Processes and systems for creating and for managing trouble tickets and work orders

• US 7,647,391 B1
• Filed: 09/04/2001
• Issued: 01/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Marcopulos, Judy M., Jean, David R., Scherer, Rita H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Etienne; Ario
• Assistant Examiner(s): Burgess; Barbara N
• Application Number:
  US09/946,398
• Time in Patent Office: 3,052 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/217, 709/219, 709/223, 709/224, 709/246, 705/26, 705/1, 705/9, 705/11, 705/22, 705/28, 705/29, 707/1, 707/2, 707/3, 707/4, 707/200, 707/202, 379/1.01, 379/9.03, 379/201.1, 379/201.2
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring

Abstract

Processes and systems are disclosed for creating and for managing trouble tickets and work orders. One embodiment includes communicating with a communications network and receiving a request to create a work order. The work order is initiated and identified with a work order number. The work order number includes a telephone number experiencing the problem. The work order is then distributed to clients, and the work order is identified and tracked using a customer'"'"'s telephone number. A trouble ticket is similarly managed, with the trouble ticket describing a problem in a communications system. Here the trouble ticket is initiated and the work item number is assigned. The trouble ticket is then distributed to clients, and the trouble ticket is identified and tracked using a customer'"'"'s telephone number.

Claims

1. A process of managing a plurality of work orders each associated with a corresponding repair of a problem, the process comprising:

for each of the plurality of work orders, communicating with a communications network, having a computer system with a system memory device and central processor, and receiving a request to create a corresponding work order, the request communicating from a requester;

receiving an appointment for a field visit to repair the problem;

identifying the request and the appointment with a work order number, the work order number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem;

identifying each of the plurality of work orders with a corresponding work order number, the corresponding work order number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem;

communicating with the communications network and returning the work order number to the requestor;

identifying the work order using the work order number;

distributing the plurality of work orders to clients by combining two or more work orders of the plurality of work orders to form at least a first group of work orders and a second group of work orders, wherein the first group of work orders share similar characteristics and the second group of work orders share similar characteristics, wherein the work orders are combined by correlating the work orders based on a first predetermined correlation parameter and a second predetermined correlation parameter;

annotating the work orders;

prioritizing the work orders based on the annotations;

annotating the work orders with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) information associated with a customer'"'"'s service, ii) facility information associated with the customer'"'"'s service, and iii) information associated with equipment used by the customer;

screening the work orders for a known indication of trouble based on at least one user-defined screening criteria;

receiving a result of a test of the telephone number experiencing the problem;

analyzing the result of the test; and

closing the work order when the problem experienced by the telephone number is cleared.

2. A computer program product for managing a plurality of work orders each associated with a corresponding repair of a problem, the computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium readable by a processing circuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuit for facilitating a method comprising;

for each of the plurality of work orders;

communicating with a communications network, having a computer system with a system memory device and central processor, and receiving a request to create a corresponding work order, the request communicating from a requestor;

receiving an appointment for a field visit to repair the problem;

identifying the request and the appointment with a work order number, the work order number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem;

communicating with the communications network and returning the work order number to the requestor;

identifying the work order using the work order number; and

communicating with the communications network and distributing the plurality of work orders along the communications network by combining two or more work orders of the plurality of work orders to form at least a first group of work orders and a second group of work orders, wherein the first group of work orders share similar characteristics, and the second group of work orders share similar characteristics, wherein the work orders are combined by correlating the work orders based on a first predetermined correlation parameter and a second predetermined correlation parameter;

annotating the work orders;

prioritizing the work orders based on the annotations;

annotating the work orders with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) information associated with a customer'"'"'s service, ii) facility information associated with the customer'"'"'s service, and iii) information associated with equipment used by the customer;

screening the work orders for a known indication of trouble based on at least one user-defined screening criteria;

receiving a result of a test of the telephone number experiencing the problem;

analyzing the result of the test; and

closing the work order when the problem experienced by the telephone number is cleared.

3. A process for creating and for managing a plurality of trouble tickets, each trouble ticket describing a problem in a communications system, the process comprising:

for each of the plurality of trouble tickets, communicating with a communications network, having a computer system with a system memory device and central processor, and receiving a request to create the trouble ticket, the request communicated from a requestor;

initiating the trouble ticket;

assigning a work item number to each of the plurality of trouble tickets, the work item number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem with the communications system;

communicating with the communications network and distributing each of the plurality of trouble tickets to clients by combining two or more trouble tickets of the plurality of trouble tickets to form at least a first group of trouble tickets and a second group of trouble tickets, wherein the first group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, and the second group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, wherein the work orders are combined by correlating the work orders based on a first predetermined correlation parameter and a second predetermined correlation parameter;

annotating the trouble tickets;

prioritizing the trouble tickets based on the annotations;

annotating the trouble tickets with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) information associated with a customer'"'"'s service, ii) facility information associated with the customer'"'"'s service, and iii) information associated with equipment used by the customer;

screening the trouble tickets for a known indication of trouble based on at least one user-defined screening criteria;

receiving a result of a test of the telephone number experiencing the problem;

analyzing the result of the test; and

closing the trouble ticket when the problem experienced by the telephone number is cleared;

tracking and managing the trouble ticket using a customer'"'"'s telephone number.

4. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising annotating the trouble ticket with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) customer information from a Customer Record Information System, ii) facility information from a Loop Facility Assignment Control System, and iii) equipment information from a switching system.

5. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising prioritizing the trouble ticket according to an origin of the request.

6. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising prioritizing the trouble ticket according to at least one of a date, a time, and an origin of the request.

7. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, wherein receiving results of the test of the communication system comprises receiving results of a mechanized loop test.

8. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, wherein receiving results of the test of the communication system comprises receiving results of an automated local loop test system.

9. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, wherein receiving results of the test of the communication system comprises receiving results of a digital subscriber line test system.

10. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, wherein receiving results of the test of the communication system comprises receiving results of a fiber optic test system.

11. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, wherein receiving results of the test of the communication system comprises receiving results of an Integrated Services Digital Network test system.

12. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising assigning a status code to the trouble ticket, the status code assigned according to the results of the test.

13. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 12, further comprising routing the trouble ticket according to the status code.

14. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 12, further comprising routing the trouble ticket according to the results of the test.

15. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 12, further comprising routing the trouble ticket according to the problem with the telephone number.

16. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising assigning a status code to the trouble ticket, the status code assigned according to the problem with the telephone number.

17. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising updating the work order with a change in status as the work order progresses from creating to final closure.

18. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising closing the trouble ticket when the problem with the telephone number is cleared.

19. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 18, further comprising closing a related trouble ticket, the related trouble ticket having a common cause with the trouble ticket.

20. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 18, further comprising communicating the trouble ticket to a billing system to update billing records.

21. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 18, further comprising communicating a message to the requester when the trouble ticket is closed.

22. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 18, further comprising archiving, for subsequent retrieval, at least one of i) the trouble ticket, ii) the problem, and iii) a status code indicating the problem.

23. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 18, further comprising archiving, for subsequent retrieval and for a user-defined interval of time, at least one of i) the trouble ticket, ii) the problem, and iii) a status code indicating the problem.

24. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 3, further comprising communicating the trouble ticket to a billing system to update billing records.

25. A computer program product for creating and for managing a trouble ticket, the trouble ticket describing a problem in a communications system, the computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium readable by a processing circuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuit for facilitating a method comprising;

communicating with a communications network, having a computer system with a system memory device and central processor, and receiving a request to create the trouble ticket, the request communicated from a requestor;

initiating the trouble ticket;

assigning a work item number to the trouble ticket, the work item number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem;

distributing each of a plurality of created trouble tickets by correlating the trouble ticket with an existing trouble ticket having a similar characteristic by combining two or more trouble tickets of the plurality of created trouble tickets to form at least a first group of trouble tickets and a second group of trouble tickets, wherein the first group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, and the second group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, wherein the work orders are combined by correlating the work orders based on a first predetermined correlation parameter and a second predetermined correlation parameter;

annotating the trouble tickets;

prioritizing the trouble tickets based on the annotations;

annotating the trouble tickets with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) information associated with a customer'"'"'s service, ii) facility information associated with the customer'"'"'s service, and iii) information associated with equipment used by the customer;

screening the trouble tickets for a known indication of trouble based on at least one user-defined screening criteria;

receiving a result of a test of the telephone number experiencing the problem;

analyzing the result of the test; and

closing the trouble ticket when the problem experienced by the telephone number is cleared;

wherein the computer program tracks and manages the trouble ticket using a customer'"'"'s telephone number.

26. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket, the trouble ticket describing a problem in a communications system, the process comprising:

communicating with a communications network, having a computer system with a system memory device and central processor, and receiving a request to create the trouble ticket, the request communicated from a requestor;

communicating with the communications network and requesting that the trouble ticket be initiated;

requesting that a work item number be assigned to the trouble ticket, the work item number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem;

for each of a plurality of trouble tickets, communicating with the communications network and requesting that the trouble ticket be distributed to clients by combining two or more trouble tickets of the plurality of trouble tickets to form at least a first group of trouble tickets and a second group of trouble tickets, wherein the first group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, and the second group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, wherein the work orders are combined by correlating the work orders based on a first predetermined correlation parameter and a second predetermined correlation parameter;

annotating the trouble tickets;

prioritizing the trouble tickets based on the annotations;

annotating the trouble tickets with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) information associated with a customer'"'"'s service, ii) facility information associated with the customer'"'"'s service, and iii) information associated with equipment used by the customer;

requesting screening the trouble tickets for a known indication of trouble based on at least one user-defined screening criteria;

requesting results of a test of the telephone number experiencing the problem;

requesting analysis of the result of the test; and

requesting closing the trouble ticket when the problem experienced by the telephone wherein the process identifies and tracks the trouble ticket using a customer'"'"'s telephone number.

27. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be annotated with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising at least one of i) customer information from a Customer Record Information System, ii) facility information from a Loop Facility Assignment Control System, and iii) equipment information from a switching system.

28. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be prioritized according to an origin of the request.

29. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be prioritized according to at least one of a date, a time, and an origin of the request.

30. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, wherein requesting results of the test of the communication system comprises requesting results of a mechanized loop test.

31. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, wherein requesting results of the test of the communication system comprises requesting results of an automated local loop test system.

32. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, wherein requesting results of the test of the communication system comprises requesting results of a digital subscriber line test system.

33. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, wherein requesting results of the test of the communication system comprises requesting results of a fiber optic test system.

34. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, wherein requesting results of the test of the communication system comprises requesting results of an Integrated Services Digital Network test system.

35. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting a status code be assigned to the trouble ticket, the status code assigned according to the results of the test.

36. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 35, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be routed according to the status code.

37. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 35, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be routed according to the results of the test.

38. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 35, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be routed according to the problem with the telephone number.

39. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that a status code be assigned to the trouble ticket, the status code assigned according to the problem with the telephone number.

40. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that the work order be updated with a change in status as the work order progresses from creating to final closure.

41. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that a related trouble ticket be closed, the related trouble ticket having a common cause with the trouble ticket.

42. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be communicated to a billing system to update billing records.

43. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that a message be communicated to the requester when the trouble ticket is closed.

44. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that at least one of i) the trouble ticket, ii) the problem, and iii) a status code indicating the problem be archived for subsequent retrieval.

45. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that at least one of i) the trouble ticket, ii) the problem, and iii) a status code indicating the problem be archived for subsequent retrieval and for a user-defined interval of time.

46. A process for creating and for managing a trouble ticket according to claim 26, further comprising requesting that the trouble ticket be communicated to a billing system to update billing records.

47. A computer program product for creating and for managing a trouble ticket, the trouble ticket describing a problem in a communications system, the computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium readable by a processing circuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuit for facilitating a method comprising;

communicating with a communications network, having a computer system with a system memory device and central processor, and receiving a request to create a trouble ticket;

communicating with the communications network and requesting that the trouble ticket be initiated;

requesting that a work item number be assigned to the trouble ticket, the work item number comprising a telephone number experiencing the problem;

for each of a plurality of trouble tickets, communicating with the communications network and requesting that the trouble ticket be distributed to clients by combining two or more trouble tickets of the plurality of trouble tickets to form at least a first group of trouble tickets and a second group of trouble tickets, wherein the first group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, and the second group of trouble tickets share similar characteristics, wherein the work orders are combined by correlating the work orders based on a first predetermined correlation parameter and a second predetermined correlation parameter;

annotating the trouble tickets;

prioritizing the trouble tickets based on the annotations;

annotating the trouble tickets with information from a telephone line record, the information from the telephone line record comprising i) information associated with a customer'"'"'s service, ii) facility information associated with the customer'"'"'s service, and iii) information associated with equipment used by the customer;

requesting screening the trouble tickets for a known indication of trouble based on at least one user-defined screening criteria;

requesting results of a test of the telephone number experiencing the problem;

requesting analysis of the result of the test; and

requesting closing the trouble ticket when the problem experienced by the telephone number is cleared;

wherein the computer program identifies and tracks the trouble ticket using a customer'"'"'s telephone number.