Methods and apparatus for personal routing in computer-simulated telephony

• US 7,031,442 B1
• Filed: 09/12/1997
• Issued: 04/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories Incorporated (Genesys Cloud Services Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories Incorporated (Genesys Cloud Services Incorporated)
• Inventors: Bondarenko, Oleg, Miloslavsky, Alec, Petrov, Andrei, Neyman, Igor, Issayev, Valeriy, Smelik, Alex, Dadgar, Hamid, Ostapchuk, Yuri, Volguin, Alexander, Livshits, Boris, Karpenko, Paul, Barskiy, Michail
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoosain, Allan
• Application Number:
  US08/928,861
• Time in Patent Office: 3,140 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88.01, 379/88.11, 379/88.17, 379/88.23, 379/111, 379/112, 379/133, 379/195, 379/197, 379/198, 379/265, 379/266, 379/309, 379/321, 379/901, 379/91.01, 379/93.02, 379/93.12, 379/219, 379/220, 379/260, 379/261, 379/262, 379/267, 379/265.09, 379/88.07, 379/88.13, 379/88.18, 379/88.19, 379/265.01, 379/265.02, 379/265.05, 704/249, 704/270, 704/271
• US Class Current: 379/88.17
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2473 Telephone terminals interfacing a personal computer, e.g. using an API (Application Programming Interface) details of API H04M7/0021
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/42 Graphical user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/408 Customer-specific call routing plans
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/22 Automatic class or number identification arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/323 for the arrangements providing the connection (test connection, test call, call simulation)
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42042 Notifying the called party of information on the calling party details within substation equipment H04M1/57, signalling details H04Q3/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42127 Systems providing several special services or facilities from groups H04M3/42008 - H04M3/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42161 via computer interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5183 Call or contact centers with computer-telephony arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5191 interacting with the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/523 with call distribution or queueing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5235 Dependent on call type or called number [DNIS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/00 Arrangements for interconnection between switching centres
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42

Abstract

A client-server telephone call router system as part of a customer premises system has a client-server router adapted to execute on a telephony switch, such as a public branch exchange (PBX) or other telephony switch, or on a processor connected by CTI link to a telephony switch. The telephony switch or processor executing the router is connected to a local area network (LAN) that also interconnects computer workstations proximate to telephones connected to the telephony switch. Client user interface applications run on the computer workstations, allowing clients to edit routing rules for the router, which has a list of routing rules keyed to users and workstations of the customer premises system. The editing rules are kept by the router in portions dedicated to individual users. With this system a user can edit at a workstation on the LAN his\her own routing rules, and transmit the edits to the client-server router where the rules will be followed to route calls for that user and protocol.

Claims

1. A method for routing Internet Protocol Network Telephony (IPNT) calls at customer premises having a managing processor and a plurality of agent stations coupled to the managing processor, each agent station comprising a computer with a simulated telephone connected to the Internet, the managing processor comprising a router that stores a current set of routing rules specific to and accessible and editable by a person assigned to the computer, the method comprising steps of:

(a) receiving an IPNT call at the managing processor;

(b) determining the person assigned to the computer is an intended recipient for the call;

(c) requesting routing by the managing processor from the specific set of current routing rules for the computer, accessible and editable by the person assigned to the computer; and

(d) routing the call to the computer associated with the intended recipient according to the current routing rules specific to the intended recipient.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the editable routing rules specific to the person are maintained at the computer.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the editable routing rules for the intended recipient are maintained on a central client-server router executed on a processor.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the processor is the managing processor for the customer premises.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the processor executing the client-server router is a processor separate from the managing processor.

6. The method of claim 3 wherein there are multiple computers coupled to the managing processor, and the client-server router has router-rule portions dedicated to individual ones of agents at individual ones of the computers, and wherein an individual agent, through a user interface executing on a computer to which the agent is assigned, may access the portion dedicated to that agent, and edit the routing rules therein.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the user interface comprises a graphical user interface (GUI) having icons indicating telephone calls received and for choices of disposition of telephone calls received, and including steps for an agent to precipitate actions in call routing by iconic drag-and-drop procedures.

8. The method of claim 1 comprising a step executed by the person for editing the routing rules via an interactive Graphical User Interface (GUI) executing on the intended recipient'"'"'s computer workstation.