JPH0498955A - Electronic telephone directory terminal equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simplify the operation from the checking of a number till the talking with a destination by providing a common use database to a center, allowing the user to extract a required data and storing it to a terminal equipment, selecting a required data from the data and applying automatic dialing. CONSTITUTION:The terminal equipment is incorporated with a MODEM 121 and an NCU 122 and connects to a center having a database of telephone number information at a remote location through a telephone line 3 to retrieve the database and receives the resulting telephone number information and displays it on a display device 15 in KANJI (Chinese character). Then among plural telephone numbers corresponding to the retrieval condition received from the center, an object telephone number is displayed on a line cursor and selected visually. Through the operation, the connection with the center is disconnected and the selected telephone number is automatically dialed. While the terminal equipment is connected to the center, the information is registered in a telephone directory in the inside of the terminal equipment. Thus, the operation that the telephone number of the destination desired to be talked is checked and the destination is talked is considerably simplified.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an electronic telephone directory terminal device that searches for telephone numbers using a center database.

[Prior Art] Various electronic telephone directories have been proposed in the past for electronically searching for call numbers. This is what you input. In this case, of course, the user must first look up the desired telephone number in a telephone directory or the like, and enter the name and telephone number found as a result from the keyboard. Therefore, the task of looking up a telephone number and the task of registering the telephone number in an electronic telephone directory must be performed as completely different tasks, which is time-consuming.

Additionally, some devices sold under the name of electronic notebooks have an electronic phonebook function, which displays and searches phone numbers, but cannot automatically dial the phone number searched for. If you want to call the person you searched for, you will need to manually dial the phone while looking at the displayed phone number.

Some personal computers are also equipped with an electronic telephone directory function, but although these automatically dial the searched phone number, there is a separate N
Since it required a CU (auto dialer) and was a fairly large device, it was not easy to use as an electronic telephone directory.

Therefore, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-50153, an electronic telephone directory function is added to the telephone set to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks.

[Maj to be Solved by the Invention However, since the number of key switches on the telephone is limited, the operability of input operations and search operations in such devices is very poor. In addition, since this device only needs to memorize the phone number that the device requires, its storage capacity is not very large, so there is a problem that it is insufficient in capacity to be shared by a large number of users. there were.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve these problems, the present invention provides a shared database in the center, allows users to call up necessary items from the database and store them in a terminal device, and The system automatically dials the one you need and connects you to the other party.

[Operation] When searching, by calling the center and inputting predetermined information, the telephone number corresponding to the information will be displayed. If a process is performed to store this information in the terminal device, it will be stored therein, and from the next time onwards, automatic dialing will be performed by selecting from the stored information. Additionally, the desired destination is selected from the displayed list and automatically dialed to establish an automatic connection.

Embodiment Since the embodiment of the present application has various functions and is quite complex as a whole, we will first explain the main functions of the device, an overview of the characteristics of the device, and the system configuration.

◎ Connect to a center that has a database of telephone numbers through a telephone line, send information such as name and address to the center from this terminal, receive the corresponding telephone number information from the center, and save information in that information. Select the desired party from , automatically dial, and make a call using the standalone telephone connected to this terminal.

It is possible to make a direct call using the telephone number information retrieved from the O center, and the telephone number information can be registered in the electronic telephone directory (storage section) within the device.

A plurality of telephone number information can be received and displayed at once from the O center, and the person to whom one wishes to call can be visually selected from among them with a line cursor. The same applies when displaying telephone number information stored in the device.

◎You can search for phone book data displayed in kanji by specifying the first character of the displayed name in kana from the kana keyboard.

◎Can be used by connecting an unspecified number of individual telephones.

◎Easy operations from finding the phone number to connecting to the other party and making a call.

◎It is easy to use and has a size that does not disturb its shape compared to a telephone.

Swelling I@Symptom 111 To realize these features, this device uses a modem, N
It has a built-in CU and connects via a telephone line to a center that has a database of telephone number information in a remote location, searches the center's database, receives the resulting telephone number information, and displays it in kanji on a display device. ing. This significantly reduces the amount of effort required for the operator to flip through a telephone directory or the like to find a telephone number. Communication control with the center is controlled by software.

A plurality of telephone numbers corresponding to the search conditions received from the center are displayed, and the desired telephone number is displayed with a line cursor so that it can be visually selected. While the phone number selected by this operation remains connected to the center, the connection to the center is automatically disconnected, and the selected phone number can be automatically dialed. Also, while connected to the center, the phone book (memory section) inside the device is
You can now register. This greatly simplifies the operations required to find out the telephone number of the person you want to call and to call the person.

The hook-up detection function detects when the connected telephone goes off-hook and automatically switches the line from the NCU/modem to the telephone, eliminating the need to press a switch.

By providing this device with a connector for connecting individual telephones, an unspecified number of individual telephones can be used, and the telephone currently in use can also be used as is.

Figure 1 shows the overall configuration of this system.
-11 are electronic telephone directory terminals, and 21-2 are individual telephones, which are installed in each subscriber's home. 3. ~3. 4 is a telephone switching network, 5 is a center device, and 5□ is a database.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal structure of the electronic telephone directory terminal device, in which 11 is a main control section, 12 is a communication control section, 13 is an operation section, 14 is a power supply section, and 15 is a display section. The main control unit 11 includes a CPU 111, a main memory 112, a backup memory 113, a fixed memory 114, and a kanji ROMll5.
0 communication control section 12 consisting of modem 12! N
It is composed of CUI2□. The operation unit 13 includes function keys 131, alphanumeric kana keys 13. It consists of The power supply unit 14 includes an AC adapter 14t and a stabilization circuit (REG) 142.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the electronic telephone directory terminal device, in which there is a display section 15 on the upper surface, a communication lamp 181 and an alphanumeric lamp 182 on the right side, and an alphanumeric character key 13□ below the display section 15. There is. The function keys are arranged on the right side of the alphanumeric kana keys 13□ and have the following functions.

131.・・・・・「A・A」 A selection of katakana and alphanumeric characters.

13rb... "Cancellation" Delete the last character of the input.

131c --- "Selection" Line cursor (reverse) works from bottom to top 131d
・ ・ ・ ・ "Selection mouth" 13te where the line cursor (reverse) works from top to bottom
'-''Confirm O] Indicates the end of the transmitted data while online. In local mode, determines the input data.

131, ... - "Return Δ" Request retransmission while online 1313 ... "Call" Open the telephone directory, register the number in the telephone directory. Delete a number from the phone book.

131b・-1・"Interruption" Disconnects the line and returns to the initial screen.In addition, a volume adjuster 17 is provided on the right side, and a modular jack 16□ for connecting the line and a telephone jack for connecting to a telephone are provided on the upper side. A 16° modular jack is provided.

1 ship 1 α & sail The operation of this device will be explained below.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of this device.

Figure 4 shows the interconnection between Figures 5 and 6;
In Figure 4, the frame is too small to write in characters, so the characters in the frame are written separately in Figures 5 and 6. Also, since there are parts in FIGS. 5 and 6 that go back and forth, it is difficult to understand from FIGS. 5 and 6 alone, so the overall connection is shown in FIG. 4.

First, in step 100, an initial screen as shown in FIG. 7 is displayed. As instructed on this screen:
Press the ``Center'' button or the ``Phone button'' to return to step 1.
If a key input is detected in step 01 and the "center" key is pressed, the line relay is switched from the telephone to the modem side as shown in steps 102 and 103, and then a process is performed to form a DC loop using the DC loop circuit. be exposed. When the modem detects a dial tone as shown in step 104, it controls the dial pulse circuit as shown in step 105 and sends the center telephone number stored in the RAM to the line. It goes without saying that in the case of an MF line, the dial pulse circuit becomes an MF signal generating circuit.

When an answer tone is detected by this dial operation as shown in step 106, menu screen data is received from the center as shown in step 107, and the
Display on the display as shown in the figure. When a key is operated in accordance with the instructions on the screen shown in FIG. 8, the key data is detected as shown in step 108 and sent to the line and transmitted to the center. The center performs predetermined processing based on the transmitted signal and sends the specified number information to the electronic phonebook terminal, so step 1 is completed in the electronic phonebook terminal.
When the number information import screen data is received from the center as shown in FIG. 09, the screen shown in FIG. 9(a) is displayed.

When data of predetermined items is input according to the screen shown in FIG. 9(a), key input data is detected as shown in step 110, and is sent to the line and transmitted to the center. At this time, the electronic telephone directory terminal device is
As shown in d), the input data is sequentially displayed on the screen. In other words, since Figure 9(a) requires you to enter your last name, if you enter "Muto" and press the "Confirm ○" key, the input "Muto" will be displayed as shown in Figure 9(b). Next, you will be asked to enter your name, but if you do not know your name, press the "Confirm ○" key and you will be asked to enter your prefecture as shown in Figure 9 (C). I'll come. In this way, if you input the prescribed items one after another, Figure 9 (d)
) will be displayed. On this screen, if the input data is correct, you will be asked to press the "Confirm ○" key to execute the inquiry, so if you follow the instructions, all items will be terminated as shown in step 111, and step 112
The center computer starts searching the database as shown in .

Then, since the telephone number data of the search result is sent, when the electronic telephone directory terminal device receives it, it displays it on the screen as shown in FIG. 9(e). Here, as shown in step 114, if either the "phone" key or the "cursor movement" key is detected and the "cursor movement key" is operated once, a line cursor is displayed on the display as shown in step 115. Move one line.

If the "phone" key is operated, the process of displaying the telephone number data displayed by the line cursor on the registration screen is performed as shown in step 116, and step 117
, the input of any of the "confirm" key, "telephone" key, and "center key" is confirmed.

If the "center" key is operated here, step 11
As shown in 8, a display screen of the telephone number data received from the center is displayed on the display. If the "confirmation key" is operated, the displayed telephone number data is stored in the RAM in the order of last name and kana code as shown in step 119, and the most recently stored telephone number data is placed at the top as shown in step 120. The line is displayed with a line cursor, and the following lines display the data stored in the RAM. Step 121 if the “phone” key is operated
As shown in FIG. 2, the telephone number data stored in the RAM is displayed, and the registration screen data and line cursor are displayed on the top line.

Next, in step 122, key inputs of the "center" key, "confirm" key, and "cursor movement" key are detected.

If the "center" key is operated, as shown in step 118, a display screen of telephone number data received from the center is displayed. When the "cursor movement" key is operated, the line cursor on the display screen is moved one line as shown in step 123. If the "confirmation key" is operated, as shown in step 124, the DC loop is released, the line relay is switched from the modem to the telephone side, timer T1 is started, and as shown in step 125, after timer T1 has elapsed, the line is switched from the telephone to the modem side, and a DC loop is formed by the DC loop circuit.

Thereafter, when a dial tone is detected in step 126, the dial pulse circuit or MF sending circuit is controlled as shown in step 127, and the telephone number data displayed by the line cursor is sent to the line, the monitor speaker is turned on, and the timer T2 Start. Then, in step 128, the time-up of the timer T2 is monitored, in step 129, the operation of the interrupt key is monitored, and in step 130, the hook-up detection circuit monitors the hook-up of the connected telephone. Therefore, if hook error 1 is detected in step 131, the line relay is switched from the modem to the telephone side as shown in step 132, the DC loop circuit is released, the monitor speaker is turned off, and a call is made. Although it is open to
At this time, the line is maintained because a DC loop is formed by the telephone.

When time-up of timer T2 is detected in step 128, the DC loop is released, the line relay is switched from the modem to the telephone, and the monitor speaker is turned off, as shown in step 133.

Incidentally, step 134 is a process in which a dial tone is not detected in step 104 and an answer tone is not detected in step 106, and the DC loop is released.
The line relay is switched from the modem to the telephone side.Step 135 is a process when no dial tone is detected in step 126, and the DC loop is released and the line relay is switched from the modem side to the telephone side.

On the other hand, if the "phone" key is operated in step 101, as shown in step 150 (Fig. 6), the telephone number data stored in the RAM is displayed in code order starting from the beginning, as shown in Fig. 10. Display as much as possible, and display a line cursor on the top line. and step 151
, any key inputs such as "confirm", "cursor movement", "kana", "phone", and "interrupt" are monitored.

If the [Confirm] key is detected here, step 152
Switch the line relay from the telephone to the modem side as shown in
A DC loop circuit forms a DC loose. Then, the process from step 126 (FIG. 5) onwards is performed to establish a telephone connection to the destination selected by the line cursor.

Step 15 if the "cursor movement" key is operated
3. Move the line cursor display on the display by one line.

If the "kana" key is operated, as shown in step 154, the telephone number data stored in the RAM is searched based on the input key code, and the first character of the last name is compared. If there is a match, the data is displayed on the top line, and displayed in the following lines in code order. This state is shown in Figure 11 (a>), and is an example of the case where in order to search for the name "Kawai Ken-" from the state in Figure 10, the character "Chikara", which is the highest character of the surname, is entered. ``Kawai Lab-''
The name is located at number 4, so move the line cursor to select it and press the "Confirm" key as described above to perform automatic dialing.

If the first character and the search target do not match, the input code and stored code are compared, and the phone number data with the smallest code for which the stored code is larger is displayed on the top line, and from the next line onwards, Performs processing to display codes in sequential order.

If the "Call" key is operated, the registration screen is displayed as shown in step I55. The screen is displayed as shown in I, and the key input detection is awaited in step 156.

The key inputs here are the "kana" key, the "confirm" key, and the "phone" key. When the "kana" key is entered, the input code is displayed in the name display area as shown in step 157, and the " When the “Confirm” key is input, step 15
Move the cursor to the phone number display area as shown in 8,
Waiting for the next key input 0 The next key input is the "Number" key "
``Confirm'' or ``Interrupt'' keys, and if the ``Number'' key is input, as shown in step 160, processing is performed to display the input code in the telephone number display area. "
If the "Confirm" key is input, the displayed telephone number data is stored in the RAM in the order of last name and kana code as shown in step 161, and the stored telephone number data is displayed on the top line as shown in step 162. It is displayed along with the cursor, and the following lines (the data stored in RAM are displayed).
044-965-5000J is registered.

If the "interrupt" key is input, the process returns to step 100 and returns to the initial state.

If the "phone" key is detected in step 156, as shown in step 163, the telephone number data stored in the RAM is displayed as much as possible in code order from the beginning, and a line cursor is displayed on the top line. The display state at this time is shown in FIG.
! A key input of Fj, "kana", or "phone" is detected. When the "interrupt" key is input, the process returns to step 100, and when the "phone" key is input, the process returns to step 1.
Return to 50. When the "cursor movement" key or the "kana" key is input, the same operations as steps 153 and 154 are performed, and the line cursor is moved to the desired position. FIG. 13(b) shows a state in which "power" is input and the number "Hiroko Kawai" is selected. If you press the "Confirm" key here, the telephone number data displayed by the line cursor will be deleted from the RAM, and the display will redisplay the deleted RAM data. Figure 13 (C) is "Hiroko Kawai".
This shows the state in which the phone number has been deleted.

FIG. 14 shows the operation when sending a dial signal. When PBX accommodation is specified in step 200, step 2
In 01, the "0" code for sending an outside line is stored in the dial sending buffer. In this case, if the outside line acquisition uses a number other than "0", it is of course not necessary to specify the number. be.

Thereafter, if it is determined in step 202 that no area code has been set, a process is performed in which dial data to be sent is stored in a dial sending buffer as shown in step 204. However, if the area code is set, the process of step 203 is performed.

In other words, compare the area code (up to 6 digits) stored in RAM in the system settings with the area code of the dial data to be sent (from the beginning of the dial data), and if they match, remove the matching data. The dial data is stored in the dial sending buffer. If they do not match, the stored dial data is stored in the all-digit dial data transmission buffer.

When the process of step 203 or step 204 is completed as described above, the line relay is switched from the telephone side to the modem side as shown in step 205, a DC loop is formed as shown in step 206, and the dialing is performed as shown in step 207. Enter type switch information.

In step 207, three types are selected: a PB line, a 20PPS DP line, and a 10PPS DP line. First, when the PB line is selected, as shown in step 208, the MF signal sending circuit in the modem is controlled to send an MF signal corresponding to the data in the dial data sending buffer to the line at a predetermined timing. 20PPS D
In the case of P line, control the dial pulse circuit to 20PP
At timing S, processing is performed to send the data in the dial data sending buffer to the line. 10PPSf)
In the case of DP line, control the dial pulse circuit to 10P
At PS timing, processing is performed to send the data in the dial data sending buffer to the line.

FIG. 15 shows the process of automatic line release, step 220.
t of the search results received from the center through the line.
When the telephone number data is displayed and the input of the "Dial" key is detected in step 221, the telephone number data displayed by the line cursor is displayed on the registration screen as shown in step 222, and the processing mode is changed to offline mode. and
From now on, key input data will not be sent to the line.

At this time, the line remains connected.

When the above processing is completed, a timer Tn is started as shown in step 223. Before this timer times out in step 224, in step 225 the "center"
When key input detection is detected, as shown in step 226, the display screen immediately before displaying the registration screen is displayed, the processing mode is set to online mode, and subsequent key input data is sent to the line. Then, as shown in step 227, the timer Tn is stopped, and the process returns to step 221.

Note that when a timeout of the timer Tn is detected in step 224, the line is released as shown in step 228. In other words, only line release is automatically executed while offline. If another key input is detected in step 225, the input key is processed.

FIG. 16 shows the input mode switching process, step 24.
When the input mode switching code is received from the center as shown in step 221, it is determined which mode it is in. If you are in alphanumeric mode, step 24
Turn on the alphanumeric lamp as shown in 2, and make the subsequent key input codes alphanumeric. If the input mode is kana instruction, the alphanumeric lamp is turned off and the subsequent key input code is processed to be kana. Therefore, if the input mode can be determined by the center, the input mode can be switched under the center's initiative. There is no need to switch the phone book each time.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, the present invention extracts necessary telephone numbers using the database of the center, adds or deletes own necessary telephone numbers later,
In addition, since we have made it possible to select the necessary number from among the numbers extracted from the center and make a call immediately, the center can store a huge amount of telephone numbers, and the telephone directory can only use the necessary numbers. However, it is essentially equivalent to storing a huge number of telephone numbers, and although it is a large-capacity telephone directory, it is easy to use because it is easy to see the necessary parts.

Furthermore, since the center has a large amount of information and many things share that data, it has the effect of improving data usage efficiency.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of this system, Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal structure of the telephone directory device, Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the telephone directory device, and Fig. 4 is a center call 1 A flowchart showing the overall flow for explaining the operations of number registration, search, automatic dialing, and registration cancellation; FIGS. 5 and 6 are flowcharts showing details of FIG. 4; FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the initial screen; Figure 8 is a diagram showing the screen displaying the instruction contents at the initial stage of operation, Figure 9 is a diagram showing how the screen display contents change according to key input during a search, and Figure 10 is a diagram showing a telephone call from the center. Figure 11 shows the screen when the number is called, Figure 11 shows the screen where the necessary part is selected from the information called from the center, Figure 12 shows the screen when you call the number you need. Figure 13 is a diagram showing the screen for registering a telephone number, Figure 13 is a diagram showing the screen for deleting the telephone number registered by the user, Figure 14 is a flowchart showing the operation when sending a dial signal, and Figure 15 is a diagram showing the line automatic transmission. A flowchart showing the operation when releasing,
FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the operation when switching input modes. 11~1°...electronic telephone directory terminal device, 21~21
・・・Single phone, 3. ~3. ...-Subscriber line,
4-...Telephone switching network, 5.--1.Center device, 51
...Database, 11...-Main control section, 12...
-Communication control unit, 13...-Operation unit, 131-...
Function key, 132...Alphanumeric character key patent applicant Iwasaki Tsushinki Co., Ltd. Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) An electronic telephone directory terminal device that uses the center's database to research and register telephone numbers has a connection means that automatically dials the connection to the center and generates predetermined information after detecting the completion of connection with the center. Information transmitting means for transmitting information to the center, display means for displaying the results returned after the processing of the information at the center has been completed, and first selection means for selecting desired data from among the results returned and displayed from the center. a storage means for storing the data selected by the first selection means; an automatic dialing means for automatically dialing the other party of the selected data; and a second selection for selecting desired data from among the stored data. means, automatic dialing means for automatically dialing the other party of the data selected by the first or second selection means, response detection means for detecting a response from the other party, and connecting the other party to one's own telephone after the response is detected. a connection means, an input mode switching means for switching between kana input mode and alphanumeric input mode, a data sending means for sending data of the selected mode to the center, and an input mode when predetermined instruction information is returned from the center. An electronic telephone directory terminal device comprising input mode correction means for returning the mode to the mode before the switching. (2) In claim 1, a memory for storing an area code and a dialed number of a destination within the device, and a comparison means for comparing the dialed number stored in the memory with an automatic dialed number, and the comparison results match. 1. An electronic telephone directory terminal device comprising dial number conversion means for automatically dialing the telephone number by omitting the city code. (3) In claim 1, automatic dialing means automatically dials the other party according to internally stored data, and information adding means adds predetermined information specific to a private branch exchange or key telephone prior to the automatic dialing. An electronic telephone directory terminal device comprising: (4) In claim 1, the following: a storage means for storing the telephone number of the other party and its telephone number supplementary information; an information input means for inputting any one character related to the telephone number supplementary information; and an arbitrary character inputted by the information input means. Comparison means for comparing one character and telephone number supplementary information, and display means for displaying data when there is data matching one character inputted by the information input means in the telephone number supplementary information. Features of electronic telephone directory terminal device. (5) Claim 1, further comprising key input detection means for detecting a key input at a key input waiting timing during connection with the center, and line release means for releasing the line when no key input is detected for a predetermined period of time or more at the timing. An electronic telephone directory terminal device characterized by: