US4933964A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Pacing of telephone calls for call origination management systems
Assignee: INTERNATIONAL TELESYSTEMS CORP 600 HERNDON PARKWAY HERNDON VA 22070 A VA CORP
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Filing: 1989-07-25
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Granted: 1990-06-12
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Expires: 2009-07-25
Abstract
Abstract An adaptive pacing algorithm based on a statistical analysis of the times of calls is used to determine when and how many calls to dial in a call origination management system. This pacing algorithm determines the number of calls to dial as an inverse function of the mean time of all calls and the standard deviation multiplied by a first constant. This first constant is a function of the ratio of nuisance calls to the number of call attempts and is not defined as a mathematical function but is, instead, determined experimentally to be ±0.25 of the standard deviation and varies depending on how far the ratio of nuisance calls deviates from a set level. The number of calls to dial is also an inverse function of a second constant times the ratio of the answered calls to the call attempts per session minus the maximum allowable nuisance calls. This second constant is itself a function of the mean time, ratio of answered calls to the number of call attempts during the session and the ratio of nuisance calls to the number of call attempts, but is has been determined empirically. As the session progresses, new values of the ratio of answered calls to attempts per session, the mean time and the standard deviation are computed, and these new values are used in determining the number of calls to dial.
Inventors
- 👤 Bassem M. Girgis
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 14:18
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04M; H04M3/00; H04M3/22; H04M3/36; H04M3/42; H04M3/50; H04M3/51; H04M3/5158; H04M3/5166; H04M3/523
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 19
Claim 1
Independent Claim
124 words
A method of adaptively pacing telephone calls in a call origination management system comprising the steps of: determining a number of calls to dial as an inverse function of a mean time of all calls and a standard deviation of the mean time multiplied by a first constant, said number of calls to dial also being an inverse function of a second constant times a ratio of answered calls to attempts per session; dialing a number of calls according to the determined number of calls to dial; computing new values of said ratio of answered calls to attempts per session, said mean time and said standard deviation; and using said new values in repeating the step of determining the number of calls to dial.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
124 words
A method of adaptively pacing telephone calls in a call origination management system comprising the steps of: determining a number of calls to dial as an inverse function of a mean time of all calls and a standard deviation of the mean time multiplied by a first constant, said number of calls to dial also being an inverse function of a second constant times a ratio of answered calls to attempts per session; dialing a number of calls according to the determined number of calls to dial; computing new values of said ratio of answered calls to attempts per session, said mean time and said standard deviation; and using said new values in repeating the step of determining the number of calls to dial.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 1 further comprising the step of reducing the determined number of calls to dial by a number of calls in progress.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 1 wherein said first constant is ±0.25 of said standard deviation.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
53 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 1 further comprising the step of adjusting values of said first and second constants after computing said new values, the adjusted values of said first and second constants being used when repeating said step of determining the number of calls to dial.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 4 further comprising the step of reducing the determined number of calls to dial by a number of calls in progress.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
63 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 1 further comprising the step of reducing the product of said second constant and the ratio of answered calls to the call attempts per session by a preset number of a maximum allowable number of nuisance calls, said nuisance calls being calls which are answered for which there is no operator available.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
41 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 6 further comprising the step of computing a ratio of nuisance calls to the call attempts per session, said ratio being used to adjust the value of said second constant.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 7 wherein said first constant is ±0.25 of said standard deviation.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
53 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 7 further comprising the step of adjusting values of said first and second constants after computing said new values, the adjusted values of said first and second constants being used when repeating said step of determining the number of calls to dial.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 9 further comprising the step of reducing the determined number of calls to dial by a number of calls in progress.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
60 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 1 wherein said call origination system includes a source of recorded message, said method further comprising the step of connecting an answered call to said source of recorded message whenever an operator is not available, but when an operator becomes available, connecting the answered call to the available operator.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
53 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 11 further comprising the step of adjusting values of said first and second constants after computing said new values, the adjusted values of said first and second constants being used when repeating said step of determining the number of calls to dial.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 12 further comprising the step of reducing the determined number of calls to dial by a number of calls in progress.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
93 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 1 wherein said call origination management system routes calls to front operators and back operators, said front operators connecting those answered calls in which clients express an interest in hearing a recorded message to a source of recorded message and said back operators being connected to those clients who have heard the recorded message, said method further comprising the step of separately computing the mean time and the standard deviation of the mean time for each of said front and back operators.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
51 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 14 further comprising the step of testing to determine if the number of clients currently listening to the recorded message is equal to a maximum queue for the message and, if so, temporarily suspending said step of dialing said calls.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
65 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 14 wherein said call origination system includes a second source of recorded message, said method further comprising the step of connecting an answered call to said second source of recorded message whenever a front operator is not available, but when a front operator becomes available, connecting the answered call to the available front operator.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
64 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 14 further comprising the step of adjusting values of said first constant for each of said front and back operators and adjusting said second constant after computing said new values, the adjusted values of said first and second constants being used when repeating said step of determining the number of calls to dial.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of adaptively pacing telephone calls as recited in claim 17 further comprising the step of reducing the determined number of calls to dial by a number of calls in progress.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1993-06-11 | 1993-12-11 | 1994-06-12 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1997-06-11 | 1997-12-11 | 1998-06-12 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2001-06-11 | 2001-12-11 | 2002-06-12 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |