Maintaining history information for a user across multiple types of end points
View Patent ↗A system for providing enhanced history information across multiple clients comprises a call application server having a history system, a telephony system and a history cache. The call application server advantageously maintains a history records for each user of the system. The enhanced history system is particularly advantageous because regardless of the endpoint (e.g., phone, thin client, personal call manager or standalone IP phone) with which the user is interacting, the history information specifically for that user is delivered by the call application server to that endpoint. Furthermore, the call application server allows the user to access history information using end points which heretofore were unable to provide history functionality. Finally, the call application server makes the history records universal across all endpoints with which the user interacts, in contrast to prior art, which had limited call history information specific to a particular endpoint.
1. A communications system for providing history information associated with multiple endpoints, comprising:
a telephony system configured to:
monitor the multiple endpoints, and
obtain the history information associated with the multiple endpoints, the history information comprising a plurality of records each associated with a user and including user presence information;
a history system configured to:
receive and store the history information from the telephony system,
receive requests for the history information, each request for the history information of a particular user and received from a requesting endpoint of the multiple endpoints, a first portion of the requests received from a first portion of the multiple endpoints, and
for each of the first portion of the requests, provide the records associated with the particular user to the requesting endpoint.
2. The communications system of claim 1 wherein a second portion of the requests are received from one of a second portion of the multiple endpoints, the system further comprising:
a history cache configured to:
receive and store the history information from the history system,
filter the records in response to the second portion of the requests, and
for each of the second portion of the requests, provide the filtered records associated with the particular user to the requesting endpoint.
3. The communications system of claim 1 wherein the first portion of the multiple endpoints include at least one of an IP phone, a personal call manager, or a thick client.
4. The communications system of claim 2 wherein the second portion of the multiple endpoints include at least one of a mobile endpoint or a thin client using a web browser application.
5. The communications system of claim 1 wherein the user presence information includes real time status information.
6. The communications system of claim 1 wherein the history information includes at least one of voicemail information, instant messaging information, email information, directory information, contact information, missed call information, received call information, or placed call information.
7. The communications system of claim 2 wherein the history system is further configured to monitor for events affecting the history information stored in the history cache and update the history cache in real time if events affecting the history information are received.
8. The communications system of claim 1 wherein the requests for the history information are requests to provide a number of the records associated with the particular user.
9. The communications system of claim 2 wherein the history cache is further configured to store the history information associated with the particular user and provide a page view of the filtered records associated with the particular user.
10. A method for providing history information associated with multiple endpoints in a communications system, the method comprising:
at a telephony system:
monitoring the multiple endpoints;
obtaining the history information associated with the multiple endpoints, the history information comprising a plurality of records each associated with a user and including user presence information; and
sending the history information to a call application server;
at the call application server:
receiving the history information from the telephony system and storing the history information at a history system;
receiving a first request for the history information of a first user from a first one of the multiple endpoints; and
providing the records associated with the first user from the history system to the first one of the multiple endpoints.
11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:
receiving a second request for the history information of a second user from a second one of the multiple endpoints;
filtering the records associated with the second user at a history cache in response to the second request; and
providing the filtered records associated with the second user from the history cache to the second one of the multiple endpoints.
12. The method of claim 10 wherein the first one of the multiple endpoints is at least one of an IP phone, a personal call manager, or a thick client.
13. The method of claim 11 wherein the second one of the multiple endpoints is at least one of a mobile endpoint or a thin client using a web browser application.
14. The method of claim 10 wherein the user presence information includes real time status information.
15. The method of claim 10 wherein the history information includes at least one of parties to a call, starting time of a call, or duration of a call.
16. The method of claim 11 wherein providing the filtered records from the history cache includes providing a page view of the filtered records.
17. The method of claim 11 further comprising monitoring the multiple endpoints for events that affect the history information stored in the history cache and updating the history cache in real time if events affecting the history information are received.
18. The method of claim 10 wherein the history information includes at least one of voicemail information, instant messaging information, email information, directory information, contact information, missed call information, received call information, or placed call information.
19. A method for obtaining history information associated with a user in a communications system, the method comprising:
at a first endpoint:
logging in to the first endpoint as the user;
using the first endpoint to perform a first call function, where a record of the first call function is associated with the user and added to the history information;
at a second endpoint:
logging in to the second endpoint as the user, the second endpoint being different from the first endpoint;
using the second endpoint to perform a second call function, where a record of the second call function is associated with the user and added to the history information;
using the second endpoint to request the history information associated with the user; and
receiving, at the second endpoint, the history information associated with the user, the history information associated with the user including the record of the first call function, the record of the second call function, and presence information of the user.
20. The method of claim 19 wherein the second endpoints is at least one of a mobile endpoint or a thin client using a web browser application.
21. The method of claim 19 wherein the first call function and the second call function each include at least one of sending or receiving an instant message, sending or receiving an email message, or sending or receiving a call.