FR2706107A1 - Interactive response system by phone. - Google Patents

Abstract

An interactive telephone response system comprising a telephone line interface, a digitizer, a recognition module and a computer programmed to have a predetermined conversation with at least one user, also comprising a recording module on which the responses of the user are recorded. user to a pre-established series of questions posed by the microprocessor, which transmits the recorded information to a physical operator who transcribes the content or codifies the response and types it on a keyboard in a recognizable way for the microprocessor which continues the conversation . This system is intended for application in the field of telephone communications.

Description

TELEPHONE INTERACTIVE RESPONSE SYSTEM

  These are systems, equipped with a program and special physical elements, capable of transmitting and receiving telephone messages from natural persons. These systems allow a computer to have an exchange of voice messages with

the talkers.

  The computer has a synthetic or prerecorded voice; the individual questions or responds to the computer with his / her voice (voice recognition) with telephone tones or leaving a recording of his voice (as on an answering machine)

  so that it can be listened to later.

  Thus, we study for each application the behavior, the terminology, the most common sentences of the users and we prepare a program of recognition of terms, for example the 250 most frequent words; this is completed by a program of questions and answers made by the microprocessor. When the system does not recognize

  information, he sends them back to an operator.

  In order for the conversation to succeed-there may be failures in more than 15% of cases-and the system continually diverted the conversation to human operators when the conversation system can not be used, the caller has

-to the point-this invention.

  The Applicant has realized that in many applications, the user's current responses represent a huge complexity in the recognition work, for example if the user

says his surname.

  The Applicant has realized that this type of response is the main cause of problems for the system and has come to the conclusion that it is necessary to: (a) systematically study the very complex responses to be addressed in the system; a practical application, for example user-Caisse d'Epargne for the declaration of income; b) structuring the conversation by fixing in advance the order in which the questions will be asked when we already know that the answers of the user will not be directly intelligible for the system; c) pre-record the recording of these responses and divert them to an operator who will make these answers intelligible to the system. The invention described here advocates an interactive response system by telephone, characterized in that it comprises a telephone line interface, a scanner, a recognition module and a computer programmed to conduct a predetermined conversation with at least one user. It also includes a recording module on which at least the user's responses to a series are recorded.

  pre-established questions from the micro-

  processor. The recorded information is then transmitted to a physical operator who transcribes the content or codifies the response and taps on a

  recognizable keyboard for the micro-

  processor that continues the conversation.

  The present invention is also characterized in that it comprises a prerecorded voice module and / or a synthetic voice module connected to the digitizer for communication between the

micro-processor and the user.

  Figure 1 is a block diagram

  representing the system object of the invention.

  This system allows several interlocutors (U1), (U2) (U3) to establish a communication and to speak with him at the same time. However, we will explain here the operation of the system with a single interlocutor (Ul), the explanations given being applicable to a use with other

interlocutors.

  The user (Ul) makes contact with the system by means of the telephone, that is why the system comprises an interface (1) already known, which

  sends its output signals to a digitizer (2).

  The behavior, the vocabulary and the most usual expressions of a type of public, considered as the possible user of the system for a concrete application, have been studied in a systematic way. The elements that the system must recognize in a program have been set quantitatively and qualitatively for each application. System 4 - has enough on some occasions to conduct a common conversation in a specific application. But in other applications, one or more of the elements of the current conversation may / may be complex, such as first names, surnames, account numbers, etc .; their programming as well as the physical elements of recognition would require large investments in volume and costs for

  the company acquiring the system.

  This means that the system knows its

limits.

  In a system / user interaction conversation, which is guided and set by the system, the system knows, for example, that it has not been programmed to recognize the user's answers to his questions 3a and 6a, because of the

complexity already mentioned.

  These explanations having been given, we can continue to describe the functional diagram of the

figure 1.

  The signals from the digitizer (2) are sent to a recognition module (3) and to

  a digital recording module (4).

  For the non-complex phase of the conversation, a microprocessor (5) programmed for a given application, prepares the question / answer and sends it to the user (Ul) by means of a voice module

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  recorded (6) or a voice synthesizer (7) after receiving the signals from the recognition modules

(3) and recording (4).

  With regard to the questions for which the system knows in advance, by programming, that it will not recognize the user's responses, the microprocessor (5) commands that the response be recorded on the recording module (4) and it transmits the information, at that time, to an operator (8) which transcribes / records this response in a form that will be intelligible to the microprocessor (5) and

  the conversation can continue.

  In practice, the course: recording module (4), microprocessor (5), operator (8), microprocessor (5), user (Ul) takes between 1 and 30 seconds, breaks in the conversation can therefore be considered as

acceptable.

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Claims (2)

  1 - interactive response telephone system, characterized in that it comprises a telephone line interface, a scanner, a recognition module and a computer programmed to have a predetermined conversation with at least one user, also comprising a module of recording on which are recorded the responses of the user to a predetermined set of questions asked by the microprocessor, which transmits the recorded information to a physical operator who transcribes the content or codifies the response and tape on a keyboard recognizable way for the microprocessor that is pursuing the conversation.   2 - Interactive telephone response system according to the preceding claim, which comprises a prerecorded voice module and / or a synthetic voice module, connected to the digitizer   to ensure communication between the micro- processor and the user.