GB2311907A - Universal digital telecommunication terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

A Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal transfers digital information with telephone networks / wireless telephone networks, or ISDN nets, free of any computers. It reads in digital information from its floppy disk drive 6 or a removable hard disk drive 7, then compresses and saves it in its hard disk, dials a telephone number, establishes the connection, modulates and transfers the information by its Modem through telephone networks; or transfers the information to an ISDN nets through its ISDN data card, using not its Modem. When it receives information through telephone networks or an ISDN nets, it will perform vice versa. It can also work with other digital data recording devices; and the Modem can be a radio (wireless)Modem.

Description

UNIVERSAL DIGITAL TELECOMMUNICATION TERMINAL This invention relates to a universal distance disk duplicate machine.

Digital telecommunication, or more common known as computer telecommunication because it is nowadays mostly carried out by computers, is very popular and worldwide based on computers, computer networks, or ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network). All of those Telecommunication methods demand something in common: they all depend on computers, requiring the knowledge to operate computers and computer communication programmes. Many of them also depend on computer networks or ISDN nets in additional.

The problem is that even today there are still many countries, areas and people who are not covered by any ISDN and computer networks, or who cannot afford operating the computer-dependent-telecommunication, but still they need to transfer large batch of information in a very short time.

It can still be a big trouble for those who can operate computer-dependenttelecommunication, and who have access to computer networks or ISDN nets when they want to establish the first contact with other terminals. First, all of those first time computer networks users must register and then login for each time to use it. That means to wait and ask for permission from someone who has nothing to do with a personal communication, nobody can make the communication right away. Second, the other terminal must be also under the ISDN or computer networks coverage, otherwise it is still a one-side-dream. Even for a simple computer to computer telecommunication the first time contact can also be a big trouble because it will really be a long shot to guess the operating system/platform and the communication protocols as well as the operating time of the other terminal. And if the receiving terminal does not have the proper software to de-compress the received files, it means perhaps those received files are still useless.

According to the present invention there is provided a computer-free universal digital telecommunication terminal comprising a floppy disk drive and a removable hard disk drive which can read and write any information that can be recorded onto a standard sized floppy diskette or a removable hard disk The read-in information will be compressed and modulated and sent out by a Modem through telephone networks to the other terminal with the same function. And the received information through telephone networks will be de-modulated by a Modem and then de-compressed and written to a floppy diskette or a removable hard disk.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawing in which: Figure 1 shows in perspective the Universal Telecommunication Digital Terminal.

Figure 2 shows the back panel of the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal.

Figure 3 illustrates the inside and the bottom board with the most important parts on it.

Referring to the drawing the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal comprises telephone cord adapter 1 dialing pad with digits and function keys 2 buzzer with switch and volume control 3 LED 4 LCD module 5 floppy disk drive 6 hard disk drive 7 power cable with plug 8 data port 9 hard disk 10 ISDN data card 11 Modem 12 ISDN nets adapter 13 Telephone/ ISDN switch 14 memory 15 In order to transfer digital information saved on any standard sized floppy diskette or a removable hard disk, the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal can operate in two function modes: Send Mode and Receive Mode.

Send Mode.

In order to send information through telephone networks an operator should insert a disk with the information to be sent into the floppy disk drive 6 or the removable hard disk drive 7; and then dial the telephone number of the other Universal Digital Communication Terminal with the dialing pad 2, and this telephone number will be immediately displayed on its LCD 5 and stored into the memory 15. The Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will then automatically read in all information, including disk format, booting sectors and password recorded on the diskette or the disk which is now porting in its floppy disk drive or hard disk drive. It is not necessary to be a computer disk or a DOS formatted disk, it can be of any standard sized disks with any formats such as diskettes used by some electronic typewriters; and it does not matter under which operating system and in which programmes the information was saved on the disk; because the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal does not offer any process to the contents of the information as all computers do. The Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal simply reads in all of them "as it is ".

Then the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will compress (pack) it into a compacted file and save it in its hard disk 10. After this it will automatically dial the telephone number of other Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal, which has been keyed in by the operator and now stored in its memory 15, after the connection is established, the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will modulate and send out the information through its Modem 12 to the telephone networks. As soon as the Universal Telecommunication Terminal accepts a dialing command issued by the operator from the dialing pad 2, all the message about the received files displaying on its LCD 5 will disappear for time being (read below), and the LCD 5 will now display the dialing telephone number and the status of connection and transferring.

After having finished a sending, the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will automatically switch back to Receive Mode, ready to accept a call or an external command. So all an operator has to do to send out information is to correctly insert a disk and dial a telephone number.

Receive Mode.

The Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal is always in receive mode as soon as it is switched on ( like a normal telephone or a Fax machine) with its telephone cord adapter 1 and power cable 8. If it is not ON LINE, or has not detected any CARRIER signal, it can accept external commands issued by an operator through its dialing pad 2 and thus is switched to Send Mode. Otherwise it will refuse any external commands, staying in receive mode. When it is called during this mode, the buzzer 3 will beep and the LED 4 will blink to remind the operator that a message is coming in.( the operator can also turn off the buzzer 3 and the LED 4 ). Then the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will automatically establish connection with the calling Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal and receive signals through telephone networks by its Modem 12. Then it will de-modulate the received information and save it in its hard disk 10, ready for an operator to copy it onto a blank diskette or a removable hard disk. After having completed a correct receiving, the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will automatically give a name and a serial number to the saved file such as" filename.007 " and display it together with the file size and receiving time on its LCD 5.

All of the received information will be displayed this way in a FIFO ( first-in-first-out) sequences on the LCD 5 until the hard disk 10 is full. So the operator can choose a file from the displaying list with a function key and then press another function key in the dialing pad 2 to copy it onto a diskette or removable hard disk at any time as long as the file is still in the list---that means when the file is not yet pushed out of the hard disk 10 by the latest received file. The Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will automatically de-compress the compacted file and then copy it to the disk, thus the information is recovered in its original form on the receiver's disk.

So all an operator has to do to receive information is to choose the information, correctly insert a blank disk, and then press a function key to copy it at any time the operator prefers, as long as the capacity of the hard disk 10 is still possible. (for a large capacity hard disk, this can mean a very long time).

To cut it short, the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal has distant duplicated the sender's diskette or disk through telephone networks.

The Date Port 9 is provided to connect the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal with other digital recording devices. The Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal will then read and write digital information from the attached devices instead of from the floppy disk drive 6 or the removable hard disk drive 7.

All the other functions will remain the same. But the two communicating Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminals must use the same kind of digital read/write devices.

The ISDN data card 11, ISDN nets adapter 13 and the Telephone /ISDN switch 14 are provided to connect the Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminal directly to an ISDN nets. If so connected, the Telephone/ISDN switch 14 must be first manually switched to ISDN function, and the ISDN data card 11 will then take place of the Modem 12 and the ISDN nets adapter 13 will take place of Telephone cord adapter 1; that is to say in the Send Mode the dialing number and the compacted file will flow into the ISDN data card 11 and then to the ISDN nets, and in the Receive Mode the calling signal and transferring information will flow from an ISDN nets into the ISDN data card 11, then the information will be saved in the hard disk 10. All the other functions remain the same.

Both of the two communicating Universal Digital Telecommunication Terminals must all use its ISDN data card 11 and ISDN nets adapter 13 during the time of ISDN operation.

Claims (9)

1 A universal digital telecommunication terminal comprising a floppy disk drive and a removable hard disk drive, or either, which can read and write any information that can be recorded onto a diskette or a disk, provides means to transfer digital information with its Modem through telephone networks, or with its ISDN data card to an ISDN nets, by itself alone, depending not on any computers.

2 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 realizes its function with a radio (wireless) Modem.

3 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 works with a Recordable/Readable CD Drive ( Read/Write CD-Drive).

4 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 works with a Magneto-Optical Disk Drive( MODD ).

5 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 works with a Rewritable Optical Disk Drive (RODD).

6 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 works with a Data Cartridge Tape Drive.

7 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 works, or is compacted together with, a telephone and Fax machine, or with either, to share a common telephone line.

8 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 is compacted with an electronic typewriter.

9 A universal digital telecommunication terminal as claimed in Claim 1 works with its Modem through an analog adapter ( analog/digital converter) to ISDN nets.