Patent US4953201A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US4953201A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Additional telephone equipment and method for protecting against nuisance calls
Assignee: Hashimoto Corp
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Filing: 1989-08-01
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Granted: 1990-08-28
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Expires: 2009-08-01
Abstract
Abstract An additional piece of telephone equipment for protecting against nuisance calls as a substitute for a telephone answering device, wherein after the equipment is engaged upon reception of an incoming call, one or the other of a dummy busy tone or a dummy ringback tone is randomly sent out to a calling party, so that it is possible to inform the calling party in a natural way that a called party cannot answer the calling party now. At this time, according to an even or odd number of value of a counter in a microprocessor (CPU), the dummy busy tone or the dummy ringback tone is sent out, and for this purpose, a random-number command stored in the program is used to select the above even or odd number.
Inventors
- 👤 Kazuo Hashimoto
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 22:26
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04M; H04M1/00; H04M1/66; H04M1/663
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 7
Claim 1
Independent Claim
83 words
An additional telephone equipment for protecting against nuisance calls, comprising: means responsive to an incoming call for engaging a telephone line; means for generating, selectively, a dummy busy tone or a dummy ringback tone on the telephone line immediately after engaging; means for generating an output counter value; means for selecting an even or odd number of the counter value; and means responsive to said even or odd number for sending out said dummy busy tone or said dummy ringback tone after engaging.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
83 words
An additional telephone equipment for protecting against nuisance calls, comprising: means responsive to an incoming call for engaging a telephone line; means for generating, selectively, a dummy busy tone or a dummy ringback tone on the telephone line immediately after engaging; means for generating an output counter value; means for selecting an even or odd number of the counter value; and means responsive to said even or odd number for sending out said dummy busy tone or said dummy ringback tone after engaging.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
36 words
An additional telephone equipment for protecting against nuisance calls, according to claim 1, including a random-number signal obtained from a high-level language program executed by a microprocessor and stored for selecting said even or odd number.
Claim 4
Independent Claim
63 words
A method of protecting against nuisance calls, comprising the steps of: engaging a telephone line in response to an incoming call; generating a variable count value; determining whether the count value is a first value or a second value, and in response; generating on the telephone line one or the other of a dummy busy tone or a dummy ringback tone after engaging.
Claim 5
Independent Claim
63 words
A method of protecting against nuisance calls, comprising the steps of: engaging a telephone line in response to an incoming call; generating a variable count value; determining whether the count value is a first value or a second value, and in response; generating on the telephone line one or the other of a dummy busy tone or a dummy ringback tone after engaging.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of claim 3, wherein said first and second values are, respectively, an even value and an odd value.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 4, including storing a random-number command signal to select said even or odd value, obtained from a high-level language executed by a microprocessor.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1993-08-27 | 1994-02-26 | 1994-08-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1997-08-27 | 1998-02-26 | 1998-08-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2001-08-27 | 2002-02-26 | 2002-08-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |