Automated transportation call-taking system

• US 20030235282A1
• Filed: 02/11/2003
• Published: 12/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Unified Dispatch
• Original Assignee: Unified Dispatch
• Inventors: Sichelman, Ted M., Tepper, Jason, Oh, Joseph J., DeGennaro, Roberto C., Kennedy, James M. III, Malvin, Darren, Nunn, Jefferson P.
• Application Number:
  US10/365,704
• Publication Number:
  US 20030235282A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/201.03
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08355 Routing methods
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/30 Transportation; Communications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4938 comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/50 Centralised arrangements for answering calls; Centralised arrangements for recording messages for absent or busy subscribers H04M3/487 takes precedence; centralised dictation systems H04M11/10; Centralised arrangements for recording messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services

Abstract

An automated, scalable call-taking system integrates with existing telephony infrastructures and enables, through use of speech recognition, DTMF detection, text-to-speech (TTS), and other related software or hardware, the inputting, access, and retrieval of information to and from multiple back-end dispatch and booking systems without the need for a human operator.

Claims

1. A method for providing automated transportation services, the method comprising:

receiving a request for a transportation service, the request including identifying information about the requester;

determining an availability of the transportation service; and

responsive to the availability of the transportation service, automatically scheduling the transportation service for the requester using the identifying information about the requester.

2. A system for providing automated transportation services, the system comprising:

a telephony gateway for routing telephony services;

a speech server communicatively coupled to the telephony gateway for providing speech recognition services;

an interface server, communicatively coupled to the speech server, for providing an interface between the speech server and a transportation services booking system;

a transportation services booking system, communicatively coupled to the interface server, for providing customer information and performing dispatch services; and

wherein the interface server receives requests for transportation services and automatically provides dispatch instructions to the transportation services booking system in response to the requests.