Time-division multiplex delta-modulation communication system

Claim 1

A time-division multiplex delta-modulation communication system for communicating a multiplexed delta-modulation signal having successive frames, each of said frames being composed of subframes larger in number than the number of multiplexed channels of said delta-modulation signal by at least one and defined by a plurality of control bits and a plurality of information bits corresponding to the number of said channels, at least one of the control bits contained in each framE serving as a frame synchronization code and the remainder of said control bits serving as signalling information codes representing two different states of signalling information of said channel; said system including a transmitter comprising means for deltamodulating each of a plurality of information signals to be transmitted, the number of said information signals being equal to the number of said multiplexed channels; means for producing said signalling information codes from said information signals; means for producing said frame synchronization code; means for arranging in time-serial fashion said signalling information codes and said frame synchronization codes to provide signalling bits for control bit positions such that the control bits of any one particular subframe represent the signalling information of one corresponding information signal and signalling information corresponding to all information signals is transmitted during one frame, and means for cyclically sampling said delta-modulated information signals and said signalling bits to form said subframes and to define said frames, wherein said frame synchronization code consists of an all-mark or an all-space code pattern, and said two signalling information codes have different code patterns from said frame synchronization code and each other.