SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR HANDLING INTERACTIONS WITH INDIVIDUALS WITH PHYSICAL IMPAIRMENTS

• US 20180063325A1
• Filed: 08/31/2016
• Published: 03/01/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories Incorporated (Genesys Cloud Services Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories Incorporated (Genesys Cloud Services Incorporated)
• Inventors: Wilcox, Brian, Leonard, Colin Michael, Ristock, Herbert Willi Artur
• Granted Patent: US 10,038,783 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/001 Teaching or communicating with blind persons G09B21/02 - G09B21/06 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/009 Teaching or communicating with deaf persons G09B21/04 takes precedence; deaf and dumb persons G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42391 where the subscribers are hearing-impaired persons, e.g. telephone devices for the deaf
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5183 Call or contact centers with computer-telephony arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5233 Operator skill based call distribution

Abstract

A method for handling an interaction between an individual having a physical impairment and a customer contact center includes: detecting, by a processor, an interaction directed to a route point; determining, by the processor, whether the interaction is associated with an individual having a physical impairment; identifying, by the processor, a first resource of the contact center for handling the interaction, wherein the first resource is assigned an attribute indicative of being suitable for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment; ascertaining, by the processor, a presence of the first resource at a place enabled for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment; and transmitting, by the processor, a signal for routing the interaction to the first resource for servicing via the place, wherein in response to the signal, a communication session is established with a user device of the individual having the physical impairment.

Claims

1. A method for handling an interaction between an individual having a physical impairment and a customer contact center, the method comprising:

detecting, by a processor, an interaction directed to a route point;

determining, by the processor, whether the interaction is associated with an individual having a physical impairment;

identifying, by the processor, a first resource of the contact center for handling the interaction, wherein the identifying is based on an attribute assigned to the first resource indicative of the first resource being suitable for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment;

determining, by the processor, whether the first resource is at a place enabled for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment; and

transmitting a signal, by the processor, based on the determining that the first resource is at the place, the signal being for routing the interaction to the first resource for servicing via the place, wherein in response to the signal, a communication session is established with a user device of the individual having the physical impairment.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the route point is associated with a call number, wherein the call number is not a dedicated number for interactions with hearing or speech impaired individuals.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining as to whether the interaction is associated with an individual having the physical impairment is based on data transmitted by the user device of the individual having the physical impairment.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining as to whether the interaction is associated with an individual having the physical impairment is based on a response to a prompt provided by an interactive media response server coupled to the processor.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining as to whether the interaction is associated with an individual having the physical impairment is based on a user attribute stored in a mass storage device coupled to the processor.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first resource is an agent of the contact center, and the attribute is stored as an agent skill.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the place is enabled to handle interactions via a plurality of media channels bundled as a virtual media channel.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the plurality of media channels are preset prior to the interaction.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the plurality of media channels are dynamically aggregated and associated with the place, in response to detecting the interaction, and based on at least one of a profile of the individual having the physical impairment or capabilities of the user device.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting, by the processor, a second resource based on determining that the first resource is not present at the place, wherein the second resource is not assigned the attribute indicative of being suitable for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment;

transmitting, by the processor, a signal for routing the interaction to the second resource, wherein in response to the signal, a communication session is established with the user device of the individual having the physical impairment;

monitoring availability of the first resource during the communication session; and

in response to determining availability of the first resource during the communication session, transmitting a signal for transferring the communication session to a device of the first resource.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical impairment is at least one of impaired speech, impaired hearing, impaired mobility, or impaired vision.

12. A system for handling an interaction between an individual having a physical impairment and a customer contact center, the system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory, wherein the memory stores instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

detect an interaction directed to a route point;

determine whether the interaction is associated with an individual having a physical impairment;

identify a first resource of the contact center for handling the interaction, wherein the identifying is based on an attribute assigned to the first resource indicative of the first resource being suitable for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment;

determine whether the first resource is at a place enabled for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment; and

transmit a signal based on the determining that the first resource is at the place, the signal being for routing the interaction to the first resource for servicing via the place, wherein in response to the signal, a communication session is established with a user device of the individual having the physical impairment.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the route point is associated with a call number, wherein the call number is not a dedicated number for interactions with hearing or speech impaired individuals.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the instructions that cause the processor to determine whether the interaction is associated with an individual having the physical impairment comprise instructions for making the determination based on data transmitted by the user device of the individual having the physical impairment.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the instructions that cause the processor to determine whether the interaction is associated with an individual having the physical impairment comprise instructions for making the determination based on a response to a prompt provided by an interactive media response server coupled to the processor.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the instructions that cause the processor to determine whether the interaction is associated with an individual having the physical impairment comprise instructions for making the determination based on a user attribute stored in a mass storage device coupled to the processor.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the first resource is an agent of the contact center, and the attribute is stored as an agent skill.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the place is enabled to handle interactions via a plurality of media channels bundled as a virtual media channel.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the plurality of media channels are preset prior to the interaction.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the plurality of media channels are dynamically aggregated and associated with the place, in response to detecting the interaction, and based on at least one of a profile of the individual having the physical impairment or capabilities of the user device.

21. The system of claim 12, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to:

select a second resource based on determining that the first resource is not present at the place, wherein the second resource is not assigned the attribute indicative of being suitable for handling interactions with individuals having the physical impairment;

transmit a signal for routing the interaction to the second resource, wherein in response to the signal, a communication session is established with the user device of the individual having the physical impairment;

monitor availability of the first resource during the communication session; and

in response to determining availability of the first resource during the communication session, transmit a signal for transferring the communication session to a device of the first resource.

22. The system of claim 12, wherein the physical impairment is at least one of impaired speech, impaired hearing, impaired mobility, or impaired vision.