Service Interruption Notifications Using Customer Usage Probability

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Solution Overview

Problem

Telecommunications networks face inefficiencies in providing targeted service interruption notifications, leading to unnecessary resource usage and customer confusion due to generalized messaging.

Innovation Solution

Utilizing historical and current customer usage data to determine the probability of service interruption impact on individual customers, allowing for personalized notifications based on equipment usage patterns and frequency.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If generalized service interruption notifications are sent to all customers, then all customers receive information about potential outages, but system resources are wasted and customer confusion increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification deliveryVSAvoidsystem resource usage

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The notification system transitions from uniform generalized messaging to localized targeted messaging based on customer equipment usage patterns. The system analyzes historical data to identify which specific customers used affected equipment and sends notifications only to those customers, making the notification quality local rather than uniform across all customers.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system changes the parameter of notification targeting from blanket coverage to probability-based selection. By calculating a probability score based on equipment usage frequency and recency, the system dynamically determines which customers receive notifications, changing the parameter from static universal notification to dynamic selective notification.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Loss of information

If service interruption notifications are sent to all customers, then information is provided to everyone, but customer clarity decreases due to irrelevant messages

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification informationVSAvoidcustomer understanding

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The notification content is tailored to each customer's actual relationship with the affected equipment. Customers receive notifications only when they have used the equipment that will be interrupted, making the information locally relevant rather than universally applicable. This eliminates irrelevant messages and improves customer understanding.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of sending notifications to all customers and expecting them to filter out irrelevant ones, the system inverts the approach by sending notifications only to customers who actually need the information. This inversion of the notification logic eliminates customer confusion caused by irrelevant messages.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

3Loss of energy

If targeted notifications are implemented using customer usage data, then resource efficiency improves, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem resource usageVSAvoidnotification system

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of energyVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary analysis of customer equipment usage data before the service interruption occurs. By pre-calculating which customers are likely to be affected based on historical usage patterns, the system simplifies the notification process and reduces resource usage during the actual interruption event.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces an intermediary analysis layer that processes customer usage data and generates probability scores. This intermediary component acts as a mediator between the service interruption event and the notification delivery, filtering and prioritizing which customers receive notifications based on their equipment usage patterns.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

4Ease of operation

If probabilistic customer selection is used for notifications, then notification relevance increases, but measurement precision requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification targetingVSAvoidequipment usage analysis

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system changes the parameter of customer selection from binary (affected/not affected) to probabilistic (likelihood score). By using probability thresholds to determine notification eligibility, the system balances measurement precision requirements with practical notification targeting effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS12507202B2User notification for service interruption

Publication Date: 2025.12.23 T MOBILE US INC

AI summary

System and methods for selecting customers to notify of a service interruption or outage are described. A network may receive an interruption notification indicating when a service interruption is to occur. In some examples, the interruption notification may also include a particular set of equipment, such as a base station, that will experience the interruption, such as being taken offline for maintenance or a power outage affecting the base station. A notification module determines which customers will be affected by the service interruption and transmits a notification to the customers, informing the customers of the service interruption.