Voice mail system for obtaining routing information from signaling nodes

In a switched communications network comprising a first central office switching system providing a line-sided connection with a calling party, a second central office switching system serving a called party, and a common channel interoffice signaling network configured for exchanging signaling messages between the first and second central office switching systems, a method comprising:

• connecting the calling party using the first central office switching system to an originating voice mail system serving the calling party;
• recording a message by the calling party in the originating voice mail system;
• receiving from the calling party and storing in the voice mail system a destination identity, the destination identity at least identifying a called party telephone number corresponding to the called party;
• generating a query message in the voice mail system, based on the called party telephone number, requesting identification of a destination voice mail system serving the called party;
• sending the query message from the originating voice mail system to a signaling transfer point in the common channel interoffice signaling network, the signaling transfer point including a database storing profile information for the called party served by the second central office switching system;
• accessing the database for the profile information by the signaling transfer point in response to reception of the TCAP query message;
• generating a response message in the signaling transfer point that includes the accessed profile information for the called party;
• sending the response message from the signaling transfer point to the originating voice mail system via the common channel interoffice signaling network;
• and
• initiating a connection by the originating voice mail system to the destination voice mail system based on the profile information in the response message received by the originating voice mail system;
• and
• transferring the recorded message by the origination voice mail system to a mailbox serving the called party in the destination voice mail system.

A voice mail system for use in a switched communications network comprising a plurality of central office switching systems interconnected by trunks and an interoffice signaling network separate from the trunks configured for exchanging signaling messages between the central office switching systems, said voice mail system comprising:

• a voice processing unit configured for recording a message from a calling party and receiving a called number input by the calling party;
• a master control unit configured for generating a query message for requesting identification of a destination voice mail serving a called party associated with the called number, the master control unit configured for decoding a response message received from the interoffice signaling network and in response selectively initiating a connection with a destination voice mail system based on a corresponding destination telephone number and voice mail capabilities information associated with the called party in the response message, the master control unit generating the replay command in response to the connection with the destination voice mail system;
• and
• a signaling network interface configured for sending the query message and receiving the response message via the interoffice signaling network, respectively, to one of a central office switching system serving the called party and a signaling transfer point storing said destination telephone number and said voice mail capabilities information associated with the called party.

A telecommunications network comprising:

• a first central office switching system configured for receiving a line-sided connection with a calling party;
• a common channel interoffice signaling network configured for transporting call set up signaling messages and query messages;
• a destination voice mail system having a mailbox serving a called party, the destination voice mail system having an assigned Multi-Line Hunt Group of telephone lines, the Multi-Line Hunt Group having a corresponding telephone number;
• a second central office switching system serving a called party and including a database storing profile information for the called party including the telephone number of the Multi-Line Hunt Group of the destination voice mail system, the second central office switching system configured for outputting via the common channel interoffice signaling network a TCAP format response message in response to a TCAP format query message requesting identification of the destination voice mail serving the called party;
• and
• an originating voice mail system configured for recording a message from the calling party and receiving a called number input by the calling party, the originating voice mail system outputting to the second central office switching system via the a common channel interoffice signaling network the TCAP format query message in response to a mailbox-to-mailbox transfer request from the calling party, the originating voice mail system decoding the TCAP response message and in response selectively initiating a connection with, and replaying the recorded message to, the destination voice mail system in response to the telephone number in the TCAP response message.

A telecommunications network comprising:

• a first central office switching system configured for receiving a line-sided connection with a calling party;
• a common channel interoffice signaling network configured for transporting call set up signaling messages and query messages;
• a destination voice mail system having a mailbox serving a called party, the destination voice mail system having an assigned Multi-Line Hunt Group of telephone lines, the Multi-Line Hunt Group having a corresponding telephone number;
• a signaling transfer point in the common channel interoffice signaling network including a database storing profile information for the called party including the telephone number of the Multi-Line Hunt Group of the destination voice mail system, the signaling transfer point configured for outputting via the common channel interoffice signaling network a TCAP format response message in response to a TCAP format query message requesting identification of the destination voice mail serving the called party;
• and
• an originating voice mail system configured for recording a message from the calling party and receiving a called number input by the calling party, the originating voice mail system outputting to the signaling transfer point via the a common channel interoffice signaling network the TCAP format query message in response to a mailbox-to-mailbox transfer request from the calling party, the originating voice mail system decoding the TCAP response message and in response selectively initiating a connection with, and replaying the recorded message to, the destination voice mail system in response to the telephone number in the TCAP response message.

A central office switching system for use in a public switched telephone network, the central office switching system comprising:

• one or more interface modules and a switch fabric coupled thereto configured for providing selective connections between lines of subscriber stations and between the lines and a trunk;
• an administrative module configured to control the switch fabric, the administrative module including a database storing subscriber profile information corresponding to the subscriber lines;
• and
• a signaling interface configured for receiving a query regarding one of the subscribers from a common channel interoffice signaling network and supplying the query to the administrative module, the administrative module formulating a response containing profile information regarding the one subscriber from the database, and the signaling interface outputting the response from the administrative module to the common channel interoffice signaling network.