FI88348C - FOERFARANDE OCH ANORDNING FOER VISUALISERING AV ETT MED TELEFON VALT TELEFONNUMMER I EN TELEFONAPPARAT - Google Patents

Description

1 38343

A method and system for visualizing a telephone number dialed by a telephone on a telephone device.

The present invention relates to a method for visualizing a telephone number dialed by a telephone 5 in a telephone device pre-programmed with a plurality of telephone numbers, in which the desired telephone number is automatically selected when an area or display unit corresponding to the telephone number is activated in the display device, and a system 10 for visualizing a telephone number

Traditionally, a telephone number is dialed sequentially by rotating the dial or entering. New telephones with memory functions and machines using telephone lines 15, such as fax machines, make it possible to program so-called preset numbers or speed dial numbers in advance. In this case, you can call the desired number by pressing one or a few keys.

However, a disadvantage of conventional telephone devices is that many groups of people, such as children, the elderly and the disabled, may have difficulty seeing the correct key or remembering the correct keystroke sequence when using the telephone. Also, the solutions known to people who use a lot of phone "! During working hours are not optimal for everyone in terms of ease of dialing and speed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and system for dialing a telephone number in a manner that eliminates all problems associated with dialing. The method according to the invention is characterized in that the objects of the programmed telephone numbers are displayed one or more at a time by means of images or symbols stored in the memory in the display device.

[·· * [Other preferred embodiments of the method according to the invention are characterized by what is stated in the claims 2 88343 below.

The system according to the invention, which consists of a telephone device with the possibility of programming telephone numbers, is characterized in that the system further comprises: a memory in which a number of images or symbols representing the objects of pre-stored telephone numbers can be stored; - a display device in which said images or symbols can be displayed; - activation means for calling the desired telephone number by activating the image or symbol shown on the display corresponding to the desired number.

Other preferred embodiments of the system according to the invention are characterized by what is stated in the claims below.

The invention will now be described in more detail by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 shows a block diagram of a videophone implementing the method 20, Fig. 2 shows an embodiment of a telephone system according to the invention, Fig. 3 shows another embodiment of a telephone system according to the invention.

Figure 1 shows an example of a videophone system according to the invention with a digital video memory in the device itself. Its main components are a microprocessor 1 controlling the functions of the system, a power supply 2, an internal data and command bus 3 and various controller and memory circuits 4.

The operation of the system is as follows.

The telephone program memory 10 (e.g. EEPROM) is pre-programmed with a number of telephone numbers: the corresponding images or symbols are stored in the image memory 5. The working memory required by the telephone is implemented in 3 88343 RAM 9. The images are shown on display 8, which is controlled by the video card 6 and the buffer memory 7. The video card 6 has a direct connection to the image memory 5. The real image is retrieved by means of a keyboard, the controller of which is indicated by reference numeral 5 la 11. The primary function of the keyboard is to browse or search for images and can thus consist of only a few buttons. , but of course it can also be equipped with the functions of a normal telephone.Once the desired image is displayed 8, the phone number is selected by pointing to the image or the image element representing it, for example by pressing the image itself or a separate button.

According to the invention, the images or symbols displayed on the display head of the telephone device may be located in a digital image memory 5 formed by an image archive under the exchange of the telephone exchange or the like, to which the telephone devices under the exchange in question have access. In this case, the images are in file format, and thus can be easily and uninterruptedly transmitted, e.g. in an ISDN network. In addition, it is relatively easy to add, edit and refine images, for example by placing information such as name and telephone number information in the image.

The images or symbols displayed on the telephone may also be located in the 25 mass or semiconductor memory associated with the telephone. In this case, the image data can also be stored in analog form on a video tape or in a so-called to a still video disc, making a standard TV best suited as a display device.

According to the invention, numerical images 30 or symbols can be displayed on a display 8 formed by ku'Faruu-. . (for example, a computer monitor) or the like to which the desired image or symbol is obtained by means of a browse or search operation. One or more images at a time may be displayed on the display device at the same time. The simplest display 8 consists of an alphanumeric display device (8-segment display), or a display showing Chinese and / or Japanese characters or e.g. Cyrillic letters.

The microphone driver of the telephone device is denoted by reference number 5 at number 12 and the speaker controller (amplifier) at number 13. Since the visualization of the telephone number according to the invention may also involve sound, the telephone device may also be provided with voice memory 14 and speech synthesizer 15. situation either automatically or optionally ("help" key). This is especially beneficial for devices designed for children and the elderly. The audio memory 14 may be analog, e.g., a microcassette, in which case no speech synthesizer 15 is required, or digital, in which case a synthesizer 15 is required, but has the advantage of storing digitally encoded speech in a file format that can be quickly and without moving parts played back for each image. The principle in this case would be that whenever the image changes on the display device, the associated speech or sound is reproduced, which, depending on the case, can act as a complement to the image and / or provide additional instructions for using the telephone.

As the use of cordless telephones is rapidly increasing, a radio-16 part 16 can also be incorporated into the device.

Controller 17 is the controller for the audio charging interface.

30 Using a videophone.

According to Figure 2, the number-specific images or symbols may be displayed on a CRT screen 19 or the like connected to the telephone device 18, to which the desired image or symbol is obtained by means of a browsing or searching operation, ·; 35 by pressing the new images with the N- (next) and P- (previous) 5 88 3 4 8 function keys. By pointing or activating the desired character with the finger in the screen 19, some light beams of the light beam curtain 20 formed by a plurality of two-dimensionally arranged photocells are cut off, the coordinate values of which enable the telephone system to deduce what image was assigned and call that number. Activation can also result in a recorded announcement from the speaker 22. Arranging a light curtain in front of the screen for identification purposes is a known technique. Alternatively, the light curtain can be replaced by, for example, a transparent membrane keyboard that can be glued to the screen. Once the telephone connection is established, it is possible to speak into the microphone 21 and listen to the speaker 22 without further action.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 3, the telephone device 23 has 4 large keys 24, the upper surface of which consists of LED displays. The displays are programmed with text or symbols that the phone user (eg a child) can read or understand. By pressing one of the keys 20 24, the system dials the telephone number of the person or place on the display. The images on the screens 24 are switched, ie the image memory is scrolled, by pressing the N and P keys. The microphone 21 and speaker 22 operate as described above in connection with Figure 2.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the various embodiments of the invention are not limited to the example "V" above, but may vary within the scope of the claims below. Thus, the word picture element is intended to mean any such use by a telephone user. an addressable pixel or image which in itself has a certain meaning for the user in connection with the selection of a telephone number, and the assignment of pixels or images is not tied to physical contact, it may just as well be done e.g. with a computer mouse or a stylus.

Claims (6)

A method of visualizing a telephone nun to be selected with a telephone apparatus (18; 23), in which a number of telephone nuns have been pre-programmed, and wherein the desired telephone number is selected automatically, i.e. in a display device (8; 19; 24) an area or display unit corresponding to the telephone number is activated, characterized in that the objects representing the programmed telephone numbers 10 are displayed one or more at a time in the display device (8; 19; 24) by means of a memory (5) stored images or symbols. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the images or symbols shown in the display device (8; 19; 24) of the telephone apparatus (18; 23) are located in an image archive (5) connected to the telephone exchange or the like. central, to which at least some of the telephone sets connected to the said central have access. 20 3. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the images or symbols shown in the telephone apparatus (18; 23) are located in a mass or semiconductor memory (5) in connection with the telephone apparatus, the image contents of which are browsed in the display device one or more images at a time. Method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the images or symbols representing a number are displayed on a display (19) or the corresponding in which the desired image or symbol is obtained by means of a scroll. or search function (N, P). 5. A method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the images or symbols representing a number are displayed on a display device (24) or corresponding to LCD, EL or plasma type, in which it the desired image or symbol is achieved using a scroll or search function (Ν, Ρ). Method according to any of claims 1-5, characterized in that a sound is stored in connection with the images or symbols representing a call object, by means of which the object is identified and / or recognized.