DISPATCH APPLICATION UTILIZING SHORT MESSAGE SERVICE

• US 20120208572A1
• Filed: 04/24/2012
• Published: 08/16/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hart, John P., Smith, Wayne H.
• Granted Patent: US 8,417,271 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]

Abstract

A dispatch communication and management system method is provided, allowing a dispatcher and remote service technicians to exchange messages over a network in a prescribed format to notify the technicians of new dispatch orders, and to update status information for dispatch orders in corresponding customer service records in a database.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

creating a dispatch order;

determining a length of the dispatch order;

based upon the determined length, formulating the dispatch order into multiple related Short Message Service (SMS) messages;

reformatting the multiple related SMS messages into at least one Internet Protocol (IP) packet;

sending the at least one IP packet over an IP network;

receiving, via a public network, multiple related SMS messages corresponding to the dispatch order, the multiple related SMS messages having been reformatted from the at least one IP packet; and

sending over the public network a reply message comprising an updated status of the dispatch order, wherein the updated status is one of pending, received, in progress, completed, or problem.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the public network comprises a wireless network.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless network comprises a GPRS network.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless network comprises a GSM network.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless network comprises a CDMA network.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless network comprises a two-way paging network.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the dispatch order comprises at least one of:

a ticket number, a service location, a description of services required, a priority of the dispatch order, or a creation time of the dispatch order.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication device is coupled to a computer, the computer being operative to display a plurality of dispatch orders corresponding to customer service records stored in a memory, wherein the displayed dispatch orders are organized by status.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the message corresponding to the dispatch order is sent to multiple recipients chosen from a database of service technicians.

10. Memory in a dispatch computer having stored thereon executable instructions, the executable instructions, when executed by the dispatch computer perform operations comprising:

creating a dispatch order;

determining a length of the dispatch order;

based upon the determined length, formulating the dispatch order into multiple related Short Message Service (SMS) messages;

reformatting the multiple related SMS messages into at least one Internet Protocol (IP) packet;

sending the at least one IP packet over an IP network;

receiving, via a public network, multiple related SMS messages corresponding to the dispatch order, the multiple related SMS messages having been reformatted from the at least one IP packet; and

sending over the public network a reply message comprising an updated status of the dispatch order, wherein the updated status is one of pending, received, in progress, completed, or problem.

11. The memory of claim 10, wherein the public network comprises a wireless network.

12. The memory of claim 11, wherein the wireless network comprises a GPRS network.

13. The memory of claim 11, wherein the wireless network comprises a GSM network.

14. The memory of claim 11, wherein the wireless network comprises a CDMA network.

15. The memory of claim 11, wherein the wireless network comprises a two-way paging network.

16. The memory of claim 10, wherein the dispatch order comprises at least one of a ticket number, a service location, a description of services required, a priority of the dispatch order, or a creation time of the dispatch order.

17. The memory of claim 10, wherein the communication device is coupled to a computer, the computer being operative to display a plurality of dispatch orders corresponding to customer service records stored in a memory, wherein the displayed dispatch orders are organized by status.

18. The memory of claim 10, wherein the message corresponding to the dispatch order is sent to multiple recipients chosen from a database of service technicians.