ISDN to Austpac Interconnection ISDN provides a gateway to the Austpac network for low volume data. The data transfer is performed on the D channel instead of the two B channels. This frees the two B channels for voice services or for data transfers or any combination of the two. This application is particularly important where data integrity is crucial. The X.25 error correction protocol is performed through the complete connection. This is provided by the Austpac service but only on the D channel with the ISDN. Error correction can be performed on the B channel of ISDN but only end to end. Sending the data across the D channel will let data be sent across Austpac customers. This feature can considerably rationalise the communications between a head office and remote site. There is also the migration path from the Austpac connection to the use of the 64 kb/s B channel. This extra bandwidth could also be used for back-up of the host database. There are many options that are available with two 64 kb/s channels. This feature is particularly important when voice facilities are the highest priority. When using the ISDN Spectrum service, a plethora of voice features become available on each of the B channels with small volume data over the D channel. D Channel X.25 The D channel of the Microlink is used for signalling and call control of the B channels. This channel runs at 16 kb/s and allows the transmission of data additional to that provided by the B channels. For data transmission over the D channel, X.25 packets are used. This feature is particularly useful for low speed data transfer. There is an interconnection to the Telecom packet-switched data service Austpac. This is useful for telemetry applications and particularly for the retrieval and distribution of small amounts of data. Telecom Australia has used this feature for the development of the new Enhanced 000 service. When a caller is identified the address of the caller is sent to the required emergency service. This will speed the dispatching of the emergency service. Figure 7.1 - PSTN connected to phones DMS connected to PSTN NT1 connected to DMS DPN connected to DMS PCTA connected to NT1 phone connected to PCTA X.25 card in pc connected to DPN DPN connected to AUSTPAC AUSTPAC connected to gateway gateway connected to remote databases PCTA: NCR ISDN card PC: NCR ISDN Terminal Telephone: Telecom ISDN Spectrum Black Phone Software: E000 software DMS: Digital Meridian Switch - Telecom Exchange Node DPN: Data Packet Network Node Description: The NCR ISDN terminal provides acess to the ISDN Spectrum service. The terminal is able to access both of the B channels. The PCTA Card provides an applications programming intercafe (API) for access to the D channel X.25 features. The API can be programmed to send and receive data as desired for the particular application. The standard call establishment procedures for X.25 are to be performed between the terminal and the database. There are several remote databases containing customer Id and addresses. The application manages logon to individual database as required. In Enhanced 000 system, both B channels are used for voice connection. When a call is received by the 000 terminal, the application sends an enquiry to the current remote database through the D channel. Once the caller's information is obtained, voice consultation call feature is activated to connect to the ESO (Emergency Service Operator) with the data transferred using D channel X.25 at the same time. The remote stations do not require ISDN connections but do require an X.25 card to be placed in the computer. The D channel access with the ISDN is an extra feature used in conjunction with the other features of Spectrum ISDN. (something garbled in original document) The setup of the NCR PCTA card is as shown in the user manuals. The X.25 API procudures are outlined in the user manuals. The conneciton to the Austpac service is performed from within the developed application by calling the appropriate function in the API. The connection protocol is standard X.25 packets via the D channel.