US 11,900,942 B2 · Systems and methods of integrating legacy chatbots with telephone networks

Abstract

A software-based system and method that provides a generalized scheme to voice-enable text-oriented chatbots. The system can be configured to adapt to a plurality of different types of chatbots, a plurality of different speech-to-text and text-to-speech services, a plurality of different grammars, and even a plurality of different languages. The system can further be configured to handle “HTTP complex” situations such as electronic calendars by automatically analyzing these HTTP complex situations into various sub-dialogs, which the system can then automatically use to communicate with users, and then present the final results back to the chatbot. These methods enable organizations to preserve their extensive investment in legacy chatbots while rapidly and relatively inexpensively providing voice functionality to a broader range of users.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method of automatically converting legacy silent chatbot output text messages from a plurality of different chatbot types and a plurality of different text message types to voice output for a user, said method comprising:

using a text-to-audio chatbot adaptor software module, at least one computer processor, and computer memory to:
receive a chatbot output text message;
determine a chatbot type and a chatbot output text message type;
storing said chatbot output text message type in memory as session data;
for each said chatbot type and said chatbot output text message type that is not a complex HTTP message type, using said chat output text message to obtain any of dialog manager input text and session data;
after said dialog manager input text has been created by said text-to-audio chatbot adaptor software module, using a dialog manager, said dialog manager input text, and chatbot configuration data corresponding to said chatbot type to:
select an automated text-to-speech service;
use a selected said automated text-to-speech service to produce an output audio file corresponding to said dialog manager input text;
and
automatically outputting said output audio file.

7 more elements

A computerized system for automatically converting legacy silent chatbot output text messages from a plurality of different chatbot types and a plurality of different text message types to voice output for a user, said system comprising:

a text-to-audio chatbot adaptor comprising at least one computer processor and computer memory, said text-to-audio chatbot adaptor configured to receive a chatbot output text message, determine a chatbot type and a chatbot output text message type, and store said chatbot output text message type in memory as session data;
said text-to-audio chatbot adaptor further configured to use said chat output text message to obtain any of dialog manager input text and session data for each said chatbot type and said chatbot output text message type that is not a complex HTTP message type;
said text-to-audio chatbot adapter further configured so that after said dialog manager input text has been created, to further use a dialog manager, said dialog manager input text, and chatbot configuration data corresponding to said chatbot type to:
select an automated text-to-speech service;
use a selected said automated text-to-speech service to produce an output audio file corresponding to said dialog manager input text;
and automatically output said output audio file.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Systems and methods of integrating legacy chatbots with telephone networks

Life of this patent

Systems and methods of integrating legacy chatbots with telephone networks

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20