Report data capture via billing module

• US 7,924,991 B2
• Filed: 03/12/2009
• Issued: 04/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Book, Nancy Ann, Smith, Brian, Nolan, Denis F., Crockett, Susanne Marie
• Primary Examiner(s): TIEU, BINH KIEN
• Application Number:
  US12/402,575
• Publication Number:
  US 20090168980A1
• Time in Patent Office: 761 Days
• Field of Search: 379/112.06, 379/114.01, 379/111, 379/112.07, 379/114.28, 379/114.29, 379/121.01, 379/121.04, 379/121.05, 379/126
• US Class Current: 379/112.06
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/58 based on statistics of usage or network monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0188 Network monitoring; statistics on usage on called/calling number

Abstract

A system for reporting telecommunications system usage data related to a telecommunications service. The system includes a network controller that captures telecommunications service billing data and reporting data, and populates a base module with the billing data and a local use module with the reporting data. The system also includes a storage system that stores the base module and the appended local use module, and a reporting system that generates billing reports from the base module and various user-selectable reports from the appended local use module.

Claims

1. A system for reporting telecommunications system usage data related to a telecommunications service, comprising:

a network controller that captures telecommunications service billing data and reporting data, that populates a base module with the billing data, that populates a local use module with the reporting data, and that appends the local use module to the base module;

a storage system that stores the base module and the appended local use module received from the network controller; and

a reporting system that retrieves the base module and the appended local use module from the storage system, and that generates billing reports from the base module and that generates various user-selectable reports from the appended local use module.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the base module is populated using a standardized format, and the appended local use module is populated using a variable user-defined format.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the storage system uses the data in the base module, and ignores the data in the appended local use module.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the billing data in the stored base module and the reporting data in the stored appended local use module are updated by the network controller.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the network controller updates the billing data in the stored base module at user-established first intervals, and updates the reporting data in the appended local use module at user-established second intervals, with the user-established second intervals being shorter than the user-established first intervals.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the reporting system periodically retrieves the updated base module and updated appended local use module from the storage system at user-established third intervals.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the reporting data in the appended local use module is call transfer service data.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the call transfer service data includes, for at least one call, a record identifier, a record date, a call transfer sequence number, and a transfer indicator indicating whether a caller for the call is a subscriber to the call transfer service.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the call transfer sequence number associates all legs of a call.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the call transfer service data further includes a module length, a terminating switch identifier, a final trunk group, a transfer to a toll free number, a transfer indicator, and a dialed number.

11. A method for reporting telecommunications system usage data related to a telecommunications service, comprising:

capturing telecommunications service billing data and reporting data;

populating a base module with the billing data and a local use module with the reporting data;

appending the local use module to the base module;

storing the base module and the appended local use module in a storage system;

retrieving the base module and appended local use module from the storage system by a reporting system; and

generating billing reports from the base module, and various user-selectable reports from the appended local use module, by the reporting system.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the base module is populated using a standardized format, and the appended local use module is populated using a variable user-defined format.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the billing data in the base module is updated at first intervals, and the reporting data in the appended local use module is updated at second intervals, with the second intervals being shorter than the first intervals.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the reporting system retrieves the base module and the appended local use module from the storage system at third intervals.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the reporting data in the appended local use module is call transfer service data.

16. A tangible computer-readable storage medium encoded with an executable computer program for reporting telecommunications system usage data related to a telecommunications service, comprising:

a capturing segment for capturing telecommunications service billing data and reporting data;

a populating segment that populates a base module with the billing data and a local use module with the reporting data;

an appending segment that appends the local use module to the base module;

a storing segment that stores the base module and the appended local use module;

a retrieving segment that retrieves the stored base module and appended local use module; and

a reporting segment that generates billing reports from the retrieved base module, and various user-selectable reports from the retrieved appended local use module.

17. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the populating segment populates the base module using a standardized format, and populates the appended local use module using a variable user-defined format.

18. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 16, including an updating segment that updates the billing data in the stored base module at first intervals, and that updates the reporting data in the stored appended local use module at second intervals, with the second intervals being shorter than the first intervals.

19. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the retrieving segment retrieves the base module and the appended local use module at third intervals.

20. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the reporting data in the appended local use module is call transfer service data.