Two-way RF communication at points of convergence of wire pairs from separate internal telephone networks

Claim 1

A system for video signal communication between a source thereof and a plurality of units, each unit including at least one destination of said video signal, said system comprising an interface coupled (a) to said source, (b) to two-wire telephone lines, each of said telephone lines serving at least one of said units and carrying voice signals to and from one or more telephones coupled to said line at said unit, and (c) to a telephone exchange, said interface including circuitry for receiving said video signal from said source, circuitry for transmitting said received video signal onto at least one of said telephone lines in a selected frequency range that is different from frequencies at which said voice signals are carried on said one telephone line to cause said video signal to be coupled to a receiver connected to said telephone line at the unit served by said line, said receiver being adapted to recover said video signal from said telephone line and apply said recovered video signal to said at least one destination of said video signal at said unit, and circuitry for concurrently passing said voice signals between said telephone lines and said telephone exchange, and preventing transmission of said received video signal to said telephone exchange.

Claim 2

A system for video signal communication between a source thereof and a plurality of units, each unit including at least one destination of said video signal, said system comprising an interface coupled (a) to said source, (b) to two-wire telephone lines, each of said telephone lines serving at least one of said units and carrying voice signals to and from one or more telephones coupled to said line at said unit, and (c) to a telephone exchange, said interface including circuitry for receiving said video signal from said source, circuitry for transmitting said received video signal onto at least one of said telephone lines in a selected frequency range that is different from frequencies at which said voice signals are carried on said one telephone line to cause said video signal to be coupled to a receiver connected to said telephone line at the unit served by said line, said receiver being adapted to recover said video signal from said telephone line and apply said recovered video signal to said at least one destination of said video signal at said unit, and circuitry for concurrently passing said voice signals between said telephone lines and said telephone exchange, and preventing transmission of said received video signal to said telephone exchange.

Claim 21

A method for video signal communication between a source thereof and a plurality of units, each unit including at least one destination of said video signal, said method comprising receiving said video signal from said source at an interface coupled (a) to said source, (b) to two-wire telephone lines, each of said telephone lines serving at least one of said units and carrying voice signals to and from one or more telephones coupled to said line at said unit, and (c) to a telephone exchange, transmitting said received video signal onto at least one of said telephone lines in a selected frequency range that is different from frequencies at which said voice signals are carried on said one telephone line to cause said video signal to be coupled to a receiver connected to said telephone line at the unit served by said line, said receiver being adapted to recover said video signal from said telephone line and apply said recovered video signal to said at least one destination at said unit, and concurrently passing said voice signals between said telephone lines and said telephone exchange, and preventing transmission of said received video signals to said telephone exchange.

Claim 22

A method for video signal communication between a source thereof and a plurality of units, each unit including at least one destination of said video signal, said method comprising receiving said video signal from said source at an interface coupled (a) to said source, (b) to two-wire telephone lines, each of said telephone lines serving at least one of said units and carrying voice signals to and from one or more telephones coupled to said line at said unit, and (c) to a telephone exchange, transmitting said received video signal onto at least one of said telephone lines in a selected frequency range that is different from frequencies at which said voice signals are carried on said one telephone line to cause said video signal to be coupled to a receiver connected to said telephone line at the unit served by said line, said receiver being adapted to recover said video signal from said telephone line and apply said recovered video signal to said at least one destination at said unit, and concurrently passing said voice signals between said telephone lines and said telephone exchange, and preventing transmission of said received video signals to said telephone exchange.

Claim 23

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for accepting signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information, circuitry for selecting a subset of zero or more transceivers for receipt of each of the information streams from the external source of information, and circuitry for transmitting over the telephone wiring network to each transceiver in each selected subset of transceivers an internal signal in the high frequency band encoding an information stream corresponding to that subset of transceivers.

Claim 24

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for accepting signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information, circuitry for selecting a subset of zero or more transceivers for receipt of each of the information streams from the external source of information, and circuitry for transmitting over the telephone wiring network to each transceiver in each selected subset of transceivers an internal signal in the high frequency band encoding an information stream corresponding to that subset of transceivers.

Claim 59

A method for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: receiving at a signal interface a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information; selecting a subset of zero or more transceivers for receipt of each of the information streams from the external source of information; transmitting over the telephone wiring network in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band to each transceiver in each selected subset of transceivers an internal signal encoding an information stream corresponding to that subset of transceivers.

Claim 60

A method for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: receiving at a signal interface a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information; selecting a subset of zero or more transceivers for receipt of each of the information streams from the external source of information; transmitting over the telephone wiring network in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band to each transceiver in each selected subset of transceivers an internal signal encoding an information stream corresponding to that subset of transceivers.

Claim 63

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for receiving from the telephone wiring network signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band, and circuitry for transmitting return signals over the telephone wiring network in the high frequency band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals from the external source of information, circuitry for coupling the external signals to selected transceivers, circuitry for transmitting over the telephone wiring network to each selected transceiver an internal signal in the high frequency band encoding a corresponding external signal, circuitry for receiving the return signals from the telephone wiring network, and circuitry for coupling the return signals to the external source of information and for preventing the return signals from passing to one or more of the transceivers.

Claim 64

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for receiving from the telephone wiring network signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band, and circuitry for transmitting return signals over the telephone wiring network in the high frequency band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals from the external source of information, circuitry for coupling the external signals to selected transceivers, circuitry for transmitting over the telephone wiring network to each selected transceiver an internal signal in the high frequency band encoding a corresponding external signal, circuitry for receiving the return signals from the telephone wiring network, and circuitry for coupling the return signals to the external source of information and for preventing the return signals from passing to one or more of the transceivers.

Claim 65

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for accepting signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information, and circuitry for transmitting to selected sets of one or more of the plurality of transceivers a corresponding plurality of internal signals in the high frequency band each encoding one of the plurality of information streams over the telephone wiring network; wherein the telephone wiring network includes a branch network and the system further includes a signal terminator coupled to the branch network for reducing the reflected energy of signals in the high frequency band transmitted onto the branch network.

Claim 66

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for accepting signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information, and circuitry for transmitting to selected sets of one or more of the plurality of transceivers a corresponding plurality of internal signals in the high frequency band each encoding one of the plurality of information streams over the telephone wiring network; wherein the telephone wiring network includes a branch network and the system further includes a signal terminator coupled to the branch network for reducing the reflected energy of signals in the high frequency band transmitted onto the branch network.

Claim 67

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for accepting signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information, and circuitry for transmitting to selected sets of one or more of the plurality of transceivers a corresponding plurality of internal signals in the high frequency band each encoding one of the plurality of information streams over the telephone wiring network; wherein the telephone wiring network includes a branch network which couples one of the plurality of telephone devices to the telephone exchange telephone exchange, and the branch network includes circuitry for preventing transmission of signals in the high frequency band to the one of the telephone devices on the branch network.

Claim 68

A system for communicating information between an external source of information and a plurality of destinations of information over a telephone wiring network used for passing telephone signals in a telephone voice band between a plurality of telephone devices and a telephone exchange, comprising: a plurality of transceivers coupled between the telephone wiring network and corresponding destinations of information, each including circuitry for accepting signals in a high frequency band of frequencies above the highest frequency of the telephone voice band and rejecting signals in the telephone voice band; and a signal interface coupled between the external source of information and the telephone wiring network, including circuitry for receiving a plurality of external signals encoding a plurality of information streams from the external source of information, and circuitry for transmitting to selected sets of one or more of the plurality of transceivers a corresponding plurality of internal signals in the high frequency band each encoding one of the plurality of information streams over the telephone wiring network; wherein the telephone wiring network includes a branch network which couples one of the plurality of telephone devices to the telephone exchange telephone exchange, and the branch network includes circuitry for preventing transmission of signals in the high frequency band to the one of the telephone devices on the branch network.