U.S. patent application number 10/804542 was filed with the patent office on 2004-09-09 for method, system, and article for telephone notification of an online status of a user.
This patent application is currently assigned to SBC PROPERTIES, LP.. Invention is credited to Lipton, Marc Ira.
Application Number | 20040177278 10/804542 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 32108352 |
Filed Date | 2004-09-09 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040177278 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lipton, Marc Ira |
September 9, 2004 |
Method, system, and article for telephone notification of an online
status of a user
Abstract
One or more members of a group are notified of an online status
of a user. If a member of the group is off-line and has enabled a
telephone notification option, a telephone message indicating the
online status of the user is sent to the member. If the member of
the group is online, an online message indicating the online status
of the user is sent to the member.
Inventors: |
Lipton, Marc Ira;
(Lincolnshire, IL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Peter C. Breen
BRINKS HOFER GILSON & LIONE
P.O. BOX 10395
CHICAGO
IL
60610
US
|
Assignee: |
SBC PROPERTIES, LP.
|
Family ID: |
32108352 |
Appl. No.: |
10/804542 |
Filed: |
March 19, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10804542 |
Mar 19, 2004 |
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09567838 |
May 9, 2000 |
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6728754 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
726/4 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04M 3/42 20130101; H04M
3/42059 20130101; H04M 3/42365 20130101; H04M 3/42374 20130101;
H04L 67/24 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
713/201 |
International
Class: |
H04M 001/56 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A method comprising: detecting an online status of a user;
determining that a first member of a group associated with the user
is off-line; placing a telephone call to a first telephone number
associated with the first member based on said determining; and
sending a message within the telephone call, the message indicating
the online status of the user.
2. The method of claim 1 further comprising: determining that a
first-member-initiated telephone notification option is
enabled.
3. The method of claim 1 further comprising: determining that a
second member of the group associated with the user is off-line;
and determining that a second-member-initiated telephone
notification option is disabled.
4. The method of claim 3 further comprising: inhibiting placing a
telephone call to a second telephone number associated with the
second member.
5. The method of claim 1 further comprising: determining that a
user-initiated notification option is enabled.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein the message comprises an audio
message.
7. A method comprising: detecting an online status of a user;
determining that a user-initiated notification option is enabled;
determining that a first member of a group associated with the user
is off-line; determining that a first-member-initiated telephone
notification option is enabled; placing a telephone call to a first
telephone number associated with the first member; sending an audio
message within the telephone call, the audio message indicating the
online status of the user; determining that a second member of the
group associated with the user is off-line; determining that a
second-member-initiated telephone notification option is disabled;
and inhibiting placing a telephone call to a second telephone
number associated with the second member.
8. A computer-readable medium whose contents direct a computer to:
detect an online status of a user; determine that a first member of
a group associated with the user is off-line; place a telephone
call to a first telephone number associated with the first member;
and send a message within the telephone call, the message
indicating the online status of the user.
9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8 wherein the contents
further direct the computer to determine that a
first-member-initiated telephone notification option is
enabled.
10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9 wherein the contents
further direct the computer to: determine that a second member of
the group associated with the user is off-line; and determine that
a second-member-initiated telephone notification option is
disabled.
11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the contents
further direct the computer to inhibit placing a telephone call to
a second telephone number associated with the second member.
12. The computer-readable medium of claim 8 wherein the contents
further direct the computer to determine that a user-initiated
notification option is enabled.
13. The computer-readable medium of claim 8 wherein the message
comprises an audio message.
14. A server operative to detect an online status of a user, to
determine that a first member of a group associated with the user
is off-line, to place a telephone call to a first telephone number
associated with the first member, and to send a message within the
telephone call, the message indicating the online status of the
user.
15. The server of claim 14 further operative to determine that a
first-member-initiated telephone notification option is
enabled.
16. The server of claim 15 further operative to determine that a
second member of the group associated with the user is off-line,
and to determine that a second-member-initiated telephone
notification option is disabled.
17. The server of claim 16 further operative to inhibit placing a
telephone call to a second telephone number associated with the
second member.
18. The server of claim 14 further operative to determine that a
user-initiated notification option is enabled.
19. The server of claim 14 wherein the message comprises an audio
message.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to methods, systems, and
articles for notifying of an online status of a computer user.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] At the present time, instant messaging Internet products,
such as those made available by America Online and Microsoft
Corporation, notify subscribers already online as to when members
of their buddy list have arrived online. A shortcoming of these
products is that off-line subscribers are not notified of the
online status of other members.
[0003] An example of a system for immediate pop-up messaging across
the Internet is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,943,478 to Aggarwal et
al. This patent also discloses a method and infrastructure for
continuously tracking and reporting the online status of users.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] The invention is pointed out with particularity in the
appended claims. However, other features of the invention will
become more apparent and the invention will be best understood by
referring to the following detailed description in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings in which:
[0005] FIG. 1 is a flow chart of an embodiment of method of
notifying of an online status of a user; and
[0006] FIG. 2 is a schematic/block diagram of an embodiment of a
system for notifying of an online status of a user.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0007] Embodiments of the present invention beneficially place one
or more telephone calls to notify off-line members of a buddy list
that a user has gone on-line. Each member has an option of enabling
and disabling notification telephone calls to be placed to him/her.
Further, each member has an option of enabling and disabling the
feature of notifying other members of his/her online status.
Optionally, a number of notification telephone calls placed to a
member may be limited during a time duration. As another option, a
member may choose to receive notification telephone call for only
certain members in a subset of the buddy list. As a further option,
a member may place a telephone call to an interactive voice
response (IVR) unit having a storage device which stores the
notifications. Within the telephone call, the IVR provides a
message indicating which members of the buddy list are on-line.
[0008] FIG. 1 is a flow chart of an embodiment of method of
notifying of an online status of a user. As indicated by block 20,
the method comprises detecting an online status of a user. The
online status of the user may be detected by an a computer network
service provider, such as an Internet service provider, which
serves the user. Alternatively, the online status of the user may
be detected by a node of a computer network, such as a server
accessible via the Internet. In this case, for example, the user's
computer may communicate a message to the node via the computer
network, where the message indicates that the user has gone online.
The message may be communicated automatically upon the user going
online. U.S. Pat. No. 5,843,478 to Aggarwal et al., which discloses
an infrastructure and method for tracking the online status of
users, is hereby incorporated by reference into this
disclosure.
[0009] As indicated by block 22, the method comprises determining
if a user-initiated notification option is enabled. The
user-initiated notification option dictates whether or not other
users are to be notified of the online status of the user. The
user-initiated notification option may be enabled or disabled by
the user either before or after the user has gone online. The
user-initiated notification option may be selected using the user's
computer, and communicated in a message to either the
aforementioned computer network service provider or the node.
[0010] If the user-initiated notification option is enabled, a
routine is performed for each member in a group associated with the
user, as indicated by block 24. The group, which may be referred to
as a "buddy list", typically comprises one or more other users with
which the user communicates via the computer network. The users may
communicate via an instant messaging platform, an example of which
is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,843,478 to Aggarwal et al., which
is incorporated by reference into this disclosure. Other messaging
platforms, such as electronic mail, are also within the scope of
this disclosure.
[0011] As indicated by block 26, the routine comprises determining
if the member is online. If the member is online, an act of sending
an online message to the member is performed, as indicated by block
30. The online message indicates the online status of the user.
[0012] If the member is off-line, an act of determining if a
member-initiated telephone notification option is enabled is
performed, as indicated by block 32. The member-initiated telephone
notification option dictates whether or not the member wishes to be
notified by telephone of the online status of any user. The member
may enable or disable the member-initiated notification option
using his/her computer. The computer, in turn, communicates a
message based on the option to either the computer network service
provider or the node. Typically, the member either enables or
disables the member-initiated notification option prior to the user
going online.
[0013] If the member-initiated telephone notification option is
enabled, an act of determining a telephone number associated with
the member is performed as indicated by block 34. Typically, this
act comprises retrieving the telephone number from a database. As
indicated by block 36, a telephone call is placed to the telephone
number. As indicated by block 40, a message is sent within the
telephone call. The message indicates the online status of the user
to the member. Preferably, the message includes an audio message
comprising either a pre-recorded spoken message, a synthesized
speech message, or a combination thereof which indicates the online
status of the user.
[0014] Optionally, a number of notification telephone calls placed
to a member may be limited during a time duration. For example,
each member may be limited to receiving no more than a
predetermined number of notification telephone calls within a day,
or another predetermined number of notification telephone calls
within an hour. In this case, if the member has reached the limit
of notification telephone calls, the acts indicated by blocks 34,
36 and 40 are not performed, thus inhibiting placing the telephone
call to the telephone number associated with the member.
[0015] As another option, a member may choose to receive
notification telephone call for only certain members in a subset of
the buddy list. In this case, if the user is not included in the
subset, the acts indicated by blocks 34, 36 and 40 are not
performed, thus inhibiting placing the telephone call to the
telephone number associated with the member. The member may select
the subset of the buddy list using his/her computer. The computer,
in turn, communicates a message based on the selection to either
the computer network service provider or the node. Typically, the
member selects the subset of the buddy list prior to the user going
online.
[0016] Referring back to block 32, if the member-initiated
telephone notification option is disabled, the method inhibits
placing a telephone call to a telephone number associated with the
member. From blocks 30, 32 and 40, the aforementioned routine is
repeated for any additional members in the group.
[0017] Based upon the herein-disclosed high-level description, one
or more computer programs to direct one or more computers to
perform the method is within the skill of a routineer in the art of
telecommunications.
[0018] Embodiments of the herein-disclosed method may be directed
by computer-readable instructions encoded on a computer-readable
medium. The contents of the computer-readable medium cause at least
one computer to perform the herein-disclosed acts. For this
purpose, at least one computer processor is responsive to the
contents of the computer-readable medium.
[0019] Examples of the computer-readable medium include, but are
not limited to, a computer-readable storage medium and a
computer-readable communication medium. Examples of a
computer-readable storage medium include, but are not limited to,
an optical storage medium, an electronic storage medium, and a
magnetic storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium may
include stored data which encode computer program code and/or other
computer-readable instructions.
[0020] Examples of a computer-readable communication medium
include, but are not limited to, an optical communication medium,
an electronic communication medium, and an electromagnetic
communication medium. The contents of the computer-readable
communication medium may include one or more waveforms which encode
computer data such as computer program code and/or other
computer-readable instructions.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a schematic, block diagram of an embodiment of a
system for notifying of an online status of a user. The system
comprises one or more telecommunication networks 50 which provide
computer network access and telephone service to a plurality of
users. For example, the one or more telecommunication networks 50
may comprise either a public switched telephone network, a private
telephone network, digital subscriber line access to a computer
network, cable-television-based access to a computer network,
satellite-based access to a computer network, or any combination
thereof.
[0022] For purposes of illustration and example, FIG. 2 shows a
computer 52 and a telephone 54 associated with a first user, a
computer 56 and a telephone 60 associated with a second user, a
computer 62 and a telephone 64 associated with a third user, a
computer 66 and a telephone 70 associated with a fourth user, and a
computer 72 and a telephone 74 associated with a fifth user.
[0023] The computer 52 has a dial-out modem to access an Internet
service provider via a telephone line 76. The telephone line 76 is
also used to provide telephone service using the telephone 54.
[0024] The computer 56 has a dial-out modem to access an Internet
service provider via a telephone line 80. The telephone line 80 is
also used to provide telephone service using the telephone 60.
[0025] The computer 62 has a dial-out modem to access an Internet
service provider via a first telephone line 82. A second telephone
line 84 is used to provide telephone service using the telephone
64.
[0026] The computer 66 has a cable modem to access an Internet
service provider via a cable line 86. A telephone line 90 is used
to provide telephone service using the telephone 70.
[0027] The computer 72 has a network interface to access an
Internet service provider via a digital subscriber line 92. The
telephone 74 comprises a radiotelephone having telephone service
provided thereto by a mobile telephone switching office.
[0028] A server 94 accessible via the Internet performs the acts
described with reference to FIG. 1. The server 94 has a database 96
of computer-readable data indicating groups of members,
online/off-line status of members, member-initiated telephone
notification options, user-initiated notification options, member
telephone numbers and member computer addresses. The server 94 has
a computer-network interface 100 to send and receive messages via
the Internet. The server 94 also has a telephone-network interface
102 to dial-out and communicate telephone notification messages.
The server 94 may comprise either a computer-readable storage
medium having prerecorded audio messages, a speech synthesizer to
generate audio messages, or a combination thereof.
[0029] For purposes of illustration and example, consider a group
of members associated with the first user. The group of members
consists of the second user, the third user and the fifth user.
TABLE I shows an example situation for this group.
1TABLE I MEMBER- INITIATED TELEPHONE NOTIFICATION OPTION STATUS
NOTIFICATION USER 2 ENABLED OFF-LINE TELEPHONE MESSAGE USER 3
DISABLED OFF-LINE NO MESSAGE USER 5 ENABLED ONLINE ONLINE
MESSAGE
[0030] Prior to the first user going on-line in this example, the
second user and the fifth user have enabled their member-initiated
telephone notification options, and the third user has disabled her
member-initiated telephone notification option. At the time the
first user goes online, the second user and the third user are
off-line, and the fifth user is online.
[0031] Since the second user is off-line and has his telephone
notification option enabled, the server 94 places a telephone call
to a telephone number of the telephone line 80. After the second
user answers the telephone call using the telephone 60, the server
94 sends a telephone message to the second user via the
telephone-network interface 102. The telephone message may comprise
an audio message stating that the first user is now online. Based
on the message, the second user may wish to go online using his
computer 56 to chat with the first user.
[0032] Since the third user is off-line and has her telephone
notification option disabled, the server 94 inhibits placing a
telephone call to the second telephone line 84.
[0033] Since the fifth user is online, the server 94 sends an
online message to the fifth user via the computer-network interface
100. The online message is received via the digital subscriber line
92 and displayed by the computer 72. The online message may
comprise a textual message stating that the first user is now
online. Thereafter, the fifth user may use the computer 72 to chat
with the first user.
[0034] Optionally, the server 94 may either provide or communicate
with an interactive voice response (IVR) unit. Each member may
place a telephone call to the IVR and enter his/her password to
access his/her notification account. Thereafter, a member may
modify his/her telephone notification option, telephone
notification limit, buddy list subset, and/or other options.
[0035] The IVR may have a storage device which stores the
notifications either in addition to or in place of the notification
telephone calls. The option to store the notifications in the
storage device may be member-selectable. The IVR accesses the
storage device and provides a message indicating, within the
telephone call, which members of the buddy list are on-line.
Preferably, the message includes an audio message comprising either
a pre-recorded spoken message, a synthesized speech message, or a
combination thereof.
[0036] Thus, there has been described herein several embodiments
including preferred embodiments of a method, system and article for
telephone notification of an online status of a user.
[0037] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the
disclosed invention may be modified in numerous ways and may assume
many embodiments other than the preferred form specifically set out
and described above.
[0038] Accordingly, it is intended by the appended claims to cover
all modifications of the invention which fall within the true
spirit and scope of the invention.
* * * * *