WO2003021928A1

WO2003021928A1 - Method, terminal and server to provide an estimate of the waiting time up to the end of a process

Info

Publication number: WO2003021928A1
Application number: PCT/IB2002/002844
Authority: WO
Inventors: Paul-Louis Meunier
Original assignee: Thomson Multimedia; BARON, René-Louis
Priority date: 2001-09-04
Filing date: 2002-07-15
Publication date: 2003-03-13
Also published as: FR2829341A1

Abstract

The invention concerns a method for providing an indication about the waiting time up to the end of a process. The indication and/or the estimate of the time that must pass by until the end of the process is converted (14) into at least one parameter from a musical clip and the playing of such a clip is caused thus presenting this/these representative parameter/s of the waiting time. The parameter of the musical clip is modified as and when the indication and/or the estimate is changed for the time that must pass by until the end of the process. Preferentially, the parameter includes at least one parameter chosen from the group including the tempo and the tonality.

Description

METHOD, TERMINAL AND SERVER TO PROVIDE AN ESTIMATE OF THE WAITING TIME UP TO THE END OF A PROCESS

The invention concerns a method for providing an indication about the estimated waiting time until the end of a process, such as a service.

More specifically, it concerns, but not exclusively, a method for providing an indication representing the estimated waiting time for a telephone call when the line is engaged.

It is well known that it is particularly unpleasant, when trying to phone someone or reach a telephone service, to receive an impersonal message stating, for example: "All our operators are engaged, we shall answer your call as soon as an operator is available". In effect, the user does not know how long the operator or the service will not be available. So as to solve this inconvenience, a solution has already been proposed for estimating the waiting time for a caller using the data concerning previous calls and for providing an estimate of this waiting time through voice synthesis. The indication provided is necessarily accurate, with the accuracy being, for example, one minute. But it is improbable that the remaining time for being engaged will correspond to the indication provided because an estimate based on previous uses cannot form an accurate indication for the present use. This procedure cannot therefore satisfy the users. Furthermore, a synthesised voice is unpleasant to listen to and repetitive. The invention solves this inconvenience.

For this purpose, in the method according to the invention, a musical clip for waiting is created for the user, for which at least one parameter, such as the tempo and/or the tonality (mode) is representative of the waiting time until the availability of the service that is waited for.

Thus, if the waiting time envisaged is relatively long, the musical clip will have, for example, a relatively slow tempo and in a minor mode and the tempo will speed up as and when the estimate supplies an indication that the availability of the service is approaching. The parameters for a musical clip do not constitute a very accurate indication, this accuracy is lower that that which could be provided by voice synthesis. But here it does not mean an inconvenience, quite to the contrary, since an estimate provides a probable value with low accuracy. Furthermore, since the indication is of the musical type, it is essentially more agreeable to listen to than an indication with voice synthesis. Preferentially, the music representing the estimated waiting time is produced by an automatic musical composition generator, such as the one described in the patent application PCT/FR99/02262 published under No. WO 00/17850. In this case, the estimate of the duration of the wait is converted into parameters of the musical clip, such as the tempo or the tonality, and these parameters are imposed on the automatic musical composition generator. As a variation, instead of an automatic musical composition generator, a data bank is planned including a plurality of musical clips, with each one representing an estimated waiting time.

In one mode for its implementation, a musical clip is planned for the end of the process immediately set up as soon as the process has finished, that is to say, for example, as soon as a service becomes available. This musical clip is for example a finale or a particularly joyous type of music with a fast tempo and in a major mode .

Thus, generally speaking, the invention concerns a method for providing an indication about the waiting time until the end of a process which is characterised by the fact that the indication and/or the estimate of the time that must pass by until the end of the process, is converted into at least one parameter of a musical clip and the playing of such a clip is thereby caused presenting this/these representative parameter/s of the waiting time. The parameter for the musical clip is preferentially modified as and when the indication and/or the estimate is modified for the time that must pass by until the end of the process.

The parameter for the musical clip is, for example, chosen from the group including the tempo and the tonality.

According to one embodiment, at the end of the process, a musical clip is played representing this end.

In order to estimate the duration of the process remaining, it may be determined day by day and, preferentially, hour by hour in the working day, the total duration of the process and, based on these data, the average durations of the process are determined.

The musical clip is, for example, produced automatically.

In this case, in order to produce the musical clip automatically, it may be carried out in the following way: some musical moments are defined in the course of which at least four notes are liable to be played, two families of note pitches are defined for each musical moment, the second family of note pitches having at least one note pitch which is not in the first family, at least one sequence of notes is formed having at least two notes, with each sequence of notes being called "a musical phrase", a sequence in which, for each moment, each note whose pitch belongs exclusively to the second family is surrounded exclusively by notes from the first family, and a representative signal of each note pitch is produced for each of the said sequences .

In order to define two families of note pitches, for each musical moment, the first family may be defined as a set of note pitches belonging to a chord duplicated from octave to octave.

For the definition of two families of note pitches, the second family of note pitches may include at least the note pitches from a range, which are not in the first family of note pitches.

During the course of the creation of at least one sequence of notes that have at least two notes, each musical phrase is, for example, defined as a set of notes whose initial instants are not separated from one another, two by two, for more than a predetermined duration.

According to one embodiment, the musical clip is chosen from a set of musical clips recorded in advance and each one of which is assigned the corresponding parameter or parameters.

The duration remaining for the process may be known in advance.

The invention also concerns the application of the method defined above to the provision of indications about the duration for the occupation of the telephone set called for a caller.

The invention is also related to a terminal for implementing this method, which is characterised by the fact that it includes a means for producing a musical clip representing the waiting time until the end of the time engaged. It also envisages a server for the implementation of this method, which is characterised by the fact that it comprises a means for producing a musical clip representing the waiting time until the end of the time engaged. Finally, the invention also concerns a computer program product designed to provide an indication about the waiting time until the end of a process which is characterised by the fact that it includes a step so that the indication and/or the estimate of the time that must pass by until the end of the process may be converted into at least one parameter for a musical clip and a step which causes the playing of such a musical clip presenting this/these parameter/s for the waiting time. Some other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear with the description of certain of its embodiment, with this description being made referring to the drawing attached hereto, on which Figure 1 represents some steps of a method in accordance with the invention.

The example that is going to be described in relation to the Figure concerns telephone communications. In any case, it is obvious that the invention is applied in a more general manner to services or processes for which a waiting time until the availability or end may be estimated, for example, waiting for a means of transport or the end of a game.

When a user calls a recipient such as another user or a telephone service (block 10) , it is determined (block 12) whether the line of the person called is free or engaged. In the first case, the communication is established, it is not necessary to produce any musical clip for waiting. In the second case (line engaged) , the engaged tone is applied to a device 14 which holds in its memory, as described hereinafter, the statistical data relating to the previous calls, that is to say, the average durations of each call according to the date (month, day, time) .

This device 14 is triggered as soon as the line of the person called is engaged, regardless of any new caller. In other words, the device 14 includes a time meter which begins to count as soon as the line of the person called is engaged and permanently estimates the time remaining to wait until the end of the conversation, or connection, of the person called. In other terms, if the caller is the second caller, in any case the device 14 provides an indication as regards to the waiting time really estimated, regardless of the time when this caller has started his call. The device 14 then provides, depending on the estimated waiting time, some musical parameters such as the tempo and the tonality (or mode) to an automatic musical composition generator 16 which transmits a musical composition to the caller which is played by the loudspeaker 18 in the telephone set belonging to the person called.

When the line of the person called switches from the engaged state to the free state, it is planned, according to one embodiment, that there will be a device 22 which will provide some parameters for the generator input allowing a musical composition to be produced representing the availability of the line, for example, some joyful music with a relatively fast tempo and in a major mode .

The device 14 and/or the generator 16 as well as the device 22 may be fitted either in the terminal of the person called, or in a server, for example, a dedicated server for running telephone communications .

The device 14 includes some means for recording the durations of the telephone conversations according to the date, that is to say according to the day of the week and the time of the day and, possibly, according to the month. On the basis of these recordings, the device determines an average duration, hour by hour, for each connection, that is to say between the line being engaged and the end of the line being engaged.

In the case in which the person called receives several calls when his line is already engaged, a queue for waiting is set up for these new callers and the device 14 then produces some parameters for each caller representing the waiting time according to the number of callers having higher priority. In this case, the generator 16 provides each caller with a musical clip representing the time for the caller involved. For example, if, at a given moment in time, the average duration of a connection for the person called is 5 minutes and 3 minutes have elapsed since the time the line was engaged, for the first caller the generator 16 will produce music representing a waiting time of around 2 minutes whilst for the second caller, this generator 16 will provide some music representing a waiting time of around 7 minutes . In a variation, it is planned that, besides the device 14, or instead of the latter, there will be a device allowing the line to be deactivated for a preset time. This device includes a time meter that begins to count as soon as the line of the person called has been deactivated and permanently indicates the time which remains to be waited until the end of the deactivation of the set belonging to the person called. Therefore this device provides, according to the waiting time indicated, the musical parameters such as the tempo and the tonality (or mode) for the generator 16.

The method according to the invention is applied not just to services, as stated above, but also, in a general manner, to any process for which a waiting time is envisaged and can be estimated. For example, the method according to the invention is applicable to games such a video game.

Furthermore, the invention concerns not just a method but also a terminal and/or a server for implementing this method.

Claims

1. Method for providing an indication about the waiting time up to the end of a process, characterised by the fact that the indication and/or the estimate of the time that must pass by until the end of the process is converted into at least one parameter from a musical clip and the playing of such a clip is caused thus presenting this/these representative parameter/s of the waiting time.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterised by the fact that the parameter of the musical clip is modified as and when the indication and/or the estimate is changed for the time that must pass by until the end of the process.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterised by the fact that the parameter includes at least one parameter chosen from the group including the tempo and the tonality.

4. Method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterised by the fact that at the end of the process a musical clip is produced representing this end.

5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised by the fact that to estimate the duration remaining for the process, the total duration of the process is determined day by day and, preferentially, hour by hour during the day, on the basis of these data, average duration are determined for the process .

6. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised by the fact that the musical clip is produced automatically.

7. Method according to claim 6, characterised by the fact that in order to produce the musical clip automatically: musical moments are defined in the course of which at least four notes are liable to be played, two families of note pitches are defined for each musical moment, the second family of note pitches having at least one note pitch which is not in the first family, - at least one sequence of notes is formed having at least two notes, with each sequence of notes being called "a musical phrase" , a sequence in which, for each moment, each note whose pitch belongs exclusively to the second family is surrounded exclusively by notes from the first family, and a representative signal of each note pitch is produced for each of the said sequences .

8. Method according to claim 7, characterised by the fact that in order to define two families of note pitches, for each musical moment, the first family is defined as a set of note pitches belonging to a chord duplicated from octave to octave.

9. Method according to claim 8, characterised by the fact that for the definition of two families of note pitches, the second family of note pitches includes at least the note pitches from a range, which are not in the first family of note pitches.

10. Method according to one of claims 7 to 9, characterised by the fact that during the course of the creation of at least one sequence of notes that have at least two notes, each musical phrase is, for example, defined as a set of notes whose initial instants are not separated from one another, two by two, for more than a predetermined duration.

11. Method according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterised by the fact that the musical clip is chosen from a set of musical clips recorded in advance and each one of which is assigned the corresponding parameter or parameters .

12. Method according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterised by the fact that the duration remaining for the process is known in advance.

13. Application of the method according to one of the preceding claims to the provision for a caller of indications about the duration for the occupation of the telephone set belonging to a person called.

14. Terminal for implementing the method, according to claim 13 , characterised by the fact that it includes a means for producing a musical clip representing the waiting time until the end of the time engaged.

15. Server for the implementation of the method, according to claim 13 , characterised by the fact that it concerns a means for producing a musical clip representing the waiting time until the end of the time engaged.

16. A computer program product designed to provide an indication about the waiting time until the end of a process, characterised by the fact that it includes a step so that the indication and/or the estimate of the time that must pass by until the end of the process may be converted into at least one parameter for a musical clip and a step which causes the playing of such a musical clip presenting this/these parameter/s for representing the waiting time.