CA2131260C - Call monitoring system for intelligent call processing - Google Patents
Call monitoring system for intelligent call processingInfo
- Publication number
- CA2131260C CA2131260C CA002131260A CA2131260A CA2131260C CA 2131260 C CA2131260 C CA 2131260C CA 002131260 A CA002131260 A CA 002131260A CA 2131260 A CA2131260 A CA 2131260A CA 2131260 C CA2131260 C CA 2131260C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- special service
- service call
- routing
- call
- subscriber database
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Fee Related
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Classifications
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
- H04M3/00—Automatic or semi-automatic exchanges
- H04M3/22—Arrangements for supervision, monitoring or testing
- H04M3/36—Statistical metering, e.g. recording occasions when traffic exceeds capacity of trunks
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
- H04M3/00—Automatic or semi-automatic exchanges
- H04M3/08—Indicating faults in circuits or apparatus
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
- H04M3/00—Automatic or semi-automatic exchanges
- H04M3/22—Arrangements for supervision, monitoring or testing
- H04M3/2254—Arrangements for supervision, monitoring or testing in networks
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04Q—SELECTING
- H04Q1/00—Details of selecting apparatus or arrangements
- H04Q1/18—Electrical details
- H04Q1/20—Testing circuits or apparatus; Circuits or apparatus for detecting, indicating, or signalling faults or troubles
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04Q—SELECTING
- H04Q3/00—Selecting arrangements
- H04Q3/0016—Arrangements providing connection between exchanges
- H04Q3/0029—Provisions for intelligent networking
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
- H04M3/00—Automatic or semi-automatic exchanges
- H04M3/42—Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers
- H04M3/4228—Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers in networks
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04Q—SELECTING
- H04Q2213/00—Indexing scheme relating to selecting arrangements in general and for multiplex systems
- H04Q2213/13541—Indexing scheme relating to selecting arrangements in general and for multiplex systems routing
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04Q—SELECTING
- H04Q2213/00—Indexing scheme relating to selecting arrangements in general and for multiplex systems
- H04Q2213/13545—Indexing scheme relating to selecting arrangements in general and for multiplex systems monitoring of signaling messages, intelligent network
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04Q—SELECTING
- H04Q2213/00—Indexing scheme relating to selecting arrangements in general and for multiplex systems
- H04Q2213/13547—Indexing scheme relating to selecting arrangements in general and for multiplex systems subscriber, e.g. profile, database, database access
Abstract
Increased reliability for intelligent call processing systems is provided by collecting information from communications between the network database, the subscriber database, and the network switch. Message transfers between these network elements are monitored and correlated to identify those messages corresponding to a particular call. The messages for the call are analyzed to determine which database generated the instructions for routing the call.
In particular, by comparing the routing number returned to the interexchange switch with the routing instruction information supplied by the subscriber's database, it can be determined whether the call was routed according to instructions from the subscriber's database.
In particular, by comparing the routing number returned to the interexchange switch with the routing instruction information supplied by the subscriber's database, it can be determined whether the call was routed according to instructions from the subscriber's database.
Description
fi ~
CAIL MONITORING SYSTEM FOR INTELLIGENT CALL PROCESSING
T~mical Field The invention relates to systems for routing telephon~ calls in which a dialed telephone number is tr~n.el~te~ into a routing number and, more particularly, to systems in which the S translation of the dialed number is ~lrolllled according to instructions from a (1~t~b~ee ~ by a telephone subscriber.
Qro11nfl of th~ Tnvention Telephone systems which translate a dialed telephnne number into a routing number for routing a telephone call are well known in the art. For example, toll-free or "800" number 10 calls involve tr~nel~ting a dialed 800 number into a number for routing calls to an 800 number subscriber. The translation is ~lrolllled by que~ying a ~l~t~h~ee ~ 1 by the telephone service provider, such as an 800 number ~1~t~h~ee of an intere~ n~e carrier, to ~ ",;~e a routing number for routing the call.
Recent advances in proc~eing telephc)n~ calls in which the dialed number is tr~nel~te~l 15 into a routing number for call routing have enabled the translation process to be controlled in part by the subscriber. In such systems, Ic;r~ll~l to herein as "~nt~?11i~nt Call ProcP-eeing"
aCP) systems, the subscriber ",~ its own ~i~t~b~e to store routing instructions for selected special service calls. The subscriber's ~l~t~h-~e is queried by a processor (also referred to herein as a '~etwork Control Point" or '~CP") in the cc mml~nication system, at 213126~
an ~p~u~liate point in call proc~in~ tû return rûuting instructions. The subscribe~s ~l~t~b~e ret~ns routing instruction i~ ion to the NCP, which in turn, provides call routing instructions to telephone switches within the comm-lnication systern.
Intelligent Call Proc~ing systems provide a subscriber with improved call h~ntlling S ability and increased flexibility. However, SO~ ;lll~ calls cannot be processed and routed according tû instructions from the subscriber's ~1~t::lb~Ce, and the subscriber does not have sufficient i~ l"~lion to ~ "~;"~ when, how often, or why this occurs. For example, if the subscriber's ~l~t~b~e does not respond to a query for instructions within a prescribed time period, the call is routed according to default routing instructions that are stored within the 10 NCP. Similarly, default routing ins~uctions are used when instructions returned by the subscriber's ~ h~e in les~l~se to a query are not in a format recop.ni~ble to the NCP.
Under these circ~".~ r~, the subscriber has no way to verify whether calls are being routed as the subscriber int~n~l~, and thus cannot d~l~ "~ how well the system is working S-l-nm~y of the ~nv~ntil~n Increased reliability for int~lli~nt call proc~cing systems is provided by collecting infol"~lion from comm~nications between the NCP, the subscriber's d~t~b~e, and the network switch that will route the call. Message ~ r~.s between these network components are monitored and correlated to identify those m~ co"~pollding to a particular call.
The m~s for the call are analyzed to d~.".;~-~ which database (i.e., the NCP or the 20 subscriber's 11~t~h~ce) generated the final ins~uctions for rûuting the call. In particular, by coll~illg the routing number ret~ 1 to the interex~ n~e switch with the routing ins~uction 213 ~ 2~0 information supplied by the subscriber's database, it can be determined whether the call was routed according to instructions from the subscriber's database.
In an exemplary embodiment ofthe invention, communications are monitored between 5 an interexchange switch and an NCP, and between the NCP and a subscriber's database.
The communications between these network components are correlated to identify those communications which correspond to a particular call. Selected information from the identified communications is collected and assembled into a call record. The call record indicates, among other things, whether the interexchange switch routed the call according 10 to information from the subscriber's database or according to preselected default routing instructions stored within the NCP. For calls routed according to the default instructions, the call record also identifies the reason that instructions from the subscriber's database were not used to route the call. Several call records are assembled in a convenient format for access by the subscriber.
In another exemplary embodiment of the invention, messages transferred to and from the NCP are collected and correlated within the NCP. Message correlation can be accomplished, for example, on the basis of identifiers within the messages which uniquely identify a call. Information is extracted directly from the messages that pass between the NCP and each of the interexchange switch and subscriber database, thereby elimin~ting the 20 need to capture messages as they pass between the system components. The NCP assembles selected data for each call into a single call record.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for use in a telecommunications system which routes special service calls according to routing instructions obtained from a subscriber database, the method comprising the steps of:
~ ~ 3 ~ ~ 6 ~
- 3a-determining the routing instructions output by the subscriber database for a special service call; comparing the routing instructions output by the subscriber database with the routing instructions actually used to route the special service call; and responding to the result of the 5 comparing step to provide an indication of whether the special service call was routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
Brief Description of the Drawin~s A
- 4 - 21~126~
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a sim~plified block diagram of a commlmications network configured to monitor m~s~e Ll~r~ between n~lwulk elements in acco~ e with the principles of the inventlon;
S FIG. 2 shows the structure of an exempla~y call record which stores illro,ll~lion passed along message paths 1 and 4 of FIG. l;
FIG. 3 shows the structure of an ~ lary call record which stores il~fo"l~ion passed along m~ paths 2 and 3 of FIG. l;
FIG. 4 shows the structure of an exempla~y traffic summ~y record constructed in accordance with the invention;
FIG. S is a simplified block diag~m of an ~It~ tive embodiment of the network ofFIG. l; and FIG. 6 shows the structure of an ~ y call record which stores illfo,~ ion passedalong m~s~e paths 1 through 4 of FIG. 5.
D~t~iled Desc~ n FIG. 1 shows a diagram of a communications network, having ICP capabilities, constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention. Ihe commlmications network includes a telephone station 100, a local ryrh~n~ carrier (LEC) switch 102, interexchange carrier (IXC) switches 104 and 112, a switching ~ r~, point (STP) 106, an NCP 108, and a subscriber .k1~b~e 110. Although STP 106 is shown in the figure as a single network element, it is to be understood that communications between IXC s-witch 104, NCP 108 and 2 ~31260 subscriber database 110 are routed through a network of switching transfer points. The communications network routes calls to an automatic call distributor (ACD) 114 and a telephone station 118 at a subscriber's premises 116. The network also includes a message capture means 120, a message collector 122, and a central data processor 124, which collectively provide information about a subscriber's ICP service to a workstation 126 at subscriber premises 116.
The communications network of FIG. 1 routes telephone calls by first translating a dialed number into a different number (a "routing number" ) which is used to route the call.
Telephone calls involving such dialed number translations are referred to generally herein as "special service" calls. Special service calls include, for example, 800 calls and premium service calls (calls for which the caller typically pays at least a portion of the telephone charges and often an additional premium).
Before describing the novel aspects of the present invention, it will be useful to describe the operation of an ICP system. As mentioned above, an ICP system routes calls by translating a dialed number into a routing number on the basis of information contained in a subscriber database. An example of one such system is described in commonly-owned, U.S. Patent No. 4,611,094, issued September 9, 1986, entitled "Method for Customer Definable Telephone Capability."
The ICP system works as follows. A caller at telephone station 100 of FIG. 1 places a special service call, for example, by dialing an 800 number. The call is extended to LEC
switch 102, which switches the call to IXC switch 104. IXC switch 104 sends a message through STP 106 to query a network database, such as NCP 108, for routing instructions.
- 6 - 21~126~
NCP 108 processes the query from IXC switch 104 and, where a~ pliate, ~c~.~ the ICP
capabilities of the nclwolk by querying a subscriber ~l~t~se 110 to obtain call routing instructions established by the subscriber. Whether a given call is to be routed using ICP may be determined, for example, from a conventional 800 number routing plan used by NCP 108 5 to ~l " ,;"~ call routing The path of the query from IXC switch 104 to NCP 108 (referred to as the "message path") is indicated by the dashed line labeled by reference number 1. NCP
108 queries subscriber ~l~t~e 110 by sending a m~ss~ (along a m~ss~e path 2) to l~ta~e 110 via STP 106. Subscriber ~l~tal~ce 110 responds to NCP 108 by sending a m~Ee (along a m~.~e path 3) cn"l;~ ;"~ routing instructions through STP 106. The10 routing instructions typically include a "routing label," which NCP 108 uses to identify a corresponding, unique routing number. When NCP 108 receives suitable instructions from subscriber ~1at~b~G 110, or after some pr~.."~ l time-out period, NCP 108 retums a routing number to IXC switch 104. NCP 108 provides this illfolll~ion to IXC switch 104 in a m~e ~ ~l along a m~e path 4. IXC switch 104 then routes the call 15 according to the routing number, for exarnple, to IXC switch 112. IXC switch 112 routes the call to ACD 114 at the subscriber ~lc~llises 116. ACD 114 ~wil~llcs the call to a telephone station 118 at the suks~iher l,le~ s~.
The netw-ork COn4~O11G11t~ described above and the ~ ling techniques for communicating l~lWGGll those network components are well known by those skilled in the art.
20 For exarnple, LEC switch 102 illu~atively is a 5ESS~9 switch m~ f~lred by American Telephone & Telegraph Co., Inc. (AT&T).IXC switch 104 illustratively is a 4ESSTM switch m~m-f~ red by AT&T, but ~It~n~tively could be a local e~rll~n~ switch. NCP 108 illustratively includes an INWATS database NCP and a Direct Services Dialing NCP, both commercially available from AT&T. Exemplary message formats for messages transmitted on message paths 2 and 3 are described in TR54022, AT&T Intelligent Call Processing (ICP) Service Signaling System No. 7 Network Interface Specification, May 1, 1993.
The system described above enables a subscriber to customize and maintain its own database for routing calls. The subscriber is able to quickly change call routing and to implement specialized features which are otherwise unavailable through service provided by the interexchange carrier. However, various factors affecting the network may prevent NCP
1o 108 from utilizing instructions provided by subscriber database 1 10 for routing the call. For example, the response from subscriber database 1 10 may contain errors or may be in a form not recognizable by NCP 108. Also, subscriber database 110 may not provide a timely response to NCP 108. In such cases NCP 108 will respond to the query from IXC switch 104 (message path 1) by supplying a default routing number (via message path 4).Current ICP systems do not provide a mechanism for reporting to the subscriber whether calls are being routed by IXC switch 104 in accordance with the routing instructions provided by subscriber database 110. In particular, the subscriber cannot determine which calls are being routed according to instructions from subscriber database 110 and which calls are being routed according to default routing instructions provided by NCP 108. Moreover, the subscriber lacks a mechanism for diagnosing the problems which cause NCP 108 to supply default routing instructions to IXC switch 104.
In accordance with the invention, a method is provided for the subscriber to verify that A !
~13126~
a call is being routed according to routing instIuctions provided by subscriber ~l~t~b~ee 110.
l~e.e~e~ r~,O~ w~ IXC switch 104 and NCP 108, and m~s~es ll~r~
between NCP 108 and subscriber database 110, are captured and correlated to identify all m~-e.s~ee collespol~ding to a particular call. Selected illr~lll~Lion from the m~es~es S ~ r~lled between NCP 108 and IXC switch 104 for the call is compared with selected i~lll~Lion from the m~e~e ll~r~lled Ixlw~ll NCP 108 and subscriber tl~tabaee 110 for the same call to d~ whether the call was routed according to the subscribe~s instructions.
In an exemplary embodiment ofthe invention, m~e~ collector 122 stores a mapping 10 of routing numbers to routing labels and uses this illro~ lion to d~t~min~ whether a given call was routed according to routing instructions from subscriber d~l~ase 110. The routing number is extracted from m~e~e that were ll~.L~ l;L~ed lxlweell NCP 108 and IXC switch 104. The routing label is ex~acted from messages that were l~ .cl~;LI~d between subscriber database 110 and NCP 108 and coll4,al~d with the routing number. A d~l- .. ",;~ on that the 15 extracted routing number does not map to the extracted routing label causes m~e.c~e collector 122 to ~ell~l~ an indication that the call was routed using a default routing number rather than according to routing instn~ctions from subscriber ~l~t~b~ee 110.
In an ~IL..";~ re emb~im~nt, m~ collector 122 does not contain a mapping of routing numbers to routing labels, but instead analyzes other data collected from the messages 20 Ll~rell~d between IXC 104, NCP 108, and subscriber ~l~t~b~ee 110 to d~l~ ...it~e whether a default routing number was used For ~ Ie, call billing record inrolll~lion whichidentifies to whom and at what rate the call is to be billed can be used to d~ whether 2 ~ 3 ~ 2 6 0 ~' g a default routing number was used. Call billing record information, such as a special billing code which indicates that default routing was used, typically is sent from NCP 108 to IXC
switch 104 (via message path 4). By detecting this special billing code, message collector 5 122 determines, indirectly, that a default routing number was used.
Referring again to FIG. 1, messages on each of the four message paths (paths 1-4) are captured by message capture means 120. Message capture means 120 is interposed in the trunks between STP 106 and NCP 108. Message capture means 120 copies the messages passing between NCP 108 and STP 106, and outputs the copied messages to message collector 122. Message capture means 120 illustratively is an Enhanced Message Sampling Board (Ver. 2) available from AT&T, but could be any device which monitors and copies selected messages from message paths 1 through 4. Suitable monitoring apparatus for implementing message capture means 120 also is disclosed in U.S. Patent 4,788,718.
As described in greater detail below, message collector 122 correlates the messages on message paths 1 through 4 to identify all those messages associated with a particular call.
For each call, message collector 122 generates two "call" records 200 and 300 (shown in FIGs. 2 and 3). Call record 200 contains data copied from the messages on message paths 1 and 4. Call record 300 contains data copied from the messages on message paths 2 and 3. A unique identifier preferably is assigned for each call to facilitate correlating the call records 200 and 300 which correspond to each call. Message collector 122 may be implemented, for example, using a workstation commercially available from Sun Microsystems, Inc. A separate message collector 122 is provided for each NCP 108 in the communications network.
,,. ~
- lo- 21312fi~
Alternatively, multiple NCPs (not shown) are coupled to a single m~.~e collector 122.
Message collector l22 outputs call records 200 and 300 to central data processor 124.
Central data processor 124 aggregates call records received from m~s~ collector 122 and compiles the data in those records to produce a "traffic summary" record 400 (see FIG. 4).
S A exemplary traffic summary record 400 would inr~ .o, for example, a summary of the data for all telephone calls placed to a particular dialed number over a selected time period. The subscriber is given the ability to access the traffic summ~y records by ~c~ssing central data processor 124, or the traffic summary records are ~l~om~tically downloaded to a workstation 126.
As its name s~l~st~, central data processor 124 is impl~n~nte(l in a centralizedlocation and is configured to receive i"r~ ion from each of the individual m~ss~collectors 122 deployed within the communications network. Central data processor 124 illustratively is i~ nte~1 as a ~l~Ld,l~ computer, but one skilled in the art will appreciate that any computer means having sufficient proc~sin~ power could be used.
FIG. 2 shows the content and format of an ~el~lary call record 200 generated by message collector 122. Call record 200 includes several fields, each of which in~
information about a particular call. The first field in call record 200 is a "Dialed Number"
field 202. Dialed Number field 202 stores the telephone number that was dialed by the caller at telephone station 100 (FIG. 1). Dialed Number field 202 serves as an identifier for the call 20 record so that the call record can be compiled by central data prooessor 124 with other call records for the same dialed number.
Two other key data fields in call record 200 are the "Routing Number" field 204 and 13126~
the "Call Identifier" field 206. Routing Number field 204 contains i~ lion whichidentifies the ~lçstin~tion to which the call actually was routed (as specified by NCP 108).
Call Identifier field 206 stores a unique call identifier, such as a nurnber, for each call. The call identifier from field 206 is used to facilitate correlating messages for a given call passing S on mçs~e paths 1 through 4.
Call record 200 p,~r~l~ly includes a field Co.~ ~ion which indicates, for those calls routed according to default routing instructions, the reason that the subscriber-pr~scribed routing was not use~ lhis field is shown in FIG. 2 as the "Reason for Default Routing" field 208. Field 208 contains flags repre~sPnting the following "error" m~s~
NCP 108 does not contain a mapping ofthe routing label to the routingnumber; (2) NCP 108 cannot read the m~e it received from subscriber d~labase 110 (on message path 3); (3) the routing label in the subscriber ~ b~ce response m~? (on m~s~e path 3) is not in a forrnat recognizable by NCP 108; (4) NCP 108 did not receive a timely response to its query of subscriber datab~e 110; (5) the subscriber ~i~t~b~ee r~onse message indicated that subscriber ~1~t~h~e 110 could not process the query m~s~e fromNCP 108 (on m~ssa~ path 2), for example, because the m~s~ was garbled in l~ "~iccion or because subscriber ~l~t~b~se 110 did not recognize the dialed number, or (6) no query was sent from NCP 108 to subscriber l1~t~h~e 110 due to l~l~u~k m~n~ nt reasons, for example, because sending the m~ would have caused subscriber ~1~t~b~e 110 to become overloaded.
Ihe i~ro",~lion u~sed to populate field 208 typically is generated by NCP 108. For example, a timer is set in NCP 108 when the NCP sends a query (via m~s~e path 2) to subscriber ~t~h~ce 110. If NCP 108 does not receive a l~nse to the query (along m~.e.e~ge - - 12- ~13126~
path 3) before a pre~ 1 tirne-out period expires, the NCP indicates that a response was not received from subscriber database 110 in tirne to be used for routing. In a second example, if the routing label does not rnatch the format required by NCP 108 or does not co~ d to a routing number stored within the NCP, NCP 108 generates an apl~r~liate m~Jflag signaling the reason for default routing.
Referring again to FIG. 2, other i~ ,lll~ion may be included in call record 200, if desildble. For example, call record 200 may include a "Subscriber D~t~h~ee Query" field 210 to indicate whether NCP 108 queried subscriber ~at~b~e 110 (i.e., whether the call was a regular 800 service call or an ICP call involving a translation based on i~ ~ion from subscriber ~ab~e l 10). Record 200 also may include a "Caller's Area Code" field 212 or "Automatic Number Identifier" field (not shown). Call record 200 may include a "Routing Result" field 214 to indicate whether the call was either routed to the ~l~tin~tion identified by the routing label, routed to a default location, or not routed at all by NCP 108 for network m~n~ nt reasons (e.g, too many calls were made to this 800 number within a pre~et~mined time interval). A "Time of Call" field 216 may be provided as a convenient means for or~ni7ing call records into a traffic summary record according to preselected time intervals. A "Call Disposition" field 218 stores the disposition status (e.g, busy, answered, ring-no answer) ofthe call as ~ "~ 1 by a m~ r~urned from switch 112 to switch 104.
NCP 108 can be configured to measure and report the elapsed time between querying subscriber ~iat~h~e 110 and receiving a response from subscriber ~ ba~e 110 at NCP 108.
NCP 108 begins timing when a query is sent to the subscriber database via m~s~e path 2, 2l3l2~
and stops timing when a ~ ol~se is received via m~ path 3. The elapsed time is recorded in a field (not shown) in call record 200 for delivery to the subscriber as part of a traffic summary record.
FIG. 3 shows the content and format of an ~ lary call record 300 for storing S information passing between NCP 108 and subscriber fl~ta~e 110. Call record 300 includes a "Dialed Number" field 302, a "Routing Label" field 304, a "Call Identifier" field 306, a "Caller's Area Code" field 308, and a "Time of Call" field 310. Routing Label field 304 contains the routing label specified by subscriber ~ab~e 110. The ~ g fields store the same information as their COIIlltt;l~t~, ofthe same name in call record 200. Additionally, 10 a "Caller-Specific Data" field 312 is provided to hold data retumed by subscriber ~ase 110 that is specific to the caller. This caller-specific data could be passed to IXC switch 104 for routing with the call to subscriber premises 116, and could be retrieved from subscriber ~t~e 110, for ~ , on the basis of the caller's ANL
FIG. 4 shows an exemplary traffic summary record 400. As described above, the 15 traffic summary record is a compilation of i~ on from many call records, including information from both call record 200 and call record 300. Traffic summary record 400 typically is or~ d according to the dialed number. Traffic ~lrnm~ry record 400 includes fields such as the "Dialed Number" field 402, "Routing Label" field 404, and "Routing NumW' field 406. Traffic s -rnm~ry record 400 also in~ln-les fields which provide a tally of:
20 the number of calls routed according to the routing label ret~ned by subscriber clat~b~e 110 (field 408), the number of calls routed according to a default routing number stored within NCP 108 (field 410), and the number of calls not routed for reasons of network m~n~rnent - 14- C~1312~
expediency (field 412). A "Reasons for Default Routing" field 414 provides a count of the number of calls which were routed using default routing instructions for each of the "errors"
described with respect to field 208 of call record 200. Traffic summa~y record 400 also may include a "Caller-Specific Data" field 416, which includes caller-specific data sent from 5 subscriber database 110 to be included in the call (e.g., calle~s Social Security number) and a field which stores a summary of call dispositions (field 418). One skilled in the art will appreciate that other fields can be provided without departing from the scope ofthe invention, such as fields to report the number of regular 800 service calls (for which no ICP query w~
sent to subscriber ~i~t~ e 110) and the number of ICP queries sent to subscriber tl~t~b~ce 10 1 10.
FIG. 5 shows an alternative embodiment of the ICP mnnitoring system of the present invention. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, m~s transferred to and from NCP 108 are collected and correlated within NCP 108. Message correlation can be accomplished, for example, on the basis of identifiers within the m~es which uniquely identify a call.
15 Information is extracted from the m~s~g~ that p~s on m~ss~ paths 1 through 4 by NCP
108 directly, thereby eli~ g the need to monitor m~s using m~s~e capture means 120 and m~e collector 122 of FIG 1. NCP 108 assembles pre~ 1 data for each call into a single data record 600 (see FIG. 6). NCP 108 outputs the data records to oentral data processor 124 via line 500. Central data processor 124 compiles the data records 20 received from NCP 108 into traffic s~lmm~ry records 400 in the manner described above with respect to FIG. 1. Central data processor 124 makes the traffic sumrnary records available to the subscriber via a computer means 126 at the subscriber's premises.
~13i26~
FIG. 6 shows an exemplary call record 600 that is generated by NCP 108 for each call.
Call record 600 includes a "Dialed Number" field 602, a "Routing Number" field 604, a "Routing Label" field 606, a "Call Identifier" field 608, a "Reason for Default Routing" field 610, a "Subscriber Database Query" field 612, a "Caller's Area Code" field 614, a "Time of 5 Call" field 616, and a "Call Disposition" field 618. Each of these fields strore the same l~ion as their CO~lt~ of the sarne narne in call records 200 and 300, described above. However, because all of the il~fu~ lion used to populate record 600 is obtained from NCP 108 directly in the embodiment of FIG. 5, a single record is used to store this information (rather than the two records of FIGs. 2 and 3).
- It will be ~I)al~llt to one skilled in the art that other modifications can be made to the described embo~1i",r~ i without departing from the scope of the invention. For exarnple, the system could be modified to capture specific illr~lll~ion (e.g, a personal identification number or "PIN," "frequent flyer" identification number, or account nurnber) passed from the subscriber d~ase and to fon~ard the captured illr~,lll~ion with the call. Similarly, the 15 described embo~ could be modified to use sele~ted non-routing i,~rolll~ion (such as a caller's account number, social security number, or PIN) as the basis for det~."~ g whether calls placed by a particular caller are being routed according to routing instructions retrieved from subscriber database 110. For ex~nple, a subscriber database could ,~,~i,,l;.il, a record of a particular account l~;~lcs~llt~i~e ~l~f~lo~ by an individual customer and 20 ~tom~tically route calls from that c~l~tomPr to the pler~llcd repr~nt~tive. The principles of the invention could then be utilized to report to the subscriber, on a cll~tnm~-by-customer basis, whether calls from a given c l~tom~r were routed according to the instructions stored 2131~6~
within subscriber database 110. Ihe monitoring system also could be used as a general tool to monitor the subscriber (l~t~h~ r~., . "~"~
CAIL MONITORING SYSTEM FOR INTELLIGENT CALL PROCESSING
T~mical Field The invention relates to systems for routing telephon~ calls in which a dialed telephone number is tr~n.el~te~ into a routing number and, more particularly, to systems in which the S translation of the dialed number is ~lrolllled according to instructions from a (1~t~b~ee ~ by a telephone subscriber.
Qro11nfl of th~ Tnvention Telephone systems which translate a dialed telephnne number into a routing number for routing a telephone call are well known in the art. For example, toll-free or "800" number 10 calls involve tr~nel~ting a dialed 800 number into a number for routing calls to an 800 number subscriber. The translation is ~lrolllled by que~ying a ~l~t~h~ee ~ 1 by the telephone service provider, such as an 800 number ~1~t~h~ee of an intere~ n~e carrier, to ~ ",;~e a routing number for routing the call.
Recent advances in proc~eing telephc)n~ calls in which the dialed number is tr~nel~te~l 15 into a routing number for call routing have enabled the translation process to be controlled in part by the subscriber. In such systems, Ic;r~ll~l to herein as "~nt~?11i~nt Call ProcP-eeing"
aCP) systems, the subscriber ",~ its own ~i~t~b~e to store routing instructions for selected special service calls. The subscriber's ~l~t~h-~e is queried by a processor (also referred to herein as a '~etwork Control Point" or '~CP") in the cc mml~nication system, at 213126~
an ~p~u~liate point in call proc~in~ tû return rûuting instructions. The subscribe~s ~l~t~b~e ret~ns routing instruction i~ ion to the NCP, which in turn, provides call routing instructions to telephone switches within the comm-lnication systern.
Intelligent Call Proc~ing systems provide a subscriber with improved call h~ntlling S ability and increased flexibility. However, SO~ ;lll~ calls cannot be processed and routed according tû instructions from the subscriber's ~1~t::lb~Ce, and the subscriber does not have sufficient i~ l"~lion to ~ "~;"~ when, how often, or why this occurs. For example, if the subscriber's ~l~t~b~e does not respond to a query for instructions within a prescribed time period, the call is routed according to default routing instructions that are stored within the 10 NCP. Similarly, default routing ins~uctions are used when instructions returned by the subscriber's ~ h~e in les~l~se to a query are not in a format recop.ni~ble to the NCP.
Under these circ~".~ r~, the subscriber has no way to verify whether calls are being routed as the subscriber int~n~l~, and thus cannot d~l~ "~ how well the system is working S-l-nm~y of the ~nv~ntil~n Increased reliability for int~lli~nt call proc~cing systems is provided by collecting infol"~lion from comm~nications between the NCP, the subscriber's d~t~b~e, and the network switch that will route the call. Message ~ r~.s between these network components are monitored and correlated to identify those m~ co"~pollding to a particular call.
The m~s for the call are analyzed to d~.".;~-~ which database (i.e., the NCP or the 20 subscriber's 11~t~h~ce) generated the final ins~uctions for rûuting the call. In particular, by coll~illg the routing number ret~ 1 to the interex~ n~e switch with the routing ins~uction 213 ~ 2~0 information supplied by the subscriber's database, it can be determined whether the call was routed according to instructions from the subscriber's database.
In an exemplary embodiment ofthe invention, communications are monitored between 5 an interexchange switch and an NCP, and between the NCP and a subscriber's database.
The communications between these network components are correlated to identify those communications which correspond to a particular call. Selected information from the identified communications is collected and assembled into a call record. The call record indicates, among other things, whether the interexchange switch routed the call according 10 to information from the subscriber's database or according to preselected default routing instructions stored within the NCP. For calls routed according to the default instructions, the call record also identifies the reason that instructions from the subscriber's database were not used to route the call. Several call records are assembled in a convenient format for access by the subscriber.
In another exemplary embodiment of the invention, messages transferred to and from the NCP are collected and correlated within the NCP. Message correlation can be accomplished, for example, on the basis of identifiers within the messages which uniquely identify a call. Information is extracted directly from the messages that pass between the NCP and each of the interexchange switch and subscriber database, thereby elimin~ting the 20 need to capture messages as they pass between the system components. The NCP assembles selected data for each call into a single call record.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for use in a telecommunications system which routes special service calls according to routing instructions obtained from a subscriber database, the method comprising the steps of:
~ ~ 3 ~ ~ 6 ~
- 3a-determining the routing instructions output by the subscriber database for a special service call; comparing the routing instructions output by the subscriber database with the routing instructions actually used to route the special service call; and responding to the result of the 5 comparing step to provide an indication of whether the special service call was routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
Brief Description of the Drawin~s A
- 4 - 21~126~
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a sim~plified block diagram of a commlmications network configured to monitor m~s~e Ll~r~ between n~lwulk elements in acco~ e with the principles of the inventlon;
S FIG. 2 shows the structure of an exempla~y call record which stores illro,ll~lion passed along message paths 1 and 4 of FIG. l;
FIG. 3 shows the structure of an ~ lary call record which stores il~fo"l~ion passed along m~ paths 2 and 3 of FIG. l;
FIG. 4 shows the structure of an exempla~y traffic summ~y record constructed in accordance with the invention;
FIG. S is a simplified block diag~m of an ~It~ tive embodiment of the network ofFIG. l; and FIG. 6 shows the structure of an ~ y call record which stores illfo,~ ion passedalong m~s~e paths 1 through 4 of FIG. 5.
D~t~iled Desc~ n FIG. 1 shows a diagram of a communications network, having ICP capabilities, constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention. Ihe commlmications network includes a telephone station 100, a local ryrh~n~ carrier (LEC) switch 102, interexchange carrier (IXC) switches 104 and 112, a switching ~ r~, point (STP) 106, an NCP 108, and a subscriber .k1~b~e 110. Although STP 106 is shown in the figure as a single network element, it is to be understood that communications between IXC s-witch 104, NCP 108 and 2 ~31260 subscriber database 110 are routed through a network of switching transfer points. The communications network routes calls to an automatic call distributor (ACD) 114 and a telephone station 118 at a subscriber's premises 116. The network also includes a message capture means 120, a message collector 122, and a central data processor 124, which collectively provide information about a subscriber's ICP service to a workstation 126 at subscriber premises 116.
The communications network of FIG. 1 routes telephone calls by first translating a dialed number into a different number (a "routing number" ) which is used to route the call.
Telephone calls involving such dialed number translations are referred to generally herein as "special service" calls. Special service calls include, for example, 800 calls and premium service calls (calls for which the caller typically pays at least a portion of the telephone charges and often an additional premium).
Before describing the novel aspects of the present invention, it will be useful to describe the operation of an ICP system. As mentioned above, an ICP system routes calls by translating a dialed number into a routing number on the basis of information contained in a subscriber database. An example of one such system is described in commonly-owned, U.S. Patent No. 4,611,094, issued September 9, 1986, entitled "Method for Customer Definable Telephone Capability."
The ICP system works as follows. A caller at telephone station 100 of FIG. 1 places a special service call, for example, by dialing an 800 number. The call is extended to LEC
switch 102, which switches the call to IXC switch 104. IXC switch 104 sends a message through STP 106 to query a network database, such as NCP 108, for routing instructions.
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NCP 108 processes the query from IXC switch 104 and, where a~ pliate, ~c~.~ the ICP
capabilities of the nclwolk by querying a subscriber ~l~t~se 110 to obtain call routing instructions established by the subscriber. Whether a given call is to be routed using ICP may be determined, for example, from a conventional 800 number routing plan used by NCP 108 5 to ~l " ,;"~ call routing The path of the query from IXC switch 104 to NCP 108 (referred to as the "message path") is indicated by the dashed line labeled by reference number 1. NCP
108 queries subscriber ~l~t~e 110 by sending a m~ss~ (along a m~ss~e path 2) to l~ta~e 110 via STP 106. Subscriber ~l~tal~ce 110 responds to NCP 108 by sending a m~Ee (along a m~.~e path 3) cn"l;~ ;"~ routing instructions through STP 106. The10 routing instructions typically include a "routing label," which NCP 108 uses to identify a corresponding, unique routing number. When NCP 108 receives suitable instructions from subscriber ~1at~b~G 110, or after some pr~.."~ l time-out period, NCP 108 retums a routing number to IXC switch 104. NCP 108 provides this illfolll~ion to IXC switch 104 in a m~e ~ ~l along a m~e path 4. IXC switch 104 then routes the call 15 according to the routing number, for exarnple, to IXC switch 112. IXC switch 112 routes the call to ACD 114 at the subscriber ~lc~llises 116. ACD 114 ~wil~llcs the call to a telephone station 118 at the suks~iher l,le~ s~.
The netw-ork COn4~O11G11t~ described above and the ~ ling techniques for communicating l~lWGGll those network components are well known by those skilled in the art.
20 For exarnple, LEC switch 102 illu~atively is a 5ESS~9 switch m~ f~lred by American Telephone & Telegraph Co., Inc. (AT&T).IXC switch 104 illustratively is a 4ESSTM switch m~m-f~ red by AT&T, but ~It~n~tively could be a local e~rll~n~ switch. NCP 108 illustratively includes an INWATS database NCP and a Direct Services Dialing NCP, both commercially available from AT&T. Exemplary message formats for messages transmitted on message paths 2 and 3 are described in TR54022, AT&T Intelligent Call Processing (ICP) Service Signaling System No. 7 Network Interface Specification, May 1, 1993.
The system described above enables a subscriber to customize and maintain its own database for routing calls. The subscriber is able to quickly change call routing and to implement specialized features which are otherwise unavailable through service provided by the interexchange carrier. However, various factors affecting the network may prevent NCP
1o 108 from utilizing instructions provided by subscriber database 1 10 for routing the call. For example, the response from subscriber database 1 10 may contain errors or may be in a form not recognizable by NCP 108. Also, subscriber database 110 may not provide a timely response to NCP 108. In such cases NCP 108 will respond to the query from IXC switch 104 (message path 1) by supplying a default routing number (via message path 4).Current ICP systems do not provide a mechanism for reporting to the subscriber whether calls are being routed by IXC switch 104 in accordance with the routing instructions provided by subscriber database 110. In particular, the subscriber cannot determine which calls are being routed according to instructions from subscriber database 110 and which calls are being routed according to default routing instructions provided by NCP 108. Moreover, the subscriber lacks a mechanism for diagnosing the problems which cause NCP 108 to supply default routing instructions to IXC switch 104.
In accordance with the invention, a method is provided for the subscriber to verify that A !
~13126~
a call is being routed according to routing instIuctions provided by subscriber ~l~t~b~ee 110.
l~e.e~e~ r~,O~ w~ IXC switch 104 and NCP 108, and m~s~es ll~r~
between NCP 108 and subscriber database 110, are captured and correlated to identify all m~-e.s~ee collespol~ding to a particular call. Selected illr~lll~Lion from the m~es~es S ~ r~lled between NCP 108 and IXC switch 104 for the call is compared with selected i~lll~Lion from the m~e~e ll~r~lled Ixlw~ll NCP 108 and subscriber tl~tabaee 110 for the same call to d~ whether the call was routed according to the subscribe~s instructions.
In an exemplary embodiment ofthe invention, m~e~ collector 122 stores a mapping 10 of routing numbers to routing labels and uses this illro~ lion to d~t~min~ whether a given call was routed according to routing instructions from subscriber d~l~ase 110. The routing number is extracted from m~e~e that were ll~.L~ l;L~ed lxlweell NCP 108 and IXC switch 104. The routing label is ex~acted from messages that were l~ .cl~;LI~d between subscriber database 110 and NCP 108 and coll4,al~d with the routing number. A d~l- .. ",;~ on that the 15 extracted routing number does not map to the extracted routing label causes m~e.c~e collector 122 to ~ell~l~ an indication that the call was routed using a default routing number rather than according to routing instn~ctions from subscriber ~l~t~b~ee 110.
In an ~IL..";~ re emb~im~nt, m~ collector 122 does not contain a mapping of routing numbers to routing labels, but instead analyzes other data collected from the messages 20 Ll~rell~d between IXC 104, NCP 108, and subscriber ~l~t~b~ee 110 to d~l~ ...it~e whether a default routing number was used For ~ Ie, call billing record inrolll~lion whichidentifies to whom and at what rate the call is to be billed can be used to d~ whether 2 ~ 3 ~ 2 6 0 ~' g a default routing number was used. Call billing record information, such as a special billing code which indicates that default routing was used, typically is sent from NCP 108 to IXC
switch 104 (via message path 4). By detecting this special billing code, message collector 5 122 determines, indirectly, that a default routing number was used.
Referring again to FIG. 1, messages on each of the four message paths (paths 1-4) are captured by message capture means 120. Message capture means 120 is interposed in the trunks between STP 106 and NCP 108. Message capture means 120 copies the messages passing between NCP 108 and STP 106, and outputs the copied messages to message collector 122. Message capture means 120 illustratively is an Enhanced Message Sampling Board (Ver. 2) available from AT&T, but could be any device which monitors and copies selected messages from message paths 1 through 4. Suitable monitoring apparatus for implementing message capture means 120 also is disclosed in U.S. Patent 4,788,718.
As described in greater detail below, message collector 122 correlates the messages on message paths 1 through 4 to identify all those messages associated with a particular call.
For each call, message collector 122 generates two "call" records 200 and 300 (shown in FIGs. 2 and 3). Call record 200 contains data copied from the messages on message paths 1 and 4. Call record 300 contains data copied from the messages on message paths 2 and 3. A unique identifier preferably is assigned for each call to facilitate correlating the call records 200 and 300 which correspond to each call. Message collector 122 may be implemented, for example, using a workstation commercially available from Sun Microsystems, Inc. A separate message collector 122 is provided for each NCP 108 in the communications network.
,,. ~
- lo- 21312fi~
Alternatively, multiple NCPs (not shown) are coupled to a single m~.~e collector 122.
Message collector l22 outputs call records 200 and 300 to central data processor 124.
Central data processor 124 aggregates call records received from m~s~ collector 122 and compiles the data in those records to produce a "traffic summary" record 400 (see FIG. 4).
S A exemplary traffic summary record 400 would inr~ .o, for example, a summary of the data for all telephone calls placed to a particular dialed number over a selected time period. The subscriber is given the ability to access the traffic summ~y records by ~c~ssing central data processor 124, or the traffic summary records are ~l~om~tically downloaded to a workstation 126.
As its name s~l~st~, central data processor 124 is impl~n~nte(l in a centralizedlocation and is configured to receive i"r~ ion from each of the individual m~ss~collectors 122 deployed within the communications network. Central data processor 124 illustratively is i~ nte~1 as a ~l~Ld,l~ computer, but one skilled in the art will appreciate that any computer means having sufficient proc~sin~ power could be used.
FIG. 2 shows the content and format of an ~el~lary call record 200 generated by message collector 122. Call record 200 includes several fields, each of which in~
information about a particular call. The first field in call record 200 is a "Dialed Number"
field 202. Dialed Number field 202 stores the telephone number that was dialed by the caller at telephone station 100 (FIG. 1). Dialed Number field 202 serves as an identifier for the call 20 record so that the call record can be compiled by central data prooessor 124 with other call records for the same dialed number.
Two other key data fields in call record 200 are the "Routing Number" field 204 and 13126~
the "Call Identifier" field 206. Routing Number field 204 contains i~ lion whichidentifies the ~lçstin~tion to which the call actually was routed (as specified by NCP 108).
Call Identifier field 206 stores a unique call identifier, such as a nurnber, for each call. The call identifier from field 206 is used to facilitate correlating messages for a given call passing S on mçs~e paths 1 through 4.
Call record 200 p,~r~l~ly includes a field Co.~ ~ion which indicates, for those calls routed according to default routing instructions, the reason that the subscriber-pr~scribed routing was not use~ lhis field is shown in FIG. 2 as the "Reason for Default Routing" field 208. Field 208 contains flags repre~sPnting the following "error" m~s~
NCP 108 does not contain a mapping ofthe routing label to the routingnumber; (2) NCP 108 cannot read the m~e it received from subscriber d~labase 110 (on message path 3); (3) the routing label in the subscriber ~ b~ce response m~? (on m~s~e path 3) is not in a forrnat recognizable by NCP 108; (4) NCP 108 did not receive a timely response to its query of subscriber datab~e 110; (5) the subscriber ~i~t~b~ee r~onse message indicated that subscriber ~1~t~h~e 110 could not process the query m~s~e fromNCP 108 (on m~ssa~ path 2), for example, because the m~s~ was garbled in l~ "~iccion or because subscriber ~l~t~b~se 110 did not recognize the dialed number, or (6) no query was sent from NCP 108 to subscriber l1~t~h~e 110 due to l~l~u~k m~n~ nt reasons, for example, because sending the m~ would have caused subscriber ~1~t~b~e 110 to become overloaded.
Ihe i~ro",~lion u~sed to populate field 208 typically is generated by NCP 108. For example, a timer is set in NCP 108 when the NCP sends a query (via m~s~e path 2) to subscriber ~t~h~ce 110. If NCP 108 does not receive a l~nse to the query (along m~.e.e~ge - - 12- ~13126~
path 3) before a pre~ 1 tirne-out period expires, the NCP indicates that a response was not received from subscriber database 110 in tirne to be used for routing. In a second example, if the routing label does not rnatch the format required by NCP 108 or does not co~ d to a routing number stored within the NCP, NCP 108 generates an apl~r~liate m~Jflag signaling the reason for default routing.
Referring again to FIG. 2, other i~ ,lll~ion may be included in call record 200, if desildble. For example, call record 200 may include a "Subscriber D~t~h~ee Query" field 210 to indicate whether NCP 108 queried subscriber ~at~b~e 110 (i.e., whether the call was a regular 800 service call or an ICP call involving a translation based on i~ ~ion from subscriber ~ab~e l 10). Record 200 also may include a "Caller's Area Code" field 212 or "Automatic Number Identifier" field (not shown). Call record 200 may include a "Routing Result" field 214 to indicate whether the call was either routed to the ~l~tin~tion identified by the routing label, routed to a default location, or not routed at all by NCP 108 for network m~n~ nt reasons (e.g, too many calls were made to this 800 number within a pre~et~mined time interval). A "Time of Call" field 216 may be provided as a convenient means for or~ni7ing call records into a traffic summary record according to preselected time intervals. A "Call Disposition" field 218 stores the disposition status (e.g, busy, answered, ring-no answer) ofthe call as ~ "~ 1 by a m~ r~urned from switch 112 to switch 104.
NCP 108 can be configured to measure and report the elapsed time between querying subscriber ~iat~h~e 110 and receiving a response from subscriber ~ ba~e 110 at NCP 108.
NCP 108 begins timing when a query is sent to the subscriber database via m~s~e path 2, 2l3l2~
and stops timing when a ~ ol~se is received via m~ path 3. The elapsed time is recorded in a field (not shown) in call record 200 for delivery to the subscriber as part of a traffic summary record.
FIG. 3 shows the content and format of an ~ lary call record 300 for storing S information passing between NCP 108 and subscriber fl~ta~e 110. Call record 300 includes a "Dialed Number" field 302, a "Routing Label" field 304, a "Call Identifier" field 306, a "Caller's Area Code" field 308, and a "Time of Call" field 310. Routing Label field 304 contains the routing label specified by subscriber ~ab~e 110. The ~ g fields store the same information as their COIIlltt;l~t~, ofthe same name in call record 200. Additionally, 10 a "Caller-Specific Data" field 312 is provided to hold data retumed by subscriber ~ase 110 that is specific to the caller. This caller-specific data could be passed to IXC switch 104 for routing with the call to subscriber premises 116, and could be retrieved from subscriber ~t~e 110, for ~ , on the basis of the caller's ANL
FIG. 4 shows an exemplary traffic summary record 400. As described above, the 15 traffic summary record is a compilation of i~ on from many call records, including information from both call record 200 and call record 300. Traffic summary record 400 typically is or~ d according to the dialed number. Traffic ~lrnm~ry record 400 includes fields such as the "Dialed Number" field 402, "Routing Label" field 404, and "Routing NumW' field 406. Traffic s -rnm~ry record 400 also in~ln-les fields which provide a tally of:
20 the number of calls routed according to the routing label ret~ned by subscriber clat~b~e 110 (field 408), the number of calls routed according to a default routing number stored within NCP 108 (field 410), and the number of calls not routed for reasons of network m~n~rnent - 14- C~1312~
expediency (field 412). A "Reasons for Default Routing" field 414 provides a count of the number of calls which were routed using default routing instructions for each of the "errors"
described with respect to field 208 of call record 200. Traffic summa~y record 400 also may include a "Caller-Specific Data" field 416, which includes caller-specific data sent from 5 subscriber database 110 to be included in the call (e.g., calle~s Social Security number) and a field which stores a summary of call dispositions (field 418). One skilled in the art will appreciate that other fields can be provided without departing from the scope ofthe invention, such as fields to report the number of regular 800 service calls (for which no ICP query w~
sent to subscriber ~i~t~ e 110) and the number of ICP queries sent to subscriber tl~t~b~ce 10 1 10.
FIG. 5 shows an alternative embodiment of the ICP mnnitoring system of the present invention. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, m~s transferred to and from NCP 108 are collected and correlated within NCP 108. Message correlation can be accomplished, for example, on the basis of identifiers within the m~es which uniquely identify a call.
15 Information is extracted from the m~s~g~ that p~s on m~ss~ paths 1 through 4 by NCP
108 directly, thereby eli~ g the need to monitor m~s using m~s~e capture means 120 and m~e collector 122 of FIG 1. NCP 108 assembles pre~ 1 data for each call into a single data record 600 (see FIG. 6). NCP 108 outputs the data records to oentral data processor 124 via line 500. Central data processor 124 compiles the data records 20 received from NCP 108 into traffic s~lmm~ry records 400 in the manner described above with respect to FIG. 1. Central data processor 124 makes the traffic sumrnary records available to the subscriber via a computer means 126 at the subscriber's premises.
~13i26~
FIG. 6 shows an exemplary call record 600 that is generated by NCP 108 for each call.
Call record 600 includes a "Dialed Number" field 602, a "Routing Number" field 604, a "Routing Label" field 606, a "Call Identifier" field 608, a "Reason for Default Routing" field 610, a "Subscriber Database Query" field 612, a "Caller's Area Code" field 614, a "Time of 5 Call" field 616, and a "Call Disposition" field 618. Each of these fields strore the same l~ion as their CO~lt~ of the sarne narne in call records 200 and 300, described above. However, because all of the il~fu~ lion used to populate record 600 is obtained from NCP 108 directly in the embodiment of FIG. 5, a single record is used to store this information (rather than the two records of FIGs. 2 and 3).
- It will be ~I)al~llt to one skilled in the art that other modifications can be made to the described embo~1i",r~ i without departing from the scope of the invention. For exarnple, the system could be modified to capture specific illr~lll~ion (e.g, a personal identification number or "PIN," "frequent flyer" identification number, or account nurnber) passed from the subscriber d~ase and to fon~ard the captured illr~,lll~ion with the call. Similarly, the 15 described embo~ could be modified to use sele~ted non-routing i,~rolll~ion (such as a caller's account number, social security number, or PIN) as the basis for det~."~ g whether calls placed by a particular caller are being routed according to routing instructions retrieved from subscriber database 110. For ex~nple, a subscriber database could ,~,~i,,l;.il, a record of a particular account l~;~lcs~llt~i~e ~l~f~lo~ by an individual customer and 20 ~tom~tically route calls from that c~l~tomPr to the pler~llcd repr~nt~tive. The principles of the invention could then be utilized to report to the subscriber, on a cll~tnm~-by-customer basis, whether calls from a given c l~tom~r were routed according to the instructions stored 2131~6~
within subscriber database 110. Ihe monitoring system also could be used as a general tool to monitor the subscriber (l~t~h~ r~., . "~"~
Claims (24)
1. A method for use in a telecommunications system which routes special service calls according to routing instructions obtained from a subscriber database, the method comprising the steps of:
determining the routing instructions output by the subscriber database for a special service call;
comparing the routing instructions output by the subscriber database with the routing instructions actually used to route the special service call; and responding to the result of the comparing step to provide an indication of whether the special service call was routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
determining the routing instructions output by the subscriber database for a special service call;
comparing the routing instructions output by the subscriber database with the routing instructions actually used to route the special service call; and responding to the result of the comparing step to provide an indication of whether the special service call was routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
2. The invention of claim 1 wherein the comparing step comprises comparing a routing label output by the subscriber database for routing the special service call with the routing number used to route the special service call.
3. The invention of claim 1 wherein the responding step comprises generating an indication that the special service call was routed using a default routing instruction.
4. The invention of claim 1 further comprising the step of providing an indication of why the special service call was not routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
5. The invention of claim 1 further comprising the step of determining the elapsed time between initiation of a query for routing instructions of the subscriber database by a network processor and receipt by the network processor of a response to the query.
6. A method for use in an intelligent call processing system, the method comprising the steps of:
monitoring message transfers between a network special service call database, a subscriber database, and a network switch;
correlating messages corresponding to a predetermined special service call; and analyzing selected information derived from the messages of the predetermined special service call to determine whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
monitoring message transfers between a network special service call database, a subscriber database, and a network switch;
correlating messages corresponding to a predetermined special service call; and analyzing selected information derived from the messages of the predetermined special service call to determine whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
7. The invention of claim 6 wherein the correlating step comprises identifying messages corresponding to the special service call on the basis of an identifier unique to the special service call.
8. The invention of claim 6 wherein the selected information includes a routing label specified by the subscriber database and a routing number specified by the network special service call database.
9. The method of claim 6 wherein the selected information comprises billing record information which indicates how the special service call was routed.
10. The invention of claim 6 further comprising the step of generating an indication of whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
11. The invention of claim 10 wherein the generating step comprises generating an indication that the special service call was routed using a default routing instruction.
12. The invention of claim 10 further comprising the step of providing an indication of why the special service call was not routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
13. The invention of claim 6 further comprising the step of correlating the results of the analyzing step with non-routing information.
14. The invention of claim 13 wherein the correlating step comprises determiningon a caller-by-caller basis whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
15. A method for use in an intelligent call processing system, the method comprising the steps of:
monitoring messages received by a network special service call database from a network switch and from a subscriber database;
correlating messages corresponding to a predetermined special service call; and analyzing selected information derived from the messages of the predetermined special service call to determine whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
monitoring messages received by a network special service call database from a network switch and from a subscriber database;
correlating messages corresponding to a predetermined special service call; and analyzing selected information derived from the messages of the predetermined special service call to determine whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
16. The invention of claim 15 wherein the correlating step comprises identifyingmessages corresponding to the special service call on the basis of an identifier unique to the special service call.
17. The invention of claim 15 wherein the selected information includes a routing label specified by the subscriber database and a routing number specified by the network special service call database.
18. The method of claim 15 wherein the predetermined information comprises billing record information which indicates how the special service call was routed.
19. The invention of claim 15 further comprising the step of determining the elapsed time between initiation of a query for routing instructions of the subscriber database by a network processor and receipt by the network processor of a response to the query.
20. The invention of claim 15 further comprising the step of generating an indication of whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
21. The invention of claim 20 wherein the generating step comprises generating an indication that the special service call was routed using a default routing instruction.
22. The invention of claim 20 further comprising the step of providing an indication of why the special service call was not routed according to the routing instructions output by the subscriber database.
23. The invention of claim 15 further comprising the step of correlating the results of the analyzing step with non-routing information.
24. The invention of claim 23 wherein the correlating step comprises determiningon a caller-by caller basis whether the special service call was routed according to routing instructions specified by the subscriber database.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US08/144,067 US5448632A (en) | 1993-10-27 | 1993-10-27 | Call monitoring system for intelligent call processing |
| US144,067 | 1993-10-27 |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2131260A1 CA2131260A1 (en) | 1995-04-28 |
| CA2131260C true CA2131260C (en) | 1998-09-29 |
Family
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| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002131260A Expired - Fee Related CA2131260C (en) | 1993-10-27 | 1994-08-31 | Call monitoring system for intelligent call processing |
Country Status (5)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| US (1) | US5448632A (en) |
| EP (1) | EP0651548A1 (en) |
| JP (1) | JPH07183962A (en) |
| CN (1) | CN1111862A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA2131260C (en) |
Families Citing this family (33)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US5353331A (en) | 1992-03-05 | 1994-10-04 | Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. | Personal communications service using wireline/wireless integration |
| US5590181A (en) * | 1993-10-15 | 1996-12-31 | Link Usa Corporation | Call-processing system and method |
| US5563939A (en) * | 1993-12-09 | 1996-10-08 | At&T | Method and system for delivering a communication service |
| US6278862B1 (en) | 1994-01-05 | 2001-08-21 | Daniel A. Henderson | Method and apparatus for enhancing the efficient communication of information in an alphanumeric paging network |
| US6427064B1 (en) | 1994-01-05 | 2002-07-30 | Daniel A. Henderson | Method and apparatus for maintaining a database in a portable communication device |
| US5594792A (en) * | 1994-01-28 | 1997-01-14 | American Telecorp | Methods and apparatus for modeling and emulating devices in a network of telecommunication systems |
| DE69530534T2 (en) * | 1994-02-25 | 2004-03-18 | Hewlett-Packard Co. (N.D.Ges.D.Staates Delaware), Palo Alto | Message receiving circuit for a signaling network |
| US5694463A (en) * | 1995-02-15 | 1997-12-02 | Christie; Joseph Michael | System for service control point routing |
| FI103542B (en) * | 1995-04-04 | 1999-07-15 | Nokia Telecommunications Oy | Personal IN service |
| US5675637A (en) | 1995-05-16 | 1997-10-07 | Inventions, Inc. | Method for automatically obtaining and presenting data from multiple data sources |
| US5617471A (en) * | 1995-05-25 | 1997-04-01 | Rogers; Wesley D. | Telecommunications system for transferring a telephone call |
| US5619557A (en) * | 1995-07-10 | 1997-04-08 | Rockwell International Corporation | Telephone switching system and method for controlling incoming telephone calls to remote agents and for collecting and providing call data |
| JPH0936958A (en) * | 1995-07-17 | 1997-02-07 | Fujitsu Ltd | Service control node and service exchange node for performing traffic data collection |
| US5566235A (en) * | 1995-10-05 | 1996-10-15 | Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. | Customer controlled service mediation management |
| US5835583A (en) * | 1995-10-05 | 1998-11-10 | Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. | Mediated AIN control of short code access to information service providers |
| US5802146A (en) * | 1995-11-22 | 1998-09-01 | Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. | Maintenance operations console for an advanced intelligent network |
| KR0160347B1 (en) * | 1995-12-22 | 1998-12-15 | 양승택 | Information service |
| US6070076A (en) * | 1995-12-22 | 2000-05-30 | Ericsson Inc. | Identification of mobile calls within a mobile telephone system |
| US5761502A (en) * | 1995-12-29 | 1998-06-02 | Mci Corporation | System and method for managing a telecommunications network by associating and correlating network events |
| US5675635A (en) * | 1996-01-24 | 1997-10-07 | Sprint Communications Company L.P. | System and method for conducting poll at a processor associated with the originating switch |
| US6501950B1 (en) * | 1996-03-14 | 2002-12-31 | Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation | Systems and methods for monitoring data signals on a communications network |
| US6014557A (en) * | 1996-03-14 | 2000-01-11 | Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation | Apparatus and methods for providing wireless system fraud and visibility data |
| US5913163A (en) * | 1996-03-14 | 1999-06-15 | Telefonaktiebolaget Lm Ericsson | Integrated local communication system |
| GB9617329D0 (en) * | 1996-08-17 | 1996-09-25 | Hewlett Packard Co | Methods and apparatus for verifying network database query-response transactions |
| US6016307A (en) | 1996-10-31 | 2000-01-18 | Connect One, Inc. | Multi-protocol telecommunications routing optimization |
| US6473404B1 (en) | 1998-11-24 | 2002-10-29 | Connect One, Inc. | Multi-protocol telecommunications routing optimization |
| EP1021757A1 (en) | 1997-07-25 | 2000-07-26 | Starvox, Inc. | Apparatus and method for integrated voice gateway |
| US6782087B1 (en) | 1997-09-19 | 2004-08-24 | Mci Communications Corporation | Desktop telephony application program for a call center agent |
| JP3391673B2 (en) * | 1997-10-08 | 2003-03-31 | 富士通株式会社 | Service management device, database collation method for service management device, and computer-readable recording medium recording database collation program |
| US6137862A (en) * | 1998-03-16 | 2000-10-24 | Mci Communications Corporation | Failover mechanism for computer/telephony integration monitoring server |
| US6330318B1 (en) * | 1998-09-25 | 2001-12-11 | Mci Worldcom, Inc. | Method of and system for interrupting and parking calls in a switched telecommunications network |
| US6256380B1 (en) * | 1999-01-19 | 2001-07-03 | Telcordia Technologies, Inc. | Methods for processing operator service system calls |
| US6718032B1 (en) | 1999-07-13 | 2004-04-06 | Interactive Intelligence | Read-only in-memory tables for intelligent call processing system |
Family Cites Families (6)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4611094A (en) * | 1983-12-01 | 1986-09-09 | At&T Bell Laboratories | Method for customer definable telephone capability |
| US4788718A (en) * | 1987-10-05 | 1988-11-29 | American Telephone And Telegraph Company, At & T Laboratories | Call data collection and modification of received call distribution |
| US5018191A (en) * | 1989-10-23 | 1991-05-21 | At&T Bell Laboratories | Special service call routing |
| US4959849A (en) * | 1989-07-31 | 1990-09-25 | At&T Bell Laboratories | End-to-end network surveillance |
| US5311572A (en) * | 1991-10-03 | 1994-05-10 | At&T Bell Laboratories | Cooperative databases call processing system |
| US5335268A (en) * | 1992-10-22 | 1994-08-02 | Mci Communications Corporation | Intelligent routing of special service telephone traffic |
-
1993
- 1993-10-27 US US08/144,067 patent/US5448632A/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
-
1994
- 1994-08-31 CA CA002131260A patent/CA2131260C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1994-10-19 EP EP94307647A patent/EP0651548A1/en not_active Withdrawn
- 1994-10-26 CN CN94117590.1A patent/CN1111862A/en active Pending
- 1994-10-27 JP JP6262996A patent/JPH07183962A/en active Pending
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| JPH07183962A (en) | 1995-07-21 |
| US5448632A (en) | 1995-09-05 |
| EP0651548A1 (en) | 1995-05-03 |
| CA2131260A1 (en) | 1995-04-28 |
| CN1111862A (en) | 1995-11-15 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
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| EEER | Examination request | ||
| MKLA | Lapsed |