Electronic directory telephone

• US 20060159236A1
• Filed: 01/19/2005
• Published: 07/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Zouhir Al-Samadi
• Original Assignee: Zouhir Al-Samadi
• Inventors: Al-Samadi, Zouhir
• Application Number:
  US11/038,979
• Publication Number:
  US 20060159236A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/67.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/247 Telephone sets including user guidance or feature selection means facilitating their use user interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones H04M1/724
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2745 using static electronic memories, e.g. chips
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/275 implemented by means of portable electronic directories
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/575 Means for retrieving and displaying personal data about calling party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/14 including a card reading device
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/58 including a multilanguage function
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/60 logging of communication history, e.g. outgoing or incoming calls, missed calls, messages or URLs

Abstract

An electronic directory and advertising telephone (“EDP”) includes a telephone handset (6), a display monitor (32), a keyboard (20), and removable memory media (44). The removable memory media (44) preferably includes telephone listings and advertisements, is registered for use with a particular EDP, and is replaced every year. The advertisements include graphical displays, or pictures, which are scheduled to appear on the display monitor (32) during predetermined calendar dates. Advertisements are linked to telephone listings, and appear when linked a telephone listing is connected to the EDP. A series of activation codes are stored on the EDP, and each year a new EDP activation code must be entered which matches a selected one of the series of stored activation codes. The EDP also includes functions for games (478), a calendar (498), an appointments reminder (312), and displaying prayer times (490) and directions toward Qa'"'"'aba-Qebla, in Mecca (486).

Claims

1. A electronic directory telephone comprising:

a telephone;

a display monitor;

removable memory media; and

a database stored on said removable memory media, said database including telephone listings and advertisements, wherein said advertisements include graphical displays and corresponding data fields which correspond to calendar dates on which said graphical displays are to appear on said display monitor.

2. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 1, further comprising memory in which a series of activation codes is stored, each activation code of said series corresponding to a respective term of operation for said electronic directory telephone, wherein a user is required to enter a respective one of said activation codes at the beginning of each of the terms.

3. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 2, wherein each of the terms of operation of said electronic directory telephone are approximately one year in duration.

4. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 2, wherein said database on said removable memory media includes an activation data field, which registers said removable memory media for use with said electronic directory telephone.

5. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 2, wherein said activation code for said electronic directory telephone is written to said activation date field of said database on said removable memory media.

6. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 5, wherein said removable memory media is at least one SD card.

7. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 6, further comprising data storage means for providing times for prayer and compass directions toward Qa'"'"'aba-Qebla, in Mecca.

8. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 1, further comprising:

memory in a series of activation codes is stored, each activation code of said series corresponding to a respective term of operation for said electronic directory telephone, wherein a user is required to enter a respective one of said activation codes at the beginning of each of the terms, wherein each of the terms of operation of said electronic directory telephone are approximately one year in duration;

wherein said database on said removable memory media includes an activation data field, which registers said removable memory media for use with said electronic directory telephone;

wherein said activation code for said electronic directory telephone is written to said activation date field of said database on said removable memory media; and

wherein said removable memory media is at least one SD card.

9. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 1, wherein said electronic directory telephone is operable for displaying graphical advertisements of a connected caller on said display monitor in response to associating a telephone number of the connected caller with the graphical advertisements which are stored in said database.

10. An electronic directory telephone, comprising:

a telephone;

a display monitor;

removable memory media;

data storage media; and

data stored in memory of said data storage media which includes a series of activation codes, each activation code of said series corresponding to a respective term of operation of said electronic directory telephone, wherein a user is required to enter a respective one of said activation codes at a beginning of each of the terms to activate said electronic data telephone for such respective terms.

11. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 10, wherein each of the terms of operation of said electronic directory telephone are approximately one year in duration.

12. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 10, wherein said data storage media at least in part includes a removable memory media, and a database is stored on said removable memory media which includes an activation data field to which data is written to register said removable memory media for use with said electronic directory telephone.

13. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 12, wherein said activation code for a current term of operation of said electronic directory telephone is said data which is written to said activation data field of said database on said removable memory media to register said removable memory media for use with said electronic directory telephone.

14. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 12, wherein said removable memory media is at least one SD card.

15. The electronic directory telephone according to claim 10, wherein data for times for prayer and compass directions toward Qa'"'"'aba-Qebla, in Mecca are stored in said data storage media of said electronic directory telephone for display to a user.

16. A method for displaying advertisements on a display monitor of an electronic directory telephone, comprising the steps of:

providing a removable memory media;

storing a database on said removable memory media, the database including telephone listings and advertisements, wherein the advertisements include graphical displays;

assigning corresponding data fields to respective ones of the advertisements;

storing calendar dates in the corresponding data fields;

comparing the stored calendar dates in the corresponding data field to a current calendar date to determine whether the stored calendar date matches the current calendar date; and

displaying the respective advertisements of the corresponding data fields in which the stored calendar dates match the current calender dates.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

monitoring the electronic directory telephone for user activity to determine periods of time when the electronic directory telephone is inactive; and

displaying the respective advertisements during the periods of time when the electronic directory telephone is inactive.

18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising the steps of:

detecting user activity prior to expiration of a selected time duration of display for a particular one of the respective advertisements;

storing a data bit in a data field corresponding to particular one of the respective advertisements;

discontinuing display of the particular one of the respective advertisements during the user activity; and

then

after cessation of the user activity, returning to displaying the particular one of the respective advertisements for the complete selected time duration of display prior to displaying the next one of the respective advertisements.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the step of providing the removable memory media comprises replacing the removable memory media on a periodic basis with a replacement removable memory media having current telephone listings and current advertisements.

20. The method according to claim 19, further comprises:

providing data storage for said electronic directory telephone;

designating a plurality of data storage fields in the data storage, the plurality of data storage fields designated for storing respective codes of a series of activation codes;

assigning a series of activation codes to the electronic directory telephone;

storing the series of activation codes in the designated date storage fields of the data storage;

designating a duration for each term of operation for the electronic directory telephone; and

preventing use of the electronic directory telephone at the beginning of each term of operation until a user enters a particular code which matches the corresponding activation code for a particular one of the terms of operation of the electronic directory telephone.

21. The method according to claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

comparing a telephone number of a connected caller to telephone numbers stored in the database; and

displaying graphical advertisements of the connected caller on the display monitor of the electronic directory telephone in response to associating the telephone number of the connected caller with the graphical advertisements which are stored in said database.

22. A method for activating an electronic directory telephone, comprising the steps of:

providing data storage for said electronic directory telephone;

designating a plurality of data storage fields in the data storage, the plurality of data storage fields designated for storing respective codes of a series of activation codes;

assigning a series of activation codes to the electronic directory telephone;

storing the series of activation codes in the designated date storage fields of the data storage;

designating a duration for each term of operation for the electronic directory telephone; and

preventing use of the electronic directory telephone at the beginning of each term of operation until a user enters a particular code which matches the corresponding activation code for a current one of the terms of operation of the electronic directory telephone.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the step of assigning a series of activation codes comprises assigning a unique series of activation codes to each electronic directory telephone, such that each electronic directory telephone has a different series of activation codes from other electronic directory telephones.

24. The method according to claim 22, further comprising the steps of:

at the end of an ending term of the terms of operation, which marks the start of a beginning term of the terms of operation, deleting the activation code of the series of activation codes which corresponds to the ending term; and

designating the next one of the activation codes of the series of activation codes as the activation code for the beginning term of operation.

25. The method according to claim 22, further comprising the steps of:

at the end of an ending term of the terms of operation, which marks the start of a beginning term of the terms of operation, deleting the activation code of the series of activation codes which corresponds to the ending term;

designating the next one of the activation codes of the series of activation codes as the activation code for the beginning term of operation; and

wherein the step of assigning a series of activation codes comprises assigning a unique series of activation codes to each electronic directory telephone, such that each electronic directory telephone has a different series of activation codes from other electronic directory telephones.

26. The method according to claim 25, further comprising the steps of:

providing a removable memory media;

storing a database on said removable memory media, the database including telephone listings and advertisements, wherein the advertisements include graphical displays;

assigning corresponding data fields to respective ones of the advertisements;

storing calendar dates in the corresponding data fields;

comparing the stored calendar dates in the corresponding data field to the current date to determine whether the stored calendar date matches to current calendar date;

displaying the respective advertisements of the corresponding data fields in which the stored calendar dates match the current calender dates;

monitoring the electronic directory telephone for user activity to determine periods of time when the electronic directory telephone is inactive; and

displaying the respective advertisements during the periods of time when the electronic directory telephone is inactive.