Other

Sava W Jacobson

George T Buehl

Tokuro Narazaki

An end of rewind detector in a telephone answering device utilizes at least one tape cassette having a spindle. A rotating member which is made of a conductive plastic material containing carbon particles to exhibit intermittant conductivity characteristics rotates with the spindle. An electrical feeler is mounted for physical contact with the plastic material to detect variations in electrical conductivity, with termination of conductivity variation indicating termination of rotation of the spindle.

End of rewind detector for a telephone answering device

In this telephone answering device utilizing microcassettes, a single head carriage carries the pinch rollers and heads for both the outgoing announcement and incoming message tape cassettes. The carriage is linearly movable between an engaged position and one or more retracted positions by a cam assembly utilizing a cam with missing teeth in two or more areas. The cam is driven between orientations established by the toothless areas, and is held in these areas by a selectively engaged pawl. A lever driven by the cam moves the unitary head carriage between engaged and retracted positions. A set of idler wheel slider assemblies is provided for selective driving of the source and takeup spindles of the two cassettes. These assemblies are selectively engaged in response to the position of the single head carriage and the direction of drive of the cassettes.

Miniature telephone answering device with single head carriage

Control circuitry for a telephone answering device is disclosed. This includes a tone burst oscillator the output of which is used both to provide audio signals to the caller and to control device operation. At the end of announcement transmission, the oscillator output is used to condition the mid-cycle shift. At the end of message recording, the output is used to return the answering device to the standby condition. A steering circuit connected to the oscillator output insures that each tone burst output provides the correct function control. Modified function control also is provided when an 'announce only' mode is selected or when a new announcement is recorded.

Control circuitry for a tape cassette telephone answering device

In a magnetic tape cassette telephone answering device having a remote controlled playout capability, a tape drive transfer system is disclosed which utilizes motive power from the tape cassette drive motor to transfer the system into an automatic rewind mode. The tape drive transfer system includes a transfer lever connected to a spindle drive assembly which alternately drives the takeup spindle or the source spindle of the incoming message tape cassette. The transfer lever is moved into driven engagement with the cassette drive motor by a low power solenoid that is actuated when a remote playout control signal is received. That motor drives the transfer lever and thereby conditions the spindle drive assembly from the forward to the rewind operating position. The transfer lever then is disengaged and latched. When the rewind is complete, the solenoid is deactuated. This releases the transfer lever from its latched position and permits the transfer lever and spindle drive assembly lever to be biased back to the normal forward position in preparation for playout of the previously recorded messages. A remote controlled fast forward option is available, by using a spindle drive assembly with a transferrable drive gear that is mounted on a pivotable floating arm. Fast forward operation is accomplished by first conditioning the tape drive transfer system to the rewind position and thereafter reversing direction of the cassette drive motor. This reverses the direction of the transferable drive gear, which by a frictional drag arrangement rotates the floating arm so that the drive gear engages the takeup spindle of the cassette for fast forward operation.

Tape drive transfer system for cassette telephone answering device with

In this incoming audio detection circuit for a speaker telephone, an impedance element is connected between the output of the microphone amplifier and the telephone line terminals. Speech signals present at each end of the impedance element are respectively rectified but not filtered. The resultant rectified but unfiltered signals are compared. If only outgoing speech is present, the rectified signal derived from the microphone amplifier end of the impendance element will be of greater magnitude than, and will have a greater phase angle extent than the rectified signal derived from the telephone line end of the impedance element. A comparator senses this condition and maintains the speaker telephone in the outgoing audio mode. In the presence of incoming speech, instants will occur when the magnitude of the rectified signal derived from the telephone line exceeds that of the rectified signal derived from the microphone amplifier. In response to this condition, the comparator causes the speaker telephone immediately to switch to the mode in which incoming speech is reproduced by a loudspeaker.

Incoming audio detection circuit for a speaker telephone

This telephone answering device has facilities for the remote controlled playout of previously recorded incoming messages. In response to receipt of a coded signal, a cam control mechanism positions the message tape drive motor first to rewind the incoming message tape, and then to drive the tape forward for remote playout of the messages. The control mechanism is configured to sense whether the tape drive motor is correctly positioned at the beginning of an answering cycle. If not, the cam control mechanism is actuated quickly to correctly position the tape drive motor. Thus the answering device will operate properly even in the event that the cam control mechanism was left in an improper position during the previous answering or remote playout cycle, for example, as a result of a power interrupt during that cycle. Additionally, circuitry is disclosed for detecting the end-of-rewind of the incoming message tape by monitoring either (a) the audio signal produced by the playback head as the message tape is rewound, or (b) the brush noise of the message tape drive motor. An end-of-rewind signal is produced when the audio signal output or the brush noise terminates upon completion of rewind.

End of rewind detection in a telephone answering device having remote

A ring responsive circuit useful with a telephone answering device employs a single low inductance transformer both to couple audio to the telephone line and in the ring responsive circuit. A voltage doubler and neon bulb effectively capacitively couple the transformer primary to the telephone line. When a ring signal occurs, the doubled voltage fires the neon bulb on alternate half cycles of the ring signal. The resultant fast rise time current transients contain high frequency components that are coupled by the same transformer to the secondary. There, they repetitively momentarily turn on a transistor, as a result of which a bistable circuit is latched on. When on, the latch circuit connects dc power to the motor, amplifiers and other circuitry of the telephone answering device, and to the coil of a relay the contacts of which shunt the voltage doubler circuit and directly connect the transformer primary to the telephone line so as to seize the line and begin the answering cycle.

Ring detection circuit for a telephone answering device

In this magnetic tape cassette telephone answering device, remote controlled playout of previously recorded messages is facilitated by using a movable carriage to support the record/playback head and the pinch roller for the incoming message cassette. This carriage is normally spring biased into operative contact with the cassette tape. A mode selection knob includes a sector-shaped cam which engages a pin on the carriage so as to retract the carriage away from cassette engagement when the 'rewind' condition is manually selected. In the automatic 'answer' mode, the cam is disengaged from the pin so that the carriage is maintained in contact with the tape by operation of the bias spring. When message playback is remotely conditioned, a cam drive motor rotates an eccentric cam that is coupled to the carriage by a lost motion linkage. Cam rotation forces the carriage away from contact with the cassette tape, overcoming the spring bias of the carriage. Retraction of the carriage also transfers spindle drive from the takeup reel spindle to the supply reel spindle, so that rewind is conditioned when the carriage is retracted either by manual 'rewind' selection or by operation of the eccentric cam during the remote playout operation. The lost motion linkage arrangement permits manual movement of the carriage when the eccentric cam is in its rest position.

Remote rewind mechanism and control circuitry for a tape cassette

In this drive assembly for a tape cassette telephone answering device, a single motor alternately drives only the outgoing announcement tape loop cassette or only the incoming message tape cassette, depending solely on the direction of rotation of the motor. This is accomplished by using one-way clutches to couple each flywheel to its associated tape drive capstan, and by utilizing a drive belt which engages the drive motor and extends in a figure eight configuration around the two flywheels. During the initial portion of the answering cycle the motor is rotated in one direction in which rotation of one flywheel is coupled by its clutch to the capstan associated with the outgoing announcement tape loop. Rotation of the other flywheel is not imparted to the capstan which drives the incoming message record tape cassette. At the mid-cycle shift, after completion of transmission of the outgoing announcement, the direction of rotation of the motor is reversed. This reverses the direction of both flywheels, thereby causing the capstan associated with the incoming message record tape to be driven and the other capstan to be stopped. A ratchet mechanism is provided in conjunction with the spindle drive transfer mechanism. This ensures that the takeup spindle of the incoming message tape cassette is not driven while the outgoing announcement tape capstan is being driven.

Single motor drive assembly for a tape cassette telephone answering

Automatically reset control mechanism for remote playout telephone

This electronic ring sounder utilizes the loudspeaker and audio amplifier present in a speaker telephone to accomplish the bell sounding function. To this end, the amplifier is provided with a feedback circuit which, when enabled, causes the amplifier to oscillate in the audio frequency range. The feedback path includes a gate which is enabled in response to presence of the ring tone on the telephone line. Advantageously, the oscillation frequency is on the order of 1,000 Hz, and is gated on each half cycle of the ring signal. This produces a sound which closely simulates that of a conventional telephone bell.

Electronic ring sounder for a speaker telephone

In this telephone answering device, a new outgoing announcement can be recorded under remote control via the telephone line. To accomplish this, the user calls his own number. During the incoming message record portion of the resultant answering cycle, the user sends a coded signal over the telephone line. As a result, the message tape is stopped, and the announcement tape is driven. As the user then speaks the new announcement, it is amplified and recorded onto the announcement tape instead of onto the message tape. Switching circuitry is minimized since the amplifier already is conditioned for operation in the incoming message record mode. In addition, the prior announcement is erased, and generation of the audio tone which normally occurs at the end of the outgoing announcement is inhibited. When the new announcement has been recorded, the device automatically returns to the announcement transmit portion of the answering cycle. The new message is played out for verification. The device completes the answering cycle and shuts down in readiness for the next call. Another answering device is disclosed in which the outgoing announcement is contained in digital format in a read only memory. When a call is answered, the memory is read out and the contents are converted to audio by a speech synthesizer or a microprocessor that is programmed to decode speech compression encoded signals.

Remote recording of new outgoing announcement in a telephone answering

In a telephone answering device, a bistable circuit employing a single operational amplifier is used for mode switching and a voltage regulator using another operational amplifier provides regulated power to the recorder drive motor. The voltage regulator uses the input terminal abrupt threshold characteristic of the operational amplifier as a voltage reference against which the output voltage is compared. The amplifier drives a transistor connected to series regulate the voltage to the load.

Voltage regulator circuitry for a telephone answering device

The inventive control mechanism useful in a answering device in which previously recorded incoming messages can be played out via the telephone line under remote control. Remote playout is initiated upon receipt of a first beep tone transmitted by the user. This causes a cam assembly and a related cam motor control circuit, disclosed herein, automatically to position the tape reel drive motor first to rewind the tape and then to drive the tape forward for message playout. Remote playout is terminated by receipt of a second such beep tone.

Remote playout control mechanism for a telephone answering device

In this telephone answering device, the outgoing and incoming audio amplifiers are interconnected to function as a mode switching flip-flop. Remote playout is enabled upon detection of a first beep tone. This sets a control flip-flop which consists of a single operational amplifier interconnected with a steering capacitor to function as a toggleable bistable circuit. A cylindrical cam mechanism and associated control circuit are actuated by setting of the remote playout control flip-flop. These cooperate with a reel drive motor first to rewind the message tape and then to drive it forward as the recorded messages are played out via the telephone line to the user. Detection of a second beep tone resets the control flip-flop, terminating remote playout. The device employs a single sided solid state ring detector having a transformer input circuit that presents a balanced load to the telephone line, thereby permitting ac powered operation of the device.

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Sherman Oaks, CA, United States of America

Sava W Jacobson