Patent ID: 7035633

Claim:
An apparatus for providing a gateway between one or more wired telephones and a wireless telephone network wherein each of said one or more telephones are directly connected to a wired home telephone network without modification, the apparatus comprising: a wireless radio operative to communicate with said wireless telephone network over a wireless communications link; a wired telephone interface electrically coupled to said one or more wired telephones directly connected to said wired home telephone network without modification; and a controller, said controller operative to: detect an incoming telephone call at said wireless radio, provide a ring signal through said wired telephone interface operative to ring said one or more wired telephones in response to detecting said incoming telephone call, and in response to determining that a one of said one or more wired telephones has been placed in an off hook state, establish a communications channel between said wired telephone interface and said wireless radio, thereby permitting said incoming telephone call to be received on said one of said wired telephones placed in an off hook state; and a multi-line display and a keypad utilized for programming said apparatus; wherein said apparatus maintains a connection to said wireless telephone network while receiving incoming telephone calls via a wired telephone network; and wherein said apparatus is located between said wired home telephone network and said wired network and is operative to electrically connect said wired home telephone network to said wired telephone network while bypassing said wireless telephone network.