DETAILED ACTION
This communication is a Non-Final Office Action rejection on the merits. Claims 1, 3, 5, 7-9, 11, 13, 15-17, and 20 are currently pending and have been addressed below.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114 was filed in this application after a decision by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, but before the filing of a Notice of Appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit or the commencement of a civil action. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114 and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the appeal has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114 and prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant’s submission filed on 01/20/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 01/20/2026 (related to the 103 Rejection) have been fully considered but are moot in view of new grounds of rejection. Applicant's amendments necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Rejection based on a newly cited reference(s) follows.
Patent Subject Matter Eligibility
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1, 3, 5, 7-9, 11, 13, 15-17, and 20 are not rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention includes an additional element that integrates the abstract idea into a practical application.
Claims 1, 9, and 17 are eligible. The additional element of a natural language processing is used to detect a word string within the communication session, choosing the second operation based on the word string, and providing the first user a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation (Paragraph 0053, the word string may correspond to the user agreeing to provide PII). In this case, Examiner notes that second operation is automatically initiated based on a trigger detected in real-time. Therefore, the additional element integrates the abstract idea into a practical application because the step of “initiating the second operation after detecting that the first user agreed to provide confidential information based on the call context” applies the judicial exception in a meaningful way beyond generally linking the use of the judicial exception to a particular technological environment, such that the claim as a whole is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception, as discussed in MPEP 2106.05(e) and the Vanda Memo issued in June 2018.” Therefore, claims 1, 9, and 17 are eligible.
Claim 3, 5, 7-8, 11, 13, 15-16, and 20 depend from claims 1, 9, and 17. Therefore, they are eligible for the same reasons described above.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 3, 5, 7-9, 11, 13, 15-17, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Abraham (US 2018/0376002 A1), in view of Corfield (US 2011/0317828 A1), in further view of Gnanasambandam et al. (US 2023/0360779 A1).
Regarding claim 1 (Currently Amended), Abraham discloses a computer-implemented method comprising (Abstract, Systems and methods for managing a call between a contact, a conversation bot, and a human agent are disclosed):
monitoring, by a workflow server, a communication session between first and second users (Paragraph 0046, In some embodiments, as personalized conversation bots conduct conversations with contacts, conversation analyzer 226 of the bot system 220 continuously monitors and analyzes the communications with the human contact. In some embodiments, conversation analyzer 226 analyzes communications between the human contact and the personalized conversation bot, as well as any conversations after it transitions to a human agent; Paragraph 0064, During the call, the process of many embodiments continually analyzes (414) the ongoing conversations between personalized conversation bots, human contacts, and human agents; Paragraph 0076, the process in accordance with several embodiments of the invention continues to monitor and analyze the call between the contact and the human agent);
performing, using the workflow server, a first operation during the communication session (Paragraph 0079; In certain embodiments, the supplemental data includes a script, or a list of suggested topics, for continuing the call with the client to allow the human agent time to get into the flow of the ongoing conversation. The script in accordance with a variety of embodiments includes various discounts and/or remedies that can be offered to the customer; Examiner interprets “offering discounts and/or remedies” as the “first operation”);
generating, based on the communication session by the workflow server, a signal (Paragraph 0080, The process in accordance with a number of embodiments of the invention determines (424) whether to transition the call to a conversation bot. In many embodiments, the determination of whether to transition the call to a conversation bot is made by the human agent; Examiner interprets “determining whether to transition the call” as the “signal”);
in response to generating the signal: stopping, using the workflow server, the first operation, disconnecting, using the workflow server, the first and second users, and initiating, using the workflow server, a second operation for the first user (Paragraph 0080, In some embodiments, conversation bots are used to conclude a transaction, allowing the human agent to move on to another call while the contact’s payment information (e.g., payment methods, preferred currency, payment schedules, etc.) is collected by the conversation bot; Paragraph 0081, When the process determines to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process conducts (426) the call with an automated conversation bot before the process ends. In some embodiments, the process selects the conversation bot to which to transfer the conversation based on a number of criteria including but not limited to) a specified function to be performed by the conversation bot, an identity of the conversation bot that originated the conversation, and an identity of the human agent making the transfer), wherein the second operation comprises: receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, … (Paragraph 0080, In some embodiments, conversation bots are used to conclude a transaction, allowing the human agent to move on to another call while the contact’s payment information (e.g., payment methods, preferred currency, payment schedules, etc.) is collected by the conversation bot. The conversation bots in accordance with a number of embodiments can also perform other functions, including but not limited to) closing out a bill, issuing refunds, modifying the contact's service plan, and confirming various agreements and/or appointments that were discussed during the conversation. When the process determines not to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process ends);
and in response to detecting a completion of the second operation: reconnecting, using the workflow server, the first and second users, and completing, using the workflow server, the first operation (Paragraph 0047, The training module 230 of several embodiments trains and optimizes the personalized conversation bots to be able to handle a greater portion of a conversation before transitioning to the human agent. For example, in some embodiments, a conversation is marked with certain milestones that indicate progress of the conversation and the conversation bots are trained to maximize the number of milestones that are reached prior to transitioning a call to a human agent. Examples of milestones can include (but are not limited to, the collection of personal data, identification of a desired product and/or service, identification of interest level, and confirmation of payment information; Paragraph 0081, When the process determines to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process conducts (426) the call with an automated conversation bot before the process ends. In some embodiments, the process selects the conversation bot to which to transfer the conversation based on a number of criteria including but not limited to) a specified function to be performed by the conversation bot, an identity of the conversation bot that originated the conversation, and an identity of the human agent making the transfer. For example, in some embodiments, the process conducts the call with the same conversation bot, allowing for a continuity in the conversation so that the contact does not feel as though they are being passed around to many different individuals. In the example of this figure, a conversation is passed between a conversation bot and a human agent, but one skilled in the art will recognize that the transitions between the conversation bot and the human agent can occur in any order and may only be transferred in one direction, or may be transferred several times during the course of a conversation; Examiner notes that Abraham discloses “detecting completion” since it can transfer the conversation back to a human agent after determination that the fist user has provided personal information or payment information to the bot);
wherein the generating the signal further comprises: detecting, using natural language processing (NLP) in the workflow server, a word string within the communication session; determining call context between the first and second users based on the word string; automatically initiating the second operation after detecting that the first user agreed to provide confidential information based on the call context (Paragraph 0042, Referring back to FIG. 2, automated call management system 200 of several embodiments includes a personalized conversation bot system 220 that uses the trained personalized conversation bots to handle conversations with contacts prior to handing the conversations off to a human agent, or upon taking over a transferred conversation from the human agent. In the illustrated embodiment, personalized conversation bot system 220 includes conversation generator 222, agent voice module 224, conversation analyzer 226, and transition module 228; Paragraph 0047, The training module 230 of several embodiments trains and optimizes the personalized conversation bots to be able to handle a greater portion of a conversation before transitioning to the human agent. For example, in some embodiments, a conversation is marked with certain milestones that indicate progress of the conversation and the conversation bots are trained to maximize the number of milestones that are reached prior to transitioning a call to a human agent. Examples of milestones can include (but are not limited to, the collection of personal data, identification of a desired product and/or service, identification of interest level, and confirmation of payment information; Paragraph 0050, In several embodiments, the process analyzes conversation data in the form of audio recordings of calls between contacts, human agents and/or bots by converting the speech to text and performing any of a variety of natural language processing (NLP) methods on the converted text to extract various information about the conversation, including (but not limited to, meaning, mood, sentiment, information about the contact, sales lead qualification, a level of interest (e.g., in a product, service, or candidate), intent, or a need to speak with a human agent directly; Examiner interprets “transferring the call to a bot that collects personal information based on a specific intent” as “an indication that the user agreed to provide confidential information”); …
Abraham discloses initiating a second operation for the first user in response to detecting an intent of the first user using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) tool in the workflow server (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information and/or confirming various agreements; Paragraph 0050, NLP to detect an intent). Although Abraham discloses wherein the first user may provider user specific information, Abraham does not specifically disclose how the first user is using a message interface for inputting user specific information (see Paragraph 0051 of Applicant’s specification, the message may include options for inputting PII data and other user specific information).
However, Corfield discloses wherein the second operation comprises: receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, generating, using the workflow server, a message …, modifying, using the workflow server, the message with the customer specific information, presenting, using the workflow server, the modified message to the first user; receiving and storing, using the workflow server, … the modified message was reviewed, generating, using the workflow server, a notification to the second user indicating that the message was received …, and documenting, using the workflow server, that the message was received … (Paragraph 0031, For example, the confidential processor may request a caller to input social security information (either spoken or DTMF) such that the confidential processor receives a spoken, for example, social security number consisting of an audio signal representative of 123-45-6789. The speech to text engine 410 would receive the audio signal and convert the audio signal to a data signal representative of 123456789 that is transmitted to the workstation for entry into the field; Paragraph 0032, The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. The alert may be provided by the agent or automated. For example, on activation of switch 310, or on receipt of the transferred call or audio at confidential processor 312, an automated message may be transmitted to the caller indicating that the call or audio is or has been transferred to a confidential processor. The call or audio is transferred to the confidential processor 506. Whether alerted, confidential processor 312 provides a request to the caller regarding what type of information is requested, step 508. The request, in most instances, will be a pre-recorded audio signal indicating the input type and information requested; The window may operate similar to a chat window, an instant messaging window, or the like. The customer would enter the information in the popped window using any conventional data entering mode including, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch screen, an optical pen, a speech to text engine, or the like. The data would be transferred to the confidential processor on the activation of for example, a “send' key or the like. In still other aspects of the technology, the confidential processor may receive input using text messaging or other short messaging system protocols. Optionally, the confidential processor would confirm the information, step 512. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation; Examiner notes that the message is modified with customer specific information provided by the customer. In this case, the customer specific information is the social security number. Applicant states, in Paragraph 0051, that the message may include options for inputting PII data and other user specific information. Based on broadest reasonable interpretation in light of the specification, Corfield discloses “modifying a message with the customer specific information” since the confidential processor includes options for inputting and displaying PII data to the first user); …
and providing the first user with a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation (Paragraph 0032, The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. The alert may be provided by the agent or automated. For example, on activation of switch 310, or on receipt of the transferred call or audio at confidential processor 312, an automated message may be transmitted to the caller indicating that the call or audio is or has been transferred to a confidential processor. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation; Examiner interprets “alerting a customer/caller that the call is being transferred to a confidential processor” as “providing the first user with a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation”).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information of the invention of Abraham to further specify wherein the step of collecting personal information includes a message for inputting user specific information and modifying the message with the user specific information of the invention of Corfield because doing so would allow the customer to provide confidential or sensitive data based on a signal indicating the input type and information requested (see Corfield, Paragraph 0032). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Abraham discloses initiating a second operation for the first user in response to detecting an intent of the first user using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) tool in the workflow server (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information and/or confirming various agreements; Paragraph 0050, NLP to detect an intent). Corfield further discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information (Paragraph 0032, instant messaging window to collect confidential or sensitive information). Although the combination of Abraham and Corfield discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information, the combination of Abraham and Corfield does not specifically disclose wherein the message interface includes a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements (see Applicant’s specification, Paragraphs 0047 & 0050).
However, Gnanasambandam et al. discloses receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, generating, using the workflow server, a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements, modifying, using the workflow server, the message with the customer specific information, presenting, using the workflow server, the modified message to the first user, receiving and storing, using the workflow server, an acknowledgement from the first user that the modified message was reviewed, generating, using the workflow server, a notification to the second user indicating that the message was received and acknowledged by the first user in compliance with the set of one or more disclosure requirements, and documenting, using the workflow server, that the message was received and acknowledged by the first user in compliance with the set of one or more disclosure requirements (Paragraph 0149, Throughout the lifetime of a conversational stream, a cognitive agent 110 collect information over may channels such as chat, voice, specialized applications, web browsers, contact centers, and the like; Paragraph 0183, FIG. 6 shows a method, in accordance with various embodiments. The method is performed at a user device (e.g., the user device 102) and in particular, the method is performed by an application executing on the user device 102. The method begins with initiating a user registration process (block 602). The user registration can include tasks such as displaying a GUI asking the user to enter in personal information such as his name and contact information; Paragraph 0375, Some embodiments described herein may refer to receiving, processing, generating, and/or providing personal information of individuals. It should be understood that any use of the personal information may be subject to consent of the individuals and will be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information. As an example, consent of an individual may be obtained as part of an “opt-in” clause, as a prompt of a user registration screen, and/or the like. Furthermore, any use and/or transmission of the personal information may be secured via one or more encryption techniques or techniques to anonymize the personal information; Examiner interprets the “opt-in” as the “acknowledgement from the first user”).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information (e.g., by using a message interface) of the invention of Abraham and Corfield to further incorporate wherein the message is associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements of the invention of Gnanasambandam because doing so would allow the personal information of the user to be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information (see Gnanasambandam, Paragraph 0183). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Regarding claim 9 (Currently Amended), Abraham discloses a computing apparatus, comprising (Abstract, Systems and methods for managing a call between a contact, a conversation bot, and a human agent are disclosed):
one or more processors; and one or more memories having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to (Claim 13, A non-transitory machine readable medium including instructions that, when executed by a set of one or more processing units, causes the set of processing units to manage a call between a contact, a conversation bot, and a human agent by performing the following operations):
monitor a communication session between first and second users (Paragraph 0046, In some embodiments, as personalized conversation bots conduct conversations with contacts, conversation analyzer 226 of the bot system 220 continuously monitors and analyzes the communications with the human contact. In some embodiments, conversation analyzer 226 analyzes communications between the human contact and the personalized conversation bot, as well as any conversations after it transitions to a human agent; Paragraph 0064, During the call, the process of many embodiments continually analyzes (414) the ongoing conversations between personalized conversation bots, human contacts, and human agents; Paragraph 0076, the process in accordance with several embodiments of the invention continues to monitor and analyze the call between the contact and the human agent);
perform a first operation during the communication session (Paragraph 0079; In certain embodiments, the supplemental data includes a script, or a list of suggested topics, for continuing the call with the client to allow the human agent time to get into the flow of the ongoing conversation. The script in accordance with a variety of embodiments includes various discounts and/or remedies that can be offered to the customer; Examiner interprets “offering discounts and/or remedies” as the “first operation”);
generate, based on the communication session, a signal (Paragraph 0080, The process in accordance with a number of embodiments of the invention determines (424) whether to transition the call to a conversation bot; Examiner interprets “when the transition criterion is satisfied” as the “signal”);
in response to generating the signal: stop the first operation, disconnect the first and second users, and initiate a second operation for the first user (Paragraph 0080, In some embodiments, conversation bots are used to conclude a transaction, allowing the human agent to move on to another call while the contact’s payment information (e.g., payment methods, preferred currency, payment schedules, etc.) is collected by the conversation bot; Paragraph 0081, When the process determines to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process conducts (426) the call with an automated conversation bot before the process ends. In some embodiments, the process selects the conversation bot to which to transfer the conversation based on a number of criteria including but not limited to) a specified function to be performed by the conversation bot, an identity of the conversation bot that originated the conversation, and an identity of the human agent making the transfer), wherein the second operation comprises: receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, … (Paragraph 0080, In some embodiments, conversation bots are used to conclude a transaction, allowing the human agent to move on to another call while the contact’s payment information (e.g., payment methods, preferred currency, payment schedules, etc.) is collected by the conversation bot. The conversation bots in accordance with a number of embodiments can also perform other functions, including but not limited to) closing out a bill, issuing refunds, modifying the contact's service plan, and confirming various agreements and/or appointments that were discussed during the conversation. When the process determines not to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process ends);
and in response to detecting a completion of the second operation: reconnect the first and second users, and complete the first operation (Paragraph 0047, The training module 230 of several embodiments trains and optimizes the personalized conversation bots to be able to handle a greater portion of a conversation before transitioning to the human agent. For example, in some embodiments, a conversation is marked with certain milestones that indicate progress of the conversation and the conversation bots are trained to maximize the number of milestones that are reached prior to transitioning a call to a human agent. Examples of milestones can include (but are not limited to, the collection of personal data, identification of a desired product and/or service, identification of interest level, and confirmation of payment information; Paragraph 0081, When the process determines to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process conducts (426) the call with an automated conversation bot before the process ends. In some embodiments, the process selects the conversation bot to which to transfer the conversation based on a number of criteria including but not limited to) a specified function to be performed by the conversation bot, an identity of the conversation bot that originated the conversation, and an identity of the human agent making the transfer. For example, in some embodiments, the process conducts the call with the same conversation bot, allowing for a continuity in the conversation so that the contact does not feel as though they are being passed around to many different individuals. In the example of this figure, a conversation is passed between a conversation bot and a human agent, but one skilled in the art will recognize that the transitions between the conversation bot and the human agent can occur in any order and may only be transferred in one direction, or may be transferred several times during the course of a conversation; Examiner notes that Abraham discloses “detecting completion” since it can transfer the conversation back to a human agent after determination that the fist user has provided personal information or payment information to the bot);
wherein the generating the signal further comprises: detect, using natural language processing (NLP), a word string within the communication session; determine call context between the first and second users based on the word string; automatically initiate the second operation after detecting that the first user agreed to provide confidential information based on the call context (Paragraph 0042, Referring back to FIG. 2, automated call management system 200 of several embodiments includes a personalized conversation bot system 220 that uses the trained personalized conversation bots to handle conversations with contacts prior to handing the conversations off to a human agent, or upon taking over a transferred conversation from the human agent. In the illustrated embodiment, personalized conversation bot system 220 includes conversation generator 222, agent voice module 224, conversation analyzer 226, and transition module 228; Paragraph 0047, The training module 230 of several embodiments trains and optimizes the personalized conversation bots to be able to handle a greater portion of a conversation before transitioning to the human agent. For example, in some embodiments, a conversation is marked with certain milestones that indicate progress of the conversation and the conversation bots are trained to maximize the number of milestones that are reached prior to transitioning a call to a human agent. Examples of milestones can include (but are not limited to, the collection of personal data, identification of a desired product and/or service, identification of interest level, and confirmation of payment information; Paragraph 0050, In several embodiments, the process analyzes conversation data in the form of audio recordings of calls between contacts, human agents and/or bots by converting the speech to text and performing any of a variety of natural language processing (NLP) methods on the converted text to extract various information about the conversation, including (but not limited to, meaning, mood, sentiment, information about the contact, sales lead qualification, a level of interest (e.g., in a product, service, or candidate), intent, or a need to speak with a human agent directly; Examiner interprets “transferring the call to a bot that collects personal information based on a specific intent” as “an indication that the user agreed to provide confidential information”); …
Abraham discloses to initiate a second operation for the first user in response to detecting an intent of the first user using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) tool in the workflow server (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information and/or confirming various agreements; Paragraph 0050, NLP to detect an intent). Although Abraham discloses wherein the first user may provider user specific information, Abraham does not specifically disclose how the first user is using a message interface for inputting user specific information (see Paragraph 0051 of Applicant’s specification, the message may include options for inputting PII data and other user specific information).
However, Corfield discloses wherein the second operation comprises: receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, generating a message …, modifying the message with the customer specific information, presenting the modified message to the first user; receiving and storing, using the workflow server, … the modified message was reviewed, generating, using the workflow server, a notification to the second user indicating that the message was received …, and documenting, using the workflow server, that the message was received … (Paragraph 0031, For example, the confidential processor may request a caller to input social security information (either spoken or DTMF) such that the confidential processor receives a spoken, for example, social security number consisting of an audio signal representative of 123-45-6789. The speech to text engine 410 would receive the audio signal and convert the audio signal to a data signal representative of 123456789 that is transmitted to the workstation for entry into the field; Paragraph 0032, The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. The alert may be provided by the agent or automated. For example, on activation of switch 310, or on receipt of the transferred call or audio at confidential processor 312, an automated message may be transmitted to the caller indicating that the call or audio is or has been transferred to a confidential processor. The call or audio is transferred to the confidential processor 506. Whether alerted, confidential processor 312 provides a request to the caller regarding what type of information is requested, step 508. The request, in most instances, will be a pre-recorded audio signal indicating the input type and information requested; The window may operate similar to a chat window, an instant messaging window, or the like. The customer would enter the information in the popped window using any conventional data entering mode including, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch screen, an optical pen, a speech to text engine, or the like. The data would be transferred to the confidential processor on the activation of for example, a “send' key or the like. In still other aspects of the technology, the confidential processor may receive input using text messaging or other short messaging system protocols. Optionally, the confidential processor would confirm the information, step 512. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation; Examiner notes that the message is modified with customer specific information provided by the customer. In this case, the customer specific information is the social security number. Applicant states, in Paragraph 0051, that the message may include options for inputting PII data and other user specific information. Based on broadest reasonable interpretation in light of the specification, Corfield discloses “modifying a message with the customer specific information” since the confidential processor includes options for inputting and displaying PII data to the first user); …
and provide the first user with a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation (Paragraph 0032, The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. The alert may be provided by the agent or automated. For example, on activation of switch 310, or on receipt of the transferred call or audio at confidential processor 312, an automated message may be transmitted to the caller indicating that the call or audio is or has been transferred to a confidential processor. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation; Examiner interprets “alerting a customer/caller that the call is being transferred to a confidential processor” as “providing the first user with a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation”).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information of the invention of Abraham to further specify wherein the step of collecting personal information includes a message for inputting user specific information and modifying the message with the user specific information of the invention of Corfield because doing so would allow the customer to provide confidential or sensitive data based on a signal indicating the input type and information requested (see Corfield, Paragraph 0032). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Abraham discloses to initiate a second operation for the first user in response to detecting an intent of the first user using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) tool in the workflow server (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information and/or confirming various agreements; Paragraph 0050, NLP to detect an intent). Corfield further discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information (Paragraph 0032, instant messaging window to collect confidential or sensitive information). Although the combination of Abraham and Corfield discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information, the combination of Abraham and Corfield does not specifically disclose wherein the message interface includes a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements (see Applicant’s specification, Paragraphs 0047 & 0050).
However, Gnanasambandam et al. discloses receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, generating a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements, modifying the message with the customer specific information, presenting the modified message to the first user, receiving and storing, using the workflow server, an acknowledgement from the first user that the modified message was reviewed, generating, using the workflow server, a notification to the second user indicating that the message was received and acknowledged by the first user in compliance with the set of one or more disclosure requirements, and documenting, using the workflow server, that the message was received and acknowledged by the first user in compliance with the set of one or more disclosure requirements (Paragraph 0149, Throughout the lifetime of a conversational stream, a cognitive agent 110 collect information over may channels such as chat, voice, specialized applications, web browsers, contact centers, and the like; Paragraph 0183, FIG. 6 shows a method, in accordance with various embodiments. The method is performed at a user device (e.g., the user device 102) and in particular, the method is performed by an application executing on the user device 102. The method begins with initiating a user registration process (block 602). The user registration can include tasks such as displaying a GUI asking the user to enter in personal information such as his name and contact information; Paragraph 0375, Some embodiments described herein may refer to receiving, processing, generating, and/or providing personal information of individuals. It should be understood that any use of the personal information may be subject to consent of the individuals and will be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information. As an example, consent of an individual may be obtained as part of an “opt-in” clause, as a prompt of a user registration screen, and/or the like. Furthermore, any use and/or transmission of the personal information may be secured via one or more encryption techniques or techniques to anonymize the personal information; Examiner interprets the “opt-in” as the “acknowledgement from the first user”).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information (e.g., by using a message interface) of the invention of Abraham and Corfield to further incorporate wherein the message is associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements of the invention of Gnanasambandam because doing so would allow the personal information of the user to be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information (see Gnanasambandam, Paragraph 0183). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Regarding claim 17 (Currently Amended), Abraham discloses a non-transitory computer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the processors to perform a method for managing third party applications on a computing apparatus, the method comprising (Paragraph 0037, In some embodiments, speech engine 240 is external to the system and uses a set of third party services, such as cloud services, that convert audio to text and/or perform the various NLP methods to analyze the converted text to provide additional information including (but not limited to) semantic metadata; Claim 13, A non-transitory machine readable medium including instructions that, when executed by a set of one or more processing units, causes the set of processing units to manage a call between a contact, a conversation bot, and a human agent by performing the following operations):
monitoring, by a workflow server, a communication session between first and second users (Paragraph 0046, In some embodiments, as personalized conversation bots conduct conversations with contacts, conversation analyzer 226 of the bot system 220 continuously monitors and analyzes the communications with the human contact. In some embodiments, conversation analyzer 226 analyzes communications between the human contact and the personalized conversation bot, as well as any conversations after it transitions to a human agent; Paragraph 0064, During the call, the process of many embodiments continually analyzes (414) the ongoing conversations between personalized conversation bots, human contacts, and human agents; Paragraph 0076, the process in accordance with several embodiments of the invention continues to monitor and analyze the call between the contact and the human agent);
performing, using the workflow server, a first operation during the communication session (Paragraph 0079; In certain embodiments, the supplemental data includes a script, or a list of suggested topics, for continuing the call with the client to allow the human agent time to get into the flow of the ongoing conversation. The script in accordance with a variety of embodiments includes various discounts and/or remedies that can be offered to the customer; Examiner interprets “offering discounts and/or remedies” as the “first operation”);
generating, based on the communication session by the workflow server, a signal (Paragraph 0080, The process in accordance with a number of embodiments of the invention determines (424) whether to transition the call to a conversation bot; Examiner interprets “when the transition criterion is satisfied” as the “signal”);
in response to generating the signal: stopping, using the workflow server, the first operation, disconnecting, using the workflow server, the first and second users, and initiating, using the workflow server, a second operation for the first user (Paragraph 0080, In some embodiments, conversation bots are used to conclude a transaction, allowing the human agent to move on to another call while the contact’s payment information (e.g., payment methods, preferred currency, payment schedules, etc.) is collected by the conversation bot; Paragraph 0081, When the process determines to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process conducts (426) the call with an automated conversation bot before the process ends. In some embodiments, the process selects the conversation bot to which to transfer the conversation based on a number of criteria including but not limited to) a specified function to be performed by the conversation bot, an identity of the conversation bot that originated the conversation, and an identity of the human agent making the transfer), wherein the second operation comprises: receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, … (Paragraph 0080, In some embodiments, conversation bots are used to conclude a transaction, allowing the human agent to move on to another call while the contact’s payment information (e.g., payment methods, preferred currency, payment schedules, etc.) is collected by the conversation bot. The conversation bots in accordance with a number of embodiments can also perform other functions, including but not limited to) closing out a bill, issuing refunds, modifying the contact's service plan, and confirming various agreements and/or appointments that were discussed during the conversation. When the process determines not to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process ends);
and in response to detecting a completion of the second operation: reconnecting, using the workflow server, the first and second users, and completing, using the workflow server, the first operation (Paragraph 0047, The training module 230 of several embodiments trains and optimizes the personalized conversation bots to be able to handle a greater portion of a conversation before transitioning to the human agent. For example, in some embodiments, a conversation is marked with certain milestones that indicate progress of the conversation and the conversation bots are trained to maximize the number of milestones that are reached prior to transitioning a call to a human agent. Examples of milestones can include (but are not limited to, the collection of personal data, identification of a desired product and/or service, identification of interest level, and confirmation of payment information; Paragraph 0081, When the process determines to transition the conversation to the conversation bot, the process conducts (426) the call with an automated conversation bot before the process ends. In some embodiments, the process selects the conversation bot to which to transfer the conversation based on a number of criteria including but not limited to) a specified function to be performed by the conversation bot, an identity of the conversation bot that originated the conversation, and an identity of the human agent making the transfer. For example, in some embodiments, the process conducts the call with the same conversation bot, allowing for a continuity in the conversation so that the contact does not feel as though they are being passed around to many different individuals. In the example of this figure, a conversation is passed between a conversation bot and a human agent, but one skilled in the art will recognize that the transitions between the conversation bot and the human agent can occur in any order and may only be transferred in one direction, or may be transferred several times during the course of a conversation; Examiner notes that Abraham discloses “detecting completion” since it can transfer the conversation back to a human agent after determination that the fist user has provided personal information or payment information to the bot);
wherein the generating the signal further comprises: detecting, using natural language processing (NLP) in the workflow server, a word string within the communication session; determining call context between the first and second users based on the word string; automatically initiating the second operation after detecting that the first user agreed to provide confidential information based on the call context (Paragraph 0042, Referring back to FIG. 2, automated call management system 200 of several embodiments includes a personalized conversation bot system 220 that uses the trained personalized conversation bots to handle conversations with contacts prior to handing the conversations off to a human agent, or upon taking over a transferred conversation from the human agent. In the illustrated embodiment, personalized conversation bot system 220 includes conversation generator 222, agent voice module 224, conversation analyzer 226, and transition module 228; Paragraph 0047, The training module 230 of several embodiments trains and optimizes the personalized conversation bots to be able to handle a greater portion of a conversation before transitioning to the human agent. For example, in some embodiments, a conversation is marked with certain milestones that indicate progress of the conversation and the conversation bots are trained to maximize the number of milestones that are reached prior to transitioning a call to a human agent. Examples of milestones can include (but are not limited to, the collection of personal data, identification of a desired product and/or service, identification of interest level, and confirmation of payment information; Paragraph 0050, In several embodiments, the process analyzes conversation data in the form of audio recordings of calls between contacts, human agents and/or bots by converting the speech to text and performing any of a variety of natural language processing (NLP) methods on the converted text to extract various information about the conversation, including (but not limited to, meaning, mood, sentiment, information about the contact, sales lead qualification, a level of interest (e.g., in a product, service, or candidate), intent, or a need to speak with a human agent directly; Examiner interprets “transferring the call to a bot that collects personal information based on a specific intent” as “an indication that the user agreed to provide confidential information”); …
Abraham discloses initiating a second operation for the first user in response to detecting an intent of the first user using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) tool in the workflow server (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information and/or confirming various agreements; Paragraph 0050, NLP to detect an intent). Although Abraham discloses wherein the first user may provider user specific information, Abraham does not specifically disclose how the first user is using a message interface for inputting user specific information (see Paragraph 0051 of Applicant’s specification, the message may include options for inputting PII data and other user specific information).
However, Corfield discloses wherein the second operation comprises: receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, generating, using the workflow server, a message …, modifying, using the workflow server, the message with the customer specific information, presenting, using the workflow server, the modified message to the first user; receiving and storing, using the workflow server, … the modified message was reviewed, generating, using the workflow server, a notification to the second user indicating that the message was received …, and documenting, using the workflow server, that the message was received … (Paragraph 0031, For example, the confidential processor may request a caller to input social security information (either spoken or DTMF) such that the confidential processor receives a spoken, for example, social security number consisting of an audio signal representative of 123-45-6789. The speech to text engine 410 would receive the audio signal and convert the audio signal to a data signal representative of 123456789 that is transmitted to the workstation for entry into the field; Paragraph 0032, The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. The alert may be provided by the agent or automated. For example, on activation of switch 310, or on receipt of the transferred call or audio at confidential processor 312, an automated message may be transmitted to the caller indicating that the call or audio is or has been transferred to a confidential processor. The call or audio is transferred to the confidential processor 506. Whether alerted, confidential processor 312 provides a request to the caller regarding what type of information is requested, step 508. The request, in most instances, will be a pre-recorded audio signal indicating the input type and information requested; The window may operate similar to a chat window, an instant messaging window, or the like. The customer would enter the information in the popped window using any conventional data entering mode including, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch screen, an optical pen, a speech to text engine, or the like. The data would be transferred to the confidential processor on the activation of for example, a “send' key or the like. In still other aspects of the technology, the confidential processor may receive input using text messaging or other short messaging system protocols. Optionally, the confidential processor would confirm the information, step 512. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation; Examiner notes that the message is modified with customer specific information provided by the customer. In this case, the customer specific information is the social security number. Applicant states, in Paragraph 0051, that the message may include options for inputting PII data and other user specific information. Based on broadest reasonable interpretation in light of the specification, Corfield discloses “modifying a message with the customer specific information” since the confidential processor includes options for inputting and displaying PII data to the first user); …
and providing the first user with a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation (Paragraph 0032, The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. The alert may be provided by the agent or automated. For example, on activation of switch 310, or on receipt of the transferred call or audio at confidential processor 312, an automated message may be transmitted to the caller indicating that the call or audio is or has been transferred to a confidential processor. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation; Examiner interprets “alerting a customer/caller that the call is being transferred to a confidential processor” as “providing the first user with a notification indicating the initiation of the second operation”).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information of the invention of Abraham to further specify wherein the step of collecting personal information includes a message for inputting user specific information and modifying the message with the user specific information of the invention of Corfield because doing so would allow the customer to provide confidential or sensitive data based on a signal indicating the input type and information requested (see Corfield, Paragraph 0032). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Abraham discloses initiating a second operation for the first user in response to detecting an intent of the first user using a Natural Language Processing (NLP) tool in the workflow server (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information and/or confirming various agreements; Paragraph 0050, NLP to detect an intent). Corfield further discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information (Paragraph 0032, instant messaging window to collect confidential or sensitive information). Although the combination of Abraham and Corfield discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information, the combination of Abraham and Corfield does not specifically disclose wherein the message interface includes a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements (see Applicant’s specification, Paragraphs 0047 & 0050).
However, Gnanasambandam et al. discloses receiving, using the workflow server, customer specific information of the first user, generating, using the workflow server, a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements, modifying, using the workflow server, the message with the customer specific information, presenting, using the workflow server, the modified message to the first user, receiving and storing, using the workflow server, an acknowledgement from the first user that the modified message was reviewed, generating, using the workflow server, a notification to the second user indicating that the message was received and acknowledged by the first user in compliance with the set of one or more disclosure requirements, and documenting, using the workflow server, that the message was received and acknowledged by the first user in compliance with the set of one or more disclosure requirements (Paragraph 0149, Throughout the lifetime of a conversational stream, a cognitive agent 110 collect information over may channels such as chat, voice, specialized applications, web browsers, contact centers, and the like; Paragraph 0183, FIG. 6 shows a method, in accordance with various embodiments. The method is performed at a user device (e.g., the user device 102) and in particular, the method is performed by an application executing on the user device 102. The method begins with initiating a user registration process (block 602). The user registration can include tasks such as displaying a GUI asking the user to enter in personal information such as his name and contact information; Paragraph 0375, Some embodiments described herein may refer to receiving, processing, generating, and/or providing personal information of individuals. It should be understood that any use of the personal information may be subject to consent of the individuals and will be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information. As an example, consent of an individual may be obtained as part of an “opt-in” clause, as a prompt of a user registration screen, and/or the like. Furthermore, any use and/or transmission of the personal information may be secured via one or more encryption techniques or techniques to anonymize the personal information; Examiner interprets the “opt-in” as the “acknowledgement from the first user”).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information (e.g., by using a message interface) of the invention of Abraham and Corfield to further incorporate wherein the message is associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements of the invention of Gnanasambandam because doing so would allow the personal information of the user to be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information (see Gnanasambandam, Paragraph 0183). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Regarding claims 3 and 11 (Original), which are dependent of claims 1 and 9, the combination of Abraham, Corfield, and Gnanasambandam et al. discloses all the limitations in claims 1 and 9. Although Abraham discloses a second operation performed by a conversation bot to collect information (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information), Abraham does not specifically disclose the options available to the first user for responding to the message.
However, Corfield discloses wherein: the second operation is a message output by the workflow server to the first user, the message providing options available to the first user for responding to the message; and the computer-implemented method further comprises: receiving a response from the first user corresponding to a selection of one of the provided options; and processing the response to determine a completion state of the second operation (Paragraph 0032, Referring now to FIG.5, a flowchart 500 is provided with an exemplary method of receiving information from a customer that is not displayed or recorded. While flowchart 500 is provided in certain discrete steps, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the steps identified may be broken into multiple steps or multiple steps in the flowchart may be combined into a single step. Moreover, the sequence of events provided by the flowchart may be altered or rear ranged without departing from the technology of the present application. With that in mind, flowchart 500 begins with a customer? caller 302 connected to an agent/CSR 304, step 502. The agent at some point during the call requires information from the caller that is confidential or sensitive. At this point, optionally, the caller is alerted that the call or audio is being transferred to a confidential processor to collect the information, step 504. Alternatively, the caller may be presented with a number of choices, such as, for example, press 1 for MasterCard, 2 for Discover, etc. Once requested, the confidential processor would receive the requested confidential information, step 510. In still other aspects of the technology, the confidential processor 312 may connect to the keyboard of the caller's computer or cause a user interface to display on a monitor/display associated with the calling device. Such as, for example, causing a keypad to display on a smartphone touch pad, etc. In still other aspects, the confidential processor may open a window in the caller's processing device, be it a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a smartphone, a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant, or the like. The window may operate similar to a chat window, an instant messaging window, or the like. The customer would enter the information in the popped window using any conventional data entering mode including, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch screen, an optical pen, a speech to text engine, or the like. The data would be transferred to the confidential processor on the activation of for example, a “send' key or the like. In still other aspects of the technology, the confidential processor may receive input using text messaging or other short messaging system protocols. Optionally, the confidential processor would confirm the information, step 512. Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information of the invention of Abraham to further incorporate specific options available to the user for responding to a message of the invention of Corfield because doing so would allow the method to receive input using text messaging or other short messaging system and transfer the caller back to the agent when all the required confidential information has been obtained (see Corfield, Paragraph 0032). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Regarding claims 5, 13, and 20 (Currently Amended), which are dependent of claims 2, 10, and 18, the combination of Abraham, Corfield, and Gnanasambandam et al. discloses all the limitations in claims 1, 9, and 17. Although Abraham discloses wherein the conversational bots can perform multiple functions (e.g. confirming various agreements) and receiving personal information (Paragraphs 0080-0081, collecting contact’s payment information) and Corfield discloses a message interface for inputting user specific information (Paragraph 0032, instant messaging window to collect confidential or sensitive information)., the combination of Abraham and Corfield does not specifically disclose wherein the message interface includes a message associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements (see Applicant’s specification, Paragraphs 0047 & 0050)..
However, Gnanasambandam et al. discloses wherein the one or more disclosure requirements is associated with a regulatory requirement (Paragraph 0375, Some embodiments described herein may refer to receiving, processing, generating, and/or providing personal information of individuals. It should be understood that any use of the personal information may be subject to consent of the individuals and will be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information. As an example, consent of an individual may be obtained as part of an “opt-in” clause, as a prompt of a user registration screen, and/or the like. Furthermore, any use and/or transmission of the personal information may be secured via one or more encryption techniques or techniques to anonymize the personal information).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information (e.g., by using a message interface) of the invention of Abraham and Corfield to further incorporate wherein the message is associated with a set of one or more disclosure requirements of the invention of Gnanasambandam because doing so would allow the personal information of the user to be used in a manner that is compliant with applicable laws concerning protection and/or use of personal information (see Gnanasambandam, Paragraph 0183). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Regarding claims 7 and 15 (Original), which are dependent of claims 1 and 9, the combination of Abraham, Corfield, and Gnanasambandam et al. discloses all the limitations in claims 1 and 9. Abraham further discloses wherein the second operation comprises capturing personal data of the first user or initiating a second communication session with a third user (Paragraph 0025, In some embodiments, the automated call management system 122 provides conversation support by allowing the human agent to transfer the call back to a conversation bot to perform various functions to conclude a call, such as (but not limited to collecting payment information, scheduling an appointment, and modifying service levels for the contact; It can be noted that the claim language is written in alternative form. The limitation taught by Abraham is based on “capturing personal data of the first user").
Regarding claims 8 and 16 (Original), which are dependent of claims 1 and 9, the combination of Abraham, Corfield, and Gnanasambandam et al. discloses all the limitations in claims 1 and 9. Abraham further discloses collecting confidential information from the first user during the second operation (Paragraphs 0030 & 0080, collect personal information, collect contact’s payment information). Although Abraham discloses collecting confidential information from the first user during the second operation, Abraham et al. does not specifically disclose restricting access of the collected information during completion of the first operation.
However, Corfield discloses collecting confidential information from the first user during the second operation; and restricting access of the collected information during completion of the first operation (Paragraph 0032, Next, it would be determined whether all the confidential information required has been obtained, step 514. If all the required confidential information has been obtained, the caller is transferred back to the agent and the confidential data is transferred to the CRM, step 516. The caller is transferred by either transferring the call back to the CSR or directing the audio back to the CSR. The confidential data may be stored and transmitted when it is all collected or the confidential data may be transmitted on receipt or after confirmation. The confidential data may be transferred through the data configuration module 318 to make sure the confidential data is not displayed to the agent. Alternatively, the CRM may already be configured to receive data as confidential. If all the confidential information has not been received, control returns to step 508 and the confidential processor requests the next portion of confidential information. As mentioned above, if the audio recording for quality assurance was paused when the call was transferred, a resume signal may be sent to resume the recording. However, the recording, whether paused or not, did not record any of the confidential information as the call was transferred from the agent during the gathering of the confidential information; Examiner notes that Corfield is restricting access of the collected information since the confidential data is not displayed to the agent).
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the method for monitoring a first operation and a second operation, wherein the second operation is performed by a conversational bot to collect personal information of the invention of Abraham to further specify wherein the access of the personal data collected is restricted of the invention of Corfield because doing so would allow the method to avoid inadvertent disclosure or confidential, sensitive, or protected information from a customer (see Corfield, Paragraphs 0008-0009). Further, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in combination each element would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
Mathis et al. (US 10,755,269 B1) – discloses a secure payment agent assist (“SPAA”) feature provides assistance to a contact center agent during a payment transaction, where payment information provided by the remote party is maintained in secure manner, so that the agent is not exposed to the payment information (see Abstract).
Lee Yong (KR-102262035-B1) – discloses a system that can share responsibility for using personal information-based services with the Trust Provider is required. It is assumed that the user is already subscribed to the Trust Provider service. ① The user requests the Privacy Consumer to sign up for membership in order to use the service. When a member registration is requested, a pair key is created for the user. ② Privacy Consumer requests the user to agree to the terms and conditions for the use of personal information. If Block ID has been previously registered, include it in the consent request. ③ The user confirms the contents of consent for the use of personal information processing and sends the signature to the Privacy Consumer to prove that the user has acknowledged the terms and conditions. ④ The Privacy Consumer confirms the agreement to the terms and conditions received from the user and encrypts it using a block key. It transmits the value to the Trust Provider and requests to store the consent details on the blockchain. ⑤ The Trust Provider returns the stored Block ID to the Privacy Consumer. ⑥ In Privacy Consumer, after encrypting the block key used for encryption with the user's public key, the user goes through the process of reconfirming the agreed upon stored information (Pages 5-6).
Csabi et al. (US 11,810,042 B1) – discloses improved systems and methods for efficiently and effectively determining disclosure statements to be provided to the customer based on the context of the conversation may be beneficial (see at least Column 1, lines 28-46).
Erez et al. (US 11,343,346 B1) – discloses wherein the enforcement of existing regulations of Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) may require stopping the recording of audio and video of one of the interactions that the agent is handling, due to sensitive data disclosure (Column 1, lines 54-64).
Thomson et al. (US 2019/0013038 A1) – discloses a real-time redactor, wherein the real-time redactor 110 may use automatic speech recognition (ASR) to identify the content of caller or agent audio and may use natural language processing (NLP) to classify the intent, purpose, or meaning of the identified content. That is, the real-time redactor 110 uses ASR and NLP together to interpret what a caller says and wants. In one example, the ASR may recognize a credit card number, prompting the real-time redactor 110 to send a redaction control signal 230 to the ingress media gateway 105 and to send the digits of the card number to the SPI collector 120 (see at least Paragraph 0039).
Hasal (Hasal, M., Nowaková, J., Ahmed Saghair, K., Abdulla, H., Snášel, V. and Ogiela, L., 2021. Chatbots: Security, privacy, data protection, and social aspects. Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience, 33(19), p.e6426. (Year: 2021)) – discloses a summary of all the security aspects concerning communication with chatbots. It provides a literature review describing important steps in chatbot design techniques with respect to chatbot security. The paper also defines the security threats and vulnerabilities; it describes in detail methods which should be adopted to have a safe chatbot platform. In summary, communication via chatbots does not present security issues that have not already been discovered and properly mitigated earlier. The main concerns are rather about the user’s data stored on the backend side and its usage, as chatbots generate enormous amount of data about user (see at least Page 12, Conclusion).
Channakeshava (US 10,728,384 B1) – discloses with the present disclosure, customer intents are defined that represent categories of sensitive information about the customer. For example, an intent may be “Provide credit card number.” The customer intents are defined by keywords, which may include n-grams, words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, and other keywords that define a customer's intent. For example, some keywords may be “American Express,” “Visa,” “MasterCard,” and other keywords that indicate an intent to provide a credit card number. The technical solution includes recording a voice conversation between a call center agent and a customer, in which the voice conversation contains at least one of the keywords. The recording of the voice conversation is transcribed into text. When a customer verbally provides the call center agent with sensitive information, the sensitive information is detected from the transcribed voice conversation based on at least one keyword of the transcription, in which the keyword defines an intent. Upon detection of the sensitive information, the sensitive information is automatically redacted from the audio file of the call recording (see at least Column 2, lines 62-67).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MARJORIE PUJOLS-CRUZ whose telephone number is (571)272-4668. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thru 7:30 AM - 5:00 PM.
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/MARJORIE PUJOLS-CRUZ/Examiner, Art Unit 3624
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