Avaya Inc.

Avaya Technology LLC

Peter Donald Runcie

Alexander Forbes

Ralph Warta

Marc William Joseph Coughlan

Alexander Martin Scholte

Ciaran Gannon

Marc Coughlan

Paul Roller Michaelis

Muneyb Minhazuddin

Julian James Orbach

Alex M Krumm-Heller

Melanie L Smith

Nevill Inglis

Chris Goringe

Alan Green

Rod D Livingood

Mark Harald Wutzke

Marc W J Coughlan

Emil Andonov

St&ugr;phane Laveau

Ciarron Gannon

Alex Forbes

The present invention provides a feature for phones and other communication devices. More particularly, the feature allows a user to customize the notification for an incoming call or contact. The customization may be based on the user's recent communication history with the user currently calling. This allows the user receiving the call to determine its possible importance prior to answering the call or even identifying the caller.

Customizable notification based on recent communication history

The present invention provides methods, devices, and systems for notifying a caller that they are leaving a low quality voice mail. The user can be notified that they are leaving such a voicemail before they are done leaving the message. This allows the user to try and leave another voicemail having a better quality, thereby making the voicemail more comprehensible.

Notify caller if low quality voicemail is being recorded

A method and apparatus perform call control by obtaining initial biometric information of ears of a user of a handheld audio device; detecting a change in the biometric information of the ears of the user; determining a position and motion of the handheld audio device by analyzing the detected change in biometric information; and performing call control based on the determined position and motion. Further, the method and apparatus perform a first call control operation in response to the determined motion and position if the handheld audio device is communicating with a first endpoint and a second call control operation if communicating with a second endpoint. In addition, the method and apparatus change an internal call control operation of a handheld audio device by determining motion and a position of the handheld audio device. Also, the method and apparatus control internal operations of an endpoint by determining motion and position of the handheld audio device without terminating communication with the handheld audio device wherein the endpoint is one of a voice messaging system, conferencing system, or telephone operator.

Method and apparatus for call control using motion and position information

A method and apparatus trains agents in a call center by directing a plurality of telecommunication calls to an agent by a controller wherein a percentage of the telecommunication calls are unskilled telecommunication calls that the agent is unskilled at processing; calculating by the controller average success of the agent in handling all of the unskilled telecommunication calls; calculating by the controller average stress of the agent in handling all of the unskilled telecommunication calls; increasing the percentage of unskilled telecommunication calls by the controller upon average success being greater than a predefined level of success and the average stress being less than a predefined level of stress; and stopping after the percentage equals a predefined percentage.

Method and apparatus for managing training of call center agents

An improved system and method that allows a customer waiting, for example, in a call center queue to leave contact information, a preferred callback time frame and drop out of the queue. The system and method computes a priority access code and a time frame when its use is valid that coincides with the preferred callback time frame of the call center or customer service department, etc. In response to the request for a priority access code to use when the customer calls back, the system and method sends the customer a callback message including the priority access code and time frame when its use is valid. During the time frame the priority access code is valid, the customer contacts the call center for example by calling back or by initiating a web chat, etc., re-enters the queue and uses the priority access code. This allows the customer to enter a general queue at their convenience and at a higher priority or go straight to the head of the general queue. Alternatively, the customer may enter a callback queue, which already has a higher priority than the general queue.

Call center customer queue shortcut access code

A method and apparatus manage conference calls by receiving for each of participants a participant access code to identify a subconference call to which each of participants is assigned; forming a conference call of all participants; initiating subconference calls by a host of the conference call; transferring each of the participants into a subconference call identified by the participant access code of each of the participants; re-initiating the conference call by the host; and re-forming all of the participants back into the conference call.

Method and apparatus for seamless subconference management

A method and apparatus configure a handheld audio device to communicate audio information by identifying an ear being used with the handheld audio device and by configuring the handheld audio device in response to the ear identification to communicate audio information to the ear. The identification may use sonic or visual techniques to identify the ear.

Method and apparatus for configuring a handheld audio device using ear biometrics

The present invention, in one embodiment, is directed to a method for servicing customer contacts in a contact center in which customer facial features are employed in selecting and/or configuring contact center resources to service the customer.

Exploiting facial characteristics for improved agent selection

Once a voicemail is received, it is the onus of the recipient of the voicemail message to call the caller back when a 'missed call' message is received on the phone or after the voicemail message is retrieved. While some of the more advanced voicemail systems provide the capability of automatically placing a call from the callee back to the caller upon completion of the callee listening to the voicemail message, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention allows the caller to be connected to the callee should the callee become available while the caller is leaving a voicemail message for the callee.

Caller initiated undivert from voicemail

An agent's emotional state is used to assist with determining how to route an incoming communication. The factoring in of emotional state can be combined with other performance metrics that can include, for example, any suitable metric for expressing or describing agent performance or agent skill level. For example, the metrics can include revenue generated, revenue generation rate, profitability, profitability generation rate, number of units sold, rate of unit sales, average duration of the contact, a rating quantifying the agents proficiency in handling a contact, the occurrence of a trouble ticket, agent requests assistance, a no sale situation, customer satisfaction indicators, customer attention, value of collections, time to close a sale, one-and-done, and/or any other metric indicating the customer's relationship with the business.

Routing of calls based on agents emotional state

A computational system is provided that includes:

Call intrusion

A determination regarding the appropriateness of sending a message can be based on one or more factors. For example, the determination can be an analysis of a message to determine the likelihood that the sender has the target physical condition and/or a likely degree or severity of the target physical condition. The analysis determines, with reference to a baseline of the user, one or more of a number of errors (spelling and/or grammar) in the message, a response time, a non-fluency level associated with the message, a spell check of the message and recipient information associated with the message. Based on this analysis, the message can be managed in accordance with one or more of sending the message after a delay, returning the message to a sender for approval, managing the message based on a profile and holding the message for management at a later time.

Cooling off period prior to sending dependent on user's state

Systems and methods for noise cancellation are provided. In particular, information regarding events associated with a computer providing a telephony function or associated with a hardware telephone providing a telephony function is provided to a noise cancellation process. The provided information can be used to identify specific noises associated with events, so that filters specifically adapted for removing an identified noise can be applied. Alternatively or in addition, information regarding the existence and timing of an event can be provided in order to facilitate the application of a noise cancellation filter. Noise cancellation as described can also be applied in connection with recording speech or other audio signals.

Event driven noise cancellation

A controller ensures that ring-tones of a relatively-small pool of distinct ring-tones are individually assigned to telephones of a group of telephones in such a way as to maximize the physical separation of telephones with the same or similar ring-tones. One telephone after another generates an audio signal, such as a chirp or a ring-tone, while the other telephones listen for the audio signal and report results of their listening to the controller. The controller uses the results to assign ring-tones to the telephones. A graph-coloring algorithm may be used to make the assignments.

Automatic provisioning of distinct ring-tones for co-located telephones

A communications system is provided that includes:

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Bilgola Plateau, Australia

Peter Donald Runcie