Distributed hardware/software system for managing agent status in a communication center

• US 10,057,363 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2016
• Issued: 08/21/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories Incorporated (Genesys Cloud Services Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories Incorporated (Genesys Cloud Services Incorporated)
• Inventors: Coussement, Stefaan Valere Albert
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Quynh
• Application Number:
  US15/231,631
• Publication Number:
  US 20160352849A1
• Time in Patent Office: 743 Days
• Field of Search: 37926506, 37926509, 37926601, 379309
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6018 Subscriber or terminal logon/logoff
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42365 Presence services providing information on the willingness to communicate or the ability to communicate in terms of media capability or network connectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5175 Call or contact centers supervision arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5183 Call or contact centers with computer-telephony arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5191 interacting with the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/523 with call distribution or queueing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5237 Interconnection arrangements between ACD systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/00 Arrangements for interconnection between switching centres
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0069 comprising a residential gateway, e.g. those which provide an adapter for POTS or ISDN terminals

Abstract

An agent presence application for monitoring target agent resources and rendering agent states to subscribing applications is provided. The presence application has at least one first portion for collecting data regarding states of activity of the target agent resources, and at least one second portion for integrating the data and rendering the agent states to the to subscribing applications.

Claims

1. A first server for managing agent status, the first server comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor, wherein the memory has stored thereon instructions that, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to;

receive status information from second and third servers, the second and third servers being configured to receive and aggregate status information from first and second agent devices, respectively;

aggregate the status information from the second and third servers; and

provide the aggregated status information to a particular device, wherein the second and third servers are in a hierarchical relationship with respect to the first server; and

an electronic routing device coupled to the processor, wherein the electronic routing device is configured to establish a communication session between one of the first and second agent devices based on the aggregated status information.

2. The first server of claim 1, wherein the second and third servers receive the status information from an agent device periodically, or when a status of a corresponding contact center agent changes.

3. The first server of claim 1, wherein the first server is on a web server, and the first agent device and the second agent device are located remotely from the first server.

4. The first server of claim 1, wherein the first agent device and the second agent device each comprise a plurality of agent devices.

5. The first server of claim 1, wherein the second and third servers each comprise a plurality of lower level servers, each of the lower level servers being configured to receive status information from a plurality of agent devices.

6. The first server of claim 1, wherein the status information comprises at least one of agent presence information, agent availability information, or agent skill information.

7. The first server of claim 1, wherein the particular device is configured to route incoming events to the first agent device or the second agent device.

8. The first server of claim 7, wherein the incoming events comprise at least one of voice call, web based calls, video calls, video mail, electronic mail, or chat message.

9. The first server of claim 1, wherein the second and third servers are configured to receive status information from a third agent device.

10. A method for managing agent status, the method comprising:

receiving, by a first server, status information from a plurality of second and third servers, the second and third servers being configured to receive and aggregate status information from first and second agent devices, respectively;

aggregating, by the first server, the status information from the second and third servers;

providing, by the first server, the aggregated status information to a particular device; and

establishing, by an electronic routing device, a communication session between one of the first and second agent devices based on the aggregated status information.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the second and third servers receive the status information from the first agent device and the second agent device periodically, or when a status of an agent changes.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first server is on a web server, and the first agent device and the second agent device are located remotely from the first server.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the first agent device and the second agent device each comprise a plurality of agent devices.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the second and third servers each comprise a plurality of lower level servers, each of the lower level servers being configured to receive status information from a plurality of agent devices.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the status information comprises at least one of agent presence information, agent availability information, or agent skill information.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the particular device is configured to route incoming events to the first agent device or the second agent device.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the incoming events comprise at least one of voice call, web based calls, video calls, video mail, electronic mail, or chat message.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein the second and third servers are both configured to receive status information from a third agent device.