GB2395330A

GB2395330A - Telephone voting system

Info

Publication number: GB2395330A
Application number: GB0224332A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jean-Michel Cazaux; Nicolas Barnaby Philpot
Original assignee: ECKOH TECHNOLOGIES
Current assignee: ECKOH TECHNOLOGIES
Priority date: 2002-10-18
Filing date: 2002-10-18
Publication date: 2004-05-19
Also published as: GB0225034D0; GB0224332D0; GB2394383A; GB2394383B

Abstract

Data processing apparatus for the management of a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants accessing the system by calling at least one predetermined telephone dialling number provides an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues, and an administrator scheduling function for defining a schedule of active periods for a plurality of vote dialogues, each accessible to a participant by calling the one predetermined telephone dialling number and having a different active period. Unrecognised votes are recorded and included in a total count of calls made.

Description

Telephone Voting System Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a telephone voting system, in particular but 5 not exclusively to a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants accessing the system by calling a predetermined telephone dialling number.

Background of the Invention

10 Telephone voting systems adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants accessing the system by calling a predetermined telephone dialling number are known. Such systems are typically used by the producers of, for example, a television programme. The television programme typically includes a part which provides the audience with a vote question and a set of 15 vote answers, along with the predetermined telephone dialling number whereby a participant can make a vote by interacting with an interactive voice response system set up to detect and record counts of the answers voted for by participants over a predetermined active period for the vote. The process of setting up the interactive voice response system is typically one which 20 requires expertise in the specific control functions for the interactive voice response system. Typically, a relatively simple interaction is provided for, in which a participant is given a set of options in the form of numbers corresponding to each answer, and the participant enters their choice of answer using dual tone multiple frequency (DTMF) input. Typically, a 25 television programme will periodically update the voting system with a different question and answer set. Even using relatively simple interactions as described above, the expertise and effort required to organise a vote and periodically update the telephone voting system is considerable.

It is an object of the present invention to simplify the organization of 30 telephone voting using a telephone voting system, even whilst allowing the use of a relatively complex telephone voting system.

- In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided data processing apparatus for the management of a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants accessing the system by calling at least one predetermined telephone dialling number, the 5 apparatus being arranged to provide: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues; and an administrator scheduling function for defining a schedule of active periods for a plurality of vote dialogues, each of said plurality of vote 10 dialogues being accessible to a participant by calling the said one predetermined telephone dialling number and having a different active period.

By provision of the administrator dialogue entry function and the administrator scheduling function as described, an administrator can relatively simply set up of a plurality of telephone votes to be accessed sequentially 15 over a period of time on one predetermined telephone dialling number.

Furthermore, such setting up can for example be conducted using remote interfaces. A relatively complex telephone voting system may be used by a plurality of difference account holders, each having a unique allotted 20 telephone dialling number on which votes set up by their respective administrators may be accessed.

Further aspects of the invention are set out in the appended claims.

Features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the description given below of a preferred embodiment of the invention, given

25 by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a telephone voting system arranged in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 30 Figure 2 is a flow diagram illustrating steps conducted by the telephone voting system of Fig. 1 in an embodiment of the invention;

Figures 3 to 6 are schematic illustrations of Web pages arranged in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; and Figure 7 is a flow diagram illustrating steps conducted by the telephone system of Fig. I in an embodiment of the invention; Detailed Description

Referring now to Figure 1, a telephone voting system arranged in accordance with an embodiment of the invention includes various data processing components. The computing devices used for the data processing 10 components are individually known and will not be described in detail; the functioning of the components, and in particular the functioning of the computer software running on the components is new and will be described in further detail.

The telephone voting system includes an interactive voice response 15 (IVR) engine 2 capable of recognising commands over a voice telephony connection; these commands include commands voiced by users and recognised by a voice recognition engine 18. The voice recognition engine, which may be implemented for example using the Philips SpeechPearl_ Speech Recognition Engine, uses speaker-independent natural language voice 20 recognition software to recognise voice input. The IVR engine 2 may also include software for recognising dual tone multiple frequency (DTMF) commands transmitted from users by pressing keys on their telephone handsets. The IVR engine is also capable of recording and playing audio content, both in the form of persistently stored audio files and temporary 25 audio files generated by a text to speech (TTS) engine 20 in the system.

These audio files are stored in audio file store l 4. The IVR interactions of an administrator are used to record voice prompts as audio files for use during the IVR interactions, referred to herein as a vote dialogue, of a vote participant. The vote dialogues are controlled according to the particular 30 telephone dialling number called and the current date/time. Note that the vote

dialogue is not limited to one in which a speech response is provided on each side; a user may respond for example by DTMF interactions alone.

The IVR engine has public telephone network connections provided by circuit switching matrix 4, whereby a number of circuit switched telephone 5 lines, connected to a voice telephony network, are terminated at the IVR engine 2.

Users may access the system via different types of public telephone network terminal, including an exemplified fixed line telephone handset 6, connected to the telephony network via a fixed line 8, and mobile telephony l O handset 10, connected to the telephony network via a cellular radio communications link 12.

The IVR engine 2 has access to a voting data store 16, in which accountspecific information is stored, including a plurality of different account records for each of a plurality of different account holders, logging in 15 data for each administrator on the accounts, data identifying account-specific telephone dialling number(s) through which voting is to be conducted by participants and through which results may be heard by participants, and data identifying details of votes which are to be, and votes which have been, conducted by the system on behalf of account holders. The currently active 20 vote for each voting telephone dialling number is found by look-up in a schedule held in user data store 16.

The telephone voting system also includes a World Wide Web (herein "Web") server 22 providing a Web interface to account administrators via a data communications network 24, typically the Internet. Thus, an account 25 administrator may access these Web resources by using a browser application, for example Microsoft Internet Explorer_ or Nctscape Navigator_, running on a computer terminal such as an exemplified desktop computer workstation 26 connected to the data communications network 24. After logging on of an account administrator, the content provided by Web server 22 is adapted to be 30 account-specific by means of data stored in user data store 16. The account administrator may add data to user data store 16 by means of software

applications and Web resources 28, including as Web pages containing forms to be filled in by an account administrator using terminal 26 and posted back to Web server 22.

The IVR engine 2 includes an administrator software application 30 5 which provides a remote interface allowing an account administrator to record vote specific prompts for a vote dialogue and to test their vote dialogues before the vote dialogues become active.

The IVR engine 2 also includes a voting software application 32, which provides a remote interface allowing the participants to vote using a 10 particular vote dialogue active at the time that the participant calls a telephone dialling number associated with a particular account. When a participant calls the IVR engine 2, the voting application 32 queries the voting schedule held in vote database 16 to determine the currently active vote for the telephone dialling number which the participant has dialled, and conducts the vote 15 dialogue using voice prompts stored in the audio file store 14. On detecting the vote of a participant, the voting application 32 updates the vote database by incrementing a count for the vote answer selected by the participant.

The IVR engine 2 also includes a results software application 34, which provides an interface allowing a participant or an administrator to 20 obtain the current vote counts for each vote option via the IVR engine 2, by calling an account-specific results telephone dialling number. In order to provide the vote results, the results application 34 queries the vote database 16, and the currently active vote, which is the vote which has a scheduled active period which covers the current date/time or is the most recently 25 completed vote active period, which is determined according to the schedule held in the vote database 16 in accordance with the vote results number dialled by the administrator.

Referring now to Figure 2, when wishing to set up a new vote, an administrator first accesses the Web server 22 by entering an appropriate 30 uniform resource locator (URL) in the Web browser application running on the administrator terminal 26. Next, the administrator logs into the Web site,

step 100, using an account number and a password, which is also numeric.

The administrator is then presented with an account overview Web page 118 as shown in Figure 3. The Web page shown in Figure 3 shows account specific information in the form of a list 120 of votes which are currently 5 scheduled for the account, an information part 122 showing the voting telephone dialling number associated specifically with the account, and an information part 114 which identifies the results telephone dialling number associated specifically with the account. The account overview page 118 also includes two different vote dialogue creation hyperlinked buttons 126, 128 10 which allow the administrator to create a new vote. The first vote dialogue creation button 126 enables the administrator to set up a "specified answer" vote dialogue which has a plurality of different answers to be specified by the administrator; in the example shown up to 30 different answers may be specified. The second vote dialogue creation button 128 allows the 15 administrator to create a "yes/no" vote, which has only two possible answers which a participant may give in responding to a particular vote.

On selecting the first vote creation button 126, the administrator is provided with a vote details Web page 130, as shown in Figure 4. Using the vote details Web page 130, the administrator defines the vote title, the number 20 of answers which the vote dialogue is to contain, and an active period for the vote, which the administrator defines in step 102.

The vote creation Web page 130 includes a text entry box 132 allowing the administrator to enter the vote title, and drop down selection boxes in a start date/time section 134 and drop down selection boxes in an end 25 date/time section 136, each of which allow the administrator to specify a date (including a day and month value) and a time (including an hour and a minute value) defining the start and end of the active period of the vote. On submission of the entered data, the Web server 22 checks the schedule data held for each of the currently scheduled votes for the accounts and inhibits the 30 entry of start and end data which overlaps with a currently scheduled vote for the same account. For example, an error message may be generated to

indicate to the administrator that the selected date range overlaps with the active period of an already scheduled vote in the account, and request the entry of an alternative range.

The vote creation Web page 130 also includes a number of answers 5 entry box 138 which allows the administrator to specify the number of answers to be specified for the vote dialogue, a radio button 140 allowing the administrator to specify whether or not callers are able to hear the results of the vote when current via the results telephone dialling number, and a radio button 142 specifying whether or not the IVR application should limit the 10 voting to only one vote per caller. If voting is limited in this way, the IVR engine 2 detects the caller ID when a participant calls, and prevents the subsequent recording of a vote from the same caller ID for the same vote.

Once the administrator has created the vote details, the administrator selects a "proceed" button 144, at which point the vote details are saved by 15 the Web server 22 into the vote database 16, step 104.

The Web server 22 then proceeds to serve a vote details editing page 150, as shown in Figure 5, which, in addition to allowing the administrator to edit the details entered in the vote details entry page 130, also allows the administrator to enter each of a plurality of answer texts into a number of text 20 entry boxes 152. Upon entering of the answer texts, the administrator is able to select a proceed button 154, upon which the Web server 22 saves the vote answer texts into the vote database 16, step 108.

Next, the Web server 22 serves a record audio guide page 160, as shown in Figure 6. The record audio guide page includes instructions for 25 allowing the administrator to record audio prompts to be used in the vote dialogue which the administrator has set up using the vote details page 118 and the vote editing page 150, including an information part 162 which specifies the telephone dialling number which the administrator should call in order to record the audio prompts to be used in the vote dialogue, and an 30 information part 163 which specifies the vote identity, which is automatically generated by the system. The record audio guide page 160 also includes

information sections 164 which are generated by the Web server using data from the vote database 16 which is tailored to the vote details previously specified for the vote by the administrator. After providing the record audio guide page, step 110, the administrator may either print off the record audio 5 guide page or view the record audio guide page on screen whilst calling the administrator telephone dialling number indicated in section 162 on the page.

Next, the administrator uses a public network telephone to call the administrator telephone dialling number, and logs into the administrator application 30 on the IVR engine 2 by keying in via the telephone keypad the 10 same account number and password entered by the administrator for logging into the Web administrator interface provided by Web server 22, steps 200 and 202.

Next, the administrator keys in the vote identity, which was provided in information section 163 on the record audio guide page 160. This, in 15 combination with the account number, allows the administration application 30 to identify the vote dialogue for which the administrator wishes to record the voice prompts. On keying in the vote identity, step 204, the administrator then records a question prompt for the vote, step 208, by speaking the question into the telephone handset being used. The administrator's speech 20 input is recorded by the TVR engine 2 and stored in audio file store 14. Next, the administrator records a confirmation prompt for each of the answers in the vote dialogue, step 210, which confirmation prompt is to be used by the IVR engine 2 in order to confirm to a participant recognition of a particular answer. Next, in step 212, the administrator records an error prompt, which is 25 used in the vote dialogue in case the voice recognition engine 18 does not recognise the answer supplied by a participant.

In step 214, the administrator application 30 generates a voice prompt asking the administrator whether or not the vote dialogue should be tested, step 216. If the administrator response indicates a wish to test the vote 30 dialogue, the administration application 30 proceeds to run the vote dialogue, step 218, including the detection of an answer provided by the administrator

to the question, as recorded by the administrator. After running the vote dialogue in step 218, the administrator is asked by the IVR engine 2 whether the vote dialogue should be tested again, step 220. If in step 222 the administrator indicates that the vote dialogue should be re- tested, the process 5 returns to step 218. Otherwise, the TVR engine 2 terminates the call.

Figure 7 shows a procedure carried out by the voting application 32 of the IVR engine 2 on receiving a telephone call from a participant on a voting telephone dialling number. The voting application uses voice prompts from those recorded by the administrator, an voice prompts which are automatically 10 generated by TTS engine 20 using text templates.

On receiving such a call on a voting telephone dialling number, the voting application 32 queries the schedule held in vote database 16 to look up the vote identity which is currently active for the vote telephone dialling number used by the participant to access the service. The voting application 15 then retrieves the other vote details for the currently active vote. The voting application 32 then provides the question prompt as recorded by the administrator, step 300. The voting application 32 then detects the participant answer, step 302, as one of the set of answers specified by the account administrator, using voice recognition engine 18. When detecting an answer, 20 the voice recognition level of confidence is improved by providing a limited vocabulary, in form of the textual answers specified by the administrator for the vote dialogue in question, as an input to the voice recognition engine 18 along with the speech input from the participant. On detection of an answer with at least a predetermined level of confidence, the voting application 32 25 provides the corresponding confirmation prompt as recorded by the administrator, step 304, following which the participant hangs up, step 306.

If the user's answer is not recognised by the voice recognition engine 20 with a sufficient level of confidence, the voting application 32 checks whether this is the first instance of non-recognition of the caller's answer, step 30 312. If it is the first instance, the caller is provided with the error prompt as recorded by the administrator, step 314, and the process returns to step 302. If

it is not the first instance, the voting application 32 proceeds to an automatically generated prompt thanking the participant for voting without specifying the answer selected, step 314, and the telephone call is terminated, step 306. The number of attempts at recognition of an answer is limited in 5 order to avoid the situation where the participant repeatedly provides an answer which is not recognizable with a sufficiently high level of confidence.

The participant's vote, although not recognised within a predetermined number of attempts, is then added to a suspense pool tally and included in a total count of calls made by participants during the active period for a vote.

10 If, during the period of time during which voice recognition for the user's answer is conducted, no answer is detected, the voting application 32 determines whether this is the first instance of non-recognition of the participant's answer, step 308. If it is the first instance, an automatic error prompt is played to the user, step 31O, and the procedure returns to step 302.

15 If it is not the first instance, the procedure moves on to step 314, the vote is added to the suspense pool tally, and terminates the telephone call in step 306.

A participant may also call the system, on an account-specific results telephone dialling number, to receive information indicating the current counts for each of the set of possible answers, and the current total count. The 20 information is provided by results application 34 using TTS engine 20. When providing results, the results application 34 is capable of operating in a mode where the votes in the suspense pool tally are included in the counts of each answer, being spread across those counts in the same proportions as the current counts of all recognised answers. In this way, the results in each 25 answer count more accurately reflect the total number of voting calls made.

Note that the above embodiment is to be understood as an illustrative example of the invention. Furthermore, equivalents and modifications not described above may also be employed without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined in the accompanying claims.

Claims

1. Data processing apparatus for the management of a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants 5 accessing the system by calling at least one predetermined telephone dialling number, the apparatus being arranged to provide: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues; and an administrator scheduling function for defining a schedule of active 10 periods for a plurality of vote dialogues, each of said plurality of vote dialogues being accessible to a participant by calling the said one predetermined telephone dialling number and having a different active period.

2. Data processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the 15 administrator scheduling function is adapted to inhibit the overlap of an active period for a first one of said plurality of vote dialogues with an active period for a second one of said plurality of vote dialogues.

3. Data processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 20 the telephone voting system includes a telephonic switch for receiving calls directed to a plurality of different predetermined telephone dialling numbers, and wherein the apparatus is adapted to select a vote dialogue to be conducted with a participant in accordance with a telephone dialling number called by the participant and a schedule defined for the called telephone dialling 25 number.

4. Data processing apparatus according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the apparatus is arranged to provide an account management function, wherein the account management function is adapted to associate a 30 different predetermined telephone dialling number with each of a plurality of different account records.

5. Data processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the account management function comprises at least part of the scheduling function.

6. Data processing apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the account management function comprises at least part of the dialogue entry function. lO

7. Data processing apparatus according to any of claims 4 to 6, wherein the account management function comprises a graphical user interface.

8. Data processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the 15 graphical user interface comprises at least part of the scheduling function.

9. Data processing apparatus according to any of claims 4 to 8, wherein the account management function comprises an interactive voice interface.

10. Data processing apparatus according to any of claims 4 to 9, wherein the account management function comprises a remote administration interface. 25

l l. Data processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the account management function comprises a Web interface.

12. Data processing apparatus according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the account management function comprises a public telephone network 30 interface.

13. Data processing apparatus for the management of a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants, the apparatus being arranged to provide: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues; 5 and an administrator scheduling function for defining a schedule of active periods for a plurality of vote dialogues, wherein at least one of said functions comprises a Web interface.

10

14. Data processing apparatus for the management of a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants, the apparatus being arranged to provide: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues, the entry function including an entry function for entering answer data; and

15 a voting function for conducting a vote dialogue with a participant and detecting a vote answer of the participant using automated voice recognition, wherein the voting function is adapted to use said answer data to improve the level of eonEdence in detecting a vote answer using voice recognition. 15. Data processing apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said answer data is in the form of answer text.

16. Data processing apparatus for the management of a telephone 25 voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants, the apparatus being arranged to provide: a voting function for conducting vote dialogues with participants and for detecting vote answers of the participants using automated voice recognition, and for keeping a tally of vote answers provided by participants 30 which are not recognised to a sufficient level of confidence; and

a results reporting function for providing individual counts of different of the vote answers rccognised by the voting function and for including in said counts components derived from said tally.

5

17. Data processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein said components are generally in proportion with the proportions which each individual count of recognised answers makes to the total count of recognised answers. 10

18 A method of managing a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants accessing the system by calling at least one predetermined telephone dialling number, the method comprising providing: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues; 15 and an administrator scheduling function for defining a schedule of active periods for a plurality of vote dialogues, each of said plurality of vote dialogues being accessible to a participant by calling the said one predetermined telephone dialling number and having a different active period.

19. A method of managing a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants, the method comprising providing: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues; 25 and an administrator scheduling function for defining a schedule of active periods for a plurality of vote dialogues, wherein at least one of said functions comprises a Web interface.

20. A method of managing a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants, the method comprising providing: an administrator dialogue entry function for setting up vote dialogues, 5 the entry function including an entry function for entering answer data; and a voting function for conducting a vote dialogue with a participant and detecting a vote answer of the participant using automated voice recognition, wherein the voting function is adapted to use said answer data to improve the level of confidence in detecting a vote answer using voice 1 0 recognition.

21. A method of managing a telephone voting system adapted to conduct telephone calls with vote participants, the method comprising providing: 15 a voting function for conducting vote dialogues with participants and for detecting vote answers of the participants using automated voice recognition, and for keeping a tally of vote answers provided by participants which are not reeognised to a sufficient level of confidence; and a results reporting function for providing individual counts of different 20 of the vote answers recognised by the voting function and for including in said counts components derived from said tally.