IVR Program Flow Test - Are all of the IVR phone key paths fully functional?

Is the user directed to the proper response when a phone key response is entered? IVR Voice Recordings Verfication - This step requires that every voice recording that is played to the user is fully functional and plays the complete message a s designed. IVR Error Condition Tests - If the user hits the wrong phone key, how does the I VR respond? Is the error message played to the user sufficiently clear and does the user know how to proceed? Database Access Test - Does the IVR retrieve the proper information over the net work or from the internet. Are there failsafe procedures in place to ensure the proper information is accessible? Disabled Communications Test - If a communications breakdown occurs during any p hase of the IVR process, is the user given an appropriate warning and does the I VR recover properly from a transaction update? Text To Speech Test - Does the text to speech converter work properly with the s upplied information retrieved? How does the converter respond under heavy usage? Database Update Test - During an IVR transaction, is the information submitted b y the user properly updated in the database? Is the data saved and readily retri evable? Are there reasonable checks placed upon the captured data? (i.e. age vs years of employment) Voice Recording Test - Does the IVR properly save information about the IVR tran saction that has been recorded (for legal and transaction purposes)? Is the retr ieval of these recording properly managed and are these recordings transmitted ( when required) to the proper destinations? System Load Test - Does the IVR computer system perform properly when subjected to a heavy load of calls? Is the system configured properly to handle expected p eak loads? Are all of the IVR components (recordings, text to speech, network ac cess) capable of performing under extreme call volumes? Intuitive IVR Logic Test - Finally, does the IVR perform in a manner that allows the intuitive user to understand the prompts and navigation? Is the system self -correcting and can the user start over or return to a prior response without te rminating the transaction? --------------------------------------------------------------------------Clinical trials IVR systems are used by large pharmaceutical companies to conduct global clinica l trials and manage the large volumes of data generated. The application used by the IVR in clinical trials is generally referred to as a Voiceform application. The caller will respond to questions in their preferred language and their resp onses will be logged into a database and possibly recorded at the same time to c onfirm authenticity. Applications include patient randomization and drug supply management. --------------------------------------------------------------------Dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) signaling is used for telephone signaling over the line in the voice-frequency band to the call switching center. The version o f DTMF used for telephone tone dialing is known by the trademarked term Touch-To ne (canceled March 13, 1984), and is standardized by ITU-T Recommendation Q.23. Other multi-frequency systems are used for signaling internal to the telephone n etwork. -------------------------------------------------------------------Pushing the keys of a phone to send DTMF digits.

The DTMF tone is the basic unit used to communicate with and take control over a n IVR system. A caller sends the DTMF tones by pressing appropriate keys on a to uch-tone phone to move through the menu tree of the IVR system. This menu can be a complicated maze of menus, branches and choices. Complex systems of this type require in-depth testing to ensure that customers are not confused or become st uck without a defined exit. Distinguishing between different languages Advanced IVR systems offer caller-selectable languages in which to play announce ments. Speaking, listening and understanding voice prompts Many IVR systems do not only accept caller interactions with DTMF tones, they ar e increasingly capable of recognizing voice prompts spoken by the caller. Rating the voice quality of an announcements IVR system announcements must be of good quality. They must be transmitted clear ly to ensure the caller can understand every word. Behavior under load conditions An IVR system can be put under very different load conditions once it is deploye d in a live network (e.g., during a tele-voting event, when many callers setup u p a call within a very short time). Thus IVR systems must be tested under differ ent load conditions prior to their deployment to ensure: The IVR system works correctly under real load conditions in a live network. The IVR system recovers properly from overload conditions The IVR system is stable over a long period of time Integration of the IVR system in a complete network Since IVR systems do not exist as "island" devices but are always integrated int o an entire network, it is important to test them not only as stand-alone compon ents but also as integrated parts of the network. ----------------------------------------------------------To support this test setup, the test tool must provide the following key feature s: It needs to be able to setup calls on different interfaces and applications in o rder to simulate the behavior of human callers. Since calls usually are establis hed using DTMF tones, the tool must be capable of sending any sequence of DTMF t ones. In order to test the behavior of the IVR system with different caller prof iles, changing the executable test scripts must also be quick and easy. It must be capable of simulating the interfaces to the various applications, inc luding access to a bank account information system or to a personal voice mail s ystem. In fact, the test tool must support all relevant interfaces provided by t he IVR system to the outside world, thus allowing testers to treat the IVR syste m as a "black-box." Thus the tool has to provide multi-interface / multi-applica tion capability for test execution on multiple interfaces running different appl ications. NexusT TOOL REQUIREMENTS To test the voice recognition functionality of advanced IVR systems, the test to ol needs to support the sending of pre-recorded voice prompts (e.g., *wav files) and DTMF tones. More importantly, it must be easy to both import available and generate new *wav files into the tool. This is crucial as IVR systems are often deployed with different language sets, all of which need to be tested prior to t heir rollout. Testing the voice quality of the IVR system is necessary to ensure that it plays its announcements clearly when deployed later in the live network.

On-line audio access to the content of the voice channels during test execution is very helpful in terms of getting immediate information about the status of th e IVR system that is being tested. Interworking testing IVR systems are always integrated into the entire network. There are two major t ypes of interfaces used to integrate an IVR system: The interfaces toward the callers. The interfaces toward intelligent peripherals, including databases, IN platforms , the call agent in a call center and others. For the complete and comprehensive testing of an IVR system, the interactions be tween these interfaces must be tested to ensure the IVR system performs as speci fied. With its support of multi-interfaces / multi-application testing, Nexus861 0 is the ideal tool for interworking testing.