Patent ID: 7515597

Claim:
A distributed switching platform coupled to an Internet Protocol (IP) network, comprising: a main control unit (MCU) coupled to said IP network and configured to generate call and control processing commands; a switching partition coupled to said IP network and including: an input-output distributor (IOD) configured to receive said call and control processing commands in a packet based protocol, and a circuit-switched matrix and line interface coupled to said IOD and configured to provide a sole interface between a plurality of access nodes and said MCU, said IOD configured to convey said call and control processing commands to said circuit-switched matrix and line interface to allow, based thereon, said circuit-switched matrix and line interface to control access to said plurality of access nodes, wherein each connection between said access nodes and said MCU traverses said circuit-switched matrix and line interface; and wherein ones of said plurality of access nodes are selected from the group consisting of: a digital instrument; a digital trunk; and an analog trunk.