JPH04302247A - Automatic dial number changing method for terminal equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce cost or labor for a change by changing the dial data of an automatic dialer provided at a terminal equipment from a host computer connected through a telephone network. CONSTITUTION:The host computer and plural terminal equipments 1 are connected by a telephone line. The terminal equipment 1 is equipped with the dialer for automatic dialing and a reloadable memory device 13 to store the dial data. On the other hand, the host computer equipped with the memory device storing the phone numbers of the respective terminal equipments 1 transmits dial changing instructions 23, 24 and 25 to the terminal equipment 1, and the dial data in the memory device 13 are reloaded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for changing the dial number of an automatic dialer installed in a terminal device.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, as shown in FIG. 3, a terminal equipment (DTE) 1 installed at a subscriber's home and a host computer (CPU) 2 at a center are connected to a telephone switching network (hereinafter referred to as a telephone network).
A home shopping service is being considered that allows users to connect via 3 and order products, for example, from home.

A terminal device (hereinafter referred to as a terminal) 1 of such a system consists of a line adapter section, its control section, and peripheral devices such as a display and an input device. DCE) 4 is connected to the telephone network 3 via a network control unit (NCU) 5. The modem device 4 has both a modulation function and a demodulation function, converts the DC signal sent by the line adapter into an AC signal and sends it to the telephone line, and conversely converts the AC signal sent through the telephone line into a DC signal. Pass it to the line adapter section. The network control unit (NCU) 5 is the lowest layer control device in the telephone network 3, and exchanges information according to a predetermined procedure with exchanges installed at telephone offices, etc., and organically connects the terminal 1 to the telephone network 3. Connecting. This network control device 5 is provided with a tone dialer 9 or a pulse dialer 8 connected to a controller 7, as shown in the automatic call originating/receiving type NCU in FIG. 2, for example, and receives dial data from the control section. A DTMF signal or dial pulse is generated to perform automatic dialing to call the host computer 2. Further, the tone dialer 9 may be provided in the modem device 4, but its functions are the same.

On the other hand, since the center's host computer (hereinafter referred to as host) 2 handles multiple lines, the line adapter unit is equipped with a communication control device (CCP) that can handle multiple lines.
) 6, and the communication control device 6 connected to the input/output channel of the host 2, like the line adapter of the terminal 1, performs the following functions: ■ serial-to-parallel conversion of data, ■ detection and transmission of communication control codes, and ■ error control. , ■Control telephone lines using functions such as line control. The communication control device 6 is connected to the modem device 4 as described above, and is connected to the telephone network 3 via the network control device 5.

[0005] For example, when the terminal 1 joins the system, it registers the telephone number data of the center in the control section. Thereafter, when the transmission key is operated, the network control device 5 or modem device 4 automatically makes a call (dials), calls the host 2 at the center, and connects the line.

[0006]

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] In the above system, the telephone number of the center is often changed due to various circumstances on the center side, such as relocation of the center, increase or decrease of telephone lines, or circumstances on the telephone office side. be. In that case, the old phone number registered on each terminal must be changed to a new phone number.

However, even if the subscribers of each terminal are notified of this fact, it is very difficult to make sure that all the subscribers are informed, and there are always subscribers who are not notified or who do not know how to change their dial data. There are also subscribers who register the wrong number. Therefore, in order to prevent this, it is necessary to notify the subscriber of the new number change repeatedly, or to send a staff member to the subscriber's home to register and confirm the new number. The changes are expected to require a great deal of effort and expense to prepare.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for subscribers to change the telephone number data of each terminal.

[0009]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, a host computer and a plurality of terminal devices are connected through a telephone line, and the host computer is provided with a memory device that stores the telephone number of each terminal device, On the other hand, the terminal device is provided with a dialer for automatic dialing, and is also provided with a rewritable memory device for storing the dial data, and a dial change command is transmitted from the host computer to each terminal device via a telephone line. The configuration is such that the dial data of the device is changed to the dial data written in the dial change command.

0010

[Operation] In the method for changing the dial of a terminal device configured as described above, when changing the telephone number, the host automatically dials and calls each terminal one after another using the telephone number of each subscriber's home that has been registered in advance. The old dial data in the memory device is changed to the new dial data by transmitting the dial data.

[0011]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be explained based on FIGS. 1 to 3. In this method of changing the dial number of the terminal device 1, as shown in FIG. 3, the terminal 1 is connected to the host 2 through the telephone network 3, as in the conventional case.

As shown in FIGS. 1(a) and 2, the terminal 1 uses a microprocessor 10 as a control section, and a UART output 11 for serial transmission built in the microprocessor 10 as a line adapter. There is. Also,
Its output 11 is routed through a modem device 4 to an autodialer 8;
9 is connected to the network control device 5 provided with. On the other hand, the display section uses a liquid crystal display panel 12 with a backlight, and the backlight is the I/O of the microprocessor 10.
It is turned on/off by the /O control 15. For display on this liquid crystal display panel 12, a graphics VRA is used.
An M memory 16 and a ROM memory 17 for kanji characters are provided, and a VRAM control circuit 18 and a liquid crystal control circuit 18 are provided.
' displays kanji and graphics. The microprocessor 10 is provided with a keyboard 20' as an input device, a touch key 20 provided on the liquid crystal display panel 12, a magnetic card reader, an IC card reader 21, etc., and further includes a storage unit that stores a control monitor program. The program ROM memory 19 is connected to a rewritable SRAM memory 13 that stores transmission data including dial data transmitted from the host computer 2. Further, a real-time clock 14 having a calendar function such as year, month, day, day of the week, etc. is connected to the processor 10, and outputs the calendar data to the microprocessor 10 together with the date, time, and data. A backup battery 22 is connected to these SRAM 13 and real-time clock 14, and measures against instantaneous power interruption and power outage are taken.

Next, the dial change command will be explained. The dial change command consists of three fields as shown in FIG. 1(b)(a). The first field 23 is
In the "confirmation signal field" 23 in which the host 2 writes identification data indicating itself, the terminal 1, which has the identification data registered in advance, confirms that the connection destination is the host 2 and not, for example, a telephone or fax, and at the same time , recognizes that the second field that follows is a "change command field" 24. A change command is written in the “change command field” 24. When this command is received, the microprocessor 10 writes the new telephone number data written in the third field "changed telephone number field" 25 to the memory address where the old telephone number data was written according to the monitor program, and changes the dial data. change. This dial change command is sent from the host 2 to each terminal 1.
According to the transmission protocol between the two, the information frame or information block is written and transmitted. Figure 1 (
b) (b) shows an example of a transmission format in the HDLC procedure.

This embodiment is configured as described above, and when the telephone number of the center is changed, the host 2 searches the file in which the telephone number data of each subscriber's house is written, and automatically dials the subscriber's house in turn. Terminal 1 is connected to terminal 1, and a dial change command is transmitted.

When the dial change command is input, the terminal 1 confirms that the destination is the host 2 from the identification data in the "confirmation signal field" 23, and at the same time changes the dial in the "change command field" 24. When there is a command,
Write the new dial data of "Change telephone number field" 25 to the memory address where the old dial data was written,
Perform a dial number change.

[0016] That is, since the host 2 updates the dial number data of each terminal 1 in the system at once, it is completed in a short time, and no changes are omitted or errors occur.

[0017] Therefore, there is no need to spend much effort in preparing for the change, and the cost involved is almost negligible as it is only a one-time call charge to each terminal 1.

[0018] Furthermore, the dial change command includes the "confirmation signal field" 23 and the "change command field" of the transmission data.
Dial change is performed only when the data written to the memory 13 matches the two data registered in advance in the terminal 1: identification data and change command data. Dial data is difficult to change and is highly reliable.

Therefore, when the terminal 1, which has been changed to the new dial data in this way, presses the send key, the new dial data is sent to the automatic dialers 8 and 9 of the network control device 5.
The center whose number has been changed to the new number is called and connected to host 2.

[0020]

[Effects] Since the present invention is constructed as described above, the dial numbers of terminal devices can be changed all at once by the host computer instead of by the subscriber. Therefore, there is almost no effort or cost associated with the change.

[0021] At this time, there are no omissions or mistakes in changes.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

[Fig. 1] (a) is a block diagram of a terminal device according to the present invention, and (b) is a schematic diagram of a dial change command.

[Figure 2] Block diagram of network control device

[Figure 3] Block diagram of conventional example

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Terminal device 2 Host computer 3 Telephone line (telephone switching network) 8, 9 Automatic dialer 13 Memory device (SRAM) 23 Confirmation signal field 24 Change command field 25 Change phone number field

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A host computer and a plurality of terminal devices are connected via a telephone line, the host computer is provided with a memory device that stores the telephone number of each terminal device, and the terminal device is provided with a dialer for automatic dialing. , a rewritable memory device for storing the dial data is provided, a dial change command is transmitted from the host computer to each terminal device via a telephone line, and the dial data in the memory device is written in the dial change command. 1. A method for automatically dialing a number of a terminal device, the method comprising: changing the dialing data to the dialing data set by the terminal device.