Phone synchronization device and method of handling personal information

• US 20060003806A1
• Filed: 07/02/2004
• Published: 01/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bridges, J. Bradley, Harrison, Donna M., Weber, Jeffrey G.
• Application Number:
  US10/884,383
• Publication Number:
  US 20060003806A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/04 Supports for telephone transmitters or receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72409 by interfacing with external accessories hands-free H04M1/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/725 Cordless telephones user interfaces specially adapted therefor H04M1/724

Abstract

A phone synchronization device and method of synchronizing electronic address book data between multiple phone devices is disclosed. In a particular embodiment, the phone synchronization device includes a housing having a support base, a first phone device reception slot, and a second phone device reception slot. The first phone device reception slot includes a first data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a first phone device when the first phone device is disposed within the first phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the first data synchronization port. The second phone device reception slot includes a second data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a second phone device when the second phone device is disposed within the second phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the second data synchronization port. The phone synchronization device also includes a synchronization data communication bus that is coupled to the first synchronization port and that is coupled to the second synchronization port.

Claims

1. A phone synchronization device comprising:

a housing having a support base, a first phone device reception slot, and a second phone device reception slot,

the first phone device reception slot including a first data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a first phone device when the first phone device is disposed within the first phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the first data synchronization port,

the second phone device reception slot including a second data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a second phone device when the second phone device is disposed within the second phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the second data synchronization port, and

a synchronization data communication bus, the synchronization data communication bus coupled to the first synchronization port and coupled to the second synchronization port to carry transmission of synchronization data between the first and second synchronization ports.

2. The phone synchronization device of claim 1, wherein the first phone device reception slot includes a first phone charging circuit to provide electrical charge to a battery within the first phone device.

3. The phone synchronization device of claim 1, wherein the second phone device reception slot includes a second phone charging circuit to provide electrical charge to a battery within the second phone device.

4. The phone synchronization device of claim 1, wherein the first phone device reception slot is configured to receive a first type of phone device and wherein the second phone device reception slot is configured to receive a second type of phone device.

5. The phone synchronization device of claim 4, wherein the first type of phone device is a cellular phone device and the second type of phone device is a cordless phone device.

6. The phone synchronization device of claim 4, wherein the first type of phone device is a wireless phone device and the second type of phone device is a computing device.

7. The phone synchronization device of claim 6, wherein the computing device is a personal digital assistant computing device.

8. The phone synchronization device of claim 1, wherein the first phone device includes a first electronic address book including a first set of address book data and wherein the second phone device includes a second electronic address book including a second set of address book data.

9. The phone synchronization device of claim 8, further comprising a processor including data synchronization logic to synchronize the first set of address book data and the second set of address book data such that both sets of address book data contain a common set of address book information.

10. The phone synchronization device of claim 9, wherein the common set of address book information includes contact list information, calendar information, buddy list information, and user preference information.

11. The phone synchronization device of claim 9, wherein the data synchronization logic is configured to provide data synchronization without relying upon external network communication and wherein the housing is disconnected from an external data network.

12. The phone synchronization device of claim 1, wherein the first phone device initiates call forwarding of incoming calls to the second phone device.

13. The phone synchronization device of claim 9, wherein the processor including the data synchronization logic is disposed within one of the first phone device and the second phone device.

14. The phone synchronization device of claim 9, wherein the processor including the data synchronization logic is disposed within the housing and is coupled to the synchronization data communication bus.

15. The phone synchronization device of claim 14, wherein initiation of synchronization is triggered automatically in response to detecting docking of the first phone device within the first phone device reception slot and detecting docking of the second phone device within the second phone device reception slot.

16. The phone synchronization device of claim 14, wherein synchronization initialization is triggered manually.

17. A method of synchronizing electronic address book data between multiple phone devices, the method comprising:

detecting docking of a first phone device having a first address book within a first reception location within a phone synchronization cradle;

detecting docking of a second phone device having a second address book within a second reception location within the phone synchronization cradle;

initiating data synchronization to synchronize data between the first address book and the second address book.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first phone device is a first type of device and the second phone device is a second type of device.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the second type of device is a computing device having phone features.

20. The method of claim 19, where the computing device is a personal digital assistant.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the first type of device is one of a cellular telephone and a cordless telephone.

22. The method of claim 17, further comprising communicating data between the first phone device and the second phone device locally using an internal data bus within a housing of the phone synchronization cradle and without use of an external network.

23. A phone synchronization device comprising:

a housing having a support base, a first phone device reception slot and a second phone device reception slot,

the first phone device reception slot including a first data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a first phone device when the first phone device is disposed within the first phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the first data synchronization port,

the second phone device reception slot including a second data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a second phone device when the second phone device is disposed within the second phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the second data synchronization port,

a synchronization data communication bus, the synchronization data communication bus coupled to the first synchronization port and coupled to the second synchronization port to carry transmission of synchronization data between the first and second synchronization ports, and

an external dongle attachment, the external dongle attachment coupled to the housing via an extension wire, the external dongle attachment having an external device connector to attach to an external communication device having an electronic address book.

24. The phone synchronization device of claim 23, wherein the first phone device reception slot includes a first phone charging circuit to provide electrical charge to a battery within the first phone device and wherein the second phone device reception slot includes a second phone charging circuit to provide electrical charge to a battery within the second phone device.

25. The phone synchronization device of claim 23, wherein the first phone device reception slot is configured to receive a first type of phone device, the second phone device reception slot is configured to receive a second type of phone device, and the dongle attachment is configured to receive a third type of device.

26. The phone synchronization device of claim 25, wherein the first phone device includes a first electronic address book including a first set of address book data and the second phone device includes a second electronic address book including a second set of address book data.

27. The phone synchronization device of claim 26, further comprising a processor including data synchronization logic to synchronize the first set of address book data, the second set of address book data, and the external address book of the external device, such that all sets of address book data contain a common set of address book information.

28. The phone synchronization device of claim 27, wherein the common set of address book information includes contact list information, calendar information, buddy list information, and user preference information.

29. The phone synchronization device of claim 28, wherein the processor including the data synchronization logic is disposed within one of the first phone device, the second phone device, and the external device.

30. The phone synchronization device of claim 28, wherein the processor including the data synchronization logic is disposed within the housing and is coupled to the synchronization data communication bus.

31. An electronic address book data synchronization device comprising:

a housing having a support base;

a first phone device reception slot within a portion of the housing, the first phone device reception slot including a first data synchronization port configured to receive and transmit data with respect to a first phone device when the first phone device is disposed within the first phone device reception slot and is in electrical contact with the first data synchronization port;

a second data port coupled to an external dongle attachment via an extension wire; and

a synchronization data communication bus, the synchronization data communication bus coupled to the first synchronization port and coupled to the second data port and configured to carry transmission of synchronization data between the first phone device and an external communication device having an electronic address book attached to the external dongle attachment.