WO2001091424A1

WO2001091424A1 - Received call processing method for mobile telephone having game device function

Info

Publication number: WO2001091424A1
Application number: PCT/JP2001/004152
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kiyoshi Hasebe
Original assignee: Yamaha Corporation
Priority date: 2000-05-23
Filing date: 2001-05-18
Publication date: 2001-11-29
Also published as: AU5877201A; TWI230534B; JP2001333153A

Abstract

A mobile telephone having a game device function executes four received call processings selectively in response to reception of a call in a game mode in which the user is playing a game. In other words, the game using the mobile telephone is not interrupted, but the reception is ignored. Alternatively, the received call is indicated by sound or display of the mobile telephone, and the game data are temporarily stored in a memory. After the speech, the game data are read from the memory to resume the game.

Description

Description: An incoming call processing method for a mobile phone having a game device function

The present invention relates to a mobile phone having a game device function that allows a user to play a game on a display screen, and more particularly to a call processing method for notifying a user of an incoming call during a game. Background art

In recent years, mobile phones such as cellular phones have been put into practical use, and are being developed to provide users with multi-functions other than existing phone functions. For example, a mobile phone having a game device function that allows a user to play a game on a display screen is provided. In addition, a mobile phone having a music playback function and a mobile phone having a video camera function are also provided.

Various methods have been proposed by manufacturers and technicians to handle incoming calls while performing the above functions other than the existing telephone functions. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-1137793 discloses an incoming call processing method in the imaging mode of a mobile phone. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-313130 discloses an incoming call processing method in a data input mode of a mobile communication device. However, to date, no manufacturer or technician has proposed a method for handling incoming calls in a game mode in which a user plays a game on a mobile phone. It is also possible for the user to interrupt the game and accept the incoming call. In that case, the game that was suddenly interrupted by the incoming call will proceed automatically regardless of the user's intention to interrupt the game, and then the game will be automatically terminated, so the user must restart the game from the beginning. Must. This wastes the time the user spends on the game. Also, if the user is enthusiastic about the game and ignores the incoming call, the surrounding people will be heard a loud ringtone and annoyed. Disclosure of the invention

An object of the present invention is to provide an incoming call processing method for performing incoming call processing in a game mode in which a user plays a game on a mobile phone.

A mobile phone having a game device function selectively executes four types of incoming call processing in response to an incoming call in a game mode indicating that the user is currently playing a game. That is, by the first process, the mobile phone ignores the incoming call and continues the game without interruption. In the second process, the mobile phone saves the game data indicating the status of the game currently being played by the user in the memory, notifies the user of the incoming call, and automatically stores the game data in the memory after the call ends. And restart the game. In the third process, the mobile phone notifies the incoming call by sound without interrupting the game. In that case, when the user presses the call button, the game is interrupted and the game data is stored in the memory. After the call, the game is restarted based on the game data. In the fourth process, the mobile phone notifies the incoming call by displaying a predetermined message on the screen without interrupting the game.

In the above, it is also possible to ask whether the user wants to restart the game after the call is over. In that case, the game is restarted in response to an instruction from the user. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electric configuration of a mobile phone according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a game process executed by the CPU of the mobile phone shown in FIG. It is a low chart.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an incoming call process executed by the CPU of the mobile phone in connection with the first process of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a call termination process executed in connection with the first process of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an incoming call process executed by the CPU of the mobile phone in connection with the second process of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a call termination process executed by the CPU of the mobile phone in connection with the second to fourth processes of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an incoming call process executed by the CPU of the mobile phone in connection with the third process of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an incoming call process executed by the CPU of the mobile phone in connection with the fourth process of the embodiment.

FIG. 9 shows an example of an image displayed on a screen according to the fourth process of the embodiment. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The present invention will be described in detail together with embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a mobile phone having a game device function according to one embodiment of the present invention. Here, reference numeral 1 denotes a central processing unit (CPU) that performs overall control of each block and circuit of the mobile phone. Reference numeral 12 denotes a read-only memory (ROM) that stores various programs executed by the CPU 11 to perform an incoming call process, a call termination process, a game process, and other processes. Reference numeral 13 denotes a game program area for storing a game program, a game data area for storing game data indicating the progress of the game, and other temporary storage areas. Including 'random access' memory (RAM). The game program can be pre-installed in ROM 12 or it can be distributed from the game server and downloaded to RAM I3. RAM I3 is provided with a battery-one backup. Reference numeral ₁₄ denotes a display comprising a liquid crystal display screen and a display control circuit. Reference numeral 15 denotes an input unit including numeric keys for inputting a telephone number and various function keys. Reference numeral 16 denotes a vibrator that generates vibration on a mobile phone and notifies the user of an incoming call.

Reference numeral 18 denotes a communication unit connected to the antenna 19. That is, the communication unit 18 transmits data by a carrier through the antenna 19. The communication unit 18 receives data via the antenna 19, demodulates the received data to generate an incoming signal, and sends it to the CPU 11 or the audio processing unit 20. The voice processing unit 20 inputs a voice signal output from the microphone 21 that picks up a user's voice. That is, the audio processing unit 20 converts the audio signal into digital data, compresses the digital data, and sends it to the communication unit 18 as transmission data. Further, the voice processing unit 20 converts the reception data corresponding to the incoming signal into an analog voice signal and sends the analog voice signal to the speaker 22. Reference numeral 23 denotes a ring tone generator that generates a signal indicating a ring tone or a ring tone according to a command from the CPU 11, and the signal is supplied to the speed 24.

Next, the operation of the mobile phone shown in Fig. 1 focusing on the incoming call processing in the game mode indicating that the user is playing a game, which is the main feature of the present embodiment compared with the conventional mobile phone, is described. explain. In this specification, details of ordinary telephone functions conventionally performed by an existing mobile phone, that is, a process of transmitting and receiving a call by a mobile phone and an ordinary incoming call receiving process are not described. That is, the mobile phone according to the present embodiment is programmed to execute various incoming call processes, that is, the first to fourth processes. Therefore, the user can select a desired process from the above-mentioned processes, which will be described below. (1) First process in which mobile phone does not notify user of incoming call

First, the game processing will be described with reference to FIG. When playing a game on a mobile phone, the user operates the input unit 15 in step Sal to set a game mode, thereby displaying a list of games on the screen of the display unit 14. . In step Sa2, the user selects a desired game from the game list. The CPU 11 reads a game program corresponding to the selected game from the ROM 12 or the RAM I 3 by selecting a desired game on the screen of the display unit 14. In step Sa3, the CPU 11 executes a game process, a key process, a display process, and a sound process based on the game program. For convenience, all of the above processing is referred to as game processing. The game process in step Sa3 is continuously executed until the CPU 11 detects the end of the game in step Sa4. When detecting the end of the game in step Sa4, the CPU 11 cancels the game mode in step Sa5. Thereafter, the CPU 11 returns to the normal telephone function of the mobile phone.

Next, the first processing will be described with reference to FIGS. When an incoming call is received, the flow proceeds to step Sbl, in which the CPU 11 inputs the incoming data (for example, the telephone number of the caller) supplied from the communication unit 18 that receives the incoming signal via the antenna 19. . Incoming data is written to RAM I3. Thereafter, the flow proceeds to step Sb2, where it is determined whether or not the mobile phone is currently set to the game mode. If the decision result in the step Sb2 is “NO”, the flow proceeds to a step Sb3, and an incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating section 23. Here, an incoming call notification can be sent to the display unit 4 or the vibrator 16. Upon receiving the incoming call notification, the ring tone generator 23 activates the speaker 24 to generate a ring tone. Thereafter, the flow proceeds to step Sb4, and it is determined whether or not the user has pressed the talk button of the input unit 15. If the determination result of step Sb4 is “NO”, the flow Proceed to step Sb5 to determine whether the line has been disconnected. If the decision result in the step Sb5 is "NO", the flow returns to the step Sb4. Therefore, the determinations in steps Sb4 and Sb5 are repeated until the user presses the call button or disconnects the line.

When the user presses the call button, the flow proceeds to step Sb6, and the end of the incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating section 23. Here, the end of the incoming call notification can be sent to the display unit 14 or the piebrator 16. Upon receipt of the incoming call notification, the ring tone generator 23 stops the ring tone. Next, the flow proceeds to step Sb7, in which the CPU 11 executes a call process. That is, the user makes a call using the mobile phone using the microphone 21 and the speaker 22. Thereafter, when the user presses the call end button, the CPU 11 executes a line disconnection process shown in FIG. If the decision result in the step Sb5 is "YES", the flow proceeds to a step Sb6 to send an end of the incoming call notification to the ringtone generating section 23 to stop the ringtone. Thereafter, the CPU 11 ends the incoming call processing of FIG.

If the decision result in the step Sb2 is "YES" and the game mode is set in the mobile phone, the CPU 11 immediately terminates the incoming call processing without executing the above operation. That is, when the first process is selected by the user, the mobile phone does not respond to an incoming call while the game mode is in progress. In this case, a predetermined message indicating that the user cannot answer the call is automatically sent to the caller's telephone terminal, similarly to when the mobile phone is turned off.

(2) Second process of interrupting the game and notifying the incoming call

The second process will be described with reference to FIGS. When an incoming call is received, the flow proceeds to step Scl, and the CPU 11 inputs the incoming data from the communication unit 18 and writes it to the RAM I3. In step Sc2, it is determined whether the mobile phone is set to the game mode. If the mobile phone is set to the game mode and the judgment result of step Sc2 is "YES", the flow proceeds to step Sc3, and the selection is made. The game data corresponding to the played game is written to RAM I3. More specifically, data relating to the type of the game and the progress and score of the game are stored in a specific area of the RAM 13. Thereafter, the flow proceeds to step Sc4. If the judgment result in step Sc2 is “NO”, the flow skips step Sc3 and proceeds directly to step Sc4.

In step Sc4, an incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating section 23. Here, it is also possible to send an incoming call notification to the display unit 14 or the vibrator 16. Upon receiving the incoming call notification, the ringtone generating section 23 activates the speed force 24 to generate a ringtone. Thereafter, the flow proceeds to step Sc5, where it is determined whether or not the call button has been pressed by the user. If the decision result in the step Sc5 is “NO”, the flow proceeds to a step Sc6 to determine whether or not the line is disconnected. If the decision result in the step Sc6 is “NO”, the flow returns to the step Sc5. Thereafter, the above-described determination in steps Sc5 and Sc6 is repeated until the user presses the talk button or disconnects the line.

When the call button is pressed by the user, the flow proceeds to step Sc7, and the end of the incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating section 23. Here, the end of the incoming call notification can be sent to the display unit 14 or the vibrator 16. In response to the termination of the incoming call notification, the ring tone generator 23 stops the ring tone. Thereafter, the flow proceeds to step Sc8, and the call processing is executed by the CPU 11. As a result, the user makes a telephone call using the microphone 21 and the speaker 22.

When the user presses the call end button, the flow proceeds to step Sdl shown in FIG. 6, and the CPU 11 executes a line disconnection process. In step Sd2, it is determined whether or not the mobile phone is currently set to the game mode. If the determination result in step Sd2 is “YES”, the flow proceeds to step Sd3, and the mobile phone inquires whether the user wants to restart the game. In other words, the CPU 11 A predetermined message "Resume game?" Is displayed on the screen. If the user operates the mobile phone to instruct the game to be restarted, that is, if the determination result in step Sd4 is “YES”, the flow proceeds to step Sd5, where the CPU 11 is set to the specified area in the SRAM 13 The game data is read out to restart the game. If the user has no intention to restart the game and the determination result of step Sd4 is “NO”, the flow proceeds to step Sd6, and the game mode is canceled.

According to the second process, when the mobile phone receives an incoming call while the game mode is in progress, the CPU 11 stores the game data in the RAM I3, and thereafter interrupts the game and issues a call notification. After the call, the mobile phone automatically asks if the user wants to resume the game. When the user instructs to restart the game, the game is restarted on the mobile phone.

(3) Third Process of Incoming Call Notification by Speaker Without Interrupting Game The third process will be described with reference to FIG. When an incoming call is received by the mobile phone, the flow proceeds to step Sel, and the CPU 11 inputs the incoming data from the communication unit 18 and writes it into the RAM I3. In step Se2, it is determined whether or not the mobile phone is currently set to the game mode. If the mobile phone is set to the game mode and the determination result in step Se2 is “YES”, the flow proceeds to step Se3, and an incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating section 23. As a result, the ringtone generating section 23 activates the speed force 24 to generate a ringtone. The game sound is muted while the mobile phone is ringing. It is also possible to make settings so that an incoming call notification is made by the display unit 14 or the vibrator 16. Despite the above setting, CPU 11 always executes step Se3, and speaker 24 generates a ring tone according to the third processing. Therefore, CPU 11 controls display section 14 and vibrator 16 The above settings will be ignored. If the mobile phone is not set to the game mode and the result of the determination in step Se2 is “NO”, the mobile phone communicates to realize the phone function. Perform regular procedures. That is, the incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating section 23, the display section 14, and the piper 16.

After the end of step Se3 or Se4, the flow proceeds to step Se5, and it is determined whether or not the call button has been pressed by the user. If the decision result in the step Se5 is "NO", the flow proceeds to a step Se6 to determine whether or not the line is disconnected. If the decision result in the step Se6 is “NO”, the flow returns to the step Se5. Thereafter, the above determination in steps Se5 and Se6 is repeated until the user presses the talk button or the line is disconnected. When the call button is pressed by the user, the flow proceeds to step Se7, and if the mobile phone is currently set to the game mode, the game data is stored in the RAM I3. Thereafter, the flow proceeds to step Se8, and the end of the incoming call notification is sent to the ringtone generating unit 23, the display unit 14, or the vibrator 16. As a result, the ringtone generating section 23 stops the ringtone. In step Se9, the CPU 11 executes a call process. This allows the user to make a call with the mobile phone using the microphone 21 or the speaker 22. When the call end button is pressed by the user, the CPU 11 executes the processing described with reference to FIG.

According to the third process described above, when the mobile phone receives an incoming call while the game mode is in progress, the CPU 11 leaves the progress of the game and activates the speaker 24 to generate a ring tone. In this case, when the game is over and the user presses the call end button, the CPU 11 interrupts the game, writes the game data into the RAM I3, and thereafter executes the call processing.

(4) Fourth Process for Incoming Call Notification on Display without Interrupting Game The fourth process will be described with reference to FIGS. The difference between the third processing (FIGS. 6 and 7) and the fourth processing (FIGS. 6 and 8) lies in steps Se3 and Sf3. That is, compared to the third process shown in FIG. 7, the fourth process shown in FIG. It is characterized by replacing it with Sf3. That is, if the mobile phone receives an incoming call while the game mode is in progress, the incoming call notification using part of the display unit 14 is made without performing the incoming call notification using the speaker 24. FIG. 9 shows an example of an image displayed on the screen of the display unit 14 by the fourth processing. That is, if the user receives an incoming call while playing a fishing game on the mobile phone screen, the CPU 11 automatically controls the display unit 14 and displays a predetermined message “ Medium! ”(Refer to reference numeral 40 in Fig. 9) blinks. This message is automatically deleted from the screen when the flow proceeds to step Sf8 for terminating the incoming call notification. While the game is in progress, the user usually looks at the screen of the display unit 14, so that the notification of the incoming call can be reliably transmitted to the user simply by displaying the message on the screen.

The first to fourth processing contents described so far can be changed within the scope of the present invention. For example, the inquiry about whether or not the user wants to resume the game (step Sd3 in FIG. 6) is omitted, and the CPU 11 automatically resumes the game after the call ends without making the inquiry to the user. It is also possible. The present invention has various effects and technical features, and will be described below. (1) When an incoming call is received by a mobile phone while the game mode is in progress, the first processing prohibits the notification of the incoming call by the mobile phone. This has the advantage that the user is not disturbed by the game.

(2) When a mobile phone receives an incoming call while the game mode is in progress, the second process stores the game data in the memory and notifies the incoming call. This ensures a quick response to the incoming call. After the call ends, the game data is read from the memory and the game is resumed from the interrupted stage. This prevents the user from wasting time on games.

(3) The third processing when an incoming call is received by a mobile phone while the game mode is in progress Generates a ringtone. The game is not automatically interrupted by the incoming call, and the user does not need to interrupt the game. When the user presses the call button, in the third process, the game data is automatically stored in the memory, and then, after the call ends, the game data is read from the memory and the game is restarted. As a result, the temporary interruption of the game during a call does not affect the score obtained by playing the game. Usually, a user plays a game by operating a key switch while staring at a screen. Therefore, when an incoming call is notified by a vibrator that vibrates the display unit or mobile phone, the user is likely to make mistakes in game play, which adversely affects the user's score. .

(4) When an incoming call is received by the mobile phone while the game mode is in progress, a predetermined message related to the incoming call notification is displayed on the screen in the fourth process. This has the advantage that noisy sounds do not disturb the user's game play, and displaying a predetermined message at a specific corner of the screen does not adversely affect the user's score. During the game, the user usually looks at the screen, so it is possible to reliably notify the user of the incoming call simply by using the display. It also avoids wasting power. If the user interrupts the game for a while, the incoming call notification will remain on the screen until the user presses the call button. Even if the user ignores the incoming call notification on the screen, the mobile phone does not emit a sound, so that it is possible to prevent troublesome people around the user. The present invention is not necessarily limited to the above embodiment, and the present embodiment can be modified within the scope of the invention without departing from the essentials of the invention.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. Detect an incoming call in the game mode where the mobile phone user is currently playing the game,

An incoming call processing method for a mobile phone that has a game device function that prohibits the mobile phone from making an incoming call notification and allows the game to proceed continuously.

2. Detect an incoming call in the game mode where the mobile phone user is currently playing the game,

Game data indicating the status of the game currently being played by the user is stored in the memory,

Notify the incoming call and allow the user to talk on the mobile phone,

After the call is over, the game data is automatically read from memory,

An incoming call processing method for a mobile phone having a game device function of restarting a game on the mobile phone based on the game data.

3. After the call, ask the user if they would like to resume the game.

The method of claim 2, wherein the game data is read from the memory in response to a command from the user and the game is restarted.

4. Detect an incoming call in the game mode where the mobile phone user is currently playing the game,

In response to the incoming call, a ring tone is generated and an incoming call notification is made to notify the user of the incoming call, Detecting whether the user presses the call button to initiate a mobile phone call, receiving the call button detection, automatically storing game data indicating the status of the game currently in progress in the memory,

After the call is over, the game data is automatically read from memory,

5. Detect an incoming call in the game mode where the mobile phone user is currently playing the game,

In response to the incoming call, a predetermined message is displayed on the screen to notify the incoming call to notify the user of the incoming call,

Detecting whether the user presses the call button to initiate a mobile phone call, receiving the call button detection, automatically storing game data indicating the status of the game currently in progress in the memory,

After the call is over, the game data is automatically read from memory,

6. After the call, ask if the user wants to resume the game.

The method according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the game data is read from the memory in response to a command from the user and the game is restarted.

7.When a user detects an incoming call in the game mode in which the user is currently playing the game, a mobile device having a game device function for continuously proceeding with the game without notifying the incoming call is not issued.

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