INTELLIGENT CUSTOMER CARE SUPPORT

• US 20100105369A1
• Filed: 12/30/2009
• Published: 04/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: John Thomas Hursey, Kenneth James Diprima
• Original Assignee: John Thomas Hursey, Kenneth James Diprima
• Inventors: DiPrima, Kenneth James, Hursey, John Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 8,150,396 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0045 involving hybrid, i.e. a mixture of public and private, or multi-vendor systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

In a mobile communications system a visiting location register (VLR) associated with a switching receives an address of an external control component and a service identifier identifying a service to be performed by the external control component from a home location register (HLR) associated with a mobile communications device. When a customer care call from the mobile communications device is received at the switching center, the switching center suspends call processing and queries the external control component utilizing the address from the VLR. The external control component performs the service indicated by the service indicator and determines a translation for the customer care call and returns information to the switching center for routing the call according to the translation. The translation may be determined at least in part according to the service performed by the external control component. The translation may be determined at least in part according to one or more of time of day, day of week, location of the switching center, or NPA-Nxx. The service indicator and address of the external control component may be provided by the HLR in Dialed CAMEL Subscription Information (D-CSI) associated with the mobile communication device.

Claims

1. A method for use in a mobile communications system comprising:

in response to detecting at a switching center a customer care call received from a mobile communications device, suspending call processing and querying an external control component utilizing an address of the external control component supplied to the switching center; and

continuing processing of the customer care call by the switching center in response to a communication from the external control component based on a service performed at the external control component according to a service identifier supplied to the external control component by the switching center.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

supplying the address of the external control component and the service identifier identifying the service to be performed by the external control component to a visiting location register associated with the switching center from a home location register (HLR) associated with the mobile communications device.

3. The method as recited in claim 2 wherein the service identifier and address of the external control component are provided by the HLR in Dialed CAMEL Subscription Information (D-CSI) associated with the mobile communication device.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein the customer care call is detected based on a sequence of dialed digits, the sequence of dialed digits for the customer care call including 611.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

the switching center sending the service identifier to the external control component; and

communicating call control information from the external control component to the switching center regarding how to continue call processing,

wherein the service performed by the external control component determines a translation for the customer care call and the external control component returns information to the switching center for routing the call according to the translation.

6. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the translation is determined at least in part according to an International Mobile Subscriber Identifier (IMSI) associated with the mobile communications device.

7. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the translation is determined at least in part according to one or more of time of day, day of week, location of the switching center, and NPA-Nxx.

8. The method as recited in claim 5 further comprising:

determining at the external control component a translation of the customer care number, at least in part, according to the service identifier; and

returning the translation of the customer care number to the switching center in a connect operation.

9. The method as recited in claim 5 further comprising:

the external control component returning one of a Establish Temporary Connection (ETC) operation, a release operation, and a continue operation to the switching center as the call control information.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a service control point (SCP) coupled to receive information from at least one switching center remote to the SCP, the information being related to a customer care call from a mobile telecommunications device, the service control point storing customer care numbers; and

wherein

the service control point is responsive to the received information to determine a translation for the customer care call.

11. The apparatus as recited in claim 10 wherein the service control point maintains a correspondence between respective customer care numbers and respective service keys.

12. The apparatus as recited in claim 10 wherein the service control point is further responsive to supply the translation of the customer care call to the switching center as part of a connect operation.

13. The apparatus as recited in claim 12 wherein the SCP determines the translation of the customer care call further based on, at least one at least one of, time of day, location, and day of week, and service key.

14. The apparatus as recited in claim 10 further comprising the at least one switching center and wherein the information from the at least one switching center includes a service key indicative of a service to be performed by the SCP, the service key included in Dialed CAMEL Subscription Information (D-CSI) associated with the mobile telecommunications device.

15. A method for use in a mobile communications system comprising:

invoking a service control point (SCP) having translation capability for customer care calls when a customer care call is received by a switching center from a mobile communications device.

16. The method as recited in claim 15 further comprising:

determining a translation for a customer care number in the SCP based, at least in part, on an International Mobile Subscriber Identifier (IMSI) associated with the mobile communications device.

17. The method as recited in claim 15 further comprising:

determining a translation for a customer care number in the SCP based, at least in part, on a service key identifying a service for the SCP to perform.

18. The method as recited in claim 16 wherein the SCP determines the customer care number further based on at least one of time of day, day of week, and location.

19. The method as recited in claim 16 wherein the switching center invoking the SCP uses a service key and address of the service control point provided to a visiting location register associated with the switching center by a home location register associated with the mobile communications device, if available, and otherwise uses a service key and address of the service control point stored in the switching center without being associated with the particular mobile communications device.

20. The method as recited in claim 16 wherein the switching center invoking the SCP uses a service key and address of the service control point provided by Dialed CAMEL Subscription Information (D-CSI) if available, and otherwise uses a service key and address of the service control provided by Network CAMEL Subscription Information (N-CSI).