Voice over IP method for developing interactive voice response system

• US 10,182,150 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2015
• Issued: 01/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: SBC Properties, L.P.
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Reynolds, Douglas F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Joseph T
• Application Number:
  US14/947,431
• Publication Number:
  US 20160080568A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,152 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1106 Call signalling protocols; H.323 and related
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/401 wherein the services involve a main real-time session and one or more additional parallel real-time or time sensitive sessions, e.g. white board sharing or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/355 Interactive dialogue design tools, features or methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4936 Speech interaction details speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• 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

Abstract

A process performed by a personal interactive voice communication system includes accepting settings of interactive voice communication system prompts for a communication address to which communications are received by the personal interactive voice communication system. The process includes mapping, in response to instructions specific to the network communication address, actions to correspond to selections of set interactive voice communication system prompts. The process also includes identifying a selection of an interactive voice communication system prompt and executing a mapped action corresponding to the selection identified. Voice communications to and from the personal interactive voice communication system are transmitted as packets over the internet via a network server that coordinates communications for personal interactive voice communication systems.

Claims

1. A personal interactive voice communication system, comprising:

a memory that stores executable instructions; and

a processor,

wherein, when executed by the processor, the instructions cause the personal interactive voice communication system to perform the following;

accepting voice prompts settings for a network communication address to which communications are received by the personal interactive voice communication system;

mapping, in response to instructions specific to the network communication address, actions to correspond to selections responsive to voice prompts set according to the voice prompt settings; and

identifying a selection responsive to one of the voice prompts and executing a mapped action corresponding to the selection identified,

wherein voice communications to and from the personal interactive voice communication system are packetized and transmitted over the internet via a network server that transmits packetized voice communications for a plurality of personal interactive voice communication systems.

2. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1,

wherein the instructions specific to the network communication address are accepted as voice instructions.

3. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 2,

wherein the voice instructions are packetized in digital packets.

4. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 3,

wherein the digital packets are processed in order to set personal interactive voice communication system voice prompts and map corresponding actions.

5. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1,

wherein the instructions specific to the network communication address are accepted by the personal interactive voice communication system from the network server.

6. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1,

wherein the personal interactive voice communication system executes the executable instructions to play the voice prompts and to take the actions to correspond to the selections responsive to the voice prompts, for incoming communications to the personal interactive voice communication system.

7. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

forwarding via telephone to a predetermined party a message received at the personal interactive voice communication system.

8. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 7, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

converting the message from text to speech to send via telephone to the predetermined party.

9. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

forwarding via email to a predetermined party a message received at the personal interactive voice communication system.

10. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 9, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

converting the message from speech to text to send via email to the predetermined party.

11. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

receiving an email message at the personal interactive voice communication system;

converting the email message into a synthesized voice; and

providing the email message via the synthesized voice to a predetermined party.

12. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

changing positions of voice prompts in response to instructions from a subscriber to the personal interactive voice communication system.

13. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 12, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

changing an action mapped to a voice prompt in response to instructions from a subscriber to the personal interactive voice communication system.

14. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

accessing data at an external site as a mapped action, and providing the data to a predetermined party.

15. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1,

wherein the personal interactive voice communication system comprises a personal communications device.

16. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, further comprising:

the network server that transmits packetized voice communications for the plurality of personal interactive voice communication systems.

17. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

accepting from an authorized individual a selection of an outgoing message to play as an interactive voice communication system prompt for a specific predetermined incoming communication.

18. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 17,

wherein a caller in an incoming communication is authenticated by providing an access code before being played the outgoing message.

19. The personal interactive voice communication system of claim 1, the process performed by the personal interactive voice communication system further comprising:

routing different types of incoming communications to different communication addresses each serviced by the personal interactive voice response node.

20. A method for providing a personal interactive voice communication system, comprising:

accepting, at a personal interactive voice communication system comprising a memory that stores instructions and a processor, voice prompt settings for a network communication address to which communications are received by the personal interactive voice communication system;

mapping, in response to instructions specific to the network communication address, actions to correspond to selections responsive to set voice prompts according to the voice prompt settings; and

identifying a selection responsive to one of the voice prompts and executing a mapped action corresponding to the selection identified,

wherein voice communications to and from the personal interactive voice communication system are packetized and transmitted over the internet via a network server that transmits packetized voice communications for a plurality of personal interactive voice communication systems.