Apparatus and method for dynamic inbound/outbound call management and for scheduling appointments

• US 5,815,566 A
• Filed: 10/16/1996
• Issued: 09/29/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Inter-Tel Incorporated (Mitel Networks Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Executone Information Systems, Inc. (eLOT, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ramot, Danny, Blamey, Jeffrey L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Harry S.
• Application Number:
  US08/731,591
• Time in Patent Office: 713 Days
• Field of Search: 379/265, 379/266, 379/207, 379/309, 379/213, 379/214, 379/218, 379/67, 379/88, 379/89, 379/84, 379/216, 379/355
• US Class Current: 379/210.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/38 Displays
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/2281 Call monitoring, e.g. for law enforcement purposes; Call tracing; Detection or prevention of malicious calls
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/36 Statistical metering, e.g. recording occasions when traffic exceeds capacity of trunks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5158 in combination with automated outdialling systems devices for signalling identity of wanted subscriber H04M1/26
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5175 Call or contact centers supervision arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/523 with call distribution or queueing

Abstract

A telephone system provides dynamic inbound/outbound call management for a telemarketing campaign to automatically initiate outbound telephone calls for outbound agents, with outbound agents redesignated as inbound agents to answer inbound calls as needed according to at least one threshold of number or duration of waiting calls or number or duration of waiting inbound agents. Each agent'"'"'s work area includes a telephone station having a display and an input device. The telephone stations are coupled to a server via a network, and the telephone system includes appointment and calendar functions with pop-up menus. The server is also coupled to an automatic dialer and to a private branch exchange. When the server assigns an outbound call to an outbound agent, the server sends information about the party called to the outbound agent'"'"'s telephone station for display simultaneous with connecting the called party to the outbound agent. The telephone system allows each agent to control all telephone functions through the telephone station using the display and input device. Each agent may dial and control additional calls using the input device, including central office calls, intercom calls and paging. As each outbound call is initiated or completed, system parameters are adjusted to maintain a predetermined minimum number of busy outbound agents. The adjustments also maintain the percentage of unattended outbound calls for which no outbound agent is available.

Claims

1. A telephone system providing appointment scheduling having a private branch exchange (PBX) for connecting a plurality of telephone stations to a telephone line, each of said telephone stations being assigned to one of a plurality of agents, the telephone system comprising:

a processing unit including;

associated memory and stored programs for storing appointment information, the appointment information including appointment entries having dates and times, for monitoring outbound and inbound calls and for storing therein a current status of each agent as being either an inbound agent or an outbound agent;

detecting means for detecting an inbound threshold condition signifying the need for redesignating in the memory an available outbound agent as an inbound agent for answering an inbound call;

notifying means for notifying the available outbound agent of the inbound call prior to redesignation;

redesignating means for redesignating in the memory the current status of the available outbound agent as an inbound agent; and

assigning means for assigning and connecting the available outbound agent having its current status redesignated in the memory as an inbound agent for answering the inbound call; and

each of the plurality of telephone stations including;

a voice communication device for facilitating voice communications by said respective one of said plurality of agents with an inbound or outbound call connected thereto through said telephone line;

a display;

an input device; and

a processor responsive to input signals representing commands for execution by said processor, including a call data command, a calendar command and an appointment command, from the respective input device, the processor responsive to the appointment command for generating and storing a plurality of appointment entries, the processor responsive to the calendar command for generating a calendar screen on the respective display of the respective telephone station and for generating and editing the appointment information in the associated memory, and the processor responsive to the call data command for displaying data relating to inbound and outbound calls originating from and connected to the respective agent.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said display further displays telephone keypad and functions keys for selection of telephone functions including flash and off-hook by said respective agent with said input device.

3. A telephone system for dynamic inbound and outbound call management having a private branch exchange (PBX) for connecting a plurality of agent stations to at least one telephone line, each of said agent stations being assigned to a respective one of a plurality of agents, and a dialer for automatically routing an outbound call, the telephone system comprising:

(a) a processing unit including;

associated memory and stored programs for monitoring outbound and inbound calls and for storing therein a current status of each agent as being either an inbound agent or an outbound agent;

designating means for designating in the memory the current status of each of the plurality of agents as either an inbound agent or an outbound agent;

detecting means for detecting an inbound threshold condition signifying the need for redesignating in the memory an available outbound agent as an inbound agent for answering an inbound call;

notifying means for notifying the available outbound agent of the inbound call prior to redesignation;

redesignating means for redesignating in the memory the current status of the available outbound agent as an inbound agent; and

assigning means for assigning and connecting the available outbound agent having its current status redesignated in the memory as an inbound agent for answering the inbound call; and

(b) each of said agent stations including;

a voice communication device for facilitating voice communications by said respective one of said plurality of agents with an inbound or outbound call connected thereto through said telephone line;

an agent processor and associated display for displaying data relating to inbound or outbound call including said current status of said respective agent, record data of the party of said inbound or outbound call connected to said respective agent stations, and input fields into which said respective agent enters data associated with said inbound or outbound call; and

an input device associated with said display for facilitating entering of said data into said input fields.

4. The telephone system as set forth in claim 3 further comprising:

queue means for generating a queue; and

threshold means, responsive to an inbound threshold condition of the queue, for generating a threshold signal.

5. The telephone system as set forth in claim 4 further comprising:

access means for logging on at least one of the plurality of agents to the telephone system and for logging off at least one of the plurality of agents from the telephone system, the access means, responsive to the threshold signal, for logging off a first outbound agent.

6. The telephone system as set forth in claim 5 further including:

the detecting means, responsive to the access means logging off the first outbound agent in response to the threshold signal, for detecting that the logged off first outbound agent is available to answer the inbound call as the available outbound agent; and

the designating means for designating the logged off first outbound agent as an inbound agent.

7. The telephone system as set forth in claim 3 further comprising:

the associated memory for storing appointment information, the appointment information including dates and times of appointments; and

each of the plurality of telephone stations including;

a display;

an input device; and

a processor responsive to input signals, including a calendar command, from the respective input device for generating a calendar screen including a graphic of a month on the respective display of the respective telephone station.

8. The telephone system as set forth in claim 7, wherein the appointment information further includes names, addresses, telephone numbers, appointment locations, and comments of appointments.

9. The telephone system as set forth in claim 7, wherein each respective processor of each respective telephone station, responsive to the input signals, edits the appointment information in the associated memory.

10. The telephone system as set forth in claim 9, wherein each respective processor of each respective telephone station, responsive to the input signals, generates on the respective display the calendar and available dates and time slots for appointments.

11. The telephone system as set forth in claim 10, wherein each respective processor of each respective telephone station displays on the respective display the available dates and time slots with a visual appearance different from the visual appearance of the calendar.

12. The telephone system as set forth in claim 11, wherein the visual appearance of the available dates and time slots includes color reversing the available dates and time slots in reference to a ground of the calendar to highlight the available dates and time slots on the respective display.

13. The telephone system as set forth in claim 10 further including:

each respective processor of each respective telephone station, responsive to a first input signal from the input device corresponding to the respective agent inputting a command, for generating an input screen on the respective display, the respective processor, responsive to a second input signal from the input device corresponding to the respective agent inputting data, for displaying the inputted data on the input screen on the respective display.

14. The telephone system as set forth in claim 13 further including:

the associated memory, coupled to the dialer, for storing dialer information including names and telephone numbers of parties to be automatically dialed by the dialer;

each respective telephone station being operatively coupled to the associated memory, with each respective telephone station further including a buffer for storing dialer information from the associated memory;

the dialer for dialing an outbound call to an intended party, and for responding to a connection of the dialed outbound call as a connected call for generating a connection signal;

the assigning means, responsive to the connection signal, for assigning and connecting the connected call to the available outbound agent;

transfer means, responsive to the connection signal, for transferring the dialer information of the intended party to the respective telephone station assigned to the available outbound agent; and

the respective telephone station of the available outbound agent for displaying the transferred dialer information on the respective display substantially simultaneous with the connecting of the connected call to the available outbound agent.

15. The telephone system as set forth in claim 14 wherein each of the plurality of telephone stations further includes:

the input device for inputting data as dialer information;

a buffer for storing the inputted dialer information; and

the processor for displaying the inputted dialer information on the display.

16. The system of claim 3 wherein said display further displays telephone keypad and functions keys for selection of telephone functions including flash and off-hook by said respective agent with said input device.

17. A telephone data collection network which provides a continuous series of telephone calls to a plurality of agents, the network comprising:

a data source computer;

a server computer;

an automatic dialer coupled to the source computer and to the server computer;

a plurality of computer terminals coupled to the server computer;

a plurality of voice communication devices each assigned to a respectively different one of the plurality of computer terminals and having a display device and an input device;

means for providing data communications between the automatic dialer and the data source computer using a first communications protocol;

means for providing data communications between the automatic dialer and the server computer using a second communications protocol;

means for providing data communications between the data source computer and said one of the plurality of computer terminals during an inbound and an outbound call;

means for transmitting phone number data from the data source computer, through the automatic dialer, to the server computer during a first time interval;

means, coupled to said server computer, for causing the automatic dialer to initiate calls during a second time interval, exclusive of said first time interval; and

means for causing said data source computer to provide to said one of the plurality of computer terminals record data relating to a caller of an inbound call, during a third time interval exclusive of said first and second time intervals.