Context Engine for Multi-Vendor Contact Center Load Balancing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional IVR systems face limitations in supporting multiple vendor contact center solutions and proprietary mechanisms for graphical representation and contextual information transfer, necessitating customized applications and APIs, which increase development burdens and costs for enterprises.

Innovation Solution

A generic client-side API and sophisticated context engine enable load balancing and sharing of context information across multiple vendor contact centers, using a correlation ID to identify communication sessions and facilitate intelligent routing based on queue statistics and agent availability, allowing enterprises to use a single application with diverse contact center solutions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If conventional IVR systems use proprietary mechanisms for graphical representation and contextual information transfer, then vendor-specific functionality is achieved, but development burden and costs increase for enterprises

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevendor-specific functionalityVSAvoiddevelopment burden
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a universal context engine that serves multiple vendor contact center solutions through a common API interface. This engine handles contextual information transfer, session management, and data sharing across different vendors' systems, eliminating the need for separate proprietary implementations for each vendor while maintaining full functionality.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The context engine acts as an intermediary layer between the client application and multiple vendor contact center systems. It standardizes contextual information transfer using correlation IDs and common data structures, mediating between the universal API and vendor-specific implementations, thereby reducing development complexity for enterprises.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If enterprises implement customized applications for each vendor contact center solution, then vendor-specific requirements are met, but development costs and maintenance burden increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevendor-specific supportVSAvoiddevelopment cost
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

A single client application with a standardized API can interact with multiple vendor contact center solutions through the universal context engine. This eliminates the need to develop and maintain separate customized applications for each vendor, significantly reducing development costs and maintenance burden while preserving vendor-specific functionality.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Adaptability or versatility

If multiple contact centers use different vendor technologies, then vendor solution diversity is maintained, but context information sharing becomes difficult

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevendor solution diversityVSAvoidcontext information sharing
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The context engine enforces homogeneous data structures and communication protocols for contextual information across all vendor contact center solutions. By standardizing how context data is formatted, transmitted, and interpreted, it enables seamless information sharing between diverse vendor systems without losing contextual continuity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #33Homogeneity

Solution Approach 2:

The context engine mediates context information sharing between different vendor technologies by translating vendor-specific data formats into a universal context structure. This intermediary layer ensures that contextual information is preserved and shared accurately across heterogeneous contact center systems.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

4Productivity

If load balancing is implemented across multiple vendor solutions, then system efficiency improves, but integration complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesystem efficiencyVSAvoidintegration complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The context engine serves as an intermediary that simplifies load balancing across multiple vendor solutions by providing a unified interface for monitoring contact center status, queue lengths, and agent availability. This mediation layer abstracts the complexity of integrating multiple vendor systems, enabling efficient load balancing through standardized metrics and routing decisions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentEP3149924B1Sharing of contextual information in a multi-vendor and/or multiple contact center environment
Publication Date: 2020.01.01 CAFEX COMM
  • EP3149924B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3149924B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3149924B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A method and system for load balancing and sharing of context information in a multi-vendor and/or multi-contact center environment. The arrangements utilize a generic client-side API in conjunction with a set of back end-frameworks to facilitate support of disparate contact center solutions. Accordingly a single client side application can be used to support multiple vendor contact center solutions. Further, the system enables an enterprise to leverage an instance of a visual IVR server, which works in conjunction with a contact center that supports such visual IVR server, so that it can also be used with contact center solutions that do not provide direct access to IVR scripts. The system also facilitates use of agent availability statistics to intelligently route customer calls to the most available agent across multiple vendor solutions or where instances of a single vendor solution are deployed in different data centers.