Patents Examined by William Deane, Jr.
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Patent number: 10135979Abstract: A method, system, and a computer program product are provided for monitoring an emotional state of a conversation by monitoring a communication between first and second persons to determine an emotional state of the communication, providing a visual representation of the emotional state of the communication for display to a person having access to the communication, and performing an intervention action to improve the emotional state of the communication in response to detecting the emotional state of the communication meets one or more specified intervention criteria.Type: GrantFiled: November 2, 2016Date of Patent: November 20, 2018Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventor: Thomas G. Zimmerman
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Patent number: 10129404Abstract: Systems and methods for managing multi-tenant callback services may be provided via a multi-tenant services integration platform. Several multi-tenant software as a service applications may be offered as a hosted software solution via the multi-tenant services integration platform. Various applications may deploy and support a shared tenant and shared services environment where there can be many different customers (companies and users) running in their own virtual partition from a single application instance. The applications may be multi-tenant aware and integrated into an administration portal which integrates several shared tenant services. The tenant model may allow for customized application configurations to be run from a single application instance. Further, improved methods for providing callback management, calculating estimated wait times and providing for callback initiation may be integrated in such multi-tenant services.Type: GrantFiled: March 20, 2017Date of Patent: November 13, 2018Inventors: Wesley Smith, Derek Burdick, Wayne Sheppard, Dennis Empey, David Tso
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Patent number: 10121464Abstract: An active noise control (ANC) system includes a speaker and one or more processors. The one or more processors implement an adaptive subband filtered reference control algorithm that applies thresholds to reference and error feedback signal paths such that, in response to a series of broadband non-Gaussian impulsive reference signals indicative of road noise in the vehicle having an audible frequency range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, weight coefficients defining an adaptive filter of the control algorithm converge and permit the ANC system to partially cancel the road noise via output of the speaker.Type: GrantFiled: December 8, 2014Date of Patent: November 6, 2018Assignees: Ford Global Technologies, LLC, University of CincinnatiInventors: Ming-Ran Lee, Takeshi Abe, Ming-te Cheng, Frederick Wayne Vanhaaften, Liqun Na, Teik Lim, Mingfeng Li, Guohua Sun, Tao Feng
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Patent number: 10116794Abstract: Methods for determining an active station based on sensor data are provided. In one example, a method includes the steps of receiving movement data and determining a pattern of movement associated with a contact center station based at least in part on the movement data. An active contact center station is updated based on the pattern of movement.Type: GrantFiled: May 13, 2015Date of Patent: October 30, 2018Inventor: Christopher W Bosken
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Patent number: 10116801Abstract: Various systems and methods for objectively evaluating conference events are disclosed. In some embodiments, the systems and methods include a conference calling platform, such as a conference bridge device, that has a scoring unit. During a conference call, the platform can receive information from the conference system pertaining to the conference call. The scoring unit can use such information to determine an engagement score for the conference call itself and/or for individual attendees. The engagement score and/or information related to the engagement score can be provided to an organizer and/or to individual attendees.Type: GrantFiled: December 19, 2016Date of Patent: October 30, 2018Assignee: Shoutpoint, Inc.Inventors: Jamie Christiano, Samuel Melvin
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Patent number: 10104234Abstract: A computing apparatus uses an interactive user assessment test to identify and/or assess the need and skills of the user as part of an enrollment process for the user to register for the services of the system that provides real time communications connections between users and advisers. The advisers provide coaching services over real time communications connections provided via the system. A recommendation engine is configured to use the assessment results to recommend advisers for the user based on the need and skills of the user, as well as the real time availability of the advisers to provide the coaching services.Type: GrantFiled: December 4, 2017Date of Patent: October 16, 2018Assignee: INGENIO, LLCInventor: Neeraj Jandwani
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Patent number: 10097691Abstract: When a first user intends a call with a second user via a packet switched communication service (e.g. VoIP), but the second user terminal or second user is currently unavailable to answer a call through the packet-switched service, then a call intent notification is sent to the second user terminal via an out-of-band communication channel, the call-intent notification notifying the second user about the intended call. Includes in the notification is a gateway PSTN number enabling the second user terminal to establish a hybrid PSTN call with the first user terminal via a connection between the second user terminal and a gateway over a PSTN network, and via a connection between the gateway and the first user terminal over the packet-switched network using the packet-switched communication service.Type: GrantFiled: October 28, 2016Date of Patent: October 9, 2018Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLCInventor: Tanel Erm
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Patent number: 10084903Abstract: The disclosed embodiments illustrate method and system for establishing a communication channel between computing devices in a customer care environment. The method includes receiving a first input from a customer-computing device associated with the customer. The received first input is compared with one or more pre-stored datasets. Based on the comparison, a plurality of options corresponding to each of a plurality of levels of one or more workflows is rendered on a user interface displayed on a display screen of the customer-computing device. A second input is received for one of the rendered plurality of options. The second input is representative of at least a preference of the customer for a service associated with a workflow. Based on at least the received second input, a communication channel is established between the customer-computing device and an agent-computing device associated with the customer care agent.Type: GrantFiled: July 7, 2016Date of Patent: September 25, 2018Assignee: CONDUENT BUSINESS SERVICES, LLCInventors: Surya Prakash Kotha, Ramesh Nagarajan
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Patent number: 10084913Abstract: A method of managing customer sentiment includes: monitoring an interaction of a customer with customer interactive media; deriving a sentiment of the customer from the interaction of the customer with the customer interactive media; generating sentiment data for the customer; and updating customer data in a customer database with the sentiment data in real-time.Type: GrantFiled: August 18, 2014Date of Patent: September 25, 2018Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.Inventors: Dennis Emmanuel Montenegro, Prasanth Nandanuru, Pavan Kumar Arln, Yejjala Yevanna
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Patent number: 10069973Abstract: Co-browsing sessions provide a way for one party to see exactly what is being displayed on another party's computer or similar device. Co-browsing is particularly useful to an agent to help a customer solve a problem on a computer. Contact centers may determine portions of a co-browsing session that have been successful, capture the associated inputs, and have them play back to future customers. The agent may then be relieved from portions of the co-browsing interaction that are predictable and provide manual inputs having less predictability. The instructions for the automated co-browsing portions may be executed by the agent's device, the customer's device, and/or a server and may appear to the customer to be originating from the agent.Type: GrantFiled: August 25, 2015Date of Patent: September 4, 2018Assignee: Avaya Inc.Inventors: David Skiba, Valentine C. Matula, George Erhart
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Patent number: 10051127Abstract: A method, system and computer program product for utilizing a caller wait time. When the caller's estimated wait time exceeds a threshold amount of time, an interactive voice response (IVR) system retrieves information (e.g., caller's previous purchases) about the caller. The IVR system then initiates a dialog with the caller to determine their experience with a product or service by prompting the caller with questions derived from the retrieved information. After recording the responses by the caller to the questions, the IVR system generates social media content based on the caller's responses. The IVR system then converts the text of the generated social media content to an audible version, which is provided to the caller to approve the posting of the social media content. The social media content is posted on a social media stream in response to the caller approving the posting of the social media content.Type: GrantFiled: February 13, 2017Date of Patent: August 14, 2018Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Paul R. Bastide, Matthew E. Broomhall, Thomas J. Evans, IV, Robert E. Loredo, Fang Lu
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Patent number: 10044863Abstract: A system and method for automated call analysis using context specific lexicons. A system includes memory and a processor configured to executed instructions. The system includes a recording component, a lexicon component, an analysis component, and a display component. The lexicon component defines a plurality of context specific lexicons, with each context specific lexicon having elements associated with one of a plurality of unique conversation segments. The analysis component configured to identify elements of the context specific lexicons, and associate each identified element with a time location in a telephonic conversation. The display component configured to graphically present a multi-line graph such that the intersections of the lines indicate transitions between the unique conversation segments.Type: GrantFiled: August 31, 2017Date of Patent: August 7, 2018Assignee: Teton1, LLCInventors: Robert T. Madden, Jr., Christopher P. Derikart, Edward A. Donnelly
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Control system, communications terminal, communications system, control method, and recording medium
Patent number: 10044870Abstract: A control system includes a session controller to control establishing a session for transmitting information between a communications terminal and other communications terminals, in response to a request from the communications terminal, and a start request receiver to receive, after a first session for transmitting information between a first communications terminal and a second communications terminal and a second session for transmitting information between a third communications terminal and a fourth communications terminal have been established, a communications start request for starting communications between the first communications terminal and the fourth communications terminal.Type: GrantFiled: December 29, 2016Date of Patent: August 7, 2018Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventor: Akihiro Mihara -
Patent number: 10033864Abstract: Methods for dynamically switching communications to text interactions are provided. In one example, a method includes the steps of receiving a phone call and determining a voice queue wait time exceeds a predetermined threshold. The phone call is routed to a speech-to-text queue based on the determination, and an audio signal associated with the phone call is converted to an instant message interaction.Type: GrantFiled: May 18, 2015Date of Patent: July 24, 2018Inventors: Kalpit Patel, Richard J. Walsh, Michael David Snyder
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Patent number: 10009460Abstract: Systems and methods for recording a communication session between a customer and an agent of a customer center communication system are provided. In this regard, a representative method comprises: configuring a communication component of the customer center communication system to enable recording of a media stream associated with the communication session; transmitting the media stream over a network based on the configuration of the communication component; receiving the media stream over the network; and recording the received media stream.Type: GrantFiled: June 24, 2016Date of Patent: June 26, 2018Assignee: VERINT AMERICAS INC.Inventors: Jamie Richard Williams, Marc Calahan, Thomas Z. Dong
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Patent number: 10009466Abstract: Embodiments provide a system and method for integrating a cognitive system into a call center. The system and method include ingesting, in real-time through an instant messaging application, one or more questions from one or more call center agents; ingesting, in real-time through the instant messaging application, one or more answers associated with the one or more questions; storing one or more question and answer pairs in a corpus; analyzing, through a cognitive system, the corpus of the one or more question and answer pairs; receiving, through the instant messaging system, one or more additional questions; determining a proposed answer to each additional question based on the analysis of the corpus; analyzing, through the cognitive system, the proposed answer; and incorporating the analysis of the proposed answer into the analysis of the one or more question and answer pairs. The answers can be provided by subject matter experts or call center managers.Type: GrantFiled: July 12, 2016Date of Patent: June 26, 2018Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Carl M. Marrelli, Jeffrey T. Matteo, Ram S. Narayanan, Martin Oberhofer
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Patent number: 10003694Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a method, system and computer program product for threshold activation of an audio teleconference. In an embodiment of the invention, a method for threshold activation of an audio teleconference is provided. The method includes receiving calls into a conference bridge for an audio conference and determining whether or not a threshold number of calls from corresponding callers have been received for the audio conference. The method also includes initiating the audio conference responsive to a threshold number of callers having called into the audio conference, but prohibiting initiation of the audio conference until the threshold number of callers have called into the audio conference.Type: GrantFiled: September 8, 2017Date of Patent: June 19, 2018Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Al Chakra, Li Chen, Edward C. Flickinger, Lin Sun
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Patent number: 9998598Abstract: A system for recognizing processes performed by a call center agent during a session may collect input data by initiating a screen capture logging thread to capture screen shots of a desktop of the electronic device during a session. The system analyzes the input data to generate one or more events, generates a mid-level event log comprising one or more of the events, and performs action recognition on the mid-level event log to ascertain one or more actions that were performed within the one or more graphical user interfaces by the call center agent during the session.Type: GrantFiled: April 5, 2017Date of Patent: June 12, 2018Assignee: Conduent Business Services, LLCInventors: Rakesh S. Kulkarni, Wencheng Wu, Jagadeesh Chandra Bose Rantham Prabhakara, Eric Michael Gross, Jinhui Yao, Isaiah Lorenzo Simmons, Jr., Michael C. Mongeon, Madhavi Bangalore Shankara Narayana, Jennifer Watts-Perotti, Yasmine Charif, Tanvi Himanshubhai Shah
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Patent number: 9986094Abstract: Systems and methods of managing customer journeys are implemented using one or more processors in a computing system. Each journey may comprise a succession of interactions at interaction points such as telephone conversations, responses to an interactive voice response “IVR” system and viewing a web page. Customer journey scores are determined for customers at one or more interaction points along the customer journey and the customer journey score is used to determine whether and when an intervention should take place. Models for determining customer journey scores may be created for a set of customers based on one or both of subjective and objective data relating to a subset of the set of customers that have made some or part of the journey, e.g. customers that have responded to polls. An intervention may take place during the journey or after completion of the journey.Type: GrantFiled: June 2, 2017Date of Patent: May 29, 2018Assignee: NICE LTD.Inventors: Natalia Beatriz Piaggio, Leonard Michael Newnham
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Patent number: 9986089Abstract: A customer contact system receives a customer inquiry from a customer. Availability of different types of resources for handling the customer inquiry is used to calculate a ranking for the different types of resources for handling the customer inquiry. A type of resource with the highest rank is offered to the customer in order to resolve the customer inquiry.Type: GrantFiled: August 25, 2015Date of Patent: May 29, 2018Assignee: AT&T INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY I, L.P.Inventor: Mazin E. Gilbert