Retrieving voice-based content in conjunction with wireless application protocol browsing

Abstract

A WAP-enabled device can request text-based and/or voice based content from a WAP Server. The WAP device communicates over a conventional wireless service provider network. This network provides a connection between the WAP device and a WAP Gateway. The WAP Gateway operates as a gateway between the wireless service provider network and the TCP/IP-based Internet. Content requests are sent from the WAP gateway to the WAP Server. When a request for voice-based content delivery is received, the WAP Server responds by sending a TCP/IP instruction to a Voice Portal Node. The Voice Portal Node is operative to establish a voice-based communication session with the WAP device. The WAP Server will transmit voice-based content to the Voice Portal Node. An audible transmission is then played over the telephone connection established between the Voice Portal Node and the WAP device in response to the request initiated by the WAP device.

1 . A system for retrieving voice-based content in conjunction with Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) browsing, comprising:
 a voice portal node that establishes a voice-based communication session with a WAP device to deliver voice-based content to the WAP device by establishing a telephone call with the WAP device, in response to an instruction received from a WAP gateway.   
   
   
       2 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising, an out-bound dialing module that initiates the telephone call by utilizing a directory number of the WAP device, included in the instruction. 
   
   
       3 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising, an interpreter that receives the voice-based content from a WAP server in response to a request for the voice-based content sent by the voice portal node to the WAP server. 
   
   
       4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein, the received voice-based content is in a Voice Extensible Markup Language (VXML) format. 
   
   
       5 . The system of  claim 3 , further comprising, a text-to-speech module that converts the received voice-based content to an audible message, the voice portal node delivers the audible message to the WAP device during the telephone call. 
   
   
       6 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising, a speech recognition engine that receives and recognizes an audio authorization sent by the WAP device to initiate the voice-based communication session. 
   
   
       7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the instruction is a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) instruction that includes at least a directory number associated with the WAP device. 
   
   
       8 . A method for voice-based content delivery during Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) browsing, comprising:
 establishing a telephone call to a WAP device; and   delivering voice-based content, received from a WAP server, to the WAP device as an audio message over the telephone call.   
   
   
       9 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising, receiving an instruction from a WAP gateway to initiate a voice-based content delivery session with the WAP device, the instruction includes at least a directory number of the WAP device. 
   
   
       10 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising, requesting the voice-based content from the WAP server based in part on the instruction. 
   
   
       11 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising, providing a delivery authorization prompt to the WAP device prior to delivering the voice-based content. 
   
   
       12 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising, recognizing an audio authorization sent by the WAP device based on one or more speech recognition techniques in response to the delivery authorization prompt. 
   
   
       13 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising, converting the voice-based content, received from the WAP server, into the audio message by employing a text-to-speech conversion. 
   
   
       14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the converting includes converting Voice Extensible Markup Language (VXML) data into the audio message. 
   
   
       15 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising, determining if a queued content delivery request exists. 
   
   
       16 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising, sending disparate voice-based content, retrieved from the WAP server in response to the queued content delivery request, over the telephone call, if the queued content delivery request exists. 
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising, terminating the telephone call after delivering the voice-based content to the WAP device. 
   
   
       18 . A system that facilitates providing voice-based content to a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) device, comprising:
 means for receiving an instruction from a WAP gateway to establish a voice-based content delivery session with the WAP device;   means for retrieving voice-based content requested by the WAP device from a WAP server; and   means for converting the voice-based content, retrieved from the WAP server, into an audible message.   
   
   
       19 . The system of  claim 18 , further comprising, means for initiating a wireless telephone call to the WAP device based in part on a directory number of the WAP device received in the instruction. 
   
   
       20 . The system of  claim 19 , further comprising, means for delivering the audible message to the WAP device over the wireless telephone call.