GB2421154A

GB2421154A - User Interface for managing multiple simultanious communications on a wireless device.

Info

Publication number: GB2421154A
Application number: GB0523586A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Richard Perry
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2004-11-20
Filing date: 2005-11-19
Publication date: 2006-06-14
Also published as: GB0425590D0; GB0523586D0

Abstract

A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface/operating system and extended key features, in particular mobile phones, that allows the user to distinguish between all calls quickly and efficiently by using existing and some new keys on the phones keypad whilst switching between communications channels without interruption or breakdown of any of the channels and where there may be some additional keys displaced on the mobile phone keypad to aid the user in operating multiple lines simultaneously, a system that may incorporate unique new symbols and abbreviations, letters and numerals, pictures, moving pictures and sounds that represent a range of on screen options available to the user, a system that can be operated with ease and is universal for all mobile phones and may act as a switchboard or hunt group on a mobile phone with the increased functions and options of handling an increased range of types of calls. User interface for managing multiple simultaneous communications on a wireless device.

Description

A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a

wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface/operating system and extended key features This invention relates to a means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface/operating system and extended key features in particular, mobile phones.

With the rapid introduction in the use of broadband and multiple communication channels on mobile phones, users of such devices are faced with increased complexity in operating their mobile phone whilst simultaneously distinguishing between types of calls and often the user has to juggle operations with the mobile phone even in simple situations such as reading an incoming text message whilst a voice call is in progress and may, purely by accident, terminate one of the calls in progress.

When broadband or multiple phone lines become available there will be a need to rapidly switch between two or more communication lines without the risk of breakdown of one or both lines and loss of the communication. If the methods for using multiple lines on a single keypad are too complex and difficult for the user to carry out, a high proportion of users calls will be lost and obviously become very frustrating to the user.

There will also be a need for the user to be able to quickly identify the types of calls that are being sent and received so that the user has the choice of which calls or incoming communications are accepted and which are rejected, which are acted upon and which are not.

As there are so many types of calls that can be received on a mobile phone there is often confusion in the ability to distinguish between calls in under a few seconds, such as video and picture messages or internet and voice calls. Even when the user has mastered these simple methods of operating their handsets, due to the complexity of multiple lined phones a complex system will require the absolute attention of the user. This could potentially be dangerous especially in situations when frill concentration is required in other tasks such as driving a vehicle etc. An easy to use system that quickly and easily identifies the various calls the user may receive is required for the user to be able to handle all communications incoming and outgoing on multiple channels without any confusion. Using abbreviations or symbols or sounds the user can quickly identify with and remember easily will boost the systems effectiveness especially if the user has to choose which calls to act on and which to reject and the system would act like a Hunt Group or switchboard on a mobile phone.

According to the present invention there is provided a means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives

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broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface/operating system and extended key features, in particular mobile phones, that allows the user to distinguish between all calls quickly and efficiently by using existing and some new keys on the phones keypad whilst switching between communications channels without interruption or breakdown of any of the channels and where there may be some additional keys displaced on the mobile phone keypad to aid the user in operating multiple lines simultaneously, a system that may incorporate symbols and abbreviations, letters and numerals, pictures, moving pictures and sounds that represent a range of on screen options available to the user, a system that can be operated with ease and is universal for all mobile phones and may act as a switchboard or hunt group on a mobile phone with the increased functions and options of handling an increased range of types of calls.

The invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings where: Fig 1 outlines the set of abbreviations to be associated with certain types of calls Fig 2 illustrates the difference between broadband, split screens and multiscreens Fig 3 shows the new minmax' and opt' keys for a keypad Fig 4 shows by a diagram how to switch between screens using the minmax button Fig 5 shows how to switch between screens using the cursor keys on multiscreens Fig 6 shows a flow diagram of how the system works Fig 7 shows a diagram of how the multiscreen system works With reference to the drawings figure 1 (a-rn) on page 1/7 shows a collection of mobile phone main screens 10 that each have an abbreviation shown on the screen that represents a particular type of call that may be sent or received. The abbreviations are as follows: Fig I a = 000000: would be the telephone number of the incoming caller lb = (CALL) :withheld or private numbers I c = (P) : personal calls or friends and family I d = (B) : business calls Ic = (TXTM) :text messages I f= (VDM) : video messages I g = (VM) : voice messages I h = (PM) : picture messages Ii = (I) :internet browsing lj = (A) : advertisements I spam messages 1k = (MM) : music message II = (EML) : emails 1 m = (DWLD) : downloads These abbreviations would flash up on the screen 10, and instantly alert and identil,' the type of call to the recipient. This would give the user the choice of answering or rejecting the call. n

Figure 2 a -e on page 2/7 shows possible screen layouts for different bandwidths of phones. Fig 2a shows a normal screen 10 with one communications (comms) line 14.

Fig 2b shows a broadband screen 10 that has two lines one incoming and one outgoing where there is a sub screen 12 within the main screen 10 so that the user can see another line is active. In this case it is an internet line abbreviated with an I'. The main screen 10 displays a normal call being received shown as'000000'. Fig 2c demonstrates a split screen 10 where there are three sub screens 12 within the main screen showing three active comms. Li' and L2' are representing line I and line 2.

All active lines are represented by the letter L' and numbered in sequence: 1,2,3,4 etc in relation to the number of active lines. The number of active lines is unlimited and fig 2d shows a multi screen with four active lines. The abbreviations LI', L2' and L3' show three calls and the I' in the other sub screen 12 shows an internet call is in progress. As more calls are received the user can scroll down through the sub screens 12 using the cursor keys on their keypad and the sub screens would move accordingly. Fig 2e shows an alternative display for a multi line phone where the sub screens act more like a frameset.

Fig 3 a-b on page 3/7 introduces the new keys on the keypad that may work with this system. The minmax' button 16 is used to maximise and minimise screens 12 as they appear when calls are received and works in conjunction with the options button OPT' 18 and the cursor keys not shown.

Fig 4 illustrates the use of the minmax' button 16 by a diagram where there are two screens 10 a' and b' that show that when the minmax' button is pressed the next subsereen 12 in the sequence of when the calls became active is maximised and the other screen is minimised. In the example LI' the main screen 10 is in progress and an internet call needs to be accessed, so the button is pressed and now the internet call becomes the main screen and the LI' (line one) becomes the sub screen 12. the user can switch between screens at their leisure.

Fig 5 on page 5/7 shows a diagram (a) of a multi screen where there are four sub screens 12 within the main screen 10 and illustrates how the cursor 20 is used to switch between sub screens (and therefore calls) and as the cursor moves between screens the screen that becomes usable is highlighted in some way. This example is shown as a starburst 21 and tells the user which sub screen 12 and therefore which call is accessible for the user to decide what action to take next with that particular call.

Fig 6 on page 6/7 explains by diagram how the system works and shows the beginning of the process at screen a' and ends at screen e' that ultimately re-starts the system from the beginning.

The system begins at screen a' that shows a main screen 10 displaying an incoming callers number 000000' that automatically becomes LI' (line one) a sub screen 12 that has an active internet outgoing call I' and opt' for options' in the bottom right corner of the screen.

Suddenly the caller receives another call shown in screen b' that sequentially becomes L2' and moves into its own sub screen 12 highlighted by the starburst 21 and Li' also moves into its own sub screen 12 and further down the main screen 10 creating an ordered list of calls but still displays the callers number or uses the aforementioned abbreviations to identifS' the type of call being received. The caller now has to choose which call to administer by switching to the appropriate sub screen 12 by using the cursor keys on the keypad 20 and pressing the minmax' button 16 to maximise the chosen call screen in order to administer the call. The sub screen 12 that was maximised in this case L2' now dominates the main screen 10 as shown in screen c'. Screen c' shows the other sub screens 12 are minimised and appear at the bottom of the new screen so that the user can see that those lines are still active whilst administering the chosen call. OPT' appears in the bottom right corner of the now enlarged screen to offer the user a number of options that can be used to administer the call by pressing the OPT' button 18 which then lists the options available to the user such as play' (as used in the case of a video message), save', delete' and so on, in another list as shown in screen ci that may be scrolled through using the cursor keys 20.

Whatever option the user chooses the next function will either move onto other screens as in c2' under normal operating processes and menus of a mobile phone or until the user has finished administering the call in which case the screen would close and either go back to the beginning of the system shown as screen e' on the diagram, (provided only upto one other call is active that would then be displayed as a sub screen 12 such as the internet call that is still in progress as shown in screen e'), or if the menus and therefore sub screens were miniinised by using the minmax' button 16, to the main screen listing all the other active calls that still need to be administered. The user can then continue administering all calls that have appeared in sub screens until they are terminated.

Obviously there is the chance that still more calls may come in whilst the user is administering and terminating active calls. This systems acts like a Hunt Group or switchboard on a mobile phone in which case the system would keep repeating itself.

Fig 7 on page 7/7 illustrates by a diagram a' how a multi screen could operate using the new minmax' key, the opt' key and the cursor keys. The main screen 10 displays four active calls within their own sub screens 12 and listed in sequence LI, L2, L3 and L4 representing the order in which they were received. The user wishes to administer L4 and using the cursor keys 20 moves the starburst 21 around the sub screens 12 until it highlights L4. The minmax' button 16 is now pressed and the sub screen 12 that displays L4 maximises to fill the entire screen 10 and the user may administer the call by using the opt' key and scrolling through the options menu as one would when using a normal mobile phone. Again as in example fig 6, when the user has finished the call can be terminated in which case the sub screen disappears and space is left on the main screen for another sub screen for another call, (should one appear), or the screen is minimised and the call is left active and the user can then administer other calls by switching around the sub screens using the cursor keys until ultimately all calls are terminated.

Claims

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I. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system that uses abbreviations, symbols, pictures, moving pictures, sounds or colours and unique extended key features to represent a range of on screen options available to the user, a system that can be operated with ease and is universal for all mobile phones and may act as a switchboard or hunt group on a mobile phone with new or alternative functions and options of handling an increased range of, and amount of, types of calls sent and received on or by the device.
2. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system with extended key features as claimed in claim 1 where the types of calls are identified by the abbreviations: (CALL) to represent private or withheld numbers, (P) to represent personal calls or calls from friends and family, (B) to represent business calls, (TXTM) to represent text messages, (VDM) to represent video messages, (VM) to represent voice messages, (PM) to represent picture messages, (i) to represent internet browsing, (A) to represent advertising and or spam calls and messages, (MM) to represent music messages, (EML) to represent emails, (DWLD) to represent downloads and (000000) or the actual callers number for normal calls.
3. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system with extended key features as claimed in claim 1 and claim 2 where the new key on the key pad is for the purpose of minim ising and maximising all of or a portion of the phones screen or any of the sub screens, multi screens, options or menus that are used to carry out the functions of and administration of calls on a wireless device such as a mobile phone and where the key may be labelled MIN/MAX or MINMAX or MIN MAX or where the two abbreviations MIN and MAX are set out in a list format.
4. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system with extended key features as claimed in claim I and claim 2 and claim 3 where incoming and outgoing calls are represented by abbreviations, symbols, sounds, pictures, moving pictures letters and numerals and are displayed within their own sub screen within the main screen when there are two or more active communications lines or calls being sent or received by the device and where the main screen of the mobile phone or wireless device may either split into at least two sub screens or may become multi screen with several sub screens.
5. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system with extended key features as claimed in any preceding claim where the main screen or at least one sub screen becomes highlighted when the device sends or receives a form of communication and as subsequent communications are sent and received they are registered on the device and appear in a list format which may be ordered or in subsequent order and each individual communication line is labelled in sequence and given a corresponding name such as LINE ONE' that may be abbreviated as LI', and LINE TWO' which may be abbreviated as L2' and so on in sequence without limitation.
6. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system with extended key features as claimed in any preceding claim where the user has the option of choosing and allocating their own personal identifiers such as symbols abbreviations and so on that are unique and memorable to themselves to represent the types of calls sent and received.
7. A means to differentiate between incoming and outgoing communications on a wireless device that sends and receives broadband or multiple communications channels with a possible user interface and/or operating system with extended key features as claimed in any preceding claim substantially as described herein and with reference to the accompanying drawings.