Key telephone system with enhanced connectivity

A key telephone system having enhanced connectivity and which is operably responsive to selected ones of digitally encoded instructions resident in memory means of switch means disposed in a central data and voice communication facility, comprising in combination:

• an analog communications path having a proximate end terminated at an analog interface of the switch means and a distal end terminated at a corresponding interface of key switch means;
• a digital communications path having a proximate end terminated at a digital interface of the switch means and a distal end terminated at a digital communications port of the key switch means;
• means for accessing the memory means and downloading selected ones of the digitally encoded instructions to the digital communications port;
• and
• control means communicating the port with a control input of the key switch means and being operably responsive to the instructions downloaded from the memory means for enabling the key switch means with corresponding service connectivity features.

A method for providing enhanced connectivity features in a key telephone system, wherein the features are operably responsive to selected ones of digitally encoded instructions resident in memory means of switch means disposed in a central data and voice communication facility, comprising the steps of:

• establishing an analog communications path having one end terminated at an analog interface of the switch means and an opposite end terminated at a remote key switch unit having a visual display;
• establishing a digital communications path having one end terminated at a digital interface of the switch means and an opposite end terminated at a remote display communications port of the key switch unit;
• accessing the memory means and downloading selected ones of the digitally encoded instructions to the digital communications port;
• communicating the digital communications port with an enabling input of processor means;
• communicating a controlling output of the processor means with an enabling input of the key switch unit;
• and
• applying digitally encoded instructions downloaded from the switch means to the processor means for enabling the key switch unit with corresponding service connectivity features and visually displaying the same on the visual display.