Abstract:
A telephony call center has agent workstations having telephones connected to station-side ports of a telephone switching apparatus adapted to receive and switch conventional telephone calls to the telephones, and also computer platforms connected on a local area network (LAN). A processor also connected on the LAN has a wide area network (WAN) port and is adapted to receive and distribute computer-simulated telephone calls from the WAN to computer platforms at the agent stations. At individual agent stations the telephone and computer platform is connected by a Telephone Application Programming Interface (TAPI)-compliant bridge. Status of calls of both types at agent workstations is communicated to a network-level router by the processor having a WAN connection, which may also receive computer-simulated calls. The router may then make routing decisions based on agent status relative to both kinds of calls.
Abstract:
A telephone call distribution system for determining destination for an incoming telephone call in a telephony network (100) including a service control point (SCP) (101) operates with a plurality of workstations (361, 362) each comprising a telephone (131, 132) coupled to the telephony network (100) and a proximate computer station having a video display unit (PC/VDU) (331, 332), the PC/VDU (331, 332) connected to the SCP (101) via a wide range area network (WAN), and a personal router (207) associated with each PC/VDU (331, 332). The SCP (101) broadcasts data pertaining to the incoming telephone call and a request for a destination to individual ones of the PC/VDUs (331, 332) via the WAN, and the personal routers (207) negotiate a destination based on individual routing rules and the data pertaining to the call. At least one of the individual routers responds to the SCP (101) with a destination for the call.
Abstract:
A system (100) for routing calls has a plurality of call centers (102a, 102b, 102c) and a central controller (106) for managing activity of the plurality of call centers (102a, 102b, 102c), including call loading. The central controller (106) utilizes a method for managing loading based on estimates of loading for call centers (102a, 102b, 102c) in the system (100) for which real time loading information is not available during certain time intervals. The method involves retrieving a previous status of the call center for which real time information is not available, and using that previous status to perform and estimate of current loading for management purposes.
Abstract:
A telephone call distribution system for determining destination for an incoming telephone call in a telephony network (100) including a service control point (SCP) (101) operates with a plurality of workstations (361, 362) each comprising a telephone (131, 132) coupled to the telephony network (100) and a proximate computer station having a video display unit (PC/VDU) (331, 332), the PC/VDU (331, 332) connected to the SCP (101) via a wide range area network (WAN), and a personal router (207) associated with each PC/VDU (331, 332). The SCP (101) broadcasts data pertaining to the incoming telephone call and a request for a destination to individual ones of the PC/VDUs (331, 332) via the WAN, and the personal routers (207) negotiate a destination based on individual routing rules and the data pertaining to the call. At least one of the individual routers responds to the SCP (101) with a destination for the call.
Abstract:
A plurality of aspects (113, 114, 120, 124) and embodiment of unique telephony apparatus and methods are disclosed, including but limited to video routing and conferencing, coordinating telephone calls with data pertaining to the calls, methods for implementing and operating call centers (110), routing calls by statistical modeling, using multiple object states in telephony software systems, and routing of electronic documents.
Abstract:
A hybrid IP backbone network (27) spans geographic locations of two or more publicly-switched telephone networks (15, 17, 19) and includes nodes (21, 23, 25) with translation servers adapted to translate between data protocols compatible with the PSTNs and a data protocol compatible with the IP bakcbone network. Calls placed in one PSTN then may be routed to an IP node, translated to data-packet protocol, through the IP backbone to a second node having another translation server, and therethrough into another PSTN and thence to a final destination. In some embodiments data gateways (69) and trunk gateways (71) are also provided at and integrated with IP nodes in the IP backbone network.
Abstract:
In the figure, a queueing system in a call center (19) is adapted to queue voice mails as well as live telephone calls. In a preferred embodiment the calls include both connection-oriented switched telephony (COST) calls (13) and Data Network Telephony (DNT) calls (12). Callers are enabled to leave voice mails as an alternative to waiting, and records of the voice mails are queued, preferably in the same queue processing the live calls. In some embodiments the call center is enabled to process e-mails, video mails and facsimile messages as well as live calls and voice mail messages, and all types of multimedia communication can be queued in the same queue according to prestored routing rules and priority rules.
Abstract:
An integrated telephony network includes both a connection-oriented switched telephony (COST) network and a data network telephony (DNT) network, the two networks connected by a dual-ported interactive voice response (IVR) server (47), the ports adapted to communicate with callers from each network, and a dual-ported translating bridge unit adapted to bi-directionally translate between the data protocols of the connected networks. Each network has at least one service control point (SCP) (19) connected to the IVR, and calls received in either network are routed by connecting callers to the IVR for eliciting information from the caller, and then further routing either in the receiving network or over the translating bridge unit into and through the opposite network according to the information elicited from the caller. An SCP in the DNT network is implemented by connecting a computer-telephony integration (CTI) server to at least one IP server (25) in the DNT. The DNT network may be the Internet and the COST network can be any publicly-switched telephone network.
Abstract:
A client-server telephone call router system as part of a customer premises system has a client-server router adapted to execute on a telephony switch, such as a public branch exchange (PBX) or other telephony switch, or on a processor connected by CTI link to a telephony switch. The telephony switch or processor executing the router is connected to a local area network (LAN) that also interconnects computer workstations proximate to telephones connected to the telephony switch. Client user interface applications run on the computer workstations, allowing clients to edit routing rules for the router, which has a list of routing rules keyed to users and workstations of the customer premises system. The editing rules are kept by the router in portions dedicated to individual users. With this system a user can edit at a workstation on the LAN his/her own routing rules, and transmit the edits to the client-server router where the rules will be followed to route calls for that user and protocol.
Abstract:
A client-server telephone call router system as part of a customer premises system (123) has a client-server router adapted to execute on a telephony switch (121), such as a public branch exchange (PBX) or other telephony switch (121), or on a processor (223) connected by CTI link to a telephony switch (121). The telephony switch (121) or processor (223) executing the router is connected to a local area network (LAN) (301) that also interconnects computer workstations (361, 362) proximate to telephones (131, 132) connected to the telephony switch (121). Client user interface applications run on the computer workstations (361, 362), allowing clients to edit routing rules for the router (207), which has a list of routing rules keyed to users and workstations (361, 362) of the customer premises system (123). The editing rules are kept by the router in portions dedicated to individual users. With this system a user can edit at a workstation (361, 362) on the LAN (301) his/her own routing rules, and transmit the edits to the client-server router (207) where the rules will be followed to route calls for that user and protocol.