Telephone answering machine with non-volatile memory

Claim 1

An automatically answerable telephone apparatus comprising: line signal processing means connected to a telephone line, speech signal handling means for supplying the line signal processing means with a speech signal and receiving a received speech signal from the line signal processing means, recording and reproducing means provided for automatically responding operation and operative to record the received speech signal from the line signal processing means on a record medium and reproduce the received speech signal recorded on the record medium, control unit means having a rewritable memory device for storing control data and operative to control the line signal processing means and the recording and reproducing means, writable non-volatile memory means connected to the control unit means, power source means for supplying the control unit means, the writable non-volatile memory means and at least one of said line signal processing means, said speech signal handling means, and said recording and reproducing means with a power supply voltage, capacitor means connected to the power source means for holding the power supply voltage, and power failure detecting means for detecting power failure occurring in the power source means, wherein said control unit means is operative, with the power supply voltage discharged by said capacitor means, to remove at least one of said line signal processing means, said speech signal handling means, and said recording and reproducing means from the power source means and transfer control data for automatically responding operation from said rewritable memory device to said writable non-volatile memory means for preserving the control data for the automatically responding operation when the power failure occurring in said power source means is detected by said the power failure detecting means.