Computer telephony integration (CTI) complete hospitality contact center

• US 20040125940A1
• Filed: 12/31/2002
• Published: 07/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: At&T Delaware Intellectual Property, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wellons, David L., Turcan, Diane Brown
• Granted Patent: US 7,356,139 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/265.13
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5166 in combination with interactive voice response systems or voice portals, e.g. as front-ends
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5183 Call or contact centers with computer-telephony arrangements

Abstract

Methods and systems are disclosed for enabling a dynamic hospitality contact center (DHCC) that leverages the assets of a hospitality center'"'"'s communications systems including internal telecommunications networks, information systems, data networks, and applications, of public telecommunications networks, of public data networks, and/or of various communications devices to facilitate improved access, sharing, notification, and/or management of incoming calls and associated data.

Claims

1. A computer telephony integration system having a call management system for connecting a plurality of agent stations with at least one telephone line, the system comprising:

detection means for detecting an incoming communication;

at least one input/output processor to input and to output data associated with the incoming communication;

at least one communications interface for communicating with a communications device associated with a designated party of a hospitality call center, the designated party comprising at least one of a staff member and a guest associated with the hospitality call center;

a memory device for storing the data;

a processor communicating with the memory device, the processor selecting data stored in the memory device based upon a communications profile associated with at least one of the incoming communication and the data, the communications profile providing at least one of (1) guest data associated with the incoming communication, (2) data associated with the designated party, (3) data associated with at least one of services, products, and business operations affiliated with the hospitality call center, (4) data associated with network configuration, (5) data associated with a configuration profile of the communications device, and (6) data associated with communications systems of the hospitality call center; and

a hospitality call center application for managing the communications profile.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

status means for communicating a status of the communications device associated with the designated party, the status comprising at least one of availability data of the designated party, location data of the designated party, availability data of the communications device, location data of the communications device, messaging delivery capability data of the communications device, and messaging delivery confirmation data with the communications device; and

status processing means for providing routing instructions to the communications interface and for routing at least one of the incoming communication and the data to the communications device.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the communications profile further comprises data associated with the status.

4. The system of claim 2, the communications profile further comprising messaging delivery means for confirming communication of at least one of the incoming communication and the data associated with the incoming communication with the communications device.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the communications device is selected from a plurality of communications devices comprising a transmitter, a telephone, an intercom communications device, a personal computer, a wireless communications device, an on-site pager, a mobile phone, a wireless phone, a WAP phone, an IP phone, a satellite phone, a computer, a modem, a pager, a digital music device, a digital recording device, a personal digital assistant, an interactive television, a digital signal processor, and a Global Positioning System device.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the communications device transmits signals to determine the location data of the communications device.

7. The system of claim 2, further comprising:

an interactive guest services system for managing guest services provided to a guest associated with at least one of a plurality of hotel rooms of the hospitality call center, each hotel room having a unique telephone extension, and

wherein the interactive guest services comprises services related to at least one of the following business services, entertainment services, hotel services, concierge services, restaurant services, travel services, tourist services, and childcare services.

8. The system of claim 2, further comprising:

a guest signaling key comprising means for transmitting signals to a transmitter communicating with the hospitality call center, the guest signaling key associated with the guest, wherein the transmitted signals provide at least one of availability data of the guest and location data of the guest.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface comprises a telecommunications switch, the telecommunications switch establishing a telephony connection with a telecommunications network, the telecommunications switch communicating with the communications device.

10. The system of claim 9, the telecommunications switch further communicating the data with the telecommunications network.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface comprises a gateway to a data network.

12. A method, comprising the steps of:

communicating an incoming communication to a hospitality call management system for connecting at least one agent station with at least one telephone line;

associating a communications profile with the incoming communication, the communications profile comprising at least one of (1) guest data associated with the incoming communication, (2) data associated with a designated party, (3) data associated with at least one of services, products, and business operations affiliated with a hospitality call center, (4) data associated with network configuration, (5) data associated with a configuration profile of a communications device associated with the designated party of the hospitality call center, and (6) data associated with communications systems of the hospitality call center;

accessing at least one of a communications system and an interactive guest services system of the hospitality call center to determine a status, the status comprising at least one of availability data of the designated party, location data of the designated party, availability data of the communications device, location data of the communications device, messaging delivery capability data of the communications device, and messaging delivery confirmation data to the communications device, the designated party comprising at least one of a staff member and a guest associated with the hospitality call center; and

communicating at least one of the incoming communication and the data to the communications device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of associating the communications profile with the incoming communication further comprises:

accessing a hospitality call center application for managing the communications profile; and

utilizing the hospitality call center application to process at least one of the incoming communication and the data associated with the incoming communication.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of utilizing the hospitality call center application to process at least one of the incoming communication and the data associated with the incoming communication further comprises:

converting at least one of the incoming communication and the data from a first data format compatible with the agent station to a second data format compatible with the communications device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first data format comprises at least one of a printed text format, a voice data format, a video data format, a dual tone multi-frequency data format, and a digital data format.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the second data format comprises at least one of a printed text format, a voice data format, a video data format, a dual tone multi-frequency data format, and a digital data format.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of communicating at least one of the incoming communication and the data to the communications device comprises communicating via at least one of the following:

an analog line;

a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL);

an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) line;

an ATM Sonet;

a SmartRing Service; and

a local loop of a telecommunications network.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of communicating at least one of the incoming communication and the data to the communications device comprises communicating via means for optically transmitting data.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of communicating at least one of the incoming communication and the data to the communications device comprises communicating via means for wirelessly transmitting data.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the hospitality call center application is provided by a telecommunications facility, the telecommunications facility comprising at least one of a public switched telecommunications network and a mobile switching telecommunication office.

21. A system, comprising:

a network of interconnected communications devices associated with a hospitality call center;

a rule-based application DataServer for managing the exchange of at least one of an incoming communication and associated data between an agent station of the hospitality call center and a communications device of a designated party affiliated with the hospitality call center, the designated party comprising at least one of a staff member and a guest associated with the hospitality call center; and

an application program installed in the agent station, the application program allowing an agent to manage a communications profile associated with at least one of (1) guest data associated with the incoming communication, (2) data associated with the designated party, (3) data associated with at least one of services, products, and business operations affiliated with a call center, (4) data associated with network configuration, (5) data associated with a configuration profile of a communications device associated with the designated party of the hospitality call center, and (6) data associated with communications systems of the hospitality call center.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the rule-based application DataServer is provided by a telecommunications service provider.