Order entry system for telecommunications network service

• US 20040024862A1
• Filed: 07/31/2002
• Published: 02/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Level 3 Communications LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Level 3 Communications Incorporated (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Singhal, Sanjay, Wall, Richard L., Gelner, Kendall, Sullivan, Brendan
• Granted Patent: US 7,941,514 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0633 Workflow analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/101 Collaborative creation, e.g. joint development of products or services
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0281 Customer communication at a business location, e.g. providing product or service information, consulting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/18 Delegation of network management function, e.g. customer network management [CNM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

An order entry system communicates with the customer over a user interface and at the same time works with an automated installation system for installing network service. The communication with the customer can be accomplished over the world wide web. The customer goes to the network provider'"'"'s web site and signs on to gain access to the order entry system. The order entry system than conducts a conversation with the customer who is requesting service, and the order entry system conducts a conversation with the automated installation system that is installing the service. The order entry performs the tasks of prompting the customer to place a new service order. The service parameters of the new service order are passed to the installation system. The installation system responds to the order entry system with a route, i.e. capacity available on the network, or no route. The order entry system notifies the customer of the route and prompts the customer to add a service order for the route to the customer order. If the customer adds the service order to the customer order, the order entry system prompts the customer to reserve the service order or to submit an order for the service. If the customer reserves or submits an order for the service, the order entry system request the installation system to design an actual communication line circuit to satisfy the order. The installation system rechecks that there is capacity for the route, assigns and validates the communication line, and completes the design for the communication line circuit. Lastly, the installation returns a reserved status along with detailed information about the circuit. The order entry system informs the customer that the communication line is reserved. This occurs within minutes of requesting the reservation, and the customer can access detail information about network components of the communication line circuit if desired.

Claims

1. A method for entering an order for network service on a communication network comprising the computer implemented operations of:

conducting a dialog with a customer through a computer display prompting the customer to provide parameters of a requested communication line service;

conducting a dialog with an automated installation system for network services asking the installation system to determine based on the parameters if a route is available for the requested communication line service;

if a route is available, prompting the customer to reserve or order the requested communication line service;

in response to reservation or order request for the communication line service, requesting the automated installation service to complete the design of a communication line and return a message indicating the design is complete; and

confirming to the customer that the design is reserved or ordered when the message indicates the design is complete.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the requesting operation comprises in addition:

requesting the installation system to recheck route availability before the installation system proceeds to complete the design for the new service.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the message indicating the design is complete is a circuit layout record for the communication line.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the operation of conducting a dialog with the customer comprises:

displaying a screen with dialog boxes for the customer to enter the parameters for the, requested communication line service;

receiving the parameters from the screen and sending them to the installation system;

in response to an available route message from the installation system, displaying a screen for the customer identifying the available route and providing a add service selection for the customer to add the route to a customer order.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the operation of prompting the customer to reserve or order comprises:

in response to add service selection by the customer, displaying the customer order with the requested communication line service listed on a service order list;

displaying with the customer order a reserve selection and an order selection prompting the customer to reserve or order the communication line service.

6. The method of claim 5 the confirming operation comprises:

in response to the reservation request and the message indicating the design is complete, displaying to the customer a reserved status for the communication line service; and

in response the order request and the message indicating the design is complete, displaying to the customer an order confirmation for the communication line service.

7. An order entry system for ordering a network service on a telecommunications network, the order entry system working with an automated installation system installing the network service during the ordering of the network service, the order entry system comprising:

a capacity check module, responsive to parameters in a network service request, checking availability of a route for the network service and sending to the customer a network service available message;

a reservation/order module displaying a service order to the customer for the network service available and prompting the customer to reserve or order the network service in the service order;

the installation system, in response to a reserve request or to an order request for the network service, completing a design of network components for the network service and returning a design complete message;

the reservation/order module, in response to the design complete message resulting from the reserve request, updating the status of the service order display to the customer to indicate the service order is reserved;

a workflow management module, in response to the design complete message resulting from the order request, managing the hook-up and activation of the network components in the design of network components for the network service.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the design complete message is a circuit layout record and the system further comprises:

the reservation/order module capable of displaying the circuit layout record to the customer.

9. The system of claim 7 further comprising:

a confirmation device, in response to the design complete message resulting from the order request, sending an order confirmation to the customer.

10. The system of claim 7 wherein the capacity check module is responsive to a reserve request or an order request to recheck the capacity of the network to satisfy the service order before the installation system completes the design for the network service.

11. The system of claim 7 further comprises:

a pending reservation module monitoring the reservation status of service order and prompting the customer to renew the reservation when the reservation expires; and

the reservation module releasing the network components in the design if the reservation is not renewed.

12. A user interface method for ordering network service from an automated network installation system, the user interface comprising:

displaying a capacity check display screen having data entry areas prompting a customer to enter network parameters defining a new network service, the data entry areas including at least parameters indicating product type, bandwidth, origin, termination;

receiving the network parameters from the customer;

displaying a price and availability display screen indicating the route and cost of the new network service, the price and availability display screen prompting the customer to add the network service to a service order;

receiving the add service selection from the customer;

displaying a service order display screen having display areas for the network parameters, a service order ID, and a service order status for the new network service and prompting the customer to take action on the service order.

13. The user interface method of claim 12 wherein the action, the customer is prompted to take, is to submit an order for the service order and the user interface further comprises:

receiving a submit order selection from the customer; and

sending an order confirmation for the new network service to the customer.

14. The user interface method of claim 12 wherein the action, the customer is prompted to take, is to reserve the service order and the user interface further comprises:

receiving a reservation selection from the customer; and

updating the service order display screen so that the service order status indicates reserved.

15. The user interface method of claim 12 wherein the action, the customer is prompted to take, is to start a second service order and the user interface further comprises:

receiving a start new service order selection from the customer; and

repeating the displaying of the check capacity screen to prompt the customer to enter the network parameters for a second new service order.

16. The user interface method of claim 12 wherein the action, the customer is prompted to take is reserve service order and the user interface further comprises:

receiving a reserve service order selection from the customer; and

adding to the service order display screen a circuit layout record ID for the service order.

17. The user interface method of claim 16 and in addition:

receiving a selection of the circuit layout ID from the customer; and

displaying to the customer a listing of network components for the new network service.