Mobile handset including alert mechanism

• US 20040203490A1
• Filed: 09/19/2002
• Published: 10/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: Kaplan, Diego
• Granted Patent: US 7,706,843 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/90.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/22 Illumination; Arrangements for improving the visibility of characters on dials
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/04 the ringing-current being generated at the substations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/048 Arrangements providing optical indication of the incoming call, e.g. flasher circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A mobile handset including a light-alert feature that overcomes some of the problems of cell phone ringers and vibration mechanisms. A mobile handset includes a phone housing, a display carried by the phone housing, one or more illumination devices other than the display carried by the housing that illuminate upon one or more events, and at least one of electronics and software to cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate upon one or more events.

Claims

1. A mobile handset, comprising:

a phone housing;

a display carried by the phone housing;

one or more illumination devices other than the display carried by the housing that illuminate upon one or more events; and

at least one of electronics and software to cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate upon one or more events.

2. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices include one or more LEDs with variable intensity levels.

3. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices include multiple illumination devices organized in one or more sets.

4. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate an incoming communication on the phone, and the phone further includes a receiver to receive one or more signals representative of an incoming communication and at least one of electronics and software to process the one or more signals representative of the incoming communication and cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate upon an incoming communication.

5. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate a power level of the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate a power level of the phone.

6. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate signal strength of the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate signal strength of the phone.

7. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate events occurring in a program run on the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate events occurring in the program run on the phone.

8. The phone of claim 7, wherein the program is a video game.

9. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate sound characteristics of a sound file run on the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate sound characteristics of the sound file run on the phone.

10. The phone of claim 7, wherein the sound characteristics include frequency levels.

11. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices include two vertical columns of illumination devices.

12. The phone of claim 1, wherein the one or more illumination devices include more than one type of illumination device.

13. The phone of claim 1, wherein the phone housing includes a front face, a rear face, a top end, a bottom end, a left side, and a right side, and the one or more illumination devices are carried by at least one of the front face, the rear face, the top end, the bottom end, the left side, and the right side.

14. The phone of claim 1, wherein the phone housing carries the one or more illumination devices on opposite sides of the display.

15. The phone of claim 1, wherein the phone further includes a graphical user interface that allows a user to set specific illumination patterns for one or more events.

16. The phone of claim 15, wherein the one or more events include a member from the group consisting of an incoming call, a business call, a personal call, an incoming text message, an incoming voice message, an outgoing communication, a schedular alert, and an alarm.

17. The phone of claim 15, wherein the specific illumination patterns include a member from the group consisting of a solid pattern, a circle pattern, an upwards pattern, a downwards pattern, an opposite pattern, and an up-and fall pattern.

18. The phone of claim 1, wherein the phone includes one or more data files that at least one of electronics and software process to cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate in one or more patterns upon one or more events, the one or more data files include multiple records, and the records define states and durations for the one or more illumination devices.

19. The phone of claim 18, wherein the one or more illumination devices include eight illumination devices, and each record includes three bytes to define the states of the eight illumination devices and one byte to define the duration.

20. A method of alerting a user of a mobile handset of an event on the phone, comprising the steps of:

providing a mobile handset including a phone housing, a display carried by the phone housing, one or more illumination devices other than the display carried by the housing, and at least one of electronics and software; and

causing the one or more illumination devices to illuminate upon one or more events with at least one of the electronics and software to alert a user of the one or more events.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more illumination devices include one or more LEDs with variable intensity levels.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate an incoming communication on the phone, and the phone further includes a receiver to receive one or more signals representative of an incoming communication and at least one of electronics and software to process the one or more signals representative of the incoming communication and cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate upon an incoming communication.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate a power level of the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate a power level of the phone.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate signal strength of the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate signal strength of the phone.

25. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate events occurring in a program run on the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate events occurring in the program run on the phone.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the program is a video game.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more illumination devices indicate sound characteristics of a sound file run on the phone, and at least one of electronics and software of the phone cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate to indicate sound characteristics of the sound file run on the phone.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the sound characteristics include frequency levels.

29. The method of claim 20, wherein the phone housing carries the one or more illumination devices on opposite sides of the display.

30. The method of claim 20, wherein the phone further includes a graphical user interface, and the method further includes using the graphical user interface to set specific illumination patterns for one or more events.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the one or more events include a member from the group consisting of an incoming call, a business call, a personal call, an incoming text message, an incoming voice message, an outgoing communication, a schedular alert, and an alarm.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the specific illumination patterns include a member from the group consisting of a solid pattern, a circle pattern, an upwards pattern, a downwards pattern, an opposite pattern, and an up-and fall pattern.

33. The method of claim 20, wherein the phone includes one or more data files that at least one of electronics and software process to cause the one or more illumination devices to illuminate in one or more patterns upon one or more events, the one or more data files include multiple records, and the records define states and durations for the one or more illumination devices.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the one or more illumination devices include eight illumination devices, and each record includes three bytes to define the states of the eight illumination devices and one byte to define the duration.

35. A method of alerting a user of a mobile handset of an incoming call on the phone, comprising the steps of:

providing a mobile handset including a light, a receiver to receive one or more signals representative of an incoming call, and at least one of electronics and software to process the one or more signals representative of the incoming call and cause the light to illuminate upon an incoming call;

receiving one or more signals representative of an incoming call with the receiver;

processing the one or more signals representative of the incoming call with at least one of electronics and software;

causing the light to illuminate to alert a user of an incoming call.