Method and apparatus for enabling dual control head operation of a mobile radio transceiver

• US 7,142,825 B2
• Filed: 01/29/2003
• Issued: 11/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Marler Communications, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Marler Communications, Inc.
• Inventors: Sublette, Alexander Thomas, Marler, Eric Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Duc
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEE, JUSTIN YE
• Application Number:
  US10/354,502
• Publication Number:
  US 20040147231A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,399 Days
• Field of Search: 455/3.05, 455/404.1, 455/404.2, 455/418, 455/419, 455/420, 455/500, 455/507, 455/521, 455/90.2, 455/90.3, 455/557, 455/88, 455/66.1, 455/74, 455/355
• US Class Current: 455/90.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/401 for selecting or indicating operating mode

Abstract

An apparatus and corresponding method for enabling the use of a plurality of control heads for operating a transceiver designed to operate with a single control head via a data bus. An interface module is connected between the transceiver and the plurality of control heads that periodically generate an interrupt request. The interface module, responsive to the interrupt requests, selectively enables one of the control heads to operate the radio transceiver. The method includes polling communication from the control heads and transceiver for mediating control of the transceiver. In one embodiment, accessibility of the radio system is improved and cost reduced by utilizing the speaker and volume control of each control head, such that an external speaker is not required.

Claims

1. In a radio system including a transceiver designed to operate via a digital data bus with a single control head only, a method for modifying said radio system to enable a selected one of a plurality of control heads to operate said transceiver, each said control head periodically generating an interrupt request signal, comprising the steps of:

connecting an interface module between said transceiver and said plurality of control heads;

detecting in said interface module when one said control head has generated an interrupt request;

causing said interface module to selectively enable the control head that generated said interrupt request to operate said transceiver, wherein the method is implemented using two control heads, comprising the steps of;

processing said interrupt request;

designating said requesting control head as the active control head and the other control head as the inactive control head;

forwarding said interrupt request to said transceiver;

receiving a message from said transceiver;

forwarding said transceiver message to said control heads;

including the steps of;

decoding said transceiver message to determine if said transceiver message is a backlighting control message; and

if said transceiver message is a backlighting control message, then

forwarding said backlighting control message to said active control head; and

forwarding a backlighting no change message to the other of said control heads, such that a backlighting change in said backlighting control message is received only by said active control head;

if said transceiver message is not a backlighting message, then forwarding said transceiver message to each of said control heads;

receiving data messages from said control heads in response to said transceiver message; and

selectively forwarding said received data messages from said active control head to said transceiver, thereby enabling operation of said transceiver by said active control head.

2. In a radio system including a transceiver designed to operate with a single control head via a digital data bus, a method for enabling the use of a pair of control heads for operating said transceiver, comprising the steps of:

(a) providing an interface module connected between said transceiver and said pair of control heads, each of said control heads periodically generating an interrupt request;

(b) initializing said interface module;

(c) receiving one of said interrupt requests from one of said control heads;

(d) processing said interrupt request;

(e) designating said requesting control head as the active control head and the other control head as the inactive control head;

(f) forwarding said interrupt request to said transceiver;

(g) polling a first one of said pair of control heads to determine if said first control head has data ready to be transmit to said transceiver;

(h) if said first control head has data ready to be transmit, polling the interrupt requests from each of said control heads to ensure that only one of said control heads has an interrupt request currently active;

(i) sending said currently active interrupt request said transceiver;

(j) polling said transceiver to determine if said transceiver has data ready to be transmit to said control heads;

(k) if said transceiver has data ready to send to said control heads, checking said data to determine if said data contains a backlighting message;

(l) if said data from said transceiver does not contain said backlighting message, sending said data to each of said control heads;

(m) if said data from said transceiver contains said backlighting message;

processing said backlighting message, wherein said processing includes;

(m1) sending said backlighting message to said active control head,

(m2) sending a backlighting no-change message to said inactive control head; and

(m3) then returning to step (g);

(n) if said transceiver does not have data ready, determining whether said first control head is the active control head and has data ready;

(o) if said first control head is either not the active control head or does not have data ready, determining whether the other control head is the active control head and has data ready and if said other control head is either not the active control head or does not have data ready, then proceed to step (g);

(p) if it is determined that one of said pair of control heads is an active control head with data ready, processing the data of said active control head, said processing comprising;

(p1) determining if said data contains audio or hookswitch information;

(p2) if said data does not contain audio or hookswitch information, sending said data to said transceiver and returning to step (g);

(p3) if said data does contain audio or hookswitch information, processing said information such that any change in audio volume as a result of said information occurs only for speakers corresponding to said active control head.