JP3408268B2 - Call charge management device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a call charge management device connected to a telephone system such as a private branch exchange.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 11 shows a call charge management device connected to a private branch exchange. The private branch exchange is provided with a central control unit 20, which centrally controls each unit based on a program and data stored in a connected main memory 21. The exchange circuit 22 is connected to the external line circuit ₂₃ 1 ~ 23 _m, The external circuit ₂₃ 1 ~ 23 _m, the external line ₂₄ 1 to 24 _m is connected. Further, the exchange circuit 22 includes extension circuits 25 _{1 to} 25.
_n are connected to the extension circuits 25 _{1 to} 25 _n , and extension terminals 26 ₁ to 26 such as telephones and attendant consoles are connected to the extension circuits 25 _{1 to} 25 _n.
n are connected. The exchange circuit 22 includes the central control unit 20.
Under control of the exchange between the mutual extension circuit ₂₅ 1 to 25 _n, the extension circuit ₂₅ 1 to 25 _n and the external circuit ₂₃ 1-23
Exchange with _m . The central control unit 20 uses the data lines to extend the internal circuits 25 _{1 to} 25 _n and the external circuits 23 ₁ to 23 ₁ .
It is connected to 23 _m and controls the call processing by transmitting and receiving data relating to the origination and termination. In this process, the central control unit 20
Obtains the data of the call ending time and the data (call data) regarding the dial station number and the like from the calling times of the extension terminals 26 _{1 to} 26 _n and sends them to the call charge management device 30 when required.

A printer device 40 is connected to the call charge management device 30 so that information relating to a necessary call charge can be output. FIG. 12 shows a detailed configuration of the call charge management device 30. This call charge management device 30 is a CP
The configuration in which the U31 controls each unit based on the program and data in the main memory 32 is adopted. The CPU 31 has a CRT controller (CRTC) 34 via a bus 33,
Floppy disk controller (FDC) 35, key operation detection unit (SCAN) 36, interface (IF)
41 and 42 are connected. CRT controller (C
The RTC) 34 receives the display data given from the CPU 31, controls the CRT 37, and causes the corresponding display. The key operation detection unit (SCAN) 36 receives the operation data of the key matrix (KEY) unit 38 and enables the CPU 31 to take in the corresponding key code. A floppy disk controller (FDC) 35 controls a floppy disk drive (FDD) 39 to control writing and reading of data. The central control unit 20 is connected to the interface 41, and the printer device 40 is connected to the interface unit 42.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the call charge management device 30. The call charge management device 30 includes a plate-shaped base portion 46 and a display portion 45 provided upright from the base portion 46. The display unit 45 includes the CRT 37, and the base unit 46.
A key group 38A on the key matrix portion 38 is provided on the surface of the. A floppy disk drive (FDD) 39 is provided on the right side of the base 46.

An example of the arrangement of the above key group 38A is shown in FIG.
Shown in. Here, ENT is the key that needs explanation.
R (execution) keys 51A and 51B, a cursor key 52,
Function keys of PF1 to PF8. Commands and data are input by using these keys and other character / number keys. The main memory 32 is provided with the program of the flowchart shown in FIG.
1 displays a screen relating to the output condition setting of the call management information based on this program, and reflects the input output condition data in the screen and the output condition data holding unit referred to in the output processing. The screen data relating to the output condition setting is stored in the screen database section in the main memory 32. Hereinafter, the output condition setting will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The CPU 31 receives call data from the central control unit 20 of the private branch exchange through the interface 41 and stores it in the main memory 32 as a file.
When it is started by turning on the power, etc., the CPU 31
Causes the CRT 37 to display the home screen in parallel with the above-mentioned call data receiving process (20
1). Here, if the screen of the aggregation menu is the home screen, the display data of the home screen is read from the screen database storage unit and given to the CRT controller 34 for display. As a result, for example, the home screen shown in FIG. 16 is displayed on the CRT 37. In this example, any one of the processes of "arbitrary total output", "immediate detailed output", "arbitrary detailed output", and "proportion process setting" is selected with the cursor C (including the operation of the ENTER key 51A. , It is simply called selection by cursor.) It is possible. The above "arbitrary aggregate output" is a process that aggregates and outputs arbitrary call data, and "immediate detailed output"
Is a process that performs billing calculation based on the transmitted call data and immediately outputs the result.
Is a process of searching for and reading out arbitrary call data from the stored call data, and "provisional process setting" is set to perform the process when the call data has a predetermined accumulation degree. Processing. CPU31
The home screen display is controlled, and the input (selection by the cursor) is waited (202). The operator can select either of these processes, but here, it is assumed that "arbitrary total output" is selected. Then, the CPU 31
Advances from step 202 to step 203, analyzes the input and, if necessary, reflects the output condition data on the screen and sets the setting in the output condition data holding unit, and analyzes whether to proceed to the next screen. (204). When advancing to the next screen, the corresponding screen data is read out from the screen database storage unit and displayed, and the operation returns to step 203 to continue the operation. When the advancing to the next screen does not occur, further input is waited for. It is detected (205). Further, when waiting for the next input, the process returns to step 203 to continue the operation, and if it is not necessary to wait for the next input, it is detected whether all the output conditions are satisfied (206). Here, if the output conditions are not complete, a screen in which the output conditions have not been set (incomplete) is displayed, and an announcement requesting input of output condition data related to the unset conditions is also displayed (207). . Then, it is detected whether or not the output condition data is input (208),
If there is an input, the process returns to step 203 to continue the operation. If the output conditions are complete, output processing is performed based on the output condition data set in the output condition data holding unit (209), and the process ends.

As described above, on the home screen (FIG. 16),
If "arbitrary aggregate output" is selected by the cursor C, the next screen becomes the display screen of "arbitrary aggregate output setting" in FIG. 17, and "output period setting", "output item setting",
Either "output device designation" or "output start" can be selected by the cursor C. "Output period setting" is the option to bring up the screen for setting the output period, "Output item setting" is the option to bring out the screen for setting the output item, and "Output device designation" is the output Is an option for pulling out a screen for designating a device to perform, and "start output" is an option for starting output based on the set output condition data.

In the display screen of "Arbitrary total output setting" shown in FIG. 17, first, when "output period setting" is selected,
The screen for "Set arbitrary output period" in 8 appears, select "Day" or "Month" with cursor C, and enter the start date and end date, or enter the month of what year. It becomes possible to specify the period depending on whether or not to do so. Next, when "Output item setting" is selected on the "Arbitrary aggregate output setting" display screen of FIG. 17, the "Arbitrary aggregate output item setting" screen shown in FIG. 19 is displayed, and "Individual", "Group", " It becomes possible to select any one of "tenant", "all calls" and "non-chargeable call". If, for example, the item "Individual" is selected on the "Arbitrary total output item setting" screen shown in FIG. 19, the "Arbitrary total output item setting (individual)" display screen shown in FIG. Select the specified item, enter the tenant's character string in the “Tenant” field, enter the phone number in the “Number” field,
Set the output conditions.

When the conditions for the "output period" and the "output item" are set as described above, the conditions for the "output device" are finally set. That is, FIG.
On the display screen of "Arbitrary total output setting", when "Output device designation" is selected with the cursor C, the screen of "Arbitrary total output device designation" of FIG. 21 is displayed, and "Output device" and "Printer output paper format" are displayed. The cursor C makes a selection possible, and by making the selection, the condition for the "output device" is set. In each of the above screens, items such as "home screen" and "full screen" displayed below the screens are the function keys PF1 to PF.
A process selectable by F8 is shown.

In this way, when "arbitrary total output" is selected, it is necessary to select and input conditions on each screen. In addition, as is clear from the screen of FIG. 17, the types of output include “immediate detailed output” and “arbitrary detailed output”. Even when "immediate detailed output" or "arbitrary detailed output" is selected here, the screen advances to the "arbitrary aggregate output setting" screen of FIG. 18 for the "output period", "output item", and "output device". Selection and input are required. In these selections and inputs, in addition to the items in the case of the "arbitrary aggregate output" described above, "output call""specific telephone call",
There are "set time excess call", "set charge excess call", "common carrier call", etc., and when "output of optional details" is selected, "output type setting" is "send dial designation", ""Outside group designation", "Call destination telephone number designation", etc. Further, in any case, it may be necessary to set the "output format" when designating the output device.

[0011]

As described above, when outputting, the necessary setting is repeated every time the output is made. That is, conventionally, the output condition data is set and
Returning to the screen of 8, the "start of output" is selected with the cursor C, and when output is performed, the process proceeds to the setting of output condition data again.

Such processing must be performed even when the same output condition data is set, which is extremely troublesome, and
There was a problem that it was easy to make an erroneous input. The present invention is
The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the call charge management device, and an object thereof is to provide a call charge management device in which output conditions can be easily set and an error is unlikely to occur.

[0013]

According to the call charge management device of the present invention, data for a call including at least data of a call time for each call and data of a dial station number of a callee and a terminal for making a call are provided. It is provided with a holding means for receiving and holding the call data including the identifying information from the telephone system, and charging is performed by designating an output condition for instructing which call is to be charged for the call data held by the holding means. A call charge management device for performing calculation, which includes charge calculation means for performing charge calculation using the above-mentioned charge data and network charge system data, and receives and outputs information calculated by this charge calculation means. Output means, storage means capable of preliminarily storing a plurality of output condition data relating to the output conditions, and output condition data stored in the storage means. When the input for designating the data is received, the designated output condition data is obtained from the storage means,
And a control unit that causes the billing calculation unit to perform billing calculation for a call corresponding to the output condition data.

[0014]

[Function] With the above configuration, the operation is performed in the telephone system.
Which of the existing calls is to be used for billing calculation
The output condition data consisting of multiple pieces of information
It is stored in advance, so you can specify the output condition data.
Calculate the billing for the desired call just by pressing the button
And the result will be output .

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The call charge management device according to the present invention has all the same configurations as conventional ones. That is, the external appearance shown in FIG. 13 is provided, each unit shown in FIG. 12 is provided, the key arrangement of the keyboard is as shown in FIG. 14, and the private telephone exchange is connected as shown in FIG. Processing is performed by the program of the flowchart shown in FIG. 15 to display at least the screens shown in FIGS. 16 to 21.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the main memory 32.
Has the program of the flowchart shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 and the tables shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 and 6,
It operates as the device of the functional block diagram shown in FIG.

That is, the call charge management device 30 has a screen database storage unit 5, and corresponds to the screen numbers shown in FIG.
Screen data for displaying the screens shown in FIGS. 6 to 21 is stored in the screen database storage unit 5. Further, the call data file unit 15 is provided, and the call data sent from the private branch exchange is given to the call data writing unit 16 and written in the call data file unit 15. A memory map of the call data file section 15 is shown in FIG. Call data includes extension terminal ID, call start time, call end time, destination telephone number data, type of network used (common carrier)
Is included, and these data are accumulated in the area corresponding to the item of the call data file section 15. Further, an output condition data file section 1 is provided. The output condition data file unit 1 stores output condition data having a structure as shown in FIG. 6, and the file name and the file management table 4 are associated with each other.
As is apparent from FIG. 2, the file management table 4 stores the file name and the pointer, and when the file name is given, the pointer indicating the start address of the corresponding output condition file page can be read. The file name is divided into three areas A1, A2, and A3, and is stored in each area of "arbitrary summary output", "immediate detailed output", and "arbitrary detailed output". Further, a charge system data table 11 and a terminal data table 12 are provided. The charge system data table 11 is a memory table in which call frequency data and discount data are stored for each network in correspondence with time zones. Charge calculation is performed using the data of the charge system data table 11. As shown in FIG. 3, the terminal data table 12 stores an account code, a tenant number to which the user belongs, etc. corresponding to the ID of the extension terminal. When the extension terminal ID is given, the corresponding required data is stored. It is searchable.

The call analysis unit 30 includes a key analysis unit 8
Is provided to analyze the key data sent by operating the keyboard, and give necessary commands to required parts to perform operations, or give data, and perform processing by themselves. Specifically, at the time of startup such as power-on, the key analysis unit 8 causes the screen database storage unit 5 to
The home screen data is retrieved from and stored in the screen memory 6. The display control unit 7 reads out the data from the screen memory 6, processes it into display data, and sends it to the display unit to display the home screen. The home screen thus displayed is shown in FIG.

If the data is the data of the movement of the cursor C, the data is given to the data writing unit 9 and the cursor C of the screen memory 6 is moved.
Data is rewritten, and in response to the operation of the "ENTER" key, the confirmation is transmitted to the data writing unit 9, reflected in the corresponding data in the screen database storage unit 5, and the output condition to the output condition data holding unit 13. Write the data, and the screen data of the next screen is stored in the screen database storage unit 5 by itself.
Read from and write to the screen memory 6. 5 and 18 to 21 from the home screen, the output condition data is displayed in the screen memory 6 according to the data input from the keyboard.
Is written to the screen database storage unit 5 and the output condition data holding unit 13, and the corresponding output condition data is written. The output condition data holding unit 13
Data required as output condition data (which output process, which output period, output item, output type,
Only the data depending on the output device) is stored.

In this way, when the output condition data is set and "start output" is selected on the display screen of FIG. 5, the key analysis section 8 activates the task management section 14. The task management unit 14 controls the output task processing unit 10 that executes the output process of the charging data so that a predetermined output is performed. That is, the output condition data holding unit 13 is connected to the task management unit 14, and in the operation of the output task processing unit 10, the task selection, the calculation range, the output device, and the like are stored in the output condition data holding unit 13. Instruct based on the corresponding data. The output task processing unit 10 is an aggregate of a plurality of tasks that execute output processing, and under the control of the task management unit 14, a predetermined task refers to the charge system table 11 and the terminal data table 12. The necessary call data is read from the call data file unit 15, output data related to the instruction is created, and the output data is given to the output device related to the instruction to output.

In this embodiment, in addition to the above processing, CP
U31 writes and reads the output condition data to and from the output condition data file unit 1 based on the programs stored in the main memory 32 in the flowcharts of FIGS. In addition, the screen database storage unit 5 stores in FIG.
5 is stored in place of the screen data of
The screen data of FIGS. 9 and 10 is newly stored.

The processing operation according to the above flow chart is as follows.
In FIG. 1, the output condition setting unit 2 and the file creating unit 3 execute. That is, as described above, by the operator,
It is assumed that each screen is read out and the setting of the output condition data is completed for any of "arbitrary total output", "immediate detailed output" and "optional detailed output". In this state, by displaying the screen of FIG. 5 and selecting “start output” with the cursor C, desired output can be performed. However, when the output ends, the screen database storage unit 5, the output condition data is output. Since the output condition data stored in the holding unit 13 is erased (invalidated) by the data writing unit 9,
In order to perform the same output processing again, it is necessary to set the output condition data for each screen again. However, in the present embodiment, the output condition data once set as described below is stored in the output condition data file unit 1, and subsequently read out and reflected in the screen database storage unit 5 and the output condition data holding unit 13. Can be made.

[Arbitrary total output] by the operator,
For "immediate detail output" and "arbitrary detail output", for example, "arbitrary summary output", when each screen is read and the output condition data settings are completed, the operator uses the function keys to select "home screen", "previous The screen of FIG. 5 is displayed by performing an operation such as designation of "screen". Here, the cursor C is moved to select "write condition file". Upon detecting this, the key analysis unit 8 does not instruct the data writing unit 9 to delete the output condition data stored in the screen database storage unit 5 and the output condition data holding unit 13, The screen data for displaying the screen shown in FIG. 9 is read out and set in the screen memory 6. The screen of FIG. 9 is displayed under the control of the display controller 7. Therefore, the operator inputs a character string according to the cursor C in order to give a desired file name to the series of output condition data. This character string is sent from the key analysis unit 8 to the file creation unit 3, and the file creation unit 3 searches the output condition data file unit 1 for an empty area for storing the above series of output condition data and holds the leading address thereof. Then, the above-mentioned character string and the start address are paired and the result shown in FIG.
The output condition data is stored in the file management table 4 shown in FIG. 1, the output condition data is extracted from the screen database storage unit 5, and is stored in the output condition data file unit 1.

The output condition data stored in the output condition data file section 1 is stored in each page having the structure shown in FIG. One page is defined by the screen number and the line number of the screen. If the data indicating whether it is the selection by the cursor or the input by the character key is stored in the "input category", and the data indicating that it is the last page of the series of output condition data is necessary for the "return", It is written (when it is the last page of a series of output condition data), and the character string related to selection and input is written in the “character string”. Therefore, assuming that the output condition data stored in the output condition data file unit 1 is a page in total, b1, b2, ... Bn corresponding to the file names.
And a series of output condition data are divided into blocks and stored. As described above, the output condition data file section 1
After the output condition data is stored in, the screen of FIG. 5 is displayed, and "start output" is selected with the cursor C, whereby desired output can be performed.

A series of output condition data relating to the "arbitrary total output" related to the above storage is read as follows. First, the operator operates the function keys to specify "home screen", "previous screen", etc. to display the screen of FIG. Here, the cursor C is moved to select "read condition file". Upon detecting this, the key analysis unit 8 reads the screen data for displaying the screen shown in FIG. 10 from the screen database storage unit 5 and sets it in the screen memory 6. The screen of FIG. 10 is displayed under the control of the display control unit 7. Although not displayed on the screen of FIG. 10, the key analysis unit 8 reads the file name related to “arbitrary total output” from the area A1 of the file management table 4 and allocates it to each column of the title and writes it in the screen memory 6. . Therefore, the screen displays a list of file names for each series of output condition data related to "arbitrary total output". Then, the operator selects a desired file name with the cursor C. Then, the key analysis unit 8 that has detected this key operation sends the selected file name to the output condition setting unit 2. The output condition setting unit 2 searches the file management table 4 based on the given file name and reads the corresponding pointer, and based on this, reads the corresponding pages from the output condition data file unit 1 one after another, and the screen number of each page. To screen database storage unit 5
The screen data stored in is searched, and the output condition data stored in the page is written and reflected in the screen data. With this processing, the output condition setting unit 2
Writes the output condition data stored in the page into the output condition data holding unit 13. The same processing is executed for consecutive pages until data indicating the last page appears in "return". In this way, when all the output condition data corresponding to the designated file name is reflected in the screen data and held in the output condition data holding unit 13, control is passed to the key analysis unit 8 and the key analysis unit 5 reads out the screen data of FIG. 5 from the screen database storage unit 5, sets it in the screen memory 6, and superimposes a message to the effect that the setting of the output condition is completed in the empty area of the screen (for example, the frame K portion). To do. As a result, the operator knows that the setting of the output condition relating to the designation has been completed, and can select "start output" with the cursor C to obtain a desired output.

In the above example, only "arbitrary aggregate output" has been described, but "immediate detailed output" and "optional detailed output"
Similarly, the output condition data can be converted into a file, read from the output condition data file unit 1 and reflected on the screen or the like.

The operation by the functional blocks of FIG.
This will be described because it is realized by the operation based on FIG. 7 and FIG. The CPU 31 detects whether the operator sets the output condition data (S10).
1) Every time the output condition data is set for the screen, the CPU 31 reflects the output condition data related to the input in the screen database in the main memory 32 (S10).
2). Thus, when the setting of the output condition data is completed and the screen of FIG. 5 is advanced to the screen of FIG. 9 and it is detected that the file name is input, the CPU 31 writes the condition file (the file of the output condition data file unit 1). The process is started (S103). That is, necessary information is collected from the screen database (S104), the information related to the collection is stored in the structure of the condition file (S105), and the floppy disk device 39 (hard disk device if a hard disk device is provided) is stored. Memorize the above structure (S
106), output conditions such as creation and storage of the file management table 4 are stored (S107), and the process returns. By such an operation, the file of FIG. 6 is created.

On the other hand, the reading of the output condition file proceeds from the screen of FIG. 5 to the screen of FIG. 10, and when it is detected that the file name is input by the operator (S11
1), the file related to the designation is searched (S112).
The CPU 31 obtains the output condition data (information) of the searched file (S113) and writes the data in the corresponding portion of the screen database in the main memory 32 (S11).
4). In this way, the CPU 31 sequentially executes the process of reflecting the output condition data in the screen database (S115), and writes the necessary output condition data in the area of the main memory 32 corresponding to the output condition data holding unit 13. The output conditions are automatically set (S116), and the process returns.

In the above embodiment, the output condition data is made into a file before selecting "start output" with the cursor, but in other embodiments, the set output condition data is The setting of the next output condition data is saved, and therefore, even after "output start" is selected by the cursor and the output is executed, the file can be formed.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Any call that is in progress on the phone system
With multiple pieces of information that indicate whether to perform billing calculation as a target
Since the output condition data to be configured is stored in advance,
Simply input the output condition data and enter the desired
Since the billing calculation is performed for the story and the result is output,
Multiple pieces of information that identify the call for which billing is calculated each time
It is not necessary to input the output condition data itself
Therefore, operability is improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a memory map of a file management table used in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of a memory map of a terminal data table used in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a memory map of a call data file unit used in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram of a memory map of an output condition data file unit used in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram of a system example in which a call charge management device is connected to a private branch exchange.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram of an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a key layout of an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an example of the call charge management device.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the conventional call charge management device.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an example of a call charge management device.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an example of a call charge management device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 output condition data file section 2 output condition setting section 3 file creation section 4 file management table section 5 screen database storage section 6 screen memory 7 display control section 8 key analysis section 9 data writing section 10 output task processing section 11 fee system table 12 terminal data table 13 output condition data holding unit 14 task management unit 15 call data file unit 16 call data writing unit

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) Reference JP-A-4-129372 (JP, A) JP-A-2-174359 (JP, A) JP-A-62-130056 (JP, A) JP-A-3- 245656 (JP, A) JP-A-2-246666 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04M 15/00

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. Receiving and holding from a telephone system call data including at least call time data for each call and billing data including data of a dial station number of a call destination, and call data including information for identifying a terminal making a call. A call charge management device comprising: a holding unit for carrying out a billing calculation when an output condition including an instruction regarding which call is to be billed for the call data held in the holding unit is instructed. Charge calculation means for calculating charge using the charge data and network charge system data, output means for receiving and outputting the information calculated by this charge calculation means, and output condition data relating to the output conditions A storage means capable of preliminarily storing a plurality of items, and when receiving an input for instructing the output condition data stored in the storage means, the instruction is given. And the output setting data obtained from the storage means, call charge management apparatus characterized by comprising a control means for causing the charging operation to the charging operation means for call corresponding to the output setting data. 2. A storage control means is further provided which receives input of information for specifying a call for which a billing operation is to be performed, and stores the specified call in one output condition data in the storage means. The call charge management device according to claim 1. 3. The output means comprises a plurality of types of devices, and the output condition data includes information of which of the plurality of types of devices is used to perform output. The call charge management device according to claim 1.