Method and a device for signaling a call or a message to its addressee

• US 20020160819A1
• Filed: 02/12/2002
• Published: 10/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Daurensan, Veronique
• Granted Patent: US 7,092,700 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/567
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/575 Means for retrieving and displaying personal data about calling party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/7243 with interactive means for internal management of messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/041 Encoding the ringing signal, i.e. providing distinctive or selective ringing capability

Abstract

In a method of signaling an incoming call or electronic message from a given sender to the user of a receiver terminal to whom the call or message is addressed, the receiver terminal identifies the sender, allows for at least one changeable or predetermined parameter relating to the sender, and dynamically selects at least one signaling mode and/or at least one signaling device available in the receiver terminal as a function of the state of the parameter or parameters linked to the sender.

Claims

1. A method of signaling an incoming call or electronic message from a given sender to the user of a receiver terminal to whom said call or message is addressed, in which method said receiver terminal performs the following steps:

identifying the sender;

allowing for at least one changeable or predetermined parameter relating to said sender; and

dynamically selecting at least one signaling mode and/or at least one signaling device available in said receiver terminal as a function of the state of said at least one parameter linked to the sender.

2. The method claimed in claim 1 wherein said dynamic selection step also allows for another parameter programmed by said user and/or the state of a parameter related to the environment or to the status of said receiver terminal.

3. The method claimed in claim 1 wherein, for each new call or message, one changeable parameter relating to said sender that is allowed for corresponds to the number of earlier calls or messages from the same sender not answered immediately or later by the addressee, said parameter being modified, for example incremented, if said new call or message is not answered, where applicable subject to corresponding authorization by said user.

4. The method claimed in claim 1 wherein one changeable parameter relating to the sender that is allowed for in the case of an electronic message corresponds to the degree of importance attached to said message.

5. The method claimed in claim 1 wherein said predetermined parameter relating to said sender that is allowed for corresponds to the identity of said sender.

6. The method claimed in claim 2 wherein said parameters programmed by said user of said receiver terminal are chosen from the group consisting of a specific degree of priority or importance attached to different predefined senders, the current situation or status of said user, and preferences of said user in terms of available signaling and warning modes and/or devices.

7. The method claimed in claim 2 wherein said parameters that are associated with the environment or the status of said receiver terminal and are used to modify the mode of use of the selected signaling device or devices are chosen from the group consisting of the background noise level, the background brightness level, the remaining battery charge of the receiver terminal, and the functional availability of the signaling devices.

8. The method claimed in claim 1 wherein, each time a new incoming call or message is received, at least one signaling mode and/or at least one signaling device or a combination of signaling modes and/or devices are determined, possibly in conjunction with respective degrees of intensity of their use, by selecting said modes and/or devices on the basis of one or more graduated scales, for example scales of effectiveness of warning, each of said scales being associated with a current situation and/or status of said user programmed by said user, and as a function of a value or a level of warning calculated from changeable or non-changeable parameters associated with said sender.

9. The method claimed in claim 1 wherein, each time a new incoming call or message is received, a signaling mode and/or a signaling device are selected after, on the one hand, analyzing the different types of parameters that are relevant and, on the other hand, allowing for their relative importance as predefined by the user, and, finally, verifying the existence of multiparameter selection configurations preprogrammed by said user and applying to said incoming call or message.

10. A telecommunication terminal adapted to be connected to a communication network and including a device for signaling an incoming call or an incoming electronic message from a caller using a given sender terminal to the user of said telecommunication terminal, to whom said call or message is addressed, which terminal includes, on the one hand, means for identifying the number or the address of said sender and, on the other hand, a module for dynamically selecting at least one signaling mode and/or device available in said telecommunication terminal as a function of the state of at least one changeable or predetermined parameter relating to said sender and allowed for by said module, where applicable, in conjunction with the state of at least one parameter programmed by said user and/or the state of at least one parameter relating to the environment or to the status of said telecommunication terminal.

11. The telecommunication terminal claimed in claim 10, further including a history file for storing automatically, for each call or message, the number or the address of said sender and either the number of successive calls or messages sent by each of said senders which the user of the telecommunication terminal has not answered or a simple indication that said senders are awaiting an answer, said history file being updated automatically on each new call or message by incrementing the variable indicating the number of unanswered previous calls or messages from said sender, by activating an indicator that the sender concerned is awaiting a response, or by creating a new location in said history file for storing the number or the address of said sender and the corresponding variable or indicator.

12. The terminal claimed in claim 11 wherein said dynamic selector module is adapted, after allowing for said number or said address of said sender, to read the value of said variable or the state of said indicator assigned to said sender, said information constituting a first changeable parameter relating to said sender.

13. The telecommunication terminal claimed in claim 10 further including a file for assigning degrees of priority or importance specific to given senders, a file for indicating and configuring said signaling device or devices as a function of values and/or states of parameters allowed for by said dynamic selector module, a file or a programmable variable indicating the current situation or status of said user, and a file containing parameters relating to the environment or to the status of said mobile terminal, said files and/or said variable being consulted, together with said history file, and their contents being used by said dynamic selector module to control said signaling means to generate a warning signal or message appropriate for said user.