PHONE HOLD MECHANISM
First Claim
1. A method of a portable communication device, the method comprising:
- alerting a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call;
receiving an indication from the user to hold the incoming call, and in response, answering the incoming call and then playing back a pre-recorded message stored in the portable communication device to a caller of the incoming call;
while holding the incoming call, receiving an estimated hold time from the user and informing the caller of the estimated hold time; and
holding the incoming call until the user picks up the incoming call.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A portable communication device holds an incoming call for a user when the user is temporarily unavailable to pick up the call. In response to an incoming call signal and an indication from the user to hold the call, the portable communication device answers the call and plays back a pre-recorded message to the caller while holding the call. The call can be held until the user picks up the call. If the user is on another call when the incoming call arrives, the portable communication device answers the incoming call with a pre-recorded message and holds the incoming call, as well as concurrently maintains uninterrupted communication on the in-progress call. The user can also enter an estimated hold time, which is announced to the caller. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of a portable communication device, the method comprising:
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alerting a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call; receiving an indication from the user to hold the incoming call, and in response, answering the incoming call and then playing back a pre-recorded message stored in the portable communication device to a caller of the incoming call; while holding the incoming call, receiving an estimated hold time from the user and informing the caller of the estimated hold time; and holding the incoming call until the user picks up the incoming call. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method of a portable communication device, the method comprising:
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alerting a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call; receiving an indication from the user to hold the incoming call, and in response, answering the incoming call and then playing back a pre-recorded message to request a caller of the incoming call to speak; displaying the text converted from speech of the caller on a display screen of the portable communication device while holding the incoming call. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
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10. A portable communication device, comprising:
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a call notification mechanism to alert a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call; an input interface to receive an indication from the user to hold the incoming call; memory to store a pre-recorded message; a sensor to be activated by a motion or a touch of the user to generate a sensor output; a processor to convert the sensor output into a length of expected hold time; and a telephone module to answer the incoming call in response to the indication from the user, then play back the pre-recorded message with the length of the expected hold time to a caller of the incoming call, and then hold the incoming call until the user picks up the incoming call. - View Dependent Claims (11)
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12. A portable communication device, comprising:
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a call notification mechanism to alert a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call; an input interface to receive an indication from the user to hold the incoming call; memory to store a pre-recorded message that requests a caller of the incoming call to speak; a telephone module to answer the incoming call in response to the indication from the user, to play back the pre-recorded message, and then to receive a speech of the caller while holding the incoming call; a speech-to-text converter to convert the speech of the caller into a text message; and a display screen to display the text message. - View Dependent Claims (13)
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14. A machine-readable storage medium in which there is stored data that programs a portable communication device to:
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alert a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call; in response to input from the user to hold the incoming call, answer the incoming call and then play back a pre-recorded message stored in the portable communication device to a caller of the incoming call; provide an adjustable visual indicator to the user while holding the incoming call for the user to enter an estimated hold time; announce the estimated hold time to the caller while holding the incoming call. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16)
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17. A machine-readable storage medium in which there is stored data that programs a portable communication device to:
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alert a user of the portable communication device of an incoming call; in response to input from the user to hold the incoming call, answer the incoming call and then play back a pre-recorded message to request a caller of the incoming call to speak; receive speech of the caller and convert the speech into text; and display the text on a display screen of the portable communication device while holding the incoming call. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification