System and method for cordless telephonic communication

• US 20020090961A1
• Filed: 01/05/2001
• Published: 07/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Skyworks Solutions Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Conexant Systems Incorporated (Synaptics Incorporated)
• Inventors: Berger, Doug M., Walley, John S., Garey, Kenneth E.
• Granted Patent: US 6,813,505 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/462
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/65 Recording arrangements for recording a message from the calling party in the exchange H04M3/50
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/715 using two or more extensions per line cordless telephones H04M1/725
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/725 Cordless telephones user interfaces specially adapted therefor H04M1/724
• 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 2250/02 including a Bluetooth interface

Abstract

a communication device that includes a base. The base includes a line interface for receiving incoming communications over a network line and sending outgoing communications over the network line, a communication transceiver for interfacing the communication device over a communication link to other communication devices in a same in-home network and for interfacing other communication devices in the same in-home network to the line interface via the communication link, and a storage medium for storing communication software that allows the communication device to communicate with other communication devices through the transceiver. The communication device also includes a processor coupled to the storage medium and to the line interface. The processor is configured to run the communication software and to receive incoming communications through the line interface and to send an outgoing communications through the line interface. The communication transceiver can be a RF short range transceiver.

Claims

1. A communication device comprising a first base, the first base including:

a line interface configured to receive incoming communications over a network line and to send outgoing communications over the network line;

a communication transceiver configured to interface the communication device over a communication link to other communication devices in a same in-home network and to interface other communication devices in the same in-home network to the line interface via the communication link;

a storage medium configured to store communication software that allows the communication device to communicate with other communication devices through the transceiver; and

a first processor communicatively coupled to the storage medium and to the line interface, the processor configured to run the communication software and to receive an incoming communication through the line interface and send an outgoing communication through the line interface.

2. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the first base further comprises a speaker and a microphone, and wherein the first processor is configured to generate an audio drive signal from the incoming communication and couple the drive signal to the speaker to generate the outgoing communication from a voice signal received from the microphone.

3. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the communication transceiver is a Radio Frequency (RF) transceiver.

4. The communication device of claim 3, wherein the RF transceiver operates in the 900 Mhz-ISM band or the 1.2 GHz-ISM band.

5. The communication device of claim 4, wherein the storage medium is further configured to store radio control software, and wherein the first processor is further configured to control the operation of the RF transceiver in accordance with the radio control software.

6. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the communication link is a phone line home network link or a power line home network link.

7. The communication device of claim 1, further comprising a first handset, the first handset including:

a speaker configured to receive an audio drive signal;

a microphone configured to generate a voice signal;

a first RF communication transceiver configured to generate an incoming RF signal over a RF communication channel and to transmit an outgoing RF signal over the RF communication channel; and

a second processor coupled to the speaker, the microphone, and the first RF transceiver, the processor configured to generate the outgoing RF signal from the voice signal and to generate the audio drive signal from the incoming RF signal,

wherein the first base further comprises a second RF communication transceiver, the second RF transceiver configured to transmit the incoming RF signal to the first RF transceiver over the RF communication channel and to receive the outgoing RF signal from the first RF transceiver over the RF communication channel.

8. The communication device of claim 7, wherein the first processor is coupled to the second RF transceiver, and wherein the first processor is configured to generate the outgoing communication from the outgoing RF signal received by the second RF transceiver and to generate the incoming RF signal from the incoming communication received through the line interface.

9. The communication device of claim 7, wherein the first handset is configured to perform handset-to-handset communication with a second handset in the same in-home network.

10. The communication device of claim 9, wherein the first handset accomplishes handset-to-handset communication using the first RF transceiver to communicate directly with the second handset over a RF communication link.

11. The communication device of claim 7, wherein the first handset is configured to enter a sleep mode for a specified sleep period to conserve power, and wherein the first handset is configured to wake up after the sleep period, establish communication with the first base over the RF communication channel, and then re-enter sleep mode if the first base does not have an incoming communication from the network line.

12. The communication device of claim 7, wherein the first base is configured to hand the first handset off to a second base in the same in-home network, when the first handset is closer to the second base.

13. The communication device of claim 7, wherein the RF communication channel is in the 900 MHz-ISM band.

14. The communication device of claim 7, wherein the first handset further comprises a set of switches or keys for selecting a network line that the first handset is to be connected to in order to place an outgoing communication.

15. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the storage medium is configured to store messages from unanswered incoming communications.

16. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the first base is configured to communicate the presence of an incoming communication over the communication link to a second base in the same in-home network, and wherein the second base will communicate the presence of the incoming communication to a second handset associated with the second base, causing the second handset to activate an incoming communication indictor included in the second handset.

17. The communication device of claim 16, wherein the first base will negotiate with the second base in order to connect the second handset to the line interface in the first base so that the second handset can receive the incoming communication.

18. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the first base is configured to receive a communication from a second base over the communication link indicting that the second base has received an incoming communication from a network line interfaced to the second base through a line interface contained in the second base, and wherein the first base will communicate the presence of the incoming communication to the second base to a first handset associated with the first base.

19. The communication device of claim 18, wherein the first base is configured to negotiate with the second base in order to interface the first handset to the line interface included in the second base so that the first handset can receive the incoming communication.

32. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the base comprises a third communication transceiver that is configured to accesses a public telephone network, and wherein the first and second communication transceivers are configured to communicate bi-directional audio signals.

20. An answering machine, comprising:

a communication transceiver configured to interface the answering machine over a communication link to other communication devices in a same in-home network and to interface other communication devices in the same in-home network to the answering machine via the communication link;

a storage medium configured to store messages from incoming communications and communication software that allows the answering machine to communicate with other communication devices through the transceiver;

a speaker configured to receive an audio drive signal;

a microphone configured to generate a voice signal; and

a first processor communicatively coupled to the storage medium, the speaker, and the microphone, the processor configured to run the communication software, to access the messages in the storage medium and generate the audio drive signal therefrom, and to generate a message to be stored in the storage medium from the voice signal.

21. The answering machine of claim 20, wherein the communication link is a RF communication link, a telephone line home network link, or a power line home network link.

22. An in-home network comprising a plurality of communication devices that include a base, each base including:

a line interface configured to receive incoming communications over a network line and to send outgoing communications over the network line;

a communication transceiver configured to interface the communication device over a communication link to other communication devices in a same in-home network and to interface other communication devices in the same in-home network to the line interface via the communication link;

a storage medium configured to store communication software that allows the communication device to communicate with other communication devices through the transceiver; and

a first processor communicatively coupled to the storage medium and to the line interface, the processor configured to run the communication software and to receive an incoming communication through the line interface and send an outgoing communication through the line interface.

23. The in-home network of claim 22, wherein the in-home network is interfaced to a plurality of network lines.

24. The in-home network of claim 23, wherein some of the communication device further comprise a handset, the handset including:

a speaker configured to receive an audio drive signal;

a microphone configured to generate a voice signal;

a first RF communication transceiver configured to generate an incoming RF signal over a RF communication channel and to transmit an outgoing RF signal over the RF communication channel; and

a second processor coupled to the speaker, the microphone, and the first RF transceiver, the processor configured to generate the outgoing RF signal from the voice signal and to generate the audio drive signal from the incoming RF signal,

wherein bases included in these communication devices further comprises a second RF communication transceiver, the second RF transceiver configured to transmit the incoming RF signal to the first RF transceiver over the RF communication channel and to receive the outgoing RF signal from the first RF transceiver over the RF communication channel.

25. The in-home network of claim 24, wherein the handsets further comprises a set of switches or keys for selecting a network line to be connected to in order to place an outgoing communication.

26. The in-home network of claim 22, further comprising an answering machine, the answering machine including:

a communication transceiver configured to interface the answering machine over a communication link to other communication devices in a same in-home network and to interface other communication devices in the same in-home network to the answering machine via the communication link;

a storage medium configured to store messages from incoming communications and communication software that allows the answering machine to communicate with other communication devices through the transceiver;

a speaker configured to receive an audio drive signal;

a microphone configured to generate a voice signal; and

a first processor communicatively coupled to the storage medium, the speaker, and the microphone, the processor configured to run the communication software, to access the messages in the storage medium and generate the audio drive signal therefrom, and to generate a message to be stored in the storage medium from the voice signal.

27. The in-home network of claim 22, wherein the communication devices are configured so that new communication devices can be initialized into the in-home network by receiving initialization information from a communication device already in the in-home network.

28. The in-home network of claim 27, wherein the initialization information is received from a handset associated with a communication device already in the in-home network by placing the handset in the base of the new communication device.

29. The in-home network of claim 22, wherein a new communication device is initialized into the in-home network by dialing into the in-home network and entering an identification associated with the new communicant device.

30. The in-home network of claim 22, wherein a communication device in the in-home network is configured to upload new software to other communication devices in the in-home network.

31. A communication device, comprising:

a remote terminal; and

a base, the base including a first communication transceiver configured to provide access to a local network; and

a second communication transceiver configured as the only communication transceiver included in the base that communicates with the remote terminal, the communication with the remote terminal occurring without user interaction at the remote terminal.