Kanata, Ontario-based Mitel Corp has been demonstrating what it claims is the world’s first telephone-to-personal computer connection using the Universal Serial Bus at the Universal Serial Bus Developers’ Conference in Santa Clara, California. Mitel is part of a consortium of companies that includes Intel Corp, Microsoft Corp and Compaq Computer Corp that are backing the Universal Bus as an open standard for connecting peripherals to the personal computer. The group claims that through the use of the Universal Serial Bus, personal computers can be ‘telephony- enabled’ without the need for traditional plug-in board systems. Designed to provide a standard, low-cost plug-and-play interface between processors and peripherals, Universal Bus offers higher speed personal computer-to-peripheral communications, enables hot attach-detach of peripherals and allows for the connection of multiple devices to a single serial port. Mitel claims that its Universal Bus-enabled computer telephony peripherals will enable the desktop to be personalized to meet individual voice and data needs by turning it into a personal assistant that screens calls, takes and leaves messages, sets up conference calls, forwards calls, reads electronic mail and understands spoken commands. According to Mitel, the demonstration helped showcase a new class of personal computer peripheral under the banner of ‘USB telephony’. Ian Munns, Mitel’s senior vice-president of marketing and technology, said: Our goal is to gain widespread acceptance of the Universal Serial Bus personal computer telephony peripheral as the standard communications vehicle on the desktop.
