Get DTMF String Block

Prompts caller to input a string of digits using the phone keypad and collects the input. If validation is enabled, input is verified and caller is prompted to repeat it.

1.The voice application plays Main prompt requesting caller input and starts waiting for input.

2.If the input is not started within the specified first digit timeout, a short prompt is played (usually please continue input)

3.The caller enters the information using the phone keypad.

4.The input is completed when caller enters the specified Max Number of Digits, enters the specified Finish Input Digit key (usually #) or interrupts input for specified inter-digit timeout (the caller took too much time between entering digits and the system considered the input to be complete).

5.Input can be started over by entering specified Clear Input Digit key, if necessary.

6.Upon completion, block saves DTMF string as an interaction property with the specified name.

7.If the validation is enabled:

•The voice application checks the validity of the data by running an SQL query based on the interaction property with DTMF input

•If query is not successful (no rows are returned), the block plays the Invalid Input prompt and awaits input, up to amount of attempts configured in the Retries field.

•If the Retries count is exceeded, the block exits using Invalid Input exit

Conditional Exits

The Get DTMF String block has conditional exits to determine the action of the voice application when the following events occur:

•No Input - The voice application did not receive any input from the caller after repeating the Short prompt for the number of times set in the Retries field.

•Invalid Input - The input received by the voice application was not valid even after repeating the number of times set in the Retries field. The validation is not performed and this exit is not used if the validation option is off. In that case, validating input is up to blocks that follow Get DTMF String.

•Aborted - The caller aborted input by pressing the Abort Input Digit key.

•Caller Disconnected - The call was terminated by the caller. The cleanup is completed. This conditional exit could be used to perform other actions after the call is terminated. For example, sending SMS/Tweet to the caller with details of the conversation or to post a feedback link.

Prompts

The Get DTMF String block has the following prompts:

•Main Prompt (Required) - The prompt the voice application plays to instruct the caller to input data.

•Timeout Prompt - The prompt the voice application plays when the allotted time for the caller to input data expires. Optional, default is Main Prompt.

•Invalid Input Prompt - The prompt the voice application plays when the data the caller enters does not match the data in the database.

Settings

The Get DTMF String block has the following settings:

•Label - Change the name of the block if needed to uniquely identify the use of this block in the application flowchart.

•Interaction Property to Store Result in (Name) (Required) - The name for interaction property in which to store the input string.

•Max Number of Digits (Optional) - The maximum number of digits to expect. Leave this field empty if the number of digits may vary.

•Finish Input Digit (Optional) - The digit the caller enters to indicate the input is complete. Most voice applications use the pound sign (#) as this indicator. If you specify a Finish Input Digit, notify the customer about it during the Main prompt. Leave this field empty and specify Max Number of Digits if the input is a fixed length. If you do not require a Finish Input Digit, the voice application uses the Max Number of Digits and Timeout Between Digits fields to determine when the caller completes the input.

•Clear Input Digit (Optional) - The key the caller presses to reset input to empty string. This is useful when callers must enter long numbers. If you specify a Clear Input Digit, tell the customer about it during the Main Prompt.

•Abort Input Digit - The digit the caller enters to clear all previously entered digits and abort the input. If you specify an Abort Input Digit, tell the customer about it during the Main Prompt. If the caller presses the abort digit, the block will not perform validation (even if it is specified) and will immediately exit.

•Timeout Before First Digit is Dialed (Required) - The number of seconds an application waits for the caller to start entering input before playing the Short prompt, and giving the user another try, if the value in the Retries field is not exceeded.

•Timeout Between Digits (Required) - The number of seconds a caller can spend between pressing each button before input is considered complete.

•DB Connection Name - A list of all databases open with DBOpen block available to the voice application at this point in the flowchart. Select the database containing the data to be validated. If you do not want to validate the data the caller inputs, select the Validation Disabled option.

•SQL Statement (Required if you selected a database connection in the DB Connection Name field) - The SQL statement, (similar to one in DB Access Block) the voice application uses to retrieve the data necessary for checking the validity of the caller’s input. The query must return a non-empty record set. You can reference interaction properties by inserting the property name between percent (%) symbols. For example:
select aa from bb where cc = ‘%propertyname%’
in which %propertyname% is the value to validate.

•Fetch Result into Interaction Data - if checked, result of validation is stored in interaction data just like in DB Access Block).

•Retries (Optional) - The number of times this building block attempts to execute before the voice application moves to the next building block. Enter a 0 or 1, or leave this field blank if you only want the block to attempt to execute one time.

When Configuration for this Block is Complete:

•Click the Update button to apply the settings.