Patent Application
20070280213
For a better understanding of the nature of the present invention, its features and advantages, the subsequent detailed description is presented in connection with accompanying drawings in which:
Referring again to
When a subscriber buys a new service, the service provider can insure that it does not enable the service before initial location has been provided and verified by the subscriber. The VOIP device 12 subscribes for a notification, which could be under appropriate protocols such as the SIP Subscribe/Notify method. When a new provider goes off-hook for the first time S44 the VOIP device detects that no initial location information has been provided and transmits S46 a notice event to the users phone. Alternatively, the event could be transmitted by the SP to the phone.
The event S46 can result from different media and technical transmissions. Preferably, the event is announcement that plays on the telephone handset that indicates the reason for lack of service. The announcement can play the user's current location information on file. If the VOIP provider has the correct subscriber information S48, then the subscriber may press a DTMF digit or give a verbal response such as “yes” that is understood by voice recognition in the VOIP device and the call progresses S50 normally under the VOIP subscription service. If the provider does not have subscriber location information or if the subscriber presses a DTMF digit or gives a “no” verbal response S48, then the method proceeds to the next decision block S52. At this point, the announcement S46 plays on the phone indicating the reason for no service and queries the user to enter a DTMF digit or give a verbal response S52 to connect the user to an operator. Alternatively, the user may be notified of an Internet Web address where the user may enter the location information. If no response is given at S52 or the user selects not to enter location information, then the VOIP device blocks S54 all calls except to the provider's customer care service until the user updates the device's location information with the VOIP provider.
Alternatively, emergency calls to 911 and direct police, fire, and ambulance numbers continue to be handled so as not to cut off a user entirely from contacting emergency services. Once the user either contacts the provider by phone or by Internet, calls from the VOIP device are allowed S58 as under the subscription S60.
At step S52, if the user selects a DTMF digit, for example by pressing “1” on a phonepad, the user is directly connected to the VP operator S56 so that the location information for the VOIP device can be provided. After the VP updates its E911 database, the provider sends an event message to the customer's VOIP device that allows the user to obtain a dial tone and place calls S58 under the user's subscription service. The reference to a “VOIP device” includes devices for connecting to a network 18 that provide telephony transmissions and services over a data network. VOIP devices include an IP phone, a Wi-Fi wireless IP phone, a PC-based soft client, VOIP-enabled cordless phones, Internet Access Devices (IADs), a VOIP-enabled terminal adapter (TA), VOIP-enabled router, VOIP-enabled wireless LAN gateway, among others known in the art.
The VOIP device also associates S60 the location information and VP confirmation with the network address of the device. This can include any type of network addresses known in the art such as IP address, DNS address, etc. However, for purposes of describing the preferred and alternative embodiments, an IP address of a device is used. Further, because many VOIP devices are behind a NAT (Network Address Translation) address, the home gateway can use many different available mechanisms known in the art to obtain the IP address of the home router. If a device can not obtain its routable IP address, then the device can use its local “NATted” IP address or equivalent. Mechanisms also include universal plug and play (UPNP) and trace route. The IP address and location information is then saved in memory residing in the VOIP device and may also be transmitted to the VP for saving in memory.
Referring to
A preferred method to use as an initial prompt to query the user for updated information is to detect a power recycle (e.g., on/off/on) of the VOIP device S66. Although this may be an indication of merely a power failure, it could also indicate the device was turned off and moved to a new geographic location. Whenever a power recycle is detected S66 in the VOIP device, the device detects the current routable IP address using steps in S60 and compares S72 with the saved IP address in the device. As a default mechanism, if no power recycle events are detected S66 after a certain amount of time or use S66, a passive event will trigger a query to update or verify S68 the user's location. When no passive event is triggered S70, such as time or minutes used, then calls are allowed S86 as normal and the user continues to use the subscription service.
In step S74, if the current IP address is the same as S74 the saved IP address in the VOIP device, then no notice event is transmitted S70 to the user and calls proceed as normal S86. This avoids interrupting the user with repeated and unnecessary messages asking for updated location information when all that may have occurred at the location are power outages due to weather, blackouts, or electrical service maintenance. However, if the current IP address is not the same as the saved IP address S74, or alternatively does not match a list or a range of saved IP addresses in the device, then a notice event message is sent S76 to the user's handset by the VOIP device or alternatively could come from the VP.
The message transmitted to the user's phone can be of various types. Preferably, the VOIP device sends a command to play a special ringer on the user's phone to notify the user that he or she needs to update the location information. Alternatively, when the user goes off-hook at the new location, and no new notification has been received by the VP indicating location update, the VOIP device can play an announcement on the user's telephone indicating that the user needs to update the location information. As a further alternative, the device could play a special dial tone to that the user needs to update the information. As a further alternative, the VOIP device may also transmit a message using VBD protocol, such as caller-ID, to the user's phone for display on the phone's display screen. A device such as an IP phone that incorporates or has an external LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) screen or equivalent to display calling and service information could also display a message indicating a reason for lack of service. The display can be used to show current location information and update requests similar to using voice announcements. The text message can repeat the same verbal announcement, i.e. that the user needs to verify or update the phone's location information because the IP address has changed. After the message is delivered, the user may be provided S78 with a number N of chances to respond prior to blocking calls S80 from the phone.
A default number of chances is one chance, but a reasonable number may be two or three chances in order to provide convenience to the user, who may be installing the phone in a different location and requires a few attempts to correct the location information, while protecting the VP's need to update its E911 databases with the new user contact information. A user that fails to response to the message S76 or fails to provide the new location information has the calls blocked S80 from the VOIP device. The user must then either contact the VP operator again or enter the updated information on an Internet Web site in order for service to be restored to the phone.
In step S82, the user may enter a DTMF digit or a verbal response that confirms either no change in location has actually occurred, such as in the case of a user changing the Internet service provider (ISP) for the VOIP device. Alternatively, a dedicated key such as a DTMF digit or verbal response is provided by the user that connects the user to the VP operator so that the updated location information can be given to the VP's customer care center. If a device has a touch-sensitive LCD screen, then a soft key could be provided for the same function. Once the user's location information is updated S84, the VP provides service to the VOIP device again and calls are allowed S86 under the user's subscription. After receiving a confirmation message in SIP or equivalent protocol from the VP, the VOIP device saves S88 the new IP address and location information to memory.
The present invention provides VOIP service providers a mechanism to maintain a database of a user's current physical location no matter where the device is connected to the broadband network 18. The embodiments place the burden on the user to update his or her own IP phone location information for E911 purposes. By using a change of IP address as an indicator of movement of the VOIP device to a different location, the embodiments avoid annoying users with unnecessary interruptions in service or repeated queries to update information because of power outages or moving a VOIP device around the same house or office where the IP address remains the same.
One skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced by other than the described embodiments, which are presented for purposes of illustration and not limitation, and the present invention is limited only by the claims that follow.
