Patent ID: 6128293
Filing Date: 2000-10-03
Classification: H04Q

Abstract:
A system for interfacing a plurality of terminal devices to an access line of a telephone network, comprising:a SAU (service access unit) connected to the access line, and a FSP (full service provider) which is interconnectable through a call connection within the telephone network to the SAU;wherein the SAU includes a plurality of interfaces each adapted to communicate with a respective terminal device connected thereto; a line interface through which the SAU communicates over the access line and telephone network connection with the FSP; means for transmitting, via the line interface, terminal outgoing traffic which includes outgoing data received from the terminal interfaces and corresponding source terminal information, and means for receiving, via the line interface, terminal incoming traffic which is provided to the terminal interfaces in accordance with destination terminal information extracted therefrom;wherein the FSP includes a telephone network interface which supports multiple call connections with the telephone network including the connection with the SAU; means for receiving, via the telephone network interface, the terminal outgoing traffic; means for providing, responsive to correlating the source terminal information extracted from the terminal outgoing traffic to one or more other call connections, the corresponding outgoing data to the other call connections through the telephone network interface, and means for transmitting, via the telephone network interface, the terminal incoming traffic which includes incoming data received from the other call connections and information for routing to appropriate terminals; andwherein the terminal interfaces of the SAU include means for adapting signals from the respective terminal devices into information frames having the terminal outgoing data and the corresponding source terminal information, and means for adapting the incoming data from received information frames into signals for the respective terminal devices, the adaptation being effected at a particular interface for incoming data only when the routing information in the received frames corresponds to that particular interface.