Systems and methods for gathering information

• US 8,831,186 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2010
• Issued: 09/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rakuten Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Schultz, Paul T., Sartini, Robert A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Elahee, Md S
• Application Number:
  US12/962,295
• Publication Number:
  US 20110075827A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,372 Days
• Field of Search: 379/67.1, 379/76, 379 8801- 8802, 379 8819- 8821, 379/88.23, 379/88.24, 379/167.08, 379/70, 705/16, 704/275
• US Class Current: 379/88.23
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/10 using distance or distortion measures between unknown speech and reference templates
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42042 Notifying the called party of information on the calling party details within substation equipment H04M1/57, signalling details H04Q3/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42068 where the identifier is used to access a profile

Abstract

A method for retrieving information may include receiving a telephone call from a caller and identifying a telephone number from which the telephone call was made. The method may also include retrieving information from a database based on the identified telephone number. The method may further include providing an audible message to the caller to verify whether the retrieved information is correct.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a memory to store instructions; and

a processor to execute the instructions to;

retrieve information, from the memory, based on a telephone number associated with a call,

the information being retrieved independent of information obtained from querying a user associated with the call, and

the telephone number being identified independent of the information obtained from querying the user,

provide, to the user, a portion of the retrieved information,

receive an input from the user based on providing the portion of the retrieved information,

determine, based on the received input, whether the portion of the retrieved information is correct,

cause an action, associated with the call, to be performed when the portion of the retrieved information is correct,

prompt the user for additional information when the portion of the retrieved information is not correct,

the additional information including a different telephone number associated with the user,

receive the additional information, including the different telephone number, from the user after prompting the user,

retrieve other information, from the memory, based on the additional information that includes the different telephone number,

provide, to the user, a portion of the retrieved other information,

receive another input from the user based on providing the portion of the retrieved other information, and

cause the action to be performed when the other input indicates that the portion of the retrieved other information is correct.

2. The device of claim 1, where the processor is further to:

request information from the user when the portion of the retrieved information is correct,

receive additional input from the user based on requesting the information,

obtain a speech recognition result based on the received additional input, and

provide information to the user based on the obtained speech recognition result.

3. The device of claim 1, where the processor is further to:

obtain a speech recognition result based on additional input received from the user,

compare the obtained speech recognition result with another portion of the retrieved information,

where the other portion of the retrieved information includes identification information associated with the user, and

verify the identification information associated with the user after comparing the obtained speech recognition result with the other portion of the retrieved information.

4. The device of claim 1, where, when causing the action to be performed, the processor is further to:

retrieve, based on the portion of the information, additional information as retrieved additional information when the portion of the retrieved information is correct, and

provide a portion of the retrieved additional information to the user.

5. The device of claim 4, where the processor is further to:

receive additional input from the user when the retrieved additional information is retrieved, and

obtain a speech recognition result based on the additional input,

where the portion of the retrieved additional information is provided to the user based on the obtained speech recognition result.

6. The device of claim 1, where the processor is further to:

receive additional input from the user,

generate a plurality of speech recognition results based on the additional input, and

weight each of the plurality of speech recognition results, based on a match between a second portion of the retrieved information and a respective one of the plurality of speech recognition results, to obtain a weight of each of the plurality of speech recognition results.

7. The device of claim 6, where the processor is further to:

determine that the additional input corresponds to a particular speech recognition result, of the plurality of speech recognition results, based on the weight of the particular speech recognition result,

verify, based on the particular speech recognition result, that the second portion of the retrieved information is correct, and

cause another action associated with the call to be performed when the second portion of the retrieved information is correct.

8. The device of claim 1, where, when causing the action to be performed, the processor is further to:

receive information from the user; and

cause the retrieved information to be updated based on the received information.

9. The device of claim 1, where the processor is further to:

receive particular information from the user; and

cause the retrieved information to be updated based on the received particular information.

10. A method comprising:

retrieving, by a device and from a memory, information based on a telephone number associated with a call,

the information being retrieved independent of information obtained from querying a user associated with the call,

the telephone number being identified independent of the information obtained from querying the user;

providing, by the device and to the user, a portion of the retrieved information;

receiving, by the device, an input from the user based on providing the portion of the retrieved information;

determining, by the device and based on the received input, whether the portion of the retrieved information is accurate;

performing, by the device, an action associated with the call when the portion of the retrieved information is accurate;

prompting, by the device, the user for additional information when the portion of the retrieved information is not accurate;

the additional information including a different telephone number associated with the user,

receiving, by the device and from the user after prompting the user, the additional information including the different telephone number;

retrieving, by the device and from the memory, other information based on the additional information that includes the different telephone number;

providing, by the device and to the user, a portion of the retrieved other information;

receiving, by the device, another input from the user based on providing the portion of the retrieved other information; and

performing, by the device, the action when the other input indicates that the portion of the retrieved other information is accurate.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving the call,

where retrieving the information includes;

retrieving the information based only on the telephone number associated with the call.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

retrieving additional information;

receiving additional input from the user;

obtaining a plurality of speech recognition results based on the received additional input; and

providing a portion of the retrieved additional information to the user based on a particular speech recognition result of the plurality of speech recognition results.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

weighting each of the plurality of speech recognition results, based on the portion of the retrieved additional information, to obtain a weight of each of the plurality of speech recognition results; and

determining that the additional input corresponds to the particular speech recognition result based on the weight of the particular speech recognition result,

where providing the portion of the retrieved additional information includes;

providing the portion of the retrieved additional information to the user after determining that the additional input corresponds to the particular speech recognition result.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining that the portion of the retrieved information is not accurate,

where retrieving the other information includes;

retrieving the other information using the different telephone number.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving information from the user when the portion of the retrieved information is accurate,

where performing the action includes;

updating the retrieved information based on the information received from the user.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions which, when executed by a device, cause the device to search a memory based only on a telephone number associated with a call,

the telephone number being identified independent of information obtained from querying a user associated with the call;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to retrieve information based on a result of searching the memory based only on the telephone number;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to provide, to the user, a portion of the retrieved information;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to receive an input from the user based on providing the portion of the retrieved information;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to determine, based on the received input, whether the portion of the retrieved information is accurate;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to cause an action associated with the call to be performed when the portion of the retrieved information is accurate;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to prompt the user for a different telephone number associated with the user when the portion of the retrieved information is not accurate;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to receive the different telephone number from the user after prompting the user;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to retrieve other information, from the memory, based on the different telephone number;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to provide, to the user, a portion of the retrieved other information;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to receive another input from the user based on providing the portion of the retrieved other information; and

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to cause the action to be performed when the other input indicates that the portion of the retrieved other information is accurate.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, the instructions further comprising:

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to prompt the user for information when searching the memory does not return a result;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to receive information from the user based on prompting the user,

where the received information includes identification information associated with the user; and

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to search the memory based on the received information to obtain information relating to the user.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, where the one or more instructions to cause the action to be performed include:

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to retrieve, based on the portion of the information, additional information when the portion of the retrieved information is accurate; and

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to provide a portion of the additional information to the user.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, the instructions further comprising:

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to retrieve additional information;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to obtain a plurality of speech recognition results based on additional input from the user;

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to weight each of the plurality of speech recognition results, based on a match between the additional information and a respective one of the plurality of speech recognition results, to obtain a weight of each of the plurality of speech recognition results; and

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to determine that the additional input corresponds to a particular speech recognition result, of the plurality of speech recognition results, based on the weight of the particular speech recognition result.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, where the one or more instructions to cause the action to be performed include:

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to receive additional information from the user; and

one or more instructions which, when executed by the device, cause the device to cause the retrieved information to be updated based on the received additional information.