JPS59108446A - Prepayment public telephone system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To eliminate the need for a visit to a telephone station or the like for the storage obto a magnetic card by storing prepayment onto the magnetic card from a specific subscriber telephone set. CONSTITUTION:A receiver 1 storing the prepayment is connected to the specific subscriber telephone set 17 via a recorder 3, and when a specific number representing the prepayment and the charge to be paid in advance are dialed from the dial, then a CPU6 makes conversion with an exchange by means of a sound in-band signal, the exchange receives a registrating number, and when the combination with the connected telephone set is correct, the dialed number of times of calls is charged. When information of end of charge reaches a recorder 3 via a receiving section 15b and a coupler 10, the CPU6 controls a charge writer 8 to write a prepayment code to an IC memory 4 via contacts 8a, 4a and store the prepayment code.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a public telephone system in which, instead of collecting call charges by inserting coins, a medium on which a prepayment code is recorded is inserted to make a call.

Conventional public telephones require coins to make calls, cannot make calls without coins, and are configured so that if the coins run out, the call is interrupted. In addition, since collected coins are stored inside the device, anti-theft measures are required, and a sturdy permanent public W and a storage box for the talking device are also required.

Therefore, a system has been proposed in which the fee is paid in advance, stored on a magnetic card, and a call is made by inserting the card instead of a coin. However, this system had the drawback that the fee was paid in advance and recorded on the magnetic card, which required a person to go to a specific location such as a telephone office, which limited the range of use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a prepaid public telephone system that overcomes the above-mentioned drawbacks.

3- In order to achieve the above object, the prepaid public telephone system according to the present invention suppresses the collection of call charges by inserting a coin, and in the public telephone system in which a medium containing a prepaid toll code is inserted to make a call, the prepaid toll code is not collected. a paging receiver having means for storing, a connection for connecting said paging receiver to its own circuit and a coupler for coupling the handset of a subscriber telephone, and for reading out the registration number of said paging receiver. a prepayment code recording device comprising a circuit for writing a prepayment code from a subscriber telephone into the paging receiver, and a control section for communicating with an exchange, and connecting the paging receiver to its own circuit. a public telephone comprising a connection section for the prepaid code paging receiver, a circuit for reading out the registration number of the prepaid code paging receiver, a circuit for displaying the call time type, and a control section for communicating with the exchange side; After connecting the receiver and the prepayment code recording device to a specific subscriber's telephone, the exchange side is busy transmitting the special number and prepayment information on the dial of the specific subscriber's telephone. determines the validity of the combination of the half-tatami mat and paging receiver of that particular subscriber's telephone, and if it is valid, connects the paging receiver with the memorized charges to the public telephone and hooks up, When the exchange side confirms that the paging receiver is registered and there is a remaining charge in the prepayment code stored in the paging receiver, it causes the public telephone to make a call, and the public telephone receives the call from the exchange. It is configured to update the remaining display during a call according to the charge rate and rewrite the contents of the paging receiver.

According to the above configuration, the object of the present invention is completely achieved.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the prepaid public telephone system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram mainly showing the configuration of a prepaid fee code storage device, and is a diagram showing a case where a prepaid fee code is stored in a paging receiver. In the figure, numeral 3 is a one-digit paging receiver (hereinafter referred to as receiver), numeral 3 is a prepayment code storage device (hereinafter referred to as recorder), and 7 is a subscriber billing machine.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing its appearance. As shown in the figure, a handset 15 of a subscriber telephone 17, a receiver 1, and a recorder 3 are connected.

The receiver is equipped with an IC memory 4 which is a storage means for storing a prepaid fee code, and a number plug into which the receiver's registration number is input. In addition to the above-described storage means, a case partially made of a magnetic material or a case to which a magnetic film is attached may be used. In this case, the receiver will be used with the receiver housed in the case.

The shape of the connection part 40 of the recorder 3 is such that only one group of receivers can be inserted into it, and the input/output contact 4a of the IC memory 4 provided at the bottom of the receiver 1 and the output contact of the number plug are located at the bottom of the connection part 40 of the recorder 3. 5a, an output contact of the charge writer 8 and an input contact 7a of the plug reader 7 are provided, respectively.

A switch 13 is also provided, and this switch 13
When the 0PU6 learns of this closing and the pilot lamp 33 lights up, it can be confirmed that the respective contacts are connected.

However, if the receiver is from another group, it cannot be inserted into the connection part, and even if it can be inserted, the position of the contacts is checked, so the positions of the contacts may not match. , no permanent connection is made and the receiver is unusable.

Switches 11.12 are provided at the portions of the coupler 9.10 against which the handset 15 is pressed, and these switches 11 and 12 are connected to the transmitting section 15a and the receiving section 15b.
When the CPU 6 is pushed and closed, the coupler 6.1
Connect 0 phonetically.

Under the control of the 0PUe, the plug reader 7 is configured to read the registration number of the receiver from the number plug and write the prepayment code to the charge writer 8-digit IC memory 4.

7- As mentioned above, when the receiver 1, the recorder 3, and the handset 15 of a particular subscriber telephone 17 are electrically and audioly coupled, the signal is transmitted through the receiver, the recorder 3, and the subscriber telephone 17. and is connected to the switching network 18. At that point, use Dial 2 to press the special number ΔΔΔ indicating prepayment of charges, and then dial the charge to be paid in advance, for example, 100 degrees (1*O*O
). The system is configured such that the fee to be paid in advance is paid in advance in predetermined fee units such as 100 degrees. After this kind of operation, 0PU
6 and the electronic exchange of the switching network interact by means of voice in-band signals. The electronic exchange receives the registration number read out from the number plug 5 by the 0PU 6 using the plug reader 7, and confirms whether the combination with the connected telephone is valid and charging is allowed. If the result is positive, you will be charged the 100 degrees you dialed earlier. However, for example, up to 99
Even if you can dial 9 degrees, the charge will be 100 yen as mentioned above.
Since the payment is made in advance in units of degrees, it is divided into units of 100 degrees, and the prepayment for the receiver 1 is confirmed in the Praguri 8-Part 7. Information about the completion of billing is sent from the Lightning 5 switch to the receiving unit 15b1.
When reaching recorder 3 via coupler 10, 0P
Insert the U6 prepayment code via contacts Fla and 4a.
The charge writer 8 is controlled to write into the C memory 4. The above operations and operations complete the storage of the prepayment code in the receiver 1.

Next, the use of this receiver l will be explained.

FIG. 3 is a diagram mainly showing the structure of a public telephone set, and shows a state in which a receiver is fitted into the public telephone set. In the figure, 27 is a public telephone.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing its appearance. This embodiment has a magnetic card (conventional prepayment system) insertion part 42 and a receiver l insertion part 41 as connection parts for 27 public telephones. is configured to be switched by a relay 23.

The shape of the insertion part 41 of the public telephone 27 is similar to that of the recorder, so that only the receiver 1 can be inserted, and the input/output contacts 481 of the IC memory 4 at the bottom of the receiver 1 are connected to the output contacts 5a of the number plug 5 at the bottom. Charge reader 2 facing each
4 input companion point 24a1 plug reader 250 input contact point 7a
is set up and crowded. A switch 14 is also provided which closes in response to the connection of the contacts.
The relay 23 is configured to be driven when the is closed. Therefore, if a legitimate registered receiver is inserted, each contact becomes strong and the relay 23 activates the 0PU26.
is connected to the switching network [8] and switched to the telephone circuit 27a.

Note that normally, the contacts of the relay 23 connect the telephone circuit 27a and the card reader 31, so if a magnetic card (not shown) is used, the prepayment information on the magnetic card is transferred to the card reader without any switching operation. 31 and sent to the electronic exchange of the exchange network 18. As in the case of recorder 3, under the control of 0PU26, charge reader 24
is configured to read the prepayment code from the IC memory 4, and the plug reader 25 is configured to read the number of the receiver l from the number plug 5. The remaining time display section 28 displays the remaining time calculated based on the prepayment code that is read out and at a rate to be described later.

For example, minutes are used as the unit of display.

When the receiver 1 is inserted and the handset 29 is hooked up as shown in FIG. 4, the 0PU 26 connects to the switching network and communicates with the single-wire switch using voice band signals. The electronic exchange controls the 0PU 26, reads the receiver 10 number plug with the plug reader 25, confirms that it is the registered receiver 1, and then uses the charge reader 24 to read the prepaid charge stored in the IC memory 4. The code is read out, and if there is a remaining charge, the telephone 27 is enabled to make a call. If the operator dials the telephone number of the other party using the dial 32 and connects with the called party, the toll rate will be known, and the electronic exchange will issue a command to the 0P026 to control the remaining charge to be displayed. Initially, the OPU 26 displays on the remaining display section 28 the remaining time calculated from the prepayment code stored in the IC memory at the toll rate, and uses a timer to change the remaining time in minutes. At the same time, with the prepayment code corresponding to the remaining time,
The contents of C memory 4 are updated.

Then, when the prepaid fee becomes zero, the communication path is disconnected.

The electronic switching equipment associated with the above system performs the above control by changing the software.

Although an IC memory is used in the receiver in the present invention,
Since IC memory consumes little power, there are no maintenance problems. The OPU 6, which is the main body of the recorder 3, can be made into an LSI including necessary additional circuits such as a modem, thereby solving the cost problem. If public telephones can be used for making calls using magnetic cards and as shared coinless telephones, as in the embodiment, the cost can be reduced.

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, charges can be paid in advance using a specific subscriber's telephone without going to a specific location. Therefore, it is possible to provide a more convenient system than the prepayment system that has already been proposed.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 941 is a diagram mainly showing the configuration of the prepayment code recording device used in the prepayment public telephone system according to the present invention.
Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of Figure t41, Figure 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the public telephone used in the system of the present invention, and Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of Figure 41.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the figure. 1... Receiver 2, 32... Dial 3...
Recorder 4...IC memory 5...Number plug
6,26...CPU7.25...Plug reader 8
...Charge writer 9.10...Coupler 11.12.13.14...Switches 13a, 13
b, 14a, 14h ---Contact 15.29...
- Handset/receiver 15a, 29a... Transmitter section 15b, 2
9b... Receiving part 17.27... Telephone 27a.
... Telephone circuit 18 ... Exchange network 23 ... Relay 24 ... Charge reader 28 ... Remaining display
31...Card reader 33...Pilot

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) In a public telephone system in which calls are made by inserting a medium storing a prepaid toll code instead of collecting call charges by inserting a coin, a paging receiver having a means for storing the prepaid toll code and the paging receiver are provided. a coupling part for connecting to its own circuit; a coupling coupler for coupling the handset of the subscriber telephone; a circuit for reading out the registration number of the paging receiver; and a prepayment code from the subscriber telephone to the paging receiver. a prepaid code recording device comprising a circuit for writing to a prepaid code and a control unit for communicating with an exchange; a connection for connecting said paging receiver to its own circuit; and registration of said prepaid code paging receiver. It consists of a public telephone equipped with a circuit for reading out the number, a circuit for displaying the remaining call time, and a control section for communicating with the exchange side, the paging receiver, the prepayment code recording device, and a specific subscriber's telephone. After connecting, the exchange determines the validity of the combination of the specific subscriber's telephone number and paging receiver by transmitting the special number and prepaid fee information by dialing the specific subscriber's telephone. By connecting a paging receiver to the public telephone and hooking up, the exchange confirms that the paging receiver is registered and that the paging receiver When there is a remaining charge in the prepayment code assigned to the machine, the public telephone makes a call, and the public telephone is engaged in a call according to the rate sent by the exchange.
A special prepaid public telephone system characterized by updating the remaining display and rewriting the contents of the paging receiver. (2) The prepaid public telephone system according to item 1, wherein the storage means of the paging receiver uses an IC memory. (3) The prepaid public telephone system according to item 1, wherein the storage means of the paging receiver uses a case partially made of magnetic material or a case to which a magnetic film is attached. (4) The connection part for connecting the prepayment code recording device and the paging receiver of the public telephone has a shape such that only a part of the paging receiver can be inserted therein, and the prepayment code is recorded. 2. The prepaid public telephone system according to claim 1, characterized in that the terminal contacts of each circuit of the device and the public telephone set can be connected only to the electrical contacts of the group of paging receivers. (5) The charge according to paragraph 1, characterized in that the connection part of the public telephone has a part into which a magnetic card storing information that the fee has been paid in advance can be inserted, and the public telephone is made to make a call using the magnetic card. Prepaid public phone system.