Call routing control using call routing scripts

• US 7,162,021 B1
• Filed: 12/05/2003
• Issued: 01/09/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Johnson, Lawrence, Smith, David D., Velella, Alberto, Twitchell, James P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Quynh H.
• Application Number:
  US10/728,610
• Time in Patent Office: 1,131 Days
• Field of Search: 379/207.14, 379/266.07, 379/207.15, 379/201.03, 379/211.01, 379/211.02, 379/212.01, 379/221.14, 379/225
• US Class Current: 379/207.14
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/523 with call distribution or queueing
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1305 Software aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13056 Routines, finite state machines
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13072 Sequence circuits for call signaling, ACD systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13103 Memory
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13107 Control equipment for a part of the connection, distributed control, co-processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/64 Distributing or queueing

Abstract

A technique for use in controlling routing of a call in a communications system is provided. In one embodiment of the technique, a call routing script is used. The script includes at least one call routing instruction that refers to a variable whose value is stored externally to the script. The value of the variable is determined by the system when the system executes the script for determining a destination for the call. The value of the variable is stored in a database, and the database is read to determine the value of the variable.

Claims

1. A method for controlling call routing by a communication system, comprising:

receiving a call;

executing a script in response to receiving said call, said script having instructions that when executed by the system control routing of said call in the system, the script including at least one call routing instruction that references a variable, a value of the variable being a telephone number of a destination of the call;

reading the value for said variable from a database, said database including a plurality of telephone numbers of destinations, said database having said value updated in response to action by a user; and

setting the variable equal to the value, to determine the destination of the call in response to the value.

2. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

reading said value of said variable from said database in response to execution of said at least one call routing instruction.

3. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

computing a variable expression, in response to execution of said at least one call routing instruction, in determining said telephone number of said destination.

4. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

executing said at least one call routing instruction in response to said value read from said database.

5. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

executing by said script said at least one call routing instruction to read a selected variable from a plurality of variables whose respective values are stored in said database.

6. The method as in claim 5, further comprising:

specifying by said respective values one of a destination telephone number, trunk group, and DNIS.

7. A communication system, comprising:

means for receiving a call;

means for executing a script in response to receiving said call, said script having instructions that when executed by the system control routing of said call in the system, the script including at least one call routing instruction that references a variable, a value of the variable being a telephone number of a destination of the call;

means for reading the value for said variable from a database, said database including a plurality of telephone numbers of destinations, said database having said value updated in response to action by a user; and

means for setting the variable equal to the value, to determine the destination of the call in response to the value.

8. The communication system of claim 7, further comprising:

means for reading said value of said variable from said database in response to execution of said at least one call routing instruction.

9. The communication system of claim 7, further comprising:

means for computing a variable expression, in response to execution of said at least one call routing instruction, in determining said telephone number of said destination.

10. The communication system of claim 7, further comprising:

means for executing said at least one call routing instruction in response to said value read from said database.

11. The communication system of claim 7, further comprising:

means for executing by said script said at least one call routing instruction to read a selected variable from a plurality of variables whose respective values are stored in said database.

12. The communication system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for specifying by said respective values one of a destination telephone number, trunk group, and DNIS.

13. A communication system, comprising:

an interface to receive a call;

a routing engine to execute a script in response to receiving said call, said script having instructions that when executed by the routing engine control routing of said call in the system, the script including at least one call routing instruction that references a variable, a value of the variable being a destination of the call;

a database, said database holding the value for said variable, said database having said value updated in response to action by a user; and

said routing engine configured to, in response to said at least one call routing instruction, read said value for said variable from said database, said routing engine further configured to set the variable equal to the value, to determine a destination of the call in response to the value.

14. The communication system as in claim 13, further comprising:

a database engine to read said value of said variable from said database in response to execution of said at least one call routing instruction.

15. The communication system as in claim 13 wherein said routing engine is further configured to compute a variable expression, in response to execution of said at least one call routing instruction, in determining said destination.

16. The communication system as in claim 13 wherein said at least one call routing instruction is configured to specify one of a telephone number, trunk group, and DNIS, to which the call is to be routed.

17. The communication system as in claim 13, wherein said routing engine is further configured to execute said at least one call routing instruction in response to said value read from said database.

18. The communication system as in claim 13, further comprising:

a retriever circuit to read a selected variable from a plurality of variables whose respective values are stored in said database.

19. The communication system as in claim 18, wherein said variables are configured to specify, said respective values, one of a destination telephone number, trunk group, and DNIS.

20. Software encoded in one or more tangible computer readable media and when executed operable to:

receive a call;

execute a script in response to receiving said call, said script having instructions that when executed control routing of said call, the script including at least one call routing instruction that references a variable, a value of the variable being a telephone number of a destination of the call;

read the value for said variable from a database, said database including a plurality of telephone numbers of destinations, said database having said value updated in response to action by a user; and

set the variable equal to the value, to determine the destination of the call in response to the value.

21. A method for controlling call routing in a communication system, the method comprising the steps of:

reading at least one call routing instruction from a call routing script the call routing instruction controlling the routing of a call to a destination, the call routing instruction including at least one variable whose value is undetermined prior to run-time of the call routing instruction,

at run-time of the call routing instruction, accessing a database external to the script and determining the value of the variable by reading a field of the database, the value of the variable being a particular trunk group that is the destination of the call; and

executing the call routing instruction using the value of the variable from the database.

22. The method of claim 21 further comprising the step of:

modifying the field of the database to associate a new value with the variable, to thereby change the operation of the call routing instruction without modifying the call routing instruction itself.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the step of modifying is performed by a user.

24. A method for controlling call routing in a communication system, the method comprising the steps of:

reading at least one call routing instruction from a call routing script, the call routing instruction controlling the routing of a call to a destination, the call routing instruction including at least one variable whose value is undetermined prior to run-time of the call routing instruction;

at run-time of the call routing instruction, accessing a database external to the script and determining the value of the variable by reading a field of the database, the value of the variable being a dialed number identification service (DNIS) that is the destination of the call; and

executing the call routing instruction using the value of the variable from the database.

25. The method of claim 24 further comprising the step of:

modifying the field of the database to associate a new value with the variable, to thereby change the operation of the call routing instruction without modifying the call routing instruction itself.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the step of modifying is performed by a user.

27. A communication system for call distribution, the communication system comprising:

a call routing engine configured to read at least one call routing instruction from a call routing script, the instruction controlling the routing of a call to a destination, the call routing instruction including at least one variable whose value is undetermined prior to run-time of the call routing instruction, the call routing engine further configured to execute the call routing instruction; and

a retriever circuit configured to access a database external to the script at run-time of the script and configured to determine the value of the variable from a field of the database, the value of the variable being a particular trunk group that is the destination of the call, the retriever circuit to supply the value to the call routing engine.

28. The communication system of claim 27 further comprising:

an interface configured to associate a new value with the variable, to thereby change the operation of the call routing instruction without modification of the call routing instruction itself.

29. The communication system of claim 28 wherein the interface is a user interface, and wherein the association of the new value with the variable is in response to a user action.

30. A communication system for call distribution, the communication system comprising:

a call routing engine configured to read at least one call routing instruction from a call routing script, the instruction controlling the routing of a call to a destination, the call routing instruction including at least one variable whose value is undetermined prior to run-time of the call routing instruction, the call routing engine further configured to execute the call routing instruction; and

a retriever circuit configured to access a database external to the script at run-time of the script and configured to determine the value of the variable from a field of the database, the value of the variable being a dialed number identification service (DNIS) that is the destination of the call, the retriever circuit to supply the value to the call routing engine.

31. The communication system of claim 30 further comprising:

an interface configured to associate a new value with the variable, to thereby change the operation of the call routing instruction without modification of the call routing instruction itself.

32. The communication system of claim 31 wherein the interface is a user interface, and wherein the association of the new value with the variable is in response to a user action.

33. A method comprising:

reading at least one call routing instruction from a call routing script, the call routing instruction controlling the routing of a call to a destination, the call routing instruction including a variable expression whose value when evaluated is the destination of the call, the value of the variable expression undetermined prior to run-time of the call routing instruction;

at run-time of the call routing instruction, evalulating the variable expression in part by accessing a database external to the script;

executing the call routing instruction using the value of the variable expression.

34. The method of claim 33 wherein the variable expression is an index into an array in the database, which stores a mapping of one or more caller-entered digits to call destinations.

35. The method of claim 33 further comprising:

modifying at least one field of the database to change the value of the variable expression when executed, without modifying the call routing instruction.

36. An apparatus comprising:

a call routing engine configured to read at least one call routing instruction from a call routing script, the instruction controlling the routing of a call to a destination, the call routing instruction including a variable expression whose value when evaluated is the destination of the call, the value of the variable expression undetermined prior to run-time of the call routing instruction,

a retriever circuit configured to access data in a database external to the script at run-time of the script; and

wherein the call routing engine is further configured to evaluate the value of the variable expression in part using the data from the database, and to execute the call routing instruction using the value of the variable expression.

37. The apparatus of claim 36 wherein the variable expression is an index into an array in the database, which stores a mapping of one or more caller-entered digits to call destinations.

38. The apparatus of claim 36 further comprising:

an interface configured to modify at least one field of the database to change the value of the variable expression when executed, without modification of the call routing instruction.