Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A Modular, Convergent Customer Care
And Billing System
Cross Reference to Related Application
This application is related to and claims priority to U.S.
provisional application serial number 60/094,459, filed July 29, 1998,
entitled
Component Based-Object Oriented Convergent Customer Care And Billing
System by Hohmann et. al. and which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a customer care and billing
system which is capable of providing billing related information to customers
for all of a customers electronic transmissions and, more particularly, to a
system of functionally complete components that can stand alone or be
integrated together and which aggregates all of the telecommunication
services, of a customer into a single genus of electronic transmissions having
species associated with the type of electronic transmission, such as wireless:
zo
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Description of the Related Art
PCT/US99/16445
The telecommunications market has evolved significantly over
the last 15 years. The two most significant differences are: deregulation and
product availability.
Prior to 1984, the telecommunications industry was a
government-regulated industry. The government regulated everything from
the services a telecommunications provider could offer to the pmfit margin
allowed for each service. Customer service was not important, because
customers did not have an alternative. AT&T ruled the telecommunications
industry.
In terms of availability, telecommunications was very simple.
The concepts of wireless telephones, pagers, and the Internet were either not
yet founded or founded but not available to the public.
Beginning in 1984, with the divestiture of AT&T, competition
in telecommunications became available. Competitors used price as a
differentiator, because pmfit margins were very high, and they could sacrifice
some of this margin for the purposes of attracting more customers.
Today's market is completely different and continues to
evolve. The successful provider for tomorrow's market will face full
competition throughout the industry at every level. Today's
Telecommunications Provider may offer: wireline, wireless, local, long
distance, voice/data, cable, Internet access, entertainment, and potentially
utilities such as electric or water. Government involvement is currently
limited to only ensuring that competition is promoted, forcing incumbents to
open up their markets. Competition has driven prices down to the point that
competitor prices are very similar. Price is no longer a differentiator.
Instead, customer service and billing options have become the primary
differentiators in the marketplace.
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In the past, customers typically received multiple bills for the
different types of service they owned: wireline, wireless, pager, etc. This
occurred because the company was setup to match the lines of business. The
customer care and billing system for wireline service was completely separate
S from that for wireless service. In some cases, innovative providers added
new processes to combine the end results of their separate billing streams, so
that a customer could receive a single bill across these services. However,
this process simply bmught together the end result, preventing the provider
from offering cross-service discounts.
The customer information was also maintained in separate
systems, based on the line of business. Customer service representatives
(CSRs) were assigned to a single system. Because of this, a single CSR
could not see all of the customer's subscribed services. Customers with
questions pertaining to services across business lines were handed from one
CSR to another, resulting in dissatisfied customers.
To remain competitive, providers are forced to address
customer needs immediately, including the ability to:
introduce new products quickly, sometimes in a matter of days;
provide a single customer view;
pmvide flexible bill formats that meet each customer's unique requirements;
bundle services so that mufti-service price breaks are available;
combine charges from multiple customers or accounts for volume discounts;
and
schedule service calls to meet the customer's schedule.
What is needed is the next generation Customer Care & Billing platform
designed to meet tomorrow's needs of tomorrow's providers Four terms stand
out that define the needs of such a system.
Next generation - From a technical standpoint, what is needed
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is the use of technologies to enable maximum performance while enhancing
inter-operability and modularity.
Customer Care & Billing platform - This term in the past has
been loosely used to define any solution that addresses Customer Care and
Billing to some degree. For the purposes of this discussion the definition is:
Customer Care: The process in which a Telecommunications
Provider interacts with a customer on an ordering and
provisioning, customer service and support, and financial
basis. In the Telecommunications Industry, Customer Care is
broken into many sub-processes including:
Customer Account Management
Service Order Processing
Billing
Customer service and inquiry support
Phone Number Inventory Management
Directory Assistance
Collections and Treatment Processing
Marketing
Commissions Management
Other customer/Telecommunications Provider
interaction related processes.
Billing: As one large component of Customer Care, in the
broadest sense, Bilfing provides for the not only a majority of
the financial aspects of the Telecommunications Provider-
customer relationship, but as a periodic communications
mechanism that can support other interests such as marketing.
As an independent process, billing provides for the collection,
rating, tabulation and formatting of product data and
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respective charges to be distributed from a
Telecommunications Provider to a customer. Sub-processes
include:
Message (Call Detail Records) Collection and
Accounting
Usage Qualification, Processing, Rating, and Pricing
Taxing
Bill Calculation
Third Party Usage
Bill Formatting
Payments and Adjustments
Balance Management Account Management and
Maintenance
Bill Printing, Production, and Distribution (Mailing,
Electronic Delivery, etc.)
Tomorrow's Needs - In the past, Telecommunications
Providers provided a service in a non-competitive market; there was no need
to provide high levels of customer service. As each market begins to open up
to competition, it is no longer satisfactory to ignore the customer.
Telecommunications Providers need systems which help them
reduce time to market (via a resilient, flexible product model), identify
valuable customers (via customer historical information), meet customer
requests (via flexible pricing and billing schemes), determine cost-effective
marketing strategies (via demographics and preferences), and generate timely
information (via on-demand pricing and billing).
In addition to telecommunications evolution, the market itself
is evolving. The concept of global Telecommunications Providers are
becoming a reality, spawning new requirements such as multiple language
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support, multiple currency support and conversion, and multiple format (e.g.,
dates) support. Outside forces also drive tomorrow's needs. Any viable
solution must address the year 2000 and its implications to systems..
Tomorrow's Telecommunications Providers - Everyday, new
alliances and take-ovens occur. Tomorrow's Telecommunications Provider is
not simply a telephone company, a cable company, an information provider,
or an Internet provider, but a combination of some or all of these. Because of
this, tomorrow's systems cannot be tailored towards any one specific industry
but must be able to accommodate the nuances of each of the various
industries in a single solution. The invention has been designed with this
foresight in mind. No concentration on a single industry; no blinders to any
industry. The focus is on a single, integrated solution that can be easily
implemented by any Telecommunications Provider.
Due to the ever-evolving nature of telecommunuications, the
customer care and billing solutions must continue to evolve. The key
concepts which need to be provided to differentiate from and improve over
past and existing products are: convergence and modularity.
Convergence - Convergence enables a system to be the single
customer care and billing system for any telecommunications provider. All
services can be defined and offered to customers, regardless of line of
business: wireline, wireless, Internet, cable, or entertainment. All services
are
maintained in a single customer database, proving a single customer view to
CSRs. All of the services can be brought together into a single pricing plan
to promote volume discounts across services. A single bill can be created
which depicts all charges for these services, including cross-service
discounting. The key here is that the bill is truly converged, not simply
produced by consolidating the output of multiple systems (also known as
"consolidated billing" or "electronic stapling").
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Modularity - Modularity allows a set of individual modules to
be implemented individually or in combination. This modular approach
needs to be taken to address provider need. Each provider will have unique
requirements for a solution. Some will require a complete make-over, while
others require update of only a portion of their existing processes. A modular
design enables each component to be sold separately to meet each provider's
needs. The cost of a large-scale customer care and billing system can be
prohibitive to some providers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a customer
care and billing system that is modular.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a
system that is convergent.
The above objects can be attained by a system that includes a
set components that can offer a complete solution to a client or can be
partitioned to offer solutions to specific areas. The components are modular.
The components are independent and integrated containing all the necessary
processes and inputs and outputs to function independently. The components
can also be integrated together into a system where the components work
together. The set of components are also convergent by allowing all services
to be provided and viewed via a single interface through a single consolidated
customer database independent of the type of services) being provided to a
customer.
These together with other objects and advantages which will
be subsequently apparent, reside in the details of construction and operation
as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the
accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to
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like parts throughout.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 depicts the components of the system of the present
S invention.
Figures 2-5 illustrate various component combinations.
Figure 6 illustrates convergence.
Figures 7-9 depict object models.
Figure 10 shows customer care manager functions.
Figures 1 I and 12 show interface screens.
Figure 13 illustrates product and service manager functions.
Figures 14 and 15 illustrate interface screens.
Figure 16 shows event cater and pricer function.
Figure 17 depicts ERP processes.
Figure 18 illustrates customer billing manager functions.
Figure 19 depicts CBM processes.
Figures 20 and 21 show interface screens.
Figure 23 illustrates software layers.
Figure 24 shows software organization.
Figure 25 depicts on-line processing framework.
Figure 26 illustrates a sample object.
Figure 27 depicts batch architecture.
Figure 28 shows the major types of inter-process and data
access communications that occur within the invention.
Figure 29 illustrates a data maintenance and access
mechanism.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
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The present invention includes a set of components that can
offer a complete solution to a client or can be partitioned to offer solutions
to
specific areas. As depicted in figure 1, a typical system 10 of the present
invention preferably comprises several components. 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, and
22, as discussed in more detail below, which interact with network elements
28, a database server 29 and a hill generation system 30. Of course,
additional components can be added in the future. This section provides a
high level overview of each component in the Customer Care and Billing
solution of the invention. Detailed descriptions and further details of each
component can be found later herein.
Customer Care Manager (CCM) 12 provides proactive
customer support. CCM 12 provides a flexible graphical user interface (GUI)
customer service front-end system to use during customer acquisition,
customer establishment, and customer maintenance. Its enhanced
functionality provides both standard and advanced customer care functions.
CCM 12 provides a complete view of a customer's products and discount
plans across markets. CCM 12 interacts with external organizations (for
instance, credit checking), providing advanced features to additionally
support scripting and validations. With CCM's user interface, customer
service representatives can spend more time focusing on the customer and
less time on manual and redundant tasks. New products, new customer types,
and new customer care management strategies can be quickly implemented,
thereby reducing the time to market for such changes. Customer specific
information in the invention is extensive, and goes well beyond that of
traditional Customer Care & Billing systems. Examples of customer specific
information are as follows: name, address, roles (e.g., invoice recipient,
invoice payer, guarantor, legal entity), customer hierarchies, contacts,
accounts, account hierarchies, service numbers, demographic information,
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preferences - such as language, geographic information, marketing
information, internal and external credit scores, credit class, subscribed
products, invoice formats, statement formats, bill messages, contracts, and
guiding information - identifies the invoice and account on which each
individual charge should appear. In addition to providing maintenance of this
information, CCM 12 provides a forecasting mechanism which recommends
products and price plans for customers.
The Products and Service Manager (PSM) 14 supports both
the maintenance of reference data for products, services, and price plans.
PSM 14 provides a graphical user interface that allows the user to n~pidly
define new products, services, and price plans, and easily maintain the
existing reference data. PSM 14 offers a substantially reduced time-to-
market for new products, services and price plans. A salable item is defined
as either a product or a package, where a package is a combination of
products and/or packages. The package concept allows Telecommunications
Providers to bundle services in a manner that suits their needs. PSM 14 does
not limit functionality based on product, as ail products are defined in a
similar manner. Because of this, wireless and wire-line products can be
combined into a single package.
The Event Rater and Pricer (ERP) 16 provides convergent near
real-time message processing. functionality for usage and non-usage events.
The rating is considered near real-time since it is performed as soon as the
batch file with events is received from the network elements 28. Possible
examples of a network element 28 are a switch, a router or another service
system. ERP 16 accepts and processes network and non-network events to
produce bill-ready events that can be processed by CBM (Customer Billing
Manager -18) to generate bills and reports. ERP 16 actively collects raw
events fibm different network elements 28 and also processes input from
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other external entities and subsystems of the Customer Care and Billing
System, for example, the Debit Card Center. The collected events are
formatted, validated, assembled and checked for duplicates. After the events
are rated and summarized, they are stored as events in the database server 29.
ERP 16 also generates recun~ing and non-recurring charges, performs taxing,
and performs final pricing of events (for example, discounting} as part of the
bill day process. The billable events in the database are accessible for
billing
and can also be retrieved by CCM (Customer Care Manager) 12 to answer
customer queries. ERP 16 fully supports convergence and net taxing,
provides flexible near-real time rating and pricing, allows flexible
definition
of tariff models and price plans, allows flexible definition of usage record
formats and it provides for effective-dating of customer and reference data.
The Customer Bill Manager (CBM) 18 is the billing engine
and interfaces with bill generation 30. CBM 18 expects bill ready events as
input. As defined in the customer database, CBM 18 determines the order
(e.g., international calls after local calls, recurring charges before local
call
charges) and manner is which the events should be placed on the invoice
(e.g., in detail, summarized). CBM 18 further supports the production of
documents including bills, contracts, dunning letters, balance Letters,
welcome Letters and tariff letters. CBM 18 is responsible for triggering the
cycle, collecting data, formatting it and then providing to the appropriate
media. CBM 18 provides a robust and user-friendly means for creating
documents. It is very rich in functionality and new documents can be quickly
and easily implemented. Document verification is provided so that selected
documents can be verified prior to sending the mass batch of documents.
Convergence is also fully supported where one document can include cross-
market services.
Order Processing (OP) 22 provides active order processing,
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order management and service activation across a convergent platform. OP
22 accepts requests for work as input. The work request is analyzed to
determine the tasks required to complete the request, as well as all
scheduling
dependencies that are required. The result is a workflow, identifying the
proper order in which tasks must be completed, the estimated time required to
perform a task, and the type of resources) required for each task. OP 22
actively monitors each task, generating alarms for potential error conditions,
such as tasks failing to start or finish at their scheduled time. OP 22
completely automates order scheduling and processing. This eliminates time-
consuming eaors due to missed steps and improper work implementations,
freeing valuable resources to perform other value-added functions. If a
customer purchases a product that requires activation, for example a new
phone line or call waiting, CCM 12 passes this request to OP 22, which
determines whether the feature can be activated automatically on the network
element 28, or whether workforce intervention is needed. Assuming
automatic activation is possible, the OP 22 subsystem translates the request
to
the low level activation request for the network element 28. Once OP 22
received the response from the network element, OP 22 informs CCM 12 of
the success/failure of the service activation. If automatic activation is not
possible - i.e. an order requires tasks to be done by workforce -
sophisticated
scheduling and optimization take place, where both the elapsed time to fulfill
the order and workforce utilization are optimized, such that the schedule has
the shortest possible critical path, and the workforce has minimal or no
"gaps" in their schedule.
The Financial Event Engine {FEE) 20 is an event processor
that accepts, applies, assesses the impact of, and follows up on customer
financial transactions. FEE 20 processes debit transactions, typically charge
transactions, which result from the purchase and use of products by
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customers. FEE 20 also processes credit transactions, including payments,
~J~~~ts~ and refimds. FEE 20 is able to process many types of media,
from cash and checks to money orders and electronic transfers. FEE 20 uses
internal rules to determine the event's transactions type (e.g. remittance,
discount, etc.), the account )D to determine the correct customer account
balance, and the internal rules to determine the impact of the event on the
customer's account balance. FEE 20 also updates the provides General
Ledger from the account balance. Finally, FEE 20 triggers follow up events
appropriate to the accepted financial transaction such as sending invoice
information to the accounting system at the end of the invoice cycle.
Experience has shown that several proven conventional products exist {such
as SAP and Oracle Financials) that are quite sufficient at fulfilling this
function. Additionally, each client may have a preference to the financial
engine used. A third party financial engine can be provided for this
component
The invention is a Customer Care and Billing {CCB) solution,
providing convergent and modular functionality, real-time information,
drastically shortened time to market, and a flexible architecture.
The invention is a comprehensive solution to meet the
functional and technical requirements facing Telecommunication Providers.
This will enable a provider to implement a customer care and billing solution
that has the sophistication, flexibility, robust functionality and high
performance that is essential to compete successfully in a deregulated market.
The discussion of the invention divided into two sections:
functional and technical.
Functional Description
The functional architecture of the invention is built on a
combination components. Table 1 below provides a high level cmss-
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reference of each component and the functional areas.
Table 1
Component Cross-Reference
AMS Application Name Functional Areas Components
Customer Care Manager ~ Customer Care Management
(CCM) ~ Customer Care Support
Order Processing (OP) ~ Task Management
~ Order Processing
~ Service Activation
Event Rater and Pricer ~ Message Processing
(~) o Event rating and pricing
Customer Billing Manager~ Invoice Cycle Management
(CBM) ~ Document Approval Process
~ External Interfaces
~ Document Formatting
Financial Event Engine ~ Payment Processing
(FEE) ~ Adjustments and OCCs Management
~ Write-offs
~ Accounting Interfaces
Product and Services ~ Creation and Management
of
Manager Products and Services
o Standard tariff management
~ Management of pricing plans
The invention considers modularity to be the segregation of
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business system functionality into functionally complete components that
can be implemented either together as a total solution, individually to
address specific needs, or in some combination. The key is to ensure that
each component is an independent and self-contained unit, which by itself'
completely performs some set of functions. Because each component must
also enable ease of integration with legacy systems, standardized interfaces
are provided for each component, where the interface includes all
information that is needed by the sending and receiving system. All
interfaces are built into the invention object model as separate objects.
The following scenarios depict the modular capabilities of the
invention, highlighting the ease of integration with other invention
components or legacy systems.
Modularity Scenario 1
Rating and Billing Engine Only
In this scenario, a potential client feels that their Operating
Support Services (OSS) topology is sufEcient in most areas, with the
exception of rating and billing. The client requests a replacement system
that will allow them to implement a robust rating engine and bill generation
process, while still maintaining their existing systems for customer care,
financials management, order processing, and network access. Figure 2
illustrates the components used.
The diagram illustrates the integration of the ERP 16, CBM
18, and PSM 14 components of the invention with the client's
existing/legacy components. In this integration the PSM 14 becomes the
single product catalog for the customer, maintaining products and price
plans in the Product Database. The legacy customer care system 30
interfaces with the Product and Service Manager via the standardized PSM
interface to present product information to the end user. The ERP 16
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accepts billable events, and determines rating and discounting plans based
on the subscriptions in the legacy customer database. The CBM 18 creates
invoices for the customer based on the billable events collects and priced by
ERP 16. Additional product information is taken from the PSM 14. The
CBM 18 communicates billed charges to the legacy financial engine 32 via
the standardized CBM interface. The CBM 18 communicates invoice
formats to the bill production devices via standardized CBM interfaces.
Modularity Scenario 2
Rating Engine Only
In this scenario, a potential client feels that their OSS
topology is sufficient in most areas, with the exception of rating. 'this
situation occurs firequently with the rise of convergent price plans. The
client requests a replacement system that will allow them to implement a
robust rating engine, while still maintaining their existing systems for
customer care, billing, financials management, order processing, and
network access. Figure 3 illustrates the components used.
Figure 3 illustrates the integration of the ERP 16 and PSM I4
components of the invention with the client's legacy components. The PSM
14 becomes the single product catalog for the customer, maintaining
products and price plans in the Product Database of the server. The legacy
Customer Care system 30 interfaces with the Product and Service Manager
14 via the standardized PSM interface to present product information to the
end user. The ERP 16 accepts billable events, and determines rating and
discounting plans based on the subscriptions in the legacy Customer
database. At bill time, the ERP 16 sends billable events to the legacy Bill
Generation process via the standardized ERP interface. The legacy Billing
Generation process receives additional product information from the PSM
14. The legacy Billing Generation process communicates billed charges to
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the legacy Financial Engine via legacy interfaces.
Modularity Scenario 3
Customer Care Only
In this scenario, a potential client feels that their OSS
topology is sufficient in most areas, with the exception of Customer Care.
This situation will become more prevalent with the rise of customer self-care
- the ability for customers to access and maintain their own information via
the Internet. The client requests a replacement system that will allow them
to implement a robust customer care process, while still maintaining their
existing systems for rating, billing, financials management, order
processing, and network access. Figure 4 illustrates the components used.
Figure 4 illustrates the integration of the CCM 12 component
of the invention with the client's legacy components. CCM 12 becomes the
single customer care facility for all or a specific sub-set of customers. The
CCM 12 interfaces with the legacy Product Management system 36 via the
standardized CCM 12 interface to present product information to the end
user. Order management is performed by the legacy order management
system 41, which communicates with CCM IZ via standardized interfaces.
The CCM 12 communicates customer subscription information to the legacy
Rating system 38 via standardized CCM 12 interface. The CCM 12 accepts
balance updates from the legacy Financial system 40 via standardized CCM
interfaces.
Modularity Scenario 4
Billing and Order Management Only
In this scenario, a potential client feels that their OSS
topology is sufficient in most areas, with the exception of Billing and Order
Management. This situation is uncommon, but presented to highlight the
modularity of disparate invention components. The client requests a
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replacement system that will allow them to implement a robust billing and
order management processes, while still maintaining their existing systems
for customer care, rating, financials management, order processing, and
network access. Figure 5 illustrates the components of the invention used.
The diagram illustrates the integration of the ERP 16 and OP
22 components of the invention with the client's legacy components The
two integrated invention components 18 and 22 are not directly integrated
with each other. However, due to standardized interfaces, both components
continue to function as expected. The CBM 18 becomes the billing engine
for all or a specific sub-set of customers or products. The CBM 18 accepts
billable events from the legacy Rating engine 42 via the standardized CCM
interface to produce invoices. The CBM 18 communicates billed charges to
the legacy Financial Engine 44 via the standardized CBM interface. The
CBM 18 communicates invoice formats to the bill production devices via
standardized CBM interfaces. Order management is performed by OP 22,
which communicates with the legacy Customer Care system 46 via
standardized interfaces. The OP 22 communicates network requests to the
network elements 28 via the service activation software interface.
The present invention also provides convergence of the
services provided providing a single customer view to CSRs such that all of
the services can be brought, together into a single pricing plan.
Convergence in the simplest forth is the merging of the
wireline and wireless worlds. This is the definition many companies use. In
complex form, convergence implies the simplification of all
telecommunications services to their root - electronic h~ansmissions. A
voice wireline telephone call looks identical to a wireless data transmission,
which looks identical to both a request to load a new Web page or a request
for a pay-per-view movie on cable TV. They are all simply electronic
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transmissions. The invention provides the complex form of convergence as
depicted in figure 6. The invention is not simply designed to concurrently
process wireline and wireless transactions. The invention processes any
type of transaction related to telecommunications, and addresses full
convergence, where a single customer can subscribe to wireline, wireless,
Internet, entertainment, and cable service. The transactions for each of these
different types of service are processed in a similar manner, enabling a
single view for this customer, cross product discounting across all services,
and the generation of a single invoice for all of these services.
Additionally, the present invention's definition of
convergence enables a client to bring together all charges for a customer,
regardless of whether the charge is recanting, non-recurring, or usage. For
example, a customer can receive a single invoice for local recurring charges,
Internet access recurring charges, pager usage, the initial sale of the pager,
as well as the credit received from an airline frequent flyer program.
The key to the invention's convergence is not only that it
supports all known types of telecommunications, but in its inherent design
which was constructed to easily adopt to new types of telecommunications
as well. Typical object models depict the business objects and relationships
that support the company; the invention object model reflects abstracted
concepts which are focused towards processing, rather than their real-world
business counter parts. The business concepts are fully supported by the
invention objects, but they are supported by the information contained in the
objects rather than the objects themselves.
Convergence is evident in every component of the invention,
with the existence of a single processing thread evident in each. The
following scenarios illustrate the invention's support of convergence in four
areas: product, customer, price plan, and billing. For each scenario, the
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following information is provided:
Convergence Description - not simply a definition of convergence, but the
meaning of convergence in the context of the scenario
Object Model - a complete object model for the subject area is presented; the
central objects) supporting convergence is discussed
Processing - the effects on processing are noted; convergence is driven by
the definition of the objects; since processing is driven by the objects,
processing convergence follows the obj ect convergence.
Convergence Scenario 1
Product convergence
Product convergence is the fundamental point from which
convergence in a billing system grows. The invention views products
in-especdve of their transmission method or protocol. For example, long
distance service is simply long distance service. Whether the long distance
call is carried over a wireline phone, a wireless phone, or even an IP network
is irrelevant from the standpoint of product definition.
Object Model
At the heart of the object model 60, as depicted in figure 7, is
a single object called Product 62. This object is used to define all products
a
telecommunications provider offers, regardless of transmission method or
protocol. Because of this, the object model does not represent the specific
products offered. The Product object, in associated with the other objects, is
an abstracted view of all objects. In the case outlined in the previous
paragraph fox long distance service, long distance is represented once as a
product, and then grouped into different product groups {i.e., wireline,
wireless, IP). Again, the object model does not represent the products
offered, but provides a convergent method in which to represent all products
in a common manner.
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The Product Version object 64 represents the history or the
product. For example, a product name may change over time, but the
inherent product remains the same. The Product Version enables a provider
to track changes for a product, without having to create new products.
S The remaining question is: "How are rates varied?" The
Pricing Structure object 66 maintains the rating information for each
product, and is related to a specific product version. Each Product Version
can have multiple Pricing Structures, so that different prices can be
established based on service type (e.g., wireline vs. wireless), customer type
(e.g., business vs. residential), or customer specific (e.g., ACME
Corporation has a unique set of rates that they have negotiated).
Processing
Product processing is simplified due to the simplified object
model. Product maintenance involves defining new products and modifying
existing products (including product retirement). Because all products are
represented in a similar manner, only one processing stream exists. The
differentiator between whether a product is wireiine or cable is simply a
table entry, and hence, no product specific processing is required.
GUI
Similar to processing, because of the simplicity of the object
model, all products are displayed to the user in a similar fashion. They may
appear differently on the GUI, simply to differentiate to the user different
groupings of products. For example, wireless products may have a different
graphic beside them to denote a wireless product. All products can be
displayed together on a single GUI to enforce the concept of convergence to
the user. Additionally, the user can select a number of sorting schemes to
provide a different view of products. For example, if a residential customer
is requesting wireless service only, a Customer Service Representative can
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request to view only wireless products available to residential customers
living in a specific region.
Convergence Scenario 2
Customer convergence
The invention Customer object model takes a unique
approach to understanding and defining customers. In a convergent world,
operators or service providers want the full picture of their client. The
residential customer named John Smith may be the same person as the John
Smith who owns a small business. A provider can use this knowledge to
target special products to this type of customer.
Object Model
Listed below is the definition of the important objects in the
customer object model 70 depicted in figure 8.
Entity - This object 72 represents an individual or
organization in which the Telecommunications Provider is interested and
has dealings. To provide a mechanism to locate all occurrences of an
individual or organization in the invention. This object links all
occurrences of a specific person or group. This enables a provider to
recognize "Terry Harper" the residential wireless customer as the same
"Tent' Harper" that is the Internet service contact for a major corporation.
Entity Role - This object 74 represents the various positions
in which a customer can interact with the Telecommunications Provider.
Multiple roles per customer are permitted. For example, a customer may
have multiple contacts. Customer - The overall entity with which the
Telecommunications Provider. Customer Contact - An individual within the
customer's organization which is used in dealings relating to a specific area,
such as contracts or purchasing. This object provides a mechanism to define
and differentiate the customer from the contacts within the customer's
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organization.
Customer - This object 76 represents the individual or
organization which is the overseer. This could be a holding company,
parent company, subsidiary, small business, reseller, residential customer,
the Telecommunications Provider (for internal billing purposes),
governmental organization, religious group, or special interest group (e.g.,
AARP, AAA). The attributes associated with Customer object include
name, address, customer ID, demographic information, marketing
information, and preferences (e.g., language). This object was constructed
due to the complex nature of business or organization customers. These
types of customers are generally large with multiple invoices, accounts, and
locations. The Customer object serves as the "umbrella" under which all
information for this entity exists.
Contact Role - This object 78 represents the individual or
organization within the customer's organization which is used in dealings
relating to a specific area, such as contracts or purchasing. The invention
supports contact as a generic contact, or as one of the following specific
contacts:
Invoice Recipient - An individual or group within the
customer's organization to whom the Telecommunications
Provider sends an invoice.
Invoice Payer - An individual or group within the customer's
organization responsible for payment of services received.
Statement Recipient - An individual or group within the
customer's organization to whom the Telecommunications
Provider sends a statement (i.e., report).
Shipment Recipient - An individual or group within the
customer's organization to whom shipments of products are
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sent.
Product User - An individual or group within the customer's
organization to whom a product is assigned for use.
Guarantor - An individual or group outside of the customer's
organization who is assuming partial or full financial
responsibility for the customer, in the event the customer fails
to make payment.
Legal Entity - An individual or group within the customer's
organization who is permitted to make legal decisions for the
customer.
In dealings with the customer, it is important to know the how
the individual fits into the customer's organization. Contacts allow the
Telecommunications Provider to understand the inter-workings of their
customers. Information can be tracked specific to each of the contacts to
1'S help the Telecommunications Provider better deal with the customer. For
example, if payment is not received, the individual responsible for the
payment can be contacted directly by finding the Invoice Payer for the
services. If the Telecommunications Provider desires to market new
services to the customer, they can contact the marketing contact for the
customer.
Processing
Product processing is simplified due to the simplified
customer object model. Customer maintenance includes defining new
customers and modifying existing customers (including customer de-
activation). B~ause all customers are represented in a similar manner, only
one processing stream exists. The differendator between whether a
customer subscribes to wireline or cable products is maintained at the
subscription level, and hence, only minor customer type specific processing
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is required.
At the subscription level, processing also follows a common
stream, to support the concept of convergence. Product subscriptions may
vary depending on the type of service. Because of this, additional product
specific logic is added where needed, in addition to the common stream.
For example, a provider supporting wireless services may also support
immediate over-the-air activations. To support this, the subscription process
performs extra functions for wireless service, that are not performed for any
other service.
GUI
Similar to processing, because of the simplicity of the object
model, all customers are displayed to the user in a similar fashion. The
concept of differentiating customers by line of business does not exist in the
invention. A customer is simply a customer.
Convergence Scenario 3
Pricing and Billing convergence
Billing convergence can only take place if convergence is
accounted for as soon as the billable event is received, with all billable
events being processed in a similar manner and follow a similar structure.
While each billable may have specific nuances and may appear different
upon entry, the key is to determine the fundamental structures that every
billable event has in common, and create a single billable event, around
which all processing is developed.
Object Model
To enable convergence, the invention has defined a single
object 82 (see figure 9) to be a billable event. This object contains the
following attributes to date:
bi11ab1eGrossCharge-The billable charge of the BILLING EVENT including
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tax.
billableNetCharge-The billable charge of the BILLING EVENT excluding
tax.
taxCharge-The amount of tax calculated for the BILLING EVENT.
en:orCode-The errorCode can contain one ore more ERROR CODES that
get assigned to the BILLING EVENT during processing in the case an error
is detected.
fileSequenceNumber-ERP internal unique sequence number of the
BILLING EVENT FILE which contained the BILLING EVENT after
formatting.
recordNo-The record number of a particular BILLING EVENT from a
BILLING EVENT FILE.
Each attribute is required for all billable events, regardless of whether the
event is for wireline, wireless, Internet, or cable service. For the
invention,
IS the billable event has been abstracted to a single base object, with
additional
associated objects for additional information that is specific to a particular
type of usage. The end result is a fairly complex object model 80, that does
not precisely depict the business. A business analyst cannot look at the
object model to determine the exact services that a provider is offering. This
information is inherently stored in the information that is maintained in the
objects, rather than denoted by the objects.
The invention billable event object model is presented in
figure 9. Note that the objects conform to processing boundaries rather than
service boundaries. The Billing Event object sub-classes into three other
objects: adjustment, adjustable event, and event summary. The design of
the model is directed by processing. Adjustments can be either general or
event-specific, and require different processing than an event that is simply
billed. Because the processing is different, the object model reflects this.
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Processing for wireline and wireless adjustments is identical; hence, no
differentiation is needed.
Processing
Processing in an object-oriented system is driven by the design of the object
model. Because the invention is designed as a convergent solution, the
objects have been abstracted Because the objects have been abstracted to
reflect processing commonalides, processing is much simpler. A single set
of common processing is being created for all billable events. The
application of flat rate to a billable event is identical, regardless of
service
type. The rates may be different, but the application of the rates is
identical.
In many cases, service specific logic is required. The
invention addresses this in one of two ways. If the processing is identical,
but the values are different (e.g., rates for wireless service will vary from
wireline), the rates are stored in user maintained tables. This preserves the
I S common stream processing. If the processing is specific to a service type,
(e.g., one type of service uses total off hook time for duration, while
another
uses connect time), a common processing stream is created with alternative
processing for specific event types. Even when alternative processing is
used, the event continues along the common path once the exception logic is
completed. The key difference is that all usage follows a single path. There
will be instances where a particular type of usage requires unique
processing, but this processing is built into the common processing path.
Traditionally, different products have been billed by different
systems. For example, if a customer walks into a phone store and purchases
a phone, they must pay for the phone before they leave. This occurs because
the phone store billing system is separate from the monthly billing system.
The invention eliminates this difference. In the invention, the charge for a
phone is simply a non-recurring charge, which enables a customer to walk
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into a phone store, pick out a phone, and have the charge billed on their
monthly bill. The need for a separate billing system is eliminated.
GUI.
Similar to processing, because of the abstraction of the object
model, all price plans are displayed to the user in a similar fashion. The
true
power of convergence is witnessed through these GUIs. Traditional systems
enable the provider to define price plans, but prohibit them from crossing
lines of business. Because of the convergent nature, the invention views all
products and services alike. Likewise, different types of charges (i.e.,
recurring, non-recurring, and usage) can be combined in a single plan.
Defining a new price plan is a matter of selecting the services which should
be included and defining the prices which should be charged. Since all
products look alike, the invention enables a provider to define cross-product
price plans, enabling convergent pricing.
Detailed Description of each component
The following sections each give a detailed description of the
components in the proposed Customer Care and Billing solution.
Customer Care Manager (CCM)
The Customer Care Manager (CCM 12) provides proactive
customer support. Its enhanced functionality provides both standard and
advanced customer care fimctions. CCM 12 provides a complete view of a
customer's products and discount plans across markets. CCM 12 interacts
with external organizations (for instance, credit checking), providing
advanced features to additionally support scripting and validations. With
CCM's sophisticated user interface, customer service representatives can
spend more time focusing on the customer and less time on manual and
redundant tasks. New products, new customer types, and new customer care
management strategies can be quickly implemented, thereby reducing the
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time to market for such changes.
CCM Functionality
The Customer Care Manager (CCM) 12 focuses on the
customer, including every aspect related to the customer such as
demographic information, geographic information, marketing information,
customer hierarchies, account structure, invoices, statements, contracts, and
subscriptions. CCM i 2 is the single source for all customer information,
regardless of whether it is a business customer, residential customer, or
both.
CCM 12 allows A client to tailor customer care functions to each customer
for example, hierarchies, invoices, statements, price plans, product
definitions, customer structures, contracts, and groups.
Overview
Figure 10 provides a description of the major functional areas
in CCM 12. The following describes each of the eight areas for CCM 12 as
depicted in figure 10.
Maintain Customer Information 92 provides maintenance of
all basic information related to the customer. Customer information
includes name, address, demographics, preferences (such as language),
geographic, and marketing information.
Maintain Contracts 94 provides maintenance of all legal
conditions relating to contracts. This includes the effective date of the
contract, the account to which the contract is associated, and the invoice on
which the charges should appear.
Maintain Customer Hierarchies 96 provides hierarchy
maintenance. Examples of hierarchies include customer (for example,
parent cornpany/subsidiary, holding company relationships}, account (to
reflect the customers financial tracking and reporting structure), and invoice
payer (to reflect financial roll-up responsibilities).
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Retrieve Documents 98 provides the ability to retrieve
documents such as incoming documents scanned and stored, or outgoing
documents such as bills and dunning letters. These documents can be
retrieved to support customer inquiries.
Maintain Subscriptions 100 involves creation and
maintenance of customer requests for service. Includes product
recommendations.
Maintain Customer Accounts 102 provides maintenance of
account information, such as credit scores, credit class, credit limit, and
payment method.
Maintain Contact History 104 supports history of all contacts
with the customer, including product inquiries, billing inquiries, price
quotes, and complaints. Future customer contacts can be scheduled.
Maintain Customer Roles 106 provides maintenance of
customer designated roles, which could be customer, invoice payer, invoice
recipient, statement recipient, legal entity, guarantor, shipment recipient,
and
product user.
Components
CCM 12 has three main components: Customer, Account, and
Contract.
The customer is the individual or organization, which is the
overseer for all dealings with a provider. In other words, the customer is the
"umbrella" under which all information for this entity exists. The customer
could be a holding company, parent company,, subsidiary, small business,
reseller, residential customer or governmental organization. The attributes
associated with the customer include name, address, customer identifier,
demographic information, marketing information, and preferences (e.g.,
language). This information is global to the entire customer. Some ways
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that CCM I2 supports the customer include:
Finding the customer - CCM 12 is designed with customer
access in mind. Multiple paths into the customer are
included, such as customer identifier, customer naive, account
identifier, MSISDN, invoice number, or some combination of
these. In addition; CCM 12 supports Soundex Style and
wildcards. Soundex Style performs a matching on similar
sounding words. For instance, a request for the name Martin,
spelled Martin, would return matches of M-A-R-T-I-N and
M-A-R-T-E-N. Wildcards involve entering only a portion of
the customer's name, with the invention returning all
matching names.
Maintaining customer information - Once the customer is
found, the maintenance process can begin. CCM 12 has
access to a significant amount of information related to the
customer. In CCM 12, different addresses are available for
different types of correspondences (e.g., invoices, statements,
marketing literature, and shipments). CCM 12 maintains one
set of addresses for a customer which can be reused for
different purposes. CCM 12 also maintains information such
as demographics (for example, age), geographic information
(for example, geographic classifications), preferences (for
example, language), and marketing information (for example,
affiliations to groups). This information can be used to
stratify different groups of customers for various reasons such
as discounts and marketing efforts.
Maintaining groups and hierarchies - Groups can be
maintained for various reasons, either internal or external to a
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provider. Internal reasons include administrative changes (for
example, identifying customers affected by a change) and
location groupings (for example, identifying a group of
individuals that live at a single address). External reasons
include: marketing (for example, identifying individuals of a
certain age group to target them for specialized promotions)
and discounts (for example, identifying members of a
particular organization). Hierarchies are structured
collections of customers which have definite parent/child
relationships. Hierarchies are used to reflect parent/subsidiary
relationships and relationships to holding companies.
Maintaining roles - Customer roles are types of contacts and
are a mechanism to identify key contacts and to better
understand the customer's organization. In one case, a
customer may be a residential customer. In another case, he
could be the invoice payer for a large corporation. By
identifying roles, it provides a mechanism to link all
occurrences of a person or group. The person or group is no
longer a set of disjointed entities.
Maintaining customer invoiceJstatement preferences -
Customers sometimes request many things such as price
plans, rates, contract conditions, and invoice formats. Due to
the financial and cost tracking reasons, customers may prefer
that specific types of charges be billed to specific groups. For
example, calls from a certain set of phones are strictly
research and development oriented, so these calls are billed
separately, as they have different taxing requirements than
calls which profit the company. Marketing messages are
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placed on invoices and can also be personalized for a
customer. For example, a service representative may realize
that a customer is reaching his/her 25th wedding anniversary.
A marketing message can be placed on the customer's invoice
recognizing this occasion.
Account - Customers typically divide themselves into
manageable sub-groupings such as districts, accounts, market areas, or areas
of responsibility. Support for this sub-grouping helps the customer with its
internal financial and cost tracking (such as internal billing, invoicing,
reporting). CCM 12 provides the ultimate flexibility for a provider to
support the customer's organizational structure and to provide services (for
example, invoicing, reporting) at the organizational level required by the
customer. Some ways that CCM 12 supports the customer include:
Maintaining accounts - The maintenance of a customer's
accounts) involves the definition of new accounts, the
modification or deactivation of existing accounts, and the
modification of the account hierarchy. Account maintenance
also provides the ability to view account history.
Maintaining credit information - Information relating to the
customer's credit worthiness is maintained based on the
customer's actions. For example, late payments may lower a
customer's credit worthiness and may trigger a re-calculation
of the customer's credit score and credit class. CCM 12
provides the ability to capture an internal credit score, to
alleviate the cost of external credit information. In addition to
credit scores, CCM 12 also maintains a credit limit.
Contract - The contract stipulates terms, effective dates, guiding rules
(which indicate who should pay for each of the individual saleable items in
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the contract), and invoicing rules (which indicate the invoice on which the
saleable item should appear). Because of the guiding rules, some
components of the saleable item can be billed to one account while other
components can be billed to another account. Some ways that CCM 12
supports the contract include:
Guide Rules - Guiding rules provide the flexibility for a
customer to allocate its charges to multiple accounts. For
example, if a convergent package was offered, by stipulating
the conditions of the purchase as part of the contract, the
wireless usage charges could be billed to one account, the
wireline usage charges to a second account, and the recurring
charges for both wireless and wireline could be billed to a
third account.
Price Quotes - Customers may call for a price quote. CCM 12
maintains a history of price quotes to support ensuring that
the quote is implemented and used.
Product Recommendations - CCM 12 uses scripts to perform
product recommendations. A script is defined in the manner
of a decision tree. By following this script, product
recommendations can be provided to the customer.
CCM Task Examples
This section provides examples of tasks that can be supported
in CCM 12. Examples for typical customer-related activities are: Update an
address, Change bank account information, Search for a customer based on
search criteria; Infom~ the customer about changes to his/her service,
Display customer data, Maintain customer hierarchies, Schedule future-
dated customer related activities such as reminder to contact the customer,
Perform risk check, Verify insurance policy, Support customer complaints,
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and Proactively identify and manage potential customer turnover. Examples
for typical account-related activities are: Change payment methods, Assign
products/services to an account, Display the history of an account, Modify
the account structure, View changes for current period, and View document
images, Perform credit check. Examples for typical contract related
activities are: Choose a contract, Cancel a contract, and Replace a contract
with another one. Examples for typical subscription-related activities are:
Activate a service, Change MSISDNs or tariff types, Add a service {like fax
or mailbox) to a product, Deactivate a service, Transfer a service, Display
the history of a service, Modify the directory listing contents, and
Integrated
View.
Being able to perform customer care-related activities in an
isolated manner is not sufficient. CCM 12 characteristics facilitate using the
system in a way that meets the requirements of various types of users within
1 S an organization that operates in an ever-changing and challenging market.
The following are some examples of CCM 12 functionality that illustrate
this:
User Interface - CCM 12 provides a set of integrated
applications with a consistent GUI which allows users to easily learn how to
use the functions.
Scripting - The concept of scripting guides users through
regular business processes and thus improves accuracy and completeness of
work. Scripts also assist users with reconunending product and pricing
options that are best suited to a customer's need. Since scripts can be
customized quickly, implementing new marketing strategies is facilitated.
Scripts define the possible and meaningful screen flows within the new
system.
Comments - The text concept allows users to enter free-
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format information pertaining to an activity. This information then can be
used (that is, read and updated) by others.
CCM Benefits
This section contains a number of benefits that a provider will
realize from using CCM 12.
Convergent View ~- CCM 12 provides a complete view of a
customer's products, services, and price plans across all markets. It provides
users with a complete picture of the customer.
Increased Productivity - CCM 12 provides users with the
ability to obtain information in a more efficient manner while assisting them
with their daily workflow. For exampie, this is achieved thmugh the
integration of the component with other invention components to provide all
customer care information, through automation, and through scripting.
Integrated and Complete View on the Customer - CCM 12 is
an integrated module with the other components of the invention. CCM 12
can provide the entire history of the customer from activation through
collections.
Reduced Maintenance - CCM 12 provides a sophisticated
customer care module that replaces the need for maintaining numerous
nonintegrated customer care legacy systems.
Consistent User Interface - The consistent user interface and
systems design ensure that users can quickly learn and use the system, as
well as easily take on new roles such as supporting new functions in
customer care.
Reduced Time-to-Market - The time-to-market is reduced
since the flexible structure of the new system allows for new products and
customer care strategies to be implemented without coding changes.
Advanced Functionality - Standard and advanced customer
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care functions are available to support a provider's customer care strategies.
CCM 12 provides a powerful search and reporting functions so that the
necessary information can be easily obtained.
CCM User Interaction
There are two main groups of users for CCM 12: Provider
Employees and Provider Customers (via kiosk or remote access). Each of
these groups accesses CCM 12 using different technical means. However,
since CCM 12 - as well as the invention as a whole - is an integrated system
with a consistent GUI, all users encounter a similar "look and feel" when
they work with CCM 12. Figure 11 provides an example of a CCM 12
customer screen 110. The screen is used for viewing and updating
customer-related information. Figure 12 provides an example of a CCM 12
product screen 112. The screen shows the user the products and services to
which the customer is subscribed and allows the user to add new pmduct
and service subscriptions. The view of the customer presented on the screen
is convergent, showing all services used by the customer in one view,
regardless of the type of service.
Products and Service Manager (PSM)
This section provides a description of the PSM (Product and
Services Manager) 14 component of the invention to be used for a provider.
PSM 14 stores reference data regarding inventory, products, tariffs, services,
and price plans for the system. It has a graphical user interface that allows
the user to rapidly define new products and services, and easily maintain the
existing products and services.
The graphical user interface of PSM 14 is also used for the
Tariff Wizard to be used during the migration to improve the process of
creating and maintaining tariff models. The Tariff Wizard will significantly
shorten the time that is required for creating and maintaining tariff models.
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PSM Functionality
Product and Services Manager (PSM) 14, depicted in figure
13, allows an organization to produce and maintain a catalog. A catalog is a
container of items available for sale to customers and the mechanisms that
allow the organization to charge customers for the purchase and use of those
items. These entities include product groups, products, services, pricing
structures, and price plans.
Four of the major entities managed by PSM 14 are products
292, services 294 , price plans and inventory. To define a product, a product
manager defines the basic descriptive details for the product, chooses the
services contained by the product, and defines one or more pricing structures
for the product. To define a service, a product manager specifies the values
of the characteristics of that service, the service level and usage modes, and
association rules between the new service and other existing services.
Additionally, the product manager specifies tax codes, service categories,
and the resource that the service uses. To define a price plan, the product
manager specifies descriptive information for the price plan, specifies
tariffs
and algorithms, defines the conditions for tariff selection, and determines
services that qualify for the price plan. PSM 14 also provides a release
mechanism to support bringing these entities to market.
PSM 14 provides other applications with items from the
catalog. PSM 14 provides a catalog of the items that customers choose from
when making a purchase from an organization to Customer Care
Management (CCM) 12. Additionally, PSM 14 provides calculation
mechanisms used to rate and price events to Event Rating and Pricing (ERP)
16.
PSM Benefits
This section contains a number of benefits that a provider will
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gain from using PSM 14.
Convergent View of Products and Services - PSM 14 supports
the definition of convergent products and services. Wireless and wireline
services can be freely packaged together and combined with price plans to
create convergent cross-product packages. Different types of charges can be
associated with each of the services, for example, installation fees,
connection fees, and recurring charges.
Decreased Time for Definition of New Products - PSM 14 has
a graphical user interface with which the user can easily define new products
and services. The user is supported by conventional wizards in a step-by-
step procedure to enter the necessary data. Templates are available that
define required information for a particular type of service and provides
default values. With the support of PSM 14, it is very easy to rapidly
introduce new products and services on the market. This functionality is
also used in the Tariff Wizard that will be used during the migration to
improve the process of creating and maintaining tariff models. The Tariff
Wizard will significantly shorten the time that is required for creating and
maintaining tariff models.
Attributes that are specific to a particular type of service can
be defined as reference data (for example, the data transmission speed
available for a fax service). This information can later be used for display
on the bill. PSM 14 also provides a release mechanism to support bringing
the new products and services to market.
Simplified Creation and Maintenance of Tariffs and
Discounts - Similar to the creation ofproducts and services, GUI wizards
support the creation of new tariffs, providing the user with a powerful user
interface for tariff definition. For example, the user can define tariff bands
in a tariff model by "painting" the bands on an image showing a tariff week.
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Updates and introductions of new rates and tariff elements
impact reference data only in one place. Because of this and the fact that
reference data is stored and processed on the same platform, the effort to
test
changes to tariff models is reduced dramatically, and hence the time to
market for pricing changes significantly reduced.
PSM User Interaction
This section shows some of the PSM graphical user
interfaces.
Tariff Zone
The screen 310 shown in figure 14 shows a dialog box that is
used when creating tariff zones as part of a wizard used to create new
structures for tariffs. The user selects a combination of available
originating
points and terminating points, and adds them to the list of zonal components
by clicking the "Next>" button. As can be seen in Figure 14, the user can to
~ make multiple selections of terminating points and combine them with an
originating point, thereby speeding up the work of defining the tariff
structures.
Tariff Week
Figure 15 shows the dialog screen 320 that is used when
creating a new tariff week. The user defines the tariff times and "paints" the
week in different colors that define the different tariff times using the
mouse.
Event Rater and Pricer (ERP)
This section provides an overview of the ERP (Event Rater
and Pricer) 16 component of ER.P 16 provides convergent real time message
processing functionality for a provider's usage and non-usage events based
on concepts for handling very large volumes of data. ERP 16 accepts and
processes network and non-network events to produce bill-ready events (a
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billable event record that has been completely rated, summarized, processed,
discounted and taxed) that can be processed by CBM (Customer Billing
Manager) 18. ERP 16 actively collects raw events from different network
elements 28 and also processes input from other external entities and other
subsystems of the Customer Care and Billing system. The collected events
are formatted, validated, assembled and checked for duplicates. After the
events are rated and summarized, they are stored in the Billable Event
database. ERP 16 also processes recurring and non-recurring charges ,
performs taxing, and performs final pricing of the events, for example,
volume discounting. The billable events in the database are accessible for
billing and can also be retrieved by CCM (Customer Care Manager) 12 and
other systems to answer customer queries.
ERP Functionality
ERP 16, as depicted in figure 16, interfaces with various
network elements 152 to collect 154 raw usage events. It polls or scans for
the pushed information automatically at user-defined intervals and provides
the information for further pre-processing and rating. ERP 16 formats the
raw usage events into the single internal billing event format, validates the
contents and the fom~at of these events, and filters out certain events to
prevent them from further processing according to user-defined criteria.
Furthermore, it performs gap analysis to verify completeness of the received
events. ERP 16 also assembles usage events that belong to the same long
duration call and filters out duplicate billing events delivered to the
system.
ERP 16 creates 156 recurring charge events in advance of a bill run to speed
up the processing of billing and help customer representatives respond to
customer inquiries. ERP 16 further rates 158 billing events according to
customer and price plan data, and maintains summaries for certain billing
events depending on the specifications in the price plans. Rated billing
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events and event summaries are then stored for further processing and
inquiries. At billing time, ERP 16 performs the final pricing and
discounting of usage, recurring charge, and one-time charge events as part of
a billing run.
ERP 16 interacts with both external and internal interfaces. It
collects raw usage events from different network elements 28 . ERP 16 also
supports external interfaces to receive events from external carriers and
value-added service providers, and internal interfaces to other subsystems
for billing events, such as adjustments. In addition to this, ERP 16
interfaces with the Customer Billing Manager (CBM) 18 to provide final
pricing and discounting of usage events, recurring and one-time charge
events for billing. ERP 16 also interfaces with the Customer Care Manager
(CCM) 12 to obtain customer data, the Product and Services Manager
(PSM) 14 to obtain price plan reference information, and the Financial
Event Engine (FEE) 20 to obtain one-time charges.
ERP Components
This section gives an overview of the components in ERP 16
and figure 17 shows the different components of ERP 16
The Event Collector 172 polls files from the network
elements 28 using the FTAM or FTP protocol. The transfer interval for each
network element can be individually scheduled by a parameter. Flexible
retry functionality is provided in case of unavailable connections to the
network element. In case a connection to the network element cannot be
established in the first try, parameters specify how often and in which
intervals Event Collector should retry to connect to the network element.
For data safety the received file is immediately stored in a backup directory.
Then a copy of the file is sent to the Event Formatter process 174.
Event Collector 172 reports if a network element does not
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provide raw event data for a specified amount of time. Parameters specify
after which period of time Event Collector should report a warning if no data
is received from a network element. The parameters differentiate between
workday/weekend and peak/off peak intervals.
The Event Collector 172 offers a decompression option
specified per network element instance. The same concept applies for
decryption.
The Event Collector 172 processes can be flexibly distributed
on any machine configured with FTAM and external connection (for
example, X.25 boards). The Event Collector 172 runs independently from
all other processes of ERP 16. This means that any other component of ERP
16 can be started or stopped without impacting the Event Collector 172.
The Event Formatter 174 reformats the raw event format it
has received from the Event Collector into an internal format. A raw event
record file is rejected if it contains too many erroneous records (where "too
many" is specified in a user-defined parameter) or if the reformatter is not
able to process it at all, for example, due to corruption. If only some
records
are rejected due to invalid/unknown fields then the reason is written to the
Error Report File, and the rejected records are written to an Invalid Event
Records File. For each processed file, statistics are written about the
number of records processed, number of errors etc.
The formatted records are written in an internal standardized
Unrated Event (LTE) format. UE records consists of one fixed and one or
more variable part(s). After a record is written to the formatted UE file, a
message is generated and sent to the Validator 176.
Event Formatter 174 performs record merging for network
elements 28 that require this functionality, for example, Nortel DPN 100 and
Nortel Passport (X.25, frame relay). Note that this functionality is different
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than assembly of long-duration calls and is dependent on the type of
network element.
The Validator 176 validates the UE (Unrated Event) records
for correctness and sends the UE records to the Duplicate Event Check
S process. Validator 176 performs different types of edits on the fields of
the
internal record format (for example, numeric checks, date validations, and
value checks). Moreover, the Validator determines which records need to be
assembled for long duration. An event record file is rejected if it contains
too many erroneous records (as specified in a parameter). Single erroneous
UE records are errored out and written to an Invalid Event Records File. If
some records are rejected due to invalid field contents, the reason is written
to an Error File. Each rejected record is prefixed by one or more error
codes. Several error groups can be defined. Each record field to be tested
belongs to an error group. The importance of the error group determines
how to handle the record (for example, ignore the incorrectness, recycle the
record, or write it to the Invalid Event Records File). The error severity can
be configured. A GUI is also provided for error correction. Corrections can
be applied either to individual records, or to multiple records grouped by
error codes and error groups. The validated UE records are written to files
(different files (same fonmat) for assembly and non-assembly records). For
each processed file statistics are written about the number of records
processed, number of errors etc.
Event Recycle Manager 178 recycles unprocessed data. UE
records are written to a Recycle File when some needed reference data is not
valid or available. The Recycle File is processed automatically each time
new reference data is available. Records stay in a Recycle File for a limited
time. The time aspect is related to a user-defined recycle number. If the
maximum recycle number is reached, the records are considered aged and
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are written to the Invalid Event Records File.
Filters can be set up to filter out records. A filter is a user-
defined criterion for selecting records based on characteristics of the
record.
Filters are defined using the ERP graphical user interface. Multiple filters
can be combined using Boolean operators to form complex filtering criteria.
The filtered records are written to a Filtered Records File. Each filtered
record is prefixed by one or more reason codes.
Validator also checks for duplicate files. Checks for duplicate
records are performed by the Duplicate Event Check process. Additionally,
Validator performs an inter- and infra- UE file gap analysis based on the
event time aspects. A warning is issued when configurable specified
thresholds are passed. The duplicate file check and the gap analysis are
performed against the database that contains the keys of the processed files,
such as start/end time of the first and last records of each file.
Duplicate Event Check 180 receives data from Validator.
Duplicate Event Check checks each single event record against the Event
History Database using the key fields of the event records. Each non-
duplicate record is written to the Non-Duplicate Events File and the key
values are inserted into the Event History Database. Any duplicate event
record is written to the Duplicate Events File. When the whole Validated
Events File is processed, a message is sent to the Rater and Summarizer, or
Assembler that the Non Duplicate Events File is ready for processing.
Statistics are recorded in the Process Statistics database, about which file
has
been processed, how many events in this file had been processed and how
many records were filtered out as duplicates. The length of the event history
(number of days) in the Event History database is given by a system-wide
user-defined parameter value.
Assembler 182 matches various records belonging to the same
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event for long duration events. Out of various events only one assembled
record is generated. The original partial records that are no longer needed in
the system are written to a Purged Event File, and remain available for
research purposes. The assembled records are written to a file and a
message is generated and sent to the next process in the chain.
Incoming records that could not be assembled are written to a
Leftover Event File and are matched against later input records. A
parameter specif es when records that cannot be assembled because of
missing partial records, are aged-out of the Leftover Event File. The aged
records are sent to rating if the initial parts) are available. If the initial
parts) are missing, the records are written to the Aged-out Event File for
later research. Moreover, the Assembler also can interpolate missing partial
records, if the duration of each partial record is the same (parameter set in
the network). Thus a complete call record can be generated even if an
intermediate partial record is missing.
Rates and Summarizes 184 receives data from Duplicate
Event Check and Assembler. Rates and Summarizes performs the rating of
single events and collects statistics in summary records per customer.
Rating is based on volume, where volume can be duration, pages, bytes,
number of packets, messages, or a number of other units of measure.
Volume calculations supported are Initial Unit/Successive Unit rating,
Single Unit rating, and Per Event rating. For each single event in the
Duplicate Checked Events File, the charges, discounts, and taxes are applied
according to the price plans) of the customer, who will receive the bill for
this event. Tax calculation is based on single tiers per service (for example,
there can be one tax rate for voice and another for fax). Rounding is
performed on volume and charges according to the criteria specified in
reference data. Rounding on volume depends on user-defined price plans.
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The processed event records are written to an output file, the Rated Events
File.
Rerate Manager 186 rerates events. Billing can be supplied
with Information Events for the purpose of comparing rates/prices from
different price plans. Rerating of all unbilled events of one account is
supported. Other selection criteria for rerating can also be defined by the
user through a graphical user interface.
Promotions are handled via price plans {for example, a
customer signing up in January will get a discount of 1 % per call. This will
be handled via a price plan effective-dated for January). A price plan
consists of one or more algorithms. Each algorithm performs one or more
volume/price calculations based on user-supplied parameters. The sequence
in which algorithms are performed within a price plan, is user-defined. The
sequence of calculations within an algorithm is user-defined as well. The
parameters (rates, prices, units) needed for volume calculations are defined
in Tariff Model Entries. Tariff Model $ntries are grouped by Tariff Model
Areas. Tariff Model Areas can include a Tariff Week (for example, "Peak"
or "Off Peak") and/or a Zone Coverage /for example, "National", "Europe',
"Asia", "USA", or 'Rest of World") and/or Tiers/Tapers. One calculation
takes one Tariff Model Area as a parameter. Tariff Model Entries are
created and maintained through a graphical user interface in PSM 14, the
Product and Services Manager component of the invention.
Summary statistics are created by totaling single event
characteristics at rate time based on requirements of pricing algorithms of
the plans) for which event is qualified. Summary statistics are updated in
the Summary Statistics Database.
Non-recurring charges are supported in the form of non-usage
events (for example, an activation fee event is sent by CCM 12 as non-usage
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event to ERP 16). Summary statistics can be updated accordingly by Rater
and Summarizer. The non-usage events are also sent to the Database Event
Manager to be inserted into the Event Database.
After Rater and Summarizer 188 processes the Duplicate
Checked Events File, there is one output file, the Rated Events File. This
file is delivered to the Database~Event Manager in CBM 18 for updating the
Event Database. Statistics are kept in the Process Statistics database, about
which file has been processed, how many events of the input file had been
processed and how many records have errored out. Event records, which
cannot be processed due to missing reference data or missing customer data,
are written to a Recycle File. When updated reference data or customer data
is available, the Recycle File is automatically processed. After a user-
defined time, older event records in the Recycle File age and are moved to
an Aged Out Events File. This process is managed by the Event Recycle
Manager.
Recurring Charges Process 190 is triggered by the Pricer
Process via a message, when a single account or a whole bill cycle has been
prepared for billing. Then the recurnng charges events are generated for the
next bill cycle. Statistics are kept in the Statistics database about how many
customers have been processed and how many recurring charges events have
been generated. The recurring charges process also performs prorating and
adjustments for activations, deactivations and subscription changes.
Pricer 192 prices events. At bill generation time, Pricer
receives a message from CBM 18 to perform final pricing of summary
events far a list of accounts. After finishing the pricing Pricer sends a
message to CBM 18, that the events are ready for bill production, and a
message to the Recurnng Charges process to start the generation of
recurring charges for the next billing period. Statistics are kept in the
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Statistics database about how many customers have been processed. Billing
can be supplied with informational summary events for the purpose of
comparing rates/prices from different price plans. Repricing of unbilled
summary events is supported.
ERP Benefits
This section discusses a number of benefits that a provider
will realize from using ERP 16.
Convergence _ Event Collector can poll Billable Events fi-om
different types of network elements 28. Event Formatter and Validator
already support a large number of formats, for example, TD17, AMA, and
Cisco IP, and can be easily be adapted to support additional formats (also
refer to Flexible Definition of LTSage Record Formats below).
Flexible Real-Time Rating and Pricing _ ERP 16 is designed
to handle very large usage volumes and still provide a near-real time rating
capability. ERP 16 is based on the High Volume Framework (HVF) which
is part of ACL (AMS Class Library). HVF is designed to support large
volumes of data in an efficient manner. ERP 16 is designed for parallel
processing and the workload is balanced between the different processes by
workload servers. Also, ERP 16 is designed to process each Billable Event
only once, even for volume discount plans. This is achieved by producing
price plan-specific summaries when the Billable Event is processed, and
later using the summaries to determine the volume discount. The design is
scalable so that ERP i6 can meet the future requirements of a provider.
ERP 16 has been enhanced to include more complex rating
and pricing functionality to handle the future requirements of a provider.
For example, ERP 16 supports rating and pricing of convergent products and
services, associative qualification of charges for price plans (for example,
if
the amount for international calls during the bill period is higher than a
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certain amount, a tapered discount is applied to all calls to a certain
country)
and time allowances (for example, "free minutes"). ERP 16 also allows for
the distribution of discounts and charges in a customer hierarchy.
Flexible Definition of Tariff Models and Price Plans - Tariff
models and price plans are defined using a graphical user interface in PSM
(Product and Services Manager) 14 stores the reference data needed by ERP
16 for products, price plans, and tariff models. For example, the user can
define tariff bands in a tariff model by "painting" the bands on an image
showing a time schedule. For all work creating new tariffmodels, the
inexperienced user can be supported by wizards (MS Windows help
programs that guide the user through a step-by-step procedure).
Flexible Definition of Usage Record Formats - New formats
of usage records can easily be added to ERP 16. The record formats and the
rules for translating incoming values into a internal standard format are
. stored in tables and can be easily modified using a graphical user interface
of ERP 16.
Graphical User Interface - ERP 16 has an easy-to-use
graphical user interface that can be used both for operation of the system and
maintenance of the reference data. It is consistent with the GUIs of the other
invention components and is based on the same class library (ACL) which
allows for a common look and feel across all invention components.
Effective-Dating of Customer and Reference Data - The
reference data used by ERP 16, for example, for tariffing and the calculation
of price plans, is effective-dated. This means that the data can be entered
before it takes effect, and will only be used once it takes effect. For
example, if a new tariff model takes effect on June 1, 1999, the data defining
the tariff model can be entered today but will not be used for calculations
until June l, 1999.
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For ERP 16, each update of customer data in CCM 12 is time-
stamped and only the customer data that has been added since the last
extract from CCM 12 is extracted for use by ERP 16. The frequency with
which CCM 12 is checked for updated customer data is configurable
through a user-defined parameter.
Customer Billing Manager (CBM) 18 and Papyrus
CBM 18 is responsible for collecting data, formatting it, and
then creating the appropriate documents and output interfaces. CBM 18
refers to both the Billing and Formatting (Papyrus) functionality. CBM 18
supports the production of bills, contracts, dunning letters, balance letters,
welcome letters, tariff letters and other reports. All of these outputs are
referred to as documents.
CBM 18 may be cycle-driven for which documents are
produced at regular intervals, or event-driven for which documents are
produced on demand or when a certain threshold has been reached. The
only calculations carried out in CBM 18 are summarizing and calculation of
totals, other calculations such as pricing and discounting are done in ERP
(Event Rater and Pricer) 16.
CBM Functionality
Figure 18 reflects the functional scope for the CBM
application 210. There are six main processes in CBM 18.
Process Trigger 212 initiates the cycle and event based run.
In CBM 18, cycles are defined for the different document types (for
example, separate cycle for bills, separate cycle for dunning letters,
separate
cycle for commission letters, etc). Events occur that require documents to
be produced, causing the creation of a trigger. Triggers may originate from
CCM 12, ERP 16, CBM 18, an external commissioning system, or an
external collections system. This could be a trigger to create a contract, a
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bill, a letter, or a dunning notice.
Process Document 214 includes the processes to collect the
document type-specific data. For example, it may be billable events for
invoices or balances for dunning letters.
Design Document 216 allows the user to maintain the
document template used for the layout of the document and to produce
finalized documents ready for distribution to the print vendor. Document
templates control the layout of the document and allow users to "customize"
the presentation.
Approve Document 218, if required for the documents being
produced (for example, invoices but not commission reports), samples from
the cycle can be reviewed. Depending on the review result, the cycle can be
approved for distribution or rejected to be reprocessed. The documents to
sample are based on predefined criteria (for example, all documents with an
amount greater than a specified amount). The sample documents can be
printed or can be displayed online. The user can then approve the cycle for
distribution or reject the cycle for reprocessing.
Maintain Reference Data 220 provides the user with the
ability to maintain reference data needed for CBM 18. Reference data
allows flexibility for the a provider to tailor CBM 18 to it needs. Reference
data includes, but is not limited to, cycle options and rules for bill cycle
processing. Separate cycles would be defined for the grouping of
documents such as cycles for dunning letters and cycles for commission
reports.
Provide Data to External Systems 222 formats and arranges
data based on the external entity specifications.
Figure 19 provides a detailed description of the process flow.
Controller 242 is responsible for the overall control of
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document production. "Control" refers to starting, halting, re-starting, and
monitoring of the CBM 18 process stream from the point when a scheduled
cycle is due to start, to the point when CBM 18 distributes the documents
produced.
Database Event Manager 244 covers the functionality that
allows all event objects to be inserted into the relational Billable Event
Database (BEDB), retrieved when required by external entities or other
components, and deleted from the BEDB if required. Database event
management encompasses the operations and components that surround the
BEDB. Database Event Manager has functionality to insert correctly
formatted events and error out incorrect events.
Builder's 246 specific responsibility is to retrieve all
infonnation needed to produce each document for each customer or account,
to collate this information by customer or account, and to present this
information to Pre-Formatter for further processing. Builder obtains data
from BEDB or another source (external data, such as a collections or
commissioning system) as needed to produce the documents.
Pre-Formatter 248 is responsible for converting document
objects provided by the Builder into ASCII files. This conversion is driven
by Pre-Formatting Rules. The resulting output is either sent to the CBM 18
Formatter (Papyrus, in case of AFP print data) or directly to Transfer to send
data to external systems.
ISIS Papyrus DocEXEC is a conventional third-party tool
used by CBM 18 to format documents (invoices and reports) into AFP.
Formatter 250 is responsible for utilizing ISIS Papyrus DocEXEC. Using
the input data and a pre-designed document template created using Papyrus
Designer, an AFP output is produced.
Transfer 252 is a generic interface which makes it possible to
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extend it for any kind of interface that needs file pushing functionality and
is
completely independent of the type or format of the files) to be sent. The
File Transfer Interface supports different types of communication protocols
(FTP, FTAM, etc) to transfer files to the different external entities.
Document Verification 254 is the process by which the
quality of expected documents is checked before finalizing the delivery of
these documents to the delivery media. Selection rules are entered and then
used to provide the user with the documents that meet this criteria. The user
can view the documents online.
Document Viewer 256 is the process to allow retrieval of
document images. ISIS Papyrus Viewer will be used to read the AFP files
stored in the Document Image database. Utilizing CCM 12 to request an
image, ISIS Papyrus Viewer is invoked to retrieve and display the document
image. Images to be stored in the Document Image database are determined
by the document type and it is user defined as to whether certain documents
such as dunning letters are stored in the Object Model.
CBM Benefits
The following is a list of some of the benefits that a provider
will realize with CBM 18.
Convergence - Bills for different types of services (for
example, wireless, wireline, and value added services), are supported on one
bill. By using the pricing and rating functionality in ERP 16, CBM 18 can
generate convergent bills containing advanced cross-product discounts.
CBM 18 has the capability to support different bill formats, and can provide
separate formats for customers who are billed for convergent services.
Enhanced document templates - Papyrus is a tool that
provides design functionality for enhanced document templates. It can
easily use any kind of input data with any type of structure. Papyrus can
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support multiple languages and the designer tool includes spell checking and
hyphenation in 17 languages. It supports multiple invoice layouts, user
defined variables, smart pagination (page m of n), graphical representations
(line, box, bar chart, pie chart, etc.) and color printing. In addition,
during
the document creation process, a format can be previewed and tested before
moving into production.
Rapidly define new documents - Papyrus supports a short
time-to-market for new document formats. It is easy to learn how to use the
design tools in Papyrus. It is estimated that a new design could be created
firom scratch within two to three days, and a new format based on an existing
format could be developed even faster.
Mufti-Currency - CBM 18 can support displaying charges in
multiple currencies, for example, Canadian or US dollars.
Bill Verification - CBM 18 supports advanced functionality
for viewing a selection of bills before they are printed. CBM 18 provides
the ability for the user to pre-define selection criteria for which documents
should be verified and displays the document as it would be printed and sent
to the customer.
Performance - By utilizing modem technology and an
advanced architecture, CBM 18 is capable of producing very large volumes
of bills, supporting both the current a provider requirements, and providing a
robust solution for the future.
Messages on the bill - With CBM 18, rules can be defined to
determine which customers get which messages and the priority of which
messages to use. These messages can be used to provide selected customer
segments with promotional information.
Quality Assurance - CBM 18 includes a control process,
which monitors the bill day process. In addition, statistic reports are
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available for providing quality assurance on information from the cycle run.
Bill Image - To mect legal requirements, Papyrus ensures that
the exact image of the bill sent to the customer is stored and can later be
retrieved using CCM 12, for example, to answer customer queries.
Flexible Bill Periods - CBM 18 provides flexibility in the
definition of bill cycles. A bill cycle can be defined in any increment, from
days up to years, and bill cycles can be executed both on a periodic basis
and on demand.
On Demand bills - CBM 18 supports the creation of on-
demand bills. An on-demand bill includes all charges that have been
processed by ERP 16, that is, both usage and non-usage charges. On-
demand bills can, for example, be used to provide the customer with an
initial bill directly when the customer is activated, or for a final bill
directly
after disconnection.
CBM User Interaction
This section shows some of the CBM graphical user
interfaces. The GUIs in CBM 18 are mainly used to maintain reference daxa
such as bill cycles. Figure 20 provides general cycle information screen .
Figure 21 shows a Papyrus screen from Papyrus Designer, which is used to
create new document templates. Several windows are open which show the
document and the definitions.
Order Processing (OP) 22
OP 22 provides active order processing, order management
and service activation across a convergent platform. It includes workflow,
workforce management, scheduler and service activation. OP 22 accepts
requests for work as input. This work request is analyzed to determine if the
request can be fulfilled automatically (e.g. an activation of an Internet
account for a residential customer, or a feature - e.g. "call waiting"), or if
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fulfillment of the order needs to involve workforce. Service activation or
deactivation tasks are translated into network commands for direct
communication with the appropriate network elements 28. If an order
requires workforce intervention, the OP subsystem retrieves the scheduling
template (which can be thought of as the "best case" project plan, which
would be realistic if all resources were available when needed), and activates
the scheduler. The scheduler accesses workforce availability and modifies
the "best case" plan into a "realistic' plan. This includes taking into
account
all scheduling dependencies that are required. The result is a workflow,
identifying the proper order in which tasks must be completed, the estimated
time required to perform a task, and the type of resource required for each
task. OP 22 actively monitors each task, generating alarms for potential
error conditions, such as tasks failing to start or finish at their scheduled
time. OP 22 completely automates order scheduling and processing. This
eliminates time-consuming errors due to missed steps and improper work
implementations, freeing valuable resources to perform other value-added
functions.
OP Functionality
Figure 22 shows the functional areas and components in OP
22. The following describes each of the eleven areas and components for OP
22 as depicted in figure 22.
CCM Interface - The CCM interface 143 provides the
functionality to receive orders, retrieve additional order information, and
update the order status and subscription information.
PSM Interface - The PSM interface 144 provides functionality
to retrieve service, service characteristic, and product information fi-om the
Product and Service Manager (PSM) 14.
State Transition Knowledge Base - The State Transition
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Knowledge Base or engine 145 approves or rejects the state transition
requests (cancellation or orders, completion of tasks, starting of tasks,
etc.),
starts automatic tasks, validates the structure of the workflow, monitors the
state of the internal order and each service request within the internal
order.
Order Builder - The order builder 146 generates the structure
of an internal order from a customer order and a set of service requests. A
set of business rules are used to ensure that the correct work flows are
selected for each service, and that the appropriate management levels are
added within the order.
Order Management - The order management 147 contains all
of the base functionality used by the Order Builder, State Transition
Knowledge Base, and Planning Engine. This base functionality includes the
abilities to: display a users work queue, modify a workflow structure,
submit a workflow to the planning engine, forward calls to the State
Transition Knowledge Base ( the user does not interact directly with the
State Transition Knowledge Base), modify / display documents, and modify
/ display provisioning characteristics of the service request.
Workflow Templates - The workflow template 148 provide
the functionality to define workflow templates, task templates, and selection
rules for work flows. The order builder selects and instantiates workflow
templates when a service order is received in a customer order using the
selection rules.
Service Activation Controller (SAC) 142 acts as a mediator
between the workflow engine to the Service Activation Software (SAS) 150.
For each service request SAC 142 decides to which SAS 150 system the
request is directed, translates the request into a format understood by the
SAS 150 and forwards the request. In the current implementation, SAC
supports the CORBA interface to Architel's ASAP product, send / receive
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ASCII files to the IP-SAM system, generation of LCRS ASCII files, and
generation of generic ASCII files. Other service activation software (3'~
party or AMS developed) could be easily "plugged" to this mediator.
Service Activation Software (SAS) I50 is the interface to the
network elements 28 and is responsible for all updates from network
sources. SAS 150 recognizes update requests, determines the network
element 28 that should be updated (switch, router or other service system),
formats the request into the proper format (e.g. Man to Machine Language
(MML) or CISCO protocol), and issues the request. If the link to the
network is down, SAS 150 will continue to re-send the request until the link
is restored. Examples of SAS 150 systems are American Management
Systems (AMS) Network Access Manager, ASAP from Architel or IP-SAM
from Arcor.
Planning Engine - The planning engine 146 plans individual
orders and optimizes all orders within the system against the available
resource requirements. The planning engine makes use of ILOG Solver /
Scheduling to perform this planning. In the planning phase, previously
designed standard work flows may be selected by the system or customized
by a project manager for each service request. System defaults for resources
and dates can be accepted or overridden during the process of creating a
workflow for the internal order. During the planning of an order, capacity
and usage information related to resource pools are automatically updated in
order to facilitate resource leveling and capacity planning. The planning
engine supports scheduling based on parameters. Utilization percentage as
well as "backward planning" are supported. A user can specify that e.g.
70% of workforce only should be used for installations. A user can specify
overtime, e.g. 110% of workforce should be used. Alternatively a user can
ask the system to compute how much capacity is needed to meet all of the
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commitments (backward scheduling against given dates). The planning
engine further supports geographically distributed workforces. It is possible
to move resources from one workforce to another to smooth "peaks and
valleys" in scheduling demand.
Calendar - The calendar 151 contains the functionality to
capture workforce assignment rules to various resource pools, and to
calculate the available capacity for all resource pool. The calculation of
available capacity is used in the scheduling engine to perform task
scheduling.
Workforce - The workforce 149 contains all of the base
functionality used by the order builder, calendar area, order management,
workflow template and planning areas. This base functionality includes the
abilities to: define workforce resources, roles, regional locations and
resource pools within the system.
OP Benefits
This section contains a number of benefits that a provider will
realize from using OP 22.
Convergent View - OP 22 provides a complete view of all
service requests, regardless of their associated market. Customers can place
a single service request with both wireline and wireless subscription
changes.
Increased Productivity - OP 22 alleviates the manual task of
scheduling service requests, determining resource availability, and
monitoring open service requests. Provider personnel can concentrate on
activities requiring human involvement.
Advanced Scheduling Algorithms - OP 22 supports all types
of standard scheduling algorithms. Task dependencies, service request
dependencies, and resource availability are all taken into account during the
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scheduling process.
Active Monitoring - OP 22 actively monitors service requests
until their completion. Not only does OP 22 ensure that subsequent tasks
are initiated at the proper times, it ensures that any deviation to schedule
are
immediately reported through alarms to the appropriate supervisor and
dependent tasks not started. The' invention maintains two conditions of
tasks: at-risk and late. At risk tasks are in danger of being late, while late
tasks have no chance to be completed on time. The invention monitors tasks
for these conditions and creates alarms that are directed to workers to inform
them of the problems.
Complex Costs - Costs allow the telecommunications
provider to track the cost of providing a service to a customer. Estimated,
actual, and forecasted costs are maintained by OP 22.
Integrated Resource Reservations - OP 22 is designed as a,
complete solution. To be a complete scheduling system, OP 22 must be able
to interact with a workforce and materials management system to verify
availability. Since OP 22 does not include materials management, the
invention provides an interface to external systems to provide this
functionality.
Workflow and Follow-Up Functionality - The workflow and
follow-up related functionality adds an important dimension to customer
care activities. With OP 22, the efficiency of interactions within the
provider's organization can be increased significantly. Examples which
highlight these features are:
Information about certain activities can be forwarded to other
departments or people using free format memos.
Requests to perform certain activities (like a follow-up call some time in the
future) can be entered and addressed to a suitable role or person. Depending
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on the context, suggestions for possible follow-ups are made.
Technical Description
In Data Processing there are four metrics, which describe the
difficulty and therefore the costs of running a system:
Volume of data to be processed and number of transactions
performing the work.
Growth of data volume and transaction volume.
Frequency of software changes.
Availability requirements
In an increasingly competitive marketplace, a
telecommunications provider is positioned within the area of most difficulty
as quantified by the previous metrics. A provider's successful business
strategy has !ed to a system whose size and growth presents technical
challenges due to both volume and subscriber growth.
Frequent software changes necessary to bring new products to
the market place lead to both organizational challenges, as parallel changes
to the same part of the application are impossible, and software which is
increasingly complex and requires ever larger hardware resources.
Additionally, integration of third-party packages often require extensive
changes in base software in order to successfully integrate them.
Finally, as the availability requirements of a customer care
and billing system increase, the ability of the production department to meet
these goals decreases. More effort is diverted from availability management
and funneled into solving the problems caused by increasing volumes and
rapid development cycles in large areas of the key application.
The invention software architecture is designed to maximize
new functionality development speed. The invention improves time-to-
market due to the following:
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Modular system
Due to the modular nature of the system, components
communicate with each other over well-defined interfaces. A change in one
module, which does not affect the interfaces of this module, will not affect
other parts of the system. This greatly reduces the analysis effort required
when implementing new functionality.
Object orientation
The object oriented design and development methodologies
used in the invention increase the speed at which new functionality can be
developed and improves maintainability of the developed software.
Application developers can concentrate on adding additional functionality to
the system rather than having to continuously reinvent the wheel. This
compartmentalization of business functionality also is an enabler of parallel
development as it significantly reduces the likelihood of parallel running
development projects modifying the same part of the application code.
Use of frameworks
Application developers are supported in the development
effort by the use of frameworks. These frameworks provide a support layer
to the developer and provide a base upon which business functionality can
be developed. This concentrates development resource on the provision of
business functionality, rather than solving technical difficulties.
Thin client architecture
Frequently, in the rapid moving world of telecommunications,
it is necessary to implement the same business functionality for multiple end
users. Thus, the functionality to change from one tariff to another would be
implemented multiple times in a legacy system (e.g., on-line screen for
customer service representative, interface to voice response unit for self
service over the telephone network, and interface to a web browser for self
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service over the Internet).
The invention solution allows this business functionality to be
implemented once within application server, and re-used by any multitude
of clients.
Scalability of application both in on-line and batch environments
In legacy systems; considerable development effort is
invested to overcome technical hardware and software limitations. This
effort costs time within the development department and hinders the rapid
introduction of new products and services. The invention architecture is
designed to be scalable at both the application and database server level.
Bottlenecks can be overcome by adding additional hardware rather than time
consuming application code changes.
In the batch environment, the invention provides the stream
I/O concept where classic batch processing such as billing is broken up into
1 S more manageable units and these units are then automatically processed in
parallel. Opening up additional processing streams can provide additional
capacity with work being automatically distributed over available processing
steams. These additional processing streams can be freely distributed on
any available application server maximizing the utilization of available
hardware resources,
In the on-line environment, the invention provides two
processing models to deal with the challenges of scalability. For simple
interactive processing, stateless servers are used. This maximizes
application availability and throughput as requests from the GL1I can be
routed to any available server.
As not all on-line workload is created equal, the invention
also provides a framework for application servers, which are used for
complex interactive processing. This minimizes the overhead required as
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objects are built only once on a server, rather than being built for every
transaction.
Ease of integration through open event driven application
architecture
Although it is important to have a system that can be easily
changed, it is equally important to enable integration of third-party
solutions
(e.g., financial processing, such as SAP or Oracle Financials). As intelligent
network (IN) solutions become functionally richer and more robust it is
important to be able to easily integrate these solutions into a customer care
and billing system. Many legacy systems have difficulty supporting
functionally rich interfaces. The effort required to integrate the third-party
solution equals and sometimes exceeds the effort necessary to directly
implement the solution within the system.
The Event Collector 172, a sub-process of ERP 16, together
with the event driven architecture, acts as an intelligent interface able to
encapsulate the often-complicated fimctionality required by IN technologies
and act as an intelligent mediator between the other system modules and the
IN system itself. This application architecture provides maximum reuse of
existing system application components and prevents IN mediation rules
from having to be implemented in the heart of the system. The results of
this approach are lower development costs and easier integration of IN
functionality.
Enterprise ready system management architecture
Although the implementation of additional functionality
represents a significant part of the cost of running a customer care and
billing system, an often-overlooked cost is that of running the system in a
production environment. In the rush to the client/server world where
hardware and license fees are reduced in comparison with a mainframe
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environment, many firms forget the necessity of a system management
architecture providing the automation of the operational environment. This
often leads to disappointment as the wins gained in the increased flexibility
and responsiveness of the development department and the scalability of the
application are often countered by the increased operational costs due to the
increased necessity for personnel. These operational costs are often of
significance particularly in a maturing mobile market where it becomes
increasingly important to reduce the costs of each additional subscriber.
The architecture contains an enterprise ready system
management architecture. This allows for automation of boundary
conditions and the automatic handling of situations in an operational
environment. This allows for the automation of the operational
environment, reducing operational costs and preventing the necessity for
large numbers of additional staff.
Technical Application Structure
This section presents the overall software structure. It
describes the architecture of on-line and batch software processes and
explains some operational features of the system.
Software Architecture
The invention software provides a consistent, object-oriented,
and fully client/server architecture which satisfy will a provider's business
requirements. The architecture is:
Open: The invention preferably runs under UNIX and uses
Oracle, an industry-standard relational database. However, it is not
operating system or database dependent, and could easily be adapted to run
e.g. on NT instead of Unix or on Sybase instead of Oracle. Furthermore,
technical features of both products (and other third-patty products used in
the AMS Class Library frameworks) are encapsulated to the highest extent
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possible consistent with achieving high-performance processing.
Interoperable with other systems: the system has a clearly
defined concept for componentization, allowing a provider the freedom to
add new subsystems based on the same architecture, remove and replace
components within the invention without replacing the whole, and interface
the invention in a straightforward way to other systems.
Distributed and adhering to industry standards: The invention
uses CORBA and message queuing for middleware, which supports
network-wide communications on top of TCP/IP.
Scalable and high-performance: the platform designed to
support volumes in excess of those proposed in a providez's requirements
without requiring fundamental changes to the architecture.
Flexible for future extension and enhancement: The invention
is object-oriented, which allows encapsulation of details that are likely to
change over time. Object-oriented features like inheritance and
polymorphism allow reuse of common domain objects to provide related
functionality (e.g., deriving new objects from existing ones to support
additional types of network events as they are made available on the
network).
Manageable: the software contains integrated support for
control and management. The application-knowledgeable aspects of system
management are handed within the AMS Class Library (ACL) Control and
Management framework. Other aspects of system management (e.g.,
backup, disk, system, and database monitoring, can be performed using a
third-party product of a provider's choice).
The invention application contains software layers that
encapsulate different aspects of processing. The layers are illustrated in
figure 23.
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In going from the bottom of the diagram in figure 23 to the
top, classes progress from generality to specificity. At each level, the
functions are used to support processing that is resident in higher layers.
The lowest layer 392 is provided by third-party products,
including base software supplied by hardware vendors (e.g., server and
network operating system, database management system).
The infrastructure layer 394 contains two types of software:
Frameworks that focus primarily on application support (e.g., base classes
for common process structure and services); and Third-party or conventional
application products that offer "black box" functionality or are class
libraries
that are integrated into the applications.
The frameworks in the infrastructure layer are described in the
Component Model section. The infrastructure layer encapsulates the
functions provided by operating system services so that conversion from one
vendor to another is isolated from business applications. The infrastructure
layer contains class libraries from third-party vendors (e.g., Rogue Wave,
Isis, ILOG) that can be used directly by domain objects.
Common domain objects 396 are more functional objects that
can be used in more than one place by the business application layers. An
example of a common domain object would be the base CdoEvent class
used to represent network events within the invention. Different types of
events (e.g., Voice, SMS, ISDN, telephony, long-distance, Internet) are
derived from a generic domain object. Common domain objects encapsulate
behavior that is telecom-specific.
The invention is built from components that have clearly
defined interfaces with each other. The application components 398
included are CCM (Customer Care Manager 12, OP (Order Processing) 22,
ERP (Event Rating and Pricing) 16, CBM (Customer Billing Manager) 18
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and PSM (Product and Service Manager) 14. These five component
packages and their application views (i.e., user interfaces) are combined
with interfaces to other provider applications and external partner systems to
make up the full system.
Standard Software Layers and Associated Tools
The software architecture is integrated as depicted in figure
24. The software is preferably implemented in a client server arrangement
as shown in figure 24 where a PC client 402 communications with an
application server 404 which obtains information from a database server
406. The system also includes storage, such as disc or RAM, for storing the
processes of the invention as well as upon which the processes can be
distributed. The processes can also be distributed over a network, such as
the Internet. All software of the invention uses a consistent set of tools and
frameworks, and follows the same standards. This uniformity-is extended to
cover third-party software incorporated in the invention where possible.
The table below describes the software found in the layered
software diagrams:
Table 2
Standard Software in Tapestry layered software
Layer Description
ACL A Class Library which provides
infrastruMure
supportfor server-based processing.
ACL Common GUI ACL classes that provide infrastructure
support on
a PC client.
AppUcation The server-based application software.
This layer
includes the implementation of
the business objects
defined in the object model designs.
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Application ViewThat part of the on-line application
software that
provides a user interface.
Common Domain These objects provide common classes
that can be
Objects leveraged in different parts of
the application to
provide support for common services
and ftmctions.
C+ + C+ + programming language.
Ions Orbix CORBA 2.0 Object Request Broker
(ORB)
Message Queuing This provides guaranteed delivery
for me~agcs sent
between processes.
MS Visual C++, Microsoft C++ compiler and Microsoft
MFC Foundation
Class libraries.
Oracle Oracle client and server software.
Stored ProceduresApplication~pecific Oracle stored
procedures.
TCP/IP Network communication protocol.
Tools On servers, this includes third-party
products like
Rogue Wave Tools, h++ and ILOG
class libraries
that are integrated into the software,
as well as
"black box" components like ISIS
Papyrus that
provide standalone application
services. On a PC
client, this covers products from
Sting Ray (e.g.,
Objective Toolkit grid controls).
On-line Software Architecture
The infrastructure layer needed to construct interactive
applications is shared with batch and stream I/O processing. On-line
processing is very different than batch processing, due to PC-based GUI
clients and the short and time critical nature of interactive transactions.
Security concerns are also greater in the on-line arena (see the Security
Approach section). Figure 25 shows the frameworks involved in on-line
processing. The diagram shows the major types of objects and infrastructure
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frameworks involved in executing an on-line function. A transaction will
generally involve one or more than one of each type of object. The process
begins with view objects. These objects are derived from AMS-built classes
that are, in turn, derived from the Microsoft Foundation Class (MFC)
library. This wrapping is performed to standardize the look-and-feel of the
GUI, make it comply with the system GUI standards, and simplify the
process of developing applications. The view objects implement the
window behavior defined in the interaction model.
The views communicate with proxy business objects on the
PC client. These objects correspond one-to-one to the business objects on
the server that implement the real business behavior. The business objects
on the client (BOCs) contain the same methods as their server counterparts.
The most important ones are "validate" and the methods needed to store
persistent data. When a BOC method is called, the distribution mechanism
causes the method call to be sent to the server, where it is executed by the
"real" business object on the server. The result of the call is sent back to
the
client object. .
The distribution layer has several important capabilities
A client wrapper object can be instantiated on a server. This
allows the creation of n-tier client/server applications.
The code for the distribution layer is generic. Only the names
of the objects, method calls, and parameters change from one transaction to
another. As a result, the code for both the client and server wrapper objects
will be generated from metadata provided by a programmer. This approach
reduces errors and enhances development productivity.
Using code generation for the distribution layer also
encapsulates the type and vendor of middleware in the system. A provider
can then enhance or replace this layer if a different approach is desired in
the
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future.
The encapsulation of the distribution layer enables the
consistent creation of transaction performance statistics from within the
application. This provides high quality data needed for the analysis of
performance problems within a high volume production environment.
The distributed method calls are synchronous. They must
complete before the user is allowed to perform another action in their
Windows session. The distributed method calls in the invention are passed
to-and-from client to server via character streams. This optimizes
performance since the use of Interface Definition Language (IDL) for all
calls would otherwise add overhead to each transaction. Because the
method calls are created from a code generation template, a different
template could be used to generate IDL interfaces instead of having fully
CORBA-compliant interfaces. A third type of template could be used to
generate C language APIs. This gives complete flexibility in making server
functions available to other client processes besides the GUI.
Business logic is performed on the server model objects. A
number of models are combined together to make up an application server
process. All of the models that a user may access during an application
session will be contained in the same server. When a GUI user logs in, the
infrastructure creates an object in the session layer, which ties the client
to a
specific server process (although this can be overridden to force a model to a
different server process). A user may have more than one active session $t
the same time (i.e., when more than one GUI application is "launched").
Neither session will have knowledge of the other.
On-line application servers are mufti-threaded. Allocation of
connections between the client and the application server is performed using
a random workload distribution algorithm with guiding rules within the
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infrastructure allowing for differentiation between stateless and state-full
servers.
Most application servers are stateless; however, for certain
complex business transactions, it is necessary to store state information
within a server and create an affinity between an application front end and
an application server. In order to prevent end users having to wait for
application servers blocked by long running transactions, stateless
transactions are distributed randomly across a pool of applications servers
reserved only for short-running stateless transactions. Long running
transactions, which require preservation of state information, are allocated
to
a user for the duration of the transaction. The control of the association
between the GUI and an application server is the responsibility of the
invention infrastructure.
The persistence layer is used to store and retrieve object-
related information within a relational database. The Data Design and
Management section discusses translation of object-data in the physical
database model to relational tables (i.e., via hierarchical, expanded, or
compressed mapping). Each server model object is related to one or more
tables that contain the object's data attributes.
In the usual case, a model object's data is stored as a single
row in a relational table. The primary key on the table is the object ID. The
server model object is associated with a set of objects, one for the table
(known as a row factory), one for the row, and one for a collection of rows.
The row factory object contains the SQL needed to perform database access.
It uses the row and row collection objects to maintain the data that is
retrieved or is used to perform updates. The information contained in row
objects is accessible via Better and setter methods from the model (and by
distribution) from the business object on the client. In fact, for high speed
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access of data by the client (e.g., for doing searches to populate list box
views), the row collection can be streamed directly from the factory on the
server to a row collection on the PC associated with the client business
object.
In the case of a hierarchical or expanded storage scenario, the
data for an object may be stored in more than one table. This is a
consequence of the design of the object. For example, both a Residential
Customer object and Corporate Customer object may be derived from the
same base Customer class. The implementation of the data model for
Residential Customer may involve two tables, one table for the part of the
data that is common to both types of customers (i.e., the attributes in the
base Customer class) and another for the attributes that are specific to a
residential customer. This hierarchical representation is not visible to the
server model object. The model (and by extension, the GLJI client) accesses
the object as if it was contained within one database row. The persistence
layer hides the hierarchical (or compressed or expanded) nature of the
database implementation.
Each object in the invention databases have a unique
identifier (ID) associated with it. This ID may be system-generated and
have no business meaning, or it may be constructed of one or more
application-related attributes (possibly concatenated with a system-
generated key for uniqueness). The choice of identifier for an object is
governed by the following rules.
If an object has a natural business-related identifier, it will be
used unless the ID is subject to normal change during the life of the system.
For example, a Service object should not have an ID that is a phone number,
even if all services must have a phone number when they are set up. This is
a poor choice because the phone number assigned to a service can be
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changed upon request of the customer. It must be possible to track the old
and new versions of the Service object using the same ID.
Extremely large tables or tables with high-volume updates
should preferably have application-related identifiers. This is because a
system-generated ID will require a separate database access index. The
number of indexes has a significant performance impact.
In cases where an identifier must be created for business
purposes (e.g., an Account ID that will be communicated to the customer),
this should be done in a way that ensures uniqueness and is understandable
at the same time. Two different identifiers will not be created.
The infrastructure layer for persistence also provides the
following support.
Heterogeneous collections. Some object model relationships
involve collections of objects of different types). The persistence layer
1 S allows the creation of heterogeneous collections through polymorphic
queries.
Polymorphic queries. A single model method call may create
a collection of heterogeneous objects. Implementation of this involves
appending lists of objects of each type that are individually retrieved from
corresponding row factories.
Inheritance. If a hierarchy of model objects is derived from a
common base class, their associated row factories can derive from each
other as well. This guarantees consistency in the implementation of
inherited classes.
Access by foreign key relationships. While mast retrievals on
objects are via the primary object ID, many objects will have to support
multiple access keys. This is accomplished by adding additional access
methods to the row factories.
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The streaming of object collections from server-to-client uses
infrastructure support for a process called "chunking'. To avoid extremely
long response time for transferring large collections, only a part of the
collection is sent in one method call. The number of objects in one chunk is
configurable for each transaction that uses chunking. The GUI can get
better response time by making multiple calls to get all data needed by a
user. In many cases, only the first chunk of data needs to be retrieved.
Most business-related objects in the database are effective-
dated. This means that more than one row may be stored for each object.
Each row has the same "nominal" object key and a different effective date.
The effective date is used to determine the time frame for which the mw is
valid (i.e., represents the state of the object). When an object is retrieved
from a relational database a date must be passed so that the correct row data
is returned.
Server processes perform all database access. If a client needs
data, it must get it by invoking a method on a server object. Any access to a
database must be performed through a database "connection." The
infrastructure manages connections within the server process. All objects
accessed within a session use the same database connection to guarantee that
they participate in the same database transactions. Different GUI clients that
share the same server process will use different database connections.
As a final point, the code in the persistence layer, like the
distribution layer, is highly standardized. The implementation of the row
factories, and row collection objects reflect a small number of design
2$ patterns. As a result, the majority of this code will be generated from
metadata. Figure 26 shows a sample object model 480 that illustrates the
different types of objects involved in a real client/server transaction.
Pieces
of virtually all non-infrastructure objects are produced through code
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generation. The ones that are entirely generated are shown.
Batch and Stream T/O Software Architecture
The remainder of the software is built upon the same
infrastructure foundation as the on-line processes. The parts of the invention
that operate without direct user interaction are called "batch" and "stream
UO". Batch units of workload are initiated periodically, usually according to
a pre-defined time schedule or by predictable arrival of an occasional event
or file of events from an external system. Examples are the creation of an
interface file for an off line system like the data warehouse or creation of a
daily report. Stream I/O events occur more unpredictably, often in almost
continuous fashion. The processing in this part of the invention is optimized
for high-volume performance. Processing of events within the Event Rater
and Pricer (ERP) 16 subsystem of the invention is an example. Messages
are rated as soon as they are made available to the invention. The Customer
Billing Manager (CBM) 18 application component is the other part of the
invention that is a heavy user of the batch and stream I/O processing model.
Additional information about the processing mechanisms of batch and
stream I/O processing {e.g., division of input into "units of work") and the
scalability of the processing environment are described in the Transaction
Management/Concurrency Handling and Scalability Approach sections.
The structure of a general batch or stream I/O process 540 is
illustrated in figure 27. Each batch process inherits from the HvfApplication
infrastructure class, which provides a context for handling event-based
processing. All batch and stream I/O processing is initiated in response to
messages received in the input queue of the process. This is accomplished
by coding a method Process Message that provides application-specific
handling of asynchronous input queue messages. There are two types of
messages that can be received: work messages and control messages. Work
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messages identify the location of the next "unit of work' to be processed -
usually a file of input records (e.g., serialized input event objects).
Control
messages are higher priority than work messages and are read first.
Examples of control messages are requests to shutdown or turn on a trace
S feature used for debugging. On completion of processing, a queue message
is written to the next process downstream in a chain of processes.
What about the first process in the chain? How does it receive
its work instructions? There is a special control message that is sent at the
time of process initialization called an "idle" message. This allows the
initial process to begin processing without receiving a work message. For
example, the ERP Collections process interprets its startup idle message as a
sign that the infrastructure has been initialized and that it is OK to start
retrieving events from a network element.
The infrastructure creates a number of objects that provide
1 S services to the application during run time. One example is the Profile
object. It retrieves parameter information from a hierarchy of files. A
global profile contains values that apply to all processes (e.g., queue system
parameters). Specific parameters applicable to all processes of a particular
type (e.g., all ERP Validation processes) and to individual processes (e.g.,
the fourth instance of Validation) are read from other files. Another
example is the Logger object. It is used to log run-time information to
general and detailed log files on the server.
The Component Model section provides additional
information on the infrastructure services available to batch and strum I/O
2S processing.
System Management Architecture
A systems management architecture is required to run the
systems. This technology is well documented in the software world and a
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person skilled in the art would be knowledgeable in this technology.
Network Architecture
This section briefly describes the protocols and middleware
components used for communication between the various clients and servers
in the invention.
Figure 28 shows the major types of inter-pnxess and data
access communications that occur within the invention. Each is discussed in
more detail below:
PC Client to On-line Application Server: This
communication is performed using Iona Orbix as middleware. Orbix is a
CORBA 2.0-compliant Object Request Broker (ORB) which implements
distributed object access across a user network. Orbix runs over TCP/IP.
On-line Process to On-line Process: Objects in different on-
line server processes may also communicate with each other using CORBA.
Batch Process to Batch Process: Predecessor and successor
batch processes communicate with each other through file-based queue
messages. This custom facility uses files to contain messages. These
messages are guaranteed to be delivered regardless of the state of the
receiving process. The message cannot go away until it has been physically
read and "confirmed" by the receiver. Since this mechanism is file-based, it
uses normal UNIX file access.
On-line/Batch Process to Batch/On-line Process:
Intercommunication between batch and on-line processes may be
accomplished by either CORBA or file-based message queuing depending
on the situation. In general, synchronous communications will be performed
using CORBA and asynchronous communications will use file-based
message queuing.
On-line/Batch Process to Work/Log File: All server
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processes write summary and detailed information to log files. Batch
processes also write data to work files. Both types of files may reside in a
file system mounted locally to the server, or they may be accessed via NFS.
On-line/Batch Process to database server: The invention
processes access the relational database via SQL*Net (which runs over
TCP/IP).
Control and Management to On-lineBatch Process: The
Control and Management component of the invention sends commands to
processes running on application servers using file-based queue messages.
TCP/IP sockets are used to send information to the operations monitor
display.
On-line/Batch Process to External System: Communication
between the invention and external systems (e.g., SAP; Data Warehouse, IN
Network, etc.) are handled via various interface-specific protocols.
Different mechanisms are used at both the application level (e.g., FTAM,
FTP for file transfer) and at the physical level (e.g., switch-specific
protocols) depending on the communications supported by the external
system and the characteristics of the interface. All communication to
external systems (with the exception of non-TCP/IP links like FTAM) may
have to pass through firewalis to restrict unauthorized access.
Component model
The invention software is built from multiple components,
including frameworks, tools, and applications provided by the invention and
third-party providers. Frameworks are groupings of reusable, modifiable
objects and services that, when used together, provide structure for building
applications. Frameworks combine both white box (i.e., require developers
to internals understanding) and black box (i.e., can be used with less
knowledge) object classes. Tools aid in the overall development and testing
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of application software. Applications perform business and user-specific
functionality.
This section describes the frameworks and tools that make up
the Infrastructure layer of the invention. It briefly describes the
capabilities
and use of each of the software components, which are integrated into the
invention. The focus of this section is on the AMS-developed components.
Detailed information about third-party frameworks may be obtained from
the respective vendor.
The various components that make up the Infrastructure layer
are shown in figure 23. Note that, although certain products are associated
with specific components, they can be used more generally (e.g., ISIS
Papyrus is used by CBM 18 and could be called by another part of the
invention if required).
All the frameworks used for the invention development are
packaged within the AMS Class Libxary (ACL). ACL includes reusable
components, many of which are proven from use in other systems. ACL is
organized into:
ACL High Volume Framework (HVF): provides basic high-volume services
that are needed by all applications;
ACL On-line: provides classes for building and distributing server-based
on-line applications; and
ACL Common GLTI: provides classes to support GLTI PC client-based
applications.
ACL High Volume Framework (HVF)
Particular services provided by HVF to support client/server processing are
discussed below.
Error Handling: Error handling allows applications to deal
consistently with error or fault situations. Error handling for batch
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applications is different in some respects than for on-line applications since
high-volume errors must not stop processing as long as work can continue.
On-line errors generally must be dealt with immediately. Even so, many of
the functions needed for error handling are common (e.g., logging, retrieval
of message text). Refer to the System Error Handling section for more
information on error handling.
Process Control: This service allows processes to be
controlled by a central control and management process (C&M). In this
case, C&M can start, stop (gracefully or immediately) and monitor
processes to verify their current state (running or in error). Most of process
control and management is transparent to the application layer. It is
encapsulated at a lower level within ACL.
Message Queuing: The message queuing mechanism allows
processes to communicate asynchronously with each other. Processes can
send messages into one or more output queues. The output queue is then
read by a process, which is attached to the queue. Using special workload
balancing processes, message queuing provides a straightforward
mechanism for load balancing across multiple batch application processes
serving the same function.
The message queuing service is extensively used by the batch
applications to transfer information about files to be processed between
processes.
Profiles: The profile service allows configuration of
processes using initialization files stored in text format. Long-running
background batch processes can use profile services to re-read specific
settings whenever a new unit of work is processed. This will ensure that the
most recent values are always used.
Cross Reference Data (XREF): The XREF service reads data
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from files or from the database and makes it available in a read-only form to
processes via memory mapped files. Memory access significantly increases
performance of processes, which rely extensively on reference data. XREF
transforms the data maintained by one application into data read by another
application. Using XREF reduces dependencies between application
components since otherwise they must directly access each other's data
across separately coded soi3ware interfaces. For example, the ERP Rate and
Summarize process accesses customer data owned by CCM 12 through the
generic XREF interface instead of using a more specialized access
mechanism.
Runtime Performance Measurement and Reporting: Using
this service, batch applications can send runtime information to Process
Control and Management display (e.g., the number of processed records in a
unit of work). On-line response time measured by a client process can be
captured and stored by a server process.
C++ Regression Testing Framework (CRTF): The CRTF
service is used to write self testing objects. Unit tests can be regressively
invoked in a rapid and easy manner whenever modifications and
improvements are made in application code.
ACL.On-line
ACL On-line provides basic services for writing interactive
server applications running on back-end application servers. It includes a
distribution mechanism that enables C++ method calls from client processes
located anywhere on the network. ACL on-line services also translate
object-oriented data in server programs so that it can be stored in the
relational model used by the Oracle database. ACL On-line also supplies
the services needed by on-Line applications to ensure optimum process
concurrency and restart ability. The functioning of these services is further
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explained in the Transaction Management/Concurrency section. Particular
services provided by ACL On-line are described below.
Application Servers: ACL Core provides the framework to
build application servers that answer and process client requests for
transactions in a mufti-tiered environment. The communication between the
application server and the client is encapsulated via Orbix mechanisms. The
application servers contain the business logic of an on-line application and
communicate with the database as needed. Thus, the business logic and
database access is separated from GUI clients and network traffic is reduced.
Distribution Mechanism: The distribution mechanism of
ACL allows the GUI application code to communicate with objects on
servers as if they are local objects. The distribution of an object's services
using Orbix is transparent to the GUI. The application code does not know
where server functions reside on the network. Using this layer, clients can
create and destroy objects on the application server and can use only public
interfaces to objects on the server.
Persistence: The database persistence layer of ACL provides
an interface between object-oriented application data and the relational
database. For objects, which need to be persistent, ACL provides a code
generator which generates object-specific persistence method calls and
implementations. For example, ACL automatically generates the code
needed to create, update, select, and delete a customer object using only
metadata describing the information that must be transferred to the database.
Security Maintenance: This framework provides the
necessary elements to maintain and use the security mechanisms of the
invention. It includes login screens for each application component and
supplies windows to maintain controlled users (i.e., principals) and their
profiles. A description of the security architecture can be found in the
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Security Approach section. Details about the implementation of Security
Maintenance are contained in the detailed designs of the common services
related to security.
ACL Common GUI
S ACL Common GUI provides functionality for the PC client
processes to display the various elements of GUI screens like windows, tree
control hierarchies, and buttons. This allows the creation of GUI screens
with a common look and feel across application functions and components.
ACL Common GUI wraps Microsoft Foundation Classes and the more
specialized Sting Ray classes, which include grid controls, specialized edit
boxes, and others.
Frameworks From Third-Party Vendors
Several third-party software libraries and applications are
integrated into the invention. Some of them like ILOG libraries and, ISIS
1 S Papyrus are specific for application components. Others, like Rogue Wave
Tools.h++ are used by all application components.
ISIS Papyrus: This package is used for CBM 18 bill
formatting. The invention uses the tools Papyrus Designer to layout
document designs and define processing instructions, and Papyrus DocExec
to create formatted documents.
RogueWave Tools.h++: This class library supplies object
classes that supplement and extend the types provided in standard C++.
Within the invention, its primary use is for dates and times.
ILOG: For server based work-flow AMS uses third-party
libraries from ILOG. These class libraries (ILOG Solver, ILOG Rules, and
ILOG Scheduler ) are used by OP 22 to implement rule based server side
workflow. ILOG Solver and ILOG Scheduler will be used to handle the
planning of the activities in the system, especially scheduling of order-
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processing related tasks.
Data Design and Management
This section covers both the methodological and the technical
approach for designing and managing data. Individual functional
S components will use the approach described here in their designs. In
addition, the overall data management task will use this approach to define
standards and guidelines for the use of data.
For persistent object storage, the invention uses either files
(e.g., event files in ERP 16) or a relational database. The different
techniques to map objects into these non-object oriented storage types are
described.
Integration of the Invention with a Relational Database
For a relational database like Oracle, there are three strategies
by which objects can be mapped to a relational database.
Hierarchical Model: One-to-one mapping of objects to tables.
Expanded model: A one(parent object)-to-many(child object
types) relationship is mapped to many tables. Each table contains the
attributes of the parent together with the attributes of one type of child
object. There is one table for each type of child object.
Compressed model: The relationship goes into one
(denormalized) table. In the compressed model, all attributes for the parent
object and all child objects are stored together in one table.
Defined naming standards and mapping guidelines for objects
and database tables are used to track which objects and attributes are
mapped to which tables and coiumns at any time, and vice-versa. A simple
example is the Customer object, which is mapped to the Customer table.
The customer attribute Status is mapped to the Customer table column
called Status.
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Integration of Invention application data with flat file storage and memory
access
The invention Serializer performs the transfer of objects to
and from the system using flat files. A Serializer simply streams attributes
of objects from memory to a disk file or from a file to memory. The
Serializer framework contains a base class that is used by several specialized
derived classes, which are designed to handle different objects to be
streamed. The Serialize class also offers methods to determine how many
objects have been read or written and to handle input/output (e.g., open,
close, read, write, append, overwrite). The streaming operator supports all
standard types of C++ used in the invention.
Besides the mechanism described above, there is a need in the
invention to install database-resident data in application memory so that
batch and on-line processes can access it efficiently. For these types of
mappings, a process called XSM (XREF Storage Manager) is used. XREF
(or cross-reference) data includes price plans, products, customer, and other
reference data that are maintained in database tables by the CCM (Customer
Care Manager) 12 and PSM (Product & Services Manager) 14 components
of the invention. Processes like the ERP 16 Rater and Summarizer as well
as the Pricer need this data to be in memory for high-performance operations
on network events. Retrieving the data from a database for each single
event would slow down event record processing in an unacceptable way.
To increase look-up performance, XSM data is stored in
memory-mapped flat files. These files (known as XREF files) are loaded
into memory by the batch applications as the data are accessed. Multiple
processes can share memory-mapped files. If two processes on the same
machine map to the same file, the file will be loaded into memory only once.
The XREF Storage Manager is the interface between the
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databases and the XREF files. This process is responsible for maintaining
both the master XREF files and incremental update files. Each master file is
initially a full download extract of a database table. Over time the master
file will get out of synchronization with the database because of database
inserts, updates or deletions that are applied to the database table. Fof
large
tables supporting time-critical functionality, these additional changes are
captured periodically and made available to running processes in an
incremental update file.
Applications use the High Volume Framework of ACL to
access XREF files. The framework merges master and incremental update
files into a consistent, consolidated table representation for the
application.
Running processes also receive messages from the XREF Storage Manager
that indicate when new incremental update data is available for use. Figure
29 illustrates the XREF data maintenance and access mechanism.
Data and Application Distribution
This section describes the basic rules that application
processing and data access must follow to support distribution across
multiple component applications, database servers, and computing
platforms. The discussion in this section is high-level and focuses on data
distribution and interfaces between applications. Application process
distribution is covered in detail in the Technical Application Structure and
Scalability Approach sections. The rules are followed, where practical, for
third-party software applications integrated into the invention.
General Rules
All data is "owned" by components. The invention system
involves the co-operative processing of different application components,
including CBM 18, ERP 16, PSM 14, CCM 12 and FEE 20. Ali data in the
system is owned by one and only one component application. Where data is
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shared by more than one component, the application that creates or
maintains it is generally assigned ownership.
Data access is controlled by the component that owns it. If
one application component needs to read or update information that belongs
to another, it generally do so through an interface provided by the other
system. This guarantees that data configuration is locally encapsulated
within a single component. Structural changes in the storage of data within
one component does not generally require corresponding changes in other
components unless there is an inherited change in an interface between
them.
Data access is restricted to the invention processing. The
databases should not be used for ad hoc queries or support direct access by
external systems. This lessens coupling of data between the invention and
other systems. It also avoids imposing uncontrolled or unrestricted loads
that will impact the invention response. Data mining and other intensive,
non-time critical reporting will be the responsibility of the Data Warehouse
system. Interfaces will supply information to other systems. To avoid
placing significant load on the invention, data will be copied/replicated into
separate interface files or databases.
Data is stored and managed by server processes only. No
customer data is stored locally by a PC client process. This guarantees data
manageability, integrity, and security since databases can only be updated
after appropriate editing and security checks are performed on servers.
Critical enterprise data is also easier to backup/restore and protect if it is
not
distributed to the user desktop.
Data Distribution
The object data will use two types of persistent data storage.
Data that does not need to support concurrent access (e.g., is used
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exclusively by high-volume batch processing, not the on-line system) will
be kept in standard UNIX files. Information maintained by interactive users
is stored in the database. As examples, the intermediate events involved in
processing steps within the Event Rater and Pricer (ERP) 16 component are
stored in simple UNIX files (at the end of ERP 16 they are stored in the
billable event database). Customer information is stored in a relational
database.
File System Storage
Only two processes typically access the data within batch
files, the first one creates it and the second receives it as input for the
next
step of processing in a chain of process steps. The passing of a file between
processes guided by a control message indicating the name of the file. The
location of these files is configurable using initialization parameters so
that
both processes and data files can reside on separate hardware platforms. For
best performance, it is desirable that the work files used by a process be
stored on disks that are local to the CPU running the processing. However
this is not always possible, since computers will fail and processing then
needs to be restarted on other hardware. The invention does not restrict the
location of files with respect to processes. One of the key configuration
parameters that must be addressed to set up the running system is to
determine the number of UNIX file systems needed and determine the
distribution of files across them.
Relational Database Storage
For data stored in databases, the situation is more complex.
Each application component that uses the relational database can access the
data that it owns in a separate database running on a dedicated server.
Within some components, more than one database/server is possible. This
modular design will allow for multiple separate data stores for example ERP
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has Duplicate Check and Billable Events.
In some of these cases, a database can be further split (e.g.,
separate Duplicate Check databases for groups of physical network elements
28, or a partitioned Billable Event database using the mechanism presented
in the Scalability Approach section). In practice, however, it will be
desirable to combine many of these databases, especially the smaller ones.
Complexity of the invention operation will also go up as more databases are
involved. This configurability is not completely transparent, but because
interfaces are encapsulated in clearly defined objects, it is possible to
switch
from one mode of operation to another without re-architecture of the
invention system.
The key features which differentiate the invention from past
and existing products are:
Convergence - Convergence enables the invention to be the
single customer care and billing system for any service
provider, such as telecommunications. All services can be
defined and offered to customers, regardless of line of
business: wireline, wireless, Internet, cable, or entertainment.
All services are maintained in a single customer database,
proving a single customer view to CSRs. All of the services
can be brought together into a single pricing plan to promote
volume discounts across services. A single bill can be created
which depicts all charges for these services, including cross-
service discounting. The key here is that the bill is truly
converged, not simply produced by consolidating the output
of multiple systems (also known as "consolidated billing" or
"electronic stapling").
Modularity - The invention is a set of individual (integrated)
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modules that can be implemented individually or in
combination. This modular approach was taken to address
provider need. Each provider will have unique requirements
for a solution. Some will require a complete make-over,
while others require update of only a portion of their existing
processes. The invention's modular design enables each
component to be sold separately to meet each provider's
needs. The cost of a large-scale billing system can be
prohibitive to some providers.
The many features and advantages of the invention are
apparent from the detailed specification and, thus, it is intended by the
appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention
which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. Further, since
numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in
the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction
and
operation illustrated and described, and accordingly all suitable
modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of
the invention.
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