As briefly described above, a centralized network maintenance work distribution system may be provided for efficient performance of maintenance and repair tasks. In the following detailed description, references are made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustrations specific embodiments or examples. These aspects may be combined, other aspects may be utilized, and structural changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. The following detailed description is therefore not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
Referring now to the drawings, aspects and an exemplary operating environment will be described.
Embodiments may be implemented as a computer process (method), a computing system, or as an article of manufacture, such as a computer program product or computer readable media. The computer program product may be a computer storage media readable by a computer system and encoding a computer program of instructions for executing a computer process. The computer program product may also be a propagated signal on a carrier readable by a computing system and encoding a computer program of instructions for executing a computer process.
Generally, program modules include routines, programs, components, data structures, and other types of structures that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that embodiments may be practiced with other computer system configurations, including hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. Embodiments may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.
With reference to
According to some embodiments, centralized work distribution application 120 may include one or more modules responsible to individual operations in managing network maintenance tasks. The modules may include manager's dashboard 122 configured to enable managers to monitor, assign, modify, and remove tasks; technician's user interface (UI) 124 configured to enable technicians to view an available task list, accepts tasks, and provide feedback; and database communication module 126 configured to receive information associated with the tasks from various network databases, provide updates to selected network databases, and provide collected data to other databases. Individual modules may be an integrated part of a centralized work distribution application 120 or a separate application. The modules and centralized work distribution application 120 may communicate with other applications running on computing device 100 or on other devices. Furthermore, centralized work distribution application 120 may be executed in an operating system other than operating system 106.
The computing device 100 may have additional features or functionality. For example, the computing device 100 may also include data storage devices 110 (removable and/or non-removable) such as, for example, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape. Computer storage media may include volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information, such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. System memory 104 and storage devices 110 are examples of computer storage media. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can be accessed by computing device 100. Any such computer storage media may be part of device 100.
Computing device 100 may also include input device(s) 112 such as a keyboard, a mouse, a pen, a voice input device, a touch input device, etc. Furthermore, output device(s) 114 such as a display, a speaker, a printer, etc. may also be included. These devices are well known in the art.
Communication connections 116 may be included in computing device 100 to allow the device to communicate with other computing devices 118, such as over a network in a distributed computing environment, for example, an intranet or the Internet. Communication connections 116 exemplify various communication media. Communication media may be embodied by computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, and include any information delivery media.
By way of example, and not limitation, communication media may include wired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media. The term computer readable media as used herein refers to both storage media and communication media.
Typical components of a computing device where embodiments may be implemented are shown in
Referring to
The centralized work distribution application 120 may be run centrally on centralized work distribution service 202 or in a distributed manner over several servers and/or client devices. Centralized work distribution service 202 may include implementation of a number of task management systems such as activity tracking, performance evaluation, activity scheduling, and the like. A number of other applications may also be configured, deployed, and shared in system 200. In addition, the centralized work distribution application 120 may also be run in one or more client devices and information exchanged over network(s) 210.
Data stores 206-1 through 206-N are examples of a number of data stores that may be utilized to store data associated with the network that is being maintained. Data stores 206-1 through 206-N may be managed by data storage servers 204-1 through 204-N or directly accessed by centralized work distribution service 202 or any one of the clients. Centralized work distribution service 202 may receive information associated with the network from data stores 206-1 through 206-N and store in a central data store 208.
Users such as technicians, managers of various levels, and administrators may interact with centralized work distribution service 202 running the network maintenance management application from client devices 222, 224, 226, and 228 over network(s) 210. In one embodiment, portions or all of the centralized work distribution application 120 may reside on any one of the client devices 222, 224, 226, and 228. In such an embodiment, data may be stored in data stores 206-1 through 206-N without an involvement of centralized work distribution service 202.
According to some embodiments, users may be provided one or more user interfaces (UIs) to interact with the centralized work distribution application 120. Technicians may view and accepts tasks from a list of available tasks (e.g. open ticket list). Other users, such as managers, may monitor task distribution activity, assign and redirect tasks, and the like.
Network(s) 210 may include a secure network such as an enterprise network, or an unsecure network such as a wireless open network. Network(s) 210 provide communication between the nodes described above. By way of example, and not limitation, network(s) 210 may include wired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media. Many other configurations of computing devices, applications, and data storage may be employed to implement a centralized work distribution system.
Now referring to
At the core of the centralized work distribution service 202 is centralized work distribution application 120, which receives input associated with network alerts, status, open tickets, malfunction locations, technical specifications, and the like, from network information sources 302. Network information sources 302 may be implemented as discrete or integrated databases, applications, web servers, and the like. Based on predetermined parameters, such as time and duration of malfunction, priority status of malfunctioning network component, availability of technicians and/or materials, and the like, open tickets are categorized and prioritized by centralized work distribution application 120.
Categorized open tickets are then made available to technicians in technician assignments component 310. Technicians may view the list through a web application UI or other methods. Technicians may accept tickets from the list, provide feedback on the progress of work, report completion, or input additional information interacting with centralized work distribution application 120.
Manager control component 304 enables interaction of managers with the system, allowing them to monitor open ticket list, progress of work by dispatched technicians, assign or reassign tickets, change or remove tickets, and so on.
Collected Information component 308 may collect data in addition to the network related data provided by network information component 302. Such data may include technician activity tracking data, used materials data, or network status update from the technicians. Collected Information component 308 may provide the collected additional data to other services such as an inventory control service, an activity scheduling service, a performance evaluation service, and the like.
The architecture described in
Servers 402, 404, 406, 408, and 410 represent a number of sources that may provide information associated with a network that is being maintained. For example, server 402 may provide open ticket data, server 404 may provide network status data, server 406 may provide technical specification data for network components, server 408 may provide administrative information, and server 410 may provide discrepancy information. Servers 402, 404, 406, 408, and 410 may be actual computing devices, applications, or distributed systems. Some of the servers e.g. 402, 404, and 406 may provide the information to data stores ticket database 422, status database 424, and specification database 426, while others e.g. 408 and 410 may provide the information directly to centralized work distribution application 120.
The centralized work distribution application 120 is configured to operate in coordination with multiple data stores, servers, and clients. It coordinates collection of network data from individual data stores to a central data store, such as work list database 428. The centralized work distribution application 120 may facilitate categorization of network maintenance and repair tasks based on the received information e.g. extent of outage, parts availability, duration of outage, priority status of out-of-service customers, and the like. Work list database 428 may include a number of sub-databases or tables based on the categories of open tickets. The grouping may be based on a type of ticket or priority of tasks. For example, the sub-databases may include phone tickets 432, ADSL tickets database 434, and the like, in a mixed telecommunication network.
The centralized work distribution application 120 may also facilitate interaction of technicians (444) and managers (442) with the system by providing user interfaces. Technicians may view open ticket list, accept one or more tickets, receive detailed information associated with the tasks, or provide feedback associated with the tasks (e.g. work progress, materials used/needed, completion, actual duration of task completion). Managers may view status of tasks, assign them to technicians, modify the tasks, or redirect the already assigned tasks. In facilitating the interaction of the technicians and the managers with the system, centralized work distribution application 120 may implement credential based filtering restricting access to information or directing tasks based on credentials of the technicians or managers.
Moreover, centralized work distribution application 120 may collect additional information associated with the performance of the tasks such as used material, technician throughput, and the like, and provide the collected information to other applications e.g. an ERP application, a performance evaluation application, and the like. According to other embodiments, centralized work distribution application 120 may provide updated information to some of the network databases such as status database 424.
The centralized work distribution application 120 may be any application such as an executable computer program, a web application, and the like. The examples provided above are for illustration purposes only. Individual components of a centralized work distribution system may be implemented in any way using the principles described herein including additional components such as databases, user interfaces, and the like. Furthermore, the centralized work distribution application 120 may perform additional operations associated with managing the maintenance of a telecommunications network.
According to the example scenario, components of telecommunications network 502 are monitored and any malfunction detected by sensors. Detected malfunctions may be forwarded to a tickets database 504 to be addressed by the service workforce. In addition to detected malfunctions, regularly scheduled maintenance tasks may also be stored in tickets database 504 or another data store. Other databases, such as technical specifications database 506 that includes technical information associated with the network components, may be utilized to provide information about the network to the service workforce.
According to some embodiments, centralized work distribution application 120 may be utilized for efficient use of the service workforce and dispatching of technicians to open tickets. The centralized work distribution application 120 may receive information from the network associated databases or other direct sources (not shown) and prepare a categorized open ticket list. The categorization may be based on a number of factors including, but not limited to, a time and duration of the malfunction, a geography of the malfunctioning network component, available technicians, available materials, priority status of customers serviced by the malfunctioning component, and the like.
The centralized open ticket list is then made available to technicians 518. Technicians 518 may view the list through a web application UI or any other interface tool, and select tickets they would like to work on. Once a ticket is assigned to a technician, it may be blocked to other technicians to prevent duplication of work. The assigned technician may be enabled to receive additional information associated with the ticket such as technical specifications, material lists, etc., through the same UI (e.g. by activating a hyperlink associate with the ticket).
According to other embodiments, the centralized work distribution application 120 may implement a credential based filter 516 to optimize distribution of work or improve security. Different categories of tickets may be made available to technicians with matching skill sets and not to the entire service workforce. For example, tickets associated with sensitive portions of the network may only be made available to technicians with sufficient permission levels and experience.
Upon being assigned by selecting the ticket themselves or receiving the assignment from a manager, the technicians, may provide feedback to centralized work distribution application 120 through the same or another UI. According to another example, centralized work distribution application 120 may be a web application accessible to technicians from any client device by logging in. Once at the work site, the technician may log in to the centralized work distribution application 120 and enter information associated with the progress of work, materials used, or even open a new ticket.
In addition to the technician provided information, centralized work distribution application 120 may collect additional information through monitoring technician activities such as time on the job, time to complete a task, travel time, and the like. Information collected from the technicians and through monitoring may be provided to other applications or databases e.g. human resources database 512, and ERP database 514. Furthermore, the centralized open ticket list may be updated based on the technician feedback and updated information provided to network associated databases such as tickets database 504.
Another significant component of the centralized work distribution application 120 is manager interaction. Managers 510 may interact with the application 120 through another UI and monitor status of the open tickets list. The managers may further be enabled to add, remove, or modify tickets and assignments. The centralized work distribution application 120 may be further configured to issue alerts to selected managers in response to predefined conditions. The conditions may be defined in the system or by individual managers. They may include a number of open tickets exceeding a threshold, delays in completion of tickets, delays in technician feedback, and the like. For example, a manager may activate additional technicians if he/she receives an alert about a surge of network outages. Managers' access to the system may also be subject to credential based filtering.
Interaction of technicians and managers with the centralized work distribution application 120 may take many forms. Information associated with tickets and their status may be presented to the technicians and managers as lists, spreadsheets, charts, histograms, diagrams, or combination thereof. The presentations may be provided on-screen, as electronic mail, downloadable files, facsimiles, and the like. In addition, alerts may be provided as electronic mail, voicemail, instant message, and so on.
Process 600 begins with operation 602, where the centralized work distribution application 120 receives network information from a variety of sources. As described previously, network information may include open tickets, network status, technical specifications, target identifications, location lists, and the like, and come from databases, servers, applications, and other sources. Processing moves from operation 602 to operation 604.
At operation 604, the centralized work distribution application 120 categorizes tickets based on their type, geography, priority, available materials, and so on. A list of open tickets may be prepared from the categorized tickets. The categories may be utilized to filter the open ticket list based on technician credentials. Processing moves from operation 604 to operation 606.
At operation 606, the centralized work distribution application 120 provides open ticket list to technicians and managers. Technicians may select from the list tasks they would like to perform. Managers may review the list, technician assignments, and progress of the maintenance. Managers may also modify or remove tickets on the list, assign or reassign certain tickets.
As illustrated by the dashed progress line, processing within the centralized work distribution application 120 may proceed from operation 606 to operation 608, where the centralized work distribution application 120 receives a request for a ticket from a technician or the ticket assigned to a technician by a manager. Credentials of a technician may be used in determining which tickets can be viewed by individual technicians and assigned to them. Once a ticket is assigned to a technician, the centralized work distribution application 120 may be block the ticket such that duplication of work if avoided. Processing moves from operation 608 to operation 610.
At operation 610, the technician may provide feedback on the assigned ticket to the centralized work distribution application 120. The feedback may include information such as progress, actual duration of the task, used materials, network status update, and the like. As part of the feedback, a technician may also add new ticket(s) to the list of open tickets. Processing advances from operation 610 to operation 612.
At operation 612, the centralized work distribution application 120 updates the list of open tickets. Completed tickets may be removed from the list, new ones may be added. Based on the received information, tickets may also be modified or recategorized. Processing moves from operation 612 to optional operation 614.
At optional operation 614, the centralized work distribution application 120 may provide information collected during the completion of tasks associated with the open tickets to various targets. For example, performance information such as duration of tasks may be provided to a performance evaluation application, used materials information may be provided to an inventory management application. Moreover, updated network status information may be provided to network databases that supplied the original status information. After operation 614, processing moves to a calling process for further actions.
The operations included in process 600 are for illustration purposes. Centrally managing distribution of network maintenance and repair tasks may be implemented by similar processes with fewer or additional steps, as well as in different order of operations using the principles described herein.
The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the composition of the embodiments. Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims and embodiments.