Telephonic communications – Centralized switching system – Call distribution to operator
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-28
2004-08-31
Tieu, Benny Q. (Department: 2642)
Telephonic communications
Centralized switching system
Call distribution to operator
C379S067100, C379S268000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06785379
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention pertains to telephone switching systems in general.
Business communication has taken two separate paths. One involves telephone conversations and the other involving computer communication.
Until now, business telephone communications have been based upon the approach that each individual controls his own call traffic through multiple buttons on proprietary telephone instruments and/or simple commands entered through “hookflash” or the telephone keypad. Further, the architecture and philosophy applied to business PBXs or other telephone switches is limited to the “switching” of calls, such as incoming calls, to internal stations or internal stations to internal stations. This approach strictly avoids operation based upon “call content” such as the type of call, from whom it originates, etc. The limited capabilities of the multi-button telephone instruments and the lack of awareness of call content severely restrict the capabilities and features available and thus reduce the overall effectiveness of the business telephone systems of the past.
The focus of computer technology has become the desktop workstation computer attached to one or more business enterprisewide, high-speed digital networks which interconnect the workstation computers of business enterprise's employees with a variety of information servers, communications and computing devices. The business enterprise's digital network may be a combination of Local Area Networks LANs and Wide Area Networks WANs attached together via a variety of transmission media augmented by the Internet. These corporate communications worlds, i.e., business enterprise's digital networks and the public switched telephone network PSTN remain separate and distinct until now.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention, a Call Management System is provided for handling business communications. The system alters the architecture and philosophy of the past, providing the users an array of new features and functions and expanded existing features.
A Call Management System provides for the real-time management of incoming voice calls by called parties. Real-time call management enables the called party to know who is calling before the call is accepted and, thus, to establish the likely priority of the call and decide how best to handle the call before his telephone rings. This method of call handling is intended to improve significantly the efficiency of the called party's interactions with customers, vendors, coworkers, and others. Each called party is notified via his/her computer terminal of each incoming call and the caller's identity, even when the called party's extension is already busy, allowing the called party to choose the appropriate handling of each incoming call before ringing the extension (hold, transfer, put through, send to voice. mail, etc.
In accordance with the invention, calls to an organization are directly controlled through networked user workstation computers, not telephone instruments, a call management computer intercepts telephone and data trunks which link the business to the telephone provider's central office. The call management computer interacts with and controls telephone and data trunks connecting with the telephone service provider.
The call management computer receives and answers all calls from the telephone provider's central office, determines the type of call voice, fax, data, determines for whom the call is intended the called party, and proactively determines who is the calling party. This information determines how the call will be handled.
Proactive caller identification is used to identify the caller by interacting directly with the caller to obtain an identifiable telephone number or the caller's spoken voice which are then identified through specialized primary or secondary Caller ID databases or a voice name database.
Call alert information is transferred via operator or digital network interconnecting workstation computer to the called party's workstation, even when the called party's telephone extension is busy. The called party instructs the call management computer via the digital network what to do with the calls in progress.
The call management computer also provides for call handling rules to be defined by the business organization or by the system users. These rules, called “VIP rules”, are an adjunct to the called party's direct control and provide for special handling of important individuals, groups or even for all callers.
The call management computer either receives control commands from the called party or operates in accordance with an appropriate VIP rule and responds to the calling party accordingly by, for example, playing out recorded voice messages, receiving additional information from the caller, transferring the call to the called party, to voice mail or elsewhere either within or outside the organization.
One significant advantage of the Call Management System is that it provides system users with the many unique features and functions while requiring nothing more than simple “POTS” (plain old telephone service) telephones or headsets instead of expensive multi-button proprietary business telephone instruments.
The Call Management System also functions as an outbound call processor, working in conjunction with software in each user's workstation to provide outbound call processing services. The personal call logs can be reviewed by a user and used to return missed phone calls through a point-and-click interface. A database containing caller identification information may also be used online for outdialing calls to selected people, all without the need for manual dialing.
The Call Management System creates reusable “voice pathways” from the call management computer to the called party when it is appropriate to put a call through to a destination because of user selection or VIP rule processing. Voice pathways, once created, are reused repeatedly so long as the destination has calls in process. This enables rapid switching between calls with only the click of a workstation mouse and avoids the typical operation of establishing and tearing down entire calls in order to switch between them.
Real-time protocol conversion is provided between central office trunks and PBX trunks of the Call Management System. This allows the system to receive new or different types of services from the telephone provider while still connecting to and utilizing existing telephone systems which cannot otherwise accept the new capabilities directly. It also permits the Call Management System to utilize directly the user's telephone instruments or headsets, removing the need for a separate PBX or other switch. “Conversion” between different trunk circuits allows the system's many new features and functions to be implemented without upgrade of the organization's legacy PBX or other switch or alternatively as a replacement for an existing PBX.
The system monitors and controls the individual trunk circuits obtaining call content information and directly interacts with the caller to handle voice, Fax and data calls automatically in any combination.
A Call Management System in accordance with the invention treats all calls external and internal in the same way, allowing the transferring and conferencing of calls from inside to outside, outside to outside, or in any other combination. This removes the historical limitations on the handling of calls depending upon their source.
The Call Management System provides for the use of a single unique telephone number for each user. This “one number” is used to receive, identify and automatically handle all the user's voice, fax and data calls, one or several at a time using multiple trunk circuits. The use of only one number per user significantly reduces the costs, complexity, inefficiency and confusion of having multiple different telephone numbers for different functions.
Proactive caller identification is provided by u
Daleiden John J.
Emerson S. Thomas
Fogle Mark E.
Rogers Paul C.
Saltwick John M.
Aspect Communications Corporation
Blakely , Sokoloff, Taylor & Zafman LLP
Tieu Benny Q.
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