Incoming call control based on call settings

Abstract

An electronic device and method for controlling incoming calls based on a plurality of stored call settings are provided. The electronic device receives a first call from a first caller device associated with a first caller. The electronic device sends a first query message to the first caller device based on the received first call. The electronic device also sends a second query message to the first caller device based on a first call setting in the plurality of stored call settings. The electronic device determines a reception time of a second call received from the first caller device that is different from the first call. The electronic device also controls the second call based on a threshold period, the determined reception time of the second call, and the second call setting in the plurality of stored call settings.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE / INCORPORATION BY RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] none Technical Field

[0003] Various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to controlling incoming calls based on call settings. More specifically, various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an electronic device and method for controlling incoming calls based on call settings. Background Art

[0004] With the advancement of technology related to telephone communications, various technologies have been developed to make robot calls to multiple people from unknown caller numbers. The robot call can deliver a pre-recorded message to the recipient of the call, where the pre-recorded message can be used for campaigns or telemarketing. Certain solutions (such as blacklists or whitelists) have been developed at the end of the network equipment or at the receiving device to identify and / or filter out such robot calls. Such solutions may not be effective enough to accurately distinguish or filter out robot calls from human calls, which may further result in missing important calls received at the recipient device. The receipt of such a robot call or the missing of an important call may not be what the individual recipients expect.

[0005] Other limitations and disadvantages of conventional traditional approaches will become apparent to those skilled in the art by comparing the illustrated system with aspects of the present disclosure, as described in the remainder of this application and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Summary of the invention

[0006] As will be more fully set forth, there is provided an electronic device and method for controlling an incoming call based on call setup substantially as shown in and / or described in conjunction with at least one of the accompanying drawings.

[0007] These and other features and advantages of the present disclosure will be understood by examining the following detailed description of the disclosure and the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary network environment for controlling an incoming call based on call setup according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0009] Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary electronic device for controlling an incoming call based on call settings according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0010] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary operation for controlling an incoming call based on call setup according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0011] Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary operations for controlling an incoming call based on call setup according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] Implementations described below may be found in the disclosed electronic device and method for controlling incoming calls based on call settings that may be pre-stored to filter out robot calls, and storing the incoming calls on a server such as a voicemail. Exemplary aspects of the present disclosure provide an electronic device (e.g., a mobile phone) that may receive a first call (e.g., a telephone call, an Internet Protocol voice call) from a caller device (e.g., another mobile phone, a communication device, a computer, etc.) associated with a caller (e.g., a person or a computer or a robot). In an embodiment, identification information (e.g., a phone number, a caller ID) of the caller device or the caller may be unknown to the electronic device. The electronic device may also send a first challenge message (e.g., a CAPTCHA question that distinguishes robot callers from human callers) to the caller device associated with the caller based on the received first call. The electronic device may also send a second challenge message to the caller device based on a first call setting in a plurality of call settings, which may be stored in a memory of the electronic device. The second challenge message may be another message (different from the first challenge message) that accurately distinguishes robot callers from human callers. The first call setting may be associated with the first challenge message sent. The second challenge message may indicate a request for the calling device to call the electronic device again within a threshold period of time. The electronic device may also determine a reception time of the second call received from the calling device. The electronic device may also control the second call based on the threshold period of time, the determined reception time of the second call, and the second call setting in the stored plurality of call settings. The control of the second call may correspond to generating an alert about the second call on the electronic device (i.e., generating an audio ringtone), or may correspond to sending the second call to a server (i.e., a local or network voice mailbox).

[0013] The disclosed electronic device can automatically determine identification information of the calling device associated with each call based on data collected from one or more of other electronic devices, multiple partners (third parties), or network service providers associated with the disclosed electronic device. The disclosed electronic device can also send a first challenge message to the calling device, and based on the response received from the calling device, the electronic device can also take action to control the call. The action can correspond to transferring the received call to a server (such as a voicemail), or sending a second challenge question to the calling device to further identify robot calls and human callers (i.e., callers who can correctly respond to the first challenge message and the second challenge message).

[0014] Thus, the disclosed electronic device follows a three-step approach (i.e., determination of identification information and control of challenge messages) to identify and filter out potential robot calls from human callers. Even if the caller answers the first question challenge message, the caller may have to meet another filtering criterion (i.e., as mentioned in the second challenge message) to call again within a threshold period. Multiple challenge messages and filtering criteria can be indicated by multiple call settings stored for the electronic device, which the caller or the caller device must meet to further remind the user associated with the electronic device of the received call. The disclosed electronic device can continue to suppress the reminder or notification of the second call until the criteria mentioned in the second challenge message or the corresponding call setting are met. Therefore, the disclosed electronic device can control incoming calls based on the stored call settings that can avoid the reception of robot calls to further enhance the user's experience of the electronic device. In addition, based on the stored multiple call settings, the disclosed electronic device can also send / redirect each potential call (robot call or human call) to a server (voice mailbox) to store the call so that the user can access all important calls or information sent to the server for future viewing and use.

[0015] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary network environment for controlling incoming calls based on call setup according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 , a diagram of a network environment 100 is shown. The network environment 100 may include an electronic device 102, and the electronic device 102 may store a plurality of call settings 104 to handle each of a plurality of incoming calls received on the electronic device 102. The electronic device 102 may also be associated with a user 106. Figure 1, multiple caller devices 108, a first caller 110 (i.e., a caller that can be associated with a first caller device 108A in the multiple caller devices 108), and a server 112 are also shown. The electronic device 102 can be communicatively coupled to the multiple caller devices 108 and the server 112 via a communication network 114.

[0016] The electronic device 102 may include appropriate logic, circuitry, interfaces and / or code that may be configured to receive the first call or the second call from the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110. The electronic device 102 may also be configured to determine whether the received first call or the second call is a robot call. The electronic device 102 may also be configured to control the received first call or the second call based on the determination of whether the received call is a robot call or a call from a human. Examples of the electronic device 102 may include, but are not limited to, telephones, smart phones, cellular phones, mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDA) devices, tablet computers, gaming devices, computing devices, mainframes, servers, computer workstations, imaging devices and / or consumer electronics (CE) devices that may have the ability to receive and process network calls.

[0017] The plurality of call settings 104 may include a plurality of rules and / or actions that may be executed by the electronic device 102 to process or control each of a plurality of incoming calls that may be received on the electronic device 102 from a plurality of caller devices 108. The plurality of call settings 104 may include a first call setting 104A, a second call setting 104B, a third call setting 104C, a fourth call setting 104D, and an Nth call setting 104N. Each of the plurality of call settings 104 may be applied to each incoming call in a predefined specific order. In some embodiments, a particular call setting in the plurality of call settings 104 may be applied to the incoming call based on the result of a previous call setting in the plurality of call settings 104. For example, the second call setting 104B may be applied based on the result of the application of the first call setting 104A to the incoming call. Details regarding the plurality of settings 104 are described, for example, in Figure 3 In some embodiments, the plurality of call settings 104 may be associated with a software application installed on the electronic device 102. The electronic device 102 may apply each of the plurality of call settings 104 to the incoming call based on execution of the software application (e.g., an application related to the incoming call, such as a dialer application or other application configured to work with the dialer application).

[0018] Multiple caller devices 108 may include appropriate logic, circuits, interfaces and / or codes that can be configured to initiate a call to an electronic device 102 associated with a user 106 (i.e., a recipient of a call). Multiple caller devices 108 may include a first caller device 108A, a second caller device 108B, and an Nth caller device 108N. Each of the multiple caller devices 108 may be associated with a corresponding caller. For example, the first caller device 108A may be associated with the first caller 110. Similarly, the second caller device 108B may be associated with the second caller (not shown). Each of the multiple caller devices 108 may have corresponding identification information (e.g., telephone number). In an embodiment, the identification information of the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110 may be unknown to the electronic device 102 (or not stored in the electronic device 102), while the identification information of the second caller device 108B associated with the second caller may be known to the electronic device 102 (or stored in the electronic device 102). Examples of each of the plurality of caller devices 108 may include, but are not limited to, telephones, smart phones, cellular phones, mobile phones, personal digital assistant (PDA) devices, tablet computers, gaming devices, computing devices, imaging devices, mainframes, servers, computer workstations, and / or consumer electronics (CE) devices that may have the capability to initiate a network call.

[0019] The first caller 110 may correspond to a person (human) or a computer (e.g., a robot) that may initiate a call to the electronic device 102 via the first caller device 108A. If the first caller 110 is a person or a human, the first call may be considered a real call by the electronic device 102. If the first caller 110 is a computer or a robot, the first call may be considered a robot call because a robot call may originate from a computer (or from a robot or an automated machine) and may include or convey a pre-recorded message. The electronic device 102 may send the robot call to a voicemail (i.e., the server 112) for later review.

[0020] The server 112 may include appropriate logic, circuits, interfaces and / or codes that may be configured to store the first call or the second call received from the first caller 110. In some embodiments, the server 112 may store messages or information (such as text format) related to the first call or the second call received from the first caller 110. The server 112 may also be configured to convert the stored first call or the second call from a first format (i.e., an audio format) to a second format (such as a text format) to store messages or information related to the first call or the second call. The message or information in the second format may consume less storage capacity than the storage capacity consumed by the first call or the second call in the first format (i.e., an audio format). In an embodiment, the server 112 may include an audio to text (or voice to text) converter that may convert the first call or the second call from an audio format to a text format. The server 112 may also be configured to send the converted message / information (text format) of the first call or the second call to the electronic device 102, or to an email server associated with the electronic device 102. In some embodiments, server 112 may send the first call or the second call in an audio format or as an audio attachment (e.g., a ".wav" file). In some embodiments, server 112 may be configured to store identification information associated with multiple caller devices 108 or multiple callers that may also include first caller 110.

[0021] The server 112 may be implemented as a network voice mailbox. The server 112 may also be implemented as a cloud server, and operations may be performed through web applications, cloud applications, HTTP requests, repository operations, file transfers, etc. Other example implementations of the server 112 may include, but are not limited to, a call server, a database server, a file server, a web server, a media server, an application server, a mainframe server, or a cloud computing server. In at least one embodiment, the server 112 may be implemented as a plurality of cloud-based distributed resources by using several techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art. It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the implementation of the server 112 and the electronic device 102 as two independent entities. In certain embodiments, the functions of the server 112 may be incorporated in whole or at least in part into the electronic device 102 without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In this case, the server 112 may be considered as a local voice mailbox incorporated into the electronic device 102.

[0022] The communication network 114 may include a communication medium through which the electronic device 102, the plurality of caller devices 108, and the server 112 can communicate with each other. The communication network 114 may be a wired or wireless communication network. In some embodiments, the electronic device 102 may receive a first call or a second call from the first caller device 108A via the communication network 114. The communication network 114 may include a telecommunications network to handle telephone calls (such as the first call or the second call) between the plurality of caller devices 108 and the electronic device 102. In this case, the communication network 114 may include different telephone networks, such as (but not limited to) cellular networks, mobile networks, public switched telephone networks (PSTN), radio access network (RAN) equipment, integrated services digital networks (ISDN), or voice over internet protocol (VOIP) networks. Other examples of the communication network 114 may include, but are not limited to, the Internet, wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) networks, personal area networks (PANs), local area networks (LANs), or metropolitan area networks (MANs).

[0023] The various devices in the network environment 100 may be configured to connect to the communication network 114 according to various wired and wireless communication protocols. Examples of such wired and wireless communication protocols may include, but are not limited to, at least one of the Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol (TCP / IP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Zig Bee, EDGE, IEEE 802.11, Light Fidelity (Li-Fi), 802.16, IEEE 802.11s, IEEE 802.11g, multi-hop communication, wireless access point (AP), device-to-device communication, cellular communication protocol, and Bluetooth (BT) communication protocol.

[0024] In operation, the electronic device 102 may be configured to receive user input from the user 106 to configure one or more of the plurality of call settings 104 to handle (i.e., also referred to as control) each of the plurality of incoming calls on the electronic device 102. The configuration of each of the plurality of call settings 104 may correspond to the configuration of a rule that may be checked, and the electronic device 102 may take corresponding actions to handle each incoming call received from each of the plurality of caller devices 108. In some embodiments, each of the plurality of call settings 104 may be configured based on user input received from the user 106 associated with the electronic device 102. In some other embodiments, a group of call settings in the plurality of call settings 104 may be configured based on the received user input, and the remaining call settings in the plurality of call settings 104 may be defined by the electronic device 102 as default call settings. After the configuration of the plurality of call settings 104, the electronic device 102 may be configured to store the plurality of call settings 104, and one or more of the plurality of call settings 104 may be applied to each incoming call.

[0025] In an embodiment, the electronic device 102 may be configured to receive an incoming call (e.g., a first incoming call) from a first caller device 108A associated with a first caller 110. The electronic device 102 may also apply an initial call setting (i.e., referred to as a third call setting 104C) to the received first call. In the initial call setting, the electronic device 102 may determine a caller identification (ID) or identification information associated with the first call. The caller ID associated with the first call may correspond to the phone number of the first caller device 108A from which the first call originated. The electronic device 102 may also search for the determined caller ID in a set of whitelist contacts (i.e., a contact list) that may be stored in the electronic device 102 or associated with the user profile of the user 106. In an embodiment, if the determined caller ID exists in a set of stored whitelist contacts, the electronic device 102 may consider the identification information of the first caller 110 to be known to the electronic device 102. In this case, the electronic device 102 may alert the user 106 to the first call, and may not apply the remaining call settings in the plurality of call settings 104 to the received first call.

[0026] In another embodiment, identification information or caller ID of the first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 of the first call may be unknown to the electronic device 102, wherein the determined caller ID of the first call may not exist in the stored set of whitelist contacts. The identification information of the first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 may include, but is not limited to, a phone number of the first caller device 108A, a name associated with the first caller 110, robot call information associated with the first caller 110, or an organization name associated with the first caller 110. In an embodiment, the electronic device 102 may determine the identification information of the first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 based on data collected from multiple third parties (not shown), and the multiple third parties may store identification information of multiple callers or multiple caller devices 108. The multiple third parties may have collected data related to identification information about multiple callers or multiple caller devices 108 from multiple users. In some embodiments, identification information about multiple callers or multiple caller devices 108 may be stored in the server 112. The electronic device 102 may receive identification information about the first calling device 108A from the server 112 or from another server (not shown) associated with the communication network 114 or associated with a service provider of the first calling device 108A from which the first call originated.

[0027] Based on the determination of the identification information, the electronic device 102 may also be configured to control the first call based on the determined identification information and the third call setting 104C. If the robot call information in the identification information of the first caller 110 indicates that the first caller 110 is a computer / robot, the electronic device 102 may transfer the first call to the server 112 based on the third call setting 104C. If the robot call information in the identification information of the first caller 110 indicates that the first caller 110 may not be a computer / robot, the electronic device 102 may send a first challenge message (including a first challenge question) to the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110.

[0028] The electronic device 102 may also send a first challenge message to the first caller device 108A based on a determination that the first call may not be a robot call as identified based on the determined identification information of the first caller 110. In this case, the first caller 110 may be a human caller. The first challenge message including the first challenge question may include at least one of an arithmetic question, a reasoning question, an audio-related question, a timing-related question, an image-based question, a request to press a button question, or a logic question. The first caller device 108A may be configured to receive the first challenge question message and may provide a first response to the sent first challenge message to the electronic device 102. Details about the first challenge message are described, for example, in Figure 3 In the description.

[0029] The electronic device 102 may also receive a first response to the first challenge message from the first calling party device 108A. The electronic device 102 may also be configured to compare the received first response with a predefined response indicated by the first call setup 104A associated with the first challenge message. The predefined response indicated by the first call setup 104A may correspond to a correct answer to the sent first challenge message (including the challenge question).

[0030] In an embodiment, the received first response and the response indicated by the first call setting 104A may be different. In this case, the electronic device 102 may be configured to send the first call to the server 112 (i.e., voicemail), and a reminder about sending the first call to the server 112 may also be generated on the electronic device 102. In another embodiment, the received first response and the response indicated by the first call setting 104A may be similar. In this case, the electronic device 102 may be configured to send a second challenge message to the first caller 110 via the first caller device 108A based on the first call setting 104A in the stored plurality of call settings 104. The second challenge message may indicate a request for the first caller 110 to call the electronic device 102 again within a threshold period (e.g., within 15 minutes). The electronic device 102 may also be configured to disconnect or discard the received first call after indicating the request in the second challenge message sent.

[0031] In an embodiment, the electronic device 102 may also be configured to receive a second call from the first caller device 108A. The electronic device 102 may also determine identification information in the second call and compare the identification information in the first call with the identification information in the second call to determine whether the second call originates from the first caller device 108A. If the second call originates from a caller that may be different from the first caller 110 (i.e., the identification information in the second call is different from the identification information in the first call), the electronic device 102 may also control the second call based on a third call setting 104C in the stored plurality of call settings 104. If the second call originates from the same first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 (i.e., the identification information in the second call is the same as the identification information in the first call), the electronic device 102 may further determine the reception time of the second call and the reception time of the first call when received from the first caller device 108A. The electronic device 102 may also calculate a time difference between the determined time of receipt of the first call and the determined time of receipt of the second call, and compare the calculated time difference with a threshold time period indicated in the second query message and in the second call setting 104B in the plurality of call settings 104. If the calculated time difference is greater than the threshold time period, the electronic device 102 may send the second call to the server 112, and generate a reminder on the electronic device 102 about sending the second call to the server 112. In another embodiment, when the calculated time difference is less than or equal to the threshold time period, the electronic device 102 may generate a reminder for the user 106 about receiving the second call based on one of the plurality of call settings 104 (i.e., for example, via a display of a user interface (UI) on a display screen (not shown) of the electronic device 102). Details about the plurality of call settings 104 and the control of incoming calls are described, for example, in Figure 3 Further explanation in.

[0032] Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary electronic device for controlling incoming calls based on call settings according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 elements to explain Figure 2 . refer to Figure 2 , a block diagram 200 of an electronic device 102 is shown. The electronic device 102 may include circuitry 202, memory 204, input / output (I / O) devices 206, and a network interface 208. The circuitry 202 may be communicatively coupled to the memory 204, the I / O devices 206, and the network interface 208. The I / O devices 206 may also include a display screen 206A.

[0033] The circuit 202 may include appropriate logic, circuits, and interfaces that may be configured to execute program instructions associated with different operations performed by the electronic device 102. For example, some operations may include, but are not limited to, the reception of a first call, the sending of a first query message, the sending of a second query message, the reception of a second call, the determination of the reception time of the second call, and the control of the second call. The circuit 202 may include one or more special processing units, which may be implemented as an integrated processor or a processor cluster that jointly performs the functions of the one or more special processing units. The circuit 202 may be implemented based on many processor technologies known in the art. Examples of implementations of the circuit 202 may be x86-based processors, graphics processing units (GPUs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) processors, complex instruction set computing (CISC) processors, microcontrollers, central processing units (CPUs), and / or other computing circuits.

[0034] The memory 204 may include appropriate logic, circuits, interfaces and / or codes that may be configured to store program instructions to be executed by the circuit 202. In at least one embodiment, the memory 204 may store multiple call settings 104. The memory 204 may also store the reception time of the first call and the reception time of the second call. In some other embodiments, the memory 204 may also store multiple first query messages that may also include the first query message, and store multiple responses (i.e., correct answers) corresponding to each of the multiple first query messages. In some other embodiments, the memory 204 may also store identification information of multiple callers that may also include the first caller 110. Examples of implementations of the memory 204 may include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), hard disk drive (HDD), solid state drive (SSD), CPU cache and / or secure digital (SD) card.

[0035] The I / O device 206 may include appropriate logic, circuits, and interfaces that may be configured to receive input and provide output based on the received input. For example, the electronic device 102 may receive user input from the user 106 via the I / O device 206. The user input may be to accept or reject the received first call or second call at the electronic device 102. The electronic device 102 may control the I / O device 206 to display a reminder or notification of the received first call or second call for the user 106. The I / O device 206, which includes various input and output devices, may be configured to communicate with the circuit 202. Examples of the I / O device 206 may include, but are not limited to, a touch screen, a keyboard, a vibration motor, a mouse, a joystick, a microphone, a display device (such as a display screen 206A), and a speaker.

[0036] Display screen 206A may include appropriate logic, circuitry, and interfaces that may be configured to display a reminder or notification of the first call or the second call. Display screen 206A may be a touch screen that enables user 106 to provide user input via display screen 206A. The touch screen may be at least one of a resistive touch screen, a capacitive touch screen, or a thermal touch screen. Display screen 206A may be implemented by several known technologies, such as, but not limited to, a liquid crystal display (LCD) display, a light emitting diode (LED) display, a plasma display, or an organic LED (OLED) display technology, or at least one of other display devices. According to an embodiment, display screen 206A may refer to a display screen of a head mounted device (HMD), a smart glasses device, a perspective display, a projection-based display, an electrochromic display, or a transparent display.

[0037] The network interface 208 may include appropriate logic, circuitry, and interfaces that may be configured to facilitate communication between the circuit 202, the plurality of call party devices 108 (including the first call party device 108A), and the server 112 via the communication network 114. The network interface 208 may be implemented using various known technologies that support wired or wireless communication between the electronic device 102 and the communication network 114. The network interface 208 may include, but is not limited to, an antenna, a radio frequency (RF) transceiver, one or more amplifiers, a tuner, one or more oscillators, a digital signal processor, a codec (CODEC) chipset, a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, or a local buffer circuit.

[0038] The network interface 208 can be configured to communicate with a network, such as the Internet, an intranet, or a wireless network, such as a cellular telephone network, a public switched telephone network (PSTN), a radio access network (RAN), a wireless local area network (LAN), and a metropolitan area network (MAN) via wireless communication. The wireless communication can use one or more of a variety of communication standards, protocols, and technologies, such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Bluetooth, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) (such as IEEE802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, or IEEE 802.11n), Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), Light Fidelity (Li-Fi), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (Wi-MAX), email protocols, instant messaging, and short message service (SMS). By such as Figure 1 The functions or operations performed by the electronic device 102 described in the foregoing may be performed by the circuit 202. The operations performed by the circuit 202 are, for example, Figure 3 and Figure 4Detailed description in.

[0039] Figure 3 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary operation for controlling an incoming call based on call settings according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 and Figure 2 elements to explain Figure 3 . refer to Figure 3 , a block diagram 300 is shown, which illustrates exemplary operations of 302 to 332 as described herein. The exemplary operations illustrated in block diagram 300 may begin at 302 and may be performed by any computing system, device, or apparatus, such as by Figure 1 Electronic device 102 or Figure 2 The circuit 202 is performed. Although illustrated with discrete blocks, the exemplary operations associated with one or more blocks of the block diagram 300 may be divided into additional blocks, combined into fewer blocks, or deleted, depending on the particular implementation.

[0040] At 302, a first call receiving operation may be performed. In the first call receiving operation, the circuit 202 may receive a first call from the first caller device 108A via the communication network 114 as an incoming call. The first caller device 108A may be associated with the first caller 110, which may be a person or a computer / robot. Examples of the first call may include, but are not limited to, a telephone call, a landline call (telephonic call l), an Internet call, a VoIP call, or a chat messenger call. If the first call is a robot call (i.e., from an automated machine as the first caller 110), the circuit 202 may not alert the user 106 of the received first call, and may control a speaker (associated with the electronic device 102) to suppress a specific sound notification about the incoming call, and / or may control the display screen 206A of the electronic device 102 not to display a UI related to the incoming call (i.e., the first call).

[0041] At 304, an identification information determination operation may be performed. In the identification information determination operation, the circuit 202 may be configured to determine identification information of the first calling device 108A or the first calling party 110 associated with the incoming first call. The identification information may include, but is not limited to, a telephone number (caller ID) of the first calling device 108A, a name associated with the first calling party 110, robot call information associated with the first calling party 110, and an organization associated with the first calling party 110. The robot call information associated with the first calling party 110 may provide a probability or indication that the received first call may be a robot call.

[0042] In some embodiments, information about the phone number or caller ID may be included in the received first call. The circuit 202 may be configured to extract the phone number or caller ID of the first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 from the received first call. The extracted phone number or caller ID may be regarded as identification information of the first caller device 108A from which the first call is received. In some embodiments, the name of the first caller 110 may be determined as identification information based on the extracted phone number or caller ID. For example, the circuit 202 may search for the phone number (extracted from the first call) in the contact list stored in the electronic device 102 to determine the name (i.e., identification information) of the first caller 110 from which the first call may originate via the first caller device 108A. In an embodiment, the name of the first caller 110 may be included in the received first call. The name of the first caller 110 may be included in the first call by the first caller device 108A or by a service provider associated with the first call. The circuit 202 may extract the name of the first caller 110 from the received first call to determine the identification information.

[0043] In some embodiments, the circuit 202 may determine the identification information (i.e., name) of the first caller 110 based on the determined caller ID (e.g., phone number) and data collected from multiple third parties that may have identification information (e.g., name) of the first caller 110. The multiple third parties may have data that may be collected from multiple users. The data may include identification information about multiple callers that may also include the first caller 110. For example, multiple users (such as the first caller 110 or user 106) may upload or mention their corresponding data (i.e., phone numbers or names) on different websites (such as social networks, e-commerce, or marketing websites). Multiple third parties may extract identification information of the first caller 110 based on data extracted from such websites. The collection of data (i.e., phone numbers, names, or other personal details) from multiple or a group of users may be referred to as a crowdsourcing method performed by multiple third parties. Upon receiving the first call, the circuit 202 may send a request (including call details such as phone numbers) to one of the multiple third parties to provide identification information of the first call. Based on the sent request, the circuit 202 of the electronic device 102 may receive identification information (such as a name) of the first calling party 110 or the first calling party device 108A from the one of the plurality of third parties or a server associated with the one of the plurality of third parties.

[0044] In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may determine the robot call information from the determined or received identification information. For example, the robot call information received from one of the plurality of third parties (or from a service provider) (i.e., included in the identification information) may indicate that the received first call may originate from a robot or an automated machine, rather than from a communication device associated with a human. The plurality of third parties may store such robot call information about the plurality of caller devices 108 in an associated server. The robot call information may be provided to the plurality of third parties by the plurality or a group of users. In some embodiments, the circuit 202 may also determine the name of the organization (i.e., associated with the first caller 110) from the received first call. The circuit 202 may determine the identification information as the name of the organization (e.g., the employer of the caller) based on the information received from one of the plurality of third parties when the first call is received. In some embodiments, the plurality of third parties may receive the robot call information included in a plurality of reports or feedback provided by the plurality or a group of users (e.g., a plurality of callers including the first caller 110).

[0045] In another embodiment, circuit 202 may receive identification information of first caller 110 or first caller device 108A from a server (not shown) associated with a service provider of electronic device 102. User 106 may be a customer of a service provider associated with electronic device 102. In an embodiment, the server of the service provider of electronic device 102 may be the same as server 112 (i.e., voicemail) that may store the first call or the second call.

[0046] At 306, it may be determined whether information about the calling party (i.e., the first calling party device 108A or the first calling party 110) is in a whitelist (or contact list) of the electronic device 102. The operation at 306 may correspond to the application of an initial call setting (i.e., the third call setting 104C) of the stored plurality of call settings 104. The third call setting 104C of the plurality of call settings 104 may be associated with a first call received from the first calling party device 108A (associated with the first calling party 110). Based on the third call setting 104C, the circuit 202 may determine whether the determined or received identification information (e.g., a phone number or a caller ID) of the first calling party device 108A (or the first calling party 110) may be stored in a contact list of the electronic device 102. In the event that the identification information is stored in the contact list, the circuit 202 may treat the received first call as a whitelist call and consider the identification information of the first calling party device 108A to be known by the electronic device 102. If the identification information of the first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 is not in the contact list, or may be unknown to the electronic device 102, the circuit 202 may apply the fourth call setting 104D of the plurality of call settings 104 (i.e., illustrated at 310). If the identification information of the first caller device 108A (or the first caller) is in the contact list (i.e., white list), or may be known to the electronic device 102, the circuit 202 may apply the third call setting 104C to the received first call. Based on the third call setting 104C, the circuit 202 may control the first call, wherein the third call setting 104C may include an instruction to alert (308) the user 106 of the receipt of the first call. In some embodiments, the third call setting 104C may include an instruction to stop executing other call settings present in the plurality of call settings 104. In some embodiments, the third call setting 104C may be an initial call setting applicable to the first call received from the first caller device 108A. It may be noted that 306 or the third call setup 104C is described with respect to the first call received. However, the third call setup 104C may be applied to every incoming call received on the electronic device 102, regardless of the calling party associated with the incoming call.

[0047] At 308, a user reminder operation may be performed. In the user reminder operation, the circuit 202 may be configured to remind the user 106 of the incoming call. The circuit 202 may control the display screen 206A ( Figure 2) displays a user interface (UI) on which the caller ID of the first caller device 108A can be displayed. In some embodiments, the UI can also display information associated with the caller ID of the incoming first call, such as name, work details, etc. Such information (i.e., name) can be stored in the contact list of the electronic device 102 corresponding to the caller ID. The UI can also include multiple UI elements to help the user 106 accept or reject the incoming call. In some embodiments, the circuit 202 can also control the speaker associated with the electronic device 102 to output a specific sound that can remind the user 106 of the incoming call. In some other embodiments, the electronic device 102 can also control the vibration motor installed in the electronic device 102 to vibrate to further remind the user 106 of the incoming call. It can be noted that 308 is about the first call description received. However, 308 can be applied to other calls (such as second calls) that can be received on the electronic device 102 from the same or different caller devices in multiple caller devices 108.

[0048] At 310, it may be determined whether the received first call is a potential robot call. The operation at 310 may correspond to the application of a fourth call setting 104D among the stored plurality of call settings 104. The fourth call setting 104D may indicate a user preference for each call whose corresponding identification information (i.e., determined at 304) may be unknown to the electronic device 102. The fourth call setting 104D may include instructions to either transfer calls whose corresponding identification information is unknown to the electronic device 102 to the server 112, or to send a first challenge message (at 318) to a calling party associated with each call whose corresponding identification information is unknown to the electronic device 102.

[0049] In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may determine that the received first call is a potential robot call based on the robot call information in the identification information of the first caller 110 or the first caller device 108A (determined at 304). Based on the fourth call setting 104D, the circuit 202 may send the received first call to the server 112 or send a first challenge message to the first caller device 108A (at 318). In an embodiment, the robot call information may indicate a probability value (between "0" and "1") that the received first call is a robot call or is not received from a human. According to the fourth call setting 104D, the circuit 202 may compare the probability value indicated by the robot call information with a threshold value. Based on the comparison, the circuit 202 may send the received first call to the server 112 or send a first challenge message to the first caller 110 (318). For example, if the probability value in the robot call information is greater than the threshold value, the circuit 202 may determine that the received first call may be a potential robot call. In this case, control may be transferred to 312. In another example, if the probability value in the robot call information is less than or equal to the threshold, the circuit 202 can determine that the received first call may not be a potential robot call, or may be received from a device associated with a human. In this case, (due to the low probability value of the robot call), control can be transferred to 318, at which a first challenge message can be sent to the first calling device 108A to confirm whether it is a robot caller or a human caller.

[0050] At 312, a determination may be made whether to send the first call to the server 112 for storage. In some embodiments, 312 may correspond to a fourth call setting 104D, which may indicate whether the user 106 prefers to store each received call (which may be a potential robot call) to the server 112 (i.e., voicemail) or to discard / reject each received call that may be determined to be a potential robot call. In some embodiments, the circuit 202 may receive user input from the user 106 via the I / O device 206 to reject or discard the first call, and also automatically store the rejected call on the server 112 or in the memory 204. Based on the user preference of the user 106 indicated in the stored fourth call setting 104D, control may be transferred to 314 or 316. In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to retrieve the fourth call setting 104D from a plurality of call settings 104 stored in the memory 204 to identify the user preference for received calls that may be unknown to the electronic device 102 or may be potential robot calls.

[0051] At 314, a call discard operation may be performed. In the call discard operation, the electronic device 102 may discard or reject the received first call based on the user preference indicated in the fourth call setting 104D. In some embodiments, the circuit 202 may alert the user 106 of the received or discarded first call that is determined to be a potential robot call. Figure 3 As shown in , the set of operations can end.

[0052] At 316, based on the user preference indicated in the fourth call setting 104D, the first call may be sent to the server 112 for storage. In some embodiments, the server 112 may be implemented as a network voice mailbox. The server 112 may be configured to store the first call (in a first format such as an audio format). The server 112 may convert the received first call (or second call) from the audio format to a second format (such as a text format), and may also re-store the converted first call (or second call) to save memory capacity.

[0053] In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may send a request to the server 112 to retrieve the first call or the second call from the server 112. The server 112 may be configured to convert the stored first call (or the second call) from a first format (audio format) to a second format based on the request received from the electronic device 102. The second format may correspond to, but is not limited to, a text format. In an embodiment, the server 112 may include an audio-to-text engine (not shown) that can generate a text transcription of the first call or the second call (audio format). It can be noted that the file size of the second format may be smaller than the file size of the first format. Thus, the information about the call in the second format may consume less memory (such as memory 204) for storage and less bandwidth to send to the electronic device 102, respectively, compared to the size and bandwidth of the memory 204 required for the call in the first format. The server 112 may also send the converted information or message (second format) about the first call to the electronic device 102. In some embodiments, based on the request received from the electronic device 102, the server 112 may retrieve the stored first call or the second call and send it to the electronic device 102 in audio form without conversion.

[0054] In an embodiment, the server 112 may be configured to send the converted information or message to an email server associated with the electronic device 102. In some embodiments, the server 112 may store the converted information or message about the first call or the second call. Based on a request received from the electronic device 102, the server 112 may directly send the stored message of the first call in the first format to the electronic device 102 without converting to the second format. It may be noted that, as an example, 316 is illustrated with respect to the received first call. 316 may be applied to other calls (such as the second call) that may be received from multiple caller devices 108 on the electronic device 102.

[0055] At 318, a first challenge message may be sent. The circuitry 202 of the electronic device 102 may be configured to send the first challenge message to the first calling party device 108A (associated with the first calling party 110) from which the first call may originate or be received. The first challenge message may be sent based on the fourth call setting 104D stored in the electronic device 102, for example, as in Figure 3 310 in . The first challenge message may include, but is not limited to, arithmetic questions, reasoning questions, audio-related questions, timing-related questions, image-based questions, button-pressing questions, or logic questions. For example, the first challenge message may be "What is 2+2?". For another example, the first challenge message may be "What is the capital of the United States?". For another example, the first challenge message may be "Press 1 to continue." In some embodiments, the first challenge message may also include a time limit (for example, 30 seconds) for the first caller 110 to provide a first response to the sent first challenge message. In addition to Figure 3 In addition to the determinations made at 304 and 310 in the electronic device 102, the circuit 202 may also be configured to send a first challenge message to the first caller device 108A to confirm whether the first caller 110 is a robot or a human. The memory 204 of the electronic device 102 may be configured to store a plurality of questions. The circuit 202 may be configured to select one of the plurality of questions from the memory 204 and include the selected question in the first challenge message. In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may randomly select the question to be included in the first challenge message. In other embodiments, the circuit 202 may select the question based on certain factors associated with the first caller 110, the first caller device 108A, or the first call. These factors may include, but are not limited to, the geographic location of the first caller device 108A identified based on the determined identification information, the education or work field of the first caller 110 identified based on the determined identification information, the age or gender of the first caller 110 identified based on the determined identification information, the last selected question to avoid duplication, the reception time of the first call, or the software or hardware capabilities of the first caller device 108A identified based on the determined identification information.

[0056] At 320, a first response receiving operation may be performed. In the response receiving operation, the circuit 202 may receive a first response to the first challenge message from the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110. The first response may be received based on the sent first challenge message (i.e., a challenge message that may include questions for the caller to answer). The first caller device 108A may be configured to receive a user input from the first caller 110 as a first response. The user input may correspond to, but is not limited to, a button press, an audio response, or a touch-based input provided based on the first challenge message. For example, for an arithmetic question in the first challenge message, such as "how much is 2+2", the user input (as a first response) may be "4" received from the first caller 110 based on a button press, an audio input, or a touch-based input. In some embodiments, if the first response is not received within a time limit included in the sent first challenge message, the circuit 202 of the electronic device 102 may be configured to discard or reject the received first call, as described in 314. If the received first call is a robot call, or the first calling party 110 is not a human being capable of providing a first response based on the questions included in the first challenge message (i.e., the first challenge message sent from the electronic device 102 to the first calling party device 108A), the circuit 202 may not receive the first response. The robot or automated machine (i.e., the robot or automated machine from which the first call may originate) may not be programmed to provide a first response based on the received first challenge message that may be dynamically selected by the electronic device 102.

[0057] At 322, it may be determined whether the first response received from the first caller device 108A (i.e., associated with the first caller 110) is correct. The operation at 322 may correspond to the application of the first call setting 104A of the stored plurality of call settings 104. The first call setting 104A of the plurality of call settings 104 may be associated with the sent first challenge message and the received first response. If the first response to the first challenge message provided by the first caller 110 is an incorrect response, the first call setting 104A may include instructions to transfer the first call to the server 112 (i.e., voicemail) for storage. If the first response to the first challenge message provided by the first caller 110 is a correct response, the first call setting 104A may include instructions to send a second challenge message to the first caller 110 to reconfirm that the first call is not a robot call, and further provide enhanced filtering of robot calls at the electronic device 102.

[0058] In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to compare the received first response with the response indicated by the first call setting 104A associated with the first challenge message. The response indicated by the first call setting 104A may correspond to the correct answer associated with the specific question included in the first challenge message. The memory 204 of the electronic device 102 may be configured to store multiple correct responses for the stored multiple questions. In an embodiment, the response (i.e., the correct answer) indicated by the first call setting 104A may be different from the first response received from the first caller device 108A. In this case, the first response received from the first caller device 108A may be incorrect, so control may go to 316. In another embodiment, the response indicated by the first call setting 104A may be the same as the first response received from the first caller device 108A. In this case, the first response received from the first caller device 108A may be correct, so control may go to 324.

[0059] According to an example, if the response indicated by the first call setup 104A for the question "What is 2+2", is '4', and if the received first response is not '4', the first call may be sent to the server 112 for storage without alerting the user 106. If the received first response is '4', control may be transferred to 324 for further operations, such as (but not limited to) the sending of a second challenge message. In some embodiments, in the event that an incorrect response is received from the first caller device 108A, the circuit 202 may be configured to resend the same question or a different question (i.e., in the first challenge message) a predetermined number of times (e.g., two or three times) to provide the first caller 110 with another opportunity to provide a correct response in the first response. In the event that an incorrect response is received a predetermined number of times, the circuit 202 may send the first call to the server 112 for storage and discard the first call.

[0060] At 324, a second query message sending operation may be performed. In the second query message sending operation, the circuit 202 may send a second query message to the first caller 110 via the first caller device 108A. The sent second query message may indicate a request for the first caller 110 to call the electronic device 102 again within a threshold period (say, 15 minutes). The circuit 202 may send the second query message to the first caller device 108A based on the first call setting 104A, for example, as described at 332. Typically, there may be a robot or automated machine (as the caller of the first call) that can be pre-programmed to correctly provide a first response to the first query message. Thus, in order to avoid receiving a robot call in this case, the stored first call setting 104A may control the electronic device 102 to send another query message (i.e., a second query message) to confirm or verify again whether the first caller 110 is a robot machine or a human. The sending of the second query message may provide an enhanced feature to the electronic device 102 to filter out and avoid robot calls with high accuracy.

[0061] In an embodiment, in the case of sending the second challenge message, the circuit 202 may be configured to store the identification information determined for the first call from the first caller 110, the threshold period indicated in the sent second challenge message (or indicated in the first call settings 104A), and the reception time of the first call in the memory 204. The reception time of the first call may include information about the timestamp when the electronic device 102 receives the first call. In another embodiment, the reception time of the first call may include information about the timestamp when the second challenge message may be sent to the first caller 110.

[0062] A second call receiving operation may be performed at 326. In the second call receiving operation, the circuit 202 may receive a second call from a calling party device in the plurality of calling party devices 108, where the calling party device may be associated with the calling party.

[0063] At 328, it may be determined whether the second call is received from the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110. The circuit 202 may determine identification information associated with the second call in a manner similar to determining identification information of the first call as described, for example, at 304. Based on the identification information associated with the second call, the circuit 202 may compare the determined identification information (e.g., telephone number) of the second call with identification information (e.g., telephone number) of the first call stored in the memory 204. If the identification information of the second call is different from the identification information of the first call, the second call may be considered to be received from another caller (or another caller device in the plurality of caller devices 108) that may be different from the first caller 110. In this case, control may be transferred to 304 again to treat the second call as the first call received from a different caller device. If the identification information of the second call is the same as the identification information of the first call, control may be transferred to 330 to determine the time of receipt of the second call. The similarity of the identification information of both the first call and the second call may indicate that the call may be received again from the first caller device 108A at the request of the second challenge message sent (at 324), thereby verifying that the first caller 110 is a human. In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may compare the determined identification information of the second call with the identification information of the first call according to the instructions or rules set in the second call setting 104B in the plurality of call settings 104.

[0064] At 330, a reception time determination operation may be performed. In the reception time determination operation, the circuit 202 may be configured to determine a reception time of a second call received by the electronic device 102 from the first caller device 108A. The circuit 202 may be configured to determine the reception time of the second call based on instructions set in a second call setting 104B in the plurality of call settings 104. The second call setting 104B may be different from, for example, Figure 3 The first call setup 104A, the third call setup 104C and the fourth call setup 104D described in 302-328.

[0065] At 332, it may be determined whether the reception time of the second call is within the threshold time period indicated in the transmitted second challenge message or in the first call setup 104A. The operation at 332 may correspond to the application of the second call setup 104B in the stored plurality of call setups 104. The second call setup 104B may be associated with the reception time of the second call from the first caller device 108A based on the transmission (at 324) of the second challenge message. If the reception time of the second call is not within the threshold time period as indicated in the second challenge message, the second call setup 104B may include instructions to transfer the first call to the server 112 (i.e., voicemail) for storage (i.e., 316). The reception time of the second call not within the threshold time period may indicate that the first caller 110 (i.e., the caller who may be a human and from whom the second call is received) may not have complied with the instructions mentioned in the second challenge message or requested to call again within the threshold time period. In this case, according to the preconfigured second call settings 104B, the circuit 202 may not generate a reminder for the second call, send the second call to the server 112 for storage, and may also discard the second call on the electronic device 102. If the reception time of the second call is within the threshold period indicated in the second challenge message, the circuit 202 may generate a reminder about the second call for the second call according to the second call settings 104B.

[0066] In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may determine the reception time of the first call and the second call received from the first caller device 108A. The circuit 202 may also calculate the time difference (e.g., 20 minutes) between the reception time of the first call received from the first caller device 108A (e.g., 5:00 PM) and the reception time of the second call (e.g., 5:20 PM). Based on the calculation of the time difference, the circuit 202 may compare the calculated time difference with the threshold period. If the calculated time difference (e.g., 20 minutes) is greater than the threshold period (e.g., 15 minutes), the circuit 202 may transfer the second call to the server 112 for storage because the first caller device 108A or the first caller 110 did not comply with the instruction or request mentioned in the second challenge message to call again within the threshold period. On the other hand, if the calculated time difference is less than or equal to the threshold period, control may be transferred to 308, and the circuit 202 may generate a reminder about the second call for the user 106 on the electronic device 102. In the case where the user 106 does not answer the second call within a specific period, the circuit 202 may automatically send the second call to the server 112 for storage. Then, according to the second call setting 104B, the disclosed electronic device 102 may control the second call based on the threshold period and the comparison of the determined reception times of the first call and the second call.

[0067] Thus, based on the pre-configured multiple call settings 104, the disclosed electronic device 102 can provide a three-step method (i.e., determination of identification information and control of first and second challenge messages) to identify and filter out potential robot calls. In addition, the disclosed electronic device 102 will not disturb or alert the user 106 until the first caller 110 (or the first caller device 108A) is known to the electronic device 102, or a second call is received from the first caller device 108A within a threshold period of time. In addition, the disclosed electronic device 102 also controls all incoming calls (robot calls or human calls) based on the storage in the server 112 based on the multiple call settings 104. Automatic storage of calls on the server 112 (i.e., voicemail) based on the multiple call settings 104 can further prevent any missing of important calls or related information that may occur due to the filtering of robot calls in the electronic device 102. The electronic device 102 can also allow retrieval of stored calls in the same form or in the form of a message or email, for example, as described at 316. Thus, the disclosed electronic device 102 may allow the user 106 to be aware of all incoming calls that may be processed by the electronic device 102 as filtered robot calls or sent to the server 112 for storage.

[0068] In some embodiments, the electronic device 102 can be associated with multiple users. Each of the multiple users can be able to configure multiple call settings 104 according to their own preferences. The electronic device 102 can be configured to store the multiple call settings 104 associated with each user in the memory 204. The configured multiple call settings 104 may be different for each user, and / or the corresponding multiple call settings 104 can be associated with the user profile of each user. Then, when an incoming call is received, the circuit 202 can determine the user profile associated with the current user of the electronic device 102, and can retrieve the multiple call settings 104 associated with the determined user profile. The circuit 202 can also process each incoming call based on the retrieved multiple call settings 104, for example, as in Figure 3 As described in 302 to 332.

[0069] In some embodiments, if the first caller 110 is determined to be human, the circuit 202 may receive a user request from the user 106 to store the identification information of the first caller 110 in the contact list (or white list) in the memory 204. Based on the received user request, the circuit 202 may also store the identification information of the first call (or the second call) in the memory 204 of the electronic device 102. Thus, when an incoming call may be received from the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110 (i.e., whose identification information is stored in the white list), the circuit 202 of the electronic device 102 may only apply the third call setting 104C and also immediately alert the user 106 of the incoming call. In addition, in this case, the first caller device 108A may not have to provide a first response and call again within the threshold period to communicate with the user 106 of the electronic device 102, because the identification information of the first caller device 108A may be stored as a white list caller in the contact list of the electronic device 102.

[0070] Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary operations for controlling incoming calls based on call settings according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 3 elements to explain Figure 4 . refer to Figure 4 , a flowchart 400 is shown in the figure. The operations of 402 to 412 can be implemented by any computing system, such as by Figure 1 Electronic device 102 or Figure 2 The operation may start at 402 and then proceed to 404.

[0071] At 404, a first call may be received from a first caller device 108A that may be associated with a first caller 110. Identification information of the first caller device 108A may be unknown to the electronic device 102. In at least one embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to receive a first call on the electronic device 102 from the first caller device 108A associated with the first caller 110, wherein identification information of the first caller 110 of the first call is unknown to the electronic device 102, e.g., as in Figure 3 As described in.

[0072] At 406, based on the received first call, a first challenge message may be sent to the first calling party device 108A. In at least one embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to send the first challenge message to the first calling party device 108A associated with the first calling party 110 based on the received first call, for example, as in Figure 3 As described in.

[0073] At 408, based on the first call setup 104A in the plurality of call setups 104, a second challenge message may be sent to the first calling party device 108A. The first call setup may be associated with the sent first challenge message. The second challenge message may indicate a request for the first calling party device 108A to call back the electronic device 102 within a threshold period of time. In at least one embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to send the second challenge message to the first calling party device 108A associated with the first calling party 110 based on the first call setup 104A in the plurality of call setups 104, e.g., as in Figure 3 As described in.

[0074] At 410, a reception time of a second call may be determined. The second call may be different from the first call and may be received from the first caller device 108A. In at least one embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to determine a reception time of a second call different from the first call received from the first caller 110, e.g., Figure 3 As described in.

[0075] At 412, the second call may be controlled based on the threshold period, the determined time of receipt of the second call, and the second call setting 104B in the plurality of call settings 104. In an embodiment, the circuit 202 may be configured to control the second call based on the threshold period, the determined time of receipt of the second call, and the second call setting 104B in the plurality of call settings 104, e.g., as in Figure 3 Control can be transferred to the end.

[0076] Various embodiments of the present disclosure may provide a non-temporary computer-readable medium and / or storage medium having stored thereon instructions that can be executed or implemented by a machine and / or computer (e.g., electronic device 102). The instructions may enable the machine and / or computer to perform operations including receiving a first call from a first caller device associated with a first caller, wherein identification information of the first caller device of the first call may be unknown to the electronic device. The operations may also include sending a first query message to the first caller device based on the received first call. The operations may also include sending a second query message to the first caller device based on a first call setting in a plurality of call settings. The first call setting may be associated with the sent first query message. The second query message may indicate a request for the first caller device to call back the electronic device within a threshold period. The operations may also include determining a reception time of a second call that may be different from the first call and may be received from the first caller device. The operations may also include controlling the second call based on the threshold period, the determined reception time of the second call, and the second call setting in the plurality of call settings.

[0077] Exemplary aspects of the present disclosure may include an electronic device (such as Figure 1 An electronic device 102) may include an electronic device that can be communicatively coupled to a memory (e.g. Figure 2 The memory may be configured to store a plurality of call settings (e.g., Figure 1 The circuit may be configured to receive a plurality of calls from a first caller (e.g. Figure 1 The first calling party device (e.g., the first calling party 110) associated with Figure 1 The electronic device may receive a first call from a first calling party device 108A. The identification information of the first calling party device of the first call may be unknown to the electronic device. The circuit may also be configured to determine the identification information of the first calling party device from the received first call. The circuit may also be configured to determine the identification information of the first calling party device based on the determined identification information and a third call setting (e.g., Figure 1 The third call setting 104C) can be used to control the first call. The third call setting can be different from the first call setting and the second call setting.

[0078] According to an embodiment, the circuit may be configured to receive identification information of the first calling party from a server associated with the electronic device.The circuit may also be configured to control the first call based on the received identification information and a third call setting of the stored plurality of call settings.

[0079] According to an embodiment, the circuit may be configured to retrieve a fourth call setting (eg, Figure 1 The retrieved fourth call setting 104D may indicate a user preference for each call for which the corresponding identification information is unknown to the electronic device. In an embodiment, the circuit may be further configured to send the received first call to a server (e.g., Figure 1 In another embodiment, the circuit may be further configured to send a first challenge message to the first calling party device based on the retrieved fourth call setting that may indicate the user preference.

[0080] According to an embodiment, the circuit may also be configured to receive a first response to a first query message from a first caller device based on the first query message sent. The circuit may also be configured to compare the received first response with a response indicated by a first call setting associated with the first query message. In an embodiment, the circuit may also be configured to send a first call to a server based on the comparison. In another embodiment, the circuit may also be configured to send a second query message to the first caller device based on the comparison. The second query message may indicate a request for the first caller to call back the electronic device within a threshold period. According to an embodiment, the circuit may also be configured to receive a second call. The circuit may also be configured to compare the identification information in the first call and the second call. The circuit may also be configured to determine a reception time of the second call based on the comparison.

[0081] According to an embodiment, the circuit may be further configured to determine a reception time of the first call received from the first caller device. The circuit may be further configured to compare a time difference between the reception time of the first call and the reception time of the second call with the threshold period. The circuit may be further configured to control the second call based on the comparison of the time difference with the threshold period. The circuit may be further configured to control the second call based on the threshold period, the determined reception time of the second call, and the second call setting of the stored plurality of call settings. The control of the second call corresponds to generating a reminder about the second call on the electronic device, or corresponds to sending the second call to the server.

[0082] According to an embodiment, the circuit may be further configured to send a request to the server to retrieve at least one of the first call or the second call stored on the server. The server may convert one of the stored first call or the stored second call from a first format to a second format based on the request received from the electronic device, and send one of the converted first call or the converted second call in the second format to the electronic device based on the sent request. The server may be a network voice mailbox, and the second format may be a text format. According to an embodiment, the circuit may be further configured to receive a user request to store identification information of the first caller device. The circuit may be further configured to control the memory to store the identification information of the first call based on the received user request.

[0083] The present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or in a combination of hardware and software. The present disclosure may be implemented in a centralized manner in at least one computer system, or in a distributed manner in which different elements may be distributed over several interconnected computer systems. A computer system or other device suitable for executing the methods described herein may be suitable. The combination of hardware and software may be a general-purpose computer system with a computer program that, when loaded and executed, may control the computer system so that the computer system executes the methods described herein. The present disclosure may be implemented in hardware including a portion of an integrated circuit that also performs other functions.

[0084] The present disclosure may also be embedded in a computer program product comprising all the features enabling the implementation of the methods described herein and capable of carrying out these methods when loaded into a computer system. In this context, a computer program means any expression in any language, code or notation of a set of instructions intended to cause a system with information processing capabilities to perform a specific function, either directly or after one or both of the following: a) conversion into another language, code or notation; b) reproduction in a different material form.

[0085] Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to certain embodiments, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and equivalent substitutions may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt specific circumstances or materials to the teachings of the present disclosure without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, but rather the present disclosure will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising: a memory configured to store a plurality of call settings to handle an incoming call; a circuit coupled to the memory, wherein the circuit is configured to: receiving a first call from a first calling party device associated with a first calling party, wherein identification information of the first calling party device of the first call is unknown to the electronic device; Based on the received first call, sending a first challenge message to the first calling party device; sending a second challenge message to a first calling party device based on a first call setting of the stored plurality of call settings, wherein the first call setting is associated with the sent first challenge message, wherein the second challenge message indicates a request for the first calling party to call back the electronic device within a threshold period of time; determining a receipt time of a second call different from the first call received from the first caller device; and The second call is controlled based on the threshold period, the determined time of receipt of the second call, and a second call setting of the stored plurality of call settings.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the first challenge message comprises at least one of an arithmetic question, a reasoning question, an audio-related question, a timing-related question, an image-based question, a button-pressing question, or a logic question.

3. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the circuit is further configured to: determining identification information of a first calling device from the received first call; and The first call is controlled based on the determined identification information and a third call setting of the stored plurality of call settings, wherein the third call setting is different from the first call setting and the second call setting.

4. The electronic device of claim 3, wherein the circuit is further configured to: receiving identification information of a first calling party device from a server associated with the electronic device; and The first call is controlled based on the received identification information and a third call setting of the stored plurality of call settings.

5. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the circuit is further configured to: retrieving a fourth call setting from the stored plurality of call settings, wherein the retrieved fourth call setting indicates a user preference for each call for which corresponding identification information is unknown to the electronic device; and The received first call is sent to the server based on the retrieved fourth call settings.

6. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the circuit is further configured to send a first challenge message to the first calling device based on the retrieved fourth call setting indicating the user preference.

7. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the circuit is further configured to: receiving a first response to the first challenge message based on the sent first challenge message from the first calling party device; comparing the received first response to a response indicated by a first call setup associated with the first challenge message; and A second challenge message is sent to the first caller device based on the comparison.

8. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the circuit is further configured to: receiving a first response to the first challenge message based on the sent first challenge message from the first calling party device; comparing the received first response to a response indicated by a first call setup associated with the first challenge message; and A first call is sent to the server based on the comparison.

9. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the circuit is further configured to: comparing the identification information of the first call with the identification information of the second call; and A receipt time of the second call is determined based on the comparison.

10. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the circuit is further configured to: determining a receipt time of a first call received from a first calling party device; determining a receipt time of a second call received from the first caller device; comparing a time difference between a reception time of the first call and a reception time of the second call to the threshold period; and The second call is controlled based on a comparison of the time difference and the threshold period.

11. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the controlling of the second call corresponds to generating a reminder about the second call on the electronic device, or corresponds to sending the second call to a server.

12. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the circuit is further configured to: sending a request to the server to retrieve at least one of the first call or the second call stored on the server, wherein the server: converting one of the stored first call or the stored second call from a first format to a second format based on a request received from the electronic device; and Based on the transmitted request, one of the converted first call or the converted second call in a second format is transmitted to the electronic device.

13. The electronic device of claim 12, wherein the server is an Internet voice mailbox and the second format is a text format.

14. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the circuit is further configured to: receiving a user request to store identification information of a first calling party; and Based on the received user request, the memory is controlled to store identification information of the first call.

15. A method for controlling a call, comprising: In electronic devices: receiving a first call from a first calling party device associated with a first calling party, wherein identification information of the first calling party device of the first call is unknown to the electronic device; Based on the received first call, sending a first challenge message to the first calling party device; sending a second challenge message to a first calling party device based on a first call setup of a plurality of call setups, wherein the first call setup is associated with the sent first challenge message, wherein the second challenge message indicates a request for the first calling party to call back the electronic device within a threshold period of time; determining a receipt time of a second call different from the first call received from the first caller device; and The second call is controlled based on the threshold period, the determined time of receipt of the second call, and a second call setting of the stored plurality of call settings.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising: receiving identification information of a first calling party device from a server associated with the electronic device; and The first call is controlled based on the received identification information and a third call setting of the stored plurality of call settings, wherein the third call setting is different from the first call setting and the second call setting.

17. The method according to claim 15, further comprising: determining a receipt time of a first call received from a first calling party device; determining a receipt time of a second call received from the first caller device; comparing a time difference between a reception time of the first call and a reception time of the second call to the threshold time period; and The second call is controlled based on a comparison of the time difference and the threshold period.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the controlling of the second call corresponds to generating a reminder about the second call on the electronic device, or corresponds to sending the second call to a server.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising: sending a request to the server to retrieve at least one of the first call or the second call stored on the server, wherein the server: converting one of the stored first call or the stored second call from a first format to a second format based on a request received from the electronic device; and Based on the transmitted request, one of the converted first call or the converted second call in a second format is transmitted to the electronic device.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon computer-implemented instructions, which, when executed by an electronic device, cause the electronic device to perform operations comprising: receiving a first call from a first calling party device associated with a first calling party, wherein identification information of the first calling party device of the first call is unknown to the electronic device; Based on the received first call, sending a first challenge message to the first calling party device; sending a second challenge message to the first calling party device based on a first call setup of the plurality of call setups, wherein the first call setup is associated with the sent first challenge message, wherein the second challenge message indicates a request for the first calling party to call back the electronic device within a threshold period of time; determining a receipt time of a second call different from the first call received from the first caller device; and The second call is controlled based on the threshold period, the determined receipt time of the second call, and a second call setting of the plurality of call settings.

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