JP3783775B2 - Telephone system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a telephone system configured by connecting a plurality of main apparatuses each accommodating a plurality of key telephones via a communication line.
[0002]
[Related background]
In a business office having a plurality of button telephone devices such as a corporate office or a private business operator, the office is connected to a PBX or a public telephone line through a main device that collects a plurality of telephones. This main apparatus performs call processing from a telephone connected to the main apparatus and incoming call processing control from a PBX or a public telephone line. When the company scale increases, the main unit can be installed in a separate building or office, and the main unit can be connected to another main unit via a communication line (dedicated line) to form an integrated telephone system. Done. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10A, for example, a common signal line method or an analog dedicated line method is applied to a communication line (dedicated line) connecting main apparatuses.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, if the quality of the line is poor in the telephone system that interconnects the main devices using the communication line (dedicated line) as described above, instantaneous line disconnection (instant interruption) or some time line disconnection (disconnection) ) May occur. Furthermore, when an analog dedicated line is used as a communication line, there is a concern that the communication quality may deteriorate if the distance between the main devices is long. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 10B, it is necessary to interpose an amplifier (such as a repeater) in the communication line, and there is a problem that flexible operation cannot be performed.
[0004]
In addition, since it is an interconnection of a plurality of main devices, it is basically merely an independent telephone system connected to each other, and control of the telephone connected to the main device needs to be performed by each main device. . For this reason, it is necessary to separately perform control and recovery processing when a failure occurs in the communication line between the main apparatuses, and there is a problem that it takes time to recover from the failure. In addition, since the status of the main unit of the other station cannot be monitored from the main unit of the local station, there is a problem in the operation of the telephone system in which a plurality of main units are interconnected, especially when a failure occurs. there were.
[0005]
The present invention manages / operates, as a single system, resources provided in a telephone system that connects a plurality of main apparatuses via communication lines based on the conventional circumstances. And it becomes possible to comprise as one united telephone system, without being aware of which system the user is connected to. Another object of the present invention is to provide a telephone system that can automatically or manually perform recovery processing when a failure occurs according to user settings.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-described object, a telephone system according to the present invention is a telephone system in which a plurality of main apparatuses each accommodating a plurality of key telephones are connected via a communication line, and used as a main station. The master device collectively manages the information of the key telephones accommodated in the other master devices used as slave stations together with the information of the key telephones accommodated in the master station, and transmits the information to the slave stations via the communication line. The collective control function for controlling the functions of each of the accommodated key telephones and the collective control function are configured to block the communication line and detect the slave station when an abnormality of the communication line is detected by the master station monitoring unit. The information on the key telephone accommodated in the communication station is not used, and the key telephone is not accommodated in the main station. When an abnormality of the communication line is restored is detected, the information of the key telephone accommodated in the slave station is the communication line is set to the button telephone unused and the main station is in a stowed.
On the other hand, the other master device used as the slave station includes an independent mode for controlling the function of the key telephone housed in the slave station independently of the master station, and the key telephone housed in the slave station in the master station. Remote mode for entrusting control, mode switching means for switching between the independent mode and the remote mode according to the state of the communication line, and slave station monitoring means for monitoring the state of the communication line when the remote mode is set And an abnormality coping means for switching to the independent mode when the abnormality monitoring time is longer than a preset management time when an abnormality is detected by the slave station monitoring means .
[0007]
Preferably, the mode switching means includes an automatic reset mode in which the slave station restarts after a predetermined time set in advance from the master station to the slave station, and a reset request input to the key telephone. It is desirable to have a manual reset mode for restarting.
[0008]
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is not necessary to be aware of the installation location of the main device, and it is possible to construct a telephone system that does not depend on the distance between the main devices. Furthermore, it is possible to manage a telephone system including a plurality of main devices as a group of telephone systems, and to construct a flexible telephone system that does not require the user to be aware of which telephone system the telephone system is connected to. Can do.
[0009]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a telephone system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of connection between main apparatuses in an embodiment of a telephone system according to the present invention. The configuration described here shows an example in which two main devices are interconnected using a communication line.
[0010]
A plurality of key telephones 1 are connected and accommodated in each main apparatus. One master apparatus operates as the master station 10, and the other master apparatus operates as the slave station 20. A communication line 30 for exchanging information is provided between the master station 10 and the slave station 20, and the master station 10 and the slave station 20 are connected to each other. The main station 10 has a function of controlling the key telephone 1 (remote resource) accommodated in the slave station 20 as will be described later.
[0011]
Now, the master station 10 includes a storage unit 11 that manages information of the key telephone 1 accommodated in the main device used as the slave station 20 together with the key telephone 1 accommodated in the master station 10. . This information is managed by the main station 10 and used as control information for the control unit 12. Further, the master station 10 is provided with a network interface unit 13 connected to a communication line 30 for exchanging information between the master station 10 and the slave station 20. Further, a line monitoring unit 14 for monitoring the state of the communication line 30 is provided to notify the control unit 12 of the state of the communication line 30.
[0012]
On the other hand, the slave station 20 includes a remote mode in which control of the key telephone 1 housed in the slave station 20 is entrusted to the master station 10 in addition to the configuration of each unit provided in the master station 10 and control of the master station 10. The slave station 20 is provided with mode switching means 25 for switching the independent mode for controlling the key telephone 1 housed in the slave station 20 alone. Then, the operation of the slave station 20 is switched to either the remote mode or the independent mode depending on the state of the communication line 30 monitored by the line monitoring unit 24 described later.
[0013]
Here, a T1 line (T1 Carrier: US 1.5 Mbps digital line), which is a digital line of 1.5 [Mbps], is used as a communication line (dedicated line) for connecting the main units, and the layer 1 protocol ( A case using ITU-T G.733) will be described as an example. One T1 line has a 23B + 1D configuration in which the B channel includes 23 channels and the D channel includes one channel. Then, the network interface unit 13 or 23 provided in the master station 10 and the slave station 20 operates according to the protocol. The slave station 20 accommodates the key telephone 1 corresponding to the B channel of the communication line (23 channels in this example). For example, one slave key telephone 1 is assigned to one B channel.
[0014]
In the telephone system configured as described above, the call processing from the master station 10 includes information on the key telephone 1 stored in the storage unit 11 provided in the master station 10 and information on the key telephone 1 stored in the slave station 20. The master station 10 selects the key telephone 1 accommodated in the slave station 20 based on the control information consisting of This control information is held in the storage unit 11 of the master station 10 as slave station information as shown in FIG. Then, the selection information of the key telephone 1 of the slave station 20 selected by the master station 10 is transmitted from the master station 10 to the slave station 20 via the communication line 30. The slave station 20 controls and drives the key telephone 1 of the slave station 20 selected from the master station 10 based on the control information transmitted from the communication line 30. On the other hand, call processing from the slave station 20 is performed by transmitting a call of the key telephone 1 accommodated in the slave station 20 to the master station 10 via the communication line 30. The main station 10 that has received this call connects the key telephone 1 accommodated in the main station 10 based on the control information stored in the storage unit 11.
[0015]
With the configuration as described above, even in a telephone system that takes a form of connection between a plurality of master units, the master station 10 centrally manages control information of a plurality of slave stations 20, so that the remote resources of the slave stations 20 are managed by the master system. Control from the station 10 becomes possible. Furthermore, there is no restriction due to the installation location of the main device, which is a problem when interconnecting a plurality of conventional main devices. Therefore, it is possible to construct a telephone system that is easy to manage and has a flexible configuration.
[0016]
Next, processing when a failure occurs in the communication line 30 will be described. As shown in the time chart of the failure in FIG. 3, the line monitoring unit 14 or 24 provided in the master station 10 and the slave station 20 has a certain time (for example, 2 seconds) as the determination time of the failure (synchronization disconnection) of the communication line 30. When the continuation failure is detected, the control unit 12 or 22 determines that the communication line 30 is instantaneously disconnected (instant interruption). At this time, the controller 12 or 22 activates a timer that measures the instantaneous interruption time. Further, when the failure of the communication line 30 continues and the time counted by the timer exceeds a predetermined time, the link of the communication line 30 is disconnected and the control unit 12 of the master station 10 and the control unit 22 of the slave station 20 are connected. Judgment.
[0017]
Here, the operations of the master station 10 and the slave station 20, which are the features of the present invention, will be described in more detail with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.
First, the main station 10 operating in the remote mode (step S1) detects the state of the communication line 30 by the line monitoring unit 14 as described above. Then, when the failure of the communication line 30 is detected by the line monitoring unit 14 and the control unit 12 determines that the communication line 30 is momentarily interrupted (step S2), the control unit 12 closes the communication line 30 and the main station 10 Is accessing the remote resource of the slave station 20, it is forcibly disconnected (step S3). At this time, the control unit 12 sets the control information stored in the storage unit 11 of the main station 10 to a state where the remote resource is free and not mounted (step S4).
[0018]
When the communication line 30 is restored within the predetermined instantaneous interruption duration after the instantaneous interruption occurs (step S5), the control unit 12 sets the remote resource state to an empty mounting state ( In step S6), the mode again shifts to the remote mode. On the other hand, when the line abnormality continues for a momentary interruption time exceeding a predetermined interruption duration, the control unit 12 determines that the line is broken (step S5).
[0019]
The control unit 12 of the master station 10 that has determined that the line has been disconnected continues to keep the communication line 30 blocked, and returns a warning tone for new access to the remote resource of the slave station 20 (step S7). Further, the control unit 12 displays “network disconnection” on the display unit (not shown) of the key telephone set designated in advance among the key telephones 1 connected to the main station 10 (step S7). At this time, the information on the remote resource status of the slave station 20 managed by the control unit 12 of the master station 10 is stored in the storage unit 11 as a remote resource not installed in the communication line. This state is equivalent to removing the key telephone 1 or the network interface unit 13 connected to the network interface unit 13 of the main station 10.
[0020]
The line monitoring unit 14 of the main station 10 continues to monitor the restoration of the communication line 30 (step S8). When the restoration of the communication line 30 is confirmed, the control unit 12 of the main station 10 releases the blockage of the network interface unit 13 and displays “network disconnection” on a display unit (not shown) of the key telephone 1 designated in advance. "Is canceled (step S9). Further, the control unit 12 sets the control information of the slave station 20 stored in the storage unit 11 of the master station 10 so that the remote resource is empty and is mounted (step S10).
[0021]
On the other hand, referring to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the slave station 20 detects an instantaneous disconnection of the communication line 30 by the line monitoring unit 24 in the same manner as the master station 10 described above (step S <b> 12). When an instantaneous interruption occurs, the control unit 12 of the master station 10 closes the communication line 30 as described above, and forcibly disconnects the master station 10 when accessing the remote resource of the slave station 20. The remote resource for the slave station 20 becomes unusable. When this instantaneous interruption is recovered (step S13), the control unit 22 of the slave station 20 resets the remote resources included in the slave station 20 (step S14) and returns to the remote mode (step S11) again.
[0022]
Further, when the line abnormality continues after the instantaneous interruption time exceeds the predetermined instantaneous interruption duration, the control unit 22 of the slave station 20 determines that the line is disconnected (step S16).
The slave station 20 that has determined that the line is disconnected displays “Network disconnection” on the display unit (not shown) of the key telephone set designated in advance among the key telephones 1 connected to the slave station 20 (step S17). ). If the reset mode of the slave station 20 set in advance from the master station 10 to the slave station 20 is the automatic reset mode (step S18), after a preset timer time set in advance from the master station 10 to the slave station 20 has elapsed (step S19). ), The controller 22 resets the system and starts up as an independent mode (step S20). Alternatively, when the reset mode of the slave station 20 set in advance by the slave station 20 from the master station 10 is the manual reset mode (step S18), when the communication line 30 is restored (step S21), the remote resources included in the slave station 20 are controlled by the control unit. 22 is reset (step S22) and returns to the remote mode again.
[0023]
On the other hand, when the communication line disconnection continues (step S21), the slave station 20 receives a manual reset request input from the user (step S23), and the slave station 20 is activated as an independent mode (step S20). At this time, if the manual reset is not input to the slave station 20, the slave station 20 continues to maintain the current state (step S23).
[0024]
Then, when the line monitoring unit 24 of the slave station 20 detects that the communication line 30 has been recovered and notifies the control unit 22 (step S24), a pre-designated button telephone among the key telephones 1 connected to the slave station 20 is used. 1 is displayed on the display unit 1 (not shown) to indicate “network recovery” (step S25). Further, when the reset mode set in advance for the slave station 20 is the automatic reset mode and the automatic recovery is set (step S26), the controller 22 of the slave station 20 executes the system reset. (Step S27), the remote mode is restored. At this time, when automatic recovery is not set in the slave station 20 (step S26), the control unit 22 of the slave station 20 waits for a manual reset request from the user (step S28), and after the manual reset request is made, control is performed. The unit 22 executes system reset (step S29) and recovers to the remote mode.
[0025]
On the other hand, when the slave station 20 is set to the manual reset mode, as described above, the control unit 22 continues to maintain the currently executed process unless there is a manual reset request to the slave station 20 from the user (step S22). S24).
As described above, the telephone system of the present invention is not restricted by the installation location of the main device, which becomes a problem when interconnecting a plurality of conventional main devices. That is, it is possible to construct a telephone system that does not depend on the distance between the main devices.
[0026]
In addition, the conventional connection between main units is merely integration of two telephone systems, but the telephone system according to the present invention connects a plurality of main units via a communication line, and connects a specific main unit as a main unit. Centrally manages the functions of a telephone connected to the telephone system as a station, and the other master unit operates as a slave station. For this reason, a telephone system composed of a plurality of main devices can be managed / controlled as a group of telephone systems.
[0027]
The telephone system is not limited to the example described above. For example, if the compander 15 or 26 for compressing / decompressing a signal provided in the network interface unit 13 or 23 shown in FIG. 1 is used, the data sent to the communication line 30 is compressed and one main device is compressed. Can be sent to the communication line 30. Then, the main apparatus that has received the data can restore the data by the compander 15 or 26 provided in the main apparatus. For this reason, when viewed from the master station 10, remote resources of a plurality of slave stations 20 can be accessed with one B channel, and the utilization rate of the communication line 30 can be improved.
[0028]
Alternatively, a plurality of communication lines 30 may be provided between the master station 10 and the slave station 20 as shown in the schematic configuration of the second embodiment (only the main part is shown) in FIG. In this case, the remote resources of the slave station 20 controlled by the master station 10 can be increased.
Alternatively, as shown in the schematic configuration of the third embodiment shown in FIG. 8 (only the main part is shown), a plurality of slave stations 20 are connected to a single master station 10 through individual communication lines 30. Also good. In this case, even if the slave station 20 is installed at a remote location, it can be managed without being aware of the location of the slave station 20 when viewed from the master station 10.
[0029]
Furthermore, the communication line 30 may be used for another purpose as in the schematic configuration of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 9 (only the main part is shown). For example, some channels of the communication line 30 can be used for data transmission such as a LAN. In this case, the LAN is connected to the communication line 30 via a CSU (Channel Service Unit) / DSU (Digital Service Unit) interface 40 to one communication line 30. In this way, data communication is possible in addition to the remote system described above. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare a separate communication line for data communication, and an efficient integrated network system can be configured.
[0030]
In this way, a telephone system consisting of multiple main devices can be centrally managed as a group of telephone systems, and a flexible telephone system that does not require users to be aware of which telephone system is connected can do.
The telephone system according to the present invention can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the spirit of the telephone system.
[0031]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the telephone system of the present invention, it is possible to construct a telephone system that does not need to be aware of the installation location of the main device, and a telephone system that includes a plurality of main devices as a single telephone system. Centralized management. Furthermore, it is possible to superimpose network data such as a LAN on the communication line between the main devices, so that a great practical effect is achieved such that an efficient network system can be constructed.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a telephone system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of remote resource control information according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a time chart showing a failure detection state.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a control operation of the main station apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a control operation of the slave station according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the slave station following FIG. 5;
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a telephone system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a telephone system according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a telephone system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of connection between conventional main devices.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Master station 11, 21 Storage unit 12, 22 Control unit 13 Network interface unit 14, 24 Line monitoring unit 20 Slave station 30 Communication line

Claims (2)

A telephone system in which a plurality of main devices each accommodating a plurality of key telephones are connected via a communication line,
The specific master device used as the master station collectively manages the information on the key telephones accommodated in the other master devices used as slave stations together with the information on the key telephones accommodated in the master station. When the batch control function for controlling the functions of the key telephones accommodated in each of the slave stations via the remote mode and the remote mode for entrusting the control of the key telephones accommodated in the slave station to the master station are set, Main station monitoring means for monitoring the state of the communication line,
The collective control function is configured such that when an abnormality of the communication line is detected by the master station monitoring unit, the communication line is not used and the information on the key telephone accommodated in the slave station is closed by closing the communication line. It is assumed that the key telephone is not accommodated in the master station, and the button telephone accommodated in the slave station is detected when the master station monitoring means detects that the communication line abnormality has been recovered. While the communication line is not used and the key telephone is in the accommodation state in the main station,
The other master device used as the slave station has an independent mode for controlling the function of the key telephone housed in the slave station independently of the master station, and the control of the key telephone housed in the slave station in the master station. Remote mode to be entrusted, mode switching means for switching between the independent mode and the remote mode according to the state of the communication line, slave station monitoring means for monitoring the state of the communication line when the remote mode is set, A telephone system comprising an abnormality coping means for switching to the independent mode when an abnormality is detected by the slave monitoring means when the abnormality continuation time is longer than a preset management time .   The mode switching means includes: an automatic reset mode in which the slave station restarts after a predetermined time set in advance from the master station to the slave station; and the slave station restarts in response to a reset request input to the key telephone. The telephone system according to claim 1, further comprising a manual reset mode.

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