Managing telephonic communications

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016119481-A1
Application number	US-201414522506-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 23, 2014
Priority date	Oct 23, 2014
Publication date	Apr 28, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

According to at least one embodiment, a computer-implemented method to manage incoming communications is described. An incoming call may be received on a landline. One or more devices may be located within a predetermined area based at least in part on the receipt of the incoming call. The incoming call may be forwarded to the one or more devices based at least in part on the locating.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A computer-implemented method to manage incoming communications, comprising:
receiving an incoming call on a landline integrated with a control panel of an automation system, wherein the control panel comprises a user interface; locating one or more devices within a predetermined area based at least in part upon receipt of the incoming call; and forwarding the incoming call to the one or more devices based at least in part on the locating.

2 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the incoming call is forwarded to the one or more devices physically located within the predetermined area of the automation system.

3 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving input from the one or more devices to direct the call to a particular device within the automation system.

4 . The computer-implemented method of claim 3 , wherein the call is a video call and the call is forwarded to a device with video call capabilities.

5 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:
forwarding the incoming call to a messaging service based at least in part on determining when no devices are within the predetermined area.

6 . The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , further comprising:
notifying an administrator of the automation system that the incoming call was forwarded to the messaging service.

7 . The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , further comprising:
forwarding a message received by the messaging service to a device external to the predetermined area.

8 . The computer-implemented method of claim 7 , further comprising:
converting the message to text; and sending the text to one or more devices associated with the automation system.

9 . The computer-implemented method of claim 8 , wherein the message comprises at least one of an email, text message, social media message, and ping message.

10 . (canceled)

11 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein locating the one or more devices further comprises:
establishing a geo-fence around the predetermined area; determining a GPS position of the one or more devices; and comparing the GPS position of the one or more devices to the established geo-fence.

12 . The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein locating the one or more devices further comprises:
establishing a wireless network associated with the predetermined area; determining if the one or more devices are connected to the wireless network.

13 . The computer implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:
forwarding unanswered incoming calls to one or more devices associated with the automation system, wherein the one or more devices are outside of the predetermined area.

14 . An apparatus to manage incoming communications, comprising:
a processor; a memory in electronic communication with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory, the instructions being executable by the processor to:
receive an incoming call on a landline integrated with a control panel of an automation system, wherein the control panel comprises a user interface;
locate one or more devices within a predetermined area based at least in part upon the receipt of the incoming call; and
forward the incoming call to the one or more devices based at least in part on the locating.

15 . The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the incoming call is forwarded to the one or more devices physically located within the predetermined area of the automation system.

16 . The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to:
receive input from the one or more devices to direct the call to a particular device within the automation system.

17 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable by a processor to:
receive an incoming call on a landline integrated with a control panel of an automation system, wherein the control panel comprises a user interface; locate one or more devices within a predetermined area based at least in part upon the receipt of the incoming call; and forward the incoming call to the one or more devices based at least in part on the locating.

18 . The computer-readable medium of claim 17 , wherein the incoming call is forwarded to the one or more devices physically located within the predetermined area of the automation system.

19 . The computer-readable medium of claim 17 , wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to:
receive input from the one or more devices to direct the call to a particular device within the automation system.

20 . The computer-readable medium of claim 19 , wherein the call is a video call and the call is forwarded to a device with video call capabilities.

Assignees

• Vivint Inc

Inventors

• Rein Harry

Classifications

• H04W4/021

  Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences · CPC title

• H04N7/147 Primary

  Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals (selecting H04Q) · CPC title

• H04M3/42348

  Location-based services which utilize the location information of a target · CPC title

• H04M2201/60

  Medium conversion · CPC title

• H04M3/54 Primary

  Arrangements for diverting calls for one subscriber to another predetermined subscriber {(based on the calling party profile H04M3/42059; based on location H04M3/42348; based on presence H04M3/42365; to voice mail H04M3/53308)} · CPC title