Interactive assistant for managing telephone communications

• US 20060095575A1
• Filed: 06/17/2005
• Published: 05/04/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Data Services LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Reding, Craig L., Patel, Shuchi R., Sureka, Ashutosh K., Subramanian, Sathish, Dromlewicz, Paula A., D'Silva, Alin L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,467,502 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/247 Telephone sets including user guidance or feature selection means facilitating their use user interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones H04M1/724
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2478 Telephone terminals specially adapted for non-voice services, e.g. email, internet access centralized arrangements where telephones services are combined H04M7/0024; for recording text messages H04M3/5322; for accessing Internet H04M3/4938
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2005 Temporarily overriding a service configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2016 Call initiation by network rather than by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4536 Voicemail combined with text-based messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5009 Adding a party to an existing conference conducting a computer conference, e.g. admission detection H04L12/1822
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5018 Initiating a conference during a two-party conversation, i.e. three-party-service or three-way-call computer conference organisation arrangements H04L12/1818
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5027 Dropping a party from a conference conducting a computer conference, e.g. admission detection H04L12/1822
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/651 Text message transmission triggered by call automatic reactions in messaging within packet-switching networks H04L51/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/12 intelligent networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/203 composed of PSTN and data network, e.g. the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/62 user interface aspects of conference calls
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42195 Arrangements for calling back a calling subscriber when the wanted subscriber ceases to be busy H04M3/48
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42382 Text-based messaging services in telephone networks such as PSTN/ISDN, e.g. User-to-User Signalling or Short Message Service for fixed networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/432 Arrangements for calling a subscriber at a specific time, e.g. morning call service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/436 : Arrangements for screening incoming calls , i.e. evaluating the characteristics of a call before deciding whether to answer it based on the calling party profile H04M3/42059; based on location H04M3/42348; based on presence H04M3/42365; diversion H04M3/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/51 : Centralised call answering arrangements requiring operator intervention , e.g. call or contact centers for telemarketing
• 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 3/5322 : for recording text messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/563 : User guidance or feature selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 : Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0024 : Services and arrangements where telephone services are combined with data services arrangements which combine a telephonic equipment and a computer H04M7/0012
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0045 : where the text-based messaging service is an instant messaging service

Abstract

An interactive assistant for managing telephone communications and services is disclosed. In one of many possible method embodiments, a chat interface is provided to a device associated with an intended recipient of an incoming voice call. A chat message from the intended recipient is received through the chat interface. The chat message is presented to a calling party associated with the incoming call prior to a disposition of the call being determined. In other embodiments, an interface provides controls for individually managing calls on a conference call, without affecting other calls on the conference call.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing a chat interface to a device associated with an intended recipient of an incoming voice call;

receiving, through the chat interface, a chat message from the intended recipient; and

presenting the chat message to a calling party associated with the incoming call prior to determining a disposition of the call.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the chat message received through the chat interface is in textual form.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising converting the chat message to audio form, wherein said presenting step includes playing the converted chat message for the calling party.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

prompting the calling party associated with the incoming call to provide a response message;

receiving the response message from the calling party; and

providing the response message to the device associated with the intended recipient of the incoming call.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the response message is received in audio form, and wherein said providing step includes transmitting an audio file to the device associated with the intended recipient of the incoming call.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the chat interface includes a plurality of selectable controls for managing the disposition of the incoming call.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

receiving a call disposition selection from the intended recipient of the incoming call after the response message has been provided to the device associated with the intended recipient; and

connecting the incoming call based on the call disposition selection.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

providing an active-call interface to the device in response to the connecting step, the active-call interface including at least one selectable active-call control for managing the connected call on an individual basis.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

forming a conference call in response to a selection of the at least one selectable active-call control, the conference call including the connected call, wherein the at least one selectable active-call control includes a drag and drop control for dragging and dropping information in a predefined area of the active-call interface.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

muting or unmuting the connected call in response to a selection of the at least one selectable active-call control, without affecting another call on the conference call, wherein the at least one selectable control includes a mute control.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

disconnecting the connected call in response to a selection of the at least one selectable active-call control, without affecting another call on the conference call, wherein the at least one selectable active-call control includes a disconnect control.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving information associated with the incoming call;

sending a notification of the incoming call to the device associated with the intended recipient, the notification including a selectable chat control; and

providing the chat interface to the device associated with the customer in response to a selection of the chat control.

13. A method comprising:

providing a user interface to a device associated with a customer, the user interface including a plurality of selectable controls for managing a conference call in real time, wherein each call on the conference call is associated with at least one of the plurality of selectable controls; and

managing at least one call on the conference call in real time in response to a selection of at least one of the plurality of selectable controls, without affecting other calls on the conference call.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said managing step includes adding a call to the conference call in real time in response the customer dragging and dropping contact information in a predefined area of the user interface.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein said managing step includes individually muting or unmuting the at least one call, without affecting other calls associated with the conference call.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein said managing step includes individually disconnecting the at least one call, without affecting other calls associated with the conference call.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein said managing step includes moving the at least one call from the conference call to another conference call, said moving step being initiated by the customer dragging and dropping an identifier representative of the at least one telephone call from a first conference call area to a second conference area on the user interface.

18. An interactive user interface comprising:

a plurality of selectable controls for managing a conference call in real time, wherein each call on the conference call is associated with at least one of said plurality of selectable controls such that said plurality of selectable controls provides for managing each call on the conference call on an individual basis, without affecting other calls on the conference call.

19. The interface of claim 18, wherein said plurality of selectable controls includes a plurality of mute controls for individually controlling each call on the conference call, without affecting the other calls on the conference call.

20. The interface of claim 18, wherein said plurality of selectable controls includes a plurality of disconnect controls for controlling each call on the conference call, without affecting the other calls on the conference call.

21. The interface of claim 18, wherein said plurality of selectable controls includes a drag-and-drop control for initiating a new telephone call to a target telephone number, said target telephone number being identified by contact information dragged from an external application program and dropped into the interactive interface.

22. The interface of claim 21, wherein said drag-and-drop control provides for moving a call participant from one active call to another by dragging a participant identifier from a first active call representation and dropping said participant identifier in a second active call representation.

23. The interface of claim 18, wherein said plurality of selectable controls provides for managing a plurality of separate conference calls.

24. The interface of claim 18, wherein said plurality of selectable controls provides for adding an incoming call to the conference call in real time.

25. A system comprising:

a voice network including a service control point operable to determine how a call from a calling party to a called party is connected;

a data network;

a service center operable to

receive information from said service control point, the information being associated with the call,

send a notification of the call to a device associated with the called party via said data network, said notification including a selectable chat control,

provide a chat interface to said device in response to a selection of said chat control,

receive, via said chat interface and said data network, a chat message from the user,

convert said chat message to audio form, and

instruct said service control point to present said converted chat message to the calling party;

whereby said service control point is configured to cause said converted chat message to be played for the calling party prior to a disposition of the call being determined.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein said chat message received at the chat interface is in textual form.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein said service center is further operable to:

instruct the service control point to cause a request for a response message to be presented to the calling party;

receive said response message from the calling party via said voice network; and

provide said response message to said device associated with the user.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein said response message comprises an audio file.

29. The system of claim 27, wherein said chat interface includes a plurality of selectable controls for managing the disposition of the call.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein said service center is further operable to:

receive a call disposition selection from the user after the response message has been provided to said device associated with the user; and

instruct said service control point to connect the call based on said call disposition selection.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein said service center is further operable to provide, through said device associated with the user, an active-call interface in response to the call being connected, said active-call interface including at least one selectable active-call control for managing the connected call on an individual basis, without affecting other active calls.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein said service center is further operable to instruct said service control point to cause a conference call to be formed in response to a selection of said selectable active-call control, the conference call including the connected call.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein said service center is further operable to mute or unmute the connected call in response to a selection of said selectable active-call control, without affecting another call on the conference call.

34. The system of claim 32, wherein said service center is further operable to disconnect the connected call in response to a selection of said selectable active-call control, without affecting another call on the conference call.