message. In
`one embodiment of the invention electronic mail server 104
`(e.g., rules module 104a) may first determine whether a
`message received at the Server is a candidate for conversion
`to audio. This determination may be made based on the form
`of an address, Such as whether it is numeric or contains
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`Sufficient numerals to indicate a telephone number or
`whether the address is forwarded or mapped to a numeric
`address. Then, rules module 104a may apply its rules to
`determine whether to accept the message for conversion. In
`another embodiment rules module 104a may first apply its
`rules to determine whether to accept the message for con
`version. In this embodiment, a message may be treated as a
`regular message if it fails one of the filters applied by the
`rules module.
`Illustratively, rules module 104a parses an address of an
`electronic mail message received at Server 104 to determine
`whether the message can or should be converted. In one
`embodiment of the invention the prefix of an address of a
`message to be converted must be numeric and ten or eleven
`digits in length (i.e., including an area code and possibly an
`initial digit of “1”) for delivery within the United States.
`Longer addresses may be parsed and compared to telephone
`number formats for corresponding countries or regions.
`Prefixes or addresses beginning with "411,” “911,” or other
`restricted numbers or area codes may be ignored or deleted.
`Addresses comprising toll-free and directory other assis
`tance numbers (e.g., "5551212) may also be rejected. As
`described below, in one embodiment of the invention a
`recipient may be able to customize how and/or when mes
`Sages directed to his or her telephone number are or are not
`delivered telephonically.
`A message having an address that passes the rules/filters
`applied by the rules module may then be passed to text-to
`speech converter 106 if it includes text to be converted.
`Illustratively, for a message that does not include an
`attachment, the body of the message may be converted,
`along with any and/or all of the Subject, originator and other
`fields. In different embodiments of the invention, an attach
`ment may be ignored, may be converted if it contains text or
`may be passed directly to call processor 108 (e.g., without
`conversion) if it is in an audio format (e.g., if it is a file with
`an extension of. WAV, RA, MP3, etc.) or includes infor
`mation in an audio format. In one embodiment of the
`invention, if an attachment is an audio file, then the body of
`the message may be ignored.
`Illustratively, only the information to be converted from
`text to audio (e.g., originator identity (name and/or elec
`tronic mail address), Subject, body) is passed from Server
`104 to converter 106. Any information not requiring con
`version (e.g., telephone number, audio file attachment) may
`be passed directly to call processor 108 by server 104.
`Converter 106 converts textual information to an audio
`format that can be handled by call processor 108 or the audio
`output of the converter (and/or server 104) may be changed
`in format (e.g., from a RA file to a WAV file).
`Call processor 108 uses a telephone number provided by
`Server 104 to Set up a call to a recipient having that telephone
`number. The call processor then plays the audio information
`received from electronic mail server 104 and/or text-to
`audio converter 106 to the recipient. If the call is answered
`by an answering machine, the audio information may be
`played or, in one alternative embodiment the call processor
`may hang up and attempt another call to the recipient at a
`later time.
`System 100 may, in one alternative embodiment of the
`invention, include multiple call processors, perhaps for
`different geographical regions or to balance the load of
`placing calls.
`In one embodiment of the invention, after an audio
`message is played for a recipient, call processor 108 may
`record a response from the recipient. The response may be
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`audio (e.g., voice) or may comprise the DTMF (Dual Tone
`Multi-Frequency) signals corresponding to keypad buttons
`pressed by the recipient (which may then be converted to
`some other form in order to identify the buttons). The
`response may then be converted back to text (e.g., by
`converter 106) and/or sent as an audio file in a return
`electronic mail message to the originator of the message
`played for the recipient.
`The System may be configured to allow recipients to
`Specify how and/or when electronic mail messages may be
`Sent to them telephonically. One recipient may, for example,
`choose to reject all Such messages. Another may specify that
`Such messages may only be sent during certain hours, or that
`only messages meeting certain criteria (e.g., originator,
`Subject, length, audio form of an attachment) may be sent,
`or that messages are to be forwarded to another telephone
`number, etc. Recipients may communicate their desires by
`connecting to the System via a network (e.g., the Internet),
`telephonically contacting a human representative of the
`System, or Some other method.
`In one embodiment of the invention different domains or
`Sub-domains may be established in order to convert or
`complete messages in different ways. For example, mes
`Sages having an address in one Sub-domain may only be
`completed during daylight hours, another Sub-domain may
`be configured to Send audio messages directly to a recipi
`ent's voice mailbox, etc.
`FIGS. 2A-B comprise a flowchart demonstrating one
`procedure for converting an electronic mail message to
`audio and delivering the audio message telephonically
`according to a present embodiment of the invention. This
`embodiment of the invention is suitable for operation with a
`system such as system 100 of FIG. 1. Prior to operation of
`the illustrated procedure, a recipient may connect to the
`System and Specify, as discussed above, one or more param
`eters concerning the telephonic delivery of messages.
`In State 200, an electronic mail message to be converted
`to audio and delivered telephonically is received at the
`System. In the presently described embodiment the System
`may examine incoming messages to determine if they are to
`be delivered normally (e.g., without being converted to
`audio). The System may examine the prefix of an address to
`which the message is directed and, for example, if the prefix
`contains no numerals or an insufficient number of digits to
`form a telephone number, it may be assumed that the
`message is to be delivered without any of its textual content
`being converted to audio (e.g., as a regular electronic mail
`message).
`Messages received at the System for conversion to audio
`and delivery via a telephone call may include addresses in
`the form of
`prefix(a)domain,
`where the prefix may include multiple digits representing a
`telephone number. The digits may be numerals, alphabetic
`equivalents of the digits of a telephone number, or Some
`combination of alphabetic and numeric characters. In one
`alternative embodiment the prefix may be used to look up a
`telephone number to which the message is to be sent. In one
`embodiment of the invention a message may be directed to
`multiple addressees. With multiple recipients, all of them
`may receive the message in the same form (e.g., with or
`without being converted to audio) or Some may receive it as
`audio and Some may receive it as electronic mail.
`The System may use the prefix to Search a list or database
`of registered accounts or users. The results of the Search may
`indicate whether the message should be delivered without
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`conversion. If the message is not to be converted, it is
`handled as a regular electronic mail message and may be
`forwarded to the addressee, a mail processor or gateway, etc.
`Otherwise, if the prefix of an address to which the message
`is directed Seems to include a telephone number, or if an
`account for the address indicates that the message is to be
`converted to audio and delivered telephonically, the proce
`dure continues at state 202.
`In state 202 a set of rules is applied to determine if the
`prefix includes or is mapped to a telephone number to which
`an audio form of the message can or should be delivered. In
`different embodiments of the invention different rules may
`be applied to filter messages according to different criteria.
`The System may compare the form of the prefix or telephone
`number associated with the prefix to acceptable forms. In
`this manner the System can Screen out calls to emergency
`numbers (e.g., numbers beginning with 911), directory assis
`tance (e.g., 411, 555-1212), toll-free numbers, etc. The rules
`may block or allow messages directed to long-distance or
`international telephone numbers, may ensure that the num
`ber does not begin with Zero unless it is an international
`number, may ensure that the number has a Sufficient amount
`of digits, etc.
`AS one Step of determining the acceptability of the
`telephone number, the System may determine whether a
`recipient associated with Said telephone number has
`restricted use of the telephone number in delivering audio
`conversions of electronic mail messages. The recipient may
`have disallowed the delivery of converted messages to the
`number or restricted the times or manner in which Such
`messages may be delivered.
`In state 204 the system determines whether the prefix or
`telephone number Satisfies the rules. If it is acceptable, the
`illustrated procedure advances to State 208. Otherwise, in
`State 206 the message is rejected for this prefix or addressee.
`If the message has no other addressees that may require
`conversion of the message to audio, then the procedure ends.
`Otherwise it may return to state 202 to apply the rules for
`another address or addressee.
`In state 208 the system determines whether the message
`includes an audio attachment. If So, the procedure continues
`at state 214. An audio attachment may be identified by its file
`type (e.g., WAV, RA, MP3).
`In State 210, the message has no attachments in audio
`format, and So any attachments to the message are ignored
`and the originator (e.g., name and/or electronic mail
`address), Subject and body of the message are passed to a
`text-to-audio converter for conversion to audio. In one
`alternative embodiment of the invention a textual portion of
`a non-audio attachment may be passed to the converter.
`In state 212 the telephone number derived from the prefix
`of the message address or located by Searching a database
`for the prefix is passed to a call processor. AS described
`below, the call processor will use the telephone number to
`Set up a call to the addressee. After State 212 the procedure
`continues at state 218.
`In State 214, because the message includes an audio
`attachment the body of the message is ignored and Some
`identifier of the originator (e.g., name, electronic mail
`address) plus the Subject of the message are passed to the
`text-to-audio converter. In one alternative embodiment the
`body of the message may also be converted even if the
`message includes an audio attachment.
`In state 216 the telephone number associated with the
`address, plus the audio attachment, are passed to a call
`processor. In one embodiment of the invention the format of
`an audio attachment may be changed (e.g., from WAV to
`RA).
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`In state 218 the converter converts the text received from
`the mail Server into audio form and passes it to the call
`processor. The type of audio (e.g., WAV, RA) into which
`the text is converted may vary from one embodiment to
`another. In one embodiment the audio format produced by
`the converter may be changed before the final audio message
`is compiled and/or played for a recipient.
`In State 220 the call processor builds and places a tele
`phone call to the message addressee using the telephone
`number received from the mail server. If the recipient's
`telephone line is busy, or there is no answer, or an answering
`machine answers the call, the call processor may terminate
`the call and try again later. Alternatively, however, the call
`processor may leave the audio message on an answering
`machine. AS another alternative, directions may be left on an
`answering machine concerning how to call into the System
`and retrieve the audio message.
`Call processors may be distributed acroSS large geo
`graphical areas, with the audio and converted text that are
`provided to a call processor being delivered via a wide-area
`network, local area network, Internet, intranet, etc. Thus, by
`using different call processors in different regions (e.g.,
`identified by area codes), toll and long-distance charges may
`be reduced.
`In State 222 the call is answered by the message
`addressee. The recipient may be prompted to accept delivery
`of the audio message (e.g., by Voicing agreement or pressing
`a keypad button).
`In State 224 the call processor plays an audio message
`including any or all of an identity of the originator of the
`electronic mail message, the Subject of the message, the
`body of the message and an audio attachment.
`The originator of the electronic mail message may be
`notified of the Status of the audio message (e.g., whether it
`was delivered or not, how many attempts were made to
`deliver the message).
`In state 226 the system determines whether the recipient
`desires to provide a response. This may be expressed by a
`Voice Statement or the entry of one or more keypad signals.
`If the recipient has no response to make, the illustrated
`procedure ends.
`Otherwise, in State 228 the Sy