Cisco Unity Fundamentals

Using Unified Communication Voice Cards 187

The ASR server can support a maximum of 45,000 entries for accurate recognition in the

standard configuration with the English.America.3 acoustic model. Cisco PA can be configured

to allow users to clarify duplicate name matches (when searching for subscribers in the

directory) by department or location. Refer to the Cisco Personal Assistant Design Guide for

instructions on procedures that handle larger deployments.

Using Unified Communication Voice Cards

Voice cards are used in Cisco Unity integrations with a circuit-switched PBX either alone or in

combination with a Cisco CallManager. Using voice cards is also necessary in the

implementation of a Cisco Unity Bridge server to communicate with an Octel voice-mail node.

The type of PBX used in the integration dictates the type of voice card(s) necessary for the

integration. The total number of voice-mail ports that will be connecting the PBX is the

determining factor in calculating the number of cards necessary to provide adequate port

capacity for the integration. When integrating solely with a Cisco CallManager or SIP, voice

cards are not required.

Knowing the proper voice cards to choose for specific deployments is important, to ensure that

they meet your customer needs.

To benefit fully from this section, it is recommended that you have the following prerequisite

skills and knowledge. (If you need a quick review, see the designated chapter, where you can

find more information on the topic.)

• Basic knowledge of Cisco Unity system integrations (see Chapter 1, “Cisco Unified

Communications System Fundamentals”)

• Understanding of available Cisco Unity integration methodologies (see Chapter 9, “Cisco

Unified Communications Integrations”)

A voice card can be seen essentially as a collection of 4, 12, or 24 single-line extensions on a

single card. These voice cards are used in Cisco Unity integrations with a circuit-switched PBX

either alone or in combination with a Cisco CallManager. All communications between the

PBX and the Cisco Unity server occur across the voice card connections. This is not the case

with CallManager integrations because all communications take place over the IP network

infrastructure.

It is also possible to use voice cards in the implementation of a Cisco Unity Bridge server to

communicate with an Octel voice-mail node. Cisco Unity Bridge communicates with Octel

voice-mail systems over the PSTN using Octel’s analog messaging protocol. The Cisco Unity

Bridge uses a four-port Brooktrout voice card.