Communication system

• US 20040052359A1
• Filed: 07/21/2003
• Published: 03/18/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: YOZAN, Inc.
• Original Assignee: YOZAN, Inc.
• Inventors: Kiyomatsu, Hisanori, Takatori, Sunao
• Application Number:
  US10/466,752
• Publication Number:
  US 20040052359A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/387.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72502 with one base station connected to a single line
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/733 with a plurality of base stations connected to a plurality of lines for selection in cordless PBX H04W84/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/68 Payment of value-added services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/00 Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems using a coded card to authorise calls from a telephone set H04M1/675
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/026 Constructional features
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0196 Payment of value-added services, mainly when their charges are added on the telephone bill, e.g. payment of non-telecom services, e-commerce, on-line banking
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/32 Involving wireless systems

Abstract

It is an object of the present invention to provide a communication system, which can manage the contents of control transfer properly while adopting a control transfer method capable of making effective use of a telephone line. When use of a telephone line for a portable telephone 1 is transferred to slave terminals such as a portable telephone 10, a vending machine 11 with communication capability, a personal computer 12 with communication capability, and a car 13 with communication capability, the contents of transfer are stored in a predetermined memory of the portable telephone 1, while the contents of transfer to be transferred to each slave terminal are stored in a built-in memory of the slave terminal. On the other hand, a host computer 2 at an exchange is provided with a predetermined memory for cumulatively storing used transfer contents each time the slave terminal is connected using the transfer. The three memories are checked as appropriate to keep proper use of control transfer.

Claims

1. A communication system adopting a control transfer method, the system including

a host computer provided at an exchange of a common carrier,

a telephone (hereinbelow, called a master terminal) given a predetermined telephone number (hereinbelow, called a master terminal ID) and connected to the host computer over a telephone line related to the master terminal ID in response to input of a predetermined key, and

apparatus with communication capability (hereinbelow, called a slave terminal) which is specified by a slave terminal identification number (hereinbelow, called a slave terminal ID) composed of said master terminal ID part and other parts and recognized by a telephone network of the common carrier including said host computer and which is equipped with a communication terminal unit connected to said host computer over the telephone line related to said master terminal ID in response to input of a predetermined key and given permission of use of the telephone line and access to other services from said master terminal within a predetermined range with charges billed to said master terminal (hereinbelow, the above mentioned permission is called control transfer), wherein

said master terminal comprises

control-transfer storing means for storing the contents of the control transfer in a control transfer history memory in a predetermined storage unit each time control is transferred to said slave terminal, and

information means which, when a deviation informing signal mentioned below is transmitted from said host computer, informs about the contents of deviation based on the deviation informing signal,

said host computer comprises

already-used transfer storing means for cumulatively storing the contents of control transfer used in an already-used control transfer memory in a predetermined storage unit each time said slave terminal is connected to said host computer to use control transfer, and

deviation signal transmitting means which establishes the telephone line with said master terminal every time said slave terminal is connected to said host computer to use the control transfer or periodically, then checks the contents of the control transfer stored in the control transfer history memory in said master terminal against the contents of the already-used control transfer stored in the already-used control transfer memory in said host computer and, if the latter deviates from the former, transmits to said master terminal the deviation informing signal indicative of the contents of deviation.

2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein said master terminal further comprises

master-side short-distance transmission means for transmitting the contents of the control transfer to said slave terminal each time control is transferred to said slave terminal, and

the communication terminal unit of said slave terminal comprises

reception and storage means for receiving the contents of the control transfer transmitted from said master terminal to store the same in a control transfer history memory in a predetermined storage unit, and

transferred content transmitting means which, when the telephone line is established between said slave terminal and said host computer to allow said slave terminal to use the control transfer, transmits the contents of the control transfer stored in the control transfer history memory to said host computer prior to use of the control transfer, and

said host computer further comprises

use of control transfer halting means for halting the use of the control transfer of said slave terminal at the time when, as a result of checking the contents of the control transfer transmitted from said slave terminal through said transferred contents transmitting means against the contents of the already-used control transfer stored in the already-used control transfer memory in said host computer, the latter deviates from the former.

4. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least some of the following six items, the master terminal ID for said master terminal from which control transfer has been carried out, the slave terminal ID for said slave terminal which has received the control transfer, the date and time the control transfer has been used, the purpose of utilization, the amount of charge for the utilization, and the cumulative amount of charge for the use of the control transfer, are stored as the contents of the already-used control transfer in the already-used control transfer memory in said host computer.

3. A communication system adopting a control transfer method, the communication system including

a host computer provided at an exchange of a common carrier,

a master terminal given a predetermined master terminal ID and connected to the host computer over a telephone line related to the master terminal ID in response to input of a predetermined key, and

a slave terminal which is specified by a slave terminal ID composed of the master terminal ID part and other parts and recognized by a telephone network of the common carrier including said host computer and which is equipped a communication terminal unit connected to said host computer over the telephone line related to the master terminal ID in response to input of a predetermined key and permitted use of the telephone line and access to other services from said master terminal within a predetermined range with charges billed to said master terminal, that is to say, given the control transfer, wherein

said master terminal comprises

master-side short-distance transmission means for transmitting the contents of control transfer to said slave terminal each time control is transferred to said slave terminal, and

the communication terminal unit of said slave terminal comprises

reception and storage means for receiving the contents of the control transfer transmitted from said master terminal to store the same in a control transfer history memory in a predetermined storage unit, and

transferred content transmitting means which, when the telephone line is established between said slave terminal and said host computer to allow said slave terminal to use the control transfer, transmits the contents of the control transfer stored in the control transfer history memory to said host computer prior to use of the control transfer, and

said host computer comprises

already-used transfer storing means for cumulatively storing the used contents of control transfer in an already*used control transfer memory in a predetermined storage unit each time said slave terminal is connected to said host computer to use control transfer, and

use of control transfer halting means for halting the use of the control transfer of said slave terminal at the time when, as a result of checking the contents of the control transfer transmitted from said slave terminal through said transferred contents transmitting means against the contents of the already-used control transfer stored in said already-used control transfer memory, the latter deviates from the former.