Claims
- 1. A telephone switching system for telephone lines including trunk lines and subscriber lines in a telephone network, said system comprising:
- A. a plurality of port means connected to the lines for receiving and transmitting voice signals and supervisory signals,
- B. timing means for generating a first timing signal at a first frequency and a second timing signal at a lower frequency,
- C. storage means connected to said port means and to said timing means for storing supervisory information representative of said supervisory signals that are transferred to and from said port means at a sampling rate dependent upon the first timing signal,
- D. port event processing means connected to said timing means and said storage means for controlling the operation of each said port means collectively in response to the information in said storage means, and the second timing signal,
- E. call processing means connected to said storage means for altering the supervisory information in said storage means in response to other supervisory information in accordance with a predetermined sequence of call progression steps, and
- F. switching means connected to said port means, said storage means and said call processing means for transferring the voice signals and supervisory signals among said port means.
- 2. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 1 wherein each said port means includes:
- i. logic means connected to a corresponding trunk or subscriber line for generating plural supervisory signals representing conditions on the line, at least one of said supervisory signals being sampled at a fast rate and at least one of the supervisory signals being sampled at a slow rate, and
- ii. data path means connected to said logic means, said timing means and said storage means for transferring to said storage means, at a sample rate established by the first timing signal from said timing means, a succession of sample signals including first sample signals representing successive samples of supervisory signals that are sampled at the fast rate and second sample signals representing samples of successive ones of the supervisory signals that are sampled at the slow rate.
- 3. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 2 wherein said storage means includes:
- i. port communication storage means assigned to each said port means, each port communication storage means storing samples of the supervisory signals for its associated port means,
- ii. accumulator means connected to said data path means in each said port means and to said timing means for accumulating all the signal samples for each said port means, and
- iii. conversion means connected to said accumulator means and to said communication storage means for transferring the accumulated signal samples in said accumulator means to corresponding ones of said port communication storage means.
- 4. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 3 wherein the stored supervisory information includes status information, and:
- A. said timing means includes:
- i. means for generating a read timing signal,
- ii. means for generating a modification timing signal, and
- iii. means for generating a write timing signal, and
- B. said port event processing means includes:
- i. read receiver means connected to said storage means and said read timing signal generating means for receiving status information from said storage means,
- ii. modification means connected to said read receiver means and said modification timing signal generating means for processing the status information in said read receiver means in response to the receipt of the modification timing signal, and
- iii. writing means connected to said modification means and to said write timing signal generating means for transferring the processed status information from said modification means to said storage means.
- 5. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 4 wherein each port communication storage means stores supervisory information as two bytes of data, said read receiver means and said writing means in said port event processing means being responsive to the timing means for receiving and transferring a first byte of the supervisory information and wherein:
- A. said timing means further includes:
- i. second read timing signal generating means for generating a second read timing signal prior to the generation of the modification timing signal, and
- ii. second write timing signal generating means for generating a second write timing signal after the modification timing signal, and
- B. said port event processing means further includes:
- i. second read receiver means connected to said storage means and said timing means for receiving the second byte of information from said storage means in response to the second read timing signal, said modification means processing both the first and second bytes of supervisory information in response to the receipt of the modification timing signal, and,
- ii. second writing means connected to said modification means, said storage means and to said timing means for transferring supervisory information from said modification means to said storage means in response to the second write timing signal, said second receiver means and second writing means being responsive to said modification means for being selectively enabled to operate in response to said second read and second write timing signals.
- 6. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 4 wherein said second timing signal defines a processing interval during which said port event processing means processes all supervisory information for all said port means and wherein said timing means further includes means for repetitively generating, during said processing interval, a sequence of control signals that enable the supervisory information for each said port means to be processed in sequence and means responsive to said control signals for controlling the retrieval of supervisory information from said storage means thereby to retrieve the supervisory information for each said port means in sequence.
- 7. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 6 wherein said call processing means advances the operation of the telephone switching system through the sequence of call progression steps by establishing for each said port means a task to be performed by said port event processing means, said call processing means establishing a task to be performed by transmitting task information to said storage means, said port event processing means including means for generating information indicating the completion of each task, and said storage means further including task completion storage queues for receiving the task completion information, said call processing means further including means for retrieving the task completion information from said task completion storage queues at a timing rate that is established by said call processing means and that is asynchronous with respect to said first and second timing signals.
- 8. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 7 wherein said task information is transferred from said call processing means to said storage means as information that constitutes one of a plurality of commands, each command identifying a function to be performed by said port event processing means, said port event processing means further including:
- i. at least one function processing means connected to said timing means and said storage means for performing a predetermined function, and
- ii. command coding means for selectively enabling one said function processing means in response to a command in said storage means, thereby to process the supervisory information for a said port means in response to the command issued by said call processing means for that said port means, said port event processing means thereby transferring supervisory information to said storage means once during each processing interval.
- 9. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 8 wherein each said port means further includes:
- i. logic means connected to said timing means and to said data path means for transmitting control signals onto a telephone line in response to plural supervisory signals from said storage means, at least one of said asupervisory signals being transferred to said port means at a fast rate established by said first timing signal and at least one of said supervisory signals being transferred to said port means in response to the second timing signal, thereby to alter the control signals at a slow rate.
- 10. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 3 wherein a plurality of port means are organized as a port group unit and wherein said switching means comprises a plurality of matrix network means for transferring voice signals between port group units, said storage means further including:
- i. port group unit data path means for each said port group unit connected to said timing means and to each port means of the corresponding port group unit for transferring supervisory and voice signals as a sequence of serial binary signals for the port group unit, and
- ii. a plurality of receive buffer means each associated with one of said matrix network means and connected to plural data path means, each said receive buffer means including a portion of said accumulator means and further including data routing means for transferring voice signals to and from said matrix network means and supervisory signals to and from said conversion means.
- 11. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 10 wherein each said port group unit data path means includes switching means connected to said port means in said port group unit and to said receive buffer means and said timing means for selectively coupling signals to said receive buffer means in sequence and said storage means additionally includes a transmitting buffer means for each said matrix network means, each of said transmitting buffer means being connected to one of said matrix network means and to said conversion means for transferring to a plurality of data path means supervisory signals and the voice signals.
- 12. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 1 wherein said storage means includes means for storing control information, said port event processing means transfers control information to said storage means, said control information being divided into a first type of control information and a second type of control information, and wherein each said port means includes:
- i. data path means connected to said storage means and said timing means for transferring a succession of items of control information from said storage means at a sample rate established by the first timing signal from said timing means, the transferred items of control information being both the first and second types of control information, and
- ii. logic means connected to a corresponding trunk or subscriber line and to said data path means for transmitting plural control signals onto said line in response to the control information received from said data path means, one control signal being transmitted in response to each item of the first type of control information and at least one other control signal being transmitted in response to each item of the second type of control information.
- 13. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 12 wherein said storage means includes:
- i. port communication storage means assigned to each said port means for storing samples of control signals representative of the items of first type of control information and the second type of control information for each said port means,
- ii. conversion means connected to said port communication storage means and said timing means for retrieving the control signal samples for each said port means from said port communication storage means, and
- iii. accumulator means connected to said data path means, said conversion means and said timing means for accumulating the control signal samples from said conversion means and transferring signals representative of the first and second sets of control information and voice signals to said data path means in each said port means.
- 14. A telephone switching system as recited in claim 13 wherein a plurality of port means are organized as a port group unit and wherein said switching means comprises a plurality of matrix network means for transferring voice signals between said port group units, said storage means further comprising buffer means connected to each of said matrix network means for receiving control signals and voice signals and for transferring those signals to a plurality of said data path means.
- 15. A telephone system comprising:
- A. a plurality of ports connected to trunk lines and subscriber lines for receiving and transmitting voice signals and supervisory signals;
- B. timing means for generating a first timing signal at a first frequency and a second timing signal at a lower frequency,
- C. storage means connected to said ports and to said timing means for storing supervisory information representative of said supervisory signals that are transferred to and from said ports at a sampling rate dependent upon the first timing signal, and
- D. port event processing means connected to said timing means and said storage means for controlling the operation of each of said ports collectively in response to the information in said storage means and the second timing signal.
- 16. A telephone system as recited in claim 15 wherein each of said ports includes:
- i. logic means connected to a corresponding trunk or subscriber line for generating plural supervisory signals representing conditions on the line, at least one of said supervisory signals being sampled at a fast rate and at least one of the supervisory signals being sampled at a slow rate, and
- ii. data path means connected to said logic means, said timing means and said storage means for transferring to said storage means, at a sample rate established by the first timing signal from said timing means, a succession of sample signals including first sample signals representing successive samples of supervisory signals that are sampled at the fast rate and second sample signals representing samples of successive ones of the supervisory signals that are sampled at the slow rate.
- 17. A telephone system as recited in claim 16 wherein said storage means includes:
- i. port communication storage means assigned to each of said ports, each port communication storage means storing samples of the supervisory signals for its associated port,
- ii. accumulator means connected to said data path means in each of said ports and to said timing means for accumulating all the signal samples for each said port, and
- iii. conversion means connected to said accumulator means and to said communication storage means for transferring the accumulated signal samples in said accumulator means to corresponding ones of said port communication storage means.
- 18. A telephone system as recited in claim 17 wherein the stored supervisory information includes status information, and:
- A. said timing means includes:
- i. means for generating a read timing signal,
- ii. means for generating a modification timing signal, and
- iii. means for generating a write timing signal, and
- B. said port event processing means includes:
- i. read receiver means connected to said storage means and said read timing signal generating means for receiving status information from said storage means,
- ii. modification means connected to said read receiver means and said modification timing signal generating means for processing the status information in said read receiver means in response to the receipt of the modification timing signal, and
- iii. writing means connected to said modification means and to said write timing signal generating means for transferring the processed status information from said modification means to said storage means.
- 19. A telephone system as recited in claim 15 wherein the said storage means includes means for storing control information, said port event processing means transfers control information to said storage means, said control information being divided into a first type of control information and a second type of control information, and wherein each of said ports includes:
- i. data path means connected to said storage means and said timing means for transferring a succession of items of control information from said storage means at a sample rate established by the first timing signal from said timing means, the transferred items of control information being both the first and second types of control information, and
- ii. logic means connected to a corresponding trunk or subscriber line and to said data path means for transmitting plural control signals onto said line in response to the control information received from said data path means, one control signal being transmitted in response to each item of the first type of control information and at least one other control signal being transmitted in response to each item of the second type of control information.
- 20. A telephone system as recited in claim 19 wherein said storage means includes:
- i. port communication storage means assigned to each said port for storing samples of control signals representative of a first set of control information and a second set of control information for each said port,
- ii. conversion means conncected to said port communication storage means and said timing means for retrieving the control signal samples for each said port from said port communication storage means, and
- iii. accumulator means connected to said data path means, said conversion means and said timing means for accumulating the control signal samples from said conversion means and transferring the first and second sets of control signals and voice signals to said data path means in each said port.
- 21. A telephone system as recited in claim 20 wherein a plurality of ports are organized into a lesser plurality of port group units, further comprising:
- i. a plurality of matrix network means for transferring voice signals between said port group units said storage means; and
- ii. buffer means connected to each of said matrix network means for receiving control signals and voice signals and for transferring those signals to a plurality of said data path means.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This patent application is a division of a commonly assigned copending application entitled "Arrangement of Interactive Switching Processors For Control Of Ports", Ser. No. 290,531, filed Aug. 6, 1981, by Barrie Brightman, et al (abandoned), which in turn is a continuation of Ser. No. 924,883, filed July 14, 1978, (abandoned), which is a continuation-in-part of a commonly assigned copending application entitled "Arrangement of Interactive Processors for Sensing or Transmitting Supervisory Events", Ser. No. 864,401, Filed Dec. 27, 1977, by Barrie Brightman, et al, abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (5)
Divisions (1)
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290531 |
Aug 1981 |
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Continuations (1)
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924883 |
Jul 1978 |
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Continuation in Parts (1)
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864401 |
Dec 1977 |
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