Patent ID: 7577669

Claim:
A line usage-reporting tool for generating universal line usage reports, the tool comprising: a data collection component for continuously receiving over a network line usage information for a plurality of line units within a telecommunications network, each of the plurality of line units coupled to and associated with a particular switch and comprising a grouping of a plurality of lines, and each of the plurality of lines being coupled to customer premise equipment; a structural database component for storing in a memory structural information containing a layout of each of the plurality of line units within the telecommunications network; a relational database component for (i) receiving the line usage information from the data collection component, (ii) storing the line usage information for the plurality of line units in the memory, (iii) periodically accessing the structural information from the structural database component, and (iv) organizing the line usage information according to the structural information into a format such that the line usage information are used to generate line usage reports, wherein the relational database component includes storing the line usage information associated with a particular one of the line units in a memory location associated with an identifier assigned to the particular one of the line units, wherein the memory location is further associated with the particular switch and the plurality of lines and telephone numbers; a report information component for receiving a selection of report criteria and a selection of one or more types of report to be generated; and a report generator component for generating one or more line usage reports for one or more of the plurality of line units based on the report criteria and type of report received by the report information component using line usage information obtained from the relational database component; and a visual display for displaying the one or more line usage reports generated by the report generator component, the one or more line usage reports including line usage information associated with one or more of the plurality of line units.