Mobile phone image display system

• US 20050250548A1
• Filed: 04/29/2005
• Published: 11/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Canon Europa N.V. (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Europa N.V. (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: White, Barry
• Application Number:
  US11/117,941
• Publication Number:
  US 20050250548A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/566
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/54 Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72439 for image or video messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72445 for supporting Internet browser applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00132 in a digital photofinishing system, i.e. a system where digital photographic images undergo typical photofinishing processing, e.g. printing ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00137 Transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00151 with selective access
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00164 at a remote location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00177 from a user terminal, e.g. personal computer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00307 with a mobile telephone apparatus constructional features of portable telephone sets H04M1/0202; mobile radio systems H04W84/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00464 using browsers, i.e. interfaces based on mark-up languages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4335 Housekeeping operations, e.g. prioritizing content for deletion because of storage space restrictions storage management, e.g. defragmentation G06F3/0604; unloading stored programs G06F9/445; storage management in file systems G06F16/10; buffering arrangements in a network node or in an end terminal in packet networks H04L49/90
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440263 by altering the spatial resolution, e.g. for displaying on a connected PDA
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0039 Connection via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

An image browser program for use on a mobile phone, which, when executed on the mobile phone, performs a method including receiving a list of albums containing a plurality of images from a server system. The album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of albums accessible by a user. The album list is displayed on a display of the mobile phone so that the user can select an album from the album list.

Claims

1-66. -66. (canceled)

67. A computer-readable storage medium storing an image browser program for use on a mobile phone, which, when executed on the mobile phone, performs a method comprising the following steps:

receiving a list of albums containing a plurality of images from a server system, wherein the album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of albums accessible by a user, and

displaying the album list on a display of the mobile phone so that the user can select an album from the album list.

68. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 67, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the following steps:

retrieving from the server system, in response to a user selection of an album from the album list, a list of images in the selected album, and

displaying the image list on the display so that the user can select an image from the image list.

69. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 68, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the step of displaying the image list as thumbnails.

70. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 68, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the following steps:

receiving the selected image from the server system, in response to a user selection of an image from the image list, and

displaying the selected image on the display.

71. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 70, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the steps of displaying the selected image on the display without a link to other images included in the display, and retrieving and displaying further images in response to a user input using user input controls of the mobile phone.

72. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 67, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the following step:

tagging an image or album, or individual images contained therein, in response to a user selection of an image or album from an image list or the album list, for processing according to an action to be selected subsequently.

73. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 69, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the step of:

formatting each displayed image, or thumbnail to characteristics of the mobile phone.

74. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 70, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the following steps:

storing images sent by the server system in a cache, and

displaying a selected image already stored in the cache by accessing it the selected image from the cache.

75. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 67, wherein the album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of albums belonging to a user.

99. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 67, wherein the images comprise at least one of still images and moving images.

100. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 69, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the following steps:

receiving an image from the server system, in response to a user selection of a thumbnail from the image list, the received image corresponding to the selected thumbnail, and

displaying the selected image on the display.

101. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 72, wherein the action to be selected subsequently includes at least one of printing the tagged image or album, and sharing the tagged image or album with other users.

102. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 68, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the step of displaying selected images on the display as a slideshow in which each image is displayed for a predetermined time.

103. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 73, wherein the characteristics include at least one of screen size information, image format information, color information, and resolution information.

104. The computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 69, wherein the method performed by the image browser program further comprises the steps of displaying a partial list of thumbnails, and indicating to the user that further thumbnails are available.

76. A method of displaying images on a display of a mobile phone, the images stored on a server system in at least one album containing a plurality of images, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a list of albums from the server system, wherein the album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of albums accessible by a user, and

displaying the album list on the display so that the user can select an album from the album list.

77. A method of displaying images as claimed in claim 76, further comprising the steps of:

retrieving from the server system, in response to user selection of an album from the album list, a list of images in the selected album, and

displaying the image list on the display so that the user can select an image from the image list.

78. A method of displaying images as claimed in claim 77, wherein the image list is displayed as thumbnails.

79. A method of displaying images as claimed in claim 77, further comprising the steps of:

receiving the selected image from the server system, in response to user selection of an image from the image list, and

displaying the selected image on the display.

80. A method of displaying images as claimed in claim 79, wherein the selected image is displayed on the display without a link to other images included in the display, and further images are retrieved and displayed in response to a user input using user input controls of the mobile phone.

81. A method of displaying images as claimed in claim 76, further comprising the step of:

tagging an image or album, or individual images contained therein, in response to a user selection of an image or album from an image list or the album list, for processing according to an action to be selected subsequently.

82. A method of displaying images as claimed in claim 78, further comprising the step of:

formatting each displayed image or thumbnail to characteristics of the mobile phone.

83. A method of displaying images as claimed claim 76, wherein the album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of the albums belonging to a user.

84. A method of displaying images as claimed claim 79, further comprising the steps of:

storing images sent by the server system in a cache, and

displaying a selected image already stored in the cache by accessing it the selected image from the cache.

85. A mobile phone comprising a display and an image browser program, wherein the image browser program is arranged to:

receive a list of albums containing a plurality of images from a server system, wherein

the album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of the albums accessible by a user, and

display the album list on the display so that the user can select an album from the album list.

86. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 85, wherein the image browser program is arranged to:

retrieve from the server system, in response to a user selection of an album from the album list, a list of images in the selected album, and display the image list on the display so that the user can select an image from the image list.

87. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 86, wherein the image list is displayed as thumbnails.

88. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 86, wherein the image browser program is arranged to:

receive the selected image from the server system, in response to a user selection of an image from the image list, and

display the selected image on the display.

89. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 88, wherein the image browser program is arranged to display the selected image on the display without a link to other images included in the display, and to retrieve and display further images in response to a user input using user input controls of the mobile phone.

90. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 85, wherein the image browser program is arranged to:

tag an image or album, or individual images contained therein, in response to a user selection of an image or album from an image list or the album list, for processing according to an action to be selected subsequently.

91. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 87, wherein the image browser program is arranged to:

format each displayed image or thumbnail to characteristics of the mobile phone.

92. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 88, wherein the image browser program is arranged to:

store images sent by the server system in a cache, and

display a selected image already stored in the cache by accessing it the selected image from the cache.

93. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 85, wherein the album list is determined by the server system to be comprised of the albums belonging to a user.

94. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 85, wherein the image browser program is a J2ME MIDlet.

95. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 85, wherein the mobile phone communicates with the server system using the internet.

96. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 95, wherein the mobile phone is connected to the internet using the GSM or GRPS communication protocol.

97. A mobile phone as claimed in claims 85, wherein the image browser program is arranged to send a request to the server system to make an image selected by the user available to other users of the server system.

98. A mobile phone as claimed in claim 86, wherein the image browser program is arranged to send a request to the server system to send an image selected by the user to the mobile phone as an MMS image.