Processing device, program, and processing method

Abstract

To enable a user to receive another service until a voice service becomes possible to be received, and to enable the user to quickly receive the voice service.SOLUTION: A processing device includes a first processing unit that, when an operator becomes available to answer a call from a customer communication device, sends first information indicating being available to answer to the customer communication device, which is the source of the call, a second processing unit that receives second information, which is a response to the first information, from the customer communication device, and a third processing unit that executes a process to connect the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device if the second information indicates being available to answer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a processing device, a program, and a processing method. [Background technology]

[0002] Recently, many companies have contact center systems for customer service. In the contact center system, when users (i.e., customers) access the system using a telephone to receive voice services (i.e., when they call), the system places the accesses (i.e., calls) in a queue according to a predetermined logic until the users can receive the voice services.

[0003] At this time, the user hears an announcement or music provided by the contact center system on the telephone to inform the user that the call is on hold.

[0004] In the contact center system, calls placed in a queue (i.e., calls on hold) are taken from the queue in the order in which they become available and are provided with service.

[0005] In such contact center systems, if a user hangs up while a call is on hold, that user's access is removed from the queue, so in order to receive voice services, the user must either continue to wait while the call is on hold or access the call again (i.e., make another call).

[0006] On the other hand, a system has also been proposed in which, if a user calls and the number of calls that can be answered exceeds the capacity, the user can request a call back, and a call will be returned to the user's telephone a specified time after the user hangs up (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-173780 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] Incidentally, in a contact center system built in a virtual space such as the metaverse, if the number of available calls exceeds the capacity when a user tries to receive voice service, it is expected that the user will wish to use other services in the metaverse until they are able to receive voice service, and then return when the call becomes available.

[0009] However, in the conventional method of restricting a user to a voice service by putting the user on hold, it is difficult for the user to receive other services.

[0010] In addition, when calling back a user, the time for the call back must be specified, and depending on the specified time, it may take a long time from the time of access to the time of the call back, making it difficult to receive voice service promptly.

[0011] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a processing device, program, and processing method that allows a user to receive other services until the user is able to receive the voice service, and that allows the user to receive the voice service quickly. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] In order to solve such problems, the processing device of the present invention comprises a first processing unit that, when an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, sends first information to the customer communication device that is the source of the call indicating that the operator is available to answer the call, a second processing unit that receives second information from the customer communication device that is a response to the first information, and a third processing unit that executes a process of connecting the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device if the second information indicates that the operator is available to answer.

[0013] In addition, in the program of the present invention, the computer is caused to function as a first processing unit that, when an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, sends first information to the customer communication device that is the source of the call indicating that the operator is available to answer the call, a second processing unit that receives second information from the customer communication device that is a response to the first information, and a third processing unit that, when the second information indicates that the operator is available to answer, executes a process to connect the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device.

[0014] Furthermore, the processing method of the present invention is a processing method of a processing device, which includes a step of transmitting first information indicating that an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device to the customer communication device that is the source of the call, when the processing device becomes available for an operator to answer the call, a step of receiving second information from the customer communication device that is a response to the first information, and a step of executing a process to connect the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device if the second information indicates that an operator is available to answer.

[0015] As a result, a user (customer) who is trying to receive a voice service can use other services without being tied to the voice service until the customer communication device receives the first information indicating that an operator is available (i.e., that the voice service is now available).When the operator is available, an availability notification is sent to the customer communication device, so that the user can immediately know that the operator is available and can quickly start talking to an operator (i.e., receive the voice service). Effect of the Invention

[0016] Thus, the present invention can realize a processing device, a program, and a processing method that enable a user to receive other services until a voice service can be received, and that enables the user to receive the voice service quickly. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a contact center system. [Diagram 2] 1 is a sequence chart showing an operation of the contact center system. [Diagram 3] 3 is a sequence chart following the sequence chart of FIG. 2. [Figure 4] 4 is a sequence chart following the sequence chart of FIG. 3. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0019] [1. Contact center system configuration] First, the configuration of a contact center system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. This contact center system 1 is a system introduced in a contact center of a company or the like, and provides a voice service in which an operator U10 responds by voice to inquiries from a customer U20. Note that this contact center system 1 is constructed in a virtual space such as a metaverse, and in the virtual space, various services are provided in addition to the voice service provided by the contact center system 1.

[0020] This contact center system 1 is composed of a contact center server 100 and an operator communication device 200, and the contact center server 100 and the operator communication device 200 are communicatively connected via a communication network 300 such as a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network). The contact center server 100 is also communicatively connected to a customer communication device 400 owned by a customer (user) U20 via a public network 500 such as an IP (Internet Protocol) network.

[0021] In Fig. 1, for the sake of simplicity, one operator communication device 200 is connected to the contact center server 100, but multiple operator communication devices 200 may be connected. In Fig. 1, one customer communication device 400 is connected to the contact center server 100, but in reality, multiple customer communication devices 400 can be connected.

[0022] Next, the specific configuration of each part will be described. The operator communication device 200 is a device that provides the operator U10 with communication with the customer communication device 400 connected by the contact center server 100. This operator communication device 200 has an input / output device that responds to an incoming call from the customer communication device 400 via the contact center server 100 and also transmits a call to the customer communication device 400 to enable a call with the customer U20, and a control function for terminating the call.

[0023] The contact center server 100 is a server device that executes the processing of the contact center services provided to the customer U20. The contact center server 100 is configured as a computer having, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), memory, a storage means such as a hard disk, and a network interface, and realizes various functions by the CPU executing programs loaded onto the memory.

[0024] The contact center server 100 is communicatively connected to one or more customer communication devices 400 via a public network 500. The contact center server 100 is also communicatively connected to one or more operator communication devices 200 via a communication network 300.

[0025] The contact center server 100 includes an automatic response control unit 110, an automatic connection control unit 120, and a queue control unit .

[0026] The automatic response control unit 110 has a function to collect the purpose of a call received from a customer communication device 400 by first answering the call, sending a question by voice to the customer communication device 400, and receiving a response via the dialed number or voice recognition, repeating this cycle until the purpose of the call is collected, and a function to notify the queue control unit 130 of the collected purpose of the call.

[0027] The automatic response control unit 110 also has the function of sending a question specified by the queue control unit 130 to the customer communication device 400 that is the source of a specified call in a queue (i.e., a waiting line) controlled by the queue control unit 130, receiving a response based on the dialed number or voice recognition, and notifying the queue control unit 130 of the response result.

[0028] The automatic connection control unit 120 has a function of sending an availability notification to the customer communication device 400 that is the source of the call specified by the queue control unit 130, a function of receiving a response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400 and notifying the queue control unit 130, and a function of notifying the queue control unit 130 of the fact that no response is received from the customer communication device 400 within a certain period of time.

[0029] The queue control unit 130 manages one or more queues according to the business purpose of the contact center system 1. Specifically, the queue control unit 130 has a function of arranging and holding calls received from the customer communication device 400 in a queue according to the business purpose, and each time an operator U10 becomes available, taking calls in sequence from the top of the queue corresponding to the business of the operator U10, notifying the automatic connection control unit 120, and receiving a response from the customer communication device 400 from the automatic connection control unit 120.

[0030] In addition, the queue control unit 130 has a function of connecting a call from the customer communication device 400 to the operator communication device 200 of the responding operator U10 when the response from the customer communication device 400 received from the automatic connection control unit 120 indicates an immediate response (i.e., when the customer U20 will receive voice service immediately).

[0031] Furthermore, the queue control unit 130 has the function of replacing a call from the customer communication device 400 with any other call in the queue (i.e., postponing the turn of the call from the customer communication device 400) when the response from the customer communication device 400 received from the automatic connection control unit 120 indicates a delayed response (i.e., when the customer U20 cannot receive voice service immediately).

[0032] Furthermore, the queue control unit 130 has the function of deleting a call from a customer communication device 400 from the queue when there is no response or a disconnection is indicated from the customer communication device 400 received from the automatic connection control unit 120 (i.e., when there is no response from customer U20 or the call is hung up).

[0033] The customer communication device 400 is a communication device such as a smartphone used by the customer U20. The customer communication device 400 has a function of answering questions from the automatic response control unit 110 of the contact center server 100, and a function of maintaining a call without disconnecting it when the call is queued (i.e., put on hold).

[0034] The customer communication device 400 also has a function of displaying an availability notification from the automatic connection control unit 120 of the contact center server 100, a function of allowing the customer U20 to select whether to respond to the availability notification immediately (i.e., to receive voice service immediately), to respond with a delay (i.e., to receive voice service later), or to disconnect (i.e., to hang up without receiving voice service), and a function of transmitting the selection result to the contact center server 100. The contact center system 1 is configured as described above.

[0035] [2. Contact Center System Operation] Next, a description will be given of the operation of the contact center system 1. Here, as the operation of the contact center system 1, the operation when providing a voice service to the customer U20 will be described with reference to sequence charts shown in FIGS.

[0036] 2, assume that a call is made from a customer communication device 400 (referred to as 400a) of a certain customer U20 (referred to as U20a) to the contact center system 1 (step F001). When this call (i.e., a call) arrives at the contact center server 100 via the public network 500, the automatic response control unit 110 of the contact center server 100 transmits voice guidance generated according to a predetermined logic to the customer communication device 400 in order to obtain the purpose of the call, and the customer U20, having heard the voice guidance, responds via the customer communication device 400a. This process is repeated until the purpose of the call is determined (step F002).

[0037] After determining the purpose of the call from the customer U20, the automatic response control unit 110 notifies the queue control unit 130 of the determined purpose of the call and the call information (for example, the caller's telephone number from the customer communication device 400a) (step F003).

[0038] Upon receiving the call purpose and the call information, the queue control unit 130 places the call corresponding to the call information on hold and places the call in a queue appropriate for the call purpose (adds the call to the end of the queue) (step F004).

[0039] Thereafter, the operator U10 responds to calls from the customer communication device 400 of each customer U20 in the order in which they are placed in the queue (i.e., the use of voice services), and when the call from the customer communication device 400a of customer U20a reaches the top of the queue, it becomes possible for the operator U10 to respond (step F005).

[0040] At this time, the queue control unit 130 instructs the automatic connection control unit 120 to notify the customer communication device 400a that it is available to answer the call from the customer communication device 400a (step F006). In response to the instruction from the queue control unit 130, the automatic connection control unit 120 transmits an availability notification to the customer communication device 400a via the public network 500 (step F007).

[0041] When the customer communication device 400a receives the availability notification from the automatic connection control unit 120 of the contact center server 100, it displays the availability on the display unit (step F008). This allows the customer U20a to know that the operator U10 is now available to handle the call.

[0042] At this time, if the customer U20a is available to respond immediately (i.e., if the customer U20a can immediately talk to the operator U10), the customer selects "immediate response" on the screen displayed on the display unit of the customer communication device 400a. Then, the customer communication device 400a sends a "immediate response" message to the automatic connection control unit 120 of the contact center server 100 via the public network 500 in response to the availability notification (step F011).

[0043] When the automatic connection control unit 120 receives a response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400a, it notifies the queue control unit 130 of the response (step F012). If the response from the customer communication device 400a received from the automatic connection control unit 120 indicates an immediate response (i.e., the customer U20 receives the voice service immediately), the queue control unit 130 performs a process of removing the call from the customer communication device 400a from the queue and connecting the call to the operator communication device 200 of the responding operator U10 (i.e., a process of connecting the operator communication device 200 and the customer communication device 400) (step F013).

[0044] In this way, the contact center system 1 places a call received from the customer communication device 400a of the customer U20a at the end of the queue, and when the call reaches the top of the queue and becomes available for the operator U10 to handle, it transmits an availability notification to the customer communication device 400a. Then, in the contact center system 1, when an immediate response is transmitted from the customer communication device 400a in response to the availability notification, the call from the customer communication device 400a is connected to the operator communication device 200 of the operator U10 who will handle the call. This allows the customer U20a to immediately start a conversation with the operator U10 (i.e., receive voice services).

[0045] In addition, in the voice service provided by the contact center system 1, after the purpose of the call is collected from the customer communication device 400a, the call from the customer communication device 400a is put on hold until an availability notification is sent to the customer communication device 400a, but the customer U20a is not tied up with announcements, music, etc. Therefore, after answering the questions for collecting the purpose of the call, the customer U20a can use other services such as a chat service provided in a virtual space using the customer communication device 400a or another device until the availability notification is displayed on the customer communication device 400.

[0046] On the other hand, when the customer U20a wishes to respond to the availability notification from the contact center system 1 with a delayed response rather than an immediate response, the customer U20a selects delayed response on the screen displayed on the display unit of the customer communication device 400a. Then, the customer communication device 400a transmits a delayed response as a reply to the availability notification to the automatic connection control unit 120 of the contact center server 100 via the public network 500 (step F021 in FIG. 3).

[0047] When the automatic connection control unit 120 receives a response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400a, it notifies the queue control unit 130 of the response (step F022). If the response from the customer communication device 400a received from the automatic connection control unit 120 indicates a delayed response (i.e., the customer U20a cannot immediately receive the voice service), the queue control unit 130 replaces the call from the customer communication device 400a with the next call (e.g., a call from the customer communication device 400n of the customer U20n) in the same queue (step F023).

[0048] This puts the call from the customer communication device 400n at the head of the queue, making it possible for the operator U10 to answer the call (i.e., to use the voice service). At this time, the queue control unit 130 instructs the automatic connection control unit 120 to notify the customer communication device 400n that the call from the customer communication device 400n is available to be answered (step F024). The subsequent operations are the same as those from step F008 onwards described above, and therefore will not be described here.

[0049] In this way, in the contact center system 1, when a delayed response is sent from the customer communication device 400a in response to the availability notification, the call from the customer communication device 400a is replaced with a call that is queued behind the call in the same queue, thereby postponing the call from the customer communication device 400a. This makes it possible to postpone the provision of voice services to the customer U20a if the customer U20a cannot immediately start a conversation with the operator U10 when the customer U20a becomes available.

[0050] On the other hand, if the customer U20a wishes to disconnect without receiving the voice service in response to the availability notification from the contact center system 1, the customer U20a selects disconnection on the screen displayed on the display unit of the customer communication device 400a. Then, a message indicating disconnection is sent from the customer communication device 400a to the automatic connection control unit 120 of the contact center server 100 via the public network 500 as a response to the availability notification (step F031 in FIG. 4).

[0051] When the automatic connection control unit 120 receives a response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400a, it notifies the queue control unit 130 of the response (step F032). If the response from the customer communication device 400a received from the automatic connection control unit 120 indicates disconnection (i.e., the customer U20a does not receive voice service), the queue control unit 130 removes the call from the customer communication device 400a from the queue (step F033).

[0052] As a result, the call next to the call from the customer communication device 400a (assumed to be a call from the customer communication device 400n) moves to the top of the queue, and the call can be answered by the operator U10 (i.e., the use of voice services). At this time, the queue control unit 130 instructs the automatic connection control unit 120 to notify the customer communication device 400n that the call from the customer communication device 400n is available to be answered (step F034). The subsequent operations are the same as those from step F008 onwards described above, and therefore will not be described.

[0053] On the other hand, if there is no response from the customer communication device 400a to the availability notification within a certain time after the contact center server 100 transmits the availability notification to the customer communication device 400a (step F041), the automatic connection control unit 120 notifies the queue control unit 130 that there is no response from the customer communication device 400a to the availability notification (step F042). In this case, the queue control unit 130 removes the call from the customer communication device 400a from the queue (step F043).

[0054] As a result, the next call after the call from the customer communication device 400a (assumed to be a call from the customer communication device 400n) will be placed at the top of the queue, and the call can be answered by the operator U10 (i.e., the use of voice services). At this time, the queue control unit 130 instructs the automatic connection control unit 120 to notify the customer communication device 400n that the call from the customer communication device 400n is available to be answered (step F044). The subsequent operations are the same as those from step F008 onwards described above, and therefore will not be described.

[0055] In this way, in the contact center system 1, if the customer communication device 400a sends a disconnection notice in response to the availability notification, or if there is no response from the customer communication device 400a to the availability notification within a certain period of time, the call from the customer communication device 400a is removed from the queue. As a result, the provision of voice service to the customer U20a is stopped, and voice service is provided to the next customer U20. The operation of the contact center system 1 is as described above.

[0056] [3. Summary and Effects] As described above, the contact center system 1 of the present embodiment includes, for example, the contact center server 100 and the operator communication device 200. Here, the contact center server 100 is an example of a processing device and a computer, and examples of the processing device and the computer are not limited to the contact center server 100. Here, the operator communication device 200 is an example of an operator communication device, and examples of the operator communication device are not limited to the operator communication device 200.

[0057] Further, the contact center server 100 includes, for example, a queue control unit 130 and an automatic connection control unit 120. When the operator U10 is able to answer a call from the customer communication device 400, the queue control unit 130 and the automatic connection control unit 120 transmit an available notification indicating that the operator U10 is able to answer the call to the customer communication device 400 that is the source of the call. Here, the queue control unit 130 and the automatic connection control unit 120 are an example of a first processing unit, and an example of the first processing unit is not limited to the queue control unit 130 and the automatic connection control unit 120. Here, the customer communication device 400 is an example of a customer communication device, and an example of a customer communication device is not limited to the customer communication device 400. Here, the available notification is an example of first information, and an example of the first information is not limited to the available notification. The automatic connection control unit 120 receives a response to the available notification from the customer communication device 400. Here, an example of the automatic connection control unit 120 is the second processing unit, and an example of the second processing unit is not limited to the automatic connection control unit 120. Here, the response is an example of the second information, and an example of the second information is not limited to the response. When the response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400 indicates availability to respond (immediate response), the queue control unit 130 executes a process of connecting the call from the customer communication device 400 to the operator communication device 200. Here, the queue control unit 130 is an example of a third processing unit, and an example of the third processing unit is not limited to the queue control unit 130.

[0058] As a result, a customer U20 who calls the contact center system 1 to receive a voice service can use other services without being tied to the voice service (i.e., without listening to on-hold guidance, music, etc.) until the customer communication device 400 receives an availability notification indicating that the operator U10 is available (i.e., the voice service is now available). Also, when the operator U10 becomes available, the availability notification is sent to the customer communication device 400, so that the customer U20 can immediately know that the operator U10 is available and can immediately start talking with the operator U10 (i.e., receive the voice service).

[0059] Thus, according to the contact center server 100 of this embodiment, the customer U20 can receive, for example, other services in the metaverse until he or she is able to receive the voice service, and can receive the voice service quickly.

[0060] Furthermore, in the contact center server 100, for example, when the response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400a of the customer U20a indicates a delayed response, the queue control unit 130 transmits an availability notification to the customer communication device 400n of another customer U20n to have the operator U10 respond to the other customer U20n, and then the queue control unit 130 transmits the availability notification again to the customer communication device 400a of the customer U20a. Here, the customer communication device 400a is an example of a customer communication device, and an example of a customer communication device is not limited to the customer communication device 400a. Here, the customer communication device 400n is an example of another customer communication device, and an example of another customer communication device is not limited to the customer communication device 400n.

[0061] As a result, in the contact center server 100, if the customer U20a is able to answer a call from the customer communication device 400a of the customer U20a but the customer U20a is unable to receive the voice service immediately, the contact center server 100 can postpone the provision of the voice service to the customer U20a.

[0062] Furthermore, in the contact center server 100, for example, if the queue control unit 130 receives a response to the availability notification from the customer communication device 400a of customer U20a indicating a disconnection, or if no response is received within a certain period of time after sending the availability notification to the customer communication device 400a, the queue control unit 130 discards the call from the customer communication device 400a.

[0063] As a result, if the contact center server 100 determines that the customer U20a has no intention of receiving the voice service, it can immediately stop providing the voice service to the customer U20a.

[0064] [4. Other embodiments] [4-1. Another embodiment 1] In the above-described embodiment, when the queue control unit 130 and the automatic connection control unit 120 of the contact center server 100 become available to answer a call from, for example, a customer communication device 400a, they send a response availability notification to the customer communication device 400a.

[0065] In addition, the queue control unit 130 may identify the order in the queue of the call from the customer communication device 400a (i.e., the number from the head of the queue) and predict the waiting time until the call becomes available (i.e., until it reaches the head of the queue), and the automatic connection control unit 120 may transmit information indicating the order of the call and the predicted waiting time to the customer communication device 400a, which may then display this information. Here, the queue control unit 130 and the automatic connection control unit 120 are examples of a fourth processing unit, and examples of the fourth processing unit are not limited to the queue control unit 130 and the automatic connection control unit 120.

[0066] In addition, without being limited to this, if the queue control unit 130 has the function of predicting the waiting time for each call as described above, the customer communication device 400 may be able to allow the customer U20 to specify a delay time when selecting a delayed response.

[0067] In this case, on the contact center server 100 side, when the automatic connection control unit 120 receives the delayed response and delay time as a response to the available response notification, the queue control unit 130 identifies the call in the queue whose predicted waiting time is closest to the delay time. The queue control unit 130 then replaces the call of the customer communication device 400 that sent the delayed response and delay time with the identified call. In this case, the automatic connection control unit 120 sends the available response notification to the customer communication device 400 of the customer U20 after a time approximately equal to the delay time specified by the customer U20 has elapsed, so that the customer U20 can receive voice service after the specified delay time has elapsed.

[0068] [4-2. Other embodiment 2] In the above-described embodiment, after collecting the purpose of the call from the customer communication device 400, the queue control unit 130 places the call from the customer communication device 400 in a queue and holds it until the call can be answered. However, this is not limited to the above. After placing the call in the queue, the queue may be maintained (i.e., the call information of the call may be stored in the queue), the call may be disconnected, and when the call becomes available, the call information stored in the queue may be used to call back the customer communication device 400 that originated the call (i.e., to make a phone call).

[0069] [4-3. Other embodiment 3] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, contact center server 100 having the configuration shown in FIG. 1 was used as a specific example of a processing device and a computer, but any device having a configuration equivalent to that may be used, such as a device in which each part is realized by software, a device in which each part is realized by hardware, or a device in which each part is realized by a combination of software and hardware.

[0070] [4-4. Other embodiment 4] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is applied to the contact center system 1 in which calls are made between the operator U10 and the customer U20, but the present invention is not limited to this and can be applied to various communication systems.

[0071] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is applied to the contact center system 1 constructed in a virtual space such as the metaverse, but the present invention is not limited to this and can be applied to various communication systems.

[0072] [4-5. Other embodiment 5] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the scope of application of the present invention extends to embodiments in which some or all of the above-described embodiments are combined in any manner, or in which some of the embodiments are extracted.

[0073] [5. Notes] The following supplementary notes are further disclosed regarding the above-described embodiment.

[0074] In order to solve such problems, the processing device of the present invention comprises a first processing unit that, when an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, sends first information to the customer communication device that is the source of the call indicating that the operator is available to answer the call, a second processing unit that receives second information from the customer communication device that is a response to the first information, and a third processing unit that executes a process of connecting the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device if the second information indicates that the operator is available to answer.

[0075] In addition, in the present invention, when the second information indicates a delayed response, the third processing unit transmits the first information to a customer communication device other than the customer communication device that transmitted the second information, so that the operator can respond to the call, and then again transmits the availability notification to the customer communication device that transmitted the second information.

[0076] Furthermore, in the present invention, when the second information indicates a delayed response and a delay time, the third processing unit transmits the first information to a customer communication device other than the customer communication device that transmitted the second information, to have the operator respond to the call, and after the delay time has elapsed, transmits the availability notification again to the customer communication device that transmitted the second information.

[0077] Further in the present invention, the third processing unit discards the call from the customer communication device when the second information indicates a disconnection.

[0078] Furthermore, in the present invention, the third processing unit discards the call from the customer communication device if the second information is not sent from the customer communication device within a certain time period after sending the first information to the customer communication device.

[0079] Furthermore, the present invention further includes a fourth processing unit that, when a call is received from the customer communication device, predicts a waiting time until an operator is available to answer the call, and transmits information indicating the waiting time to the customer communication device.

[0080] In addition, in the program of the present invention, the computer is caused to function as a first processing unit that, when an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, sends first information to the customer communication device that is the source of the call indicating that the operator is available to answer the call, a second processing unit that receives second information from the customer communication device that is a response to the first information, and a third processing unit that, when the second information indicates that the operator is available to answer, executes a process to connect the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device.

[0081] Furthermore, the processing method of the present invention is a processing method of a processing device, which includes a step of transmitting first information indicating that an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device to the customer communication device that is the source of the call, when the processing device becomes available for an operator to answer the call, a step of receiving second information from the customer communication device that is a response to the first information, and a step of executing a process to connect the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device if the second information indicates that an operator is available to answer.

[0082] As a result, a user (customer) who is about to receive a voice service can use other services without being tied to the voice service until the customer communication device receives the first information indicating that the service is available (i.e., that the voice service is now available), and when the service becomes available, an availability notification is sent to the customer communication device, so that the user can immediately know that the service is now available and can quickly start talking with an operator (i.e., receive the voice service).Thus, the present invention can realize a processing device, program, and processing method that allow the user to receive other services until the voice service becomes available and to quickly receive the voice service. [Industrial Applicability]

[0083] The present invention can be widely used in customer support systems such as contact center systems. [Explanation of symbols]

[0084] 1...contact center system, 100...contact center server, 110...automatic response control unit, 120...automatic connection control unit, 130...queue control unit, 200...operator communication device, 300, 500...communication network, 400...customer communication device, U10...operator, U20...customer.

Claims

1. a first processing unit that, when an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, transmits first information indicating that the operator is available to answer the call to the customer communication device that is the source of the call; a second processing unit that receives second information, which is a response to the first information, from the customer communication device; a third processing unit that performs a process of connecting a call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device when the second information indicates an availability of the call; Equipped A processing device comprising:

2. The third processing unit is If the second information indicates a delayed response, the first information is transmitted to a customer communication device other than the customer communication device that transmitted the second information, and the operator responds to the response, and then the first information is transmitted again to the customer communication device that transmitted the second information.

2. The processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The third processing unit is When the second information indicates a delayed response and a delay time, the first information is transmitted to a customer communication device other than the customer communication device that transmitted the second information, and the operator responds to the first information. After the delay time has elapsed, the first information is transmitted again to the customer communication device that transmitted the second information.

3. The processing device according to claim 2.

4. The third processing unit is Dropping the call from the customer communication device if the second information indicates a disconnect.

4. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing apparatus is a processing apparatus for performing a processing operation.

5. The third processing unit is When the second information is not transmitted from the customer communication device even after a certain time has elapsed since the first information was transmitted to the customer communication device, the call from the customer communication device is discarded.

4. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing apparatus is a processing apparatus for performing a processing operation.

6. and a fourth processing unit configured to, when a call is received from the customer communication device, predict a waiting time until an operator is available to answer the call and transmit information indicating the waiting time to the customer communication device.

2. The processing device according to claim 1 .

7. Computer, a first processing unit that, when an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, transmits first information indicating that the operator is available to answer the call to the customer communication device that is the source of the call; a second processing unit that receives second information, which is a response to the first information, from the customer communication device; a third processing unit that performs a process of connecting a call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device when the second information indicates an availability of the call; A program to make it function.

8. A processing method for a processing device, comprising the steps of: The processing device includes: When an operator is available to answer a call from a customer communication device, transmitting first information indicating that the operator is available to answer the call to the customer communication device that is the source of the call; receiving second information from the customer communication device in response to the first information; performing a process of connecting the call from the customer communication device to an operator communication device if the second information indicates availability; have A processing method comprising:

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