Telephone set for handling a call

• US 5,490,205 A
• Filed: 06/14/1994
• Issued: 02/06/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kondo, Takashi, Hirai, Yuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Hofsass, Jeffery A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TSANG, FAN S
• Application Number:
  US08/261,008
• Time in Patent Office: 602 Days
• Field of Search: 379/67, 379/88, 379/89, 379/142, 379/196, 379/199, 379/245, 379/374, 379/375, 379/249
• US Class Current: 379/67.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/57 Arrangements for indicating or recording the number of the calling subscriber at the called subscriber's set at the operator set in a manual exchange H04M5/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6505 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/725 Cordless telephones user interfaces specially adapted therefor H04M1/724

Abstract

A telephone set provided with a telephone ringer for producing a ringing sound, a telephone number storing device for storing a telephone number of a specific party in response to a registration operation performed by a user, a telephone number detecting device for detecting telephone number data input from a telephone line and a control device for controlling and causing the ringer to produce a ringing sound when a telephone number indicated by the telephone number detected by the telephone number detecting device matches the telephone number stored in the telephone number storing device. Thereby, when the specific party phones the user, the user can easily know this. For example, if the user is going to concentrate his mind upon his work, or if the user is immersed in his work at a distance from the telephone set, the user can readily know whether or not a caller is the specific party, the telephone number of which is registered in the telephone set. Consequently, the telephone set can prevent the user from making an unnecessary response to a call given by a calling party other than the specific party.

Claims

1. A telephone set connected to at least one telephone line, comprising:

a fixed unit having;

ringing-signal detecting means for detecting a ringing signal input through the telephone line;

telephone number detecting means for detecting telephone number data representing a telephone number of a calling party, which is input from the telephone line; and

transmitting means for transmitting a radio signal representing the telephone number data detected by the telephone number detecting means and a ringing signal; and

a mobile unit having;

receiving means for receiving the radio signal transmitted from the transmitting means;

display means for displaying the telephone number of a calling party, which is indicated by the telephone number data represented by the radio signal received by the receiving means; and

ringing-sound generating means for generating a ringing sound,

wherein the fixed unit further comprises;

interfacing means for establishing a connection between the telephone set and a calling telephone through the telephone line;

telephone-answering means for transmitting an outgoing message to the telephone line and for recording a voiced incoming message of the calling party, which is input from the telephone line;

telephone number storing means for storing the input telephone number data;

ringing-sound generating means for generating a ringing sound according to the ringing signal detected by the ringing-signal detecting means; and

control means for controlling the ringing-sound generating means to prevent the generation of a ringing sound according to tho ringing signal when the telephone number data detected by the telephone number detecting means does not match the telephone number data stored in the telephone number storing means, for controlling the interfacing means to establish a connection between the telephone set and the calling telephone, to accept a call sent from the calling party, and activating the telephone-answering means when no telephone number data is detected by the telephone number detecting means and a predetermined period of time expires since the telephone set has been called, and for controlling the ringing-sound generating means of the fixed unit to cause the generation of a ringing sound when the telephone number data detected by the telephone number detecting means matches the telephone number data stored in the telephone number storing means, and wherein the mobile unit further includes control means for controlling the ringing-sound generating means of the mobile unit to prevent the generation of a ringing sound when the telephone number data is not detected, and when the telephone number data detected by the telephone number detecting means does not match the telephone number data stored in the telephone number storing means, and to generate a ringing sound in response to the ringing signal when the telephone number data detected by the telephone number detecting means of the fixed unit matches the telephone number data stored in the telephone number storing means of the fixed unit.

2. A telephone set for handling a call comprising:

telephone number storing means for storing telephone number data representing telephone numbers of predetermined calling parties;

ringing-signal detecting means for detecting a ringing signal;

telephone number detecting means for detecting telephone number data representing a telephone number of a call-originator;

ringing-sound generating means for generating a ringing sound according to the detected ringing signal;

interfacing means for establishing a connection between the telephone set and a calling telephone through telephone line;

telephone-answering means for transmitting an outgoing message to the telephone line and for recording a voiced incoming message of the call-originator;

control means for preventing the ringing-sound generating means from generating the ringing sound on receiving the ringing signal until the call-originator is identified as one of the predetermined calling parties, and for controlling the interfacing means to establish the connection and to activate the telephone-answering means after a predetermined period without detecting telephone number data or identifying the detected telephone number data as the stored telephone number data.

3. A telephone set for handling a call comprising:

telephone number storing means for storing telephone number data representing telephone numbers of predetermined calling parties;

ringing-signal detecting means for detecting a ringing signal;

telephone number detecting means for detecting telephone number data representing a telephone number of a call-originator;

ringing-sound generating means for generating a ringing sound according to the detected ringing signal;

interfacing means for establishing a connection between the telephone set and a calling telephone through telephone line;

telephone-answering means for transmitting an outgoing message to the telephone line and for recording a voiced incoming message of the call-originator; and

control means for preventing the ringing-sound generating means from generating the ringing sound on receiving the ringing signal until the call-originator is identified as one of the predetermined calling parties, for controlling the ringing-sound generating means to generate a first ringing sound, controlling the interfacing means to establish the connection, and activating the telephone-answering means after a predetermined period without detecting telephone number data or identifying the detected telephone number data as the stored telephone number data, and for controlling the ringing-sound generating means to generate a second ringing sound on identifying the detected telephone number data as the stored telephone number data.