FIELD OF INVENTION
[0001] The present subject matter relates to providing group alerts, and particularly but
not exclusively, to providing group alerts over a telecommunication network.
BACKGROUND
[0002] User groups typically include various users associated with each other owing t5 o
their interest in a common event. For instance, users having interest in astronomy may form a
user group for discussing and watching celestial events. In another example, users interested in
playing a particular sport may form a user group for playing the sport every day depending upon
availability of place in a play ground. Typically one or more users from among the various users
10 associated with the user group keep a track of the event and inform other users when the event
has occurred or is about to occur. For instance, in the case of astronomy group, a user may
inform other users about a celestial activity that is about to happen, while in the case of sports
group the user may inform the other users about availability of the play ground. In one example,
the user may inform the other users by sending group alerts or notifications to all the users of the
15 user group. For instance, the user may call all the other users or send text messages to the users
to notify them.
SUMMARY
[0003] This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to providing group alerts
over a telecommunication network. This summary is not intended to identify essential features of
20 the claimed subject matter nor is it intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the
claimed subject matter.
[0004] In one implementation, a method for providing group alerts to a user group over a
telecommunication network is described. The method includes receiving, by the service control
server (SCS), a call request from a first user to call a called party using a caller identification
25 number corresponding to the called party. The method further includes determining, by the SCS,
if the called party is the user group to which the first user provides the group alerts, based on the
caller identification number. Further, the method includes obtaining, by the SCS, a user caller
3
identification number corresponding to each of a plurality of users associated with the user
group. The method further includes sending, for each of the plurality of users, a call attempt
request to a switching center corresponding to a user from amongst the plurality of users to place
a call on a communication device of the user for providing the group alert based on the user
caller identification number of the user5 .
[0005] In another implementation, a service control server (SCS) is described. The SCS
includes a processor and a caller identification module coupled to the processor. The caller
identification module receives a call request from a first user to call a called party, where the call
request comprises a caller identification number corresponding to a called party. The caller
10 identification module further determines whether the called party is the user group to which the
first user provides the group alerts, based on the caller identification number of the called party.
Further, the caller identification module obtains a user caller identification number
corresponding to each of a plurality of users associated with the user group. Further, the SCS
includes a group alert module coupled to the processor to send a call attempt request to a
15 switching center corresponding to the user to place a call on a communication device of a user
from amongst the plurality of users for providing the group alert based on the user caller
identification number of the user.
[0006] In another implementation, a non-transitory computer-readable medium having
embodied thereon a computer program for executing a method of providing group alerts to a user
20 group is described. The method comprises receiving, by the service control server (SCS), a call
request from a first user to call a called party, where the call request comprises a caller
identification number corresponding to a called party. The method further includes determining,
by the SCS, if the called party is the user group to which the first user provides the group alerts,
based on the caller identification number. Further, the method includes obtaining, by the SCS, a
25 user caller identification number corresponding to each of a plurality of users associated with the
user group. The method further includes sending, for each of the plurality of users, a call attempt
request to a switching center corresponding to a user from amongst the plurality of users to place
a call on a communication device of the user for providing the group alert based on the user
caller identification number of the user.
4
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0007] The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures.
In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the
reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference
like features and components. Some embodiments of system and/or methods in accordance wit5 h
embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example, and with
reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0008] Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication network environment
implementing a service control server for providing group alerts, according to an embodiment of
10 the present subject matter;
[0009] Figure 2 illustrates an exemplary call flow diagram for providing group alerts in a
Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network environment, according to an
embodiment of the present subject matter; and
[0010] Figure 3 illustrates a method of providing group alerts over a telecommunication
15 network, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
[0011] In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as
an example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject
matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or
advantageous over other embodiments.
20 [0012] It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any block diagrams herein
represent conceptual views of illustrative systems embodying the principles of the present
subject matter. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, state
transition diagrams, pseudo code, and the like represent various processes which may be
substantially represented in computer readable medium and so executed by a computer or
25 processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.
5
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0013] Group alerts are typically used to alert a group of users in order to notify the
users, for example, about an event that has just occurred or is about to occur. For instance,
residents of a residential complex may be provided group alerts in order to notify them about
occurrence of rain, snow or, cyclones. In another example, coach of a sports team may sen5 d
group alerts to members of the sports team about beginning of a practice session. The group
alerts are typically provided by a user, from among the users, who has been assigned with a task
of either tracking the occurrence of the event or starting the event. The user who has been
assigned with a task of either tracking the event, hereinafter referred to as a first user, may call
10 one or more other users of the user group, or send text messages to one or more other users to
alert them about the event.
[0014] Sending text messages, such as a short messaging service (SMS) text to several
users of such a user group is, however, a time and cost intensive process. For instance, in case
the user group includes 30 members, then the first user sending the group alerts has to prepare
15 the text message and may then have to send the text message to each of the other users. Further,
the first user may either have to search and select each user’s contact number from a contact list
of a communication device, used by the first user for sending the group alert, or manually enter
the contact number each time the first user sends the group alert.
[0015] Certain communication devices may also provide a facility of creating a user
20 group in which the first user may add contact numbers of all the users one time and select the
user group name while sending the text message. Although, such a user group reduces the first
user’s efforts of selecting the contact numbers each time, however, the first user still has to incur
costs for the messages. Further, sending the text messages to all the users may consume a lot of
network resources used for sending the text message. Additionally, the text messages may even
25 get delayed, for example, due to congestion in a telecommunication network over which the first
user is sending the text message.
[0016] Further, individually calling each user is also a time, resource, and cost intensive
process. For instance, in order to call each user of the group, the first user may either have to
6
search and select each user’s contact number from the contact list or manually enter the contact
number. Further, in order to provide the group alert, the first user may have to either talk to each
user or give a missed call by attentively waiting and disconnecting the call before the other user
picks the call. In case, the other users receive and pick the first user’s call, the first user may
incur costs, which may increase in case the other user is in a geographical region different fro5 m
the first user. Calling each user may further result in consumption of the network resources
associated with voice channels of the telecommunication network. Additionally, calling each
user one by one may consume a lot of time and the users called in the last may either get late or
completely miss the event.
10 [0017] A technique used to provide group alerts in a time and resource optimized manner
involves using radio transmitter-receiver sets. The radio transmitter-receiver sets are
communication devices that can be preset to transmit signals over a particular radio frequency.
Each user of the user group may thus be provided with a radio transmitter-receiver using which
the users may communicate with each other. The radio transmitter-receiver of each user may be
15 preset to a particular radio frequency so that the users can receive the group alert from the first
user. Thus, in the case of occurrence of an event, for instance, beginning of a practice session,
the first user, i.e., the coach may send the group alert using the radio transmitter-receiver to team
members. The team members may thus receive the group alert on their radio transmitter-receiver
device. The group alert may be, for example, in the form of a voice message, a beep, or any other
20 audio signal. The above described technique, however, may be implemented for the user groups
having users in the same or limited geographical region as the radio transmitter-receiver sets
typically have a small and limited range of operation. Further, the users have to buy and carry
with them the radio transmitter-receiver sets in order to utilize the technique. Additionally, the
group alert may also be intercepted by a third party having the radio transmitter-receiver and
25 tuned into the same frequency.
[0018] Another technique used to provide group alerts involves using a voice mail server
for simultaneously providing the group alerts to the users. The voice mail servers are capable of
connecting to a plurality of users at the same time over the telecommunication network for
7
playing a pre-recorded message. The voice mail servers typically use the voice channels of the
telecommunication network to play the recorded message to the users at a time predetermined by
the first user. The above technique thus allows simultaneous group alerts with reduced efforts
from the first user. Playing the pre-recorded message over the telecommunication network,
however, consumes network resources associated with the voice channels of th5 e
telecommunication network. Further, such a system may also be costly to implement Further, the
voice mail server typically calls the user’s communication device using a contact number
unknown to the users. The users may thus receive a call from an unknown number and at times
may not pick the call assuming it to be an unwanted call, such as a telemarketing call. Further, in
10 case the users miss the call they may not know what the call was for as they may not have the
number of the voice mail server saved with them. The users may thus not be able to receive the
group alerts. Further, since some of the users may be in a roaming region they may have to incur
additional costs by receiving an incoming call in the roaming region. Additionally, listening to
the pre-recorded message every time may be time consuming and irritating for the users.
15 [0019] Another technique involves using proprietary instant messaging services for
providing the group alerts to the users. The instant messaging services are Internet based services
used by users for sending messages, such as text messages, voice messages, voice calls, and
images to other users. The instant messaging services, however, can be used on smart-phones
only and, thus, the first user may not be able to use these services for sending group alerts to
20 landline phones or legacy mobile phones. Further, since such services use IP based network for
transmitting and receiving the messages, these services may not be used on communication
devices that don’t support Internet connections. Further, in case any user is not connected to
Internet when the first user sends the group alert, the user may receive delayed group alerts or in
certain cases not receive the group alert.
25 [0020] According to an implementation of the present subject matter, system(s) and
method(s) for providing group alerts to a user group in a telecommunication network are
described. The system(s) and method(s) facilitate a user, say, a first user to simultaneously
provide group alerts to the user group over a telecommunication network with reduced
consumption of network resources. In one implementation, the group alert is provided by a way
8
of missed call to a plurality of users associated with the user group, thus avoiding usage of voice
channels associated with the telecommunication network. Providing group alerts without using
the voice channels facilitates in reducing consumption of network resources. Further, since the
group alerts are provided by way of missed calls, the first user does not incur any costs that are
usually related to an outgoing call5 .
[0021] The systems and methods can be implemented in a variety of computing devices.
The computing devices that can implement the described method(s) include, but are not limited
to, smart phones, hand-held devices, laptops, personal digital assistant (PDA), tablets, and the
like. Additionally, the method can be implemented in any of the telecommunication networks,
10 such as Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network, Universal Mobile
Telecommunications System (UMTS) network, Personal Communications Service (PCS)
network, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, Code Division Multiple Access
(CDMA) network, Next Generation Network (NGN), Public Switched Telephone Network
(PSTN), Long term evolution (LTE) network, and Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN).
15 Although the description herein is with reference to a GSM network implementing a Customized
Applications for Mobile Enhanced Logic (CAMEL) protocol, the systems and methods may be
implemented in other networks and devices, albeit with a few variations, as will be understood
by a person skilled in the art.
[0022] In said embodiment, the first user, in order to send group alerts to a plurality of
20 users having a common interest with the first user, may create the user group. The user group
may be a group formed using a user caller identification number corresponding to each of the
plurality of users such that the user group includes the caller identification numbers of the users.
The first user may then register the user group with a network service provider with which the
first user is registered. In one example, the first user may register with a service control server
25 (SCS) associated with the network service provider. The SCS, say, a service control point or an
Intelligent Network implemented in the GSM network, may assign a group calling number for
the user group such that the group calling number is mapped to the caller identification numbers
of the users. The group calling number may be of a similar format as the caller identification
numbers typically associated with users. The group calling number may be used by the first user
30 to provide the group alerts to the user group. For instance, a coach of a sports team may create a
9
user group using the user caller identification numbers of team members of the sports team and
register the same with the network service provider. The SCS of the network service provider
may in turn provide a group calling number for the user group, which the coach may dial
whenever the coach wants to inform the team that he is ready for a team practice.
[0023] In one implementation, the first user may dial the group calling number from 5 a
communication device associated with the user to initiate a group alert call for providing the
group alerts. The group alert call may be transmitted to a first switching center, say, a mobile
switching center (MSC) associated with the communication device of the first user. The first
switching center, in turn, may send a call request to the SCS for providing the group alerts to the
10 user group. In one implementation, the call request is received by the SCS as a request from the
first user for calling a called party using a caller identification number associated with the called
party. The SCS may initially compare the caller identification number with the group calling
number to determine if the called party is the user group to which the first user provides the
group alerts. On determining the caller identification number to be same as the group calling
15 number, the SCS may determine that the call request is for placing group alerts to the user group.
[0024] The SCS may subsequently obtain a user caller identification number
corresponding to each of the plurality of users associated with the user group. The SCS may then
request switching centers corresponding to each user to place a call on a communication device
of the user for providing the group alert based on the user caller identification number of the
20 user. In one implementation, the SCS may send a call attempt request for each of the user to the
switching center corresponding to user, thus initiating placement of group alerts to the users.
Further, the SCS may transmit an audio playback request to the first switching centre
corresponding to the first user for playing a pre-recorded audio, such as a ringtone and an
announcement on the communication device of the first user to indicate initiation of group alert
25 placements by the SCS. In one example, the first switching center may connect to a specialized
resource point (SRP) for playing the pre-recorded audio on the communication device of the first
user.
[0025] Further, upon receiving the call attempt request from the SCS, the switching
centers for the users may place the call request to the users through a base station corresponding
30 to the user. In one implementation, the switching center may send a call setup request to the base
10
stations corresponding to each user for placing a call on the communication device of the user.
Upon receiving the call setup request, the base station may try to place the call on the
communication device of the user over a signaling channel of a telecommunication network,
using the user caller identification number of the user. The base station may subsequently inform
the switching center whether the base station has successfully placed the call or not. For instance5 ,
in cases where the user is out of reach or where the user’s communication device is switched off,
the base station may not be able to place the call and may thus indicate the switching center
accordingly.
[0026] Upon receiving a confirmation of either a successful or unsuccessful placement of
10 the call, the switching centers may send a call status message to the SCS. The call status message
may indicate whether or not the base station has been successful in placing the call for providing
the group alert. Upon receiving the call status messages from the switching centers
corresponding to the users, the SCS may send a call disconnect message to the switching center
instructing the switching center to disconnect the call so that the call is placed as a missed call.
15 The SCS may instruct the switching center to disconnect the call before the call gets transferred
to a voice channel of the telecommunication network.
[0027] Upon receiving the call disconnect message, the switching center may instruct the
base station to disconnect the call in order to place the call as a missed call. As will be
understood, upon receiving a missed call, the users may look at the user caller identification
20 number displayed on a display screen of their communication devices and recognize the same as
a first caller identification number corresponding to the first user. Alternatively, since the first
caller identification number corresponding to the first user would already be saved in the user’s
communication devices, the users may see the name of the first user on the display screen of
their communication device. The users may thus understand the missed call to be the group alert
25 linked to their daily or periodic activity, such as the training session for the sports team as
described in the example above.
[0028] Furthermore, upon receiving, the call status messages from respective switching
centers corresponding to the users, the SCS may generate a group alert completion message. The
group alert completion message may indicate which users have been successfully provided the
30 group alert and which users have not been provided the group alert. The SCS may subsequently
11
provide the group alert completion message to the first user. The first user may then use the
group alert completion message to identify the users of the user group who have not been
provided the group alert. The first user may then either resend the group alert or individually
provide the group alerts to the remaining users. Alternatively, the SCS may retry calling the
users who were not successfully notified5 .
[0029] The system(s) and method(s) of the present subject matter thus facilitate the first
user to simultaneously provide the group alerts to a user group over a telecommunication
network. In one example, since the event for which the group alert is being provided is mutually
pre-known to the users associated with the user group and the first users, thus the missed call
10 notifies the users that the event is going to commence. Providing the group alerts by placing a
missed call to the users associated with the user group facilitates in reducing consumption of
network resources associated with a voice channel of the telecommunication network as placing
the missed call utilizes only the signaling channel of the telecommunication network. Transfer of
the call to the voice channel is avoided as a call is initially placed using the signaling channel and
15 transferred to the voice channel only when the call is received by the user being called. Providing
the missed calls thus helps in reducing traffic over the telecommunication network. Further,
service providers of many telecommunication networks do not charge customers for placing a
missed call. In cases where the first user is registered with such a telecommunication network,
the first user may not have to incur any charges that may be associated with placing a voice call
20 for providing the group alert. Further, since the called user receives only a missed call, the user
too doesn’t have to incur any costs in cases where the user is in a roaming region.
[0030] Additionally, when the missed call is provided based on the first user’s call, the
other users readily recognize the number or name of the first user and understand the missed call
to be a group alert as the event for which the group alert is being provided is mutually pre-known
25 to the users associated with the user group and the first users. The other users, thus, do not need
to try and receive the call or call back upon receiving the missed call in order to ascertain the
user’s purpose of call. Further, using the present system facilitates in reducing time spent by the
first user in placing the missed call since the first user has to just dial the group calling number to
provide the group alerts to the plurality of users. Further, providing the group alert completion
12
message to the first user helps the first user to determine whether all the users have received the
group alerts or not. The first user may subsequently take possible steps to alert the remaining
users. Further, since the group alerts are provided using existing communication devices and
network resources, the users do not have to incur costs for buying new devices, such as radio
transmitter-receiver sets. Furthermore, since the group alerts are provided as missed calls on th5 e
communication devices of the users, there are no probable privacy related concerns as was in the
case of the radio transmitter-receiver sets.
[0031] It should be noted that the description and figures merely illustrate the principles
of the present subject matter. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to
10 devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the
principles of the present subject matter and are included within its spirit and scope. Furthermore,
all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be for pedagogical purposes to
aid the reader in understanding the principles of the present subject matter and the concepts
contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without
15 limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Moreover, all statements herein
reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present subject matter, as well as specific
examples thereof, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[0032] It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the words during, while,
and when as used herein are not exact terms that mean an action takes place instantly upon an
20 initiating action but that there may be some small but reasonable delay, such as a propagation
delay, between the initial action and the reaction that is initiated by the initial action.
Additionally, the words “connected” and “coupled” are used throughout for clarity of the
description and can include either a direct connection or an indirect connection.
[0033] The manner in which the systems and the methods of the present subject matter
25 may be implemented has been explained in details with respect to the Figures 1 to 3. While
aspects of described system(s) and method(s) of the present subject matter can be implemented
in any number of different computing systems, environments, and/or configurations, the
embodiments are described in the context of the following system(s).
13
[0034] Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary telecommunication network environment 100
implementing a service control server (SCS) 102 for providing group alerts to a user group,
according to an embodiment of the present subject matter. The SCS 102 facilitates a user, say, a
first user to simultaneously provide group alerts to a plurality of users having a common interest
with the user. The telecommunication network environment 100 includes one or mor5 e
communication devices 104-1, 104-2, 104-3, …, 104-N, hereinafter collectively referred to as
communication devices 104 and individually referred to as communication device 104. The
communication devices 104 may communicate with each other through a telecommunication
network 106. The communication devices 104 are physical equipments used by a calling party,
10 say, a first user and one or more called parties, say, the plurality of users to communicate with
each other. The communication devices 104 may include, without limitation, smart phones,
mobile phones, PDA, tablets, hand-held devices, laptops, fixed/wired telephones, and the like.
Each of the communication devices 104 works on a communication protocol as defined by the
telecommunication network 106 to which the communication device 104 is coupled. Although
15 the description herein is explained with reference to a communicating device such as a mobile
phone or a smartphone, the described method(s) may also be implemented in any other devices,
as will be understood by those skilled in the art.
[0035] The telecommunication network 106 may be a wireless or a wired network, or a
combination thereof. The telecommunication network 106 can be a collection of individual
20 networks, interconnected with each other and functioning as a single large network (e.g., the
internet or an intranet). Examples of such individual networks include, but are not limited to,
Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network, Universal Mobile
Telecommunications System (UMTS) network, Personal Communications Service (PCS)
network, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, Code Division Multiple Access
25 (CDMA) network, Next Generation Network (NGN), Public Switched Telephone Network
(PSTN), Long term evolution (LTE) network, and Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN).
Depending on the technology, the telecommunication network 106 includes various network
entities, such as gateways, routers; however, such details have been omitted for ease of
understanding. Although the description herein is with reference to certain networks, the systems
30 and methods may be implemented in other networks and devices, albeit with a few variations, as
14
will be understood by a person skilled in the art. Further, depending on the technology, the
telecommunication network includes various network entities, such as gateways and routers;
however, such details have been omitted for ease of understanding.
[0036] In order to communicate with each other, each of the communication devices 104
connects to its respective base stations 108-1, 108-2, 108-3, …, 108-n, hereinafter collectivel5 y
referred to as base stations 108 and individually referred to as base station 108. Examples of the
base station 108 include, but are not limited to, a base station controller in the GSM network, a
NodeB in the UMTS network, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB) in the LTE network responsible for
allocating radio channels to the associated communication devices 104. For instance, a first base
10 station 108-1 may allocate radio channels to a first communication device 104-1, while a second
base station 108-2 may allocate radio channels to a second communication device 104-2.
[0037] Each of the base stations 108 is further connected to a corresponding switching
center 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, …, 110-n, hereinafter collectively referred to as switching centers
110 and individually referred to as switching center 110. For instance, in a GSM network the
15 base station controller may be connected to a mobile switching center (MSC) responsible for call
handling of subscribers, i.e., a called party and a calling party. For instance, a first base station
108-1 may be associated with a first switching center 110-1, while a second base station 108-2
may be associated with a second switching center 110-2. Further, a single switching center 110
may be associated with more than one base station 108. Each of the switching centers 110 may
20 be further connected to the SCS 102, such as a service control point or an Intelligent Network in
a GSM network, for providing group alert services to the users of the communication devices
104.
[0038] The SCS 102 may be implemented as any of a variety of computing devices,
including, for example, servers, a workstation, and a mainframe computer. Although the SCS102
25 is shown as an entity, the SCS 102 may also be implemented as a distributed computing system
including multiple intermediary nodes distributed over a network where each node can be
implemented as a computing device, such as a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a
workstation, a mainframe computer, a server, and the like. Further, the intermediary nodes may
be connected through an intermediate network (not shown in the figure) for the purpose of
15
communications and exchange of data. Furthermore, one or more replicas (not shown in the
figure) of the SCS 102 may be implemented in the telecommunication network environment 100
with each of the replicas performing functions similar to the SCS 102.
[0039] In one implementation, the SCS 102 includes one or more processor(s) 112, I/O
interface(s) 114, and a memory 116 coupled to the processor 112. The processor(s) 112 may b5 e
implemented as one or more microprocessors, microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal
processors, central processing units, logic circuitries, and/or any devices that manipulate signals
based on operational instructions. Among other capabilities, the processor(s) 112 is configured to
fetch and execute computer-readable instructions stored in the memory 116.
10 [0040] The functions of the various elements shown in the figure, including any
functional blocks labeled as “processor(s)”, may be provided through the use of dedicated
hardware as well as hardware capable of executing software in association with appropriate
software. When provided by a processor, the functions may be provided by a single dedicated
processor, by a single shared processor, or by a plurality of individual processors, some of which
15 may be shared. Moreover, explicit use of the term “processor” should not be construed to refer
exclusively to hardware capable of executing software, and may implicitly include, without
limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, network processor, application specific
integrated circuit (ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA), read only memory (ROM) for
storing software, random access memory (RAM), non-volatile storage. Other hardware,
20 conventional and/or custom, may also be included.
[0041] The I/O interface(s) 114 may include a variety of software and hardware
interfaces, for example, interfaces for peripheral device(s), such as a keyboard, a mouse, and an
external memory. Further, the I/O interfaces 114 may facilitate multiple communications within
a wide variety of protocol types including, operating system to application communication, inter
25 process communication, etc.
[0042] The memory 116 can include any computer-readable medium known in the art
including, for example, volatile memory, such as static random access memory (SRAM) and
dynamic random access memory (DRAM), and/or non-volatile memory, such as read only
16
memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM, flash memories, hard disks, optical disks, and
magnetic tapes.
[0043] Further, the SCS 102 may include module(s) 118 and data 120. The modules 118
and the data 120 may be coupled to the processor(s) 112. The modules 118, amongst other
things, include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc., which perfor5 m
particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The modules 118 may also be
implemented as, signal processor(s), state machine(s), logic circuitries, and/or any other device
or component that manipulate signals based on operational instructions. In another aspect of the
present subject matter, the modules 118 may be computer-readable instructions which, when
10 executed by a processor/processing unit, perform any of the described functionalities. The
machine-readable instructions may be stored on an electronic memory device, hard disk, optical
disk or other machine-readable storage medium or non-transitory medium. In one
implementation, the computer-readable instructions can also be downloaded to a storage medium
via a network connection.
15 [0044] In an implementation, the module(s) 118 include a caller identification module
122, a group alert module 124, a reporting module 126, and other module(s) 128. The other
module(s) 128 may include programs or coded instructions that supplement applications or
functions performed by the SCS 102. The data 120 includes caller identification data 130, group
alert data 132, reporting data 134, and other data 136. The other data 136 amongst other things,
20 may serve as a repository for storing data that is processed, received, or generated as a result of
the execution of one or more modules in the module(s) 118. Although the data 120 is shown
internal to the SCS 102, it may be understood that the data 120 can reside in an external
repository (not shown in the figure), which may be coupled to the SCS 102. The SCS 102 may
communicate with the external repository through the I/O interface(s) 114 to obtain information
25 from the data 120.
[0045] As previously described, the SCS 102 facilitates the first user to simultaneously
provide the group alerts to the plurality of users over the telecommunication network 106. In said
embodiment, the SCS 102 may provide the group alert by facilitating placement of a missed call
on the communication device associated with the users. In one embodiment, the first user, say,
17
the user associated with the first communication device 104-1 may register with a network
service provider associated with the SCS 102 and the first user to simultaneously provide group
alerts to the plurality of users having a common interest with the user. For example, a coach of a
sports team may wish to provide group alerts to team members of the sports team whenever he is
ready to conduct a training session for the sports team. The coach in such a case may registe5 r
with network service provider to provide the group alerts.
[0046] In one implementation, the first user may initially obtain a user caller
identification number, say, a Mobile Station International Integrated Services for Digital
Network or a Mobile Station Integrated Services for Digital Network (MSISDN) number of the
10 plurality of users. The first user may then register, through the communication device 104-1, a
user group having the user caller identification numbers of the users with the network service
provider. In one example, the first user may register with the SCS 102. For instance, the first user
may send a registration request, having a list of the user caller identification numbers of the
users, to the SCS 102, via the first communication device 104-1. The caller identification module
15 122 of the SCS 102 may then assign a group calling number for the user group. The group
calling number may act as a caller identification number for the user group and may be used by
the first user to send the group alerts. Further, in one implementation, the group calling number
may be a MSISDN number. In another implementation, the group calling number may be a
unique short code typically used for availing a value added service (VAS). The caller
20 identification module 122 may further save the group calling number alongwith the user caller
identification numbers of the users in the caller identification data 130. For instance, in the
previous example, the coach may register a user group having user caller identification numbers
of the team members of the sports team with the SCS 102. The SCS 102 in turn provides a group
calling number for the user group, which may be used by the coach whenever the coach wants to
25 inform the team that he is ready for the training session.
[0047] In order to provide the group alerts, the first user may dial the group calling
number from the first communication device 104-1 to initiate a group alert call. The first
communication device 104-1 may transmit the group alert call to the first base station 108-1
which may further transmit the call to the first switching center 110-1 associated with the first
30 user. Upon receiving the group alert call, the first switching center 110-1 may send a call request
18
to the SCS 102. In one example, the call request may include a first user caller identification
number corresponding to the first user and the group calling number. It will be understood, that
in the implementation, where the group calling number is in the format of a MSISDN number,
the first switching center 110-1 and the SCS 102 initially assume the group alert call and the call
request, respectively, to be a typical call for a called party. The first switching center 110-1 an5 d
the SCS 102 may further assume the group calling number to be a caller identification number of
the called party.
[0048] In one implementation, the call request is received by the caller identification
module 122 of the SCS 102. The caller identification module 122 may initially determine
10 whether the first user is registered for providing group alerts to a user group. In one example, the
caller identification module 122 may access the caller identification data 130 to determine if
details of any user group have been saved for the first user. The caller identification module 122
may use the user caller identification number of the first user to determine whether the first user
has registered for group alerts or not. In case the first user has not registered for the group alerts,
15 the caller identification module 122 may forward the call request to another switching center
110, say, the second switching center 110-2 for establishing a conventional call between the first
user and the called party.
[0049] Further, in the implementation, where the group calling number is the unique
short code, the caller identification module 122 may determine whether the unique short code
20 matches to a short code corresponding to a group alert service. In case the unique short code
matches to the group alert service, the caller identification module 122 determines whether the
first user is registered for providing group alerts to the user group.
[0050] In case the caller identification module 122 ascertains that the first user has
registered for providing group alerts to the user group, the caller identification module 122 may
25 obtain the group calling number of the user group from the caller identification data 130. The
caller identification module 122 may subsequently compare the caller identification number of
the called party with the group calling number corresponding to the user group. In case the caller
identification number is same as the group calling number, the caller identification module 122
may determine that the called party is the user group and the first user wants the SCS 102 to send
30 group alerts to the users associated with the user group. In case the caller identification number is
19
different from the group calling number, the caller identification module 122 may check if there
is any other user group registered by the first user and repeat the process of comparison of the
group calling number and the caller identification number for all such user groups. In case no
other user group is registered for the first user, the caller identification module 122 may forward
the call request to another switching center 110, say, the second switching center 110-2 fo5 r
establishing a conventional call between the first user and the called party.
[0051] For instance, in the previous example of the sports team, when the coach is ready
for the training session, the coach may dial the group calling number on his communication
device to the give the group alerts. On receiving the call request from the switching center 110-1
10 associated with the coach, the caller identification module 122 may compare the caller
identification number, as received from the switching center 110-1, with the group calling
number saved with the SCS 102. On determining the caller identification number to be same as
the group calling number, the caller identification module 122 may determine the call to be a
request for providing group alert to the team members.
15 [0052] On determining the called party to be same as the user group, the caller
identification module 122 may obtain the user caller identification number corresponding to each
of the plurality of users associated with the user group. In one example, the caller identification
module 122 may access the caller identification data 130 to obtain the caller identification
numbers of the users. Although, the caller identification data 130 has been shown a part of the
20 SCS 102, the caller identification data may be saved in an external database (not shown in the
figures) associated with the SCS 102. The database may include a database table having the user
caller identification numbers of the users associated with the caller identification number of the
user group. On receiving the call request, the caller identification module 122 may query the
database to fetch the user caller identification numbers of the users.
25 [0053] The group alert module 124 may then use the caller identification numbers to
provide the group alert to the users. In one implementation, the group alert module 124 may
subsequently request the switching centers 110 corresponding to each user to place a call on the
communication device 104 of the user for providing the group alert to the user. The group alert
module 124 may initially determine, for each user, the switching centers 110 to which the user is
30 connected. The group alert module 124 may then send a call attempt request to the switching
20
centers 110 for placing the call on the communication device 104 of the user for providing the
group alert based on the user caller identification number of the user. For instance, in case of a
GSM network, the SCS 102 may send the call attempt request, say, a CAMEL initiate call
attempt (ICA) message to the switching centers 110, say, the second switching center 110-2 and
the third switching center 110-3 to initiate placement of group alerts to the users5 .
[0054] In one implementation, each call attempt request may include the user caller
identification number of the user for which the call attempt request is sent. For instance, the call
attempt request for the second user may include the user caller identification number of the
second user, while the call attempt request for the third user may include the user caller
10 identification number of the third user. Further, the group alert module 124 may instruct the
switching centers 110 to monitor the call placed on the communication device 104 of the user
and inform the SCS 102 about the status of the call placement, i.e., whether the call has been
successfully placed or not. In one implementation, the call attempt request may include
instructions for the switching centers 110 to monitor the call till any one of certain basic call
15 events occur and inform the SCS 102 upon happening of the event. For example, the switching
center 110 may be requested to monitor basic call state model (BCSM) events in GSM network,
for example, call answer, call disconnect, call no answer, call busy, route select failure, and the
like.
[0055] For instance, in the above described example of the sports team, on determining
20 the call from the coach to be a request for providing group alert to the team members, the caller
identification module 122 may obtain the user caller identification numbers of the team
members. The group alert module 124 may then request the switching centers 110 of each of the
team members to place a call on the communication devices of the team member for providing
the group alert.
25 [0056] The group alert module 124 of the SCS 102 may further transmit an audio
playback request to the first switching centre 110-1 corresponding to the first user for playing a
pre-recorded audio on the communication device 104, say, the first communication device 104-1
of the first user. Examples, of the pre-recorded audio include a ringtone, an announcement of
group alert being placed, a beep, and the like. Playing the pre-recorded audio on the first
30 communication device 104-1 of the first user acts as an indication of initiation of group alert
21
placements by the SCS 102. The pre-recorded audio is played as in the above described
procedure of call placement, there is no backward speech connection between the first user and
the other users as the call to the users is placed by the SCS 102 and not the first user. The call by
the first user in said case is actually transferred till SCS 102 and transmitted further.
[0057] On receiving the audio playback request, the first switching center 110-1 ma5 y
connect to a specialized resource point (SRP) server 138 for playing the pre-recorded audio on
the communication device 104 of the first user. The switching center 110-1 may send an
announcement playback message to the SRP server 138 instructing the SRP server 138 for
playing the pre-recorded audio on the communication device 104 of the first user. The SRP
10 server 138 may subsequently play the pre-recorded audio on the communication device 104 to
indicate initiation of the group alert placements by the SCS 102.
[0058] Further, upon receiving the call attempt request from the group alert module 124,
the switching centers 110 may instruct the base stations 108 to place the call to the corresponding
users. In one implementation, the switching centers 110 may send a call setup request to the base
15 stations 108 for placing a call to the user using the user caller identification number of the user.
For instance, the second switching center 110-2 may instruct the second base station 108-2,
while the third switching center 110-3 may instruct the third base stations 108-3 to place a call to
second user and the third user, respectively. As will be understood, the calls are placed on the
communication devices 104 corresponding to the users, for instance, call may be placed on the
20 second communication device 104-2 and the third communication device 104-3 corresponding to
the second user and the third user, respectively. Further, as will be understood, the calls are
placed over a signaling channel of the telecommunication network 106.
[0059] Further, upon receiving the call setup request, from the switching centers 110, the
corresponding base stations 108 may attempt placing a call on the user’s communication device
25 104 over the signaling channel of the telecommunication network 106 and inform the switching
centers 110 whether it has been able to place the call or not. For instance, in case the user’s
communication device 104 is unreachable or is busy or is switched OFF, the base station 108
may fail to place the call, whereas if a ring is heard, the call may be ascertained to have been
successfully placed. The base stations 108 may subsequently send a call connection message for
30 their corresponding users to the corresponding switching centers 110 indicating status of their
22
call attempt. The status may indicate whether the call has been placed or not and may further
indicate whether the called user’s communication device 104 was unreachable or was busy or
was switched OFF in case the call was not placed.
[0060] Upon receiving the call connection message from the base station 108, the
switching center 110 generates a call status message based on the status of the call attempt by th5 e
base station 108. The call status message may indicate status of placement of the call for
providing the group alert. In one implementation, the status is one of a successful placement and
unsuccessful placement of the call to the user. The call status message may thus indicate whether
or not the user, for which the call status message is generated, has been successfully placed a
10 call. As will be understood, the call status message is sent to the SCS 102 for each of the users of
the user group by the corresponding switching centers 110 to inform the SCS 102 whether the
user has been provided the group alert or not.
[0061] On receiving the call status message from the switching center 110, the group
alert module 124 may send a call disconnect message to the switching center 110 instructing the
15 switching center 110 to disconnect the call in order to place the call as a missed call. The group
alert module 124 may instruct the switching center 110 to disconnect the call before the call gets
transferred to a voice channel of the telecommunication network 106. Further, in cases where the
SCS 102 doesn’t receive any communication from the switching device 110 within a
predetermined time period, the group alert module 124 may assume the call to be unsuccessful
20 and release call logs for that user.
[0062] On receiving the call disconnect message, the switching center 110 further sends a
call release message to the base station 108 instructing the base station 108 to disconnect the call.
In one implementation, the switching center 110 may instruct the base station 108 to disconnect
the call before the call is transferred to the voice channel of the telecommunication network 106
25 in order to place the missed call. Disconnecting the call before being transferred to the voice
channel of the telecommunication network 106 facilitates in ensuring that the called user does
not pick the call and only the missed call is placed to provide the group alert. Further, upon
receiving a missed call on their communication device 104 from the first, the users may
understand that the first user has sent them a group alert for their periodic event, such as the
30 training session of the sports team. For instance, since the first caller identification number
23
corresponding to the first user would already be saved in the user’s communication device 104,
the user may see the name of the first user on a display screen (not shown in the figure) of their
communication device 104. Alternatively, the users may look at the user caller identification
number displayed on a display screen of the communication device 104 and recognize the same
as a first caller identification number corresponding to the first user. Further, as the event fo5 r
which the group alert is being provided is mutually pre-known to the users associated with the
user group and the first users, thus the missed call notifies the users that the event is going to
commence.
[0063] For instance, in the previous example, since the team members know that the
10 coach will send them a group alert whenever he is ready to conduct the training session, the team
members wait for the missed call from the coach and leave for the practice upon receiving the
missed call from the coach.
[0064] Furthermore, upon receiving the call status messages from each of the switching
centers 110, the group alert module 124 may store the call status in the group alert data 134 of
15 the SCS 102. The reporting module 126 may subsequently generate a group alert completion
message based on the call status messages received from the switching centers 110
corresponding to each user. The group alert completion message indicates which users have been
successfully provided the group alert and which users have not been provided the group alert. In
one implementation, the reporting module 126 may generate the group alert completion message
20 such that it includes the user caller identification numbers of the users segregated into two lists.
A first list includes the user caller identification numbers corresponding to the users that have
been successfully provided the group alert. A second list includes the user caller identification
numbers corresponding to the users that have not been provided the group alert. The second list
may thus be used by the first user to identify the users from the user group that have not been
25 provided the group alert.
[0065] The reporting module 126 may subsequently send the group alert completion
message to the first switching centre 110-1 corresponding to the first user. The first switching
centre 110-1 may in turn provide the group alert completion message to first base station 108-1
which may then transmit the group alert completion message to the first communication device
30 104-1 of the first user. The first user may then obtain the names and user caller identification
24
numbers of the users that have not been provided the group alert. The first user may then either
resend the group alert or individually provide the group alerts to the remaining users.
[0066] Figure 2 illustrates an exemplary call flow diagram 200 for providing group alerts
in a Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network environment, according to an
embodiment of the present subject matter. The various arrow indicators used in the call-flo5 w
diagram 200 depict the transfer of data between the various entities in the telecommunication
network 106 and between the communication devices 104 and the various entities in the
telecommunication network 106. Although the description of Figure 2 has been made in
considerable detail with respect to a GSM network implementing the CAMEL protocol, it will be
10 understood the announcements can be provided to communication device using other networks
as well, for example, CDMA, WCDMA, and LTE network, albeit with few alterations.
[0067] In one implementation, the communication device 104-1 of the first user connects
to the first switching center 110-1, say, the MSC in the GSM network for providing the group
alert to the users associated with the user group created by the first user. On receiving the request
15 from the communication device 104-1, the switching center 110-1 connects to the SCS 102. As
described previously, the switching center 110-1 communicates with the SCS 102 over the
CAMEL protocol in GSM. In one implementation, the switching center 110-1 sends an Initial
detection point (InitialDP) message to the SCS 102 and the same is indicated by step 202. The
InitialDP indicates detection of trigger, which can be understood as a condition under which
20 external service logic is to be invoked at the SCS 102 to provide one or more customized
services requested by the first user. The InitialDP in one implementation provides the call
request to the SCS 102.
[0068] In response to the InitialDP, the SCS 102 sends the call attempt request to the
switching centers 110 corresponding to the users associated with the user group registered by the
25 first user. For the sake of brevity, and not as a limitation, just one switching center 110-2
connected to a second user and a third user has been illustrated. However, it will be understood
that the SCS 102 may communicate with one or more switching centers 110 to provide the group
alerts to the users associated with the user group. The SCS 102 may send call attempt requests
for each user, for example, the second user and the third user associated with the switching
30 center 110-1, as indicated by step 204-1 and 204-2 using the user caller identification number of
25
the user. In one implementation, in order to send the call attempt request, the SCS 102 may send
an initiate call attempt (ICA) message, a request report Basic Call State Model (BCSM) message,
and a continue message. The ICA message instructs the switching centers 110 to initiate a call to
the user for whom the ICA message has been sent. The request report BCSM message can be
understood to be a request to identify the occurrence of an event, for example, call answered5 ,
route select failure, no reply, called party busy, service center busy, and the like. In one
implementation, the SCS 102 may send the request report BCSM message instructing the
switching center 110-2 to monitor a new detection point (DP) referred to as ‘T_Term_Seized’
that is triggered upon occurrence of the a predefined event, such as placement of call. The
10 detection point ‘T_Term”Seized’ may be understood to be same as the ‘T_Term_Seized’
detection point introduced in phase 4 of the CAMEL protocol. In said implementation, the SCS
102 arms the DP to be triggered in an interrupted mode. The interrupt mode may be defined as a
mode in which upon triggering of the detection point by the predefined event, the switching
center 110-2 notifies the SCS 102. Further, the switching center 110-2 waits for a reply from the
15 SCS 102 before taking any further action.
[0069] Further, the SCS 102 sends the audio playback request message to the switching
center 110-1 as indicated by step 206. The audio playback request message indicates the
switching center 110 to connect to the SRP server 138 for playing a pre-recorded audio on the
communication device 104-1 of the first user. In one implementation, in order to send the call
20 attempt request, the SCS 102 may send a ‘request report BCSM’ message, a ‘connect to
resource’ message, and a ‘play announcement’ message. The SRP server 138 may subsequently
play the pre-recorded audio on the communication device 104 to indicate initiation of the group
alert placements by the SCS 102. The SRP server 138 may then transmit a specialized resource
report to the SCS 102 via the switching center 110-1, as indicated by step 208. The specialized
25 resource report indicates that the pre-recorded audio has been played on the communication
device 104 of the first user. Upon receiving the specialized resource report, the SCS 102 may
send a ‘disconnect forward connection’ message to the switching center 110-1 instructing the
switching center 110-1 to disconnect the call from the first user, as indicated by step 210.
[0070] Further, upon receiving the call attempt requests, the switching center 110-2 sends
30 an initial address message to the base station 108-2 for each of the user, as indicated by steps
26
212-1 and 212-2. The initial address message in one implementation provides the call setup
request to the base station 108-2. On receiving the initial address message, the base station 108-2
places a call on the communication devices 104 of the second user and the third user, as
indicated by steps 214-1 and 214-2. The base station 108-2 subsequently provides address
complete message (ACM) corresponding to each user, as indicated by steps 216-1 and 216-5 2.
The address complete message (ACM) provides the call connection message indicating status of
their call attempt. The status may indicate whether the call has been placed or not and may
further indicate whether the called user’s communication device 104 was unreachable or was
busy or was switched OFF in case the call was not placed.
10 [0071] On receiving the ACM, the switching center 110-2 sends an event report BCSM
message corresponding to the user for whom the ACM is received, as indicated by steps 218-1
and 218-2. The event report BCSM message provides the call status message indicating status of
placement of the call for providing the group alert. In one implementation, the status is one of a
successful placement and unsuccessful placement of the call to the user. On receiving the event
15 report BCSM message, the SCS 102 sends a call disconnect message to the switching center 110-
2 for each of the user instructing the switching center 110-2 to disconnect the call, as indicated
by steps 220-1 and 220-2. The switching center 110-2 further sends a release message to the base
station 108-2 to disconnect the call to the user for whom the ACM has been received, as indicted
by steps 222-1 and 222-2.
20 [0072] Further, the SCS 102 may send the group alert completion message to the first
switching centre 110-1 corresponding to the first user. In one implementation, the SCS 102 may
send either a Short Message Service (SMS) or an Unstructured Supplementary Service Data
(USSD) notification as indicated by step 224. The group alert completion message indicates
which users have been successfully provided the group alert and which users have not been
25 provided the group alert.
[0073] Figure 3 illustrates a method 300 of providing group alerts over a
telecommunication network, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
The order in which the method is described is not intended to be construed as a limitation, and
any number of the described method blocks can be combined in any order to implement the
30 method 300 or any alternative methods. Additionally, individual blocks may be deleted from the
27
methods without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matter described herein.
Furthermore, the method(s) can be implemented in any suitable hardware, software, firmware, or
combination thereof.
[0074] The method(s) may be described in the general context of computer executable
instructions. Generally, computer executable instructions can include routines, programs, objects5 ,
components, data structures, procedures, modules, functions, etc., that perform particular
functions or implement particular abstract data types. The method may also be practiced in a
distributed computing environment where functions are performed by remote processing devices
that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment,
10 computer executable instructions may be located in both local and remote computer storage
media, including memory storage devices.
[0075] A person skilled in the art will readily recognize that steps of the method(s) can
be performed by programmed computers. Herein, some embodiments are also intended to cover
program storage devices, for example, digital data storage media, which are machine or
15 computer readable and encode machine-executable or computer-executable programs of
instructions, where said instructions perform some or all of the steps of the described method.
The program storage devices may be, for example, digital memories, magnetic storage media,
such as a magnetic disks and magnetic tapes, hard drives, or optically readable digital data
storage media. The embodiments are also intended to cover both telecommunication network and
20 communication devices configured to perform said steps of the exemplary method(s).
[0076] At block 302, a call request from a first user is received by a service control
server (SCS). In one implementation, the SCS may receive the call from a first switching center
corresponding to the first user for calling a called party using a caller identification number
corresponding to the called party. For example, the SCS 102 may receive the call request from
25 the first switching center 110-1 associated with the first user for calling the called party.
[0077] At block 304, it is ascertaining whether the first user is registered for providing
group alerts to a user group. In one implementation, upon receiving the call request, the SCS
may determine whether the first user has registered any user group for providing group alerts.
28
The SCS 102 may use a user caller identification number of the first user to ascertain whether the
first user is registered for providing the group alerts.
[0078] At block 306, the caller identification number is compared with a group calling
number corresponding to the user group to determine whether the called party is the user group.
Upon determining that the first user is registered for providing group alerts to a user group, th5 e
SCS may obtain the group calling number corresponding to the user group. The SCS may then
compare the group calling number with the caller identification number to ascertain if the called
user is the user group. If the caller identification number is same as the group calling number, it
is ascertained that the called user is the user group and the call request from the first user is a
10 request for providing group alerts.
[0079] At block 308, a user caller identification number corresponding to each of a
plurality of users associated with the user group is obtained. Upon determining the called user to
be the user group, the user identification numbers of the users associated with the user group are
obtained.
15 [0080] At block 310, for each of the plurality of users, a call attempt request is sent to a
switching center corresponding to the user. In one implementation, the call attempt request is
sent instructing the switching centers to place a call on communication devices of the users for
providing the group alert. The call attempt request may further include the user caller
identification number of the user based on which the switching centers may place the call.
20 [0081] At block 312, an audio playback request is provided to a first switching centre
corresponding to the first user. In one implementation, the SCS may provide the audio playback
request instructing the first switching center to play a pre-recorded audio on a communication
device of the first user to indicate initiation of group alert placements by the SCS. The first
switching center may subsequently connect to a specialized resource point (SRP) server for
25 playing the pre-recorded audio on the communication device of the first user and inform the SCS
whenever the pre-recorded audio is played.
[0082] At block 314, a call status message is received from the corresponding switching
centers, indicating status of placement of the call on the communication device of the
corresponding user. In one implementation, the switching centers for each of the user may
30 provide the call status message to the SCS to inform the SCS whether or not the user has been
29
provided the group alert. The call status message may include the status of the call, where the
status is one of a successful placement and unsuccessful placement of the call to the user.
[0083] At block 316, a call disconnect message is transmitted to the switching center
instructing the switching center to disconnect the call based on the call status message. In one
implementation, the call disconnect message is transmitted to the switching centers that hav5 e
confirmed successful placement of the call to the user. Further, the switching center may be
instructed to disconnect the call before the call gets transferred to a voice channel of the
telecommunication network.
[0084] At block 318, a group alert completion message is provided to the first user based
10 on the call status messages. The group alert completion message indicates which users have been
successfully provided the group alert and which users have not been provided the group alert. In
one implementation, upon receiving the call status message for all the users, the SCS may
generate the group alert completion message based on the status of the call indicated by the call
status message.
15 [0085] Although embodiments for the present subject matter have been described in a
language specific to structural features and/or method(s), it is to be understood that the invention
is not necessarily limited to the specific features or method(s) described. Rather, the specific
features and methods are disclosed as exemplary embodiments of the present subject matter.
30
I/We claim:
1. A method for providing group alerts to a user group over a telecommunication network (106),
the method comprising:
receiving, by a service control server (SCS) (102), a call request from a first user to call a
called party using a caller identification number corresponding to the called party5 ;
determining, by the SCS (102), if the called party is the user group to which the first user
provides the group alerts, based on the caller identification number;
obtaining, by the SCS (102), a user caller identification number corresponding to each of
a plurality of users associated with the user group; and
10 sending, for each of the plurality of users, a call attempt request to a switching center
(110) corresponding to a user from amongst the plurality of users to place a call on a
communication device (104) of the user based on the user caller identification number of the
user.
2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the determining comprises:
15 ascertaining, by the SCS (102), whether the first user is registered for providing group
alerts to the user group; and
comparing, by the SCS (102), the caller identification number of the called party with a
group calling number corresponding to the user group to determine whether the caller
identification number is same as the group calling number assigned to the user group.
20 3. The method as claimed in claim 2 further comprising registering, by the first user, with a
network service provider associated with the SCS (102) and the first user for obtaining the
group calling number for the user group.
4. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:
sending, by the corresponding switching center (110), a call setup request to a base
25 station (108) corresponding to the user for which the SCS (102) has sent the call attempt
request; and
31
receiving, by the corresponding switching center (110), a call connection message from
the base station (108) indicating placement of the call to the user over a signaling channel of
the telecommunication network (106), to which the first user and the user is connected.
5. The method as claimed in claim 4 further comprising:
transmitting, by the switching center (110) corresponding to the user, a call statu5 s
message to the SCS (102) indicating status of placement of the call for providing the group
alert, wherein the call status is one of a successful placement and unsuccessful placement of
the call to the user.
6. The method as claimed in claim 5 further comprises:
10 transmitting, by the SCS (102), a call disconnect message to the switching centers (110)
that confirm successful placement of the call, wherein the call disconnect message instructs
the switching center (110) to disconnect the call before the call gets transferred to a voice
channel of the telecommunication network (106), and wherein disconnecting the call places a
missed call on the communication device (104) of the user for providing the group alert; and
15 sending, by the corresponding switching center (110), a call release message to the base
station (108) instructing the base station (108) to disconnect the call before being transferred
to a voice channel of the telecommunication network (106) to place the call as a missed call.
7. The method as claimed in claim 5 further comprising:
generating, by the SCS (102), a group alert completion message based on the call status
20 messages received from the switching center (110) corresponding to each of the plurality of
users, wherein the group alert completion message indicates which users have been
successfully provided the group alert and which users have not been provided the group alert;
and
providing, by the SCS (102), the group alert completion message to a first switching
25 center (110) corresponding to the first user.
8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:
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providing, by the SCS (102), an audio playback request to a first switching center (110)
corresponding to the first user for playing a pre-recorded audio on the communication device
(104) of the first user to indicate initiation of group alert placements by the SCS (102).
9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:
sending, by the first switching center (110), an announcement playback message to 5 a
specialized resource point (SRP) server (138) for playing the pre-recorded audio on the
communication device (104) of the first user, upon receiving the audio playback request from
the SCS (102); and
playing, by the SRP server (138), the pre-recorded audio on the communication device
10 (104) to indicate initiation of the group alert placements by the SCS (102).
10. A service control server (SCS) (102) comprising:
a processor (112);
a caller identification module (122) coupled to the processor (112) to:
receive a call request from a first user to call a called party, wherein the call
15 request comprises a caller identification number corresponding to the called party;
determine whether the called party is the user group to which the first user
provides a group alert, based on the caller identification number; and
obtain a user caller identification number corresponding to each of a plurality of
users associated with the user group; and
20 a group alert module (124) coupled to the processor (112) to:
send a call attempt request to a switching center (110) corresponding to a user
from amongst the plurality of users to place a call on a communication device (104) of
the user for providing the group alert based on the user caller identification number of the
user.
25 11. The SCS (102) as claimed in claim 10, wherein the caller identification module (122) further:
ascertains whether the first user is registered for providing group alerts to the user group;
and
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compares the caller identification number of the called party with a group calling number
corresponding to the user group to determine whether the caller identification number is same
as the group calling number assigned to the user group.
12. The SCS (102) as claimed in claim 10, wherein the group alert module (124) further:
receives, for each of the plurality of users, a call status message from the switching cente5 r
(110) corresponding to the user, indicating a status of placement of the call for providing the
group alert, where the status is one of a successful placement and unsuccessful placement of
the call to the user; and
transmits a call disconnect message to the switching centers (110) that confirm successful
10 placement of the call, wherein the call disconnect message instructs the switching center (110)
to disconnect the call before the call gets transferred to a voice channel of the
telecommunication network (106), and wherein disconnecting the call places the call as a
missed call on the communication device (104) of the user for providing the group alert.
13. The SCS (102) as claimed in claim 12 further comprising a reporting module (126) coupled
15 to the processor (112), wherein the reporting module (126):
generates a group alert completion message based on the call status messages received
from the switching centers (110) corresponding to each of the plurality of users, wherein the
group alert completion message indicates which users from amongst the plurality of users
have been successfully provided the group alert and which users have not been provided the
20 group alert; and
provides the group alert completion message to a first switching center (110)
corresponding to the first user.
14. The SCS (102) as claimed in claim 10, wherein the group alert module (124) further provides
an audio playback request to a first switching center (110) corresponding to the first user for
25 playing a pre-recorded audio on a communication device (104) of the first user to indicate
initiation of group alert placements by the SCS (102).
15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program
for executing a method of providing group alerts to a user group, the method comprising:
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receiving, by a service control server (SCS) (102), a call request from a first user to call a
called party, wherein the call request comprises a caller identification number corresponding
to the called party;
determining, by the SCS (102), if the called party is the user group to which the first user
provides the group alerts, based on the caller identification number5 ;
obtaining, by the SCS (102), a user caller identification number corresponding to each of
a plurality of users associated with the user group; and
sending, for each of the plurality of users, a call attempt request to a switching center
(110) corresponding a user from amongst the plurality of users to place a call on a
10 communication device (104) of the user for providing the group alert based on the user caller
identification number of the user.