JP2006311493A - System and method for sending image message to default recipient in mobile telephone - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a simplified method for transmitting a message from a mobile telephone to a desired recipient. <P>SOLUTION: A default recipient of a message and/or photograph sent from a mobile camera telephone set 200 is determined based on one of several alternative methods. In one method, the default recipient may be a preselected default recipient. In another alternative method, the default recipient may be determined based on a most recent recipient of another message and/or photograph. Further in another alternative method, the default recipient may be determined based on a recipient contained in a send-to list that has received the most number of messages and/or photographs. Still another alternative provides that the default recipient is determined in response to the actuation of a selected key of the mobile camera telephone set 200 that corresponds to the default recipient. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to mobile phone communication systems, and more particularly to a system and method for sending a message to a default recipient.

  In recent years, many mobile phones with a built-in camera module are commercially available, and these mobile phones are generally a mobile camera telephone or a camera phone. is called. A user with a camera can take a picture and send the taken picture to family and / or friends using, for example, wireless email or Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS). The user selects a name or group of names from the address book stored on the camera phone to identify the recipient of the desired photo, or manually enters the address of the desired recipient on the camera phone Enter in.

  FIG. 5 shows a flowchart illustrating a conventional process 100 for sending a photograph taken with a camera-equipped mobile phone to a desired recipient. FIG. 5 also illustrates a process of creating a latest destination list (a Recent-Send-To list) and adding a desired recipient to the latest destination list. In step 101, the user with the camera-equipped user activates the camera function by, for example, selecting a camera application from a menu or operating a camera function key or shutter key. In step 102, the user operates the camera shutter key to take a picture. In step 103, the user views a picture displayed on the display unit of the camera-equipped mobile phone and manually selects the picture sending function to make a decision to send the image to a specific recipient. If the user decides not to send the image, the process ends at this point.

  If the camera-equipped mobile phone has the function of the latest destination list in step 104 and the latest destination list has already been created, the process proceeds to step 105. If it is determined in step 104 that the camera-equipped mobile phone does not have the function of the latest destination list or the latest destination list has not yet been created, the process proceeds to step 110.

  In step 105, the camera-equipped mobile phone displays to the user the latest transmission destination list for the user to select a desired recipient. In step 106, the user scrolls the latest destination list from the displayed latest destination list and selects a desired recipient. If the desired recipient is not included in the latest destination list, the user may select, for example, “OTHER”. Next, the process proceeds to step 107. In step 107, it is determined whether or not the user has selected “OTHER”. If it is determined in step 107 that “OTHER” is not selected, the process proceeds to step 108. In step 108, the user sends a message containing a photograph to the desired recipient, for example, by actuating the SEND key. In step 109, the camera-equipped mobile phone transmits a message including a photograph to a desired recipient in response to the operation of the SEND key.

In step 104, it is determined that the camera-equipped mobile phone does not have the function of the latest destination list, or the latest destination list has not yet been created, or that "OTHER" has been selected in step 107. If yes, go to Step 110. In step 110, the user is prompted to manually enter the address of the desired recipient (eg, email address, phone number, or Universal Resource Locator (URL)). It may be from a book or contact application, and then proceeds to step 111. In step 111, the user sends a message containing a photo to the desired recipient, for example by activating the SEND key, Proceed to step 112. In step 112, the camera-equipped mobile phone stores the name and address of the recipient desired by the user in the latest destination list, and then proceed to step 109. In step 109, the camera-carried mobile In response to the operation of the SEND key, a message including a photograph is transmitted to a recipient desired by the user.
WO 00/72577 A1 (released on November 30, 2000) EP 1 061 758 A1 (released on December 20, 2000)

  However, in the above conventional method, there arises a problem that the operation for transmitting the photograph to the other party to which the user wants to transmit becomes very complicated.

  In other words, an operation of directly inputting a character string of the address of the recipient or selecting a desired recipient from a huge amount of candidates recorded in the address book or the latest destination list is as follows. This is a troublesome task for the user.

  The method of Patent Document 1 can be applied only when the address of one server as a destination is always determined as a “communication address”. In the mobile phone, addresses of a plurality of recipients are usually registered, and one recipient is selected from such an address book as the “default recipient”. Therefore, the method of Patent Document 1 cannot be applied to a mobile phone.

  Therefore, there is a need for a simplified method for sending a message from a mobile phone to a desired recipient.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a simplified method for transmitting a message from a mobile phone to a desired recipient.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a method for transmitting a message to a recipient in a mobile phone according to the present invention includes a step of creating a message and a step of determining a default recipient of the message.

  According to the above method, the default recipient is determined in the determining step regarding the transmission destination of the message generated in the generating step.

  The default recipient is a recipient (address) set by default in the mobile phone as a destination when sending a message.

  This eliminates the need for the user to perform an operation for selecting the transmission destination of the created message. As a result, it is possible to simplify the procedure for transmitting a message from the mobile phone to a desired recipient. .

  The step of determining is preferably a step of selecting a recipient of the message from a destination list including addresses of a plurality of recipients and determining as a default recipient.

  According to the method, in the determining step, a default recipient is determined by selecting a recipient of the message from a destination list including a plurality of recipient addresses.

  Usually, the address of a large number of recipients is stored in the mobile phone, and it is necessary to select the address of the other party to whom the message is to be transmitted.

  In particular, it is a burden on the user to select the address of the intended recipient from the addresses of a plurality of recipients each time a message is created even though the message is repeatedly sent to the same recipient.

  Therefore, for example, when the user wants to repeatedly send a message to the same recipient, by determining the recipient as the default recipient, it is possible to reduce the complexity of the user's operation for determining the recipient. It becomes possible. That is, the number of keystrokes necessary to determine the recipient can be reduced.

  As a result, it is possible to simplify the procedure for transmitting a message from a mobile phone to a desired recipient.

  The message transmission method may further include a step of transmitting the message to the default recipient.

  In addition, the message transmission method may further include a step of displaying the default recipient to the user of the mobile phone before transmitting the message to the default recipient.

  Thus, the user can confirm the default recipient determined in the determining step.

  In addition, a message may be transmitted to the default recipient when a predetermined time has elapsed after the default recipient is displayed to the user.

  Alternatively, the step of determining the default recipient may determine the default recipient based on a recipient who has received the largest number of photos among the recipients included in the destination list.

  As a result, among recipients remaining in the past transmission history, the recipient who has received the largest amount of photo data attached to the message is determined as the default recipient.

  The step of determining the default recipient may include selecting a default recipient in response to activation of a selected key of the mobile phone corresponding to the default recipient.

  As a result, the user can set the recipient of the message with a smaller number of key presses (number of keystrokes).

  In order to solve the above problems, a mobile phone according to the present invention includes a user interface that receives input from a user, and a processor that is connected to the user interface and receives a message via the user interface. A default recipient of the message is determined.

  According to the said structure, a processor determines the default recipient of this message with respect to the message according to the input from the user received via the said user interface.

  This eliminates the need for the user to perform an operation for selecting the transmission destination of the created message. As a result, it is possible to simplify the procedure for transmitting a message from the mobile phone to a desired recipient. .

  The mobile phone may further include a display unit that displays a default recipient to the user of the mobile phone.

  The processor may send a message to the default recipient when a predetermined time has elapsed after the default recipient is displayed to the user.

  The processor may determine a default recipient in response to activation of a selected key of the user interface corresponding to the default recipient.

  The processor may determine, as a default recipient, a recipient who has received the largest number of photos among recipients included in the destination list.

  In order to solve the above problems, a communication terminal apparatus according to the present invention selects a message recipient from a message creation means for creating a message and a destination list including addresses of a plurality of recipients, and receives a default recipient. And an address determining means for determining as follows.

  According to the above configuration, for the transmission destination of the message created by the message creation means, the address determination means selects a recipient of the message from a destination list including addresses of a plurality of recipients, and receives a default recipient. To decide.

  This eliminates the need for the user to perform an operation for selecting the transmission destination of the created message. As a result, it is possible to simplify the procedure for transmitting a message from the mobile phone to a desired recipient. .

  The mobile phone and the communication terminal device may be realized by a computer. In this case, the computer is operated as the processor provided in the mobile phone or the respective means provided in the communication terminal device. A mobile phone control program for realizing the mobile phone or the communication terminal device on a computer and a computer-readable recording medium on which the program is recorded also fall within the scope of the present invention.

  A method for transmitting a message to a recipient in a mobile phone according to the present invention includes a step of creating a message and a step of determining a default recipient of the message. This eliminates the need for the user to perform an operation for selecting the transmission destination of the created message. As a result, it is possible to simplify the procedure for transmitting a message from the mobile phone to a desired recipient. .

[Summary of the Invention]
The present invention provides a system and method for sending a message from a mobile phone to a default recipient. In one embodiment of the present invention, the mobile phone is a camera-equipped mobile phone, and the message includes a photograph taken by the camera-equipped mobile phone. Further, this message may be any of text data, audio data, image data, and / or moving image data, and may further include each of the above data. In the present invention, the default recipient may be a preselected default recipient. Alternatively, the default recipient may be determined based on the latest recipients of other messages. Alternatively, a default recipient may be determined based on a recipient who has received the largest number of messages among recipients included in a send-to list. Alternatively, the default recipient may be determined by selecting and operating the key of the mobile phone associated with the default recipient. The default recipient is displayed to the mobile phone user before the message is sent to the default recipient. A message is sent to the default recipient if the user agrees with the displayed default recipient or if a certain amount of time has elapsed since the default recipient was displayed to the user.

Detailed Description of the Invention
An embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the drawings show an example of the present invention, and therefore the present invention is not limited to the components denoted by the reference numerals and similar components illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

  In accordance with the present invention, a user can create a text message, a voice message, a video message, an image message, and / or a photo-based message (collectively “multiple messages (each message / message group)”. ) "Or" message ") can be sent repeatedly to the same recipient (referred to herein as the default recipient). In particular, in an embodiment of the present invention, a default recipient based on the history of the previous message recipient is automatically displayed for all messages created with a mobile phone and / or photos taken with a mobile phone. . This simplifies the process and minimizes the number of key presses required to select a desired recipient to receive messages and / or photos. In one embodiment of the present invention, the user of the mobile phone may set a default recipient in advance. Alternatively, the default recipient may be the recipient who last sent the message and / or photo. Alternatively, the default recipient may be the recipient of the largest number of messages and / or photos. Furthermore, the present invention can be used to send content such as text data, audio data, image data, photo-based content, and / or video data stored in a mobile phone to a default recipient.

  In addition, the present invention allows the user to create the message and / or take a picture and then send the message and / or picture to the default recipient without further pressing or clicking any key. Can be sent automatically. Prior to sending a message and / or photo to the default recipient, the default recipient is displayed to the user of the mobile phone so that the user can confirm the default receipt.

  In the following description of the present invention, the focus is mainly on transmitting photos from the camera phone to the desired recipient, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The present invention provides a technique for transmitting a text data, audio data, image data, and / or moving image data, or a message further including each of the above data from a mobile phone to a desired recipient. Can be applied similarly. Further, although the following is described with respect to a single default recipient or a desired recipient, the present invention is applicable to multiple default recipients and / or desired recipients.

(Configuration of mobile phone-overview)
FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a camera-equipped mobile phone 200 suitable for use in the present invention. The camera-equipped mobile phone 200 includes a processor 201, a storage unit 202, a keyboard 203, a timer unit 204, a display unit 205, a communication network interface 206, and a camera 207. The storage unit 202 stores information such as programs and applications executed by the processor 201, various setting information, an address book, a latest transmission destination list (a Recent-Sent-To list), and a photo gallery. Note that the information stored in the storage unit 202 is not limited to the above. Using the keyboard 203, a dial number, various setting information, information for creating an address book, and text information for creating a message can be input. The display unit 205 displays information and provides a visual interface to the user of the camera-equipped mobile phone. The communication network interface 206 provides a known wireless interface to a communication network such as a mobile phone network or a personal communication system (PCS). The camera 207 provides a known camera type function.

  The time measuring unit 204 measures elapsed time. More specifically, for example, when a predetermined value (for example, 5 seconds) is set, a signal is sent to the processor 201 when 5 seconds have elapsed. This makes it possible to perform control such as causing the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 to execute a predetermined operation after a predetermined time has elapsed.

  Hereinafter, the processor 201 and the storage unit 202 of the camera-equipped cellular phone 200 for realizing a simplified method for transmitting a message from the cellular phone to a desired recipient will be described in more detail.

(Configuration of mobile phone-details)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a camera-equipped mobile phone 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the processor 201 of the camera-equipped cellular phone 200 includes an input / output control unit 2 and an e-mail control unit 1 inside.

  The input / output control unit 2 controls input signals from the keyboard 203 and output signals to the display unit 205. The input / output control unit 2 further receives an instruction signal addressed to the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 input by the user via the keyboard 203 and supplies the instruction signal to each unit of the e-mail control unit 1; It includes a display control unit 12 that controls the display unit 205 to display the processing result of the mail control unit 1 (for example, default reception determined by the email control unit 1).

  The e-mail control unit 1 controls the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 in order to send and receive messages. The e-mail control unit 1 further includes a record update unit 21, a message creation unit 22, an address determination unit 23, and a transmission control unit 24.

  The storage unit 202 includes an address book recording unit 31, a latest transmission destination recording unit 32, a default address recording unit 33, a transmission count recording unit 34, a transmitted photograph number recording unit 35, and a key corresponding address recording unit 36. ing.

  The address book recording unit 31 records address information (transmission destination list) of recipients as transmission destinations to which the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 transmits messages. In the present embodiment, as an example, a recipient name, a telephone number, and an e-mail address for message transmission are recorded in association with each other.

  The latest transmission destination recording unit 32 records the latest transmission destination list (transmission destination list). The latest transmission destination list is a list of transmission destinations of message groups transmitted in the past using the mobile phone with camera 200 as a transmission history. In the present embodiment, as an example, an e-mail address (hereinafter simply referred to as an address) of a recipient of a transmitted message, a transmission date and time, and contents of the transmitted message (including attached data such as photographs and audio data) are included. ) Are recorded in association with each other, but the present invention is not limited to this.

  The number of transmitted messages recorded in the latest transmission destination recording unit 32 may be determined in advance, and after the latest transmission destination list in the latest transmission destination recording unit 32 is full, the latest transmission is further performed. When the destination is recorded, for example, the oldest transmission destination may be deleted and the latest transmission destination may be recorded.

  The default address recording unit 33 records the address of a default recipient set as a destination of a message created in the camera-equipped mobile phone 200. The address recorded in the default address recording unit 33 can be set in advance by the user using the keyboard 203.

  The transmission count recording unit 34 records the number of data registered in the latest transmission destination list for each transmission destination recorded in the latest transmission destination list of the latest transmission destination recording unit 32. That is, the number of messages (number of messages) transmitted to which destination (recipient) of messages transmitted in the past is recorded in association with each other and can be referred to by the electronic mail control unit 1.

  The transmitted photograph number recording unit 35 records, for each transmission destination, the number of data (number of photographs) attached to the past transmitted message recorded in the latest transmission destination list of the latest transmission destination recording unit 32. Is.

  The key-corresponding address recording unit 36 is provided on an input device such as a keyboard 203 for a user to operate the camera-equipped mobile phone 200, and each of the keys recorded on the address book recording unit 31 The correspondence with the address is recorded.

  More specifically, for example, it is assumed that the address A of the recipient A is associated with the key “1” of the numeric keypad provided on the keyboard 203 and the corresponding relationship is recorded in the key corresponding address recording unit 36. . Thus, when the user presses the key “1” after creating a message (for example, “long press”), the address A associated with the key “1” is used as the destination of the created message. It becomes possible to set.

  The recording update unit 21 changes information in each recording unit included in the storage unit 202 automatically according to a user instruction or according to the operation of each other unit of the electronic mail control unit 1. .

  For example, when an instruction to newly set or change a default recipient is received from the user, the default address recording unit 33 is updated to record the default recipient designated by the user. Also, the correspondence between the key and the address of the recipient recorded in the address book recorded in the address book recording unit 31 or in the key corresponding address recording unit 36 can be updated according to a user instruction.

  In addition, after the transmission control unit 24 transmits the message, the latest transmission destination recording unit 32 is updated so that the transmission history of the message is recorded as the latest transmission destination. In response to the update of the latest transmission destination recording unit 32, the recording update unit 21 also updates the transmission count recording unit 34 and the transmitted photograph number recording unit 35.

  As a result, the default recipient can always be determined based on the latest information.

  The message creation unit 22 creates a message to be transmitted to the transmission destination in response to a user instruction input from the keyboard 203. The message creation unit 22 edits text data or attaches data such as photos, other image data, audio data, and moving images in accordance with a user instruction supplied from the operation reception unit 11. Create a message.

  The address determination unit 23 determines a transmission destination (that is, a default recipient) of the message created by the message creation unit 22. The address determination unit 23 includes the latest transmission destination recording unit 32, the default address recording unit 33, the transmission count recording unit 34, the transmitted photograph number recording unit 35, and the key corresponding address recording unit 36 included in the storage unit 202. To determine a default recipient.

  The transmission control unit 24 transmits the message created by the message creation unit 22 to the default recipient determined by the address determination unit 23, automatically according to a user instruction or according to the operation of the time measuring unit 204. Control is performed.

  For example, when the user selects a transmission menu or presses a key corresponding to a transmission instruction on the keyboard 203, the transmission control unit 24 receives a transmission instruction signal via the operation reception unit 11, and receives it. In response, the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 is controlled to transmit a message.

  Alternatively, for example, the timing unit 204 is configured to measure the time from when the default recipient determined by the message creation unit 22 is displayed on the display unit 205. If there is no input from the user even after a lapse of a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds), the time measuring unit 204 transmits this fact to the transmission control unit 24. Then, the transmission control unit 24 can perform control so as to automatically transmit a message to the determined default recipient.

  According to the above configuration, the address determination unit 23 can determine the default recipient of the message created by the message creation unit 22 from the plurality of recipients recorded in the address book recording unit 31. That is, a default is automatically set based on information included in at least one of the latest transmission destination recording unit 32, default address recording unit 33, transmission number recording unit 34, transmitted photo number recording unit 35, and key corresponding address recording unit 36. Recipients can be determined.

  Although it is desired to repeatedly send a message to the same recipient, the task of selecting a target recipient address from a plurality of recipient addresses every time a message is created is a burden on the user.

  Therefore, when a message is repeatedly transmitted to the same recipient, by determining the recipient as a default recipient, it is possible to reduce the complexity of the user's operation for determining the recipient. That is, the number of keystrokes necessary to determine the recipient can be reduced.

Embodiment 1
FIG. 3 is a flowchart (300) illustrating a method for transmitting a photograph taken with a camera-equipped mobile phone to a recipient according to an embodiment of the present invention. In step 301, a user with a camera-mounted camera activates a camera function, for example, by selecting a camera application from a menu or by activating a camera function key or shutter key (not shown). Note that the function keys may be part of the keyboard 203 or the shutter key, for example, and may be linked to the function of the camera 207. In step 302, the user takes a picture by operating the camera shutter key, and the taken picture is displayed on the display unit 205. In step 303, a default recipient to display is determined. That is, the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 determines a default recipient to be displayed. For example, a default recipient selected in advance may be determined as the default recipient to be displayed. The preselected default recipient is a default recipient that has already been selected by the user to become the default recipient. Alternatively, the recipient of the last photo included in the address book or latest destination list may be selected as the default recipient. Alternatively, the last recipient of the message transmitted from the camera-equipped mobile phone may be determined as the default recipient to be displayed. Alternatively, the receiver having the largest number of photographs transmitted from the camera-equipped mobile phone may be determined as the default receiver to be displayed. For example, if a total of 25 photos have been transmitted from a camera-equipped mobile phone and 15 of the 25 photos have been sent to one specific recipient, the recipient who has received 15 photos , Determined as the default recipient to display. Alternatively, the receiver who has the largest number of photos transmitted from the camera-equipped mobile phone during a certain period (for example, last month) may be determined as the default receiver to be displayed.

  Alternatively, the recipient having the largest number of message transmissions (that is, the number of message transmissions) may be determined as the default recipient to be displayed regardless of the number of transmitted photos. Alternatively, reception with the largest number of message transmissions including a photo may be determined as a default recipient.

  In step 304, the default recipient to be displayed is displayed on the display unit 205. In step 302, the default recipient to be displayed may not be displayed on the display unit 205. In step 305, the user decides to send the image to the displayed default recipient. The user activates, for example, the SEND key on the keyboard 203 to transmit a message including a photograph to the intended recipient. If the user decides not to send an image, the process ends at that point. In step 306, the camera phone sends a message containing a photo to the displayed default recipient in response to the activation of the SEND key.

  Alternatively, in step 305, the user may “long press” (ie, continuously press) the SEND key, for example, when sending a photo to the default recipient. Alternatively, at step 305, the user “shortly” presses the SEND key on the keyboard 203 (ie, presses normally) to obtain a message instructing the user to enter the desired recipient, and the displayed default recipient. Can select different desired recipients. Alternatively, the user may “long press” a key of the keyboard 203 that is associated with a desired recipient in advance by a method similar to the association with the speed dial. Then, the process proceeds to Step 306. In step 306, the camera phone automatically sends a message containing a photo in response to a “long press” of the selected key.

[Embodiment 2]
FIG. 4 is a flowchart (400) illustrating a method for transmitting a photograph taken with a camera-equipped mobile phone to a recipient according to an embodiment of the present invention. In step 401, a user with a camera-mounted user activates a camera function, for example, by selecting a camera application from a menu or by actuating a camera function key or shutter key (not shown). Note that the function keys are, for example, a part of the keyboard 203 or the shutter key, and may be linked to the function of the camera 207. In step 402, the user takes a picture by operating the camera shutter key, and the taken picture is displayed on the display unit 205. In step 403, the default recipient to display is determined. That is, the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 determines a default recipient to be displayed. For example, a default recipient selected in advance may be determined as the default recipient to be displayed. Alternatively, the recipient of the last photo included in the address book or the latest recipient list may be selected as the default recipient. Alternatively, the last recipient of the message transmitted from the camera-equipped mobile phone may be determined as the default recipient to be displayed. Alternatively, the receiver having the largest number of photographs transmitted from the camera-equipped mobile phone may be determined as the default receiver to be displayed. Alternatively, the receiver who has the largest number of photos transmitted from the camera-equipped mobile phone during a certain period (for example, last month) may be determined as the default receiver to be displayed.

  In step 404, the default recipient to be displayed is displayed on the display unit 205 together with the “STOP” command. Further, the timer unit 204 is initialized to a predetermined value (for example, 5 seconds). The display unit 205 may display, for example, “Send to Fred within 5 seconds”, followed by “Send to Fred within 4 seconds”. If the user selects the “STOP” command in step 405, the process proceeds to step 407. If, at step 405, the user has not selected the “STOP” command and a predetermined time has elapsed, at step 406, the photo is sent to the displayed default recipient.

  If the user selects the “STOP” command in step 405, the process proceeds to step 407. In step 407, the user determines whether to send the photo to the recipient, and in step 408, the latest transmission destination list is displayed on the display unit 205. (If the user decides not to send an image, the process ends at this point.) At step 409, the user selects a desired recipient. Alternatively, in step 409, if the desired recipient is not included in the latest destination list, the user may be able to select “OTHER”, for example. If it is determined in step 410 that the user has selected “OTHER”, the process proceeds to step 411. Otherwise, go to step 413. In step 411, the address of a desired recipient (for example, an e-mail address, a telephone number, or a URL is manually input via the keyboard 203 and displayed on the display unit 205. Alternatively, the user can select a desired address. A desired recipient may be selected by “long-pressing” (ie, continually pressing) a key on the keyboard 203 that is pre-associated with the recipient, at step 412. The address is stored in the latest transmission destination list of the storage unit 202. Next, the process proceeds to step 413.

  In step 413, the user manually activates the SEND key on the keyboard 203, for example, to send a message containing the photo to the desired recipient, and proceeds to step 406. In step 406, the camera-equipped mobile phone transmits a message including a photograph to a desired recipient in response to the operation of the SEND key.

  Alternatively, in step 409, the user can “depress” (ie, continuously press) a key on the keyboard 203 associated with the desired recipient to display the displayed default recipient. Different desired recipients can be selected. In this case, the process may go directly to step 406. In step 406, the camera phone automatically sends a message containing a photo in response to a “long press” of the selected key.

  The present invention can be used to send photo-based content and / or video data stored in a mobile phone to a recipient. In particular, if the user finds a media gallery stored on a camera phone and selects to view a particular photo, the default recipient to display is as shown in step 303 of FIG. 3 or step 403 of FIG. Determined by the method. In the subsequent steps, in the example of the embodiment of the invention configured as a mobile phone, for example, a method as shown in steps 304-306 or 404-413 is performed.

  Although the foregoing invention has been described with specific examples to aid understanding, it will be apparent that changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the embodiments are considered to be illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is not limited to the details described herein, but the appended claims and Changes can be made within the equivalent range.

  In each of the above-described embodiments, the case where the message transmission method of the present invention is applied to a mobile phone, in particular, a camera-equipped mobile phone has been described. However, the message transmission method of the present invention is not limited to this, and a message is transmitted. The present invention can be applied to various communication terminal devices such as a personal computer, a notebook personal computer, a PDA (personal digital assistant), and a portable game machine having a communication function.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims, and embodiments obtained by appropriately combining technical means disclosed in different embodiments. Is also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  Finally, each block of the camera-equipped cellular phone 200, in particular, each unit in the e-mail control unit 1 and the input / output control unit 2 may be configured by hardware logic, or by software using a CPU as follows. It may be realized.

  That is, the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 includes a CPU (central processing unit) that executes instructions of a control program that realizes each function, a ROM (read only memory) that stores the program, and a RAM (random access memory) that expands the program. ), A storage device (recording medium) such as a memory for storing the program and various data. An object of the present invention is a recording medium in which a program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of a control program for the camera-equipped cellular phone 200, which is software that realizes the above-described functions, is recorded in a computer-readable manner This can also be achieved by supplying the above to the camera-equipped mobile phone 200 and reading and executing the program code recorded on the recording medium by the computer (or CPU or MPU).

  Examples of the recording medium include tapes such as magnetic tapes and cassette tapes, magnetic disks such as floppy (registered trademark) disks / hard disks, and disks including optical disks such as CD-ROM / MO / MD / DVD / CD-R. Card system such as IC card, IC card (including memory card) / optical card, or semiconductor memory system such as mask ROM / EPROM / EEPROM / flash ROM.

  The camera-equipped mobile phone 200 may be configured to be connectable to a communication network, and the program code may be supplied via the communication network. The communication network is not particularly limited. For example, the Internet, intranet, extranet, LAN, ISDN, VAN, CATV communication network, virtual private network, telephone line network, mobile communication network, satellite communication. A net or the like is available. Also, the transmission medium constituting the communication network is not particularly limited. For example, even in the case of wired such as IEEE 1394, USB, power line carrier, cable TV line, telephone line, ADSL line, etc., infrared rays such as IrDA and remote control, Bluetooth ( (Registered trademark), 802.11 wireless, HDR, mobile phone network, satellite line, terrestrial digital network, and the like can also be used. The present invention can also be realized in the form of a computer data signal embedded in a carrier wave in which the program code is embodied by electronic transmission.

  The present invention can be used to send content such as text data, audio data, image data, photo-based content, and / or video data stored in a mobile phone to a default recipient. Furthermore, the present invention is also applicable to determining multiple default recipients and / or desired recipients.

It is a block diagram which shows the principal part structure of the mobile phone with a camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a camera-equipped mobile phone that is suitable for use in the present invention. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for transmitting a photograph taken with a camera-equipped mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention to a recipient. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for transmitting a photograph taken with a camera-equipped mobile phone to a recipient according to another embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart explaining the conventional process for transmitting the photograph image | photographed with the mobile phone with a camera to a desired recipient.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 E-mail control part 2 Input / output control part 11 Operation reception part 12 Display control part 21 Record update part 22 Message preparation part (message preparation means)
23 Address determining unit (address determining means)
24 Transmission Control Unit 31 Address Book Recording Unit 32 Latest Destination Recording Unit 33 Default Address Recording Unit 34 Transmission Count Recording Unit 35 Transmitted Photo Number Recording Unit 36 Key Corresponding Address Recording Unit 200 Mobile Phone with Camera (Mobile Phone / Communication Terminal Device) )
201 processor 202 storage unit 203 keyboard (user interface)
204 Timekeeping unit 205 Display unit 206 Communication network interface 207 Camera

Claims (32)

Creating a message;
Determining a default recipient of the message. A method of transmitting a message to a recipient in a mobile phone. The determining step is
The message transmission method according to claim 1, which is a step of selecting a recipient of the message from a destination list including addresses of a plurality of recipients and determining as a default recipient.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of transmitting the message to the default recipient.   The message transmission method according to claim 2, further comprising the step of displaying the default recipient to a user of the mobile phone before sending the message to the default recipient.   4. The message transmission method according to claim 3, wherein a message is transmitted to the default recipient when a predetermined time has elapsed after the default recipient is displayed to the user.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the step of determining the default recipient is a step of determining a preselected default recipient.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the step of determining the default recipient includes the step of determining a default recipient based on a latest recipient of another message.   The step of determining the default recipient includes the step of determining a default recipient based on a recipient that has received the largest number of messages among recipients included in a destination list. Message sending method.   The step of determining the default recipient includes the step of determining a default recipient based on a recipient who has received the largest number of photos among recipients included in a destination list. Message sending method.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the step of determining the default recipient includes the step of selecting a default recipient in response to the operation of a selected key of the mobile phone corresponding to the default recipient.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the message includes text data.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the message includes voice data.   The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the message includes image data. The mobile phone is a mobile phone with a camera,
The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the message includes a photograph taken by the mobile phone with camera. The mobile phone is a mobile phone with a camera,
The message transmission method according to claim 1, wherein the message includes moving image data photographed by the camera-equipped mobile phone. A user interface that receives input from the user;
A processor connected to the user interface and receiving a message via the user interface;
A mobile phone that determines a default recipient of the message.   The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the processor sends a message to the default recipient.   The mobile phone according to claim 17, further comprising a display unit that displays a default recipient to a user of the mobile phone.   18. The mobile phone according to claim 17, wherein the processor transmits a message to the default recipient when a predetermined time has elapsed after the default recipient is displayed to the user.   The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the default recipient is a preselected default recipient.   17. The mobile phone of claim 16, wherein the processor determines the latest recipient of other messages as a default recipient.   The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the processor determines, as a default recipient, a recipient who has received the largest number of messages among recipients included in the destination list.   The mobile phone of claim 16, wherein the processor determines a default recipient in response to activation of a selected key of the user interface corresponding to the default recipient.   The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the message includes text data.   The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the message includes voice data.   The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the message includes image data. The mobile phone is a camera-equipped mobile phone,
The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the message includes a photograph taken by the mobile phone with camera.   28. The mobile phone according to claim 27, wherein the processor determines, as a default recipient, a recipient who has received the largest number of photos among recipients included in a destination list. The mobile phone is a camera-equipped mobile phone,
The mobile phone according to claim 16, wherein the message includes moving image data shot by the camera-equipped mobile phone. A message creation means for creating a message;
A communication terminal device comprising: address determination means for selecting a recipient of the message from a destination list including addresses of a plurality of recipients and determining as a default recipient.   A control program for causing a computer to function as the processor included in the mobile phone according to any one of claims 16 to 29 or the means included in the communication terminal device according to claim 30.   32. A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program according to claim 31 is recorded.

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