CA2031790A1 - Automatic number announcer with external port - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract of the Disclosure An automatic number announcer (ANA) having an external serial data port for connection to a peripheral device located in the central office of a telephone switching station. The automatic number announcer provides prior art features such as voice and DTMF
generation of the calling party's number, security access, and dynamic routing of the ANA response. The invention further provides means for communicating, via the ANA, with a peripheral device which is connected to the ANA, such as a computer or database containing telephone company records. The ANA includes a microprocessor which is programmed to allow two-way communications between the peripheral device and the calling party (a craftsperson or an automated test unit).

Description

2 0 317 ~cet Number: 45572USA1A

AUTOMATIC NUMBER ANNOUNCER WITH EXTERNAL PORT

Backqround of the Invention 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to telecommunications equipment, and more particulaxly to a device which outputs or announces the telephone number of a calling subscriber. The automatic number anncuncer of the present invention includes an external port, with supporting hardware and software, for connection to peripheral devices such as test equipment or database management systems.
2. Description of the Prior Art Automatic number announcers (commonly referred to as ANA's) are known in the art. They are used by telephone companies in their central offices, adjacent ; the switching hardware which is used to establish telephone connections. The sole purpose of prior art ANA's is to output the telephone number (based on the physical connections to the switching hardware) of a ; subscriber who is dialing the ANAj as explained further below. The telephone number is returned over the subscriber line, either in voice form or electronically encoded. In this manner, the caller (who is typically a telephone craftsperson) may corroborate the telephone company database information with specific subscriber lines.
A typical system configuration for a prior art ANA is illustrated in Figure 1. The prior art ANA 10 (which is mounted in a metallic facilities terminal) essentially has only one external connection, that being the dedicated outgoing trunk 12 from the switching hardware 1~. Both ANA 10 and switch 14 are located in the telephone company central office, as indicated by the dashed box 16. Switch 14 receives a plurality of subscribers lines 18 which are connected to telephones 20 or other telecommunications devices, such as a computer - .. -~3~790 modem 22. These devices are connected to subscriber lines 18 via a cross-connect box or pedestal 24. Switch 14 also has a plurality of outgoin~ trunk lines 25.
All telephone switching systems provide means for identifying the telephone number of the calling subscriber, primarily for billing purposes. This feature is referred to as automatic number identification (ANI).
For example, when a subscriber attempts to ma~e a long-distance call, switch 14 will determine the telephone number of the subscriber and output the number in multifrequency (MF) format to a billing system, such as the Centralized Automatic Message accounting (CAMA) system, or the Traffic Service Position System (TSPS).
The output of the switch (the calling number) is known as the ANI "spill."
Automatic number announcers exploit the ability of switches to provide an ANI spill. In the simplest operation, a craftsperson dials a special access code (usually a 3-digit number) for ANA ~0 from a telephone 20. Whan switch l~ detects the special access code, it routes the call to ANA 10. ANA 10 then captures the ANI
spill from the switch and decodes the subscriber's telephone number. This number is returned to the subscriber (craftsperson) either by a voice synthesizer, or in electronic form. The most common form of electronic encoding is the conventional dual-tone multifrequency (DTMF) signaling method.
The craftsperson uses the ANA response to confirm the actual telephone number of the subscriber.
If the ANA response is something other than the assumed telephone number, then the telephone company's da*abase records may be updated. Alternatively, if the incorrect number is the result of an erroneous connection in cross-connect box 24, the cra~tsperson may simply re-wire the connection to the proper cable pair. This testing method may further be enhanced by the use of automated test equipment connected to the subscriber lines. A suitable .. : , ~ . , :. ~ ,'' :' :~

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testing unit 26 may be provided within the central office, operatively connected to the subscriber line inputs to switch 14. This may be accomplished by the use of a multiple connection shoe 28 which fits over the subscriber line side of the main distribution frame.
Multiple relays are used to provide access between test unit 26 and each subscriber line ~8.
When shoe 28 is attached to the main distribution frame, information concerning the aable pair identification is manually loaded into test unit 26.
Test unit 26 then sequentially seizes each subscriber line and dials the ANA access code. The ANA response associated with each cable pair is recorded. This information may later be used to update the telephone company's database. Alternatively, test unit 26 may be connected to a computer 30 which is in turn connected to the database 32; computer 30 may be programmed to automatically update the database. Computer 30 may also be connected to a printer to provide a report of the ANA
responses and related information. A similar test unit 36 may be used at cross-connect box 24 if desired. A
suitable test unit is commercially available from Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Company (3M, assignee of the present invention), under the brand name MACS 3000.
A similar ~esting device is also disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,77~,721 issued to Gift et al.
Although ANA's are useful for such testing, their use is nevertheless extremely limited since their input capability is restricted to receiving the ANI
spill, and their output capability is similarly restricted to returning the calling number. For example, the cable verification procedure is often performed at a remote site on only a small number of cable pairs, and the ef~ort does not justify use of an automated test unit. In such cases, the cable pairs are accessed manually and the responses are noted on a worksheet. The craftsperson must then retain the worksheet until he or ~ .
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she returns to the central office, where a data entry operator manually transcribes the results into a format acceptable to the facility's database.
This procedure seems rather convoluted since the ANA is often located in the same building as the database, yet the ANA must transmit its responses to a remote site rather than directly to tha database, and the craftsperson must physically record the responses, deliver them to the central o~ice, and transcribe them into the database. Unfortunately, however, there is no prior art method for interfacing the ANA with the database. Moreover, use of an automated test unit at a remote site (i.e., at the cross-connect bo~) does not alleviate this problem since the records made by the test unit must still be physically transported to the central office and reformatted for entry into the database. It would, therefore, be desirable and advantageous to devise an ANA which would simplify cable verification and updating from a remote site.
Summary of the Invention The foregoing objective is achieved in an automatic number announcer having a central processor and means for interfacing the processor with the telephone company's database, or with other peripheral devices.
The interface means preferably takes the form of an external port, such as an RS232 serial connector. The processor is programmed to accommodate a serial connection to the database, as well as to a storage device, printer, computer or automated test unit.
In this manner, the craftsperson may transmit information (such as cable pair identification~ directly to the database or other peripheral via the ANA and, furthermore, the ANA may access information from these peripherals and transmit that information to the craftsperson at a remote site. The ANA of the present invention further includes the standard prior art 2~3~79~ :

components for receiving the ANI spill and transmitting the calling number back to the subscriber.

Brief Description of the Drawings The novel features and scope of the invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, will best be understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the manner in which a prior art automatic number announcer is connected to central office switching hardware;
Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating a system configuration using the automatic number announcer of the present invention;
Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the electrical components of the automatic number announcer of the present invention;
Figures 4A and 4B are flow charts depicting the steps involved in the use of the automatic number announcer of the present invention; Figure 4A relates to the standard ANA features, and Figure 4B relates to the memo mode for communication with the attached peripheral;
and Figure 5 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the automatic number announcer of the present invention designed for mounting in metallic facilities terminal.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment With reference now to the figures, and in particular with reference to Figure 2, there is depicted in block form the configuration for use of the automatic number announcer 40 of the present invention at a telephone central office. As with the prior art configuration, ANA 40 is connected to a switch 42 by means of trunk 44. Switch 42 receives a plurality of subscriber lines 46 and also provides a plurality of . , .
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outgoing trunks 48 for communicating with other central offices. The automatic number announcer of the present invention may be used with several different types of telephone switches, including lESS, lAESS, 5ESS and DMS
lOO switches.
The primary novelty of the present invention lies in the provision of a serial port which is attached to ANA 40 and connected to a peripheral device 50. It is understood that the term "peripheral" means any auxiliary device which may be operatively connec~ed to ANA 40 and which either supplies data to ANA 40 or processes data received from ANA 40. This term includes, interalia, a telephone database such as database 32 of Figure 1; a computer such as computer 30 designed to interface with such a da~abase; a test unit such as 3M's MACS 3000 modular automatic cable testing system; a printer; or a storage device such a magnetic or optical disk. A simple speaker would not constitute a peripheral since it does not process data or supply data to the AN~.
The construction cf ANA 40 may best be understood with reference to Figure 3. The heart of ANA
40 is a microprocessor 52 which is connected to an erasable, programmable read-only memory (EPROM) 54 and a - random access memory (RAM) 56. Microprocessor 52 may be packaged with EPROM ~4 and RAM 56 forming an integral microcontroller, such as the microcontroller available from Motorola Corp. of Schaumburg, Illinois, under part number MC68HC705C8. Microprocessor 52 is connected to trunk 44 by means of a conventional trunk interface 58.
Incoming signals are received by trunk interface 58 and passed to a receiver/amplifier 60, which in turn passes the signals to a multifrequency (MF) receiver 62 and a dual-tone multifrequency (DTMF) receiver 64. A
conventional relay driver 66 is used to control trunk interface 58. Relay driver 66 further drives a visual annunciator such as a light-emitting diode ~ED~ 68 which indicates the status of ANA 40. Although trunk interface -~ :

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58 is designed for loop start trunk circuits, it may be configured with a switch 70 to allow E~M trunk signalling. Microprocessor 52 is also connected to a dual in-line package (DIP) switch 72 which configures certain options as explained more fully below.
Data which is to be output from microprocessor 52 to trunk interface 58 is first passed to a voice/DTMF
synthesizer 74. A suitable synthesizer is available from NEC Corp. of Japan under part number UPD7756. Depending on the options which have been either proqrammed into microprocessor 52 or selected by use of the configuration switch 72, synthesizer 74 will output data in either voice form or in DTMF format. This output is directed to a low-pass filter 76, a filter/amplifier 78, and then to trunk interface 58. For those central offices which are equipped with a speaker for announcing the calling number of any subscriber who dials the ANA, low-pass filter 76 is also connected to a speaker level adjust 80, another filter/amplifier 82, and a speaker relay control 84.
Most of the foregoing components of ANA 40 are conventional and found in prior art ANA's. The hardware which is added in the present invention provides an additional external connection to the peripheral 50.
This connection preferably takes the form of a serial port, such as an RS232 port 86 which is connected to microprocessor 52 by means of a conventional RS232 interface 88. RS232 interface 88 includes a level shifter to convert CMOS logic levels to RS232 levels.
The use of ANA 40 with the external serial port 86 is explained in conjunction with Figures 4A and 4B, to which attention is now directed.
Figure 4A depicts the steps involved in using the automatic number announcer 40 of the present invention for standard purposes. First of all, the craftsperson or test unit dials the special access code (usually a 3-digit number) for ANA 40 (100). After switch 42 connects the subscriber to ANA trunk 44 (102), : '' 203~

ANA 40 signals switch 42 for the ANI spill ~104). A
check on the ANI spill is made (106) and if invalid, an error signal is returned to the trunk (108) and ANA is deactivated (110). If the ANI spill is valid, it is stored in RAM 56 (112), and ANA ~0 outputs the spill to peripheral 50 (114).
ANA 40 then checks to see if the "called number override" is on (116). This feature relates to the nature of the ANI spill. On electronic and digital switches that return.two MF spills during the ANI
sequence, the first spill contains the called number (the ANA access number) and the second spill contains the calling number. In its default mode, ANA 40 expects two such MF spills. The default setting may be changed by flipping one of the DIP switches in configuration switch 72. m e ability of ANA 40 to detect the called number provides an opportunity to encode:certain control commands into the called number, since several digits (e.g., seven) may be detected as the called number, but only three of these digits are unique to the particular ANA being used. In the present invention, the last digit in the called number is used for "dynamic output routing," which allows the craftsperson or test unit to direct the output of ANA 40 to either the central office speaker, or back along trunk 44 to the subscriber and furthermore, if trunk transmission is selected, allows selection of the transmission in either voice form or DTMF format.
The dynamic output routing may only be used if the calle~ number override switch is turned off. If this is the case, ANA 40 first checks to see if the security option has been activated (118). If so, the correct security code must be presented (120), or else ANA 40 will return an overflow or error signal (108). If the security option is not activated, or if the proper security code has been presented, ANA 40 then checks to see if the dynamic routing switch (one of the switches on '~

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DIP configuration switch 72) is on (122). If not, ANA 40 proceeds with a DTMF handshake as further explained below (124). If dynamic output routing has been enabled, ANA
40 checks to see ~f the last digit of the called number is a zero (126). If so, the subscriber reference number (the calling number) is routed in voice form to the central office speaker (128). If the last digit of the called number is not zero, ANA 40 checks for the number one (130). If found, the calling number is then sent along trunk 44 in voice form (132). If the la~t digit of the called number is neither a one nor a zero, then the calling number is sent to trunk 44 in DTMF format (134).
Flow of the program then shifts to the "memo" mode, as explained in conjunction with Figure 4B.
Returning to box 116, for switches that cannot provide called number information, the called number override switch is turned on, i.e., the appropriate switch in DIP configuration switch 72 is set to ignore any data subsequent to the first MF spill in the ANI
sequence. The ANA then sends a handshake signal to the subscriber (124) and waits approximately one second for a response (136). In the preferred embodiment, the handshake signal is an asterisk ("*") sent in DTMF
format. If the calling party (craftsperson or test unit~
transmits an appropriate response (such as a pound sign "#" in DTMF format~, then the calling number is sent out trunk 44 in DTMF format (13~). If any other response (or no response) is received, ANA 4Q next checks the status of the DTMF switch (140). This is one of the switches in DIP configuration switch 72 and, if it is turned on, then the calling number is sent only in DTMF format (138). If it is turned off, ANA 40 makes one final check on the status of the speaker switch (142), also one of the switches of DIP configuration switch 72. If this switch is turned on, the voice transmission of the calling number is diverted to the central office speaker (144), but if turned o~f, the voice transmission is sent along : ' ' . :

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trunk i4 to the calling party (146). ANA 40 then goes into the memo mode, illustrated in Figure 4B.
The memo mode utilizes the capability of ANA 40 to communicate with the attached peripheral device 50, and allows two-way data transmission (presuming the peripheral provides output, i.e., is not merely a printer or storage device). In the memo mode, ANA 40 first checks to see if the calling party has transmitted a data input control character ~in DTMF format), such as an asterisk (150). If so, a delimiter (such as an ASCII
comma) is first sent to the peripheral (152). ANA 40 then passes DTMF data transmitted by the calling party to peripheral 50 (154). This sequence may be repeated for several data entries, e.g., cable number, pair number, time of day, etc., with each data field separated by a comma delimiter.
If no data input control character is received, ANA 40 checks for a data output control character such as the pound symbol (156). If found, then ANA 40 sends a data request character to the peripheral (158); use of this capability of the memo mode assumes that the peripheral has been programmed to provide data output in a format which is acceptable to ANA 40. Rather than sending all available data at once, the calling party may request certain data according to field identifiers. For example, the calling party may only want to know the cable number which is listed in the telephone company database for the calling number. Therefore, the calling party (craftsperson or test unit) may send the particular field digit associated with that data field, and ANA 40 passes the field digit to the peripheral (160). The data which peripheral 50 returns is stored by ANA 40 (162) until either another control character is received (164), or until the ANA buffer storage is full (16~). The stored data is then transmitted to the subscriber (168).
The data may be transmitted in either voice form or DTMF
format; one of these options may be hard-wired into ANA

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40, or another switch may be provided in DIP
configuration switch 72 for this purpose. Alternatively, the voice~DTMF output may be based on the earlier handshake routine and switch selection governing transmission of the calling number.
After the data is sent to the calling party, program flow returns to the beginning oE the memo mode to allow further communications. If no further communications are necessary (or no control characters were ever received), ANA 40 waits until a prescribed period of time has passed or until the calling party has disconnected the line (170). ANA 40 is then deactivated (172).
The foregoing description e~plains the electronic structure and function of the automatic number announcer of the present invention. The physical aspects of one embodiment can be seen in Figure 5, which depicts an ANA designed for mounting in the metallic facilities terminal (MFT~ of the telephone company's central office.
The electronic components of ANA 40 are mounted on a printed circuit board 180. TWo mounting brackets 182 and 184 slide within the MFT. A face plate 186 provides access to serial port 86 and visual perception of the status annunciator 68. Two knobs 188 and 190 are used to manipulate ANA 40, and one of the knobs, such as 190, may be provided with a toggle latch for securing ANA 40 to the MFT.
Although the invention has been described with reference to speci~ic embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiment, as well as alternative embodiments of the invention, will become apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of the invention. It is therefore contemplated that the appended claims will cover such modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention.

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Claims (20)

1. I claim:
   l. An apparatus for providing a reference number associated with a subscriber who has accessed a telecommunications system, comprising:
   means for processing data received from the telecommunications system and generating the reference number based on said data;
   means for connecting said processing means to the telecommunications system; and means for interfacing said processing means with a peripheral device.
2. 2. The apparatus of Claim 1 wherein said interfacing means includes a serial port connected to said processing means.
3. 3. The apparatus of Claim 1 wherein said processing means includes means for generating a voice signal representing said data received from the telecommunications system.
4. 4. The apparatus of Claim 1 wherein said processing means includes means for generating a dual-tone multifrequency signal representing said data received from the telecommunications system.
5. 5. The apparatus of Claim 1 wherein said processing means includes means for passing additional data from the subscriber to the peripheral device.
6. 6. The apparatus of Claim 1 wherein said processing means includes means for passing additional data from the peripheral device to the subscriber.
7. 7. The apparatus of Claim 1 wherein said processing means includes means for selectively routing said data received from the telecommunications system in either voice form or dual-tone, multifrequency format.
8. 8. An apparatus for electronically communicating the telephone number of a calling party who has accessed a telecommunications system, comprising:
   means for processing data received from the telecommunications system and generating the telephone number of the calling party based on said data;
   trunk means connecting said processing means to the telecommunications system;
   a peripheral device; and peripheral interface means connecting said processing means to said peripheral device.
9. 9. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said peripheral device comprises a computer.
10. 10. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said peripheral device comprises a database system having information associated with the calling party's telephone number.
11. 11. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said peripheral device comprises testing means for automatically accessing a plurality of subscriber lines connected to the telecommunications system.
12. 12. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said peripheral device comprises a printer.
13. 13. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said peripheral device comprises an information storage device.
14. 14. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said peripheral interface means includes a serial port connected to said processing means.
15. 15. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said processing means includes means for generating a voice signal representing said data received from the telecommunications system.
16. 16. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said processing means includes means for generating a dual-tone multifrequency signal representing said data received from the telecommunications system.
17. 17. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said processing means includes means for passing additional data from the calling party to the peripheral device.
18. 18. The apparatus of Claim 8 wherein said processing means includes means for passing additional data from the peripheral device to the subscriber.
19. 19. The apparatus of Claim 9 wherein said computer is connected to a database having information associated with the calling party's telephone number.
20. 20. An automatic number announcer in a telecommunications facility having a plurality of subscriber lines, a central office switching system connected to each of the subscriber lines, the switching system having means for providing automatic number identification of a calling subscriber, at least one outgoing trunk connected to the switching system, and a peripheral device having both input and output capability, the automatic number announcer comprising:
    processing means for receiving number identification data from the automatic number identification means and generating the telephone number of a subscriber based on said data, said processing means including:
    means for generating a voice signal representing said number identification data, means for generating a dual-tone multifrequency signal representing said number identification data, means for passing input data from the outgoing trunk to the peripheral device, and means for passing output data from the peripheral device to the outgoing trunk;
    telephone interface means connecting said processing means to the outgoing trunk; and peripheral interface means connecting said processing means to the peripheral device, said peripheral interface means including a serial port.