The Telephone Set

OBJECTIVE

When you have completed this unit, you will be familiar with the functions and operation of the
analog telephone set.

DISCUSSION OF FUNDAMENTALS

Introduction to Switched Telephone Networks

The primary function of the public switched telephone network (PSTN) is to efficiently
interconnect telephones at many different locations that are often widely removed from each
other. Figure 1-1 shows a part of a switched telephone network.

As can be seen in this figure, telephone sets of private subscribers (usually residential
subscribers) are all wired to a central office (CO) by a telephone line. Furthermore, central
offices are interconnected through links called trunks. Central offices, which are also referred to
as end offices (EO) or local offices, are the means by which local telephone companies provide
the telephone service to their subscribers. Each CO contains switching devices that are
arranged so that any telephone set wired to this CO can be interconnected to any other
telephone set wired to the same CO or to any trunk terminating or homing on this CO.

For example, when the subscriber at telephone set A calls the subscriber at telephone set B in
Figure 1-1, the switching devices in central office A establish a connection between telephone
sets A and B. On the other hand, when the subscriber at telephone set A calls the subscriber at
telephone set C in Figure 1-1, the switching devices in central office A establish a connection
between telephone set A and the trunk between central offices A and B, and the switching
devices in central office B establish a connection between this trunk and telephone set C.

The previous examples showed how local area calls are routed. When a long-distance call is
performed, the calling subscriber's telephone set is connected to a higher-level switching office,
called a toll office, through its local CO (see Figure 1-1). The toll office manages the connection
with the called subscriber's telephone set, which is located somewhere else in the switched
telephone network.

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The Central Office

A central office is a system that interconnects a telephone set to another telephone set wired to
the same office or to a trunk homing on this office, as mentioned earlier in this discussion.
Figure 1-2 shows a simplified block diagram of a central office.

The switching circuit establishes connections between the various telephone sets and trunks
wired to the CO. The connections to be established are controlled by the call processor. Some
form of signaling between the call processor, the local telephone sets, and call processors in
other central offices is necessary to determine the connections required to correctly route
telephone calls. The signaling circuit provides the electronic devices required for signaling. For
example, one of the devices in the signaling circuit is designed to detect the number dialed by
the subscriber and transmit this number to the call processor.

Each telephone set is connected to a line interface in the central office through a pair of wires
called a telephone line or local loop. Similarly, each trunk line is connected to the CO via a trunk
interface. Most private (residential) subscribers use analog telephone sets. However, since
modern switching and signaling circuits as well as the call processor are all implemented using
digital technology, analog-to digital (A/D) and digital-to-analog (D/A) conversions are required in
the line interfaces. Together, the analog telephone set and its associated line interface in the
central office provide residential subscribers with an analog access to the public switched
telephone network, which by today's standards, is mainly a digital system.

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The Analog Telephone Set

The analog telephone set is usually simple in appearance, a handset for talking and listening,
and a body with a keypad (or rotary dial) that contains the electronic circuitry. An analog
telephone set is easy to operate, even though it performs a number of functions. Some of these
functions are described below.

• When the handset is lifted off the telephone cradle, a request is made to make a telephone
call.

• It receives a dial tone which indicates that a call can be made.

• With use of the keypad or rotary dial, it sends the called party's telephone number to the
central office of the local telephone company.

• It receives call progress tones to indicate if the called party's telephone set is ringing or busy.

• It signals the called party of an incoming call by an audible sound from a tone ringer or bell.

• It converts speech at the handset microphone into electrical signals for transmission to the
called party, and the electrical signals received from the called party into speech at the handset
earpiece.

• It automatically adjusts the level of the transmitted and received signals to compensate for
different telephone line lengths.

• It signals the telephone system when the call is completed.

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Figure 1-3 shows a simplified block diagram of an analog telephone set connected to a central
office through a local loop.

The telephone set receives electrical power and voice signals through the wires of the local
loop. One wire is called tip (T) and the other ring (R).

This refers to parts of the plug shown in Figure 1-4, which was used with manual switchboards
in the first central offices.

The ringer circuit in the telephone set is always connected to the central office through the local
loop. It is activated by the central office whenever a telephone call is made to that number.
When the call is answered, the central office is automatically notified and the ringer circuit is de-
activated.

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The dialing and speech circuits are connected to the telephone line through a special switch
called switchhook or hook switch. The switchhook is actuated whenever the handset is removed
from or replaced on the telephone cradle. The protection circuit prevents reverse-polarity
voltages and voltage spikes from damaging the dialing and speech circuits.

Whenever a telephone number is dialed, the dialing circuit sends pulses or tones on the
telephone line to transmit the called party's number to the central office. Telephone sets with a
rotary dial send pulses only, while those with a keypad can usually send either pulses or tones.

The telephone handset contains the transmitter (microphone) and receiver (earpiece) in a
convenient position for speaking and listening. The speech circuit consists mainly of amplifiers
that route the voice signal to be transmitted from the handset microphone to the telephone line,
and the received voice signal from the telephone line to the handset earpiece. The speech
circuit also adjusts the level of the transmitted and received voice signals so as to compensate
for different telephone line lengths.