Call routing based on local status evaluation

• US 6,487,290 B1
• Filed: 04/28/1999
• Issued: 11/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Periphonics Corporation (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Le Grand, Richard J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Matar, Ahmad F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TIEU, BENNY QUOC
• Application Number:
  US09/300,870
• Time in Patent Office: 1,308 Days
• Field of Search: 379/265-1-2, 379/266-1-2, 379/309, 379/201.01, 379/207.03, 379/219, 379/220.01
• US Class Current: 379/265.02
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/523 with call distribution or queueing

Abstract

Call routing is controlled by a central unit providing switching control signals based on selecting the best figure-of-merit value from among poll responses for agents. While an incoming call is held by a public network 12, poll inquiries are sent from a central unit 20. Each local unit 24, 26, 28 provides a poll response indicative of the one its associated response resources (e.g., agents 31, 32, 33) having the shortest queue wait. Each poll response may be a simple figure-of-merit value representing agent availability. Central unit 20 selects the poll response represented by the best figure-of-merit value and sends routing instructions to the network 12. The call is then routed to the appropriate agent for handling. Where a local unit has no associated agent who is qualified to respond to a call (based on caller data related to that call) no poll response need be sent to central unit 20. The simplified processing provided enables system operation with reduced data collection and intra-system communication requirements.

Claims

1. A call routing system, responsive to an incoming call held by a switching facility, comprising:

a poll/selector responsive to an incoming call and associated caller data (i) to send a poll inquiry to a plurality of evaluate/controllers, (ii) to receive poll responses from at least one evaluate/controller indicating a current capability to respond to that call, and (iii) to provide a switching control signal based on selection of a poll response which meets predetermined criteria;

a plurality of response resources capable of responding to incoming calls;

a plurality of evaluate/controllers each with communication link to at least one said response resource and responsive to said poll inquiry to provide a poll response indicative of current availability of a response resource to respond to that call; and

a communication link between the poll/selector and said switching facility to couple said switching control signal to control the routing of that call.

2. A call routing system responsive to an incoming call held by a switching facility to route that call to one of a plurality of response resources capable of responding thereto, comprising;

a poll/selector responsive to an incoming call and associated caller data (i) to send a poll inquiry to a plurality of evaluate/controllers, (ii) to receive poll responses from at least one evaluate/controller indicating a current capability to respond to that call, and (iii) to provide a switching control signal based on selection of a poll response which meets predetermined criteria; and

a plurality of evaluate/controllers each arranged to be linked to a group of said response resources and each responsive to said poll inquiry to provide a poll response indicative of current availability of a linked response resource to respond to that call;

said poll/selector arranged to couple said switching control signal to control routing of that call from the switching facility.

3. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein in response to a poll inquiry each said evaluate/controller provides one of:

no poll response;

a single poll response indicative of current availability of one particular response resource evaluated by said evaluate/controller as most available among its linked response resources capable of responding to that call.

4. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein said poll/selector is arranged to send a poll inquiry which includes information representative of said caller data.

5. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein each said evaluate/controller is arranged to provide a poll response indicative of current queue wait for a response resource capable of responding, based on the caller data associated with that call.

6. A call routing system as in claim 5, wherein each said evaluate/controller is arranged to provide no poll response in the absence of availability of a linked response resource capable of responding, based on the caller data associated with that call.

7. A call routing system as in claim 5, wherein said evaluate/controller is arranged to provide a poll response indicative of current queue wait, where queue wait is representative of one of:

queue length;

estimated queue waiting time.

8. A call routing system as in claim 5, wherein said poll/selector is arranged to provide a switching control signal indicative of a poll response selected on the basis of a predetermined criteria representative of shortest queue wait.

9. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein said poll/selector is arranged to provide a switching control signal indicative of a poll response selected on the basis of a predetermined criteria representative of shortest queue wait.

10. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein the call is routed by the switching facility to an evaluate/controller which is arranged to cause that call to be coupled to the particular response resource whose current availability to respond was the basis for the poll response selected by the poll/selector.

11. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein the call is routed by the switching facility to the particular response resource whose current availability to respond was the basis for the poll response selected by the poll/selector.

12. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein each said evaluate/controller provides one of:

no poll response;

a single poll response in the form of a figure-of-merit value.

13. A call routing system as in claim 2, wherein each said evaluate/controller is arranged to reserve a response resource when a poll response is provided on the basis of availability of that response resource.

14. A call routing system as in claim 13, wherein each said evaluate/controller is arranged to terminate reservation of a response resource at the end of a predetermined time period, regardless of whether a call is routed to said evaluate/controller within that time period.

15. A call routing system, responsive to an incoming call held by a switching facility to route that call to one of a plurality of response resources capable of responding thereto, comprising:

a poll/selector responsive to an incoming call (i) to send a poll inquiry to a plurality of evaluate/controllers, (ii) to receive poll responses from at least one evaluate/controller indicating a current capability to respond to that call, and (iii) to provide a switching control signal based on selection of a poll response representing the best figure-of-merit value of all poll responses received; and

a plurality of evaluate/controllers each arranged to be linked to a group of said response resources and each responsive to said poll inquiry to provide a poll response comprising a figure-of-merit value indicative of current availability of a linked response resource to respond to that call;

said poll/selector arranged to couple said switching control signal to control routing of that call from the switching facility.

16. A call routing system as in claim 15, wherein said poll/selector is arranged to send a poll inquiry which includes information representative of caller data associated with that incoming call.

17. A call routing system as in claim 16, wherein each said evaluate/controller is arranged to provide a poll response indicative of current queue wait for a response resource capable of responding, based on the caller data associated with that call.

18. A call routing system as in claim 17, wherein each said evaluate/controller is arranged to provide no poll response in the absence of availability of a linked response resource capable of responding, based on the caller data associated with that call.

19. A call routing method, using localized response capability evaluation, comprising the steps of:

(a) in response to an incoming call held by a switching facility and associated caller data, sending a poll inquiry from a central location to a plurality of response locations;

(b) at each response location, evaluating the current availability of at least one response resource to respond to that call;

(c) from at least one response location, sending to said central location a poll response indicative of current availability of a response resource to respond to that call;

(d) at said central location, selecting a poll response which meets predetermined criteria; and

(e) sending a switching control signal from said central location to control the routing of that call from the switching facility.

20. A call routing method as in claim 19, including the additional step of:

(f) at the selected response location, coupling the routed call to the particular response resource whose current availability to respond was the basis for a poll response from that response location.

21. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein in step (c) from each response location there is sent one of:

no poll response;

a single poll response in the form of a figure-of-merit value.

22. A call routing method as in claim 21, wherein in step (d) said criteria is best figure-of-merit value.

23. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein step (a) includes incorporating information representative of said caller data in the poll inquiry.

24. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein step (b) comprises evaluating the current availability only of response resources capable of responding, based on the caller data associated with that call.

25. A call routing method as in claim 24, wherein in step (c) no poll response is provided in the absence of a response capable of responding, based on the caller data associated with the call.

26. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein in step (c) the poll response is indicative of current queue wait, where queue wait is representative of one of:

queue length;

estimated queue waiting time.

27. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein in step (e) the switching control signal directs routing of the call to the response location originating the poll response selected in step (d).

28. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein in step (c) each poll response is also indicative of the telephone address of that response resource, and in step (e) the switching control signal directs routing of the call to that response resource, upon whose availability the poll response selected in step (d) was based.

29. A call routing method as in claim 19, wherein step (c) also includes reserving availability of that response