Telephone line communications control system with dynamic call streaming

• US 5,067,149 A
• Filed: 06/05/1989
• Issued: 11/19/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/1987
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: John Richard Prohs
• Original Assignee: Ambassador College
• Inventors: Schneid, Michael R., Prohs, John R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dwyer, James L.
• Application Number:
  US07/362,038
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• Field of Search: 379/224, 379/269, 379/207, 379/266, 379/34, 379/67, 379/88, 379/92, 379/94, 379/201, 379/208, 379/210, 379/214, 379/218, 379/219, 379/220, 379/221, 379/223, 379/225, 379/265 , 379/309
• US Class Current: 379/265.03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5125 with remote located operators
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5175 Call or contact centers supervision arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/523 with call distribution or queueing

Abstract

The present invention is a novel technique in the automatic control of the size of a network of remote attendants in accordance with varying incoming call traffic patterns. The remote attendants are on the public switched telephone network. The system routes incoming calls via outgoing lines to the attendants. The remote attendants can receive a "stream" of incoming calls within one outgoing call to an attendant. The remote attendants are kept on-line, that is, "off-hook" as long as the amount of waiting time between incoming calls does not exceed a maximum waiting interval set by the supervisor. When the attendant has to wait for the next incoming call for longer than a maximum waiting interval set by a supervisor, then the attendant can be automatically disconnected from the system. As call traffic increases, the system can automatically redial the remote attendant to be re-networked so as to receive another "stream" of incoming calls. This technique for automatically controlling the on-line status of the remote attendant in response to incoming call traffic is called "Dynamic Call Streaming". Dynamic Call Streaming reduces toll charges by adding or dropping the remote attendant on or off the network as needed while maintaining a high level of service.

Claims

1. A telecommunications control system for accepting a plurality of multi-purpose stations on the public switched network for use as remote attendant stations in an attendant service complex to service calls directed to the system from originating stations, the system comprising:

a first plurality of station connection controllers, each station connection controller in the first plurality for cooperating with a respective one of a plurality of multi-purpose stations in defining opposite ends of a call connection path, and each such station connection controller having controllable switching means for opening the call connection path and releasing the respective multi-purpose station;

a second plurality of station connection controllers, each station connection controller in the second plurality for cooperating with a respective one of a plurality of originating stations in defining opposite ends of call connection path;

controllable inter-connection means arranged between the first and second plurality of station connection controllers;

means for controlling the inter-connection means such that incoming calls from originating stations are extended to multi-purpose stations that have been accepted as attendant stations; and

means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls for each of the second plurality of station connection controllers, during which interval of time the remote attendant is online.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls includes means for determining when the interval of time between incoming calls has met or exceeded a preset value.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls includes means for producing a logic signal for controlling the switching means and releasing the multi-purpose station, whereby the remote attendant is disconnected.

4. A telecommunications control system for networking a plurality of multi-purpose telephone stations on the public switched network for use as remote attendant stations in an attendant service complex to service calls directed to the system from originating stations, the system comprising:

a first plurality of station connection controllers, each station connection controller in the first plurality for cooperating with a respective one of a plurality of multi-purpose stations in defining opposite ends of a call connection path;

a second plurality of station connection controllers, each station connection controller in the second plurality for cooperating with a respective one of a plurality of originating stations in defining opposite ends of a call connection path;

controllable inter-connection means arranged between the first and second plurality of station connection controllers;

means for controlling the inter-connection means such that incoming calls from originating stations are extended to multi-purpose stations that have been networked for use as attendant stations, and wherein the means for controlling the inter-connection means includes means for causing a plurality of incoming calls to be extended to the same multi-purpose station during an interval throughout which the multi-purpose station remains networked as an attendant station; and

means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls for each of the second plurality of station connection controllers, during which interval of time the remote attendant is online.

5. A system according to claim 4, wherein the means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls includes means for determining when the interval of time between incoming calls has met or exceeded a preset value.

6. A system according to claim 5, wherein the means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls includes means for producing a logic signal for controlling the switching means and releasing the multi-purpose station, whereby the remote attendant is disconnected.

7. A telecommunications control system for selectively networking a plurality of multi-purpose telephone stations on the public switched network for use as remote attendant stations in an attendant service complex to service calls directed to the system from originating stations, the system comprising:

first controllable means comprising a plurality of outgoing line connection controllers, each outgoing line connection controller for cooperating with a respective one of a plurality of multi-purpose stations in defining opposite ends of a call connection path;

second controllable means comprising a plurality of incoming line connection controllers, each incoming line station connection controller for cooperating with a respective one of a plurality of originating stations in defining opposite ends of a call connection path, and each including means for detecting a ringing signal indicating a request to establish a call connection path for an incoming call;

third controllable means comprising a plurality of controllable inter-connection means, each arranged between an incoming line station connection controller and an outgoing line station connection controller;

fourth controllable means for originating calls from the system to the multi-purpose stations via the outgoing line station connection controllers; and

means for controlling the first, second, third, and fourth controllable means in a predetermined sequence of operations initiated by the detection of a ringing signal, in which sequence of operations a call is originated to a multi-purpose station while the ringing signal is present so as to be unnoticeable to a person using the originating station, and after completion of the call to the multi-purpose station, the incoming call is answered and extended to the multi-purpose station by completing the incoming call at the incoming line station connection controller and extending the call to the outgoing line station connection controller via the inter-connection means; and

means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls for each of the plurality of incoming line connection controllers, during which interval of time the remote attendant is online.

8. A system according to claim 7, wherein the means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls includes means for determining when the interval of time between incoming calls has met or exceeded a preset value.

9. A system according to claim 8, wherein the means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls includes means for producing a logic signal for controlling the switching means and releasing the multi-purpose station, whereby the remote attendant is disconnected.

10. A computer-controlled system connectable between a set of incoming lines and a set of outgoing lines for using the outgoing lines to establish a network of multi-purpose stations on the public switched network for use by remote service attendants in servicing incoming calls directed to the system from originating stations via the incoming lines, the system comprising:

controllable call extending means for connection between the incoming lines and the outgoing lines;

computer processing means for controlling the controllable call extending means;

the computer processing means including means providing digitally coded commands to control the call extending means and the call extending means including means providing status data to the computer processing means so the call extending means provides for extending incoming calls for answer and service by the service attendants; and

the computer processing means including means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls for each of the set of incoming lines, during which interval of time the remote attendant is online.

11. A system according to claim 10, wherein the computer processing means includes means for determining when the interval of time between incoming calls has met or exceeded a preset value.

12. A system according to claim 11, wherein the computer processing means includes means for controlling the call extending means to release a multi-purpose station, whereby the remote attendant is disconnected.

13. An interactively-supervised, computer-controlled system for allocating tasks in a network for servicing incoming calls, the system comprising:

computer processing means;

call extending means;

the computer processing means including means providing digitally coded commands to the call extending means and the call extending means including means providing status data to the computer processing means so the call extending means provides for extending incoming calls for answer and service by a group of remote service attendants on the public switched network in accord with an allocation of tasks determined by the digital coded commands;

display means and manual input means for use by a supervisor in interactively controlling the computer processing means;

the computer processing means being continually responsive to status data provided by the call extending means to generate on the display means a human-readable, continually-updated status report by which the supervisor may be prompted to use the manual input means to enter supervisory commands; and

means for measuring the interval of time between incoming calls for each incoming line, during which interval of time the remote attendant is online.

14. A system according to claim 13, wherein the computer processing means includes means for determining when the interval of time between incoming calls has met or exceeded a preset value.

15. A system according to claim 14, wherein the computer processing means includes means for controlling the call extending means to release a multi-purpose station, whereby the remote attendant is disconnected.