Multiplex communications – Special services – Conferencing
Patent
1995-04-07
1997-01-07
Olms, Douglas W.
Multiplex communications
Special services
Conferencing
370267, 379 67, 379 88, 379 89, 379201, H04Q 1104
Patent
active
055924735
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to communication systems and, more specifically, to private branch exchange systems including key systems, and methods for operating same.
2. Brief Description of the Pertinent Prior Art
A modern private branch exchange (PBX) system, in addition to facilitating communication among its lines and extensions must be capable of providing a number of special user services. For example, a PBX system must be capable of generating and routing, to each line and extension, a variety of standard and non-standard informational and supervisory tonal signals, such as, dial tone, audible ringing signal, etc., to provide each user with individualized call-status information. Furthermore, it is often desirable to supply special tonal signals, either with or without verbal messages, to assist callers in using the PBX and/or to provide information concerning their use thereof. Also, recently, it has also become desirable to provide such features as "music on hold", "voice mail", "station message detail recording" (SMDR), and "call forwarding." Also, given the needs of the modern office, the PBX system must have a conferencing feature for temporarily connecting a plurality of PBX system lines and/or extensions so that they may converse and/or exchange data simultaneously.
Conventional PBX systems exist which are capable of providing certain of the foregoing features. Typically, however, in order to be able to provide each of these special and particularly desirable features, conventional PBX systems incorporate application specific, dedicated hardware. For example, separate custom-made hardware modules are used in conventional systems to facilitate conference calling, generate tonal information signals and to distribute these signals to the plurality users (usually by means of a separate bus network), and to store and retrieve data (including informational and voice messages in "voice mail" systems).
A number of disadvantages result from the use of application specific circuitry to provide special user services in conventional systems. For example, the custom hardware used to generate tonal signals is only capable of producing a limited number of frequencies and amplitudes (power levels), and therefore, the tones which may be provided are invariably fixed depending on the specific type of custom hardware used within the system. This is especially unfortunate given the nature of today's telecommunications standards and global economy. Signalling frequency and amplitude standards differ from country to country, necessitating modifications of tonal signals to conform to each country's communications standards. Also, in order to effect these changes, significant and costly modifications must be made to the system's hardware, in order for the PBX system to be able to conform to these different telecommunication standards. In certain cases, the required modifications may be so extensive as to necessitate substituting an entirely different PBX system for the one currently in use.
Serious signal attenuation problems also plague conventional systems. For example, in a conventional system, the custom hardware used to generate tonal signals is connected, in parallel, to each of the output ports (via a distribution network). This arrangement causes the signal power distributed to each of the output ports to decrease proportionately along with the addition of each new output port and/or output line, necessitating the use of amplification and/or signal repeater circuitry distributed throughout the system.
Further problems may result when "voice mail" features are incorporated into a typical PBX system. Conventionally, the circuitry used to provide "voice mail" features comprise separate and distinct systems from the main PBX system. These separate systems are interfaced to the main PBX system via analog telephone lines and communicate with each other using one or more predetermined, standard signaling protocols (which may be, for example, comb
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Leach Amy K.
Matern William T.
Blum Russell W.
Newton Communications, Inc.
Olms Douglas W.
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