JP3227398B2 - Phone number survey method and device and phone number list cleaning method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for checking a telephone number actually used in a telephone line network by using a computer, and to clean an existing telephone number list based on the result of the search. About the method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a variety of business operations using telephones, a telephone number list of a customer is extremely important information, and management that does not reduce the value of the information such as deleting unnecessary telephone numbers from the list. Must be performed at any time.
Of course, the customer information on the list also includes fluid information, such that the registered phone number will not be used at some point, will be changed to another new phone number, or originally The wrong phone number may be registered. Such invalid telephone numbers must be removed from the list, and a process for replacing the transferred new telephone numbers with the old telephone numbers in the list is necessary.

In the past, some business was performed for each customer according to a telephone number list, and the list was deleted / updated while checking the response from each customer.
In this conventional method, depending on the contents of the actual work, there is a case where enormous waste or irrationality occurs. In other words, performing an operation even for an invalid customer that needs to be deleted may cause wasteful expenses or inconvenience non-customers. In addition, for customers who have relocated, we will work twice for the old telephone number and the new telephone number,
Time and money are wasted.

[0004] In order to solve this absurdity, the present applicant has previously developed a telephone number list cleaning device as described below (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-177214). A personal computer equipped with a network control circuit is connected to a telephone line as a subscriber terminal, and the personal computer processes a telephone number list recorded on a floppy disk or the like. The telephone numbers in the list are sequentially picked up, and a call is made to the telephone network, and the response of the line to the call operation is monitored. If the ringing tone is detected within a predetermined time after the calling or the polarity reversal is detected before that, it is determined that the called telephone number is valid. If no ringing tone, polarity reversal, or busy tone is detected within the predetermined time, it is determined that the called telephone number is invalid. This process is performed one after another in accordance with the telephone number list, and a new list that distinguishes valid numbers from invalid numbers is created. There are also ideas to minimize the inconvenience of the calling party and to record a guidance voice to notify the user of a change in telephone number.

[0005]

The present applicant provides a service for cleaning a telephone number list by using the above-described cleaning device. Normally, a floppy disk containing a list of telephone numbers to be cleaned is kept from the client, processed by a personal computer as a cleaning device as described above, and the updated telephone number list is also recorded on the floppy disk, and Pass on. There were two serious problems with this work, described below.

One problem is that congestion is likely to occur at the nearest switching center by calling the cleaning device one after another without interruption. The telephone number list cleaning process need not be performed only once, but must be repeated after an appropriate period. Intensive and continuous calls using multiple telephone lines and multiple high-speed personal computers to process a large number of telephone numbers from a large number of clients effectively ignore congestion problems become unable.

Another problem is that there is a client who wants to perform a cleaning process but cannot put out a telephone number list which is one of important customer information from the viewpoint of confidentiality. . In this case, the telephone number list recorded on the floppy disk could not be received by a service provider for cleaning.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object the purpose of not actually performing a cleaning process by actually calling a network according to a telephone number list but actually using the telephone line network. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mechanism for investigating a telephone number that has been entered using a computer, and to provide a mechanism for performing an off-line cleaning of an existing telephone number list for a network based on the result of the investigation.

[0009]

[MEANS FOR SOLVING THE PROBLEMS] The basic invention is a telephone number.
This is a method of investigating the number of calls
For checking the number to execute the control procedure as the originating terminal
Computers and all suburbs in a region
The computer with the station number and city station number
Number of digits that can be stored as a subscriber number
All numbers are automatically generated by the computer
The number of the automatically generated number string and the station number to be investigated.
All combinations are sequentially specified as destination numbers and transmitted.
Unrestricted digital information or restricted digital
A call setup message designating the
To the ISDN, and responds to the call setup message.
Message returned from ISDN to the computer
The called number in the call setup message is
To determine whether a phone number is valid (or invalid)
Process to execute the disconnection recovery sequence for each destination number.
The telephone number (or invalid telephone number) in the area
Create a survey list that lists the story numbers
It is characterized by the following.

[0010] In the above-mentioned telephone number search method according to the present invention,
In response to the call setup message,
Of the message returned from ISDN to the computer
If the content is "Change subscriber number",
Get the new phone number included in the message
The called number in the call setup message and the new phone number
Investigation list of change numbers listed against
Can be created.

[0011] Further , the telephone number search according to the present invention.
In implementing the method, it should be suitable for wide area telephone networks.
At the same time, the telephone number survey
Connected to the ISDN, and these multiple
Computer to extend the wide area telephone network into multiple
The above-mentioned telephone number survey is divided and executed.
The survey lists of the surveyed areas are consolidated into one
It is desirable to create a strike.

[0012] In addition, the telephone number list
The learning method is based on the telephone number search described above,
The survey list obtained by the method is online or
Obtain it at Fline and take it to a cleaning computer.
Existing phone to plug in and clean
The number list is also imported to the computer, and the survey
By comparing the list with the telephone number list.
The feature is to update the telephone number list.
You.

[0013] A telephone number investigation device according to a third aspect of the present invention.
Executes the above-mentioned telephone number search method which is a basic invention
It is a device mainly composed of a computer. Specifically, I
Connected to the SDN and communicated with the originating terminal
Phone number mainly composed of computer running
Survey equipment and all suburbs in a region
Means to store the station number and local station number as the station number to be surveyed
And all the digit strings of the specified number of digits that can be subscriber numbers
Means for automatically generating, the automatically generated numeral string and the key
All combinations with the station number to be inspected are sequentially designated as called numbers.
And unlimited digital information
Or a call setup message designating restricted digital information
Means for sequentially transmitting to the SDN, and
Depending on the content of the message returned from ISDN
If the called number in the call setup message is valid (or invalid)
Determines whether it is a phone number and disconnection recovery sequence
And the result of the determination for each called number
Record a valid telephone number (or invalid
Create a survey list that lists the story numbers
Means.

[0014] In the above-mentioned telephone number search device according to the present invention,
In response to the call setup message,
Returned from ISDN to the computer
If the content of the
Get the new phone number included in the message and
The called number of the call setup message and the acquired new telephone number
Investigation of change numbers listed against
Means for creating a strike may be provided.

[0015]

[0016]

[0017]

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

=== Basic of the system that implements the phone number survey method =
== FIG. 1 shows an example of a system (survey device of the present invention) for implementing the telephone number survey method of the present invention. Here, a general personal computer 1 is used as the ISDN terminal. The personal computer 1 has a CPU 2, a memory 3, a hard disk device 4,
A floppy disk device 5, a display device 6, a keyboard 7, an ISDN communication board 8, and the like are provided. The personal computer 1 is connected to an ISDN via an ISDN communication board 8 and a line connection unit (DSU) 10. As is well known, the ISDN and the telephone network are interconnected integrally.

The personal computer 1 is installed in, for example, the Hokkaido, Aomori, Akita, and Iwate prefecture areas, so that all telephone numbers actually used in the whole area are checked. As is well known,
The telephone number of each subscriber is composed of a combination of an area code, a city code and a subscriber number, and the last four digits are the subscriber number.
The numbers used as area and city codes are
This is, of course, publicly available information.

In the Hokkaido / Aomori / Akita / Iwate prefecture area, 011/0123/01235/01237/01242/0125/0126
/ 01266/0133/0134/0135/0136/0138/01397/01
42/0143/0144/0146/01462 / 0152/01527/0153 /
01532/01537/0154/0155/0157/0162/016432/01
66/0167/0172/0173/0175/0176/0177/0178/0182
/ 0183/0184/0185/0186/0187/0188/0191/0192 /
There are 52 area codes, 0193/0194/0195/0196/0197/0198. There are a number of local area codes corresponding to the size of each of these area stations. For example, in the Aomori Bureau (01
No. 77), 22/23/26/28/29/31/32 / 34-39 / 41
There are 35 local office numbers ranging from 44/52/54/61 to 66/73 to 77/81/82/87/88/99. The subscriber number is undisclosed information, but it is a four-digit number, starting with number 0000
There may be 10,000 numbers up to 9999. The Aomori Bureau (0177) has 35 local area codes, so 3
There may be 5 × 10,000 = 350,000 telephone numbers, some of which are valid telephone numbers actually assigned to the subscriber. In the method of the present invention, for example, 01
The 350,000 telephone numbers that may exist in the 77th Aomori Bureau are examined to determine which and which are valid (invalid), and the results are used as a survey list.

The personal computer 1 of the embodiment is in charge of surveying the Hokkaido, Aomori, Akita, and Iwate prefecture areas. There are 52 area codes in the area, and a number of area codes are assigned to each area code. All area codes and city codes included in these surveyed areas are obtained in advance in accordance with the publicly available information, and those station numbers are tabulated as the station numbers to be surveyed (in an appropriate storage means of the personal computer 1). Store it).
The combination of all the station numbers to be investigated and all four-digit numbers (10,000) that may be subscriber numbers are the telephone numbers to be investigated.

In performing the survey, a certain station number (area code + city station number) is picked up in a predetermined order from the station number table to be investigated, and the station number and a four-digit number (from 0000 to 9999) are picked up. For all combinations of up to 10,000 numbers), check if it is a valid telephone number as follows. In addition, it is very easy to generate 10,000 numbers from 0000 to 9999 in order by the counter function.

=== Introduction of Investigation Processing === A flowchart of FIG. 2 shows a schematic procedure of the telephone number investigation processing executed by the personal computer 1. The personal computer 1 recognizes the investigation target station number table stored in the appropriate storage means, picks up the station numbers one by one from the table in a predetermined order, and stores the station numbers in the predetermined order from 0000 to 9999.
A telephone number in which ten thousand numbers are combined in order is generated one by one in order, and the execution of a call setting sequence for calling the one telephone number is started (step 100 → 200). In the call setting sequence, first, a "call setting" message in which the telephone number generated as the object of investigation is set as the called number and unrestricted digital information is specified as the transmission capability is transmitted to the network (step 201). In this call setup sequence 200, ITU-T Recommendation Q. Proceed according to the circuit-switched call control procedure detailed in 931. Since the control procedure of the circuit-switched call is described in detail in various documents, it will not be described in detail in this specification, but a typical sequence proceeds as follows.

The network which has received the "call setting" message from the calling terminal sends a "call setting accepted" message notifying the B channel to be used to the calling terminal, and sends a "call setting" message to the called terminal. With this, various performances required of the receiving terminal are specified. The receiving terminal checks the performance, and the receiving terminal that has confirmed conformity returns a "call" message to the network (the receiving terminal is in a calling state). This "call" message is sent from the network to the originating terminal. When a response such as off-hook is made at the receiving terminal, a "response" message is sent from the receiving terminal to the network to the calling terminal, and a "response confirmation" message is sent from the calling terminal to the network and from the network to the receiving terminal. Can be Thus, the "call setting" message is accepted and the line is connected.

Further, there are cases where a call requested by a calling terminal cannot be accepted for various reasons. In that case, the network sends a "disconnect" message to the originating terminal and performs a disconnect recovery sequence. At this time, in the reason display item of the information element attached to the "disconnect" message sent from the network to the calling terminal, the reason why the call is not accepted is notified in the form of a reason number.

==== Reason display of "disconnect" message =
=== ITU-T Recommendation Q. In 931, the type and number of the reason display attached to the "disconnection" message are defined as follows. 1. Normal class << Reason number 1 missing number >> This reason display indicates that the number was valid in format, but cannot be reached at the destination requested by the calling user because the number is currently missing. << Reason No. 2 No route to the designated transit network >> This cause indicates that the source device of the cause has received a request to route the call through a special transit network which cannot be recognized. The source device of this cause is either a non-existent transit network or, if present, a special transit network that does not service the destination device of this cause. Therefore, it does not recognize the relay network. << Reason number 3 No route to the other party >>
Indicates that the network to which the call was routed could not deliver the call to the called user because it did not receive the call request. << Reason No. 6 Channel Unavailable >> This reason display indicates that the channel selected as a result of the channel selection is unavailable to the transmitting terminal. << Reason number 7 Incoming call to channel where call has been set >> This reason display indicates that the user has received a call, and the call has already been set by the user as a similar call (for example, an X.25 virtual call in packet mode). Indicates that it is connected to the current channel. << Reason No. 16 Normally Disconnected >> This reason display indicates that the call is disconnected when one of the users involved in the call requests a call disconnection recovery. Under normal conditions,
The source of this cause is not the net. << Reason No. 17 Received User Busy >> This reason display indicates that the called user cannot accept another call. In this case, the user equipment must ensure communication integrity for incoming calls. << Reason No. 18 No user response received >> This cause is indicated by the other party's assigned time specified for the call setup message (timer T303 defined in this specification,
Or, when a message indicating “calling” or “answer” is not returned within T310 expiration). << Reason No. 19 Calling user called / no response >> This reason display is used when a call is notified but no response is notified within a specified time thereafter. This cause is not necessarily caused by the Q.931 procedure, but may be caused by a timer in the network. << Reason No. 20 No Subscriber >> This cause indicates that the mobile station has been logged off (by a signaling procedure over the wireless bus) or that radio communication cannot be performed with the terminating mobile station (e.g., failure, out of service, or power loss). ). << Reason No. 21 Rejection of Communication >> This reason display is used to indicate that the device that transmitted this cause display is neither busy nor inconsistent, and can accept the call, but does not accept the call. << Reason No. 22 Change of the other party's subscriber number >> This reason display is to notify the calling user when the called number indicated by the calling user is no longer assigned. At this time, the new called number is included in the diagnostic information field. << Reason No. 26 Disconnection recovery of unselected user >>
This cause indicates that the user did not get the incoming call. << Reason No. 27 Failure of partner terminal >> This reason display indicates that an incoming call to the partner user requested by the calling user could not be performed because the receiving side interface was not functionally normal. This “function is not normal” means that the signaling message does not reach the partner user. For example, a failure of the physical layer or the data link layer of the partner user interface, or a case where the user device is offline. << Reason No. 28 Invalid Number Format (Incomplete Number) >> This reason display indicates that an incoming call cannot be made to the other user because the incoming number is in an invalid format or incomplete. << Reason number 29 Facility rejected >>
Returns if the facility requested by the user cannot be provided on the network. << Reason number 30 Response to status inquiry >>
The "status indication" message is included in the "status indication" message if the reason for generating the "status indication" message is due to the fact that the "status inquiry" message was received before the generation. << Reason No. 31 Other Normal Class >> This reason display is used only for reporting a normal status when it cannot be expressed for other reasons in the normal class. 2. Resource Unavailable Class << Reason Number 34 No Available Line / Channel >> This cause indicates that there is currently no suitable line / channel available to handle the call. << Reason No. 38 Network Failure >> This reason display indicates that the network is not functionally normal and the state is likely to last for a relatively long time. For example, there is a case where it is unlikely to be accepted even if the call is immediately re-issued. << Reason No. 41 Temporary Failure >> This reason display indicates that the network is not functionally normal and the state is unlikely to continue for a long time. For example, there is a case where the user can request a re-call almost immediately. << Reason No. 42 Switching Unit Congestion >> This reason indication is used to indicate that the switching apparatus causing this reason is congested with high traffic. << Reason number 43 Access information discard >>
This indicates that the network could not deliver the requested access information (user / user information, low-layer compatibility, high-layer compatibility, or subaddress indicated in the detailed information) to the other user. A special type of discarded access information may be included in the diagnostic information. << Reason No. 44 Requested Line / Channel Unavailable >> This reason display is returned when the line or channel notified by the requesting terminal cannot be provided by the interface on the partner side. << Reason No. 47 Other Resource Unavailable Class >> This reason indication is used to report as a network congestion event only when another reason in the network congestion class cannot be applied. 3. Service unavailable class << reason number 49 QOS unavailable >> This cause is used to report that the requested QOS (as defined in Recommendation X.213) is not provided (eg, throughput or propagation delay). Is not provided). << Reason No. 50 Requested Facility Not Contracted >> This reason indication indicates that the required supplementary service is not provided by the network because the user has not completed the necessary administrative procedures for the network providing the facility. << Reason No. 57 Transmission Capability Not Permitted >> This reason display is a transmission capability realized by the device that generated the reason display, but indicates that the user has requested a transmission capability not permitted to the user. << Reason No. 58 Currently unavailable transmission capability >> This reason display is a transmission capability realized by the device that generated the reason display, but indicates that the user has requested a transmission capability that is currently unavailable. << Reason No. 63 Unavailable Class of Other Service or Option >> This cause is used to report a service unavailable event only when other cause indications of the service unavailable class cannot be applied. 4. Service not provided class << reason number 65 unprovided transmission capability designation >> This reason indication indicates that the device which transmitted the cause indication does not support the requested transmission capability. << Reason No. 66 Unprovided Channel Type Designation >> This reason display indicates that the device that transmitted the cause display does not support the requested channel type. << Reason No. 69 Unprovided Facility Request >> This cause indicates that the device that transmitted this cause does not provide the requested supplementary service. << Reason No. 70 Restricted digital information transmission capability >> When a certain device requests the unrestricted digital information transmission capability, the device transmitting this cause indicates only the restricted digital information transmission capability among the requested transmission capabilities. Indicates that it is supported. << Reason No. 79 Other Service or Optional Unprovided Class >> This cause is used to report the non-provided service only when no other reason of the unserved class is applicable. 5. Invalid message class << Reason number 81 Invalid call number used >> This cause indicates that the device that transmitted the cause display has received a message with a call number different from the one currently used between the user and the network interface. << Use of Reason Number 82 Invalid Channel Number >> This reason display indicates that the device that has transmitted the cause display has received a request to use a channel number that has not been activated. For example, even though the user has subscribed to channels 1 to 12, the user equipment or the network has channel numbers 13 to 2
3 is attempted. << Reason number 83 No designated suspended call identification number is used >> This reason indication indicates that an attempt has been made to resume a call having a call identification number different from the call identification number used for the suspended call. . << Reason No. 84 Suspended call identification in use >> This cause indicates that the network has received a request to suspend the call, but this suspension request is already used as a suspended call identification in the interface area where call resumption may take place. Indicates that a call identification (including the case where nothing is performed) was included. << Reason No. 85 No suspended call >> This cause indicates that the network has received a request to resume the call. However, the call identification included in the call resumption request indicates that it is not currently being used for a suspended call in the interface area where call resumption may occur. << Reason No. 86 Discontinued call with designated interruption has been restored >> This cause indicates that the network has received a resume request, but this resume request includes the call identification once notified as a suspended call, and that the suspended Indicates that disconnection has already been recovered (by user disconnection or timeout). << Reason No. 87 User is not a CUG member >> Refer to supplementary service specifications << Reason No. 88 Terminal attribute mismatch >> This cause is indicated by lower layer compatibility, higher layer compatibility, or other factors that the device that sent the cause indication cannot conform. Consistency attribute (example =
(Data rate). << Reason No. 91 Invalid Relay Network Selection >> This reason display indicates that the relay network weir has been received, but is in an incorrect format, as defined separately. << Reason No. 95 Other Invalid Message Class >> This reason display is used to report an invalid message class event only when other reasons of the invalid message class cannot be applied. 6. Procedure error (eg, unrecognized message) class << reason number 96 required information element shortage >>
This indicates that the information element (essential information element) that must be present in the message was insufficient when the device that transmitted the reason indication received the message. << Reason number 97 Message type not defined or not provided >>
This cause indicates that the device that sent the cause has received an undefined message or a message with an unrecognizable message type that is defined but not provided at that device. << Reason No. 98 Message mismatch with call state or message type undefined >> This cause is used to determine whether the message transmitted by the device that transmitted this cause during the specific call state is not an acceptable message during processing. Indicates that a "status display" indicating a call state that has not been performed has been received. << Reason No. 99 Information element undefined >> This reason indication is used when a message including an information element which is undefined even if the information element identifier of the device which transmitted the cause indication is not defined or is defined is received. . It should be noted that the information element is limited to a case where the device which has transmitted the reason is not necessary for processing the message. << Reason number 100 Invalid information element content >> This reason indication is an information element provided by the device which transmitted the cause indication, but is an information element which is a code not provided by one or more fields of the information element. Is received. << Reason number 101 Call state and message mismatch >> This reason display is used when the received message does not match the call state. << Reason number 102 Recovery by timer expiration >> This reason display indicates that the procedure has been started by expiration of the timer in accordance with the error handling procedure of the present Layer 3 specification. << Reason number 111 Other procedure error class >> This reason indication is used to report a procedure error event only when other reasons of the procedure error class cannot be applied. 7. Interworker class << Reason number 127 Other interworking classes >>
This cause indicates that interworking has occurred in the network where there is no cause to operate. Thus, the exact cause for the message to be sent cannot be ascertained.

==== Control Flow of Investigation Processing ==== By the way, in the telephone number investigation processing of the present invention, FIG.
As shown in the flowchart of FIG.
0, if the call of the sent “call setup” message is accepted and a “call” message or a “response” message is transferred from the network, the process proceeds from step 202 or step 203 to step 301 → 302 → 303.
And immediately sends a "disconnect" message to the network to execute a disconnection recovery sequence, and determines the telephone number in the "call setting" message as a valid number and enters it in a valid list. This completes the investigation process for this telephone number.

In the call setting sequence 200, when the call of the sent "call setting" message is not accepted and the "disconnection" message is transferred from the network, the process exits from step 204 to step 401 → 402. , Immediately execute the disconnection recovery sequence,
The reason indication of the information element attached to the "disconnect" message from the network is picked up, and according to the content of the cause indication,
A determination is made as to whether the "call setting" message is valid, invalid, or on hold for the telephone number.

(A) Effective number The reason indication picked up in step 402 is as follows: "reason number 3 no route to the other party"<< reason number 7 Incoming call to the set channel >><< reason number 16 normally disconnected >><< reason No. 17 Received User Busy << Reason No. 18 No Called User Response >><< Reason No. 19 Called User Calling / No Answer >><< Reason No. 20 No Subscriber >><< Reason No. 21 Communication Rejected >><< Reason No. 27 Remote Terminal Failure << Reason No. 49 QOS Unavailable >><< Reason No. 50 Requested Facility Not Contracted >><< Reason No. 57 Transmission Capability Not Allowed >><< Reason No. 58 Currently Unavailable Transmission Capability >><< Reason No. 63 Other Service or Option Unavailable Class 《Reason No. 65 Unprovided transmission capability designation》 《Reason No. 66 Unprovided channel type designation》 《Reason No. 69 Not provided Facility request >><< Reason number 70 Restricted digital information transmission capability >><< Reason number 79 Other service or optional unprovided class >><< Reason number 88 Terminal attribute mismatch >> Is recognized as a valid number, and the telephone number is entered in a valid list (step 403 → 404).

(B) Number change If the reason indication picked up in step 402 is "Reason number 22 Other party number change", a new telephone number entered in the diagnostic information field of the reason indication is picked up. The new call number which picked up the telephone number in the "call setting" message is compared with the called telephone number and entered in the change number investigation list (step 403 → 405 → 406).

(C) Invalid number If the reason indication picked up in step 402 is any one of << reason number 1 missing number >><< reason number 2 no route to designated transit network >><< reason number 6 channel not available >> Identifies the telephone number in the "call setting" message as an invalid number and enters the telephone number in an invalid list (steps 403 → 405 → 407).
→ 408).

(D) Judgment suspension If the reason indication picked up in step 402 is not any of the reason numbers checked in steps 403, 405, and 407, the telephone number in the "call setting" message is used as a valid number. Fill in the hold list without determining it as an invalid number (steps 403 → 405 → 407 → 4
09).

As described above, if the investigation processing has been completed for a certain telephone number, the flow advances to step 501 to check whether or not the processing has been completed for all telephone numbers to be investigated. For example, the process returns to the first step 100 to generate the next telephone number, and performs the same processing as described above for that telephone number. If all the processes have been completed, the process proceeds to step 502, and the investigation list is output in a predetermined format.

==== Actual Operation Status ==== All Area Codes and Local Area Codes Included in the Area to be Investigated are Obtained Beforehand According to Published Information, and These Area Numbers are Investigated Station Numbers And make it into a table. The combination of all of the station numbers to be investigated and all four-digit numbers that can be subscriber numbers is the telephone number to be investigated. Although it depends on the size of the city, it is common that about half of the 10,000 telephone numbers to be surveyed having one area number are unused and invalid. Also,
Most of the telephone numbers are analog telephone network subscriber numbers, and the number of ISDN (INS64) subscriber numbers has been increasing little by little recently. When a call is made to such an existing telephone network by the above-described investigation process, the following response is made between the personal computer 1 and the ISDN exchange (network).

(A) When the called telephone number is a valid subscriber number of the analog telephone network This number usually accounts for almost half of the total number. Since the apparatus according to the present invention originates a call by specifying unrestricted digital information as the transmission capability in the "call setup" message, the network disconnects with "reason number 3 no route to partner".
Returns a message. Therefore, the personal computer 1 enters the telephone number in the valid list. What should be noted here is that no call is made to the telephone to be investigated in making this investigation and determination. In other words, from the point of view of the person being investigated, there is no hassle of forcing an unnecessary call to be answered.

(B) If the called telephone number has been changed, regardless of whether it is an analog telephone network or an ISDN subscriber number, the network sends << reason number 22, change the other party's subscriber number >>. It returns the attached "Disconnect" message. In response to this, the personal computer 1 picks up the new telephone number entered in the diagnostic information field of the reason display, compares the new number with the called number, and enters it in the change number investigation list.

(C) When the outgoing telephone number is an unused number This number is often close to half of the total number. Again, regardless of the analog telephone network or ISDN subscriber number, the network will return a "disconnect" message with << Reason number 1 missing number >>. In response to this, the personal computer 1 enters the telephone number in the invalid list.

(D) When the Called Phone Number is a Valid Subscriber Number of ISDN In this case, the exchange is changed according to the situation of the partner equipment.
A call is made at the receiving terminal (partner) by a "call" message from the personal computer 1, and when the other party answers the call, at step 30 in the flowchart of FIG.
The process proceeds to the first side, the disconnection restoration sequence is started from the investigation apparatus side of the present invention, and the telephone number is entered in the valid list. Also, even if a "disconnection" message is returned from the network, the reason number is # as described above.
7, # 16, # 17, # 18, # 19, # 20, # 2
1, # 27, # 49, # 50, # 57, # 58, # 6
If any of 3, # 65, # 66, # 70, and # 79, the telephone number is entered in the valid list, and the reason number is #
If it is 2 or # 6, enter the phone number in the invalid list,
If it is any other reason number, enter it on the hold list.

It should be noted that the classification in each of the reason numbers "valid", "invalid", and "pending" may not be the best described in the embodiment. ISD
Investigate the usage status of the N subscribers and the response of the network to it in more detail, and it is more appropriate to classify a certain reason indication as "valid" instead of "pending" or to classify it as "invalid" May be appropriate. The present invention does not prevent such elastic operation.

=== Temporal and Regional Implementation of Telephone Number Survey === So far, one personal computer 1 has been described as conducting a survey in the Hokkaido, Aomori, Akita, and Iwate prefecture areas. Similarly,
The telephone network of the whole country is divided into several regions, and in each region the same telephone number survey personal computer
And conduct a survey of telephone numbers nationwide on multiple computers distributed in multiple regions. Then, by collecting the above-mentioned survey lists of the respective assigned areas into one through communication or the like, a survey list of a wide area nationwide can be created. By doing so, the adverse effect of the survey personal computer on the network (problem of congestion), compared to the case where the above-mentioned survey is conducted for the telephone network nationwide with a personal computer installed at one place
Can be greatly reduced, and can be suppressed to a level that does not cause any problem in practical use.

As will be described below, a survey list obtained by the survey method of the present invention is recorded on a CD-ROM, a floppy disk or an IC card and distributed to the client, or transmitted to the client computer by communication. For example, the telephone number list is cleaned by comparing the survey list with the existing telephone number list on the computer of the requester. Therefore, even if there are a large number of requesters, the telephone network can be cleaned off-line as many times as possible based on the result of one survey.

Therefore, unlike the conventional method, it is not necessary to perform a cleaning process on a large number of telephone number lists while continuing to make a call to the telephone network, and the telephone number search is periodically performed on a nationwide scale as described above. I just need. For example, one per month
If the survey is carried out on a regular basis, the above-mentioned personal computer 1 may conduct a survey of the area of Hokkaido, Aomori, Akita and Iwate prefectures over a month. Then, even if the number of telephone numbers to be investigated is enormous, the investigation can be performed slowly and slowly, so that the problem of congestion is at a completely problem-free level.

In the above description, “all four-digit numbers that may be subscriber numbers” are numbers from 0000 to 99
It was assumed that the number was 10,000 up to 99. Here, if there is a number that is never assigned to a subscriber due to reasons such as the telephone network operator, and that number can be obtained as public information, the number is referred to as “possibility of becoming a subscriber number. It may be treated as a "no number" and excluded from the survey.

=== Phone Number List Cleaning Process === A requester having a telephone number list to be cleaned does not need to give a floppy disk or the like in which the list is recorded to a service provider as in the related art. Conversely,
A survey list as a result of the above-described survey processing is received from the service provider. Receiving a survey list recorded on an electronic recording medium such as a CD-ROM, floppy disk, or IC card, and loading it into one's (client's) computer, or from a service provider's server to one's computer through a communication medium such as the Internet. to download.

A list of telephone numbers to be cleaned is also taken into one's own computer using a magnetic tape or a floppy disk. Then, the telephone number list is compared with the investigation list, and the telephone number list is obtained by excluding the telephone numbers determined as invalid numbers in the investigation list or extracting the telephone numbers determined as valid numbers in the investigation list. , Update the telephone number list. Further, if the changed telephone number is included in the list of telephone numbers to be cleaned using the above-mentioned change number investigation list, it is replaced with a new telephone number.

[0046]

According to the present invention, a telephone number actually used in a telephone line network is investigated using a computer, instead of performing a cleaning process by actually calling a network according to a telephone number list. The existing telephone number list is cleaned off-line to the network based on the survey result. In the investigation, there is a great feature that no call is made to the telephone to be investigated, and the trouble of forcing an actual telephone subscriber to answer an unnecessary telephone is avoided.

In the investigation, since the processing can be executed in a sufficiently distributed manner in terms of area and time, congestion does not occur in the exchange nearest to the investigation computer (investigation device). In addition, even if the telephone number list cannot be sent out from the viewpoint of confidentiality, it is possible to easily perform the list cleaning process on one's own computer.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a hardware configuration of a personal computer system that executes a telephone number search method according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an outline of a main part of an investigation process in the same system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Personal computer 2 CPU 3 Memory 4 Hard disk device 5 Floppy disk device 6 Display device 7 Keyboard 8 ISDN communication board 10 Line connection device

Claims (9)

(57) [Claims] 1. Control of a circuit-switched call connected to an ISDN
A number survey computer to perform the procedure as a calling terminal
Computer, Investigate all area codes and area codes in a region
And store it in the computer as a target station number.
To all the digit strings of the specified number of digits
Automatically generated in the computer, All of the automatically generated number string and the station number to be investigated
And the transmission ability
Unrestricted digital information or restricted digital information
From the computer
Sequentially sent to ISDN, In response to the call setup message, the
Call setup based on the content of the message returned to the
Determine whether the called number in the message is a valid phone number
Process to execute the disconnection recovery sequence
Numbers are entered sequentially, and valid telephone numbers in the area are listed.
The feature is to create a survey list that is made up by
How to find out which phone number you want. 2. The control of a circuit-switched call connected to an ISDN.
A number survey computer to perform the procedure as a calling terminal
Computer, Investigate all area codes and area codes in a region
And store it in the computer as a target station number.
To all the digit strings of the specified number of digits
Automatically generated in the computer, All of the automatically generated number string and the station number to be investigated
And the transmission ability
Unrestricted digital information or restricted digital information
From the computer
Sequentially sent to ISDN, In response to the call setup message, the
Call setup based on the content of the message returned to the
Determine whether the called number in the fixed message is an invalid phone number
Process to execute the disconnection recovery sequence
Numbers are sequentially checked, and invalid telephone numbers in the area
The feature is to create a survey list that is made up by
How to find out which phone number you want. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein
The call setup message is sent from ISDN to the computer.
Message is returned to the subscriber
Update), the new message
A new telephone number, and
And compare it with the new phone number obtained
A survey list of change numbers consisting of
Phone number survey method. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein
In carrying out the process, the appropriate
Computers for telephone number survey in multiple dispersed districts
Are connected to ISDN, respectively.
Data to divide the wide area telephone network into multiple smaller areas
The telephone number surveys, and
Aggregate the survey list of the area into one and create a wide area survey list
A survey method for telephone numbers, which is created. 5. The telephone number according to claim 1,
The survey list obtained by the survey method
Or obtain it offline and use it for cleaning.
Data and cleaning
The list of existing phone numbers is also imported to the computer,
The survey list and the telephone number list should be compared.
And updating the telephone number list with
How to clean talk list. 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein:
A telephone number survey device mainly for the computer that runs. 7. Control of a circuit-switched call connected to an ISDN
Mainly on the computer that executes the procedure as the originating terminal
A survey device for the telephone number formed, Investigate all area codes and area codes in a region
Means for storing as a target station number; Automatically all digit strings with the specified number of digits that can be subscriber numbers
Means for generating; All of the automatically generated number string and the station number to be investigated
And the transmission ability
Unrestricted digital information or restricted digital information as power
Send a call setup message to ISDN
Means, The message returned from ISDN in response to the call setup message
Depending on the content of the message Called number in the call setup message
Is a valid phone number, and the
Means for executing the sequence; Record the result of the determination for each called number, and
Survey list that lists the valid telephone numbers in the region
Means for generating a telephone number.
Survey equipment. 8. Control of a circuit-switched call connected to an ISDN
Mainly on the computer that executes the procedure as the originating terminal
A survey device for the telephone number formed, Investigate all area codes and area codes in a region
Means for storing as a target station number; Automatically all digit strings with the specified number of digits that can be subscriber numbers
Means for generating; All of the automatically generated number string and the station number to be investigated
And the transmission ability
Setup message with unrestricted digital information as input
Means for sequentially sending messages to the ISDN; The message returned from ISDN in response to the call setup message
The called number in the call setup message according to the content of the message
Judge whether the telephone number is an invalid telephone number
Means for executing the sequence; Record the result of the determination for each called number, and
Survey list that lists invalid telephone numbers in the area
Means for generating a telephone number.
Survey equipment. 9. The call setup according to claim 7, wherein
ISDN returns to the computer for the message
Message is `` Change subscriber number ''
The new phone included in the message
Get the number and get the called number of the call setup message.
List against the new phone number
Note that a means for creating a change number survey list was provided.
Phone number survey device.