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US 4,305,149 AGranted
Conferencing method and apparatus with multiplexed analog signals
AssigneeSmall World Exchange, Inc.
InventorJohn M. Harrison
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A communication conferencing and inquiry handling apparatus and method provide a plurality of communication channels with access to one or more ongoing or new communications groupings or pools. Conferencing between different communication channels employs an analog transmit signal path and an analog receive signal path for each channel, and selective switching of each such path to a common analog bus.
Claims13
Electrical conferee-initiated signal-conferencing apparatus comprising
- input means for concurrently receiving a plurality of incoming signals over an associated plurality of communication channels, said input means including
- means for responding to a signaling condition on any channel for conditioning the channel for communication, and
- input circuit means associated with each channel for providing an analog transmit signal on a transmit signal line corresponding to signal energy from said channel and for delivering an analog receive signal from a receive signal line to said channel,
- means forming a common analog signal bus, and
- control means for selectively and switchably connecting each of said transmit and receive signal lines of each conditioned channel to said common bus, said control means including
- a plurality of switch elements operatively connected between said receive lines and said common bus and between said transmit lines and said common bus,
- means for controlling the switch elements associated with each transmit line to connect said respective transmit lines repeatedly to said common bus during respective non-overlapping time intervals, the time intervals associated with each transmit line forming a periodic sequence, and the time intervals associated with any one transmit line not overlapping the time intervals associated with any other one transmit line, and
- means for controlling the switch elements associated with each receive line to connect said respective receive lines to said common bus during selected time intervals,
- whereby said channels can be selectively connected in any of plural communication groupings with each channel being so connected independently of such connections of other channels.
6 more elements
A conferee-initiated signal-conferencing method comprising the steps of
- concurrently receiving a plurality of incoming signals over an associated plurality of communication channels and responding to a signaling condition on any channel for conditioning the channel for communication,
- providing a transmit signal line and a receive signal line associated with each of at least plural ones of said channels,
- providing an analog transmit signal on a transmit signal line in response to incoming signals on said associated channel, and an analog receive signal to said channel in response to a signal on said associated receive signal line,
- selectively and switchably connecting each of the transmit and the receive lines of each conditioned channel to a common analog bus during assigned non-overlapping time intervals,
- controlling the connection of each transmit line to connect said respective transmit lines to safe common bus repeatedly during the respective non-overlapping time intervals, the time intervals associated with each transmit line forming periodic sequence, and the time intervals associated with any one transmit line not overlapping the time intervals associated with any other transmit line, and
- controlling the connection of each receive line for connecting the respective receive lines to the common bus during selected time intervals,
- whereby said channels can be selectively connected in any of a plurality of communication groupings with each channel being so connected independently of such connections of other channels.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.