Telephone automatic answering device with plural message recorders

Claim 1

In an automatic telephone answering device having a control mechanism responsive to an incoming call signal from a telephone line for maintaining the telephone line in the talking state and for establishing the timing of operation of said answering device, the improvement comprising: an answering section for sending out a previously recorded answer message to the telephone line; a plurality of recording sections selectively operable to record an incoming caller''s message from the telephone line, each recording section comprising means for receiving a magnetic tape, each having means for reproducing the message recorded on its associated magnetic tape, and each comprising detector means for producing a control signal when its associated magnetic tape reaches its end; switch means for selectively coupling the telephone line to said recording sections; and selector circuit means operable, when a magnetic tape loaded in the tape-receiving means of the presently operating recording section comes to its end, to operate said switch means to select another one of said recording sections to which the incoming message is then applied; said selector circuit means comprising a plurality of normally OFF thyristors, each corresponding to a different one of said recording sections, means for applying the control signals to the control electrodes of the corresponding thyristors so that each thyristor turns ON only upon the application thereto of a control signal; and means coupling said thyristors to said switch means for coupling the telephone line to the recording section corresponding to the ON thyristor.