Providing data messaging support by intercepting and processing received short message service (SMS) messages at a customer support service

• US 9,813,363 B1
• Filed: 10/21/2013
• Issued: 11/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: West Technology Group LLC (West Corporation)
• Original Assignee: West Corporation
• Inventors: Caldwell, Adam, Cordell, Jeffrey William, Boutcher, James K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Algibhah, Hamza
• Application Number:
  US14/059,084
• Time in Patent Office: 1,478 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/02 using automatic reactions or user delegation, e.g. automatic replies or chatbot-generated messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]

Abstract

A message receiving, intercepting and processing method and corresponding application and device may provide receiving a message at a message processing server, pre-processing the message to determine a particular contextual classification associated with a word included in the message and assigning the message to a predefined message bucket that has a number of automated responses. The method may also include identifying an automated response to the message that includes contextual information that is based on the parsed word from the message and processing the message to determine whether to generate the automated response and transmit the automated response to an end user device based on a confidence score.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a message at a message processing server;

pre-processing the message to determine a particular contextual classification associated with at least one word included in the message;

assigning the message to a predefined message bucket comprising a plurality of automated responses by selecting at least one of a plurality of different predefined message buckets, wherein one of the predefined message buckets has a higher relevancy rating than the other plurality of different predefined message buckets based on a relevancy rating of the particular contextual classification associated with the at least one word included in the message;

identifying an automated response to the message that includes contextual information that is based on the parsed at least one word from the message; and

processing the message to determine whether to generate the automated response and transmit the automated response to an end user device based on a confidence score;

wherein prior to assigning the message to the predefined message bucket, at least one term in the message is replaced with a known alias term linked to the predefined message bucket.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is a short message service (SMS) type.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the pre-processing the message comprises parsing at least one word from the message as having an associated response category related to the context of the at least one parsed word.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the assigned predefined message bucket has a corresponding list of responses that are relevant to the subjective content of the contextual classification associated with the at least one word included in the message.

5. An apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive a message at a message processing server; and

a processor configured to

pre-process the message to determine a particular contextual classification associated with at least one word included in the message,

assign the message to a predefined message bucket comprising a plurality of automated responses and select at least one of a plurality of different predefined message buckets, wherein one of the predefined message buckets has a higher relevancy rating than the other plurality of different predefined message buckets based on a relevancy rating of the particular contextual classification associated with the at least one word included in the message,

identify an automated response to the message that includes contextual information that is based on the parsed at least one word from the message, and

process the message to determine whether to generate the automated response and transmit the automated response to an end user device based on a confidence score;

wherein prior to assigning the message to the predefined message bucket, at least one term in the message is replaced with a known alias term linked to the predefined message bucket.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the message is a short message service (SMS) type.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the pre-process of the message comprises the processor performing a parse operation on at least one word from the message as having an associated response category related to the context of the at least one parsed word.

8. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the assigned predefined message bucket has a corresponding list of responses that are relevant to the subjective content of the contextual classification associated with the at least one word included in the message.

9. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium configured to store instructions that when executed cause a processor to perform:

receiving a message at a message processing server;

pre-processing the message to determine a particular contextual classification associated with at least one word included in the message;

assigning the message to a predefined message bucket comprising a plurality of automated responses by selecting at least one of a plurality of different predefined message buckets, wherein one of the predefined message buckets has a higher relevancy rating than the other plurality of different predefined message buckets based on a relevancy rating of the particular contextual classification associated with the at least one word included in the message;

identifying an automated response to the message that includes contextual information that is based on the parsed at least one word from the message; and

processing the message to determine whether to generate the automated response and transmit the automated response to an end user device based on a confidence score;

wherein prior to assigning the message to the predefined message bucket, at least one term in the message is replaced with a known alias term linked to the predefined message bucket.

10. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the message is a short message service (SMS) type.

11. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the pre-processing the message comprises parsing at least one word from the message as having an associated response category related to the context of the at least one parsed word.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the assigned predefined message bucket has a corresponding list of responses that are relevant to the subjective content of the contextual classification associated with the at least one word included in the message.