GB2333415A

GB2333415A - An apparatus for remotely controlling an electrical appliance via the telephonenetwork

Info

Publication number: GB2333415A
Application number: GB9800799A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Guyett
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1998-01-16
Filing date: 1998-01-16
Publication date: 1999-07-21
Also published as: GB9800799D0

Abstract

An apparatus is disclosed for controlling an electrical appliance in response to the ringing signals received from a telephone line. The apparatus is responsive to ringing patterns generated by a telephone handset and provides multiple outputs for controlling appliances. A second embodiment is disclosed for connecting to a fax machine in which the fax receives instructions from a remote user in the form of a programme sheet carrying bar-codes. The sheet passes through the apparatus where the bar-codes are sensed and corresponding outputs produced to control the appliance.

Description

Automatic Single or Multi-Channel Switching by Telephone or Telefax, and TelephonelTelefax Lines, to Switching Device at Remote TelephonelTelefax Machine Point Devices for receiving remotely transmitted programmable or pre-set switching instructions via any telephone, telefax or ISDN line. The devices also incorporating programming and/or decipher logic and output switching to control assorted domestic, commercial or industrial devices, and incorporate or exclude 'hand-shake' reply and/or 'instructions received' signal. This invention relates to devices which can either be an add-on unit to any conventional telephone or telefax machine, or can be adopted as a stand-alone device connected to any telephoneltelefax or ISDN line.

SPecification This specification relates to add-on devices to act as an ancillary item to any conventional telephone or telefax machine.

These devices remotely switch on or switch off appliances, machinery, lighting or devices at any location in the world, from any other world location, by using telephone, telefax or ISDN lines to communicate instructions.

The telephone ring initiated devices give the user multiple, separate or separable, switching outputs, either from a received simple cadence ring pattern, or series of separated or joined cadence ring patterns which can be created and transmitted from any telephone handset, including mobile telephone devices or telefax machines, or other donor machine devices able to send telephone ring pattern calling signals.

The telefax machine initiated add-on devices give the user multiple, separate or separable switching outputs from a received simple programme-bar sheet which can be hand documented at the transmission point and then transmitted by faxing from the donor machine for the receiving device to decipher at the output point of the remote telefax machine. These telefax machine initiated devices, where necessary, would incorporate mechanical adjustment to allow the remote telefax machine to have assorted sheet output lengths, widths and physical geometry.

The programme sheet of the alternative device is designed to incorporate a quantity of drawn 'slots' or 'boxes' which can, by user selection, be filled in with a conventional felt-tip pen to provide distinct marks, in set positions, on the faxed page, across the width of a sheet.

There is provision in the design of the telefax machine initiated add-on device receiving equipment to have a quantity of detector heads, either spread across the width of the received sheet or in any other formation required by extended development or particular operation.

The user of the telefax machine initated add-on device at the transmitting donor machine end has in his/her possession a programme sheet and a programme cipher, enabling that person to quickly and easily insert with a felt-tip pen, or other writing or reproduction process, the combination of infilled boxes to effect the required switching at the remote telefax machine.

At the remote telefax, the telefax machine initated device (which is either clamped to, or free-standing from the outlet of the telefax machine) incorporates a slot, through which the received telefax passes immediately on leaving the machine outlet.

Passing through the slot of the device, the infilled programme-bars on the sheet are detected by the photoelectric, lazer or other sensors incorporated, operated either by reflectivity from the surface of the received telefax sheet, or by transmission through the faxed sheet paper or by any other sensing method required to give efficient and effective results.

The signals so received are directed to suitable deciphering logic via individual amplifiers as necessary, and thence from that logic assembling, directed to whichever individual or combination of output circuits, is required by the programme received from the remote donor telefax machine and its operator.

The output devices are within the scope of any known electrical switching system, including reed contacts, relays and relay contacts, transistors with open collector outputs, integrated circuit assemblies, silicon control rectifiers, triacs or any other switching element suitably required and available by technological advances.

Within the scope of the deciphering logic and output switching, suitable timing may, as necessary, be incorporated to compensate for received telefax speed and possible 'hunting' of the received telefax copy. Additionally, discriminatory circuitry is included as necessary to avoid false signals from conventional faxes also received by the host machine.

Additional output switching can be made available in serial or parallel form for input to computers or logic controllers, together with particular output assembling for any known or perceived communicating language or carrier signalling, and incorporating as required, modulated signalling and opto-coupling with, if applicable, signalling which can be carried to any device through fibre optic linkage.

Sockets and/or fixed terminal connections as required are incorporated from the output switching to give easy connection to devices, whether in a domestic, commercial, industrial or consumer type environment, to allow remote control of devices or loads, from the simplest to the most complex.

Claims

Claims 1. A wireable or plug-in module, chassis, circuit board or boxed device arranged so that an electrical load or appliance can be switched on or off by way of an Interface to a telephone or telephone network.

2a. An electronic, inductive or acoustic Interface which receives telephone ring signals without answering or opening the telephone line. When those ring signals conform in quantity and telephone signal sequence to the programming in the module, as claimed in Claim 1, specific programmed operation of the load switching is initiated.

2b. A mechanical add-on Interface to position in front of or attach to a telefax machine, this Interface incorporating sensors to read programme bar marks received onto the paper output of the telefax machine when being sent from a remote machine. The sensed programme bar marks initiate specific programmed operation of the load switching in the module, as claimed in Claim 1.

3. A device, as claimed in Claims 1, 2a and 2b; but to switch an assortment of electrical loads or appliances in differing ways on separate or separable channels when the module receives specific separate or separable telephone ring signals, or when the mechanical telefax machine add-on receives suitable marked code signalling.

4. A device, as claimed in Claims 1, 2a, 2b and 3; but to switch such that individual, separate or separable logic or local area bus signals are generated to connect into processors or systems to carry out control or command functions.