This invention concerns systems and techniques for assigning, tracking, and billing of calls for service, maintenance and repair for customer equipment, and for subsequent sales activity or other follow-up services. The invention is more specifically directed to an automated system in which the work assignment and billing information can be processed and transmitted between a central office and field technicians, and involves hand-held communications devices that communicate wirelessly using the Internet with a main server computer at the central office.
Currently, when a customer or potential customer calls in to request maintenance or repair service because of a failure or problem with the customer equipment, network, or software, a telephone dispatcher writes up a work order which is logged in as a service call. Eventually, through some business method, the service call is given to a repair technician, who then schedules a service call visit to the customer site to repair the equipment if possible. It has been difficult to provide service calls to the technician(s) in a manner that is efficient, and which results in prompt customer service. This usually involves having the technician physically present at the dispatcher location to receive the appropriate information about the customer trouble, or else having the technician and dispatcher communicate by voice. There are other problems that have not been addressed in the prior art, such as how the technician can reach the customer's geographical location, how the customer is to make payment for the repair and maintenance service, and how replacement parts for the customer equipment are obtained, delivered, and paid for.
There have been various techniques proposed for facilitating the servicing of equipment in need of repair or other attention. Daniel et al. Published U.S. Pat. Appln. No. US2002/0022984 relates to a computerized method and system for guiding personnel in the servicing of equipment requiring repair while at the equipment work site, e.g., a railroad locomotive in a rail yard. Kardos et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,345,281 relates to a recovery process in which orders are scheduled by computer and are communicated from a central message handler function to remote station. Hall et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,026,375 concerns a technique of processing orders from mobile customers that require service. The service order is transmitted to a service provider in the vicinity of the customer location, and the system provides for computerized job tracking and billing. Karp et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,154,727 concerns a system that tracks one or more service provider(s) as they visit assigned client sites, who may use a wireless phone device. Walsh et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,144,848 relates to the use of hand-held devices that connect with a host computer. Other systems have been proposed for using a computer to generate contract proposals, reports, and job costs, e.g., in LeVander U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,108.
However, to date, no one has come up with an effective and efficient means for tracking and assigning customer service calls to field technicians, and automatically closing the order as the work is completed, billing the customer (or charging a customer account directly), and providing for payment to the technician. There has been no method available that automatically communicates between the central station and the technician using hand-held wireless units that display the appropriate customer information for the technician, and which also permit the technician to enter job completion and customer information, as well as time and equipment information for billing purposes, and which permit the technician to order replacement equipment using the hand held device, with the ordered equipment being automatically sent to the customer location (or other location, if desired), and automatically billing the customer for same. There has not been a systematic way of scheduling additional customer training, follow-on or rescheduled work, or follow-up, post service visits with customers, nor has there been a systematic way for the service technician to provide or deliver software, virus protection, data bases or Internet services.