Abstract: Real-time modification of video images of humans allows for the video to be modified so that an expression of a subject human may be changed. Customer service agents may have more successful interactions with customers if they display an appropriate facial expression, such as to provide a particular emotional state. By determining an appropriate facial expression, and any deviation from a customer service agent's current expression, a modification to the video image of the customer service agent may be determined and applied. As a result, agents may not have a facial expression that is best suited to successfully resolve a purpose of the interaction, to have the customer be presented with the best-suited facial expression.

Abstract: A contact center, communication system, and method of operating a contact center are provided. In one example, the contact center includes a tunable chatbot stored in memory and a chatbot tuning function that controls and adjusts a personality characteristic of the tunable chatbot while the tunable chatbot is interacting with a customer via a customer communication device.

Abstract: A contact center, communication system, and method of operating a contact center are provided. In one example, the contact center includes a plurality of chatbots stored in memory and a chatbot selector that determines a customer interaction in the contact center will have a chatbot assigned thereto, selects a chatbot from the plurality of chatbots for assigning to the customer interaction based on a match between a capability of the chatbot and a service requirement associated with the customer interaction, and assigns the selected chatbot to the customer interaction thereby enabling the selected chatbot to process inputs received during the customer interaction and provide responses to the inputs.

Abstract: Efficient and effective communications with customers is a cornerstone of many businesses. Automation, such as in the form of automated agents that can engage in a communication with a customer, furthers those efficient and effective communications. However, textual messages are a series of messages that are often limited to factual statements and direct questions, leaving many customers, such as those that prefer or require high-context communications, may have the impression that the organization with which they are communicating is cold and uncaring or unconcerned about them. By selectively altering the series of messages, an appropriate degree of concern or empathy may be conveyed to facilitate a better relationship and more effective and efficient communications.

Abstract: A service robot may be autonomous, with respect to a portion of a customer service task, and coordinated, with respect to another portion of a customer service task. A resource, such as another robot or an agent (human or automated), may monitor or interact with the robot and, in such a combination, perform a customer service task. The robot may be instructed to pause or delay initiation of a robot portion to allow for a resource to become available at a common time that the interaction portion is to be performed to minimize delay and promote better customer service. Should the delay be beyond an acceptable threshold, the robot may engage in a delay task (e.g., slow down, pause, etc.). The delay task may include a social interaction with a human at a service location.

Abstract: Interactions between agents of a contact center and customers provide the bulk of many communications and generally work well, except when the customer is deaf or mute. Customers that sign would often prefer to conduct interactions in sign language but the pool of agents having such skills is limited. By providing systems and methods to alter an image of a non-signing agent, a customer may be presented with an image of a signing agent. Additionally, systems and methods herein enable a non-signing agent to be presented with generated speech and/or text translated from the signing gestures provided by the image of the signing customer.

Abstract: Robotic customer service agents are provided such that, when properly authenticated, they are operable to perform a customer service task. A contact center may dispatch a robot, an accessory for a customer-owned robot, or instructions to transform an unconfigured robot, such as a generic robot, into a configured robot operable to perform the task. If the robot, such as the base or entire robot, robot at the service location, an associated user, hardware addition, and/or software addition is authentic, then the robot may be operated in an authenticated mode. If non-authenticated, then the robot may operate in a non-authenticated mode, such as one consisting of one or more tasks or features being disabled. Additionally, authentication may be temporary (e.g., time restricted) or event restricted (e.g., as long as a result stays within a given range, the robot is being observed, etc.).

Abstract: A computer-implemented process includes receiving an incoming contact at a contact center from a user; identifying a plurality of different portions of the incoming contact, each of a plurality of portions associated with a respective topic; and for each of the different portions, routing that different portion to a respective agent of the contact center based on its associated respective topic. Furthermore, the process includes receiving a respective response from one or more of the respective agents, the respective response pertaining to the different portion routed to that agent; combining the respective response from the one or more of the respective agents to form a first composite response; and forwarding the first composite response to the user.

Abstract: A service robot may be autonomous, with respect to a portion of a customer service task, and coordinated, with respect to another portion of a customer service task. A resource, such as another robot or an agent (human or automated), may monitor or interact with the robot and, in such a combination, perform a customer service task. The robot may be instructed to pause or delay initiation of a robot portion to allow for a resource to become available at a common time that the interaction portion is to be performed to minimize delay and promote better customer service. Should the delay be beyond an acceptable threshold, the robot may engage in a delay task (e.g., slow down, pause, etc.). The delay task may include a social interaction with a human at a service location.

Abstract: Handheld communication devices, such as smart phones, comprise a number of data gathering sensors. The sensors may be utilized to provide an agent of a contact center with situational information regarding the user of the handheld device. While global positioning systems (GPS) provides one means to locate a user of a communication device, GPS is not always available. However, by utilizing radio receivers, internal condition sensors, motion detectors, and other sensing components, a situation for a customer may be determined to supplement or substitute for GPS-determined location as well as to identify more relevant situations for the user beyond those provided by GPS provided location information.

Abstract: Contact centers strive to successfully resolve communications with customers as efficiently and effectively as possible. While providing prompts or scripts to agents may assist in the content delivered to the customer by the agent, such prompts or scripts lack emotion and cause the agent to rely on their own determination of what is appropriate, which may not be appropriate for a particular communication with a customer. By determining and prompting an agent to utilize a particular emotion, agents may better relate to the customer and improve the opportunity to successfully conclude the communication sooner than normal and allow resource to be utilized for other purposes.

Abstract: A computer-implemented process includes receiving an incoming contact at a contact center from a user; identifying a plurality of different portions of the incoming contact, each of a plurality of portions associated with a respective topic; and for each of the different portions, routing that different portion to a respective agent of the contact center based on its associated respective topic. Furthermore, the process includes receiving a respective response from one or more of the respective agents, the respective response pertaining to the different portion routed to that agent; combining the respective response from the one or more of the respective agents to form a first composite response; and forwarding the first composite response to the user.

Abstract: Interactions between agents of a contact center and customers provide the bulk of many communications and generally work well, except when the customer is deaf or mute. Customers that sign would often prefer to conduct interactions in sign language but the pool of agents having such skills is limited. By providing systems and methods to alter an image of a non-signing agent, a customer may be presented with an image of a signing agent. Additionally, systems and methods herein enable a non-signing agent to be presented with generated speech and/or text translated from the signing gestures provided by the image of the signing customer.

Abstract: Real-time modification of video images of humans allows for the video to be modified so that an expression of a subject human may be changed. Customer service agents may have more successful interactions with customers if they display an appropriate facial expression, such as to provide a particular emotional state. By determining an appropriate facial expression, and any deviation from a customer service agent's current expression, a modification to the video image of the customer service agent may be determined and applied. As a result, agents may not have a facial expression that is best suited to successfully resolve a purpose of the interaction, to have the customer be presented with the best-suited facial expression.

Abstract: Allocation of resources utilized by a contact center remains a balancing act between the burden of having resources that are generally underutilized and underperforming due to resource constraints. Many contact centers support a variety of communication types (e.g., audio-video, audio, text, email, etc.) associated with a respective communication channel. Communications may be dynamically incentivized or allocated from one communication channel having greater resource demands to another communication channel having lesser resource demands. Additionally, the resources of the contact center may be shared by customers of clients utilizing the contact center. As a result, one customer having a spike in demand may have their, and/or another customer's, communications reallocated to the less demanding channel to manage contact center resource utilization.

Abstract: Acceptance of robotic service agents may be improved if robots are compliant with a monitoring program of a third party. A robot may be allowed to perform certain operations if monitored or prevented from such operations if unmonitored. If authorized, a robot may be able to perform certain operations unmonitored; however, the third party may report the authorized exception. Should the robot be unmonitored, and absent unauthorized exception, the robot performs only those operations approved for unmonitored mode. Otherwise, the robot is enabled to perform tasks approved for monitored and unmonitored mode. The third party may report the monitoring, lack of monitoring, and compliance with a monitoring program accordingly.

Abstract: Customer assistance is provided by leveraging certain contact center infrastructure components to a retail setting. Often contact centers have a wealth of information regarding individual products and services a retail setting may offer. The information, as provided herein, may then be delivered to the customer in the form of a dialogue. The dialogue may be based, in part, on a contact center dialogue for the same or similar item. The customer may then be instructed to perform an act, such as retrieving another item at a certain location. Unlike a contact center, the physical presence of the customer provides an opportunity to receive feedback in the form of monitor the customer's actions to determine if the customer complied with instructions. Optionally, a follow up activity may be imitated based on the customer's compliance.

Abstract: Communications between agents and customers are a key feature of contact centers. Agents may have a question about how to perform a particular task, a response to the question that other agents may know. A supervisor may be presently unavailable and transferring the customer requires significantly more overhead and resources. The systems and methods herein disclose an agent-to-agent (A-to-A) channel that enables a question to be posed to an agent and receive a response via a dedicated channel for A-to-A communications. Accordingly, the agent may stay engaged with the customer and resolve issues without the need to wait for a supervisor or transfer the customer to another agent.

Abstract: Agent-to-Agent channel interactions enable one agent to pose a question to another agent and have the request routed utilizing at least a portion of the routing hardware and algorithms utilized to route work items received from customers. A question may be asked and the network routing components notified of the question and routed to selected agent or agents to address the issue. The selected agents are then connected via the Agent-to-Agent channel and enabled to converse thereon. A successful (or failed) resolution may be utilized to update or modify question repositories for future access and/or training.

Abstract: Interactions between agents of a contact center and customers provide the bulk of many communications and generally work well, except when the customer is deaf or mute. Customers that sign would often prefer to conduct interactions in sign language but the pool of agents having such skills is limited. By providing systems and methods to alter an image of a non-signing agent, a customer may be presented with an image of a signing agent. Additionally, systems and methods herein enable a non-signing agent to be presented with generated speech and/or text translated from the signing gestures provided by the image of the signing customer.