I am attempting to build a skill with Alexa (doesn’t have to be Alexa, can be any other assistant as well) with the following two features that I am having trouble with:
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I have an existing way that I would like for the user to trigger the skill initially. Specifically, I have a custom mobile app that i have built. I’d like for the user to be able to press a button in the app and have Alexa wake up and invoke that skill automatically when the button is pressed. After doing some research, it seems I may be able to add a virtual switch in the smartthings app and (which I turn on via remote call from the mobile app) connect that to an Alexa routine that starts up my custom skill. Can anybody confirm this? Is there any easier method to do this? What if i have multiple Alexa devices, do I need a separate virtual switch for each one (I want different users with different mobile apps to be be able to invoke their skills by pressing a button on their own individual app installs)?
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As part of the skill, i’d like to have a fallback intent that routes the user to an operator. There is a separate operator app that the operator will be able to talk to. I would like the users to be able to talk into the Alexa device and communicate (kinda like by intercom) with the operator. The key here is that the operator may not be able to talk to a user immediately. So, either the user needs to be able to initiate a phone call that “rings” until the operator answers it, or the user’s Alexa needs to play music until the operator initiates a “drop in” to the user’s device. I’ve read a whole bunch on this topic but not been able to find a clear path on how to implement this. Any advice is appreciated.
Thanks in advance!