“Plug and play” telephone system

• US 6,256,319 B1
• Filed: 02/28/1997
• Issued: 07/03/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Technology Corporation Miami Lakes FLA US
• Inventors: Ross, Timothy Ian, Farmer, Wayne David, Apgar, James H., Burke, Edmund Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Duong, Frank
• Application Number:
  US08/808,233
• Time in Patent Office: 1,586 Days
• Field of Search: 379/167, 379/168, 379/169, 379/170, 379/171, 379/172, 379/173, 379/174, 379/175, 379/176, 379/177, 370/280, 370/282, 370/294, 370/522, 370/450, 370/461, 370/462, 370/447, 370/445, 370/438, 370/439
• US Class Current: 370/450
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/715 using two or more extensions per line cordless telephones H04M1/725

Abstract

A distributed processing telephone system for providing “plug-and-play” capability. In particular, a key telephone system comprises a plurality of telephone sets. Each telephone set is coupled to at least one common communications channel, or telephone line, and includes at least one tunable RF modem. There is no key service unit (KSU). That is, the system is KSU-less. Resources of the telephone system are allocated using a peer-to-peer protocol. For example, as each telephone set is newly added to the system, the new telephone set adaptively determines its own allocation of resources, e.g., intercom numbers, etc. During operation, each telephone set requests the appropriate resources from its peers.

Claims

1. An apparatus for use in an endpoint of a system, the apparatus comprising:

circuitry for a) transmitting a request message to other endpoints of the system, and b) detecting an idle message frame as confirmation of such transmitted request message;

wherein the request message is formatted to comprise an address portion and a message portion, and wherein the message portion conveys data representative of a request for use of a particular system resource.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry does not detect a denial message prior to the detection of the idle message frame as confirmation.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry transmits the request message upon detection of no carrier in a time slot of a message frame, the time-slot corresponding to an associated address of the endpoint.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry causes the transmission of synchronization pulses subsequent to the transmission of the request message, this transmission occurring until another endpoint transmits a message.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the endpoint is a telephone set.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the endpoint is not a telephone set.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein each endpoint includes its own call processing software such that collection of endpoints forms a telephone system.

8. A system comprising:

a plurality of telephone sets, each telephone set coupled to a communications medium for the exchange of request messages, and where each telephone set confirms its request message upon detection of an idle frame; and

wherein each request message is formatted to comprise an address portion and a message portion, and wherein the message portion conveys data representative of a request for use of a particular system resource.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein each telephone set confirms its request message provided it does not receive a denial message prior to the detection of the idle frame as confirmation.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein each telephone set transmits its request message upon detection of no carrier in a time slot of a message access frame, the time-slot corresponding to an associated address of the telephone set.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein each telephone set that transmits a request message subsequently causes the transmission of synchronization pulses until another endpoint of the system transmits a message.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the plurality of telephone sets forms a telephone system.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein each telephone set having its own call processing software.

14. Apparatus for use in an endpoint of a system, the apparatus comprising:

processing circuitry for forming messages for transmission in accordance with a protocol for governing the exchange of the messages with other endpoints, where the protocol requires a plurality of message access frames, each message access frame including a plurality of time-slots and where an address of the endpoint is associated with one of the time-slots, the processing circuitry not transmitting a formed message until its corresponding time-slot is detected as idle and where the processing circuitry detects confirmation of the formed message upon detection of an idle message access frame after the transmission of the formed message.

15. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the processing circuitry further causes the generation of a synchronization pulse subsequent to the transmission of the formed message until another endpoint transmits a message.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the endpoint is a telephone set.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the endpoint is a telephone set.

18. A method for use in an endpoint of a system, the method comprising the steps of:

transmitting a request message to other endpoints of the system; and

detecting an idle message frame as confirmation of such request message;

wherein the request message is formatted to comprise an address portion and a message portion, and wherein the message portion conveys data representative of a request for use of a particular system resource.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the endpoint does not receive a denial message prior to the detection of the idle message frame as confirmation.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the transmitting step transmits the request message upon detection of no carrier in a time slot of a message frame, the time-slot corresponding to an associated address of the endpoint.

21. The method of claim 18 further comprising the step of transmitting synchronization pulses subsequent to the transmission of the request message, this transmission occurring until another endpoint transmits a message.

22. The method of claim 18 wherein the endpoint is a telephone set.

23. The method of claim 18 wherein the endpoint is not a telephone set.

24. A method for use in an endpoint of a system, the method comprising the steps of:

detecting a plurality of message access frames, each message access frame comprising a plurality of time-slots;

transmitting a message in a time-slot that is associated with the endpoint only if the time-slot is idle; and

receiving a confirmation of the message by subsequent detection of an idle message access frame.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the receiving a confirmation step is conditioned upon not receiving a denial message prior to the detection of the idle message frame.

26. The method of claim 24 wherein an idle time-slot is represented by the absence of a carrier signal.

27. The method of claim 24 wherein the endpoint is a telephone set.

28. The method of claim 24 wherein the endpoint is not a telephone set.