PBX equipment with dial signal modification

Claim 1

The improvement in a program-controlled private branch exchange telephone equipment ("PBX") which is adapted to route incoming calls to remote stations over any one of a plurality of lines having terminations at such PBX and providing at least parts of alternative transmission routes for such calls, and which PBX comprises: switch means responsive to a string of code signals, dialed as part of such a call to such a station and representing respective numbers for a plurality of dial codes respectively associated with specific sequential signal positions in such string and identifying by the corresponding code signals in such positions the ultimate destination of such call, for connecting such string of code signals to a circuit point associated with respective terminations of an array of such lines providing at least parts of alternative transmission routes for such call from said PBX to such station, scanner means for determining which of such routes is available to transmit that call, and route selector means controlled by said scanner means for connecting said point to a selected line included in such array of lines and corresponding to an available one of such routes identified and selected by such selector means as yielding the least cost for transmitting said call; said improvement comprising: register means for receiving and holding said string of code signals, code data storage means providing, for such routes of which at least parts thereof are provided by said array of lines, information as to which of the said dial codes are necessary to complete such call over respective ones of such routes, outpulsed dial signal selector means responsive to signals representing, respectively, said information and the identity of the selected route provided at least in part by said selected line to determine which of said code signals are necessary for completion of such call over said selected route, and code signal modifying means controlled by said outpulsed dial signal selector means to modify in such register means the held code signals so as to have them correspond only to such necessary dial codes, and for then producing outpulsing of the string of such so-modified code signals from said register means to said circuit point and over said selected line.

Claim 6

A method of processing any of a plurality of strings of dial signals respectively representing digits dialed as part of telephone calls which are incoming to a first program-controlled private branch exchange telephone equipment ("PBX") and are destined for remote stations reachable from such first PBX over a plurality of telephone routes including (a) routes provided at least in part by a private telephone network interconnecting said first PBX with one or more additional PBX's and (b) routes provided at least in part by direct distance dialing lines and one or more common carrier telephone networks, said first PBX being operable to select for any of said calls a one of said plurality of routes for transmission of such call to the remote station for which that call is destined, and said method comprising: holding temporarily in said first PBX the string of dial signals received thereby as part of any particular such call incoming to said first PBX, storing in memory means in said first PBX data for each of said plurality of routes the dial signals necessary to complete a call over that route, utilizing an indication of the one of such plurality of routes selected by said first PBX for transmission of said particular call to address said memory means so as to read-out therefrom control signals indicative of which dial signals are necessary for completion of such particular call over such route selected therefor, modifying, when appropriate, individual of said held dial signals so as to produce for said particular call a modified string of held dial signals assuring completion of that call over said route selected therefor, and then outpulsing the string of held dial signals from said first PBX and over such selected route.

Claim 7

A method of processing any of a plurality of strings of dial signals respectively representing digits dialed as part of telephone calls which are incoming to a first program-controlled private branch exchange telephone equipment ("PBX") and are destined for remote stations reachable from such first PBX over a plurality of telephone routes including (a) routes provided at least in part by a private telephone network interconnecting said first PBX with one or more additional PBX's and (b) routes provided at least in part by direct distance dialing lines and one or more common carrier telephone networks, said first PBX being operable to select for any of said calls a one of said plurality of routes for transmission of such call to the remote station for which that call is destined, and said method comprising: holding temporarily in said first PBX the string of dial signals received thereby as part of any particular such call incoming to said first PBX, storing in memory means in said first PBX data for each of said plurality of routes the dial signals necessary to complete a call over that route, utilizing an indication of the one of such plurality of routes selected by said first PBX for transmission of said particular call to address said memory means so as to read-out therefrom control signals indicative of which dial signals are necessary for completion of such particular call over such route selected therefor, modifying, when appropriate, individual of said held dial signals so as to produce for said particular call a modified string of held dial signals assuring completion of that call over said route selected therefor, and then outpulsing the string of held dial signals from said first PBX and over such selected route.