# US 2010/0169418 A1 · Collaboration agent > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2010/0169418 A1 - Document ID: US20100169418A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 12/344,914 - Filed: 2008-12-29 - Published: 2010-07-01 - Earliest claimed: 2008-12-29 - Assignees: Nortel Networks Limited - Inventors: Stephen Whynot; John H. Yoakum; Tony McCormack - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20100169418A1 ## CPC - H04L 67/54: Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users - H04L 65/1076: Screening of IP real time communications, e.g. spam over Internet telephony [SPIT] - H04L 67/306: User profiles - H04L 67/52: specially adapted for the location of the user terminal - H04M 3/48: Arrangements for recalling a calling subscriber when the wanted subscriber ceases to be busy - H04M 3/56: Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities (video conference systems H04N7/15) - H04W 4/02: Services making use of location information - H04W 4/029: Location-based management or tracking services - H04L 65/4046: {with distributed floor control} - H04M 3/42348: {Location-based services which utilize the location information of a target} - H04M 3/42365: {Presence services providing information on the willingness to communicate or the ability to communicate in terms of media capability or network connectivity} - H04M 3/432: Arrangements for calling a subscriber at a specific time, e.g. morning call service - H04M 3/565: {relating to time schedule aspects} - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - H04M: TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION (circuits for controlling other apparatus via a telephone cable and not involving telephone switching apparatus G08) - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) ## Abstract A collaboration agent for facilitating real-time communications on behalf of a user. The collaboration agent includes a conference bridge that anchors calls to the conference bridge. The collaboration agent uses contextual information associated with the user to manage the real-time communications. The collaboration agent can communicate with other collaboration agents associated with other users. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An apparatus comprising: a first collaboration agent associated with a user comprising: a conference bridge; a contextual information interface adapted to obtain contextual information associated with the user; and a control system adapted to receive a request to establish a first communications session with the conference bridge, determine an identity of a caller associated with the first communications session, and based on the identity of the caller and the contextual information establish the first communications session with the conference bridge. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the control system is further adapted to receive the identity of the caller associated with the first communications session from a second collaboration agent associated with the caller, and wherein the contextual information comprises meeting information describing a meeting scheduled with the user and identifying a number of attendees of the meeting, and the control system is adapted to determine that the caller is an attendee of the meeting. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the control system is adapted to establish a second communications session with the conference bridge and a user device associated with the user, and to provide a spoken indication to the user via the second communications session of the existence of the meeting. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the control system is further adapted to provide a spoken indication to the user via the second communications session that the first communications session was established with the conference bridge. ### Claim 5 A method for communicating comprising: receiving a request by a first collaboration agent associated with a first user from a second collaboration agent associated with a second user to establish a communications session between a first conference bridge associated with the first collaboration agent and a second conference bridge associated with the second collaboration agent; receiving information identifying the second user; obtaining contextual information associated with the first user at the time of the request; and establishing a first communications session between the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge based on the contextual information. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5 wherein the contextual information comprises calendar information identifying a meeting and indicating that the second user is an attendee of the meeting. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5 further comprising establishing a second communications session between a user device associated with the first user and the first conference bridge, and notifying the first user that the first communications session has been established. ### Claim 8 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5 wherein the contextual information comprises calendar information identifying that the first user has no meeting at the time of the request. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8 further comprising determining a rule associated with the second user, and wherein establishing the first communications session between the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge based on the contextual information comprises establishing the first communications session between the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge based on the contextual information and the rule. ### Claim 10 A method for establishing a communications session comprising: establishing a first communications session between a first user device associated with a first user and a first conference bridge associated with the first user; receiving a request by a first collaboration agent from a second collaboration agent to establish a second communications session between a second conference bridge associated with a second user and the first conference bridge; receiving information associated with the second user from the second collaboration agent; announcing an identity associated with the second user to the first user via the first communications session; receiving a response from the first user via the first communications session; and establishing the second communications session between the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge based on the response. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10 wherein receiving the response further comprises receiving an indication from the first user to establish the second communications session. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10 wherein the response from the first user is a request to seek information associated with the second user, and wherein establishing the second communications session between the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge based on the response further comprises establishing the second communications session between the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge, initiating a request for information from the second user via the second communications session based on the request, receiving information via the second communications session, providing the information to the first user, receiving an indication from the first user to establish communications between the first communications session and the second communications session, and establishing communications between the first communications session and the second communications session based on the indication. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12 wherein providing the information from the second user to the first user comprises providing audio signals received from the second communications session to the first user via the first communications session. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10 further comprising establishing a third communications session between a third conference bridge associated with a third user and the first conference bridge associated with the first user, wherein the first communications session and the third communications session are communicatively coupled via the first conference bridge to enable a conversation between the first user and the third user, and wherein announcing the identity associated with the second user to the first user via the first communications session further comprises announcing the identity associated with the second user to the first user via the first communications session without announcing the identity to the third user via the third communications session. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10 further comprising: receiving a request by the first collaboration agent from a third collaboration agent to establish a third communications session between a third conference bridge associated with a third user and the first conference bridge; establishing the third communications session between the first conference bridge and the third conference bridge; and inhibiting audio signals associated with the first communications session and the second communications session from being provided to the third communications session. ### Claim 16 A method for managing calls comprising: establishing, by a first collaboration agent, a first communications session between a first user device associated with a first user and a conference bridge associated with the first user; obtaining appointment information from an electronic calendar associated with the first user; based on the appointment information, determining that the first user is scheduled to participate in a conference call at a predetermined time; and automatically establishing a second communications session between the conference bridge and a second conference bridge associated with the conference call at substantially the predetermined time. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16 further comprising providing a second collaboration agent information associated with the first user. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16 wherein a directory number associated with the second conference bridge is determined from the appointment information. ### Claim 19 A method for establishing communications comprising: establishing a first communications session between a first user device associated with a first user and a first conference bridge associated with the first user; establishing a second communications session between the first conference bridge and a second conference bridge; establishing a third communications session between the first conference bridge and a third conference bridge; providing audio signals received from the second communications session and the third communications session to the first user via the first communications session, wherein audio signals associated with the second communications session are not provided to the third communications session and audio signals associated with the third communications session are not provided to the second communications session; receiving a command from the first user via the first communications session; and in response to receiving the command, inhibiting audio signals received from the first user from being provided on the second communications session while providing the audio signals received from the first user to the third communications session, wherein audio signals received form the second communications session are provided to the first user via the first communications session.