Virtualized Computer Telephony Integrated Link for Enhanced Functionality in Call Centers

• US 20020012428A1
• Filed: 01/05/2000
• Published: 01/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alec Miloslavsky, Andrei Petroy, Igor Neyman, Michail Barsky, Oleg Bondarelko, Paul Karpenko, Valeriy Issayey
• Original Assignee: Alec Miloslavsky, Andrei Petroy, Igor Neyman, Michail Barsky, Oleg Bondarelko, Paul Karpenko, Valeriy Issayey
• Inventors: Issayey, Valeriy, Petroy, Andrei, Barsky, Michail, Bondarelko, Oleg, Miloslavsky, Alec, Neyman, Igor, Karpenko, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 6,434,231 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/242
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/42 Graphical user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/408 Customer-specific call routing plans
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/22 Automatic class or number identification arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/323 for the arrangements providing the connection (test connection, test call, call simulation)
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42042 Notifying the called party of information on the calling party details within substation equipment H04M1/57, signalling details H04Q3/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42127 Systems providing several special services or facilities from groups H04M3/42008 - H04M3/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42161 via computer interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• 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 3/5235 Dependent on call type or called number [DNIS]
• 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

Abstract

A telephony call center has agent workstations having telephones connected to station-side ports of a telephone switching apparatus adapted to receive and switch conventional telephone calls to the telephones, and also computer platforms connected on a local area network (LAN). A processor also connected on the LAN has a wide area network (WAN) port and is adapted to receive and distribute computer-simulated telephone calls from the WAN to computer platforms at the agent stations. At individual agent stations the telephone and computer platform is connected by a Telephone Application Programming Interface (TAPI)-compliant bridge. Status of calls of both types at agent workstations is communicated to a network-level router by the processor having a WAN connection, which may also receive computer-simulated calls. The router may then make routing decisions based on agent status relative to both kinds of calls.

Claims

1. A telephony call center, comprising:

a plurality of agent stations, individual ones of the agent stations having a telephone connected to a telephone line and also having a computer platform;

a local area network (LAN) connecting at least some of the computer platforms at the agent stations;

a processor on the LAN having a connection to a wide area network (WAN) adapted for computer-simulated telephony; and

a Telephone Application Programming Interface (TAPI)-compliant bridge circuit between the telephone and the computer workstation in individual ones of the agent stations;

wherein the call center receives telephone calls at the agent stations, and also receives computer-simulated telephone calls at the WAN connection, and distributes the computer-simulated calls to computer platforms at the agent stations.

2. The call center of claim 1 wherein the WAN is the Internet, and computer-simulated calls are Internet Protocol Network Telephony calls.

3. The call center of claim 1 wherein the TAPI-compliant bridge is used to monitor telephone status and activity by the computer workstation, which may report the monitored status and activity on the LAN to the processor on the LAN having a WAN connection.

4. The call center of claim 3 wherein the processor having the WAN connection may report status at the call center to a router at network level.

5. The call center of claim 1 wherein, at an agent workstation having the TAPI-compliant bridge, an agent may utilize the telephone in interacting with a computer-simulated call routed to the computer platform at the agent workstation.

6. The call center of claim 1 further comprising a data server connected on the LAN, the data server comprising a caller database, wherein data associated with incoming calls is used as a key to retrieve data associated with callers from the caller database, and the data is displayed on video display units (VDUs) of the computer platforms at individual agent workstations.

7. The call center of claim 6 further comprising agent scripts stored in a database, and displayed on agent'"'"'s VDUs according to data associated with incoming calls.

8. An agent station for a call-in center, comprising:

a computer platform having a first communication port and a local area network (LAN) adapter, and adapted to receive and interact with computer simulated telephone calls;

a telephone having a telephone line port and a second communication port; and

a Telephone Application Programming Interface (TAPI)-compliant bridge connecting the second port of the telephone with the computer platform;

wherein the computer workstation is adapted to monitor transactions and status of the connected telephone via the TAPI-compliant bridge, and to report the transaction and status on a LAN via the LAN adapter.

9. The agent station of claim 8 wherein the computer workstation is a multimedia personal computer (PC) having a video display unit (VDU).

10. The agent station of claim 8 wherein an agent may utilize the TAPI-connected telephone to interact with computer-simulated telephone calls.

11. A method for routing calls to individual ones of agent workstations in a call-in center adapted to receive conventional calls to telephones at the agent workstations and computer-simulated telephone calls to computer platforms at the agent workstations, comprising steps of:

(a) connecting telephones at the agent workstations by a Telephone Application Programming Interface (TAPI)-compliant bridge circuit to the computer platforms at the agent workstations;

(b) reporting by the computer platform at agent workstations to a network-level router the status of simulated calls at the computer platform and telephone calls at the telephone, monitored via the TAPI-compliant bridge; and

(c) making routing decisions at the router based in part on the reported status of both kinds of calls.