Voice over data modem with selectable voice compression

A communication module for use with a personal computer, comprising:

• communications interface means connected for communicating to the personal computer for transferring data between the personal computer and the communications module;
• communication line interface means for connection to a communication line and for full duplex digital communication over the communication line;
• voice interface means for receiving local voice signals from a local user and for conveying remote voice signals from a remote user to the local user;
• full-duplex conversion means connected to the voice interface means for converting the local voice signals into outgoing digital voice data and for converting incoming digital voice data into the remote voice signals;
• digital signal processor means connected to the full-duplex conversion means for compressing the outgoing digital voice data into compressed outgoing digital voice data packets and for decompressing compressed incoming digital voice data packets into the incoming digital voice data, each of the compressed outgoing digital voice data packets having headers and each of the compressed incoming digital voice data packets having headers;
• main control means connected to the communication line interface means, connected for receiving the compressed outgoing digital voice data packets from the digital signal processor means, connected for receiving outgoing computer digital data packets from the personal computer through the communications interface means, operable for multiplexing the compressed outgoing digital voice data packets and the computer digital data packets to produce multiplexed outgoing data and for sending the multiplexed outgoing data to the communication line interface means for transmission over the communication line;
• the main control means further operable for receiving multiplexed incoming data from the communication line interface means, the multiplexed incoming data containing incoming computer digital data packets multiplexed with the compressed incoming digital voice data packets, the main control means further operable for demultiplexing the incoming computer digital data packets and the compressed incoming digital voice data packets, and for sending the incoming computer digital data packets to the personal computer through the communications interface means and for sending the compressed incoming digital voice data packets to the digital signal processor means;
• and
• the main control means further operable for negotiating communications parameters with a remote site, the communications parameters negotiated by sending a modified supervisory packet encoded with a particular communications parameter code to the remote site over the communication line and by receiving an acknowledgement supervisory packet for acceptable communications parameters from the remote site over the communication line.