JPH1168996A - Communication terminal equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize multi-purpose use of a gas meter reading device. SOLUTION: Various kinds of terminals such as an IC card terminal 5, an emergency terminal 7 are connected to a communication terminal equipment 1 together with a gas meter 4, telephone numbers of each destination center respectively arranged at a gas company 31 collecting meter reading data, a hospital 31, a mail order company 34, etc., are stored in a memory 25 and at the time of inputting information from a connection terminal, a line is connected with a corresponding destination center among the plural centers of the memory based on the information to transmit information in the terminals to the destination center. On the other hand, when an incoming call arrives from a destination center, information in destination center is transmitted to a corresponding terminal in response to this and information in the terminal is transmitted to the destination center.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication terminal device for transmitting information from a terminal accommodated therein to a desired destination and transmitting information on the destination to the terminal in response to an incoming call from the destination.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is a gas metering device as one related to this type of communication terminal device. When detecting an abnormal output of a connected sensor, this gas meter device notifies an abnormality to a gas company center via a line. Further, the meter reading of the connected gas meter is performed, and when there is an incoming call from the center (no ringing without ringing), the meter reading data is transmitted to the center in response to the incoming call.

[0003]

However, such a gas metering device can be used regardless of the line connection.
Only transmission of gas meter data and notification of security information detected by a sensor can be performed. For this reason, there is a demand to use the gas metering device for various purposes other than the above-mentioned use by using the connected line. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to use a gas meter device for multiple purposes.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve such a problem, the present invention connects a line and a gas meter, performs meter reading of the connected gas meter, and receives an incoming call from a center for collecting meter reading data to the line. A communication terminal device that transmits meter reading data to a center in response to an incoming call, includes a connection unit that connects various terminals together with the gas meter, and a memory that stores telephone numbers of a plurality of destination centers including the center. When information from a terminal connected by the connection means is input, a line connection is made with a corresponding destination center among a plurality of centers in the memory based on the information. Therefore, besides the gas meter,
Various terminals can be connected to the device, and line connection with each destination center can be made in response to input of information from each terminal, so that the device can be used for multiple purposes. Further, when information from a terminal connected by the connection means is input, a judgment means for judging whether or not to make a line connection with a corresponding destination center among a plurality of centers in the memory based on the information is provided. is there. Further, there are provided line connection means for making a line connection with the corresponding destination center in response to a positive output of the determination means, and first transmission means for transmitting information of the terminal to the destination center after the line connection by the line connection means. Things. Also,
A storage unit for storing terminal information in a memory in response to a negative output of the determination unit; and a second line for connecting a line to a corresponding destination center and transmitting terminal information in the memory to the destination center when a preset transmission time comes. Transmission means. Further, there is provided an information transmitting / receiving means for responding to an incoming call from the destination center, inputting information from the destination center, transmitting the information to a corresponding terminal, and transmitting information from the terminal to the destination center. is there.

[0005]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a system to which a communication terminal device according to the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, a communication terminal device 1 accommodates a telephone 2, a sensor 3 for detecting gas leakage, etc., a gas meter 4, an IC card terminal 5, a display terminal 6, an emergency terminal 7, and other terminals 8.

The communication terminal device 1 is connected to a gas company 31, a hospital 32, a fire department 33, a mail order company 3 via a line L.
4, and each center (not shown) provided in the securities company 35 and the like. Here, when the communication terminal device 1 detects an abnormal output of the sensor 3, the gas company 31
Automatically announces the phone number of the user and informs of the abnormal information. Also,
The communication terminal device 1 periodically reads the data of the gas meter 4, and transmits the meter reading data in response to an incoming call from the gas company. In addition, the telephone call by the user using the telephone 2 is permitted. Further, the communication terminal device 1 enables a user to perform a stock transaction with the securities company 35 using the IC card terminal 5 and also allows a user to browse products of the mail order company 34 using the display terminal 6. Furthermore, when emergency information is input by the user operating the emergency terminal 7, a notification to the hospital 32 or the fire department 33 can be made.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the communication terminal device 1. The communication terminal device 1 is provided with a DC / DC converter 12 for inputting the power of the battery E and supplying a voltage V to each unit, and the CPU 1 controls the device 1. The CPU 11 includes a DTMF signal transmitting / receiving unit 13 for transmitting / receiving a DTMF signal via the lines L1 and L2, a DP generating unit 14 for outputting a DP (dial pulse) signal to the lines L1 and L2, and a gas meter between the gas company 31. A 1,650 Hz detection unit 15 that detects a 1,650 Hz signal used for transmitting and receiving data, an incoming call detection unit 16 that detects an incoming signal from the lines L1 and L2, and a hook detection that detects an off-hook or on-hook of the telephone 2. The unit 17 is connected.

The CPU 11 includes a gas meter 4 and an I
An external interface 20, which is an interface with an external terminal such as a C card terminal 5, a handy terminal 9 for setting various information to the apparatus 1, and a connector C
N, a handy terminal 9 connected via the respective interfaces 20, 21 to a handy terminal 9, a serial signal controller 22 for transmitting and receiving serial signals to and from each terminal such as the gas meter 4, and an interface 24 between the sensor 3 , A memory 25 in which telephone numbers and the like of respective centers arranged in the gas company 31, the hospital 32, and the like are set, a clock IC 26, a reset circuit 27, and the like.

Here, the CPU 11 has an interface 24
When the abnormal output of the sensor 3 is detected through the relay RL,
1 is switched to the DP generation unit 14 side to perform line capture, and the center telephone number of the gas company 31 stored in the memory 25 is read in advance and the dial pulse of the number is generated from the DP generation unit 14, or The DTMF signal transmission / reception unit 13 transmits a DTMF signal of that number to make a call. When a response from the gas company 31 is detected by the 1,650 Hz detection unit 15, abnormal information is transmitted to the gas company 31 as a DTMF signal. Report anomalies. Thereafter, the relay RL1 is switched to the telephone 2 to release the line.

The CPU 11 periodically inputs the integrated data of the gas meter 4 via the protection circuit 19 and the external interface 20 as a serial signal and stores it in the memory 25. Here, the lines L1 and L2 and the lightning protection circuit 1
When an incoming signal from the gas company 31 arrives via the transmission line 8 and the incoming signal is detected by the incoming detection unit 16 and is notified to the CPU 11, the CPU 11 switches the relay RL1 to the DP generating unit 14 side to answer the incoming call, and 25 meter reading data
The signal is supplied to the TMF signal transmitting / receiving unit 13 and transmitted to the center of the gas company 31 as a DTMF signal. When the user goes off-hook of the telephone 2, the CPU 11
7, and the switch SW2 is switched to the telephone 2 side. As a result, an outgoing call and an incoming response call using the telephone 2 of the user are performed.

Further, the CPU 11 selects the IC card terminal 5, the display terminal 6 and the like individually by polling via the serial signal control unit 22 and the external interface 20, and inputs data of each terminal. Then, for example, at this time I
When predetermined data is input from the C card terminal 5, the relay RL1 is switched to the DP generating unit 14 side to perform line capture, and the telephone number of the center of the securities company 35, for example, which is stored in the memory 25 in advance and is read out, for example, DTMF
When the call is made by transmitting the DTMF signal of the number from the signal transmitting and receiving unit 13 and a response from the securities company 35 is detected,
Securities company 3 using the operated stock trading information as DTMF signal
5 to the center for stock trading. Then, the amount information associated with the transaction is subtracted from the IC card, or
It is transferred to the C card and stored. When the emergency terminal 7 is polled and emergency information is input, line acquisition is similarly performed, the telephone number of the center of the hospital or fire department is read out from the memory 25, dialed, and the emergency information is transmitted in response to the other party.

Next, the operation of the main part of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. First, CPU
Numeral 11 performs signal processing from the terminal in step S1 in FIG. 3, that is, processing such as an emergency call signal from the emergency terminal 7 and an abnormal alarm signal from the sensor 3. The CPU 11 is always in a low power consumption sleep mode to use a battery as a power source. Here, when information from each terminal or the sensor 3 is input to an interrupt port (not shown), it is activated, and FIG.
It is determined that “there is a signal from the terminal” in step S11 of (a) is “Y”. Then, by sequentially polling each terminal via the serial signal control unit 22 and the external interface 20, a communication route with the terminal that transmitted the signal is connected (step S12), and data is received from the terminal (step S12). S13).

Here, it is determined in step S14 whether or not the data received from the terminal needs to be immediately transmitted to an external corresponding center. In the case of emergency information from the emergency terminal 7, for example, Capture and, for example, fire department 3
A line connection such as sending a dial to the center 3 is performed (step S15). And according to the response of the center,
After transmitting data such as emergency information (step S16), the line is opened (step S17). On the other hand, if the information from the terminal is information that does not require immediate transmission to the center, the information is stored in the memory 25 (step S1).
8). If there is no signal from the terminal and "N" in step S11, the signal processing of FIG. 4A ends.

When the signal processing in step S1 of FIG. 3 is completed, the memory 25 is next stored in step S2 of FIG.
A transmission process for transmitting the terminal information stored in the server to each external center such as a corresponding company is performed. That is, in step S21 of FIG. 4B, it is determined whether or not there is stored data in the memory 25, and when this becomes "Y", the current time is read from the clock IC 26, and the current time and the time stored in the memory 25 are read. To determine whether it is time to transmit or not at step S22.
To judge. Then, when it is time to transmit, the line connection with the external center is performed (step S23), and the stored data in the memory is transmitted to the external center (step S24). The line is released (step S25). The transmission of the data stored in the memory 25 is performed, for example, by the securities company 35.
This is performed in cases such as the transfer of fees to a center. Note that there is no data to be transmitted in the memory 25 and step S
If the determination at 21 is "N" or if the determination at step S22 is "N" instead of the transmission time, the process of FIG. 4B is immediately terminated.

When the transmission process of step S2 in FIG. 3 is completed, a periodic notification process of transmitting a polling signal to each terminal and transmitting / receiving data to / from each terminal is performed in step S3 of FIG. That is, in step S31 of FIG. 5A, the current time is read from the clock IC 26, and the time is compared with the time stored in the memory 25 to determine whether or not the current time is the polling set time in step S32. I do.
Here, in the case of the polling set time, polling transmission is performed to the terminal to select a corresponding terminal (step S33). For example, information from the corresponding external center is transmitted to the corresponding terminal, and information addressed to the center from the corresponding terminal is transmitted. Input (step S34). The input information from this terminal is stored in the memory 25 and is stored in the above-described step S22 in FIG.
Is transmitted to the corresponding external center. If the current time is not the polling set time, the regular alarm processing of FIG. 5A ends immediately.

When the regular alarm processing in step S3 in FIG. 3 is completed, an external incoming call processing is performed in step S4 in FIG. That is, in step S41 of FIG. 5A, it is determined whether there is an incoming call from an external center of each company, and when an incoming call arrives from an external center, a line connection with the center is made in response to the incoming call (step S42). ). Here, it is determined whether or not connection with the terminal is necessary based on the data transmitted from the center (step S43). If it is determined that connection with the terminal is necessary, connection with the terminal is performed (step S44). Then, data processing is executed (step S45).

That is, in the data processing of step S45,
For example, when the merchandise data from the center of the mail order company 34 is processed and transmitted as serial data to the connection terminal and displayed on the display terminal 6 and operation data indicating purchase of the merchandise is input from the display terminal 6, the operation data is input. DTM
Processing such as returning to the center of the mail order company 34 as an F signal is performed. When the data processing is completed and the determination in step S46 is "Y", the line is released (step S47) and the processing ends. Further, when it is determined that connection to the terminal is not necessary when the terminal is connected to the center, step S4
If the determination of No. 3 is "N", data transmission / reception is performed with the center (step S48), and data from the center is stored in the memory 25. Thereafter, in step S47, the line is released and the process is terminated. The data of the center stored in the memory 25 is transmitted to the corresponding terminal at the time of the periodic notification in FIG. As the transmission data to the center, for example, the gas meter reading data of the gas meter 4 is transmitted to the center of the gas company 31. Note that there is no incoming call from the external center, and
If the determination of 1 is “N”, the processing of FIG. 5B is immediately terminated.

When the incoming call processing from outside in step S4 in FIG. 3 is completed, the CPU 11 proceeds to step S4 in FIG.
Returning to step 1, processing of signals from the emergency terminal 7 and the sensor 3 is performed again. As described above, the communication terminal device 1 is connected to the line L1,
L2 is connected, and various terminals such as an IC card terminal 5, a display terminal 6, and an emergency terminal 7 are accommodated in addition to the sensor 3 and the gas meter 4, and when information from each terminal is input, a corresponding destination center is received. To transmit information to the corresponding destination, and when an incoming call arrives from various destination centers, receives data from the corresponding destination in response to the incoming call and transmits the data to the corresponding terminal. Therefore, the present apparatus can be used for various purposes such as emergency calling, securities trading, and mail order business in addition to the original gas meter reading.

[0019]

As described above, according to the present invention, a line and a gas meter are connected, meter reading of the connected gas meter is performed, and when an incoming call from a center for collecting meter reading data arrives at the line, the incoming call is answered. A communication terminal device for transmitting meter reading data to a center is provided with connection means for connecting various terminals together with a gas meter, and a memory for storing telephone numbers of a plurality of destination centers including the center. When the information is input, a line connection is made with the corresponding destination center among the plurality of centers in the memory based on the information. Therefore, in addition to the gas meter, various terminals are connected to the device, and the information from each terminal is used for the corresponding terminal. Since the data can be transmitted to each destination center, the device can be used for multiple purposes. Also, when an incoming call arrives from the destination center, it responds to the incoming call, inputs information from the destination center, transmits the information to the corresponding terminal, and transmits information from the terminal to the destination center. Multi-purpose use becomes possible.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a system to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a communication terminal device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an outline operation of the device.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a detailed operation of the above device.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a detailed operation of the above device.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Communication terminal device, 2 ... Telephone, 3 ... Sensor, 4 ... Gas meter, 5 ... IC card terminal, 6 ... Display terminal, 7 ... Emergency terminal, 11 ... CPU, 13 ... DTMF signal transmitting / receiving unit, 1
4 DP generator, 16 Incoming detector, 17 Hook detector, 20 External interface, 22 Serial signal controller, 24 Interface, 25 Memory, 26 Clock IC, 31 Gas company, 32 Hospital, 33 ... fire department,
34 ... mail order company, 35 ... securities company.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A line and a gas meter are connected, meter reading of the connected gas meter is performed, and when an incoming call from a center for collecting meter reading data arrives at the line, the meter reading data is transmitted to the center in response to the incoming call. A communication terminal for connecting various terminals together with the gas meter; and a memory for storing telephone numbers of a plurality of destination centers including the center, and inputting information from the terminals connected by the connection unit. Then, based on the information, a line connection is made with a corresponding destination center among the plurality of centers in the memory. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when information from a terminal connected by the connection means is input, whether or not to perform a line connection with a corresponding destination center among a plurality of centers in the memory is determined based on the information. A communication terminal device comprising a determination unit. 3. The line connection unit according to claim 2, wherein the line connection unit performs a line connection with the corresponding destination center in response to a positive output of the determination unit, and the information of the terminal is transmitted to the destination center after the line connection by the line connection unit. A communication terminal device comprising: a first transmitting unit that transmits a signal. 4. The communication device according to claim 2, wherein the storage means for storing the information of the terminal in the memory in response to a negative output of the determination means, and a line connection to a corresponding destination center when a preset transmission time comes. And a second transmitting means for transmitting the terminal information in the memory to the destination center. 5. The terminal according to claim 1, wherein when an incoming call arrives from the destination center, the terminal responds to the incoming call, inputs information from the destination center, transmits the information to a corresponding terminal, and transmits information from the terminal to the destination terminal. A communication terminal device comprising information transmitting / receiving means for transmitting information to a center.