Nortel Networks Corporation

Northern Telecom Limited

Bell Canada

Stentor Resource Centre Inc.

Bernard Courville

Sandro Cianci

Jeffrey J Brown

Michel Tougas

Norman Zolyniak

Luc Samson

Ron Kelly

Gilles Trepanier

A telephone network comprises at least one switching unit having a plurality of subscriber access lines each having an associated calling number and, a storage device storing a plurality of listings of destination numbers. Each listing is associated with a respective one of the calling numbers and defines defining a personalized local calling area for that particular calling number. The switching unit detects a destination number dialed by a caller setting up a call, accesses the personalized local calling area listing for that calling number, and compares the detected destination number with the selected listing to determine whether the call is local or long distance. Each of the listings may comprise numbers having between three and ten digits. Provision may be made for the subscriber to create the personalized calling area by adding entries to, or deleting entries from, a standard local calling area common to a group of subscribers. The storage device may comprise central storage storing a plurality of listings for each of a plurality of switches in the network, and local storage associated with each of the switches for storing the plurality of listings for that particular switch.

Method and apparatus for screening calls in telephone networks

In methods and apparatus for providing suppressed ringing access to a subscriber line, a connection request is sent from a server to a telecommunications switch and the switch performs a connection routine in response to the connection request to connect the server to the subscriber line. The connection routine is adapted to avoid audible ringing of a telephone set connected to the subscriber line. The connection request comprises a signal indicating a subscriber line to which the server is to be connected and a signal indicating that suppressed ringing access to that subscriber line is desired. The methods and apparatus avoid the need for especially provisioned trunks between the server and the terminating switches by including in the connection request a signal indicating that suppressed ringing is desired and by making the telecommunications switch responsive to that signal.

Methods and apparatus for providing suppressed ringing access

Growing community of inventors

Pierrefonds, Canada

Bernard Courville