System and method for developing and processing automatic response unit (ARU) services

• US 6,314,167 B1
• Filed: 10/01/1999
• Issued: 11/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Johnson, William J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang, Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Escalante, Ovidio
• Application Number:
  US09/410,840
• Time in Patent Office: 767 Days
• Field of Search: 379/67.1, 379/88.16, 379/88.22, 379/88.23, 379/88.24, 379/88.25, 379/88.27, 379/102.02, 379/93.17, 379/201, 379/220, 379/207, 379/93.14
• US Class Current: 379/88.22
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals

Abstract

A system and method for facilitating the design and development of automatic response unit (ARU) services and for processing automated response unit (ARU) services. The present invention comprises a compiler and interpreter that facilitate the development of an ARU service encoding. The interpreter is one embodiment of the present invention that may be used for processing an ARU service encoding. The present invention further comprises a graphical user interface (GUI) tool for creating and maintaining an ARU service encoding. An ARU service encoding is a tree structure comprised of service nodes wherein each service node may represent a caller'"'"'s menu selection from the ARU service. Each service node has multiple components including variable support, message capability, processing capability, and default capability. The present invention parses the ARU service encoding for service nodes. For each service node, the present invention processes node variables, prefunction messages, automated input, prefunction interactions, functions, postfunction interactions, and postfunction messages.

Claims

1. A computer program product for use with a computer system, comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied in said medium for processing an automatic response unit (ARU) service encoding, said computer program product having;

first computer readable program code means for enabling a processor to parse the ARU service encoding for a service node, said service node having service node components, said service node component including a node variables component, a prefunction messaging component, an automated input component, prefunction interactions component, a function component, a postfunction interactions component, and a postfunction messaging component;

second computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said node variables component of said service node, said node variable component storing zero or more variable objects;

third computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said prefunction messaging component of said service node, said prefunction messaging component storing zero or more message objects that are played to a caller prior to processing said service node;

fourth computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said automated input component of said service node, said automated input component storing zero or more input data objects;

fifth computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said prefunction interactions component of said service node, said prefunction interaction component storing one or more interaction method objects, wherein each interaction method object is an action executed upon a satisfaction of a condition;

sixth computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said function component of said service node, said function component storing a function;

seventh computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said postfunction interactions component of said service node, said postfunction interaction component storing one or more interaction method objects, wherein each interaction method object is an action executed upon a satisfaction of a condition; and

eighth computer readable program code means for enabling said processor to process said postfunction messaging component of said service node, said postfunction messaging component storing zero or more message objects that are played to said caller after processing said service node.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein said node variable object is an integer, real number, character string, generic data, input data object, message object, interaction method object, or service node object.

3. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein said message object is a fully qualified path name of a recording file, text string, memory address of said recording file or said text string, variable reference, or message table entry handle.

4. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein said input data object is a dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) sequence, text string, fully qualified path name of a recording file, memory address of a DTMF sequence, memory address of a text string, memory address of a recording, variable reference, or input table entry handle.

5. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein said function is a dynamic link library reference, fully qualified path name, memory address, node-jump directive, or function table entry handle.

6. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein said interaction method object is a function, node-jump directive, message, or variable reference.