Abstract:
A system and method for monitoring an automated voice response (AVR) system is provided. An audio communication from a caller is processed by executing an AVR script with a plurality of instructions. A visual representation of the audio communication is presented to an agent substantially simultaneously with the audio communication based on the AVR script. The visual representation includes at least one field to be populated with information obtained from the caller and the information populated in the field can be updated by the agent.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This patent application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/732,626, filed Apr. 3, 2007, pending, which claims priority to U.S. Pat. No. 7,292,689, issued on Nov. 6, 2007, which claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/364,555, filed Mar. 15, 2002; and claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/403,354, filed Aug. 13, 2002, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     COPYRIGHT NOTICE 
       [0002]    A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as the document appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The present invention relates in general to automated call center operation and, in particular, to a system and method for monitoring an automated voice response system. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    Customer call centers, or simply, “call centers,” are usually the first direct point of contact for customers seeking direct assistance from manufacturers and service vendors. Call centers are reachable by telephone and provide a single source for customer support and problem resolution. Although World Wide Web-based customer support is becoming increasingly available via the Internet, call centers still offer a convenient and universally-available forum for remote customer assistance. 
         [0005]    As customer satisfaction and good will depend significantly on service after the sale, vendors spend substantial time, money and effort in ensuring effective call center operation. Customer assistance professionals are trained in providing both effective and courteous communication and informed and accurate product and service information. Nevertheless, the volume of call traffic can often exceed the capabilities of human customer assistance agents, and a range of automated call center systems are presently used to help bridge the gap between the need to provide responsive assistance and the limits of human call center staff. 
         [0006]    Typically, in existing automated call center systems, customers are put on hold until an agent is available to take their call. While on hold, an automated system typically collects information from the customer, such as account number, to determine a priority of service. Such a system may also provide automated menus that attempt to classify the call into basic transaction types, for instance, based on language spoken. 
         [0007]    When an agent is available to take the call, the agent will greet the customer, may ask for identification information, and will attempt to determine the nature of the call, often by asking for the same information that the customer previously provided to the automated system. The agent then takes some action, such as performing troubleshooting and providing the caller with instructions for resolving the problem. Further, to assist in improving customer support, the agent will usually log the customer information provided by the caller. 
         [0008]    Each customer call is typically an interactive process. During the interaction, the agent may put the customer on hold while the agent gathers information, takes notes, or sometimes handles other customers. Finally, after call completion, the agent will summarize the call as a call log entry. The interactive process is repeated for each new caller throughout the course of the day. This interactive process is time inefficient. Agents are forced to wait for customers to complete their instructions while customers similarly remain on hold while agents are assisting other callers, researching a problem resolution, or creating call logs. 
         [0009]    A customer interaction system is described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 02002/0146110 A1 to Fromm, published on Oct. 10, 2002, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. The system enables agents to simultaneously process voice contacts from telephonic callers by storing incoming voice signals for time-shiftable and fast playback. Calls are routed to assigned agents when possible. If an agent is busy, the user is asked to state his question for storage in one or more queues. An agent subsequently processes and responds to the question in person, in a manner similar to that utilized in Web chat interactions. Agents respond to voice recordings in the order in which received with additionally provided fast playback that enables an agent to catch up with recorded messages. However, both user and agent messages remain as spoken speech recorded in an audible, non-textual format and accordingly require the full attention of the assigned agent. 
         [0010]    Accordingly, there is a need for an approach to providing automated call center operation that allows highly responsive caller support with a minimum of agent idle time and caller hold time. 
         [0011]    There is a further need for an approach to providing efficient caller message processing using transcribed and synthesized speech utterances as an internal medium of communication within the automated call center. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0012]    In the described embodiment, an agent and customer communicate through voice messages using a digitized voice-driven system. From the customer perspective, the experience appears to be an interaction with an intelligent machine. The interaction is similar to calling a legacy automated call center system staffed with human agents, but the customers are aware that the agent is automated, not human. 
         [0013]    Preferably, the system voice is clear and human-like, but is recognizable as a machine voice. Slight delays in responses can occur compared to speaking with a human agent, although the customer does not have to repeat information already provided and is generally not put on hold. Upon request, the system can repeat the information provided to the customer, and consistently appears to be patient and polite. 
         [0014]    Operationally, the system differs from legacy systems. Instead of providing full-time voice-to-voice communications, the system gives agents the ability to control a continuum of increasingly automated responses in the form of a “sliding” control. For most interactions, every customer speech utterance is recorded and stored, is digitally transcribed into a text message and is presented to an off-line agent through a visual interface on a workstation. The agent can read or optionally listen to each utterance upon arrival, as well as to previous utterances. As well, the agent can annotate or manually re-transcribe each of the customer utterances as needed. 
         [0015]    Once a session has been established, each human agent can communicate indirectly with customers by typing written responses at their workstation. Each written response is converted into speech following completion and is played to the customer. 
         [0016]    The agent can also choose pre-formed responses, thereby saving time and communicating in a consistent, uniform manner. The pre-formed responses can include an associated form containing parameterized variable fields that are completed by the agent or by the system to fill in, for example, dates or names. The completed pre-formed response is converted into speech. Alternatively, pre-formed responses can be pre-recorded as sound bites and staged in an audio cache for immediate playback. 
         [0017]    In addition to indirect communication via their workstation, each human agent can also accept live calls from customers in a real time, voice-to-voice mode. Live call processing may be required to handle crises or other service needs that are not amenable to automation, or to provide those services to customers, which are not generally acceptable when provided via automation. 
         [0018]    Furthermore, when an agent identifies a call that matches a recognized problem or frequently asked question, the agent can choose a predefined “script” to prompt and collect or simply provide the customer with information in a step-by-step manner. For example, a script could be used to collect a customer&#39;s personal information for a credit application, or to provide instructions on using a feature of a consumer product in a customer support application. Thus, the ability of an agent to interact with customers through manually or automated text responses converted into speech or through pre-recorded or live voice responses provides a flexible and sliding level of agent control adaptable to a wide range of customer service situations. 
         [0019]    The system also provides an automatic journaling function. By the time each call ends, the system will have collected a complete and fully transcribed log of the conversation. The human agent need not manually transcribe a log entry, as the information contained in the system-generated log is already in a format that can be stored in a database and can be easily mined for data. Manual annotations can be added to the log entry, as needed. 
         [0020]    Empirically, from an agent perspective, an average customer service call lasts seven minutes when using a legacy call center, of which two minutes are spent on an introduction and setup and an additional two minutes on wrap-up and documentation. The described embodiment eliminates most of the time spent on setup and wrap-up and reduces the time an agent spends on a call by about 30%. From a customer point of view, although the overall length of the call may be the same, hold times are eliminated while slight yet unobjectionably longer delays between agent&#39;s responses may occur. 
         [0021]    With the extensive logging and visual presentation to the agent, the agent can keep track of more than one session with a customer. An agent may handle multiple calls simultaneously, while each customer will hardly notice any degradation in call quality. In the described embodiment, an agent can handle four calls simultaneously. However, an arbitrarily large number of simultaneous calls could be maintained by the system for each agent and would only be subject to physical computational constraints, such as available processing power and memory. Each agent is able to handle multiple calls by not having to listen to each customer as they speak. Instead, agents can listen to or read transcribed customer utterances, thereby each allowing their attention to be split among multiple calls. The ability to use pre-recorded forms to gather or provide standard information further increases an agent&#39;s ability to handle multiple calls. For example, while a customer is interacting with a script collecting personal information, such as first and last name, social security number, address and phone number, and so forth, the agent can handle other callers. 
         [0022]    An embodiment provides an apparatus and method for monitoring an interaction between a caller and an automated voice response (AVR) system. An audio communication from a caller is processed by executing an AVR script, which includes a plurality of instructions. A visual representation of the audio communication is presented substantially simultaneously with the audio communication to an agent based on the AVR script. The visual representation includes at least one field to be populated with information obtained from the caller and the information populated in the field can be updated by the agent. 
         [0023]    A further embodiment provides a system and method for real time automated voice response (AVR) system monitoring. A call is processed through execution of an interactive AVR script. A visualization of the call is presented based on the interactive AVR script while providing the call to an agent. The agent is allowed to intervene in the audio communication. 
         [0024]    Still other embodiments of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, wherein is described embodiments of the invention by way of illustrating the best mode contemplated for carrying out the invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of other and different embodiments and its several details are capable of modifications in various obvious respects, all without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the drawings and detailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0025]      FIG. 1  is a functional block diagram showing an automated call center operational environment. 
           [0026]      FIG. 2  is a process flow diagram showing, by way of example, a typical user call sequence, as transacted in the automated call center operational environment of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0027]      FIG. 3A  is a block diagram showing a system for providing a message-based communications infrastructure for automated call center operation, in accordance with the present invention. 
           [0028]      FIG. 3B  is a block diagram showing a system for providing a message-based communications infrastructure for automated call center operation, in accordance with a further embodiment the present invention. 
           [0029]      FIG. 4  is a process flow diagram showing variable automation levels provided using the system of  FIG. 3A . 
           [0030]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram showing a schema for storing records in the logging database of the system of  FIG. 3A . 
           [0031]      FIG. 6  is a process flow diagram showing, by way of example, the control flow followed in processing a script using the system of  FIG. 3A . 
           [0032]      FIG. 7  is a screen shot showing, by way of example, a set of call center service windows generated by the system of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0033]      FIG. 8  is a flow diagram showing a method for providing a message-based communications infrastructure for automated call center operation, in accordance with the present invention. 
           [0034]      FIG. 9  is a flow diagram showing a routine for assigning a session for use in the method of  FIG. 8 . 
           [0035]      FIG. 10  is a flow diagram showing a routine for processing a session for use in the method of  FIG. 8 . 
           [0036]      FIG. 11  is a flow diagram showing a routine for processing a session by an agent for use in the routine of  FIG. 10 . 
           [0037]      FIG. 12  is a flow diagram showing a routine for processing a session by a script engine for use in the routine of  FIG. 11 . 
           [0038]      FIG. 13  is a flow diagram showing a routine for executing a script for use in the routine of  FIG. 12 . 
       
    
    
       [0039]    APPENDIX A provides a sample grammar for use in the described embodiment. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     System for Providing a Message-Based Communications Infrastructure 
       [0040]      FIG. 1  is a functional block diagram showing an automated call center operational environment  10 . By way of example, a multiplicity of users call into an automated call center  11 , preferably through telephonic means. The telephonic means include Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS)  12 , cellular and satellite telephones  13 , Internet telephony (IPTel)  14 , Voice over IP (VoIP)  15 , and other forms of telephony and voice-based communications, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. Users could also call or interface to the automated call center  11  through data transmission means, such as an internetwork  17 , including the Internet. 
         [0041]    Independent of call origination, each user call is routed through a telephone company (Telco) public interchange  16  or equivalent call center to the automated call center  11 . Although shown with reference to a Telco public interchange  16 , any other form of telephonic or equivalent call networking system transmitting voice or data signals over various signal carrier mediums, including conventional land lines; radio, satellite or other forms of signal carriers; light wave or sound wave exchange systems; or equivalents thereof, could also be utilized, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. 
         [0042]    The automated call center  11  provides a single source for support and problem resolution for customers seeking direct assistance from manufacturers and service vendors, although automated call centers  11  can also be used in other areas of commerce, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. The terms “user” and “customer” are used interchangeably herein and both refer to a caller to the automated call center  11 . Although the automated call center  11  is shown as a single point within the automated call center operation environment  10 , the automated call center  11  could consist of one or more logically interconnected but physically separate, including geographically removed, operations, which provide a logically unified automated call center, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. 
         [0043]      FIG. 2  is a process flow diagram showing, by way of example, a typical user call sequence  20 , as transacted in the automated call center operational environment  10  of  FIG. 1 . Upon calling into the automated call center  11 , each user receives an initial greeting and an informational message providing a synopsis of caller options. The caller options enable the user to navigate through to a specific topic area for assistance or support. Following application, the user engages in a customer support scenario  22  with an agent, which is either a live person or an automated prompt, such as with an automated voice response system, to enable information collection and problem trouble-shooting. Note that the scenario  22  can be delayed by agent unavailability, caller volume capacity limits, and other factors that can delay customer response. As required, service provisioning  23  is provided to the user, either directly in the course of the call or indirectly through a service request dispatch. Finally, the call ends in a wrap-up  24 , which provides closure to the call and a departing salutation. Other forms and variations of customer call sequences are feasible, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. Importantly, however, from the perspective of the caller, the experience appears to be an interaction with an intelligent machine and the caller is aware that the agent is automated, not human. Accordingly, a typical caller will have a more relaxed expectation of agent responsiveness since a machine, and not an actual person, is on the line. 
         [0044]      FIG. 3A  is a block diagram showing a system  30  for providing a message-based communications infrastructure for automated call center  11  operation, also referred to as the Messaging Platform for Agent-Customer Transactions (MPACT) system  30 , in accordance with the present invention. During regular operation, the MPACT system  30  executes multiple threads to process multiple simultaneous calls, which are handled by one or more agents executing agent applications  43  on agent consoles  39  (shown in  FIG. 1 ). Alternatively, in a further embodiment, multiple MPACT systems  30  execute in parallel to provide enhanced performance through loosely- or tightly-coupled parallel processing. 
         [0045]    The MPACT system  30  consists of the following components: database  34 , telephony interface (TI)  35 , one or more speech recognition engines (SREs)  36 , one or more text-to-speech (TTS) engines  37 , audio cache  38 , one or more agent consoles  39 , and optionally, resource manager  40 . At least one instance of each component is generally required for the MPACT system  11  to operate, except that use of the resource manager  40  is optional, and is required only on larger systems that incorporate more than one instance of the other components. 
         [0046]    In the described embodiment, a messaging server  31 , database  34 , telephony interface  35 , SREs  36 , TTS engines  37  and audio cache  38  execute on a single computer system while one or more agent consoles  39  executing in parallel on separate computer systems. The different components communicate over an Internet Protocol (IP) network, which typically is implemented over high-speed local Ethernet. The MPACT system  30  components run on Intel/AMD-based servers under the Windows 2000 Server Operating System and Redhat Linux. Each agent console  39  runs on Intel/AMD-based workstations under the Windows 2000 Professional Operating System. Each of the components will now be described in further detail. 
         [0047]    The individual computer systems, including MPACT system  30 , are general purpose, programmed digital computing devices consisting of a central processing unit (CPU), random access memory (RAM), non-volatile secondary storage, such as a hard drive, network interfaces, and peripheral devices, including user interfacing means, such as a keyboard and display. Program code, including software programs, and data are loaded into the RAM for execution and processing by the CPU and results are generated for display, output, transmittal, or storage. 
         [0048]    Each component is implemented as is a computer program, procedure or module written as source code in a conventional programming language, such as the C++ programming language, and is presented for execution by the CPU as object or byte code, as is known in the art. Alternatively, the components could also be implemented in hardware, either as integrated circuitry or burned into read-only memory components. The various implementations of the source code and object and byte codes can be held on a computer-readable storage medium or embodied on a transmission medium in a carrier wave. The MPACT system  30  operates in accordance with a sequence of process steps, as further described below with reference to  FIG. 8 . 
       Messaging Server 
       [0049]    The messaging server  31  consists of a script engine  32  and session manager  47 . The script engine  32  executes scripts  49  incorporating a grammar  33  that defines a set of executable instructions for specified and interactive question-and-response dialog, and a session manager  47  that includes a message queue  48  for staging transient user and agent messages. Script pointers (“Ptrs”)  28  that identify the actual scripts  49  to be executed by the script engine  32  are maintained locally by each agent application  43 . Alternatively, scripts  29  could be stored in the database  34  and the script pointers  28  would provide database pointers to the scripts  29 . The messaging server  31  receives call control information from the telephony interface  35  and tracks logged-off, logged-on and signed-on agents. The messaging server  31  uses this information to establish sessions between agents and customers, as further described below with reference to  FIG. 4 . 
         [0050]    The database  34  contains three primary specialized databases: log database (LDB)  44 , agent profile database (APDB)  45 , and agent application database (AADB)  46 . The log database  44  provides a running journal as a structured log of each accepted call and stores each user message and agent message in a uniquely-identified record. Thus, agents are freed from the task of having to manually transcribe a telephone conversation following wrap-up. The agent profile database  45  allows the messaging server  31  to authenticate, log-on and sign-on agents into registered sessions. The agent application database  46  contains agent applications  43  that are executed on agent consoles  39 . Optionally, the database  34  can also contain scripts  29 . Other forms of specialized databases are possible, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. Alternatively, the information stored in the log database  44 , agent profile database  45 , and agent application database  46  could be maintained in structured or unstructured form using a standard file, spreadsheet, or other data assemblage for information storage and retrieval, as is known in the art. 
         [0051]    Definitionally, a signed-on agent is registered on the messaging server  31  and is actively processing calls. A logged-on agent is registered on the messaging server  31  but is not accepting calls. A logged-off agent is not registered on the messaging server  31 . 
         [0052]    For each session, the messaging server  31  receives customer calls through the telephony interface  35  and sends a stream of transcribed speech utterances as user messages to an agent assigned to handle the session. Note that one or more agents can be assigned to handle any given session and a hierarchy of areas of responsibility, such as speech transcription, customer interaction, controlling scripts, and so forth, can be delegated among several agents to ensure efficient call processing. Similarly, the messaging server  31  receives a stream of synthesized speech utterances as agent messages from an assigned agent application  43  and sends the agent messages to the customer through the telephony interface  35 . The messages typically only contain digitized voice; however, Simultaneous Voice and Data (SVD), for example, Caller ID, can also be provided. The multiplexing and demultiplexing of SVD messages is handled at the telephony interface  35  and an agent console  39 . 
         [0053]    The script engine  32  executes individual scripts  49 , which incorporate a pre-defined grammar  33 . The grammar  33  specifies a set of instructions that can be used to create question-and-answer dialogs that are executable by an agent via the agent application  43  and thereby enables an agent to process simultaneously multiple calls. The scripts  49  are submitted by agents via an agent console  39  using the script pointers  28  during processing of customer calls, as further described below with reference to  FIG. 6 . Each script  49  defines a sequence of synthesized speech utterances sent to customers and transcribed speech responses received back as user messages. The speech utterances could be pre-recorded and staged in the audio cache  38 . The user messages are used to populate a form (not shown) that is reviewed by the agent during service provisioning. 
         [0054]      FIG. 3B  is a block diagram showing a system  160  for providing a message-based communications infrastructure for automated call center operation, in accordance with a further embodiment the present invention. A scripting server  161  executes as a separate system from the messaging server  31 , which preferably includes only the session manager  47  and message queue  48 . Providing the functionality of the script engine  162  on a scripting server  161  enhances overall system throughput and performance by delegating script processing on a system separate from the messaging server  31 . 
         [0055]    The scripting server  161  consists of a dedicated script engine  162 , which executes scripts  163  stored locally to the scripting engine  161 . The scripts  163  also incorporate the grammar  33 . Script pointers (“Ptrs”)  164  that identify the actual scripts  163  to be executed by the script engine  162  are maintained locally by each agent application  43 . Alternatively, scripts  29  (shown in  FIG. 3A ) could be stored in the database  34  and the script pointers  164  would provide database pointers to the scripts  29 . 
       Telephony Interface 
       [0056]    Referring back to  FIG. 3A , customer calls are received through the telephony interface  35 , which provides the external connection between the MPACT system  30  and the telephone company  16  (shown in  FIG. 1 ). The primary purpose of the telephony interface  35  is to accept and process conventional telephone signals, including multiplexing, call routing, and queueing, as is known in the art. In the described embodiment, the telephony interface  35  consists of a third party hardware interface and software drivers, plus MPACT proprietary software that connects the third party package to the messaging server  31  and, in large systems, also to the resource manager  40 . The MPACT system  30  supports standard telephony interface cards, such as analog and T1 Dialogic PCI cards. Optionally, the telephony interface  35  includes an audio cache  41  in which pre-recorded “canned” sound bites are stored for efficient playback. These sound bites provide informational and navigational messages to all callers. Optionally, two or more telephony interfaces  35  can be used to provide increased user call capacity. Other forms of telephony interface  35  could be used to accommodate various signal carrier mediums, including conventional land lines; radio, satellite or other forms of signal carriers; light wave or sound wave exchange systems; or equivalents thereof, as would be recognized by ones skilled in the art. 
       Speech Recognition Engine 
       [0057]    User calls consist of ordinary spoken words, which must be transcribed into written text, for display, processing and storage. The purpose of the speech recognition engine  36  is to generate a stream of transcribed speech utterances that are recorded as computer-processable user messages. In the described embodiment, the speech recognition engine  36  consists of third party software and MPACT proprietary software that connects the third party package to the agent application  43  and, in large systems, also to the resource manager  40 . The MPACT system  30  supports Speechworks and Nuance speech recognition engines. Optionally, two or more speech recognition engines  36  can be used to provide increased user call capacity. 
         [0058]    In a further embodiment, a speech recognition engine executes on a client system  18  interfaced to the MPACT system  30  over the internetwork  17 , or other data transmission means. The MPACT system  30  receives client messages already transcribed into text by the client system  18  for processing in the same manner as live calls received directly through the telephony interface  35 . 
       Text-to-Speech Engine 
       [0059]    Each caller into the MPACT system  30  receives feedback in the form of agent messages, which each consist of a stream of synthesized speech utterances. The synthesized speech utterances include greetings, questions, informational responses, and other spoken phrases that the user hears during the course of the session. The purpose of the text-to-speech engine  37  is to generate the stream of synthesized speech utterances formed as agent messages, which can be played back as reproducible audio. The text-to-speech engine  37  consists of third party software and MPACT proprietary software that connects the third party package to the agent application  43  and, in large systems, also to the resource manager  40 . MPACT system  30  supports Speechworks&#39; Speechify text-to-speech. Optionally, the text-to-speech engine  37  can include an audio cache  42  that stores pre-recorded “canned” sound bites, which provide efficient delivery of standardized synthesized speech utterances for use in scripts and repetitive agent actions. As well, two or more text-to-speech engines  37  can be used to provide increased user call capacity. 
         [0060]    In a further embodiment, a text-to-speech engine executes on the client system  18  interfaced to the MPACT system  30  over the internetwork  17 , or other data transmission means. The MPACT system  30  sends agent messages to the client system  18  for synthesis into speech. The synthesized speech is heard by the caller on the client system  18  in the same manner as a live call through telephonic means transacted directly through the telephony interface  35 . 
       Agent Console 
       [0061]    Each agent console  39  provides the primary means for direct customer interaction. The primary purpose of each agent console  39  is to execute one or more agent applications  43 , stored in the agent application database  46 , which display both user and agent messages and provide menus of actions that can be executed responsive to agent commands, including script execution, as further described below with reference to  FIG. 6 . In the described embodiment, one or more agent applications  43  execute on each agent console  39  and one or more agent consoles  39  execute in parallel. Alternatively, multiple instances of agent applications  43  can run on a server machine (not shown) and can be accessed by agents at agent consoles  39  operating as remote terminals. 
         [0062]    Each agent application  43  implements a graphical user interface (GUI) for the human agent.  FIG. 7  is a screen shot showing, by way of example, a set of call center service windows  91 ,  92 ,  93  generated by the system  10  of  FIG. 1 . Each call service center window  91 ,  92 ,  93  appears in a graphical user interface  90  and enables an agent to indirectly interact with a customer calling through the telephony interface  35 . Following sign-on, via the agent application  43 , an agent can accept new session requests from the messaging server  31  and create a visual session container for each session. 
         [0063]    In the described embodiment, up to four sessions can be presented to an agent simultaneously. Preferably, the agent can view the contents of all sessions on a single screen. One session is designated as the active session and accepts agent commands, such as an instruction to listen to a transcribed user message, play a synthesized agent message to the customer, or activate a script through a menu  94 , as further described below with reference to  FIG. 6 . The agent can switch active sessions with a single keystroke or pointer click. 
         [0064]    Referring back to  FIG. 3A , each agent application  43  receives a stream of transcribed speech utterances from the telephony interface  35  via the messaging server  31 . In an alternate embodiment (not shown), the stream of transcribed speech utterances bypasses the messaging server  31  and is received directly from the telephony interface  35 . The messaging server  31  communicates with the speech recognition engine  36  to transcribe the utterances before sending the transcribed utterances to the agent application  43 . In turn, the agent application  43  sends agent messages to the telephony interface  35  via the messaging server  31 . The messaging server  31  communicates with the text-to-speech engine  37  to convert an agent message into a stream of synthesized speech utterances prior to forwarding to the telephony interface  35 . 
         [0065]      FIG. 4  is a process flow diagram showing variable automation levels  50  provided using the system  30  of  FIG. 3A . A typical caller sequence proceeds in three stages: input  51 , processing  52 , and output  53 . During the processing stage  52 , the system  30  provides each agent with a “sliding” control  64  that can vary the level of automation used in customer service provisioning. At one end of the sliding control  64 , the agent must manually type each written response to a user inquiry and, at the other end, the system  30  directly carries out customer interactions in a fully-automated fashion. 
         [0066]    The sliding control  64  accommodates the need to provide linear and non-linear processing to flexibly and dynamically tailor call transaction processing. Non-linear processing occurs when a caller departs from an expected course of action, such as by providing a tangential response to a question in a script requesting specific information. The agent would read the user message and alter the course of script processing to accommodate the tangential response, thereby enhancing the comfort level of the customer towards problem resolution. Linear processing occurs when the system  30  interacts directly with the caller through pre-defined scripts and is able to successfully complete a series of steps towards problem resolution along a pre-defined course of action. During a course of a call, both linear and non-linear processing can be used strategically to increase user confidence level and to sufficiently process a larger volume of caller traffic than possible with a fully manual and fully non-linear call processing approach. 
         [0067]    During the input stage  51 , speech  54  is received into the automated call center  11  (shown in  FIG. 1 ), either by a human operator  55  or a machine  56 , such as the MPACT system  30 . The speech  54  is converted into a stream of transcribed speech utterances or “normal” text annotations  57 . The text annotations  57  are machine-processable as inputs to the processing stage  52 . A message manager (not shown) associates incoming the audible speech utterances with the text annotations  57  and the associated incoming audible speech utterances are provided with the text annotations  57  to the agent for optional playback. 
         [0068]    Processing generally involves the execution of some form of action, such as a script execution, as further described below with reference to  FIG. 5 . During the processing stage  52 , either a human operator  58 , that is, an agent, or a machine  59  interprets each annotation  57  and generates a response or query  60 . The response or query  60  is received in the output stage  53 , either by a human operator  61 , that is, an agent, or a machine  62 . Finally, the response or query  60  is formed into synthesized speech utterances  63  that are played back to the caller. 
         [0069]    In the described embodiment, the three stages of call processing, input  51 , processing  52 , and output  53 , are performed by machines  56 ,  59 ,  62 , although adjunctive processing can be performed by human operators  55 ,  58 ,  61 , as necessary to supplement the MPACT system  30 . Thus, a sliding control  64  of human operator and machine interaction can be provided to automate call center operations. Using the sliding control  64 , the agent can change the behavior of the script engine  32  (shown in  FIG. 3A ) by beginning execution of a script  29 , adjusting the point of execution within a script  29 , or by causing a portion of the script  29  to be repeated. The agent can thereby alter the ordinarily sequential control flow of script processing by intervening as necessary, based on the current context of the call, or can allow script processing to proceed in a linear fashion. 
         [0070]    In addition to indirect communication via an agent console  39 , each agent can also accept live calls from customers directly through the telephony interface  35  in a real time, voice-to-voice mode. Live call processing may be required to handle crises or other service needs that are not amenable to automation, or to provide those services to customers, which are not generally acceptable when provided via automation. 
         [0071]    In a further embodiment, the agent communicates with callers executing on client systems  18  through text message exchange transacted over the internetwork  17 , or other data transmission means. Unlike conventional chat sessions, caller processing is transacted in the same manner in which telephonic calls received through the telephony interface  35  are transacted. Consequently, the agent can apply the sliding control  64  over automation level to ensure a continuum of non-linear to linear call processing independent of the actual call transmission means. Various arrangements and combinations of call transmission means can therefore be accommodated, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. 
         [0072]    Referring back to  FIG. 3A , as a first step, an agent, via an agent console  39 , authenticates to the messaging server  31  prior to logging on. Following log-on, the agent indicates availability to handling calls by signing on to the messaging server  31 . Thereafter, calls that have been accepted into the automated call center  11  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) are assigned to a session, and the session is subsequently assigned to a signed-on agent. 
         [0073]    After the initial communication between the agent and the customer, an agent application  43  ordinarily loads a script describing the session flow from the application database  45 , either according to agent instructions or based on information provided by the telephony interface  35 , such as Caller ID. The agent application  43  communicates further via the messaging server  31  with the speech recognition engine  36  and text-to-speech engine  37  to transcribe text-to-speech and convert speech-to-text, as necessary. Communication between the agent application  49  and the speech recognition engine  36  and text-to-speech engine  37  continues until the call terminates. 
         [0074]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram showing a schema  70  for storing records in the log database  44  of the MPACT system  30  of  FIG. 3A . Each session is identified by a session identifier (ID)  71 , which uniquely identifies each session, such as a sequentially-increasing number. In addition, each record contains a message identifier (ID)  72 , time stamped  73 , sender or receiver flag  74 , and content  75 , typically constituting audio data, text data or notes transcribed by the agent. Other types of identifiers, formation and content can be stored in a record, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. 
         [0075]    Referring back to  FIG. 3A , each agent application  43  also contains a supervisor mode that can be used to manually monitor system behavior and performance, control agent application  43  and messaging server  31  operation, monitor and guide human agents actions, and perform similar administrative tasks. A separate administrator application (not shown) enables system setup and configuration. 
         [0076]    Finally, each agent application  43  can execute scripts  49  to perform a pre-defined sequence of instructions, generally consisting of question-and-response dialogues through which a customer is queried regarding a concern or to troubleshoot a problem.  FIG. 6  is a process flow diagram showing, by way of example, the control flow  80  followed in processing a script  49  using the system  30  of  FIG. 3A . During the initial stage of processing, a customer  82  indirectly interacts with an agent  81  through the execution of an initial script  83 . The purpose of the initial script  83  is to populate a standard form  84  with general information regarding the nature of the call. Upon reviewing the form  84 , the agent  81  executes, via the agent application  43 , one or more additional scripts  87  to provide problem resolution or troubleshooting and to receive further information via additional forms  88 . Finally, the agent, via the agent application  43 , generates a resolution form  86  that is used as parameters to a closing script  85 , which is executed for playback to the customer  82  to complete the call. 
         [0077]    In the described embodiment, each form  84 ,  86 ,  88  is structured as a data containment object that stores data relevant to the agent application  43 . Preferably, each data containment object is maintained as a binary large object (BLOB) interpretable by each agent application  43  based on business requirements. Significantly, the use of scripts, forms and agent interaction enables a non-linear execution path through problem resolution and troubleshooting. As necessary, an agent, through the agent application  43 , can manually enter data into a form and progressively modify the sequence of problem resolution and troubleshooting. The amount of manual agent intervention follows from the sliding control  64  implemented in the MPACT system  30 , as described above with reference to  FIG. 4 . 
         [0078]    Referring back to  FIG. 3A , the script engine  32  executes each script  49 , which incorporate the grammar  33 . By way of example, a sample grammar for use in the described embodiment is provided in Appendix A. Other forms of grammars and scripting languages could be used, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. 
       Resource Manager 
       [0079]    The resource manager  40  provides scalability, load balancing and redundancy in large systems comprising multiple speech recognition engines  36 , text-to-speech engines  37 , and telephony interfaces  35 . In the described embodiment, the messaging server  31  has a built-in simple resource manager  40  (not shown) to manage multiple agent applications  43  operating in smaller call capacity systems. 
         [0080]    Using an administration application that controls the resource manager  40 , an administrator can set and configure the system while operational. The resource manager  40  enables the administrator to add or remove servers and to reroute connections between different components, for instance, between telephony interface  35 , messaging server  31  and agent application  43 . 
       Audio Cache 
       [0081]    The audio cache  38  provides a centralized repository in which pre-recorded “canned” sound bites are stored for efficient playback. These sound bites provide both informational and navigational messages to all callers and standardized synthesized speech utterances for use in scripts and repetitive agent actions. The sound bites in the audio cache  38  are retrievable by the telephony interface  35 , text-to-speech engine  37  and agent application  43 . 
       System Configuration and Capacity 
       [0082]    In a typical system, different components run on separate machines. A typical medium-sized system consists of one server running a telephony interface  35  and messaging server  31 , a separate server for the speech recognition engine  36 , another server for the text-to-speech engine  37 , and a fourth server for the log, agent profile, and agent application databases  44 ,  45 ,  46 , respectively. Alternatively, a minimal system runs all the components on a single server, along with an agent application  43  on an integrated agent console  39 . 
         [0083]    In the described embodiment, each medium-sized system configuration is “24×6,” meaning that the system can handle  24  simultaneous calls and can interface with six human agents. A minimal system configuration is “4×1,” that is, four simultaneous calls with one human agent, while a large system configuration is “96×24,” that is, 96 simultaneous calls and 24 human agents. Through the resource manager  40 , an aggregation of the above-described configurations enables much larger call capacity systems. 
         [0084]    By mixing proprietary technologies and existing systems, the MPACT system  30  reduces the average call time by 30%, increases agent efficiency up to four-fold, and significantly improves customer satisfaction. 
       Method for Providing a Message-Based Communications Infrastructure 
       [0085]      FIG. 8  is a flow diagram showing a method for providing a message-based communications infrastructure  100  for automated call center operation, in accordance with the present invention. The method is executed by the MPACT system  30  and individual operations are executed by the various components, specifically described below. During regular operation, the MPACT system  30  processes multiple simultaneous calls, which are handled by one or more agents executing agent applications  43  on an agent console  39  (shown in  FIG. 1 ). 
         [0086]    Generally, the method  100  proceeds by iteratively processing each call in a continuous processing cycle. During each cycle, a call is received (block  101 ) and assigned to a session (block  102 ) by the session manager  47  (shown in  FIG. 3A ), as further described below with reference to  FIG. 9 . Next, the session is processed (block  103 ), as further described below with reference to  FIG. 10 . Following session processing, the call ends (block  104 ) and further call are processed (block  105 ) until the MPACT system  30  is shut down or no further calls are received. The method then terminates. In the described embodiment, the MPACT is a multi-threaded system, employing multiple threads, which each independently execute the method  100 . 
         [0087]      FIG. 9  is a flow diagram showing a routine for signing a session  110  for use in the method  100  of  FIG. 8 . The purpose of the routine is to instantiate a new session object for processing by an agent application  43  (shown in  FIG. 3A ) and to subsequently assign the instantiated session to an agent operating on an agent console  39 . 
         [0088]    Initially, if any agent is available (block  111 ), one of the agents is picked as the assigned agent (block  112 ) and the new session is created (block  113 ). Subsequently, the selected agent is assigned to the newly-created session (block  114 ). The routine then returns. If no agents are available (block  111 ), the customer is presented with the option of interfacing to a non-agent (block  115 ), that is, an automated voice response system, which provides the information specifically requested by the customer (block  116 ), after which the routine returns. Otherwise, if the customer prefers an agent (block  115 ), the customer enters into a waiting queue (block  117 ) until an agent becomes available. 
         [0089]    Note that both the customers and agents can be prioritized using predefined selection criteria. For instance, customers who have enrolled in premium support service can received a higher priority in the waiting queue than other customers. As well, specialized problem-resolution agents can be prioritized for servicing particular customer needs for consideration during selection of agent assignment. 
         [0090]      FIG. 10  is a flow diagram showing a routine  125  for processing a session  120  for use in the method  100  of  FIG. 8 . The purpose of the routine is to iteratively store and forward messages using the message queue  48  (shown in  FIG. 3A ). Other forms of queueing and message handling and prioritization are possible, as would be recognized by one skilled in the art. 
         [0091]    During each iteration, the session manger  47  (shown in  FIG. 3A ) waits for a message, either a user message or agent message (block  121 ). Upon receipt, the message is placed in the message queue  48  (block  122 ) and the recipient of the message is notified (block  123 ). If the message is a user message being sent to an agent (block  124 ), the message is processed by the agent assigned to the session to which the user message corresponds (block  125 ), as further described below with reference to  FIG. 11 . Iterative processing continues with each subsequent message (block  126 ), after which the routine returns. 
         [0092]      FIG. 11  is a flow diagram showing a routine for processing a session by an agent  130  for use in the routine  125  of  FIG. 10 . The purpose of the routine is to facilitate the interaction between an agent and customer though an agent application executing on an agent console  39  (shown in  FIG. 3A ). 
         [0093]    First, the notification message is displayed (block  131 ) on the graphical user interface  90  (shown in  FIG. 7 ) of the agent application  43 . As necessary, the agent sends agent messages to the customer from service provider or script engine  32  (shown in  FIG. 3A ) to provide appropriate handling of the user message (block  132 ). If the sent message consists of a request to execute a script  49  (block  132 ), the message is further processed by the script engine  32  (block  134 ), as further described below with reference to  FIG. 12 . The routine then returns. 
         [0094]      FIG. 12  is a flow diagram showing a routine for processing a session by a script engine  140  for use in the routine  130  of  FIG. 11 . The purpose of this routine is to iteratively process each script execution request using the script engine  32  on behalf of requesting agent applications  43  (shown in  FIG. 3A ). 
         [0095]    Each message thread is iteratively processed (blocks  141 - 146 ) as follows. During each iteration (block  141 ), the notes field of each message is retrieved (block  142 ) and, if a script execution request is found (block  143 ), a script  49  is executed (block  144 ), as further described below with reference to  FIG. 13 . Otherwise, if no script request is present (block  143 ), no operation occurs (block  145 ). Processing continues with each additional message thread (block  146 ), after which the routine returns. 
         [0096]    Although described above with reference to the linear processing of a script in sequential order, agent intervention in script processing is fully supported. The agent continues to monitor the progress of the script execution by observing user responses and can intervene as necessary to accommodate a non-scripted response. For example, the user may provide a tangential response to a question in the script requesting specific information. The agent would read the user message and alter the course of script processing to accommodate the tangential response to the sliding control  64  (shown in  FIG. 4 ). 
         [0097]      FIG. 13  is a flow diagram showing a routine for executing a script  150  for use in the routine  140  of  FIG. 12 . The purpose of this routine is to perform standard retrieve-and-interpret script instruction execution, as is known in the art. 
         [0098]    First, each instruction is retrieved (block  151 ) and executed (block  152 ). In the described embodiment, instruction execution follows from an interpretable stored grammar  33  (shown in  FIG. 3A ) and as provided, by way of example, in Appendix A. If the executing instruction is a “Quit” instruction (block  153 ), the script execution terminates and the routine returns. Otherwise, script processing continues with the next instruction (block  154 ). 
         [0099]    While the invention has been particularly shown and described as referenced to the embodiments thereof, those skilled in the art will understand that the foregoing and other changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 
       APPENDIX 
       [0100]    To specify an alert message string, use: 
         [0101]    ALERT string 
         [0000]    To specify an unconditional branch to label, use: 
         [0102]    GOTO label 
         [0000]    To specify a conditional cond branch to label, use: 
         [0103]    IF cond THEN GOTO label 
         [0000]    To specify a label string for a branch, use: 
         [0104]    LABEL string 
         [0000]    To terminate execution, use: 
         [0105]    QUIT 
         [0000]    To specify a synthesized speech utterance string, use: 
         [0106]    SAY string 
         [0000]    To specify a script name string, use: 
         [0107]    SCRIPTNAME string 
         [0000]    To specify a variable name varname, use: 
         [0108]    SET varname 
         [0000]    To specify a subscript scriptname, use: 
         [0109]    SUBSCRIPT scriptname 
         [0000]    To specify a wait condition string, use: 
         [0110]    WAITFOR string &lt;YES|NO|DATE|PHONENUM|CUSTID&gt;