JP2018037856A - Communication control device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communication control device and a method which decreases the possibility of losing a speech communication opportunity.SOLUTION: Each communication control device (10, 32), which controls communication with another communication terminal (22) performed using a communication terminal (18), includes: an information communication unit (86) which receives the location history information of a user from a location detection device (26) which detects whether or not the user of a controlled communication terminal (18) controlled by the communication control device is located within a predetermined range; an information storage unit (88) which stores the location history information received by an information receiver unit; and a control unit (82) which, based on the location history information stored by the information storage unit, determines response operation to be executed to the communication terminal (22) which originates an incoming call, when there is no response operation by the user of the controlled communication terminal in response to the incoming call to the controlled communication terminal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication control apparatus and method, and more specifically, according to the location state when a telephone terminal user is absent and when there is an incoming call to the telephone terminal while the telephone terminal is not available. The present invention relates to a communication control apparatus and method for controlling to execute different response processes.

  When it is necessary to install a plurality of telephone terminals in a facility such as a company, a private branch exchange (PBX) is widely installed in the facility. The private branch exchange is connected to various external telephone networks, and is connected to a plurality of telephone terminals in the facility. Each telephone terminal is assigned an extension number and works as an extension terminal in the facility.

  When there is an incoming call from a telephone terminal outside the facility to a specific extension terminal in the facility via the telephone network, an incoming signal is transmitted to a private branch exchange connected to the telephone network. In response to the transmitted incoming signal, the private branch exchange performs a process to call an appropriate extension terminal.

  By the way, the user of the extension terminal is not always near the extension terminal. In view of such a case, the answering machine recording response means can be provided in the extension terminal or the private branch exchange connected to the extension terminal. In the case where such a response means is provided, if there is no active response operation on the receiving side for a certain period of time due to the absence of the user of the extension terminal, that is, the user on the receiving side, although there is an incoming call to the extension terminal, In the extension terminal or the private branch exchange, a response operation is performed. Specifically, for example, a voice guidance that has been registered in advance is played to inform the caller of the absence of the called user.

  Alternatively, the absence transfer setting means can be provided in another telephone terminal. If the extension terminal user registers the transfer destination in advance and activates the transfer settings, if there is an incoming call to the extension terminal when there is no call, the transfer destination telephone is automatically called. It becomes possible.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-13093

  However, even if the answering machine recording response unit and the absence transfer setting unit are provided in the receiver device as in Patent Document 1, the information expected by the caller may not be obtained when the receiver user is absent. There was a problem that there was. For example, even if voice guidance for answering machine answering is recorded in advance, information other than the absence of the other party is hardly obtained for the caller. Although it is possible to include some information when recording the voice guidance for response, there is not much information that can be included due to limitations on recording time. In addition, the situation of the user on the receiving side changes from the expectation at the time of recording, and as a result, there is a high possibility that information lacking accuracy will be transmitted to the sender.

  Further, even if the setting is made to automatically transfer the incoming call to another terminal, the set transfer destination is only the expectation at the time of setting. When there is an incoming call due to a change in the situation, the called user is not always in the vicinity of the transfer destination telephone terminal.

  Furthermore, if the receiving user does not perform the necessary setting operation such as forgetting to set the recording response or forwarding, the caller cannot obtain any information regarding the situation of the receiving user. In particular, when the user on the called side frequently leaves the seat, it takes time and effort to perform the necessary setting operation for each leaving, so there is a high possibility that the setting operation will be neglected.

  In view of such a problem, the present invention provides a communication control apparatus and method for informing the caller of the next opportunity that is expected to be able to make a call in conjunction with the situation of the user on the called side, and reducing the possibility of loss of the call opportunity. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides a user location history information detected by a location detection device that detects whether or not a user of a controlled communication terminal to be controlled is located within a predetermined range. Information communication unit for receiving location information, an information storage unit for storing location history information received by the information reception unit, and controlled communication for an incoming call directed to a controlled communication terminal based on the stored location history information A control unit is included that determines a response operation to be performed toward a communication terminal that has made an incoming call when there is no response operation by the user of the terminal.

  In addition, the present invention provides an information communication step of receiving location history information of a user detected from location detection means for detecting whether or not a user of a controlled communication terminal to be controlled is located within a predetermined range. , An information storage step for storing location history information received in the information communication step, and a response by the user of the controlled communication terminal to an incoming call directed to the controlled communication terminal based on the stored location history information A response operation determining step of determining a response operation to be executed for the communication terminal that has made an incoming call when there is no operation;

  Further, the present invention provides an information communication for receiving a user's location history information detected by location detecting means for detecting whether or not a user of a communication terminal to be controlled is located within a predetermined range. Means for storing the received location history information, and the computer when there is no response operation by the user of the communication terminal to an incoming call directed to the communication terminal based on the stored location history information It functions as a response operation determining means for determining a response operation to be executed.

  According to the present invention, even if the user of the communication terminal that is the destination of the incoming call does not perform any response operation on the incoming call, the optimum response operation for the person who has made the incoming call is performed based on the received information. Can be performed, and thus the loss of call opportunities can be reduced.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a communication control system including an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows roughly the structure of the communication control system containing another Example of the communication control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the control operation performed using the Example of this invention as a flowchart. It is a figure which shows roughly the internal floor plan example of the plant | facility using the Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the log | history of a certain week of the user of a certain extension telephone terminal shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of another embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows roughly the structure when operating a computer as an Example of this invention.

  Next, an embodiment of a communication control apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. For convenience of explanation, an explanation will be given of an embodiment of the communication control system 1 including the communication control device used in the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, an embodiment of a communication control apparatus 10 according to the present invention is connected to a telephone network 14 via a communication line 12 and connected to a plurality of extension telephone terminals 18a to 18n via an extension line 16. Suppose that it is a private branch exchange (PBX) 10. The communication control device 10, which is a private branch exchange, performs communication between the telephone terminal 22 connected to the telephone network 14 via the communication line 20 and each extension telephone terminal 18 in order to ensure a smooth call. Control. At this time, the extension telephone terminal 18 is a controlled communication terminal for the communication control apparatus 10.

  Preferably, each extension telephone terminal 18 is not only capable of making a call with another telephone terminal, but also so-called configured to be able to set at least the presence or absence of the user by the operation of the user. It is a multi-function phone.

  In this embodiment, the communication control apparatus 10 will be described in detail as being a private branch exchange. However, as long as smooth communication is realized between the extension telephone terminal 18 and the telephone terminal 22 on the telephone network 14 side, communication control is performed. The device 10 may be any device or equipment.

  The communication control device 10 detects information regarding the location state regarding whether or not the user of the extension telephone terminal 18 is located within a specific range such as in a room via the communication line 24, in particular, the location history information of the user. A location detecting device 26 is also connected. The communication control device 10 is further connected to these connected devices, that is, external devices based on information obtained from the communication control device 10 via the communication line 28 and information obtained from the location detection device 26 via the communication lines 24 and 28. It is also connected to a cooperation computer 30 that derives an optimum response operation at the time of a missed call in cooperation with the cooperation device. Note that the communication lines 24 and 26 do not necessarily have to be substantial wires, and the apparatuses may be connected by wireless connection. In the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the connection between the location detection device 26 and the linkage computer 30 is configured with the control communication device 10 interposed therebetween, but between the location detection device 26 and the linkage computer 30. You may connect directly.

  With this configuration, the communication control device 10 informs the caller of the next opportunity that would be able to talk to the called user according to the location of the user of the extension telephone terminal 18, and reduces the possibility of loss of the call opportunity. Make it possible.

  In FIG. 1, the communication control device (private branch exchange) 10 and the link computer 30 are illustrated as if they are separate devices, but this is not necessarily the case. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, there is an integrated communication control device 32 that employs a configuration in which both the private branch exchange 10 and the linked computer 30 are housed in a single casing to form a single device in appearance. May be.

  The components included in the embodiment of the communication control apparatus 10 according to the present invention will be described in more detail. The communication control device 10 is connected to the telephone network 14 via the communication line 12, and has a line interface circuit 42 that enables communication and control between the telephone network 14 and the communication control device 10. The telephone network 14 connected to the embodiment of the communication control apparatus 10 according to the present invention is a mobile that enables communication with a radio communication terminal such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN) or a mobile phone. Any telephone network such as a body communication network, a private line network, and an Internet Protocol (IP) telephone network may be used. Therefore, when the communication control apparatus 10 is connected to a plurality of types of telephone networks, a plurality of line interface circuits 42 can be provided, and each circuit 42 can be connected to each telephone network 14.

  The communication control apparatus 10 further includes a line interface circuit 44 that is connected to the extension telephone terminals 18a to 18n via the extension line 16 and enables communication and control between the communication control apparatus 10 and the extension telephone terminal 18. It should be noted that a plurality of convolution interface circuits 44 may be provided in accordance with the number of installed extension telephone terminals 18 or the installation location, and a predetermined number of extension telephone terminals 18 may be connected to each circuit 44.

  The communication control device 10 is connected to the line interface circuit 42 via the communication line 46 and connected to the line interface circuit 44 via the communication line 48, and the telephone terminal 22 on the telephone network 14 side that has made an incoming call; One of the extension telephone terminals 18a to 18n, which is a destination, is connected, and a time division switch 50 that enables communication is provided.

  The communication control apparatus 10 includes a control unit 52 that comprehensively controls the entire communication control apparatus 10 according to a program that enables a call between the external telephone terminal 22 and the extension telephone terminal 18 or a call between the extension telephone terminals 18. In the present embodiment, the control unit 52 is preferably an electronic circuit such as a main processor that functions as a central processing device in the communication control device 10.

  The control unit 52 is connected to an input / output bus 54 that exchanges control signals and the like between the control unit 52 and other devices in the communication control device 10. For example, the control unit 52 can be connected via the input / output bus 54 to a storage unit 56 that stores a program that causes the communication control apparatus 10 to perform a role as a private branch exchange.

  The communication control apparatus 10 includes a control signal communication unit 58 that performs communication processing of control signals between the line interface circuits 42 and 44 and the control unit 52. In order to enable communication processing of such control signals, the control signal communication unit 58 is connected to the line interface circuits 42 and 44 via the communication lines 60 and 62, respectively, and the control unit 52 via the input / output bus 54. Are also connected.

  The communication control device 10 includes an information communication interface circuit 64 that enables information communication of various types of data between an external cooperation device such as the location detection device 26 and the cooperation computer 30 and the communication control device 10. In order to enable such data communication, the information communication interface circuit 64 is connected to the location detection device 26 and the link computer 30 via the communication lines 24 and 28. The information communication interface circuit 64 is connected to the control unit 52 via the input / output bus 54, and receives control related to data communication with the external cooperation apparatus according to the stored program.

  The communication control device 10 is connected to the control unit 52 via the input / output bus 54, and provides any guidance to the telephone terminal 22 when there is an incoming call from the telephone terminal 22 to the extension telephone terminal 18 when the user is absent. It has a guidance device 66 that receives control from the control unit 52 as to whether it should be transmitted. The guidance device 66 is a storage device that stores a plurality of types of voice guidance to be notified according to, for example, the absence of the user of the terminal 18. In order to notify the caller of the time for requesting another call, for example, “14” to “30” can be synthesized with a voice that reads a specific number in the basic voice guidance. More preferably, it is configured.

  The guidance device 66 is not limited to a configuration included in the communication control device 10 such as a private branch exchange. The guidance device 66 may be, for example, a so-called automatic voice response device (IVR: Interactive Voice Response) that is connected to the private branch exchange as a device different from the private branch exchange and performs an automatic response by voice. Alternatively, a guidance server that is connected to the private branch exchange as a device different from the private branch exchange and sends out guidance as necessary, or a similar device may be installed as the guidance device 66.

  The communication control device 10 includes many components in addition to the components described above with reference to FIG. 1, and is directly or indirectly controlled by the control unit 52 by being connected to the input / output bus 54. Receive. However, in order to avoid redundant description, description and illustration of components that are less relevant to the configuration of the present invention are omitted.

  Next, the description of the location detection device 26 will be made. The location detecting device 26 is a device that detects whether the user of the extension telephone terminal 18 is in a predetermined room in the facility or is absent. The location detection device 26 can also be installed at the entrance of the facility.

  As the location detection device 26, for example, a card reader installed near the entrance of the facility or near the door of each room in the facility and identifying the identity of the person who intends to enter the room can be cited. According to the card reader, it is possible to discriminate whether or not entry into the facility or entry into each room can be permitted as necessary, thereby preventing unauthorized persons from entering.

  When the location detecting device 26 is a card reader, the user of each extension telephone terminal 18 is lent with an identification card that proves in advance that the employee is a company employee who uses the facility. As the identification card, any known type of card such as an IC chip type in which an integrated circuit (IC) chip is embedded or a magnetic stripe type can be used. However, like the biometric authentication method, the location detection device 26 may adopt a method that does not require a card.

  The location detection device 26 includes an information reading unit 72 that reads information for identifying the identity from an identification card, a physical feature of the user, or the like. The reading structure of the information reading unit 72 can be appropriately designed depending on the type of identification.

  The location detection device 26 has a control unit 74 that comprehensively controls the location detection device 26 as a whole, and in particular, controls the reading of identification information by the information reading unit 72 and data communication with the communication control device 10. The control unit 74 is preferably an electronic circuit such as a main processor that functions as a central processing unit in the location detection device 26.

  The control unit 74 is connected to an input / output bus 76 that exchanges control signals and the like between the control unit 74 and other devices in the location detection device 26. For example, the control unit 74 is connected to the information reading unit 56 via the input / output bus 54, and controls reading of the identification information.

  The location detection device 26 is connected to the information communication interface circuit 64 of the communication control device 10 via the communication line 24, and enables continuous and immediate information communication between the location detection device 26 and the communication control device 10. An information communication interface circuit 78 is included. The interface circuit 78 is connected to the control unit 74 via the input / output bus 76, and the control unit 74 controls data communication between the location detection device 26 and the communication control device 10.

  Note that the information reading unit 72 of the location detection device 26 may not be configured to read information from the identification card or the physical characteristics of the user as long as it can acquire information for identifying the user. Absent. For example, if a business personal computer (PC) that can be moved by each employee is provided or rented, an access point in a wireless local area network (LAN) system in the facility can be used. The information reading unit 72 can be used. This is because if the access point can receive the identification information of the personal computer wirelessly, this information can be regarded as detection information related to the absence of the user and provided to the communication control device 10.

  Or, in a shared space such as a conference room in the company, if an advance reservation system is established to avoid duplication of time with other users who wish to use it, the reservation information is electronically distributed throughout the company using an internal LAN. Can be an embodiment of the present invention. More specifically, when each user of the extension telephone terminal 18 reserves the use date and time of the shared space at his / her own computer terminal, the reservation information is provided to the communication control device 10 as information on the user's presence status. Thus, the computer terminal that performed the reservation operation or the entire reservation system using the network can be regarded as the information reading unit 72 in a broad sense.

  The location detection device 26 includes many components in addition to the components described above with reference to FIG. 1 and is connected directly to the input / output bus 72 or directly by the control unit 74. Receive proper control. However, in order to avoid redundant description, description and illustration of components that are less relevant to the configuration of the present invention are omitted.

  Subsequently, the description of the linked computer 30 will be started. The linked computer 30 comprehensively controls the entire computer 30, and in particular, data communication with the communication control device 10 and derivation of an optimal missed call response operation to be executed by the communication control device 10 based on the received data. And the like. In the present embodiment, the control unit 82 is preferably an electronic circuit such as a main processor that functions as a central processing unit in the linked computer 30. The control unit 82 is connected to an input / output bus 84 that exchanges control signals and the like between the control unit 82 and other devices in the linked computer 30.

  Linked computer 30 is connected to information communication interface circuit 64 of communication control device 10 via communication line 28, and enables continuous and immediate communication of information between linked computer 30 and communication control device 10. A communication interface circuit 86 is included. Needless to say, it is also possible to receive information from the location detecting device 26 indirectly via the information communication interface circuit 64 of the communication control device 10.

  The interface circuit 86 is connected to the control unit 82 via the input / output bus 84, and the control unit 82 controls data communication between the link computer 30 and the communication control device 10.

  The link computer 30 includes an information storage unit 88 that is a database for storing information notified from the communication control device 10 and the location detection device 26 via the information communication interface circuit 86. Specifically, the information storage unit is preferably a non-volatile memory such as a hard disk capable of storing information for a long time. The information storage unit 88 and the interface circuit 86 are connected by an input / output bus 84, and control related to information storage processing is performed by the control unit 82, and necessary information is stored in the information storage unit 88.

  In the information storage unit 88, for example, information on the setting state of the extension telephone terminal 18 notified from the communication control device 10, the extension number of the transfer setting destination and accompanying information on the transfer, and the predetermined information notified from the absence detector 26 Information about entering and leaving the room is stored.

  The link computer 30 stores a program for deriving an optimal response action to be executed by the communication control device 10 when there is an incoming call when the user is absent based on the information stored in the information storage unit 88. Has 90. The program storage unit 90 and the control unit 82 are connected by an input / output bus 84, and the control unit 82 performs a process for deriving an optimal response operation when a missed call is received. Note that the information stored in the program storage unit 90 is not limited to the above-described program, and the storage unit 90 may also serve as the information storage unit 88, for example.

  By the way, the linked computer 30 includes many components in addition to the components described above with reference to FIG. 1, and is connected directly to the input / output bus 84 or directly by the control unit 82. Get control. However, in order to avoid redundant description, description and illustration of components that are less relevant to the configuration of the present invention are omitted.

  The description so far has been mainly based on the configuration of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, assuming that the components in the communication control apparatus 10 and the components in the link computer 30 are separate from each other. However, in the case of the integrated communication control device 32 in which both the private branch exchange 10 and the cooperative computer 30 are built in the same housing as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the control units 52 and 82, the storage units 56 and 90, and the like. , And the information communication interface circuits 64 and 86 may be configured integrally.

  Next, with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, an example of a control operation executed by the implementation of the present invention executed by the communication control system including the communication control device 10 or 32 will be described in detail. When the location detection device 26 detects information related to entering or leaving a specific room due to the operation of the identification card by the user of the extension telephone terminal 18, the linked computer 30 via the communication control device 10 for each detection. Information about entering and leaving the room is supplied to the timely (step S102). Further, the communication control apparatus 10 can supply information such as the absence setting of the multi-function telephone 18 that is an extension line terminal and the telephone number of the transfer destination to the linkage computer 30 (step S104). The supplied information is stored in the information storage unit 88 of the linked computer 30 (step S106). In this way, the linked computer 30 can continuously and immediately manage the entry / exit information and presence status information of a specific user.

  When the user of the telephone terminal 22 operates the telephone terminal 22 in search of a call with any of the extension telephone terminals 18a to 18n, the communication control device 10 receives an incoming call via the telephone network 14, An incoming signal is detected by the line interface circuit 42 (step S108).

  When the line interface circuit 42 detects the incoming signal, it notifies the control unit 52 that the incoming call has been received via the control signal communication unit 58.

  Upon receipt of such notification, the control unit 52 determines whether or not to refer to the seating time zone information derived from the user behavior pattern obtained from the location detection device 26, and the absence at the extension telephone terminal 18 that is the destination of the call. The presence / absence of data relating to a missed call response, such as the presence / absence of a setting operation or the presence / absence of forwarding to another telephone terminal, is confirmed (step S110). If there is no data relating to the missed call response, the incoming call operation (calling) from the telephone terminal 22 as the call source to the extension telephone terminal 18 as the call destination is continued (step S112). If the user of the destination telephone terminal 18 performs a receiving operation, a call can be made as it is.

  On the other hand, if there is data related to the missed call response, the communication control apparatus 10 inquires the cooperation computer 30 about what missed response operation should be performed (step S114). More specifically, the control unit 52 in the communication control apparatus 10 creates an inquiry instruction command for inquiring what kind of absence response operation should be performed with respect to the cooperation computer 30, and via the information communication interface circuit 64, the cooperation computer 30 Send to. Alternatively, the control unit 52 may further instruct the circuit 64 to cause the information communication interface circuit 64 to create an inquiry instruction command and to send the created command to the link computer 30.

  The control unit 82 in the linked computer 30 that has received the inquiry instruction command derives the absence response operation that the communication control device 10 should perform on the telephone terminal 22 based on the data content stored in the information storage unit 88 (step S116). The absence response operation is derived according to a predetermined program that is stored in the program storage unit 90 or the like and that derives the optimum response operation to be executed by the communication control apparatus 10, for example.

  Examples of the data content used for deriving the optimal response operation by the cooperation computer 30 include, for example, the inquiry instruction received from the communication control apparatus 10 in addition to the data supplied from the cooperation computer 30 and the communication control apparatus 10 in steps S102 and S104. Examples include the extension telephone number of the destination extension telephone terminal 18 and the telephone number of the telephone terminal 22 on the caller side included in the command, and any auxiliary information associated therewith.

  In addition, the program for deriving the optimum response operation is a program for analyzing the stay history in each room for each user of the extension telephone terminal 18 based on the information notified from the location detection device 26 and managed by the information storage unit 88. Can be included. In this program, it is more preferable that it is possible to calculate the next predicted entry time, the predicted stay time in a predetermined room, and the like based on the analysis result of the stay history.

  When the communication control device 10 derives the absence response operation to be performed on the telephone terminal 22, the link computer 30 returns the derivation result to the communication control device 10 (step S118). Then, the communication control device 10 performs a response operation on the telephone terminal 22 based on the returned derivation result (step S120). As the response operation, for example, voice guidance including information such as a predicted next entry time derived by the cooperation computer 30 can be played. Alternatively, the incoming call can be transferred to a transfer destination designated in advance or a transfer destination where the presence of the room can be confirmed.

  With this control operation, it is possible to execute different response operations for each of the extension communication terminals 18a to 18n depending on the circumstances of each user of the terminal 18.

  Next, a derivation example of the optimum response operation to be executed by the communication control devices 10 and 32 executed by the linked computer 30 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. FIG. 4 shows a schematic internal floor plan of a company facility. In this floor plan, the A department room 102, the B department room 104, the conference room 106, and the reception room 108 are clearly shown as room divisions in the corporate facility 101. In department A room 102 and department B room 104, an extension telephone terminal 18 is installed for each employee in the department, extension telephone terminals 18a to 18d are provided in department A room 102, and extension telephones are provided in department B room 104. Assume that terminals 18e to 18h are installed. Further, the extension telephone terminal 18m may be optionally installed in the conference room 106, and the extension telephone terminal 18n may be optionally installed in the reception room 108.

  In the corporate facility shown in FIG. 4, information reading units 72a to 72d such as card readers are installed at the entrances of the rooms, and the employee operates the ID card on hand to enter the room. The information reading unit 72e can be installed not only at the entrance of each room but also at the entrance of the facility itself.

  FIG. 5 shows an in-house stay history for a certain week of the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a. The company's regular business hours are from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm (18:00), and one hour from 12:00 am to 1:00 pm is a break. In this company, Saturday and Sunday are holidays. On Mondays and Thursdays, regular meetings are held in the conference room 106 for about 2 hours from 1 pm (indicated as 106, the reference number of the conference room). On regular days (Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday) where there is no regular meeting, unless there are special circumstances, work outside the company, such as business trips, is scheduled to return to the office upon completion. In FIG. 5, the absence time in the office due to the work outside the office is denoted by reference numeral 110. In addition, about 1 hour and 30 minutes from 2 pm on Wednesday of this week and about 1 hour from 3:30 pm on Friday, there was a visitor in the reception room 108 (the reference number 108 for the reception room). Notation). Other business hours are basically performed in the department A room (denoted by reference numeral 102 in the department A room).

  When the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a leaves the A department room for a regular meeting or leaves the office, he / she may operate the extension terminal 18a to set that the user is absent. it can. Further, the absence state setting can be canceled when the regular meeting ends or when the company returns to the department A room at the next business day sunrise company.

  In addition, the information reading units 72a to 72e of the location detection device 26. Each time the user's entry / exit information is read, information regarding entry / exit is supplied to the linked computer 30 via the communication control device 10 in a timely manner.

  The link computer 30 can predict the time that each user stays in the rooms 102 to 108 based on the entry / exit history of each extension telephone terminal user supplied from the information reading units 72a to 72e. . If the user is present in the room, the user should be able to answer the call when there is an incoming call to the extension telephone terminal 18 used by the user. The time in which the user is present can also be referred to as the response possible predicted time.

  For example, the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a has a regular meeting in the conference room 106 every Monday and Thursday for about 2 hours from 1 pm, so when entering the conference room 106 and leaving the conference room 106 In this case, the information reading unit 72c is caused to read the user identification information every time. Accordingly, the linked computer 30 states that “the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a stays in the conference room 106 without the A department room 102 from 1 pm to 3 pm on Mondays and Thursdays” The analysis result to the effect can be derived. Therefore, for example, when there is an incoming call from the telephone terminal 22 to the extension telephone terminal 18a at 2 pm on Monday (arrow A in FIG. 5), the link computer 30 determines the communication control device 10 based on the analysis result. An absence response operation for informing by voice guidance that it is scheduled to return to department A room 102 after 3 pm (arrow a) is derived. Thus, by deriving the absence response operation based on the expected response time, it is possible to notify the user of the telephone terminal 22 of the next opportunity that a call can be expected, thereby reducing the loss of the call opportunity.

  Of course, when the extension telephone terminal 18m is installed in the conference room 106, and the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a selects the terminal 18m as the transfer destination when the user is absent as the setting of the terminal 18a, An incoming call from the telephone terminal 22 to the extension telephone terminal 18a may be directly transferred to the terminal 18m. In this way, if either voice notification notification or transfer to another extension terminal can be arbitrarily selected according to the location of the user, the loss of call opportunities can be further reduced.

  Further, the linked computer 30 can analyze that the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a does not go to work at 9:00 am on the start time every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, and comes after several hours from the start time. For example, the estimated time of sunrise for the out-of-office work may use the average office hours of past accumulated data. Alternatively, a time obtained by adding a predetermined time (for example, 30 minutes or 1 hour) to the average work time may be predicted as the expected work time. Furthermore, for example, it is possible to analyze that the expected time to go to work differs for each day of the week.

  For example, if there is an incoming call from the telephone terminal 22 to the extension telephone terminal 18a at 7:00 pm on Tuesday after the user of the extension telephone terminal 18a leaves the company (arrow B), the linked computer 30 It is a Wednesday, the day, and after 11 am is expected to come to work after finishing work in the morning, for example, 11:30 am is requested to call again (arrow b) Communication control of voice guidance The absence response operation to be notified to the device 10 is derived.

  In the schedule table of FIG. 5, the user of the terminal 18a stayed in the reception room 108 for the customer reception for about 1 hour from 2 pm on Wednesday and from 3:30 pm on Friday. However, in the customer service, the date and time is likely to be determined irregularly mainly due to the circumstances of each customer. For this reason, it may be difficult for the linked computer 30 to predict the use date and stay time of the reception room 108. However, in such a case, as described above as another embodiment of the present invention, a system that enables advance reservation of a shared space such as a reception room with a computer terminal is configured as an information reading unit 72 in a broad sense. It becomes effective. According to this configuration, the linked computer 30 can easily calculate the estimated stay time of the user in a predetermined room based on the person who made the advance reservation, the reserved reservation time, and the like. Note that the data shown in FIG. 5 is for each day of the week, and may be a different unit such as a day of the month.

  Up to this point, the configuration example and the operation example of the present invention have been described based on the embodiment shown in FIG. However, the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to that shown in FIG. For example, it is not necessary to directly realize the connection between the communication control device 10 and the location detection device 26 and the connection between the communication control device 10 and the link computer 30 via the communication lines 24 and 28. As shown in FIG. 6, the communication control device 10, the location detection device 26, and the computer 30 may be connected to each other via a communication network such as the Internet Protocol (IP) network 120, for example. In this embodiment, which takes the form of a so-called cloud service, the communication control device 10 and the IP network 120 are connected by a communication line 122, and the location detection device 26 and the IP network 120 are connected by a communication line 124. Thus, the communication control device 10 and the location detection device 26 are connected. Further, the computer 30 and the IP network 120 are connected by a communication line 126, whereby the communication control device 10 and the linked computer 30 are also connected.

  When connecting the communication control device 10 and the computer 30 via such a communication network 120, it is possible to install the communication control device 10, the location detection device 26, and the linked computer 30 in separate locations. However, the computer 30 can be operated in cooperation with the communication control apparatus 10 as a result. For example, it is not necessary to provide the linked computer 30 in the same premises as the facility using the extension telephone terminal 18.

  In addition, the storage unit 56 of the communication control apparatus 10 can store an identification address that identifies the linked computer 30 connected to the IP network 120 or information stored in the computer 30. The identification address includes, for example, a uniform resource locator (URL), a uniform resource identifier (URI) such as an IP address, or similar network identification information. The communication control device 10 uses the network identification information described above to connect to the cooperation computer 30 when attempting to refer to the data stored in the cooperation computer 30 in executing the response operation for the missed incoming call. It will be.

  By the way, the embodiment of the present invention described above is an optimal program to be executed by the communication control apparatus 10 when there is an incoming call when the user is absent, or a program for causing the computer to perform the role of the communication control apparatus 10 or 32. It can also be realized by installing a program in the linked computer 30 for deriving a response operation in a predetermined computer. An embodiment in this case will be briefly described with reference to FIG.

  The storage medium 130 stores a program that causes the computer 134 to function as the communication control devices 10 and 32 or the linked computer 30. Here, the storage medium 130 includes any device or component capable of storing a program, such as an optical disk, a magnetic disk, or a flash memory.

  The computer 132 has a drive 134 that can read the storage contents of the storage medium 130. The drive 134 may be fixedly built in the computer 132, or may be an external device independent of the computer 132 and connectable to the computer 132. The computer 132 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 136 that performs information processing such as computation and control of the computer itself, and a storage device 138 that stores programs, data, and the like. For convenience, the storage device 138 shown in this figure includes both a device for temporarily storing data and a device for permanently storing data. The CPU 136 is connected to the drive 134 via the connection line 140 and is also connected to the storage device 138 via the connection line 142.

  The program stored in the storage medium 130 is read by the computer 132 via the drive 134, and the read program is stored in the storage device 138 of the computer 132 under the control of the CPU 136. The computer 132 in which the program is incorporated in this way can operate as the communication control device 10 or 32 or the linked computer 30 by executing the program. Depending on the contents of the program, it can be said that this program causes the CPU 136 in the computer 132 to function as the control unit 52 or 82 and the storage device 138 to function as the storage unit 56, the information storage unit 88, or the program storage unit 90. . Various other devices in the computer 132 (not shown) also function as components of the communication control devices 10 and 32 or the linked computer 30 by executing the program.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described so far, specific methods for implementing the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments. As long as the present invention can be implemented, the design, operation procedure, and the like can be changed as appropriate. For example, circuits and other devices used for assisting the function of the components used in the present invention can be added and omitted as appropriate.

10, 32 Communication control device
18 Extension communication terminal
26 Location detection device
30 Linked computers
52, 74, 82 Control unit
64, 78, 86 Information communication interface circuit
88 Information storage

Claims (9)

A communication control device that controls communication with another communication terminal performed using a communication terminal, the device comprising:
The location history information of the user detected by the location detection device from the location detection device that detects whether the user of the controlled communication terminal that is controlled by the communication control device is located within a predetermined range. Receiving information communication part,
An information accumulating unit for accumulating location history information received by the information receiving unit; and
Based on the location history information stored by the information storage unit, the incoming call is sent when there is no response operation by the user of the controlled communication terminal to the incoming call directed to the controlled communication terminal A communication control apparatus comprising a control unit that determines a response operation to be performed toward a communication terminal.   The communication control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit further communicates with a user of the controlled communication terminal with respect to an incoming call directed to the controlled communication terminal based on the location history information. A communication control device that determines a response possible prediction time that is predicted to be possible. 3. The communication control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the response operation determined by the control unit includes a response operation of transferring the incoming call to a communication terminal different from the controlled communication terminal that has received the incoming call, and A response operation of sending information including the expected response time to the communication terminal that has made the incoming call is included,
The said control part selectively determines the response operation which this communication control apparatus should perform based on at least one among the said location history information and the said response possible prediction time, The communication control apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. A communication control method for controlling communication with other communication terminals performed using a communication terminal, the method comprising:
Location information of the user detected by the location detection means from location detection means for detecting whether the user of the controlled communication terminal that is controlled by the communication control method is located within a predetermined range. Receiving information communication process,
An information accumulation step for accumulating location history information received in the information communication step; and the controlled call with respect to an incoming call directed to the controlled communication terminal based on the location history information accumulated by the information accumulation step. A communication control method, comprising: a response operation determining step of determining a response operation to be executed for a communication terminal that has made an incoming call when there is no response operation by a user of the communication terminal.   5. The communication control method according to claim 4, wherein the response operation determining step further includes, based on the location history information, an incoming call directed to the controlled communication terminal and a user of the controlled communication terminal. A communication control method comprising the step of determining an expected response time that is predicted to be able to be communicated. 6. The communication control method according to claim 5, wherein the response operation determined by the response operation determination step includes a response operation of transferring the incoming call to a communication terminal different from the controlled communication terminal that has received the incoming call. And a response operation of sending information including the expected response time to the communication terminal that has transmitted the incoming call.
The communication control method is characterized in that the response operation determined by the response operation determination step is selectively determined based on at least one of the location history information and the response possible predicted time. Computer
A program causing a computer to function as a cooperative computer that cooperates with a communication control unit that controls communication of a communication terminal, and further comprising the computer,
Receiving the location history information of the user detected by the location detecting means from the location detecting means for detecting whether or not the user of the communication terminal controlled by the communication control means is located within a predetermined range. Information communication means,
Information storage means for storing location history information received by the information communication means, and use of the communication terminal for an incoming call directed to the communication terminal based on the location history information stored in the information storage means A program that functions as a response operation determination unit that determines a response operation to be executed by the communication control unit when there is no response operation by a user.   The program according to claim 7, wherein the computer functioning as the response operation determining unit further communicates with the user of the communication terminal for an incoming call directed to the communication terminal based on the location history information. A program for determining an expected response time that is predicted to allow communication. 9. The program according to claim 8, wherein the response operation determined by the computer functioning as the response operation determination means includes a response for transferring the incoming call to a communication terminal different from the communication terminal that has received the incoming call. And a response operation for sending information including the expected response time to the communication terminal that has transmitted the incoming call.
The response operation to be executed by the communication control unit is selectively determined based on at least one of the location history information and the response possible predicted time.

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