Voice response systems browsing

• US 9,313,329 B2
• Filed: 11/02/2009
• Issued: 04/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Andrews, Peter J., Faisman, Alexander, Grabarnik, Genady, Shwartz, Larisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Huynh, Van D
• Application Number:
  US12/610,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20110103559A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,353 Days
• Field of Search: 379/52, 379/88.11, 379/88.01, 379/88.08, 379/8.17, 379/88.14, 455/563, 704/246
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72478 for hearing-impaired users
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/066 Telephone sets adapted for data transmision
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/254 where the visual mode comprises menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/74 with voice recognition means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42391 where the subscribers are hearing-impaired persons, e.g. telephone devices for the deaf
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems

Abstract

A method for voice browsing an integrated voice response server is described. The method includes visually displaying a representation of a choice tree for a service, where the service includes an audio menu of available actions. A selection of an action displayed in the representation is received. The method also includes automatically navigating the audio menu in order to initiate the selected action. Apparatus and computer readable media are also described.

Claims

1. A method performed by a data processor that executes computer program code stored in a non-transitory computer readable media to perform a series of operations, the operations comprising:

visually displaying a graphical representation of a telephone query tree that comprises a multi-stage audio menu of a service,

where the displayed graphical representation comprises a plurality of available actions configured to be selectable by a user who calls the service,

where each stage of the multi-stage audio menu is associated with a list of choices presented audibly,

where each list of choices comprises at least one of;

a choice to perform one of the available actions and a choice to navigate to another stage of the multi-stage audio menu,

where the graphical representation of the telephone query tree comprises a root node, a plurality of interior nodes and at least one leaf node,

where the root node indicates an initial point of the user'"'"'s communication with the service,

where each interior node is associated with a stage in the multi-stage audio menu, and

where each leaf node is associated with one of;

an available action that ends the user'"'"'s call to the service or an available action that requires user attention;

receiving, at the data processor, a selection of a leaf node made by the user; and

determining, by the data processor, a series of choices which result in navigating through the multi-stage audio menu in order to initiate the available action associated with the selected leaf node;

navigating, by the data processor on behalf of the user, the audio menu in accordance with the determined series of choices, and

one of, confirming to the user a completion of the navigation of the audio menu on behalf of the user, and connecting, based on the completion of the navigation, the user to a representative of the service,

where determining the series of choices and navigating comprise translating the user'"'"'s selection to appropriate voice signals and tone signals and transmitting the voice signals and tone signals to the service.

2. The method of claim 1, where the operations further comprise:

initiating, by the data processor, contact with the service; and

navigating, by the data processor, through the audio menu in order to identify a structure of the audio menu and all actions available via the audio menu.

3. The method of claim 2, where identifying the structure of the audio menu comprises:

receiving, at the data processor, an audio message comprising an identification of available choices;

performing, by the data processor, voice recognition on the audio message in order to identify the available choices; and

analyzing, by the data processor, the available choices in order to determine the structure of the audio menu and the available actions.

4. The method of claim 2, where identifying the structure of the audio menu comprises receiving a message signal comprising an identification of the structure of the audio menu and the available actions.

5. The method of claim 1, where navigating the audio menu comprises:

in response to receiving a prompt for a selection of a choice from the audio menu, generating, by a computer, a response; and

transmitting the response.

6. The method of claim 5, where the response is an audio message.

7. The method of claim 1, where navigating the audio menu comprises, in response to the selected action being initiated, alerting a user.

8. The method of claim 1, where visually displaying the graphical representation of the telephone query tree comprises visually displaying the graphical representation on a screen associated with a telephony device.

9. The method of claim 1, where the operations further comprise:

receiving, by the data processor, an audio message comprising an identification of available choices for a stage in the multi-stage audio menu;

performing, by the data processor, voice recognition on the audio message in order to identify the available choices for the stage in the audio menu;

for each available choice, selecting, by the data processor, the available choice and converting, by the data processor, a voice message for the available choice into a text message;

analyzing, by the data processor, the available choices in order to determine the structure of the audio menu; and

generating, by the data processor, a representation of the telephone query tree based on the determined structure, where the representation comprises the text message for each of the available choices.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a display configured to visually display a graphical representation of a telephone query tree that comprises a multi-stage audio menu of a service,

where the displayed graphical representation comprises a plurality of available actions configured to be selectable by a user who calls the service,

where each stage of the multi-stage audio menu is associated with a list of choices presented audibly,

where each list of choices comprises at least one of;

a choice to perform one of the available actions and a choice to navigate to another stage of the multi-stage audio menu,

where the graphical representation of the telephone query tree comprises a root node, a plurality of interior nodes and at least one leaf node,

where the root node indicates an initial point of the user'"'"'s communication with the service,

where each interior node is associated with a stage in the multi-stage audio menu, and

where each leaf node is associated with one of;

an available action that ends the user'"'"'s call to the service or an available action that requires user attention;

an input configured to receive a selection of a leaf node made by the user;

a processor configured to determine a series of choices which result in navigating through the multi-stage audio menu on behalf of the user in order to initiate the available action associated with the selected leaf node and to navigate, on behalf of the user, the audio menu in accordance with the determined series of choices, and

one of, confirming to the user a completion of the navigation of the audio menu on behalf of the user, and connecting, based on the completion of the navigation of the audio menu by the data processor, the user to a representative of the service,

where the processor determining the series of choices which result in navigating through the multi-stage menu comprises the processor translating the user'"'"'s selection to appropriate voice signals and tone signals and transmitting the voice signals and tone signals to the service.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising an interface configured:

to initiate contact with the service; and

to navigate through the audio menu in order to identify a structure of the audio menu and all actions available via the audio menu.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising an interface configured:

to receive an audio message comprising an identification of available choices, via the interface;

to perform voice recognition on the audio message in order to identify the available choices; and

to analyze the available choices in order to determine the structure of the audio menu and the available actions.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, where the processor is configured, in response to determining the selected action being initiated, to alert a user.

14. A non-transitory computer readable medium tangibly encoded with a computer program executable by a processor to perform operations comprising:

visually displaying a graphical representation of a telephone query tree that comprises a multi-stage audio menu of a service,

where the displayed graphical representation comprises a plurality of available actions configured to be selectable by a user who calls the service,

where each stage of the multi-stage audio menu is associated with a list of choices presented audibly,

where each list of choices comprises at least one of;

a choice to perform one of the available actions and a choice to navigate to another stage of the multi-stage audio menu,

where the graphical representation of the telephone query tree comprises a root node, a plurality of interior nodes and at least one leaf node,

where the root node indicates an initial point of the user'"'"'s communication with the service, where each interior node is associated with a stage in the multi-stage audio menu, and

where each leaf node is associated with one of;

an available action that ends the user'"'"'s call to the service or an available action that requires user attention;

receiving, at the data processor, a selection of a leaf node made by the user; and

determining, by the data processor, a series of choices which result in navigating through the multi-stage audio menu in order to initiate the available action associated with the selected leaf node;

navigating, by the data processor on behalf of the user, the audio menu in accordance with the determined series of choices, and

one of, confirming to the user a completion of the navigation of the audio menu on behalf of the user, and connecting, based on the completion of the navigation, the user to a representative of the service,

where determining the series of choices and navigating comprise translating the user'"'"'s selection to appropriate voice signals and tone signals and transmitting the voice signals and tone signals to the service.

15. The computer readable medium of claim 14, where the operations further comprise:

querying a storage repository to determine if the repository contains the representation of the telephone query tree and, if it does not, then

initiating contact with the service and generating the representation of the telephone query tree based on audio messages received from the service when presenting the multi-stage audio menu.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 15, where:

initiating contact with the service comprises calling the service to initiate voice contact with the service; and

navigating through the audio menu in order to identify a structure of the audio menu and all actions available via the audio menu.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16, where identifying the structure of the audio menu comprises:

receiving an audio message comprising an identification of available choices;

performing voice recognition on the audio message in order to identify the available choices; and

analyzing the available choices in order to determine the structure of the audio menu and the available actions.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 14, where navigating the audio menu comprises:

in response to receiving a prompt for a selection of a choice from the audio menu, generating, by the data processor, a response; and

transmitting the response.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 14, where navigating the audio menu comprises, in response to the selected action being initiated, alerting a user.