PCM subcode communications technique between a regional radio transmitter/receiver and a regional switching center

A communications technique for enhancing transmission efficiency in a radiotelephone network having at least plural remote transmitters, a regional receiver, and a regional switching center, comprising the steps of:

• processing voice communications at one of said remote transmitters for time division, speech compressed digital transmission to said regional receiver;
• sending analog voice communications from one of said remote transmitters to said regional receiver;
• receiving said analog voice communications at said regional receiver;
• and
• processing said analog voice communications at said regional receiver essentially identically as said processing of voice communications at said one of said remote transmitters for time division, speech compressed digital transmission to said regional receiver, such that said digital transmission and said processed analog voice communications can be forwarded to said regional switching center as speech compressed digital transmissions, wherein the analog voice communications as processed at said regional receiver and the digital transmission are forwarded to said regional switching center using a PCM subcode wherein each of the analog voice communications as processed by said regional receiver and the digital transmission are assigned an equal number of bits in a PCM word, said number of bits being less than and an integral divisor of the number of bits in said PCM word.

A radiotelephone communications system having plural remote transmitters, a regional receiver and a regional switching center, comprising:

• means for processing voice communications at one of said remote transmitters for time division, speech compressed digital transmission to said regional receiver,
• means for sending analog voice communications from one of said remote transmitters to said regional receiver;
• means for receiving processed analog voice communications at said regional receiver;
• and
• means for processing said analog voice communications at said regional receiver essentially identically as said processing of voice communications at said one of said remote transmitters for time division, speech compressed digital transmission to said regional receiver, such that said digital transmission and processed analog voice communications can be forwarded to said regional switching center as speech compressed digital transmissions.

A radiotelephone communications system having plural remote transmitters, a regional receiver and a regional switching center, comprising:

• means for processing voice communications at one of said remote transmitters for time division, speech compressed digital transmission to said regional receiver;
• means for sending analog voice communications from one of said remote transmitters to said regional receiver;
• means for receiving analog voice communications at said regional receiver;
• and
• means for processing said analog voice communications at said regional receiver essentially identically as said processing of voice communications at said one of said remote transmitters for time division, speech compressed digital transmission to said regional receiver, such that said digital transmission and said processed analog voice communications can be forwarded to said regional switching center as speech compressed digital transmissions, wherein communications between said regional receiver and said regional switching center are formatted according to a PCM subcode wherein an equal number of bits in each PCM word are assigned to each of a plurality of radio channels including both analog and digital radio channels.

A radiotelephone communications system for enhancing transmission efficiency, comprising;

• a regional switching center;
• a regional receiver;
• a first remote transmitter which transmits digital communications to the regional receiver;
• and
• a second remote transmitter which transmits analog communications to the regional receiver,
• said regional receiver including
• means for transforming said analog communications into digitized communications having substantially the same format as said digital communications wherein said transforming means comprises a speech codec and
• means for forwarding said digitized communications and said digital communications to said regional switching center using the same format.

A radiotelephone communications system for enhancing transmission efficiency, comprising:

• a regional switching center;
• a regional receiver;
• a first remote transmitter which transmits digital communications to the regional receiver;
• and
• a second remote transmitter which transmits analog communications to the regional receiver,
• said regional receiver including
• means for transforming said analog communications into digitized communications having substantially the same format as said digital communications and
• means for forwarding said digitized communications and said digital communications to said regional switching center as digitized communications, wherein said transforming means includes means for formatting said digitized and said digital communications between said regional receiver and said regional switching center according to a PCM subcode wherein an equal number of bits in each PCM word are assigned to each of a plurality of radio channels including both analog and digital radio channels.

A communications method for enhancing transmission efficiency in a radiotelephone network having at least plural remote receivers at least one of which is an analog receiver and at least one of which is a digital receiver capable of receiving time division speech compressed signals, a regional receiver, and a regional switching center,

• said method, in a transmission direction from said regional switching center to at least one of said plural remote receivers, comprising the steps of:
• receiving, in said regional switching center, PCM-call information at a first transmission rate;
• compressing, in said regional switching center, said PCM-call information from said first rate to a second, lower rate;
• packing, in said regional switching center, into a single PCM-channel a number of calls of said PCM-call information substantially corresponding to a ratio between said first and said second transmission rates, and transmitting said calls as subcode PCM at said first transmission rate;
• unpacking, in a regional receiver, said single PCM-channel into said number of calls;
• and
• separating at least one of said calls intended for said at least one analog remote receiver and processing said at least one call into an analog voice radio communication for said at least one analog remote receiver and processing at least one other of calls in said PCM-channel into time division speech compressed digital transmission for said at least one digital remote receiver.

A communications method for enhancing transmission efficiency in a radiotelephone network having at least plural remote transmitters at least one of which is an analog transmitter and at least one of which is a digital transmitter capable of transmitting time division speech compressed signals, a regional receiver, and a regional switching center, said method, in a transmission direction from at least one of said plural remote transmitters to said regional switching center, comprising the steps of:

• receiving, in said regional receiver, analog voice communications from at least one analog remote transmitter and time division speech compressed digital transmissions from at least one digital remote transmitters;
• processing, in said regional receiver, said analog voice communications from said at least one analog remote transmitter essentially identically to voice communications from at least one digital remote transmitter using a time division speech compressed digital transmission format;
• packing, in said regional receiver, into a single PCM-channel processed analog voice communications and said time division speech compressed digital transmissions;
• and
• transmitting said processed analog voice communications and said digital transmission as speech compressed digital transmissions at a predetermined rate to said regional switching center.