A selection device, selection method, selection program, and call control system for automatically selecting a language that suits the user.

Abstract

Quickly understand the language the user is using. [Solution] The selection device 40 has a location information acquisition unit 412 and a selection unit 413. The location information acquisition unit 412 acquires location information of the communication terminal 10 that initiated the call. The selection unit 413 selects a language corresponding to the user of the communication terminal 10 based on the location information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a selection device, a selection method, a selection program, and a call control system for automatically selecting a language suitable for a user. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, IVR (Interactive Voice Response), which is a technology for automatically responding by voice in accordance with an operation performed by a caller of a telephone, is known (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1). For example, IVR can reduce the workload on operators of contact centers.

[0003] There is also known a technology that generates recommendation information based on the history of responses provided by an operator to a user who called a contact center, and causes the generated recommendation information to be displayed on the operator's terminal (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Prior Art Documents Patent Documents

[0004] Patent Document 1 Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-059220 Non-Patent Documents

[0005] Non-Patent Document 1 What is telephone IVR (interactive voice response)? Explanation of its mechanism and types, [online], [retrieved March 11, 2025], Internet (https: / / www.ntt.com / business / services / aitelephone / lp / column-21.html) Summary of the Invention Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] However, conventional techniques have a problem in that it is difficult to quickly grasp the language used by the user.

[0007] For example, in a multilingual contact center, the caller's (user's) language cannot be recognized until an operator is assigned to them, and they may not be able to connect the caller to an operator who speaks the appropriate language.

[0008] Furthermore, if voice guidance is provided in a language the user does not understand, the user may become impatient and hang up the call before being connected to an operator who can communicate in a language the user understands. In this case, a loss of opportunity occurs.

[0009] Furthermore, in contact centers, connecting users to operators who can communicate in their language requires checking operator availability and connection processing, which can lead to delays in resolution.

[0010] This invention has been made in view of the above, and aims to quickly grasp the language used by the user. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] To solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the objective, the selection device of the present invention comprises a location information acquisition unit that acquires location information of a communication terminal that originates a call, and a selection unit that selects a language corresponding to the user of the communication terminal based on the location information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the present invention, the language used by the user can be quickly determined. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0013] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the overview of the system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure 2 shows an example of call control information. [Figure 3] Figure 3 shows an example of communication terminal location information. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows an example of service customer information. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a process flow of the selection device. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a process flow of the call control device. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram of the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram of the first embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a computer that executes a call control program. DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, a selection device, a selection method, a selection program, and a call control system that automatically select a language suitable for a user according to the present application will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0015] [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the outline of the system according to the first embodiment. The call control device 20 performs call control between a calling source and a called destination. Call control includes call connection, call disconnection, and the like. For example, the call control device 20 performs call control in accordance with SIP (Session Initiation Protocol). The call control device 20 may also be referred to as a call control server.

[0016] The calling source and the called destination are communication terminals having a telephone function. The communication terminal is a fixed telephone, an IP (Internet Protocol) telephone, a smartphone, or the like.

[0017] The call control device 20 can transfer a call originated from the calling source to the called destination. After the call is transferred, a call is started between the calling source and the called destination. The call is performed by utterance. The utterance may be human speech, or may be recorded or synthesized speech for automatic response.

[0018] The call control device 20 can terminate a call. This termination includes a control that disconnects the call without transferring it.

[0019] Furthermore, the call control device 20 can record information related to call control. For example, the call control device 20 records the originating phone number, the receiving phone number, the date and time of the call, etc., as call control information.

[0020] In the first embodiment, the call control device 20 forwards calls originating from a communication terminal used by a user to a communication terminal in the contact center. The communication terminal 10 is used by the user. Communication terminals 311a, etc., are communication terminals of the contact center.

[0021] Furthermore, the communication terminal 10 stores location information 121. Location information 121 is information indicating the location of the device at each time point. For example, the location in location information 121 is latitude and longitude determined using GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) and GPS (Global Positioning System), etc. Alternatively, for example, the location in location information 121 may be information that identifies a country, region, etc., derived from the latitude and longitude, etc.

[0022] The contact center 3a in Figure 1 includes service windows 31a and 32a. For example, contact center 3a is a collection of service windows that receive telephone inquiries to a company. Service windows 31a and 32a are contact points (persons or departments) that handle different types of inquiries.

[0023] Each service counter has one or more operators. The operator of service counter 31a uses communication terminal 311a. The operator of service counter 32a uses communication terminal 321a.

[0024] Contact center 3b may belong to the same company as contact center 3a, or to a different company. Regarding contact center 3b, explanations of aspects common to contact center 3a will be omitted as appropriate.

[0025] The contact center 3b includes service counters 31b and 32b. The operator of service counter 31b uses communication terminal 311b. The operator of service counter 32b uses communication terminal 321b.

[0026] The call control device 20 includes a call control unit 211 and a location information management unit 212. The call control unit 211 and the location information management unit 212 are implemented by the controller executing a program. For example, the controller is an electronic circuit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), MPU (Micro Processing Unit), or GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or an integrated circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0027] The call control unit 211 executes the call control determined based on the call control information 221, etc. Alternatively, the call control unit 211 may determine the call control based on the results of the call content analysis and the estimation results of the user's request obtained using a machine learning model.

[0028] The location information management unit 212 acquires location information from the communication terminal 10. The location information management unit 212 also provides the location information acquired from the communication terminal 10 to the selection device 40. The operator of the call control device 20 shall have obtained prior consent from the user regarding the acquisition of location information. Alternatively, for example, the location information management unit 212 may display a message on the communication terminal 10 indicating that location information will be acquired, and acquire the location information only when the user performs an operation that permits the acquisition of location information (for example, by pressing a button).

[0029] The call control device 20 stores call control information 221 and communication terminal location information 222. The call control device 20 stores information using a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), or optical disc.

[0030] Call control information 221 is information related to call control. Figure 2 shows an example of call control information. As shown in Figure 2, call control information 221 is table-formatted data with the following items: "Caller ID", "Caller Contract Type", "Recipient ID", "Recipient Contract Type", "Call Date and Time", "Call Start Date and Time", "Call End Date and Time", and "Call Status". Note that the format of call control information 221 is not limited to that shown in Figure 2.

[0031] "Caller ID" is information that identifies the origin of the call. The origin and destination shall be identified by the telephone number. "Caller contract type" is information about the telephone line contract of the originating user. "Recipient ID" is information that identifies the destination. "Recipient contract type" is information about the telephone line contract of the destination user.

[0032] The "Recipient Contract Type" includes information indicating whether the call routing function is ON or OFF. The call routing function is a function provided by the call control device 20 of the first embodiment, and is a function that realizes call control for efficiently providing high-quality telephone services.

[0033] "Call origination date and time" is the date and time the call was initiated. "Call start date and time" is the date and time the call began. "Call end date and time" is the date and time the call ended. "Call status" is the status of the call. Call statuses include "Call successful," "Call disconnected," etc.

[0034] For example, Figure 2 shows that the contract for telephone number "xxx-xxxx-0111" is a "personal mobile line". Also, Figure 2 shows that the contract for telephone number "xxx-xxxx-0201" is a "corporate fixed line (call distribution function: ON)". Figure 2 shows that a call originating from telephone number "xxx-xxxx-0111" was received by telephone number "xxx-xxxx-0201" at "2025 / 3 / 2 16:20", the call started at "2025 / 3 / 2 16:21", and ended at "2025 / 3 / 2 16:25". Furthermore, Figure 2 shows that the call status for this call was "Call successful".

[0035] The communication terminal location information 222 is information regarding the location of the communication terminal 10 (user). Figure 3 shows an example of communication terminal location information. As shown in Figure 3, the communication terminal location information 222 is table-formatted data with "caller ID" and "location" as items. Note that the format of the communication terminal location information 222 is not limited to that shown in Figure 3.

[0036] "Caller ID" is information that identifies the user. In this case, "Caller ID" is the user's phone number. "Location" is information that indicates the user's location. In the example in Figure 3, "Location" is the location corresponding to each of multiple times. Note that the location of the communication terminal 10 is assumed to be the user's location.

[0037] In the example in Figure 3, the location of a user with the phone number "xxx-xxxx-0101" is shown to be "JP,JP,US,FR,JP". Thus, the location can indicate the country where the user is located. "JP" is an abbreviation for Japan. "US" is an abbreviation for the United States. "FR" is an abbreviation for France.

[0038] Figure 3 shows that the location of the user with the phone number "xxx-xxxx-0101" changed over time from Japan, Japan, the United States, France, and back to Japan.

[0039] The selection device 40 includes a communication unit 411, a location information acquisition unit 412, and a selection unit 413. The communication unit 411, the location information acquisition unit 412, and the selection unit 413 are implemented by the controller executing a program. The communication unit 411 may also include an interface function for communication.

[0040] The selection device 40 stores service customer information 421. The selection device 40 stores information using a storage device such as an HDD, SSD, or optical disc.

[0041] The communication unit 411 communicates with other devices via a network. For example, the communication unit 411 communicates data with the call control device 20. The location information acquisition unit 412 acquires location information from the call control device 20. The selection unit 413 selects a language according to the user.

[0042] Service customer information 421 is information about the user's language. Figure 4 shows an example of service customer information. As shown in Figure 4, service customer information 421 is table-formatted data with "caller ID" and "language" as items. Note that the format of service customer information 421 is not limited to that shown in Figure 4.

[0043] "Caller ID" is information that identifies the user. In this case, "Caller ID" is the user's phone number. "Language" is information that indicates the user's language.

[0044] In the example in Figure 3, it is shown that the user whose phone number is "xxx-xxxx-0101" has a language setting of "Japanese".

[0045] Figure 5 will be used to explain the processing flow of the selection device 40. Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the selection device.

[0046] As shown in Figure 5, first, the location information acquisition unit 412 acquires the location information of the communication terminal 10 (step S11). Next, the selection unit 413 selects a language corresponding to the acquired location information (step S12).

[0047] The call control device 20 acquires the location information 121 of the communication terminal 10 and stores it in the communication terminal location information 222. The location information acquisition unit 412 can acquire the location information of the communication terminal 10 from the communication terminal location information 222.

[0048] The selection unit 413 identifies the country with the highest number of occurrences among the countries indicated in the location information. The selection unit 413 then selects the language (e.g., official language) associated with the identified country.

[0049] For example, if the location of the communication terminal 10 is "JP,JP,US,FR,JP", the selection unit 413 identifies "JP", which is the country with the most occurrences, i.e., Japan. Then, the selection unit 413 selects "Japanese" from among several pre-specified languages, as this is the language associated with Japan.

[0050] If the location in the communication terminal location information 222 is latitude and longitude rather than country, the selection unit 413 may identify the country based on the latitude and longitude. The selection unit 413 identifies the country corresponding to each location and selects the language corresponding to the country that has been identified the most times among the identified countries.

[0051] The location information 121 may be collected at regular intervals. If the regular interval is one week, then "JP,JP,US,FR,JP" means that the user stayed in Japan five weeks ago and four weeks ago, in the United States three weeks ago, in France two weeks ago, and in Japan one week ago. The selection unit 413 selects the language of the country where the user is estimated to have stayed the longest, considering it to be the language the user uses.

[0052] Next, the selection unit 413 associates the communication terminal 10 with the selected language and stores it in the service customer information 421 (step S13). Then, the selection unit 413 notifies the call control device 20 of the selected language (step S14).

[0053] The processing flow of the call control device 20 will be explained using Figure 6. Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the call control device.

[0054] As shown in Figure 6, first, the call control unit 211 acquires the language associated with the communication terminal 10 (step S21). The call control unit 211 then transfers the call to the appropriate destination according to the language (step S22).

[0055] For example, the call control unit 211 can transfer a call to a service center that can handle the user's language. The call control unit 211 can also notify the contact center of the language before the call is received. This allows the contact center to assign an operator who can handle the notified language to answer the call.

[0056] The specific processing details of the call control device 20 described above will be explained below using an example.

[0057] [Example 1] Figure 7 is a sequence diagram of Embodiment 1. As shown in Figure 7, the call control unit 211 receives a call made by the user to the contact center 3 via the communication terminal 10 (step S101). At this point, it is assumed that the language corresponding to the user of the communication terminal 10 is not included in the service customer information 421.

[0058] The call control unit 211 requests the location information management unit 212 to acquire the location information of the communication terminal 10 (step S102). Furthermore, the location information management unit 212 requests the communication terminal 10 to acquire the location information (step S103).

[0059] The communication terminal 10 acquires location information (step S104). The communication terminal 10 transmits the acquired location information to the location information management unit 212 (step S105). The communication terminal 10 may also transmit to the location information management unit 212 a snapshot of the periodically updated location information 121 at the time of the acquisition request.

[0060] The location information management unit 212 transmits the location information of the communication terminal 10 to the location information acquisition unit 412 of the selection device 40 (step S106). The location information management unit 212 also transmits a telephone number for user identification to the location information acquisition unit 412.

[0061] The location information acquisition unit 412 passes the location information to the selection unit 413, which then selects a language (step S107). The selection unit 413 selects a language corresponding to the location information and stores the selected language in the service customer information 421, associating it with the user's phone number (step S108). For example, the selection unit 413 can select a language by identifying the country from the aforementioned location information.

[0062] The selection unit 413 notifies the call control unit 211 of the selected language (step S109). The call control unit 211 transfers the call to the destination corresponding to the notified language (step S110).

[0063] Figure 8 illustrates the process when the user's language is already stored in the service customer information 421. Figure 8 is a sequence diagram of Example 1. Here, it is assumed that the language corresponding to the user of the communication terminal 10 is included in the service customer information 421.

[0064] As shown in Figure 8, the call control unit 211 receives a call made by the user to the contact center 3a via the communication terminal 10 (step S201).

[0065] The call control unit 211 requests the location information management unit 212 to obtain the language corresponding to the user (step S202). The call control unit 211 may also check whether the language corresponding to the user has already been selected, and if it has been selected, it may obtain the language; otherwise, it may request the location information management unit 212 to select the language using the method shown in Figure 7.

[0066] The location information management unit 212 obtains the language of the user associated with the user of the communication terminal 10 from the service customer information 421 (step S203).

[0067] The location information management unit 212 notifies the call control unit 211 of the acquired language (step S204). The call control unit 211 transfers the call to the destination corresponding to the notified language (step S205).

[0068] The location information acquisition unit 412 acquires the location information of the communication terminal 10 that initiated the call. The selection unit 413 selects the language corresponding to the user of the communication terminal 10 based on the location information. The call control unit 211 of the call control device 20 then forwards the call initiated by the communication terminal 10 to a destination corresponding to the language selected by the selection unit 413. In this way, according to the first embodiment, it becomes possible to quickly determine the language used by the user.

[0069] Furthermore, after the selected language is stored in the service customer information 421, the call control device 20 can easily obtain the language corresponding to the user.

[0070] For example, according to the first embodiment, when a Japanese speaker residing in Japan calls the contact center while staying abroad, a mismatch such as being answered in the language of that foreign country is avoided, enabling smooth communication. As a result, the efficiency of the contact center's response is improved, and errors and time losses due to language switching are reduced.

[0071] Furthermore, the selection unit 413 identifies a country based on the location information and selects the language associated with that country as the language corresponding to the user. For example, the location information acquisition unit 412 acquires location information indicating the location associated with each of multiple time points. The selection unit 413 identifies the country corresponding to each location and selects the language corresponding to the country that has been identified the most times among the identified countries.

[0072] In this way, the selection device 40 can select a language using location information that can be collected by the communication terminal 10.

[0073] Furthermore, the information that can be associated with a language is not limited to a country; it may also be a region, etc. For example, the selection device 40 may identify a region within a country based on location information and select a language associated with that region. A region may refer to an administrative division such as a prefecture, state, or province, or it may be a geographical or cultural division such as the Kinki region or the west coast.

[0074] Furthermore, languages ​​may differ between regions. Even if the language is the same across regions, dialects may vary. Therefore, the service customer information 421 may store the language and dialect for each region. In this case, the selection device 40 can select not only the language but also the dialect according to the location information.

[0075] The information used by the selection device 40 to select a language is not limited to location information. The selection device 40 may select a language based on language information set in the communication terminal 10 or the service used by the user. For example, the selection device 40 may obtain the language set in the translation application installed on the communication terminal 10 or the OS running on the communication terminal 10.

[0076] Furthermore, the selection device 40 may estimate location information using the following information instead of, or in addition to, latitude and longitude. For example, the selection device 40 may acquire step count information counted by the communication terminal 10, the current location shown by the map application installed on the communication terminal 10, and the user's home and work information set in the map application.

[0077] Furthermore, the selection device 40 may estimate the user's country or region from the user's web browsing history stored in the communication terminal 10 and the IP address of the communication terminal 10 (the IP address of the connection source). For example, the selection device 40 may identify the region by searching WHOIS information based on the IP address.

[0078] [System configuration, etc.] Each component of the illustrated device is a functional concept and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown. In other words, the specific forms of distribution and integration of each device are not limited to those shown, and all or part of them can be functionally or physically distributed or integrated in any unit according to various loads and usage conditions. Furthermore, each processing function performed by each device can be implemented, all or any part of it, by a CPU and a program that is analyzed and executed by that CPU, or by hardware using wired logic. Note that the program may be executed not only by the CPU but also by other processors such as a GPU.

[0079] Furthermore, among the processes described in the embodiments, all or part of the processes described as being performed automatically can be performed manually, or all or part of the processes described as being performed manually can be performed automatically by known methods. In addition, the processing procedures, control procedures, specific names, and information including various data and parameters shown in the above document and drawings can be arbitrarily changed unless otherwise specified.

[0080] For example, the functions of the selection device 40 may be included in the call control device 20. In that case, the call control device 20 includes a location information acquisition unit that acquires location information of the communication terminal that initiated the call, a selection unit that selects a language corresponding to the user of the communication terminal based on the location information, and a call control unit that forwards the call initiated by the communication terminal to a destination corresponding to the language selected by the selection unit.

[0081] [program] In one embodiment, the selection device 40 can be implemented by installing a program that performs the above processing as packaged software or online software on a desired computer. For example, by having the above program run on an information processing device, the information processing device can be made to function as the selection device 40. The information processing device referred to here includes desktop or notebook personal computers. In addition, mobile communication terminals such as tablet terminals and smartphones are also included in the category of information processing devices.

[0082] Figure 9 shows an example configuration of a computer running a call control program. Computer 1000 has, for example, memory 1010 and a CPU 1020. Computer 1000 also has a hard disk drive interface 1030, a disk drive interface 1040, a serial port interface 1050, a video adapter 1060, and a network interface 1070. These components are connected by a bus 1080.

[0083] Memory 1010 includes ROM (Read Only Memory) 1011 and RAM (Random Access Memory) 1012. ROM 1011 stores, for example, a boot program such as BIOS (Basic Input Output System). The hard disk drive interface 1030 is connected to the hard disk drive 1090. The disk drive interface 1040 is connected to the disk drive 1100. For example, a removable storage medium such as a magnetic disk or optical disk is inserted into the disk drive 1100. The serial port interface 1050 is connected to, for example, a mouse 1110 and a keyboard 1120. The video adapter 1060 is connected to, for example, a display 1130.

[0084] The hard disk drive 1090 stores, for example, the OS 1091, application programs 1092, program modules 1093, and program data 1094. That is, the programs that define each process of the selection device 40 are implemented as program modules 1093 in which executable code for the computer is written. The program modules 1093 are stored, for example, in the hard disk drive 1090. For example, a program module 1093 for performing the same processes as the functional configuration of the selection device 40 is stored in the hard disk drive 1090. Note that the hard disk drive 1090 may be replaced by an SSD (Solid State Drive).

[0085] Furthermore, the configuration data used in the processing of the above-described embodiment is stored as program data 1094 in, for example, memory 1010 or hard disk drive 1090. The CPU 1020 then reads the program module 1093 and program data 1094 stored in memory 1010 or hard disk drive 1090 into RAM 1012 as needed and executes the processing of the above-described embodiment.

[0086] Furthermore, the program module 1093 and program data 1094 are not limited to being stored in the hard disk drive 1090; for example, they may be stored in a removable storage medium and read by the CPU 1020 via a disk drive 1100 or the like. Alternatively, the program module 1093 and program data 1094 may be stored in another computer connected via a network (LAN (Local Area Network), WAN (Wide Area Network), etc.). The program module 1093 and program data 1094 may then be read by the CPU 1020 from the other computer via a network interface 1070.

[0087] The functions of the elements disclosed herein may be implemented using circuits or processing circuitry that include general-purpose processors, special-purpose processors, integrated circuits, ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), conventional circuits, and / or combinations thereof that are programmed using one or more programs stored in one or more memories, or otherwise configured to perform the disclosed functions. A processor is considered processing circuitry or circuitry because it includes transistors and other circuits. A processor may be a programmed processor that executes programs stored in memory. In this disclosure, circuits, units, or means are hardware that performs the enumerated functions, or hardware programmed to perform the enumerated functions. Hardware may be any hardware disclosed herein that is programmed or configured to perform the enumerated functions.

[0088] There is memory for storing a computer program that includes computer instructions. These computer instructions provide logic and routines that enable hardware (e.g., processing circuitry or circuitry) to perform the methods disclosed herein. This computer program can be implemented in commonly known forms, such as computer-readable storage media, computer program products, memory devices, recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVDs, and / or memory of FPGAs and ASICs. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0089] 3a, 3b Contact Center 10, 311a, 311b, 321a, 321b communication terminals 20 Call control device 31a, 31b, 32a, 32b Service counters 40 Selection device 121 Location information 211 Call Control Unit 212 Location information management department 221 Call control information 222 Communication terminal location information 411 Communications Department 412 Location information acquisition unit 413 Selection Section 421 Service Customer Information

Claims

1. A location information acquisition unit acquires location information that indicates the location of the communication terminal that initiated the call, with each of the multiple time points associated with that location. A selection unit identifies the country corresponding to each of the locations indicated by the location information, and selects the language corresponding to the country that has been identified the most times among the identified countries. A selection device having

2. The location information of the communication terminal that initiated the call is obtained, and location information indicating the location associated with each of multiple time points. Identify the country corresponding to each of the locations indicated by the location information, and select the language corresponding to the country that has been identified the most frequently among the identified countries. The method by which a computer chooses to perform a process.

3. The location information of the communication terminal that initiated the call is obtained, and location information indicating the location associated with each of multiple time points. Identify the country corresponding to each of the locations indicated by the location information, and select the language corresponding to the country that has been identified the most frequently among the identified countries. A selection program that instructs a computer to perform a process.

4. A call control system comprising a language selection device and a call control device that performs call control according to the selected language, The selection device is A location information acquisition unit acquires location information that indicates the location of the communication terminal that initiated the call, with each of the multiple time points associated with that location. A selection unit identifies the country corresponding to each of the locations indicated by the location information, and selects the language corresponding to the country that has been identified the most times among the identified countries. It has, The aforementioned call control device is A call control unit forwards a call originating from the communication terminal to a destination corresponding to the language selected by the selection unit. A call control system having the following features.

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