Chapter 8: The Telephone System

TRUE/FALSE

1. A telephone from 1930 could not work on today's public switched telephone network.

ANS: F

2. The public switched telephone network is changing from an all analog to a mostly digital system.

ANS: T

3. A LATA is a local calling area.

ANS: T

4. A feature of the public switched telephone system is that calls cannot be "blocked".

ANS: F

5. Telephones connect to the central office via trunk lines.

ANS: F

6. The telephone switching hierarchy is being replaced by a "flat" network topology.

ANS: T

7. Most local loops still use copper wire.

ANS: T

8. A "twisted-pair" is twisted to minimize "crosstalk".

ANS: T

9. The wires in a local loop are called TIP and GND.

ANS: F

10. In a local loop, the red wire is positive.

ANS: F

11. In a local loop, the TIP wire is positive.

ANS: T

12. Local loops can carry voice signals in only one direction at a time.

ANS: F
13. Local loops carry DC current.

ANS: T

14. Local loops carry signaling information.

ANS: T

15. Loading coils allow high-speed data loads to be carried on a local loop.

ANS: F

16. Typically, when a phone is on hook, a voltage of 48 volts appears across it.

ANS: T

17. When a telephone is off hook, the DC voltage across it can drop substantially from its on-hook
value.

ANS: T

18. The DC resistance of a telephone is about 2000 ohms.

ANS: F

19. When a telephone is on hook, the DC current through it is in the range of 20 to 80 mA.

ANS: F

20. Touch-Tone is a registered trademark of AT&T.

ANS: T

21. DTMF is the same as Touch-Tone.

ANS: T

22. DTMF uses sets of 3 tones.

ANS: F

23. The technology to "dial" telephone numbers was invented in 1893.

ANS: T

24. A crosspoint switch allows any incoming line to be connected to any outgoing line.

ANS: T

25. The central office uses 24 volts AC at 20 hertz to cause a telephone to ring.

ANS: F
26. The local-loop is full-duplex.

ANS: T

27. Telephones usually contain a hybrid coil or an equivalent circuit.

ANS: T

28. To allow for "sidetone", a hybrid coil should be slightly unbalanced.

ANS: T

29. The signal levels in analog telephone systems have increased substantially over the past 100
years.

ANS: F

30. The signal levels in modern analog telephone systems are still based on 19 th-century technology.

ANS: T

31. To allow multiplexing, the bandwidth of voice-grade telephone signals is deliberately restricted.

ANS: T

32. The net gain of a telephone system must be greater than 0 dB for an acceptable signal level.

ANS: F

33. Too much gain in a telephone system causes "singing".

ANS: T

34. Echo suppressors prevent oscillations on long-distance telephone circuits.

ANS: T

35. Echo suppressors can be switched off by a subscriber's equipment.

ANS: T

36. C-message weighting increases the bandwidth of a local loop.

ANS: F

37. The reference level for measuring noise in a telephone system is 10 –12 Watts.

ANS: T

38. In a telephone system, signal strength is given relative to the zero transmission loss point.

ANS: T
39. TDM is being replaced by the newer FDM technology in telephone systems.

ANS: F

40. DS-1 can be used to carry digital data that did not originate as a voice signal.

ANS: T

41. When using DS-1 to carry data, it is common to use each channel to carry 64 kbps.

ANS: F

42. Digital carriers up to T3 can use copper wires.

ANS: F

43. A DS-1C signal carries twice as many channels as a DS-1 signal.

ANS: T

44. A DS-1C signal uses twice the bit rate of a DS-1 signal.

ANS: F

45. "Stuff" bits are used to compensate for differences in clock rates.

ANS: T

46. Every "in-channel" signal is also an "in-band" signal.

ANS: F

47. Common-channel signaling is being replaced by the more modern MF signaling.

ANS: F

48. Common-channel signaling reduces opportunities for stealing telephone service.

ANS: T

49. ADSL is faster than ISDN.

ANS: T

50. B-ISDN is a slower version of standard ISDN.

ANS: F

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. DTMF stands for:

a. Digital Telephony Multiple Frequency c. Dual-Tone Multifrequency
b. Dial Tone Master Frequency d. Digital Trunk Master Frequency
 ANS: C

2. PSTN stands for:

a. Public Switched Telephone Network c. Primary Service Telephone Network
b. Private Switched Telephone Network d. Primary Service Telephone Numbers
ANS: A

3. POTS stands for:

a. Private Office Telephone System c. Primary Operational Test System
b. Primary Office Telephone Service d. Plain Old Telephone Service
ANS: D

4. LATA stands for:

a. Local Access and Transport Area c. Local Area Telephone Access
b. Local Access Telephone Area d. Local Area Transport Access
ANS: A

5. A LATA is a:
a. a local calling area c. a way of accessing a tandem office
b. a type of digital local network d. a way of accessing a central office
ANS: A

6. Central offices are connected by:

a. local loops c. both a and b
b. trunk lines d. none of the above
ANS: B

7. Local loops terminate at:

a. a tandem office c. a central office
b. a toll station d. an interexchange office
ANS: C

8. Call blocking:
a. cannot occur in the public telephone network
b. occurs on the local loop when there is an electrical power failure
c. occurs only on long-distance cables
d. occurs when the central office capacity is exceeded
ANS: D

9. In telephony, POP stands for:

a. Post Office Protocol c. Power-On Protocol
b. Point Of Presence d. none of the above
ANS: B

10. The cable used for local loops is mainly:

a. twisted-pair copper wire c. coaxial cable
b. shielded twisted-pair copper wire d. fiber-optic
 ANS: A

11. FITL stands for:

a. Framing Information for Toll Loops c. Framing In The Loop
b. Fiber In the Toll Loop d. Fiber-In-The-Loop
ANS: D

12. Loading coils were used to:

a. increase the speed of the local loop for digital data
b. reduce the attenuation of voice signals
c. reduce crosstalk
d. provide C-type conditioning to a local loop
ANS: B

13. DC current flows through a telephone:

a. when it is on hook c. as long as it is attached to a local loop
b. when it is off hook d. only when it is ringing
ANS: B

14. The range of DC current that flows through a telephone is:

a. 20 mA to 80 mA c. 2 mA to 8 mA
b. 200 mA to 800 mA d. 20 mA to 80 mA
ANS: D

15. The separation of control functions from signal switching is known as:
a. step-by-step switching control c. common control
b. crossbar control d. ESS
ANS: C

16. The typical voltage across a telephone when on-hook is:

a. 48 volts DC c. 90 volts DC
b. 48 volts, 20 hertz AC d. 90 volts, 20 hertz AC
ANS: A

17. The typical voltage needed to "ring" a telephone is:

a. 48 volts DC c. 90 volts DC
b. 48 volts, 20 hertz AC d. 90 volts, 20 hertz AC
ANS: D

18. The bandwidth of voice-grade signals on a telephone system is restricted in order to:
a. allow lines to be "conditioned" c. allow signals to be multiplexed
b. prevent "singing" d. all of the above
ANS: C

19. VNL stands for:

a. voltage net loss c. via net loss
b. volume net loss d. voice noise level
ANS: C
20. Signal loss is designed into a telephone system to:
a. eliminate reflections c. improve signal-to-noise ratio
b. prevent oscillation d. reduce power consumption
ANS: B

21. The reference noise level for telephony is:

a. 1 mW c. 1 pW
b. 0 dBm d. 0 dBr
ANS: C

22. The number of voice channels in a basic FDM group is:

a. 6 c. 24
b. 12 d. 60
ANS: B

23. Basic FDM groups can be combined into:

a. supergroups c. jumbogroups
b. mastergroups d. all of the above
ANS: D

24. In telephone system FDM, voice is put on a carrier using:

a. SSB c. PDM
b. DSBSC d. PCM
ANS: A

25. PABX stands for:

a. Power Amplification Before Transmission
b. Private Automatic Branch Exchange
c. Public Automated Branch Exchange
d. Public Access Branch Exchange
ANS: B

26. SLIC stands for:

a. Single-Line Interface Circuit c. Subscriber Line Interface Card
b. Standard Line Interface Card d. Standard Local Interface Circuit
ANS: C

27. In DS-1, bits are "robbed" in order to:

a. provide synchronization c. cancel echoes
b. carry signaling d. check for errors
ANS: B

28. "Bit-stuffing" is more formally called:

a. compensation c. justification
b. rectification d. frame alignment
ANS: C
29. ISDN stands for:
a. Integrated Services Digital Network c. Integrated Services Data Network
b. Information Services Digital Network d. Information Systems Digital Network
ANS: A

30. Basic ISDN has not been widely adopted because:

a. it took to long to develop
b. it is too slow
c. it has been surpassed by newer technologies
d. all of the above
ANS: D

31. ADSL stands for:

a. All-Digital Subscriber Line c. Allocated Digital Service Line
b. Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line d. Access to Data Services Line
ANS: B

32. Compared to ISDN, internet access using ADSL is typically:

a. much faster c. much more expensive
b. about the same speed d. none of the above
ANS: A

COMPLETION

1. A ____________________ is a local calling area.

ANS: LATA

2. Central offices are connected together by ____________________ lines.

ANS: trunk

3. One central office can be connected to another through a ____________________ office.

ANS: tandem

4. With 7-digit phone numbers, ____________________ thousand telephones can connect to a

central office.

ANS: ten

5. Call ____________________ is when it becomes impossible for a subscriber to place a call due
to an overload of lines being used.

ANS: blocking

6. New ____________________ switching equipment uses TDM to combine signals.

ANS: digital
 7. Most local loops still use ____________________ copper wire.

ANS: twisted-pair

8. As compared to a hierarchical network, a ____________________ network never needs more

than one intermediate switch.

ANS: flat

9. ____________________ coils were used to reduce the attenuation of voice frequencies.

ANS: Loading

10. In a twisted-pair telephone cable, the red wire is called ____________________.

ANS: ring

11. In a twisted-pair telephone cable, the green wire is called ____________________.

ANS: tip

12. Of the red and green 'phone wires, the ____________________ wire is positive with respect to
the other.

ANS: green

13. A telephone is said to have ____________________ the line when the central office sends it dial
tone.

ANS: seized

14. The ____________________ functions are provided by a SLIC.

ANS: BORSCHT

15. A ____________________ coil prevents loss of signal energy within a telephone while allowing
full-duplex operation over a single pair of wires.

ANS: hybrid

16. In a crosspoint switch, not all ____________________ can be in use at the same time.

ANS: lines

17. The old carbon transmitters generated a relatively ____________________ signal voltage.

ANS: large

18. The generic term for Touch-Tone® signaling is ____________________.

ANS: DTMF

19. A ____________________ line provides more bandwidth than a standard line.

 ANS: conditioned

20. In the telephone system, amplifiers are called ____________________.

ANS: repeaters

21. An echo ____________________ converts a long-distance line from full-duplex to half-duplex

operation.

ANS: suppressor

22. ____________________ weighting is an attempt to adjust the noise or signal level to the
response of a typical telephone receiver.

ANS: C-message

23. In FDM telephony, the modulation is usually ____________________.

ANS:
SSB
SSBSC

24. In FDM telephony, ____________________ bands separate the channels in a group.

ANS: guard

25. Because of "bit robbing", a channel in a DS-1 frame allows only ____________________ kbps
when used to send digital data.

ANS: 56

26. A ____________________ is a group of 12 DS-1 frames with signaling information in the sixth
and twelfth frames.

ANS: superframe

27. In DS-1C, ____________________ bits are used to compensate for differences between clock
rates.

ANS: stuff

28. Busy and dial tone are referred to as ____________________ signals because they use the same
pair of wires as the voice signal.

ANS: in-channel

29. SS7 is the current version of _________________________ signaling.

ANS: common-channel

30. SS7 is a ____________________-switched data network.

 ANS: packet

31. In ISDN, the ____________________ channel is used for common-channel signaling.

ANS: D

32. In ISDN, the ____________________ channels are used for voice or data.

ANS: B

33. Terminal equipment especially designed for ISDN is designated ____________________

equipment.

ANS: TE1

34. The A in ADSL stands for ____________________.

ANS: asymmetrical

35. In ADSL, the speed from the network to the subscriber is ____________________ than the speed
in the opposite direction.

ANS:
greater
faster

SHORT ANSWER

1. For a certain telephone, the DC loop voltage is 48 V on hook and 8 V off hook. If the loop current
is 40 mA, what is the DC resistance of the local loop?

ANS:
1000 ohms

2. For a certain telephone, the DC loop voltage is 48 V on hook and 8 V off hook. If the loop current
is 40 mA, what is the DC resistance of the telephone?

ANS:
200 ohms

3. Which two DTMF tones correspond to the digit "1"? (Use the table in the text.)

ANS:
697 Hz and 1209 Hz

4. Calculate the dB of VNL required for a channel with a 3 ms delay.

ANS:
1 dB

5. If a telephone voice signal has a level of 0 dBm, what is its level in dBrn?

ANS:
 90 dBrn

6. A telephone test-tone has a level of 80 dBrn at a point where the level is +5dB TLP. If C-
weighting produces a 10-dB loss, what would the signal level be in dBrnc0?

ANS:
65 dBrnc TLP