What Is Dual-Tone Multifrequency (DTMF)?
You are stuck with a new device you have just purchased, and you need help figuring out what to do to proceed further. You try calling customer service, and this is what happens. There's a reason you need help getting through to customer service on the phone. It's because they're too busy pressing buttons. Dual-tone multifrequency (DTMF) is used to dial telephone numbers or issue commands to switching systems. DTMF is widely used for telecommunication signaling between telephone handsets and switching centers over analog telephone lines in voice-frequency bands. DTMF was standardized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in recommendation Q.19, published in 1984. DTMF is generated by a signal processor and sent to the phone network via a RING signal. The RING signal is a low voltage (about −48V) electrical signal with a tiny current used in public switched telephone network (PSTN) to indicate that a telephone set is being called. The phone sets do not respond to the RING voltage but rather to a transition from RING voltage to a higher voltage (about −19V). The RING signal is generated by a network signal generator and injected into the PSTN. DTMF is generated by pressing telephone buttons and can be detected by any telephone with the proper equipment. DTMF was developed for dial-up connection to telephone modems. It is still used to connect to the Internet but has been superseded by Internet Protocol (IP) technology. DTMF was first standardized in the United States in the early 1970s and is still used there. It was later standardized internationally as well. DTMF is a system of tones to transmit a signal across phone lines. The DTMF tone is a set of dual-tone multifrequency (DTMF) tones used with touch-tone telephones to send information over telephone lines. The DTMF signal comprises two distinct styles sent together as one signal.
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