PBX Call Redirection via Centralized Profile Database
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing telecommunications systems with private branch exchanges (PBXs) at multiple sites face challenges in managing calls across different locations, including security, toll charges, and PBX availability, which can be influenced by time zones and network connections, without disrupting user experience.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a software solution that automatically and transparently redirects calls between PBXs, using a profile database and authentication server to maintain user preferences and security, and employing a centralized voice mail server to manage voice mail across PBXs, allowing seamless interaction with the user's home PBX.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If calls are manually managed across multiple PBX sites, then user control and customization are maintained, but operational complexity and user burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic call redirection without requiring user intervention. The PBX automatically determines whether to redirect calls based on time, network conditions, and user profile preferences, eliminating the need for users to manually manage call routing across multiple sites.
Solution Approach 2:
User preferences and profile information are pre-configured in the database before calls occur. The system stores advance instructions regarding call redirection preferences, time zone preferences, and network preferences, allowing automatic decision-making during call operations without real-time user input.
2Reliability
If calls are redirected based on time and network conditions, then toll charges are reduced and security is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A centralized database acts as an intermediary between the PBX and call routing decisions. The database stores user profiles, time zone information, and network preferences, allowing the PBX to make intelligent redirection decisions without complex embedded logic within the PBX itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The PBX system performs multiple functions: it acts as a standard private branch exchange for local calls, a call redirection controller for off-premises calls, and a profile manager for user preferences. This multi-functionality is achieved through integration with the centralized database that handles diverse information types.
3Adaptability or versatility
If automatic call redirection is implemented, then user experience is maintained across different PBX sites, but implementation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates a virtual copy of the user's home PBX environment at remote locations through the centralized database. User profiles, preferences, and configuration data are replicated and made accessible to any PBX the user connects to, ensuring consistent experience across different physical locations without requiring multiple customized systems.
4Reliability
If one telephone line per employee is acquired from the telephone company, then each employee has dedicated service, but cost increases substantially
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple employees' telecommunication needs are merged into a shared PBX system. The PBX consolidates multiple telephone lines and allows employees to share access through extension numbers, virtual numbers, and call redirection capabilities, reducing the total number of lines needed from the telephone company while maintaining service quality.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus and methods are disclosed for use by organizations that have PBXs at a plurality of sites. The invention pertains to cell phone calls from an to his or her “home” private branch exchange. For example, an employee who works at the Chicago branch office might call the Chicago office's PBX to invoke a feature such as setting up call forwarding, retrieving voice mail, etc. In the illustrative embodiment, such calls might be automatically and transparently directed to another PBX when it is advantageous to do so (e.g., for the purposes of security, reducing toll charges, because of unavailability of a particular PBX, etc.) Factors that might be used to determine whether to re-direct a call and to which PBX to re-direct a call include the day and time of the call, the network that the cell phone is currently connected to, etc.