A business telephone system is any of a range of a multiline telephone systems typically used in business environments, encompassing systems ranging

from small key systems to large scale private branch. A business telephone system differs from simply using a telephone with multiple lines in that the lines used are accessible from multiple telephones, or "stations" in the system, and that such a system often provides additional features related to call handling. Business telephone systems are often broadly classified into "key systems", "hybrid systems", and "private branch exchanges".

Analog and Digital Telephone Stations

This diagram shows the difference between standard analog telephone stations and more advanced PBX stations. This diagram shows that analog telephones receive their power directly from the telephone line and digital PBX telephones require a control section that gets its power from the PBX system. Analog telephones also use in-band signaling to sense commands (e.g., ring signals) and to send commands (e.g., send dialed digits). Digital telephones use out-of-band signaling on separate communication lines to transfer their control information (e.g., calling number identification).

Small PBX System This diagram shows a block diagram of a small PBX system. This diagram shows that a PBX system contains line interface cards that connect the PBX to outside communication lines (such as the PSTN). The PBX also contains station interface cards that adapt the PBX signals to the type of PBX extensions (PBX telephones) that are used with the system. The PBX unit contains a switch to interconnect stations to other stations or to outside lines. PBX call control software coordinates the overall operation of the PBX system. The PBX unit in this example has a data interface connection to allow a control terminal to setup and configure the settings of the PBX system. The PBX also has optional voice mail that connects some of the station interface lines to a voice mail storage system (e.g. a computer hard disk) that allows users to connect to the voice mail and play, transfer and delete stored audio messages. This example also shows that PBX systems may have backup power supplies to allow the PBX telephone system to continue to operate even when the primary power source is lost.

Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) Operation This figure shows a sample automatic call distribution (ACD) system that uses an interactive voice response (IVR) system to determine call routing. When an incoming is initially received, the ACD system coordinates with the IVR system to determine the customer's selection. The ACD system then looks into the databases to retrieve the customers' account or other relevant information and transfer the call through the PBX to a qualified customer service representative (CSR). This diagram also shows that the ACD system may also transfer customer or related product information to the CSR.

H arshavardhan Jagdale (11020)