Multi-mode message routing and management

• US 6,999,565 B1
• Filed: 02/01/2000
• Issued: 02/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: EnvoyWorldWide, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Mathews, Robert, Kirtley, William H., Warden, Gregory, Kuszewski, Robert, Delaney, Jeffrey, Page, David, Sarabura, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoosain, Allan
• Application Number:
  US09/496,170
• Time in Patent Office: 2,205 Days
• Field of Search: 379/67.1, 379/70, 379/76, 379/79, 379/80, 379/84, 379/88.01, 379/88.04, 379 8811- 8812, 379/88.13, 379/88.17, 379/88.22, 379/88.25, 45412-414, 454/61, 454/45
• US Class Current: 379/88.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2083 Confirmation by serviced party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4536 Voicemail combined with text-based messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5322 for recording text messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems

Abstract

Transmission of messages composed on one or more input devices to a single or multiple recipients by means of one or plural communication modes is facilitated. Such communication modes may include conventional or wireless telephone, facsimile transmission, pager, e-mail, postal mail or courier. Thus, a message may be directed to a single recipient via multiple modes, such as e-mail and fax, in order to ensure the earliest possible receipt of the message; or may be directed to multiple recipients by a single mode or by different modes. In the case of multiple-mode delivery, “escalation” rules may specify conditions under which different delivery modes may be sequentially employed. Automatic follow-up to determine whether a message has been received, as well as automatic sender notification upon confirmation of receipt, may be employed. The system is capable of sending messages having embedded questions, and facilitating multi-question surveys.

Claims

1. A message notification system comprising:

a sender interface comprising an audio message compose mechanism to receive from the sender a composed audio message; and

a telephony message delivery management mechanism to manage delivery of the audio message via telephone calls to persons answering telephones and to answering machines, the delivery management mechanism comprising a transaction server, a database, a scheduler, and a message queue.

2. The message notification system according to claim 1, wherein the sender interface comprises an audio message selection mechanism to select delivery of an audio message to a plural set of recipients via a telephony route.

3. The message notification system according to claim 2, wherein the audio message selection mechanism comprises a voice message selection mechanism to select delivery of a voice message.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the sender interface comprises an audio message selection mechanism to select delivery of an audio message to at least one recipient via a telephony route.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the composed audio message comprises an audio segment of a composite message intended for telephony delivery, the composite message further comprising one or more non-audio segments intended for another mode of delivery.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the message compose mechanism comprises an audio header portion and an audio trailer portion, the audio header portion comprising an audio header message to be provided to a recipient telling the recipient he or she is about to receive a message from the sender, the audio trailer portion comprising an audio trailer message to facilitate a response to the message by the recipient.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the sender interface interaction mechanism comprises a transaction server to instruct questions to be asked of the sender via the sender interface.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the message queue comprises a job queue to implement and schedule message jobs.

9. A message notification system comprising:

a sender interface, the sender interface comprising an audio message selection mechanism to select delivery of an audio message to a plural set of recipients via a telephony route, the sender interface further comprising an audio message compose mechanism to receive from the sender a composed audio message; and

a telephony message delivery management mechanism to manage delivery of the audio message via telephone calls to persons answering telephones and to answering machines, the delivery management mechanism comprising a transaction server, a database, a scheduler, and a message queue wherein the transaction server accesses the database, the scheduler, and the message queue, the delivery management mechanism further comprising an answer detection mechanism to detect when a call for delivery of the audio message is answered by a person answering a telephone and when the call is answered by an answering machine, the delivery management mechanism further comprising a personal delivery mechanism and further comprising an answering machine delivery mechanism;

the personal delivery mechanism delivering one message when the call is detected to be answered by a person, and the answering machine delivery mechanism delivering another message when the call is detected to be answered by an answering machine.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the sender interface comprises a browser.

11. The system according to claim 9, wherein the sender interface comprises a client computer.

12. The system according to claim 9, wherein the sender interface comprises a computer with customer access to a notification server and a telephone.

13. The system according to claim 9, wherein the sender interface comprises a telephone.

14. The system according to claim 9, wherein the sender interface comprises a portion of a telephony server to respond to spoken customer commands.

15. The system according to claim 9, wherein the audio message comprises a voice message.

16. The system according to claim 9, wherein the composed audio message comprises an audio segment of a composite message intended for telephony delivery, the composite message further comprising one or more non-audio segments intended for another mode of delivery.

17. The system according to claim 9, wherein the message compose mechanism comprises an audio header portion and an audio trailer portion, the audio header portion comprising an audio header message to be provided to a recipient telling the recipient he or she is about to receive a message from the sender, and the audio trailer portion comprising an audio trailer message to facilitate a response to the message by the recipient.

18. A message notification system comprising:

a sender interface comprising an address book selection interface, the address book selection interface comprising contact addresses presented to the sender for selection as message recipients, the message recipients comprising human recipients, the sender interface further comprising a message selection mechanism to select delivery of a message to a plural set of selected recipients via a communications route, the address book selection interface comprising a message type categorization mechanism to identify contacts in categories likely to receive similar messages, so that the sender selecting through the address book selection interface a given category causes a contact selection display to be presented to the sender of individually selectable contacts limited to the given category; and

a message delivery management mechanism to manage delivery of the message to the selected message recipients, the delivery management mechanism comprising a transaction server, a database, a scheduler, and a message queue;

wherein the transaction server accesses the database, the scheduler, and the message queue.

19. The system according to claim 18, wherein the sender interface comprises a browser.

20. The system according to claim 18, wherein the sender interface comprises a client computer.

21. The system according to claim 18, wherein the sender interface comprises a computer with customer access to a notification server and a telephone.

22. The system according to claim 18, wherein the sender interface comprises a telephone.

23. The system according to claim 18, wherein the sender interface comprises a portion of a telephony server to respond to spoken commands.

24. The system according to claim 18, wherein the selection of a given category causes a contact selection display to be presented to the sender of individually selectable contacts in the given category, so that all or a subset of contacts in the given category can be selected as recipients and sent the message.