International Business Machines Corporation

Nuance Communications, Inc.

Ricardo Dos Santos

Victor S Moore

Wendi L Nusbickel

Thomas Edward Creamer

James Jude Sliwa

William V Da Palma

A method for barging-in a call can include the step of establishing a component as a communication intermediary between at least one speech engine and a telephone gateway. The component can include at least one input media port and at least one output media port, where the input media port and the output media port can interface with selective ones of the speech engines. A barge-in command can be received while an automated prompt is being audibly presented. The signals for the prompt can be conveyed to the component via the output media port. Once the barge-in command has been received, the output media port can be closed to immediately stop the prompt from being presented. A halt command can be conveyed to a prompt generating source so that the source stops generating the prompt.

Barge-in capabilities of a voice browser

A method for providing voice telephony services can include the step of receiving a call via a telephone gateway. The telephone gateway can convey call identifying data to a resource connector. A media port can be responsively established within a media converter that is communicatively linked to the telephone gateway through a port associated with the call. A call description object can be constructed that includes the call identifying data and an identifier for the media port. The call description object can be conveyed to a telephony application server that provides at least one speech service for the call. The telephony application server can initiate at least one programmatic action of a communicatively linked speech engine. The speech engine can convey results of the programmatic action to the media converter through the media port. The media converter can stream speech signals for the call based upon the results.

Telecommunications voice server leveraging application web-server capabilities

A method for interfacing an application server with a resource can include the step of associating a plurality of Enterprise Java Beans (EJBs) to a plurality of resources, where a one-to-one correspondence exists between EJB and resource. An application server can receive an application request and can determine a resource for handling the request. An EJB associated with the determined resource can interface the application server to the determined resource. The request can be handled with the determined resource.

Interfacing an application server to remote resources using Enterprise Java Beans as interface components

A method of interfacing a telephone application server and a speech engine can include the step of establishing one or more audio sockets in a media converting component of the telephone application server. The audio socket can remain available for approximately a duration of a call. A work unit that requires processing by a speech engine can be detected for the call. An identifier for the audio socket and a data for the work unit can be conveyed to a selected speech engine. Work unit results from the selected speech engine can be received by the media converting component via the previously established audio socket.

Establishing call-based audio sockets within a componentized voice server

A method for detecting speech utterances within a telephone call can include the steps of initializing a componentized voice server having at least one software-based speech detection routine. At least one previously established parameter can be used to discern a speech detection methodology for handling an incoming call. The software-based speech detection routine can be set in accordance with a select one of the parameters. An indicator of particular one of the parameters can be conveyed to an external speech detection component so that the external speech detection component is set to detect speech for the call in accordance with the conveyed indication. The software-based speech detection routine and/or the external speech detection component can detect a speech utterance for the call. The voice server can perform at least one programmatic action responsive to the detecting of the speech utterance.

Componentized voice server with selectable internal and external speech detectors

A method of interfacing with a remote engine can include the step of instantiating at least one stateful bean, such as a stateful session Enterprise Java Bean. For each stateful bean instance, an engine can be allocated. Each stateful bean instance can be associated with an allocated engine, where each stateful bean instance can operate as an interface for accessing the associated engine. Each associated stateful bean can then be added to a bean pool so that bean instances in the bean pool are available for handling requests.

Pooling stateful session Enterprise Java Beans for reuse

A system for implementing voice services can include at least one virtual machine, such as a Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) virtual machine. The virtual machine can include a bean container for handling software beans, such as Enterprise Java Beans. The bean container can include a voice browser bean. The voice browser bean can include a VoiceXML browser.

Voice browser implemented as a distributable component

A method for initializing stateless session EJBs that includes the steps of identifying a quantity of EJB to initialize, invoking a stateless session EJB, and occupying the invoked stateless session EJB so that the stateless session EJB is not released into a pool of available EJBs. The invoking and occupying steps can be repeated for number of iterations equal to the identified quantity. Each instance of the occupying step can be completed after the last iteration of the invoking step occurs.

Stateless session Enterprise Java Bean initialization method

A communication system can include a telephony application server and at least one speech engine, where the system uses a standardized messaging protocol that specifies a standard for media resources. The telephony application server can have at least one voice server component. The speech engines can be allocated to handle requests for the voice server component on a per turn basis. The standardized messaging protocol can define a message format for request messages sent from the voice server component to a selected speech engine, a message format for response messages sent from the speech engine to the voice server component, and a message format for event messages sent from the speech engine to the voice server component. Each message format can include a field for a call identifier.

Enhanced media resource protocol messages

A method for accessing an internal dynamic cache of a Websphere-type Application Server (WAS) from an external component that includes the step of establishing a software interface component within the WAS. The software interface component can receive a request from the external component. The request can include an identifier for a cache object and at least one dictate concerning the cache object. The external cache component can lack privileges to directly execute programmatic actions upon the cache object. The software interface component can trigger a programmatic action in accordance with the dictate. The programmatic action can involve the cache object, wherein the programmatic action utilizes the internal dynamic cache and involves the cache object. The programmatic action can be an action performed local to the WAS.

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Boca Raton, FL, United States of America

Ricardo Dos Santos