US 9,794,406 B2Granted

Method for visualizing an IVR system

OwnerZhuangzi Liinventor

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Abstract

The invention is a method of creating a dialstring for use with mobile smartphones and other computer-enabled telephones. A software app designed to implement the method recognizes input from the user (such as the initial digits of a phone number) that identifies the organization to be called, and accesses a stored representation of the IVR phone tree for that organization. The app then presents a graphical representation of all or part of the phone tree on the display of the telephone. The user can then respond to the graphical representation by providing selective inputs that cause the app to synthesize all or part of the dialstring needed to navigate the phone tree to the desired destination. Once a dialing option has been synthesized to the user's satisfaction, the user may provide additional input that the system interprets as an instruction to open a phone call and dial the synthesized number.

Claims12

Dependent claims

A server for an interactive voice response (IVR) database, comprising:

a first non-transitory computer readable medium having encoded upon it
a database
that represents one or more IVR phone trees
comprising a number of IVR phone tree data entries for telephone numbers and IVR
phone tree options as well as metadata about the IVR phone trees,
in which the IVR phone tree options are each associated
with at least one of the telephone numbers, and
in which each of the IVR phone tree options is also associated
with a dialstring modification;
and
a second non-transitory computer readable medium having encoded upon it
instructions executable by a data processing system within the server
to perform process steps comprising:
detecting a signal transmitted to the server from an electronic smartphone
through a communications port;
identifying from at least a portion of the signal
a representation of at least a portion of a telephone number;
searching the database of the first non-transitory computer readable medium
for a set of IVR phone tree options and associated dialstring modifications
associated with the identified telephone number;
and
transmitting data representing at least a portion of the IVR phone tree options
and associated dialstring modifications
to the electronic smartphone.

21 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/012,759Filed 1 Feb 2016 · continuation
Priority: 27 Jun 2013
Published: US 2016/0173688 A116 Jun 2016
Granted: 17 Oct 2017
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification10 codes

H04M 3/4938
Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice…
H04M 1/72469
User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones: for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed…
H04M 3/4931
Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice…
H04W 4/16
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: communication-related supplementary services, e.g.…

Family

Application61/840,190Us provisional application · filed 27 Jun 2013
Application13/999,196Parent of this continuation · filed 27 Jan 2014
US 2016/0173688 A1Pre-grant publication · published 16 Jun 2016
US 9,253,321 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2015/0004947 A1Published application
US 9,794,406 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.