Researchers from the Illinois Institute of Technology and Lucent have developed new software that turns Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), considered to be soon replaced by the Internet and wireless phones, into Pretty Amazing New Stuff (PANS)), moving the old phone system into the Internet loop.
Reported in Chicago Sun Times, over the last two years, Vijay Gurbani, 37, a doctoral candidate in computer science at IIT and a Lucent researcher, and his colleagues have added some Internet digital magic to old-fashioned analog phones. This work has earned one patent already for Gurbani. Gurbani said. "Cellular companies were spending billions of dollars on new infrastructure to make 3G [third-generation] services available for cell phones. I wanted to see if it was possible to make 3G-type services available on landlines." IIT and Lucent researchers have developed software that recycles POTS so it can handle buddy lists and instant messaging, the same kinds of services that have been wildly successful over the Internet for America Online and MSN, and also are available over some Internet appliances, such as 21/2G and 3G cell phones and personal digital assistants. "The phone network has been used for its voice capabilities and the Internet for its data capabilities. The two networks have virtually never talked to each other--until now," said Xian-He Sun, Gurbani's computer science professor. He also pointed out the wired phone network could send an instant message to an Internet user, notifying him of missed calls. This could be a sort of mobile caller-ID to check on traditional phones at home or work He said companies could use these buddy lists to set up large- scale phone conferences. In addition, caller ID screens on landline phones could be used to receive text messages. Nehal Mehta, a doctoral student at IIT, and Lucent researchers Byron Williams and Sudha Gouthma also have worked on the project. (Source: Chicago Sun - Times, May 12, 2003).