Patent ID: 7856096

Claim:
A DTMF signal processing method executed by a DTMF signal processing apparatus which receives speech data from the outside, and processes a DTMF signal received as the speech data, said method comprising the steps of: dividing the speech data into a plurality of divided speech data; analyzing the divided speech data as to whether or not the divided speech data has a DTMF signal component; applying a weighting value to the analyzed currently divided speech data, and also applying a weighting value to previously stored past divided speech data when the result of the analysis indicates that the currently divided speech data has a DTMF signal component; storing the divided speech data and the weighting values applied to the divided speech data; determining based on the stored weighting values whether or not to erase each unit of the stored divided speech data; and replacing the divided speech data with mute data or noise data and delivering the replaced data when the result of the determination indicates an erasure, and delivering the divided speech data, as is, when the result of the determination indicates a non-erasure.