Patent ID: 6570868
Filing Date: 2003-05-27
Classification: H04L,H04Q

Abstract:
A call server for controlling connection of a calling communication device associated with a first narrowband network and an addressed communication device associated with a second narrowband network, connection of the calling communication device and addressed communication device occurring across at least one broadband network and wherein the narrowband networks have differing signalling protocols to those of the broadband network, the call server comprising:means responsive to a call request message generated by the calling communication device, the call request message containing an address of the calling communication device and a destination address associated with the addressed communication device; means to identify a first circuit identity associated with a first communication circuit used to send the call request message to the call server; means for selecting a phantom trunk different to the first communication circuit, the phantom trunk having a second circuit identity and being arranged to support a narrowband communication between the first narrowband network and the second narrowband network; means for sending, in a first message, the destination address and the second circuit identity from the first narrowband network to the second narrowband network; means for sending, in a second message, the second circuit identity and the address of the calling communication device to the second narrowband network; and means for sending a command to a connection broker connectable, in use, to the call server, the command specifying two end-points to be connected and wherein the end-points are real terminals, phantom trunks or any combination thereof, said end-points being specified using an uniform abstraction independent of a type of communication connection to be established; and such that, in use, the connection broker is arranged, in use, to identify the presence of the second circuit identity in both the first message and the second message to establish that the communication connection is between the calling communication device and the addressed communication device.