IVR Script Builder Tool Overview (Page 2 of 3)

The Interactive Voice response Script Builder Tool shown above presents a graphical user interface that is split into two halves.

The left-hand side of the tool is a window that represents a tree structure of the Interactive Response being constructed. A tree structure is built up from a series of ACTION NODES and RESPONSE NODES. Think of an Action as something that the CallHandler does, and a Response as something that the CallHandler is waiting for the Caller to do.

The right-hand side of the window displays the current parameter details of the tree node that is presently highlighted.

The process of creating a script is first to create the graphical representation using the tree structure, which creates a sequence of ACTION and RESPONSE NODES, and then to export this to XML format into a suitable directory. The Interactive Voice Response Service Module then interprets the XML script file to cause the CallHandler to respond in the desired manner.

All scripts start with a descriptive ROOT NODE, which comprise of the script name, date, version, author and developer notes, which may all be manually edited by the developer. (See diagram above)

An important concept is that the script is built with a combination of Action and Response Nodes, which are dragged and dropped from the floating toolbar into the script window, or into the relevant areas on the right-hand side of the tool window. Each Node can contain a mixture of Action, Response or Services, represented by plug-in modules within the system. It is these plug-in modules that actually create and perform the desired functionality within the system. These Nodes lead to other Action and Response Nodes. Objects represent Service Modules which can either be those included as standard with the CallHandler, such as play voice etc, or Custom Service Modules which can be created by the user.

Simply put, the tree structure is composed of Action Items (CallHandler does something) followed by a Response by the Caller (the incoming caller does something), followed if necessary by an Action Item, followed by a Response Item, etc, etc until the desired result is obtained and the call is ultimately passed to a service, which terminates the call, or it can be ended by the end call ACTION OBJECT. The path a call takes through the Tree structure of the Script defines its interactivity. The design process Requires the inclusion of all possible responses, and that ultimately the CallHandler clears the line.