Abstract: Techniques for interfacing a telephone line and central office equipment of a network operator providing and digital subscriber line data services are disclosed. The interface is splitterless in that no conventional bulky splitter is required. A SLIC independent, impedance synthesis network provide compensation for impedance imbalance caused by capacitor coupled across two-wire interface of voice circuit.

Abstract: Echoes caused by discontinuities in a telecommunications transmission lines cause double talk which cause divergence problems with echo cancellers. Divergence problems in echo cancellers cause considerable problems in interactive caller response systems, they cause less problems if all parties to a call are human. One of the biggest problems is the effect of the echoes on automatic speech recognition systems. The echo canceller method and system presented cancels echoes to reduce their interference with ASR and yet provides stability in the presence of double talk.

Abstract: Processing complexity in an acoustic echo canceller can be reduced by partitioning the input near-end and far-end signals into respective pluralities of frequency subband signals. Also, due to the complex conjugate symmetry of conventional Discrete Fourier Transform matrices, not all of the subband signals of each plurality need be subjected to echo cancellation processing. The subband signals that would have otherwise been produced by echo cancellation processing are instead provided by producing complex conjugates of selected ones of the subband signals that have been subjected to echo cancellation processing.

Abstract: Voice activity is detected by comparing a signal with two thresholds and producing data representing the energy of the signal. The data, in binary form, is compared with thresholds to determine voice activity. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the thresholds are adjusted based upon statistical information. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the data can be weighted to provide an indication of the quasi-RMS energy of an input signal. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, voice activity detectors, individually weighted, are provided at each input and each output of a telephone for reliably controlling echo cancelling circuitry within the telephone.

Abstract: A telephone line interface circuit with event detection capabilities is provided that screens out transient signals and provides an indication to the line side that an actual event has occurred; so that appropriate discrimination circuitry is powered up to determine the exact nature of the actual event only when needed. An event detector develops an AC signal that represents the events to be detected. This AC signal is timed to determine its sustained rate. The sustained rate has a timing threshold which is higher than a transient that occurs on the line. If the incoming signal does not meet the required threshold timing, it is disregarded as being transient and no action is taken. If the incoming signal meets the threshold requirement, the line interface circuit switches to the full power mode and facilitates the actual data transmission.

Abstract: An apparatus, system, and method for providing an audio interface between multiple deskset phones and a single radio antenna unit (RAU). The audio interface includes a transmit path and a receive path. The transmit path carries transmit signals from the multiple deskset phones to the RAU. The receive path carries a receive signal from the RAU to the deskset phones. The transmit path and receive path are electrically isolated from each other.

Abstract: Handsfree telephony continues to be an increasingly desirable feature of modern telecommunications, whether in a conference room or mobile setting. Fundamental to the user acceptability of these systems is the performance of algorithms for acoustic echo cancellation, the purpose of which are to prevent the far-end signal from being transmitted back to the far-end talker. Most speech coding algorithms are based on some variant of Linear Predictive Coding (LPC), which reduces the amount of bits sent across a channel. Instead of doing echo cancellation in the time domain, the invention involves operating an acoustic echo canceller on the LPC parameters at the receiver, before the decoding stage.

Abstract: The scope of the present invention is a device for detecting the source of a voice, which device comprises microphone means (2; 2a, 2b, 2M) for receiving a voice signal and detecting means for detecting the voice from the received voice signal. The device comprises means (15, 17) for determining the direction of arrival of the received signal, means (17) for storing the assumed direction of arrival of the voice of a certain source and means (18) for comparing the direction of arrival of said received signal with said assumed direction of arrival. The device further comprises means (18) for indicating that the source of the voice is said certain source when the comparison proves that the direction of arrival of said received signal matches with said assumed direction of arrival within a certain tolerance.

Abstract: The step sizes for tap positions of an adaptive filter (124) in an echo canceller (125) for canceling an echo signal are individually selected based upon a profile of the echo environment. A training signal (112) is injected into the echo canceller and to the echo path during a training interval, or period. The adaptive filter profiles the echo path during the training interval. Respective step sizes &agr;[k] for the tap positions are generated as a function of the echo profile so generated.

Abstract: Switch 141 continuously switches between received signal 2 and a supplemental signal, which is obtained by processing the received signal 2 through filter 145 to use the output of switch 141 in place of received signal 2. Accordingly, adaptive filters 122 and 124 operate sometimes by using received signal 2 as the input signal and sometimes by using the supplemental signal as the input signal, so that it is possible to obtain adaptive filter coefficients by using twice the number of conditional equations as the case of using only received signal 2 as the input signal. Therefore, since the adaptive filter coefficients do not becomes indefinite, it is possible to converge the coefficients to the correct values. Further, since switching period between the original and the supplemental signals is controlled to be longer than the sampling period of the received signal, it is possible to suppress aliasing distortion of the received signal directly supplied to a speaker and to be maintain better sound quality.

Abstract: An odd-order low-pass microfilter is disclosed for being interposed between a home telephone wiring network and a POTS, or voice band, device to separate voice-band signals from higher frequency signals, such as ADSL signals and home networking signals. The filter topology is substantially symmetric so that the filter is reversible in that either end of the filter may be directly coupled to the home telephone wiring network without impairing high frequency signal performance or the filter characteristic of the filter. In one embodiment, the filter is a three-pole filter with a single capacitor disposed between a pair of coupled inductors. Each of the coupled inductors advantageously has an interwinding capacitance over about 100 pF to improve the filter frequency response without increasing the cost of the filter. In another embodiment, the filter is a reversible three-pole filter with a single capacitor disposed between first and second pairs of uncoupled, or discrete, inductors.

Abstract: Apparatuses and methods for selectively coupling the signals of multiple communications service providers operating in different frequency bands onto one or more station wire segments of a customer premises wiring plant are disclosed herein. The apparatus can include various filtering networks and switching modules to enable each station wire segment of the premises wiring to be concurrently and independently connected to differing service providers.

Abstract: A line powered codec which adaptively allows operation with power supplied from a telephone line in many countries as conditions warrant. A startup procedure uses country-specific register settings, which are powered and maintained from a low voltage side other than the telephone line. Thus, during low line power conditions a programmed state of the line powered codec can be maintained even after a power loss in the telephone line. In another aspect, a current and voltage detection module in the line powered codec is always powered from the telephone line. If sufficient power is not present, the line powered codec does not power up. In yet another aspect, a plurality of power rails may be provided.

Abstract: An improved cover is provided for a remote terminal base, the new cover defining an interior cavity having means for mounting a 400-series card electronic card-module therein. The improved cover may replace a standard flat cover on the remote terminal base to facilitate the implementation of a 400-series card module. The interior cavity of the improved cover is deep enough to accommodate the card module and has a hinged intermediate door to which the card module is mounted. When the door is opened, card guides on the door slidably receive the card module. The door is then closable to sealably encase the card module within the cover.

Abstract: A subscriber loop interface circuit and method for externally programming the on-hook, off-hook, and transition states of the subscriber loop interface circuit. The circuit having an off-hook overhead sufficient for long loop applications and having a continuous loop current to loop voltage relationship. The circuit may have plural means for generating reference currents for comparison with loop currents.

Abstract: An method and a device for echo suppression in a handsfree apparatus, particularly for a telephone is disclosed. With the aid of a control unit, control signals are generated from the signal of the far-end subscriber, the output signal of the loudspeaker-room-microphone system and the output signal of an adaptive filter used as reference, the control signals having an amplitude and a time response dependent on the speech mode. Using the control signals, the amplifications VE, VS of controllable amplifiers disposed in the receiving and transmitting paths are adapted to the speech mode, thus reducing the residual echo. The stepless transition of the amplifications from a quiescent value to a value attenuated with the factor and having an exponential time characteristic in response to a change of speech mode, provides an impression of natural speech.

Abstract: An echo canceler for suppressing an echo of a receive signal contained in a transmit signal directed to a telephone circuit and transferring the transmit signal subjected to echo suppression to the telephone circuit. The echo canceler includes a pseudo echo path for attenuating and delaying the receive signal supplied from the telephone circuit and adding the delayed receive signal to the transmit signal, and an echo cancel circuit for estimating a transfer function of the pseudo echo path on the basis of the receive signal supplied from the telephone circuit and the echo of the receive signal, generating a pseudo echo on the basis of a value of the estimation and the receive signal, subtracting the pseudo echo from the transmit signal passed through the pseudo echo path, and thereby transferring the transmit signal subjected to echo suppression to the telephone circuit.

Abstract: A incoming-call tone generation device comprises: a first storage unit 1, for storing an effect calculation formula for incoming-call tone data; a second storage unit, for storing incoming-call tone data that consist of data for original sounds; a controller, for reading incoming-call tone data from the second storage unit and transmitting the data to a digital signal processor 4, and for controlling a D/A converter 5; the digital signal processor 4, for calculating an effect pattern and a sine wave using the calculation formula read from the first storage unit, and for performing an envelope process for the incoming-call tone data; the D/A converter 5, for converting, into analog data, digital incoming-call tone data obtained during the envelope process, and for outputting an analog incoming-call tone; and a loudspeaker 6 through which an analog incoming-call tone is released.

Abstract: An echo cancellation device (ECD) comprises an echo canceller (EC) including a transfer function estimator (EST, H) and a subtractor (ADD) and a residual echo suppression device (G, ADD2). The residual echo suppression device (G) comprises a residual echo filter (G) having an adjustable filter function (g). This filter function (g) can be adapted to either remove from the subtractor output (TNE′) the spectral characteristics relating to the reception signal (RFE) and/or to emphasize in the subtractor output signal (TNE′) a background signal spectral content relating to the transmission signal (TNE). A noise generation means (NGM′) can be provided at the output of the adaptable filter (G) for injecting a noise process in to the filter output signal (TNE′) prior to a speech coding in a speech coder (COD). The noise process masks in the filter output signal a spectral content relating to the reception signal (RFE).

Abstract: A line card for coupling to customer premises equipment at a termination for detecting hook condition in a telephone system, the line card comprising an interface for transmitting and receiving an analog signal with the telephone line, an AC ring signal generator for generating a ring signal at the customer equipment, a DC signal generator for generating a DC signal when said customer equipment is off hook, and a circuit for determining the duty cycle of a loop current in the customer equipment (telephone) for determining the hook status of the customer equipmen.