Enhanced electronic chat efficiency

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018367477-A1
Application number	US-201715624554-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 15, 2017
Priority date	Jun 15, 2017
Publication date	Dec 20, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A system configured to facilitate an electronic chat session between a user and an agent includes an agent interface device, one or more processors, and non-transitory computer readable memory storing program code. Upon execution of the stored program code, the system displays a chat window on the agent interface device, user and agent messages within the chat window, and pre-message text within the chat window. The pre-message text is displayed while the user is composing an unsent message.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A system configured to facilitate an electronic chat session between a user and an agent, the system comprising:
an agent interface device configured to be connected with a user interface device via one or more network connections, the agent interface device comprising a display and being configured to receive text input from the agent; one or more processors; and non-transitory computer readable memory storing program code that, upon execution by one of the processors, causes the system to: display a chat window on the display of the agent interface device; display within the chat window at least a portion of a conversation between the user and the agent, wherein the conversation comprises text-containing user messages composed at and sent from the user interface device and text-containing agent messages composed at and sent from the agent interface device during the chat session; and display within the chat window pre-message text input at the user interface device while the user is composing an unsent message.

2 . A system as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user messages are composed in a first language and the program code further causes the system to display the user messages in the chat window in a different second language.

3 . A system as defined in claim 2 , wherein the agent messages are composed in the second language and the program code further causes the agent messages to be displayed at the user interface device in the first language.

4 . A system as defined in claim 2 , wherein the program code further causes the system to display the pre-message text in the second language.

5 . A system as defined in claim 1 , the system being configured to facilitate a plurality of electronic chat sessions, each chat session being between one of a plurality of different users and the same agent,
wherein the agent interface device is configured to be connected with a plurality of user interface devices via one or more network connections, and wherein the program code further causes the system to simultaneously display a plurality of chat windows on the display of the agent interface device and display within each one of the chat windows at least a portion of a conversation between an individual one of the users and the agent, whereby the agent can simultaneously participate in the plurality of chat sessions.

6 . A system as defined in claim 1 , further comprising:
a secondary interface device configured to be connected with the user interface device and the agent interface device via one or more network connections, the secondary interface device comprising a display, wherein the program code further causes the system to: display a chat monitor window on the display of the secondary interface device; display within the chat monitor window at least a portion of the conversation between the user and the agent; update the displayed conversation in the chat window when an additional user message or agent message is sent; and simultaneously update the displayed conversation in the chat monitor window when the additional user message or agent message is sent, whereby an additional agent can monitor the chat session in real-time via the secondary interface device.

7 . A system as defined in claim 6 , the system being further configured to facilitate an additional electronic chat session between the agent and the additional agent, wherein the program code further causes the system to:
display an additional chat window on the display of the agent interface device; display within the additional chat window at least a portion of a coaching conversation between the agent and the additional agent, wherein the coaching conversation comprises messages composed at and sent from the secondary interface device and messages composed at and sent from the agent interface device during the additional chat session, whereby the additional agent can coach the agent to help guide the conversation between the agent and the user.

8 . A system as defined in claim 6 , the system being further configured to allow the additional agent to join the electronic chat session, wherein the program code further causes the system to:
display within the chat window at least a portion of a three-way conversation between the user, the agent, and the additional agent, wherein the conversation comprises text-containing user messages composed at and sent from the user interface device, text-containing agent messages composed at and sent from the agent interface device, and text-containing additional agent messages composed at and sent from the secondary interface device.

9 . A system as defined in claim 6 , the system being further configured to allow the additional agent to replace the agent in the electronic chat session, wherein the program code further causes the system to:
update the displayed conversation in the chat monitor window when an additional user message or an additional message from the additional agent is sent, thereby continuing the conversation to include messages composed at and sent from the secondary and to exclude any additional messages sent from the agent interface device.

10 . A system configured to facilitate electronic chat sessions, the system comprising:
a server configured to simultaneously host a plurality of user-initiated chat sessions; and a plurality of agent interface devices, each user-initiated chat session being established between an individual user at a user interface device and an agent at one of the plurality of agent interface devices via the server; and a secondary interface device connected to the server and configured to selectively monitor each one of the established chat sessions, wherein the server is configured to establish each chat session such that more than one of the chat sessions is between different individual users and the same agent, said more than one of the chat sessions being simultaneously displayed at one of the plurality of agent interface devices, and wherein text input by the user in each chat session is visible to the agent while the user is composing an unsent message.

11 . A system as defined in claim 10 and further configured to allow an additional agent using the secondary interface device to establish a separate chat session with an agent at any one of the agent interface devices.

12 . A system as defined in claim 10 and further configured to allow an additional agent using the secondary interface device to replace the agent in any one of the established chat sessions to continue an ongoing conversation between the agent and one of the users.

Assignees

• Gm Global Tech Operations Llc

Inventors

• Hariram Rekha
• Jamal Sam
• Bolton Anthony D
• Miller James A

Classifications

• H04M3/5183

  Call or contact centers with computer-telephony arrangements · CPC title

• H04W4/12

  Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements · CPC title

• H04L65/1069

  Session establishment or de-establishment · CPC title

• H04L51/046

  Interoperability with other network applications or services · CPC title

• H04L51/04 Primary

  Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM] · CPC title