APPOINTMENT APPLICATION FOR USE IN ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT

• US 20090203369A1
• Filed: 02/12/2008
• Published: 08/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications USA Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications USA Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Parveen, Yadav, Opore, Francis
• Granted Patent: US 8,050,666 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/418
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

A method, device and computer program for coordinating a communication session between an individual and a user of a portable communication device. A portable communication device is provided having an appointment application program stored in memory. The appointment application program includes a queue indicative of a plurality of contacts that are required to contact an associated user of the portable communication device during a predetermined period from an authorized contact number. When the user of the portable communication device 10 receives a telephone call, the call is processed to determine if the telephone call is from one of the authorized contact numbers associated with one of the contacts from queue.

Claims

1. A method for coordinating a communication session between an individual and a user of a portable communication device, the method comprising:

providing a portable communication device having a program stored in memory, wherein the program includes a queue indicative of a plurality of contacts that are required to contact an associated user of the portable communication device during a predetermined period from an authorized contact number;

receiving a telephone call;

processing the telephone call to determine if the telephone call is from one of the authorized contact numbers associated with one of the contacts from queue.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the portable communication device is a mobile telephone.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorized contact number is a telephone number.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein if the user of the portable communication device is unavailable when the telephone call is received, a prerecorded message is rendered to the calling contact.

5. The method of claim 4 further including updating the queue to indicate receipt of the telephone call from the contact and the contact remains in the queue.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein if the user of the portable communication device is available when the contact calls, the contact and the associated user converse as desired.

7. The method of claim 6 further including updating the queue to indicate receipt of the telephone call from one of the contacts listed in the queue.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the queue is updated by deleting the contact that initiated the telephone call from the queue.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein when the telephone call has not been received from the one or more contacts after the predetermined period, the associated user manually initiates a telephone call to the one or more contacts with the portable communication device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein when the telephone call has not been received from the one or more contacts after the predetermined period, the portable communication device automatically initiates a telephone call to the one or more contacts.

11. A portable communication device comprising:

radio circuitry coupled to a processor for receiving and/or transmitting a telephone call;

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory including a queue indicative of a list of contacts that are required to contact an associated user of the portable communication device during a predetermined period; and

upon receiving the telephone call, the processor compares a property of the incoming call with one or more properties associated with the queue to determine if the call is from one of the contacts provided in the queue; and

the processor updates the list of contacts based upon the comparison made by the processor.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the portable communication device is a mobile telephone.

13. The device of claim 11, wherein the queue includes at least one authorized telephone number associated with each of the contacts.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the at least one property is the telephone number of the device that placed the incoming call.

15. The device of claim 11, wherein if the associated user of the portable communication device is unavailable when the incoming call is received, the processor causes a prerecorded message stored in memory to be rendered to the contact.

16. The device of claim 15 further including the processor updates the queue to indicate receipt of the incoming telephone call from the contact and the contact remains in the queue.

17. The device of claim 11, wherein if the user of the portable communication device is available when the incoming telephone call is received, the processor facilitates communication between the contact and the associated user.

18. The device of claim 17 further including the processor updating the queue to indicate receipt of the telephone call from one of the contacts listed in the queue.

19. The device of claim 17, wherein the processor updates the queue by deleting the contact that initiated the telephone call from the queue.

20. A computer program stored on a machine readable medium, the program being suitable for use in an electronic equipment as an electronic appointment application including a queue indicative of a plurality of contacts that are required to contact an associated user of the portable communication device during a predetermined period from an authorized contact number, wherein:

when the program is loaded in memory in the electronic equipment and executed causes the electronic equipment to process incoming telephone calls to determine if the telephone call is from one of the authorized contact numbers associated with one of the contacts from the queue; and

updating the queue to indicate receipt of the telephone call from one of the contacts listed in the queue.