Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
  • H04W4/00—Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
  • H04W4/24—Accounting or billing
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M15/00—Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
  • H04M15/28—Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP with meter at substation or with calculation of charges at terminal
  • H04M15/30—Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP with meter at substation or with calculation of charges at terminal the meter or calculation of charges not being controlled from an exchange
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M17/00—Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M17/00—Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems
  • H04M17/02—Coin-freed or check-freed systems, e.g. mobile- or card-operated phones, public telephones or booths
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M15/00—Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M2215/00—Metering arrangements; Time controlling arrangements; Time indicating arrangements
  • H04M2215/32—Involving wireless systems
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M2215/00—Metering arrangements; Time controlling arrangements; Time indicating arrangements
  • H04M2215/92—Autonomous calculations of charges in terminal, i.e. meter not controlled from exchange
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
  • H04W88/00—Devices specially adapted for wireless communication networks, e.g. terminals, base stations or access point devices
  • H04W88/02—Terminal devices

Definitions

• the present invention relates to telephony in general and more particularly to public telephones.
• Public telephones are well known in most parts of the world. Conventional public telephones have fixed locations and require that a user be physically present at the fixed location in order to use the telephone. Often, the physical location of the telephone is inconvenient for the user to get to and is in an unsuitable environment, in terms of background noise, exposure to the elements, vandalism or personal safety. For the foregoing reasons, many public telephones are uneconomical to the operator due to low utilization coupled with high installation and maintenance costs.
• U.S. Patent 5,327,482 describes a public cordless telephone system which employs a base station having an associated charger for mobile units, called branch units, and which includes a theft prevention function. This system employs an identification signal detecting circuit for collating an identification signal determined by a combination of the base unit and the branch unit .
• U.S. Patent 5,359,182 describes a wireless telephone debit card system and method.
• the debit card used in this system requires an identification number or personal access number.
• the present invention seeks to provide a public telephone system having enhanced flexibility in that it employs cordless telephones .
• the public telephone system of the present invention employs preferably does not include any billing infrastructure and is merely operative to debit credit cards or debit cards associated with the cordless telephones.
• the public telephone system does not require the use of regulated frequencies and/or transmission power levels.
• the system of the present invention does not require any identification number for a cordless telephone or for a debit card.
• cordless telephone encompasses any wireless communication device, for example, a cordless telephone, a cellular telephone, a pager, or a walkie-talkie device.
• a public telephone system comprising a plurality of public telephone base stations, each being connected to a telephone network and a multiplicity of cordless telephones, each being capable of communicating with any nearby one of the plurality of base stations in a wireless manner, wherein identification of the identity of the cordless telephone to the telephone network is not required.
• the public telephone base station participates in billing by billing a credit facility associated with a cordless telephone.
• a public telephone system comprising a plurality of public telephone base stations, each being connected to a telephone network and a multiplicity of cordless telephones, each being capable of communicating with any nearby one of the plurality of base stations in a wireless manner which does not utilize frequencies and/or transmission power levels which requiring licensing.
• the telephone base station is equipped to provide telephone connections to a plurality of cordless telephones simultaneously in a multi-channel arrangement.
• the telephone base station may be associated with or mounted within a conventional fixed public telephone or alternatively need not be associated with a fixed public telephone.
• the telephone base station may employ dedicated lines or may time share lines with other users at time when such lines are not needed.
• a given cordless telephone is not restricted to use with a given base station.
• Each cordless telephone preferably includes a credit or debit card acceptor which enables billing to be effected using such a credit card.
• the base station does not participate in billing, other than by debiting a debit card.
• cordless telephone does not accept incoming calls.
• Fig. 1 is a simplified block diagram illustration of a public telephone system constructed and operative in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention
• Figs. 2A and 2B are simplified illustra- tions of two alternative embodiments of a base station associated with a conventional public telephone;
• Fig. 3 is a simplified illustration of a base station associated with a PABX in a time-shared arrangement
• Fig. 4 is a simplified illustration of a base station associated with an ordinary telephone set in a time-shared arrangement
• Fig. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustration of a cordless telephone useful in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• Fig. 1 is a simplified block diagram illustration of a public telephone system constructed and operative in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• the system preferably includes a plurality of base stations 10, each of which is connected, in a conventional manner, to a telephone network 12.
• the base stations 10 may be stand-alone base stations, as indicated by reference numeral 14, base stations associated with a conventional public telephone, as indicated by reference numeral 16, or base stations 18 associated, on a time-shared basis with other non-public users, such as via a user's PABX.
• a multiplicity of user-carried cordless telephones 20 are provided and each may be used with any of the base stations 10 which is sufficiently close to the base station so that communication can be established.
• frequencies and/or transmission power levels which do not require licensing are employed.
• Preferable frequencies are ISM frequencies and power levels.
• Preferable SPSP or FFH links are employed.
• the cordless telephones 20 are maintained in the possession of individual users, who can use them to make public telephone calls whenever they are within a communicable distance from a base station.
• no billing is involved, since all charges are deducted from a debit card associated with each cordless telephone, which preferably includes a credit or debit card acceptor.
• a single line base station 30 and a conventional public telephone 32 both connected via a time sharing switch 34 via a single telephone line 36 with a public switched telephone network 38.
• the telephone line is available to the either the conventional public telephone 32 or to a wireless telephone 39 operating via the base station 30 according to which of the two first seizes the line.
• Fig. 2B illustrates a multi-channel base station 40 and a conventional public telephone 42 both associated with a public switched telephone network 44 via a multiplexed line 46 having suitable pair gain multiplexers 48 and 50 associated therewith at both ends thereof, thus providing multiple line functionality and simultaneous operation of both the conventional public telephone 42 and multiple wireless telephones 52 via the base station 40.
• a base station 60 associated with a PABX 62 in a time- shared arrangement Base station 60 is allocated a line or lines subject to availability, based on having a lower priority than the other subscribers served by the PABX. In this manner, excess line capacity of the PABX 62 may be employed by one or more wireless telephones 64 operating via the base station 60.
• Fig. 4 illustrates a preferred configuration of a base station which may be associated with a PABX in a time-shared arrangement such as that illustrated in Fig. 3.
• the base station preferably comprises a transceiver 70 and associated pulse meter and credit controller 72 which are interposed between the PABX and cordless telephones 74.
• cordless telephones 74 may generally only be used for outgoing calls.
• a conventional paging network 76 may be provided to notify a user of incoming messages.
• a conventional pager 78 may be incorporated into a cordless telephone 74, as illustrated.
• Fig. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustration of a cordless telephone 80 useful in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• the cordless telephone preferably incorporates a transceiver 82, a controller 84 and a free channel display 86 indicating available channel status.
• the cordless telephone 80 also incorporates a credit card acceptor 88 and a credit status display 90.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Computer Security & Cryptography (AREA)
• Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
• Accounting & Taxation (AREA)
• Mobile Radio Communication Systems (AREA)
• Prepayment Telephone Systems (AREA)
• Meter Arrangements (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=11069298

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Families Citing this family (7)

Citations (1)

Family Cites Families (4)

• 1996
  • 1996-09-12 IL IL11924896A patent/IL119248A0/xx unknown
• 1997
  • 1997-09-07 BR BR9712039-1A patent/BR9712039A/pt unknown
  • 1997-09-07 JP JP51345298A patent/JP2001505725A/ja active Pending
  • 1997-09-07 AU AU40302/97A patent/AU4030297A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1997-09-07 EP EP97937795A patent/EP0958693A4/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1997-09-07 WO PCT/IL1997/000297 patent/WO1998011710A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation

Patent Citations (1)

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