Voice-activated customer service assistant

• US 10,553,198 B1
• Filed: 09/05/2017
• Issued: 02/04/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: West Technology Group LLC (West Corporation)
• Original Assignee: West Corporation
• Inventors: McCobb, Gerald M., Stirk, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Bost, Dwayne D
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brinich, Stephen M
• Application Number:
  US15/695,131
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• Field of Search: 704257-258, 704275, 7042701, 704246, 704270, 704261, 704231, 704E15045, 704E15039, 379 8801, 379 8822, 379 8802
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/016 After-sales
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/027 Concept to speech synthesisers; Generation of natural phrases from machine-based concepts generation of parameters for speech synthesis out of text G10L13/08
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 17/22 Interactive procedures; Man-machine interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/223 Execution procedure of a spoken command

Abstract

A method, apparatus and non-transitory computer readable storage medium, in one embodiment, interpreting at least one input from a user via a wireless device, receiving at least one user account with the at least one input, deriving at least one representation of user intent, identifying at least one task based on the at least one representation of user intent, contacting at least one service to perform the identified at least one task and synthesizing speech to communicate a result of the contact to the wireless device.

Claims

1. A method of accessing a service center associated with a user account, the method comprising:

receiving, via an application controller, at least one input from a user associated with the user account via a wireless device;

identifying, via the application controller, the user account as associated with the user based on an analysis of the at least one input;

identifying, via the application controller, a task associated with the user and the service center based on the analysis of the at least one input;

requesting, via the application controller, performance of the task by the service center;

receiving, via the application controller, a response from the service center;

processing, via the application controller, the response from the service center to identify calendar information associated with the response;

generating, via the application controller, both a speech response and a visual response based on the response from the service center and the calendar information; and

communicating, via the application controller, the speech response and the visual response to the wireless device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing, via the application controller, the user account based on the at least one input.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

authorizing the user account.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, via the application controller, a response to the speech response and the visual response from the wireless device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving the at least one input from a user further comprises:

receiving a verbal input; and

identifying a meaning of the verbal input via sematic interpretation.

6. An apparatus for accessing a service center associated with a user account, the apparatus comprising:

a processor configured to;

receive at least one input from a user associated with the user account via a wireless device;

identify the user account as associated with the user based on an analysis of the at least one input;

identifying a task associated with the user and the service center based on the analysis of the at least one input;

request performance of the task by the service center;

receiving, via the application controller, a response from the service center;

process the response from the service center to identify calendar information associated with the response;

generate both a speech response and a visual response based on the response from the service center and the calendar information; and

communicate the speech response and the visual response to the wireless device.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the processor is further configured to:

access the user account based on with at least one input.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to:

authorize the user account.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive a response to the speech response and the visual response from the wireless device.

10. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein, when the processor is configured to receive a response to the speech response and the visual response from the wireless device, the processor is further configured to:

receive a verbal input; and

identify a meaning of the verbal input via sematic interpretation.

11. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium configured to store instructions that cause a processor to access a service center associated with a user account, the instructions causing the processor to perform:

receiving, via an application controller, at least one input from a user associated with the user account via a wireless device;

identifying, via the application controller, the user account as associated with the user based on an analysis of the at least one input;

identifying, via the application controller, a task associated with the user and the service center based on the analysis of the at least one input;

requesting, via the application controller, performance of the task by the service center;

receiving, via the application controller, a response from the service center;

processing, via the application controller, the response from the service center to identify calendar information associated with the response;

generate, via the application controller, both a speech response and a visual response based on the response from the service center and the calendar information; and

communicating, via the application controller, the speech response and the visual response to the wireless device.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 11, further configured to store instructions that when executed causes the processor to:

receiving a verbal input; and

identifying a meaning of the verbal input via sematic interpretation.