Advanced voice and data operations in a mobile data communication device

• US 20020128036A1
• Filed: 03/11/2002
• Published: 09/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Yach, David P., Major, Harry R., Mousseau, Gary P., Lazaridis, Mihal, Vander Veen, Raymond P., Asthana, Atul
• Granted Patent: US 7,295,836 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/552.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/725 Cordless telephones user interfaces specially adapted therefor H04M1/724
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42323 PBX's with CTI arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A system and method for integrating voice and data operations into a single mobile device capable of simultaneously performing data and voice actions. The mobile device working in a network capable of exchanging both cell phone calls and data items to the mobile device. By wearing an earphone or an ear-bud device the user is capable of dealing with voice conversations while working with data centric information related to the current caller. By providing a data-centric device with voice capabilities there is a new range of features that allow incoming data events to trigger outgoing voice events.

Claims

1. A method for initiating a telephone call using a dual mode mobile device having data and voice components, the data component for storing, retrieving, receiving and displaying data, and the voice component for establishing telephone calls, the method comprising:

receiving a data item;

identifying a phone number associated with the data item; and

initiating a telephone call to the associated phone number.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving the data item includes the step of receiving data items from a computer associated with the mobile device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the data item is an email message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data item is a calendar appointment.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the data item is an item on a todo list.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying the phone number includes reading a phone number embedded in the data item.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying the phone number includes referencing a phone number, associated with identifying information embedded in the data item, in an address book.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of referencing a phone number includes the step of establishing a connection to an associated computer hosting the address book.

9. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of identifying includes the step of selecting a field in the email message.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of identifying includes cross-referencing the selected field with an email address field in an address book.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of identifying includes cross-referencing the selected field with a name entry in an address book.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of identifying includes parsing the selected field to determine the phone number.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of parsing includes mapping alphabetic characters to a phone number.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying includes selecting a phone number from a plurality of numbers associated with the data item.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying includes selecting a plurality of phone numbers.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of initiating a telephone call includes initiating a conference call to each of the selected plurality of phone numbers.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of initiating a telephone call includes the step of establishing a communications channel with a cellular phone network.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of initiating a telephone call includes the step of establishing a communications channel with a data based network.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of establishing a communications channel includes establishing a voice-over-packet data session.

20. A method of presenting caller information on a dual mode mobile device having data and voice components, with a set of call preferences, the data component for storing, retrieving, receiving, and displaying data, having applications, and the voice component for receiving telephone calls, the method comprising:

receiving a voice call containing caller identification information;

determining the data component application to launch based on the call preferences; and

launching the determined data component application.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the set of call preferences provides maps different incoming numbers to different applications.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the set of call preferences includes prompting the user for an application to launch.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein the application includes a calendar.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein the application includes a call log.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the application includes an address book.

26. The method of claim 20, wherein the application includes an email client.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein the caller identification information includes an originating phone number.

28. The method of claim 20, wherein the caller identification information includes a caller name.

29. The method of claim 22, wherein the caller identification information is provided to the application launched.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the caller identification information is supplemented by information in an address book entry that is associated with the caller identification information.

31. The method of claim 23, wherein the receipt of a call creates a calendar appointment.

32. The method of claim 24, wherein the call log records the caller identification information in an editable format.

33. The method of claim 25, where the address book presents the address information associated with the caller identification information.

34. The method of claim 25, where the address book creates a new address book entry to store information associated with the caller identification information.

35. The method of claim 26, wherein the email client creates an email message addressed to and address associated with the caller identification information.

37. The dual mode mobile device of claim 36, wherein the voice component is connected to a telephone network for initiating and receiving telephone calls.

38. The dual mode mobile device of claim 37, wherein the telephone network is a cellular telephone network.

39. The dual mode mobile device of claim 36, wherein the data packet network is a wireless data packet network.

40. The dual mode mobile device of claim 36, wherein the voice component is connected to the data packet network for receiving and initiating telephone calls using Voice over Packet data channels.

41. The dual mode mobile device of claim 36, wherein the data component has a preferences table that determines an application to launch upon receiving caller identification information from the voice component.

42. The dual mode mobile device of claim 36, wherein the voice component initiates a telephone call upon receiving call initiation information from the data component.

43. The dual mode mobile device of claim 36, wherein the data component is additionally for establishing data communication channels with a computer over the data network to transfer data.

36. A dual mode mobile device connected to a data packet network, the device comprising:

a data component for storing, retrieving, receiving and displaying data including e-mail messages, calendar appointments, address information, for launching applications associated with the data, and for connecting to the data packet network for sending and receiving data; and

a voice component, connected to the data component for receiving call initiation information, the voice component for initiating and receiving telephone calls, and caller identification information, and for providing the received caller identification information to the data component for cross reference to the data.

44. A method of synchronising data between a computer and mobile device connected by a wireless network, and intermittently connected by a physical link, the method comprising:

interrogating the physical link to determine if a connection is present;

synchronising the data of the computer and the mobile device using the physical link when the physical link is available; and

synchronising the data of the computer and the mobile device using the wireless network connection when the physical link is unavailable.

45. A wireless connector, operatively connected to a computer having data and associated with a mobile device, for routing data between the computer and mobile device, to a wireless network for connecting to the mobile device associated with the computer, and to a cradle for intermittently connecting to the mobile device, the wireless connector comprising:

cradle interrogation means for determining the status of the connection between the cradle and the mobile device;

cradle mobile device transfer means, operatively connected to the cradle interrogation means and the cradle, for routing data from the computer to the mobile device through the cradle when the cradle interrogating means indicate that the mobile device is connected to the cradle; and

wireless mobile device transfer means, operatively connected to the cradle interrogation means and the wireless network, for routing data from the computer to the mobile device through the wireless network when the cradle interrogating means indicate that the mobile device is not connected to the cradle.