PORTABLE DEVICE INCLUDING A DIGITAL WALKIE-TALKIE MODULE

• US 20100203878A1
• Filed: 02/08/2010
• Published: 08/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Yong Min, Yang, Hee, Park, Kyoung Doo
• Application Number:
  US12/701,883
• Publication Number:
  US 20100203878A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/418
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3805 with built-in auxiliary receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/21 Combinations with auxiliary equipment, e.g. with clocks or memoranda pads
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/27453 Directories allowing storage of additional subscriber data, e.g. metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/60 logging of communication history, e.g. outgoing or incoming calls, missed calls, messages or URLs logging of telephone numbers H04M1/56, H04M1/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

Provided is a portable device using a digital walkie-talkie module, which includes: a radio frequency unit which forms a call channel based on a mobile communications system; a digital walkie-talkie module which forms a communications channel based on a public frequency band; an input unit which generates an input signal for activation of at least one of the radio frequency unit and the digital walkie-talkie module; an audio processing unit which outputs at least one of an audio signal received by the radio frequency unit and an audio signal received by the digital walkie-talkie module, and collects an inputted audio signal and sends the collected audio signal to one of the radio frequency unit and the digital walkie-talkie module; and a controller which controls processing of a digital signal sent from the digital walkie-talkie module and outputs the processed digital signal to the audio processing unit, or to process an inputted audio signal and send the processed audio signal to the digital walkie-talkie module.

Claims

1. A portable device using a digital walkie-talkie module, the portable device comprising:

a radio frequency unit which forms a call channel based on a mobile communications system;

a digital walkie-talkie module which forms a communications channel based on a public frequency band;

an input unit which generates an input signal for activation of at least one of the radio frequency unit and the digital walkie-talkie module;

an audio processing unit which outputs at least one of an audio signal received by the radio frequency unit and an audio signal received by the digital walkie-talkie module, and collects an inputted audio signal and sends the collected audio signal to one of the radio frequency unit and the digital walkie-talkie module; and

a controller which controls to process a digital signal sent from the digital walkie-talkie module and output the processed digital signal to the audio processing unit, or controls to process an inputted audio signal and send the processed audio signal it to the digital walkie-talkie module.

2. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the controller comprises:

a serial communications interface for transmitting and receiving a signal with the digital walkie-talkie module;

a codec which codes and decodes a signal transmitted and received from the radio frequency unit; and

a signal processing unit which processes a signal transmitted and received in the codec and a signal transmitted and received through the serial communications interface.

3. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the digital walkie-talkie module comprises:

a walkie-talkie package which transmits and receives an audio signal to/from the controller;

a power amplifier which amplifies a signal from the walkie-talkie package;

a walkie-talkie antenna which radiates the amplified signal to the public frequency band, and receives a signal radiated on the public frequency band and send the received signal to the walkie-talkie package; and

a frequency oscillator for generation of a reference signal of the walkie-talkie package.

4. The portable device of claim 1, further comprising a display unit which provides an alert of a corresponding call reception, in case a radio frequency unit based call is received during an activation of the digital walkie-talkie module.

5. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the controller:

transmits a “

busy”

alarm to another portable terminal which transmitted a call based on a radio frequency unit, in case the radio frequency unit based call is received during activation of the digital walkie-talkie module, and an input signal corresponding to a rejection of the call is generated;

cancels a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module, in case an input signal which selects formation of a call channel based on the radio frequency unit is generated during formation of the communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module;

transmits an initialization message including a preset frequency value to another portable device forming a call channel, in case an input signal for activating the digital walkie-talkie module is generated from the input unit during the forming of a the call channel based on the radio frequency unit; and

performs a frequency setting of the digital walkie-talkie module based on a frequency value included in the initialization message, in case the initialization message is received from the other portable device.

6. A method of controlling a portable device including a radio frequency unit forming a call channel based on a mobile communications system and a digital walkie-talkie module forming a communications channel based on a public frequency band, the method comprising:

forming a call channel based on the radio frequency unit;

forming a communications channel by performing a frequency setting for the communications channel formation, in case an input signal for activation of the digital walkie-talkie module based communications channel is generated during the call channel formation; and

processing a signal transmitted and received through the digital walkie-talkie module by a signal processing unit which processes a signal transmitted and received through the radio frequency unit.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein processing a signal comprises:

outputting processed signal data through an audio processing unit; and

processing an audio signal collected by the audio processing unit and transmitting to the digital walkie-talkie module.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising removing the radio frequency unit based call channel.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising one of:

alerting a corresponding call reception, in case the radio frequency unit based call is received during activation of the digital walkie-talkie module;

cancelling the digital walkie-talkie module based communications channel, if an input signal selecting formation of a call channel using the radio frequency unit; and

transmitting a “

busy”

alarm to the other portable terminal that transmitted the radio frequency unit based call, in case the radio frequency unit based call is received during activation of the digital walkie-talkie module, and an input signal corresponding to a rejection of the call is generated.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein forming a communications channel comprises:

writing an initialization message including a preset frequency value, and transmitting the initialization message to the other portable device forming the call channel.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein forming a communications channel comprises:

receiving an initialization message from the other portable device; and

performing a frequency setting of digital walkie-talkie module based on a frequency value included in the initialization message.

12. A method of controlling a portable device including a radio frequency unit forming a call channel based on a mobile communications system and a digital walkie-talkie module forming a communications channel based on a public frequency band, the method comprising:

forming a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module; and

processing a signal received through the digital walkie-talkie module by a signal processing unit which may also process a signal received through the radio frequency unit.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein processing a signal comprises:

outputting processed signal data through an audio processing unit; and

processing an audio signal collected by the audio processing unit and transmitting the collected signal to the digital walkie-talkie module.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising one of:

indicating a corresponding call reception, in case the radio frequency unit based call is received during activation of the digital walkie-talkie module;

cancelling the digital walkie-talkie module based communications channel, if an input signal selecting formation of a call channel using the radio frequency unit; and

transmitting a “

busy”

alarm to the other portable terminal that transmitted the radio frequency unit based call, in case the radio frequency unit based call is received during activation of the digital walkie-talkie module, and an input signal corresponding to a rejection of the call is generated.

15. A user interface of a portable device including a digital walkie-talkie module and a mobile communications module, the user interface comprising:

a user information area which outputs user information of at least one other portable device; and

a communications module area which outputs information which indicates whether the user information is possible to form a communications channel or indicates that a communications channel is formed based on at least one of the digital walkie-talkie module and the mobile communications module.

16. The user interface of claim 15, further comprising an indicator area displaying an icon indicating an activation of the digital walkie-talkie module or an activation of the mobile communications module.

17. The user interface of claim 15, wherein the user information area and the communications module area are part of a phone book area.

18. The user interface of claim 15, wherein the user information area and the communications module area are outputted to a stand-by screen according to a user input.

19. The user interface of claim 15, wherein the communications module area comprises at least one of:

a digital walkie-talkie module icon area which outputs a digital walkie-talkie module icon corresponding to the digital walkie-talkie module; and

a mobile communications module icon area which outputs a mobile communications module icon corresponding to the mobile communications module.

20. The user interface of claim 19, wherein the digital walkie-talkie module icon comprises at least one of an icon that indicates that it is possible to form a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module and an icon that indicates that it is not possible to form a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module, and is outputted according to a history of performing communications by using other portable device and the digital walkie-talkie module.

21. The user interface of claim 19, wherein the mobile communications module icon is one of:

an icon which indicates that it is possible to form a communications channel based on the mobile communications module; and

an icon which indicates that it is not possible to form a communications channel based on the mobile communications module.

22. The user interface of claim 15, wherein the communication module area comprises at least one of:

an area which outputs a message about a breakaway possibility or a breakaway, in case a coverage with another portable device breaks away from a preset value, after a communications channel is formed based on the digital walkie-talkie module;

an area which outputs a message which informs of a user of a communication channel conversion based on the mobile communications module or a pop-up window for selecting a communication channel conversion based on the mobile communications module;

an area which outputs a first image indicating a message service usage based on the mobile communications walkie-talkie module; and

an area which outputs a second image distinguished from the first image, in case of performing message transmission based on the digital walkie-talkie module.

23. The user interface of claim 15, wherein the communication module area comprises:

an area which indicates a communications channel formation based on one of the digital walkie-talkie module and the mobile communications module; and

an area which outputs user information corresponding to the other portable device in case of receiving a call request signal from the other portable device.

24. A method of providing a user interface of a portable device including a mobile communications module forming a communications channel based on a mobile communications system and a digital walkie-talkie module forming a communications channel based on a public frequency band, the method comprising:

activating a phone book according to one of;

a menu selection and a shortcut key input;

outputting user information of at least one other portable device according to the activation of phone book;

checking whether from the user information it is possible to form a communications channel according to a given cycle based on a digital walkie-talkie module; and

displaying the user information which is possible to form a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module in such a manner that it can be distinguished from other user information.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising outputting an icon indicating an activation state of at least one of the digital walkie-talkie module and an activation of the mobile communications module to an indicator area.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein displaying the user information comprises at least one of:

outputting a first icon which indicates that it is possible to form a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module;

outputting a second icon which indicates that it is not possible to form a communications channel based on the digital walkie-talkie module; and

outputting at least one of the first icon and the second icon to the user information of the other portable device which has a history of performing a communication, when generating an input signal for checking the history of performing the communication using the other portable device and the digital walkie-talkie module.

27. The method of claim 24, further comprising one of:

outputting a message about a breakaway possibility or a breakaway, in case a coverage with the other portable device is less than a preset value, after a communications channel is formed with the other portable device based on the digital walkie-talkie module; and

outputting at least one of;

a message which informs of the user of a communication channel conversion based on the mobile communications module and a pop-up window for selecting a communication channel conversion based on the mobile communications module;

28. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

outputting a message write window for writing a message to be transmitted to the other portable device having one user information among the outputted user information; and

transmitting the written message based on the digital walkie-talkie module.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein transmitting the written message comprises outputting an image indicating that the message is transmitted based on the digital walkie-talkie module.

30. The method of claim 24, further comprising one of:

outputting information corresponding to a call standby mode, in case of receiving a call request signal from the other portable device during a digital walkie-talkie module based call;

outputting an icon indicating a communications possibility based on the mobile communications module;

outputting an image distinguished from the digital walkie-talkie module based message transmission, when transmitting a message based on the mobile communications module; and

outputting user information of the other portable device, when receiving a digital walkie-talkie module based call request from the other portable device during a formation of a call channel based on the mobile communications module.