Mobile telephone device for storing a plurality of changable charge rates and time limit data

• US 5,631,947 A
• Filed: 01/17/1995
• Issued: 05/20/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: TracFone Wireless, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Megatrend Telecommunications, Inc.
• Inventors: Ciocca, Giacomo A., Wittstein, Alan D.
• Primary Examiner(s): CUMMING, WILLIAM D
• Application Number:
  US08/373,509
• Time in Patent Office: 854 Days
• Field of Search: 379/58, 379/59, 379/61, 379/62, 379/63, 379/112, 379/114
• US Class Current: 379/114.17
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/68 Payment of value-added services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/88 Provision for limiting connection, or expenditure
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/20 with provision for recharging the prepaid account or card, or for credit establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0116 Provision for limiting expenditure, e.g. limit on call expenses or account
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0196 Payment of value-added services, mainly when their charges are added on the telephone bill, e.g. payment of non-telecom services, e-commerce, on-line banking
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/32 Involving wireless systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

The mobile telephone is well adapted for use as a rental phone. It has an on-board computer which computes and stores telephone usage and control information such as charges for usage of the telephone. Time and charge limits can be set for the telephone. For example, the telephone can be set to disable itself for all or a selected category of incoming and outgoing calls after the passage of a pre-determined time, and/or when the total usage charges reach a pre-determined maximum. Preferably, these limits can be set and adjusted remotely. The telephone is valuable for use in rental vehicles. The telephone is adapted to deliver its stored information when called and interrogated by use of a computer at a station when the rental vehicle is returned. The telephone can be checked-out and enabled, and the time and charge limits adjusted, all from the same remote station. The telephone also is particularly valuable in other types of rentals, such as in a hotel or motel where the mobile telephone is housed in a portable briefcase or carrying case. The time and charge limits are enforced automatically, and can be changed remotely, as with other versions of the telephone device. Features also are provided to block unwanted calls intended for a prior renter of the phone; to give charge credits for "dropped calls"; and for selectively locking the phone to prevent unauthorized use for all but emergency calls, data transmission and similar calls.

Claims

1. A mobile telephone device, said device comprising, in combination, mobile transceiver means for making and receiving telephone calls, registering means for registering data representing a rental time limit, detecting means for detecting when said rental time limit has been reached, and indicating means responsive to said detecting means for developing limit-indicating signals indicating when said time limit has been reached.

2. A mobile telephone device as in claim 1 including means for registering a usage charge limit, and indicating means for indicating when said charge limit has been reached.

3. A mobile telephone device as in claim 1 including means for developing said limit-indicating signals, said developing means being selected from a group consisting of (a) an on-board computer having storage means, and (b) means for receiving a coded signal from a remote station.

4. A mobile telephone device as in claim 1 including means responsive to adjustment signals for adjusting said limit.

5. A mobile telephone device as in claim 1 including means responsive to remote signals for registering said time limit, and for enabling said telephone device.

6. A mobile telephone as in claim 1 including indicator means for indicating to the user of said telephone device when the time of use of said device reaches a value within a pre-determined range of values above or below said limit.

7. A mobile telephone device for rental vehicles, said telephone device comprising, in combination, a mobile telephone transceiver mounted in said vehicle, storage means mounted in said vehicle and connected to said transceiver for storing signals representing telephone usage data for said telephone device, and read-out means in said device and responsive to a read-out signal for delivering electrical data signals corresponding to said data from said storage means for utilization at a utilization station, and timing means for substantially disabling said telephone device after a predetermined rental time.

8. A mobile telephone device, said device comprising, in combination,

a mobile transceiver device for making and receiving telephone calls;

a storage device for storing data representing a plurality of charge rates and limit data representing a usage charge limit;

a computer for selectively using said charge rates to compute usage charges for each telephone call transmitted or received by said telephone device;

a detector for detecting when said usage charge limit has been reached and producing a corresponding detector signal;

an indicator responsive to said detector signal for developing limit-indicating signals indicating when said charge limit has been reached,

and means for changing said plurality of charge rates to a new plurality of charge rates.

9. A mobile telephone device as in claim 8 including an indicator for indicating to the user of said telephone device when said usage charge reaches a value within a pre-determined range of values above or below said limit.

10. A mobile telephone device as in claim 8 including means responsive to adjustment signals for adjusting said limit.

11. A mobile telephone device as in claim 8 including means responsive to remote signals for registering said limit, and for enabling said telephone device.

12. A mobile telephone device as in claim 8 in which said device is a cellular telephone device.

13. A mobile telephone device as in claim 8 including a display for indicating said usage charges for a telephone call while it is in progress.

14. A mobile telephone device as in claim 13 in which said display indicates the unused portion of said usage charge limit.

15. A mobile telephone device, said device comprising, in combination:

a transceiver for sending and receiving telephone calls from a mobile location;

a data storage device for storing electrical signals representing a plurality of charge rates for telephone calls and usage charges for the use of said device for a plurality of calls over a period of time;

an on-board computer for using a charge rate selected from those stored in said storage means to compute usage charges for each of said telephone calls and storing signals representing said usage charges;

means for changing said plurality of charge rates to a new plurality of charge rates;

and means for transferring the signals representing usage charges to a data transfer device in response to connection of the data transfer device to said telephone device.

16. A mobile telephone device as in claim 15 in which said data transfer device is selected from the group consisting of a hand-held printer;

an elongated conductor; and

an optical read-out device.

17. A mobile telephone device for rental vehicles, said telephone device comprising, in combination;

a mobile telephone transceiver mounted in said vehicle;

an electronic computer, and a data storage device mounted in said vehicle and connected to said transceiver for storing signals representing call charges, a plurality of different charge rates for different telephone calls, and a limit for the total of said call charges;

a computer mounted in said vehicle for applying said charge rates selectively to calls made by use of said device to compute said call charges and their total, and for storing signals in said storage means representing said total;

indicating means for indicating when said call charge total reaches said limit;

means for changing said plurality of charge rates to a new plurality of charge rates;

and a read-out device responsive to a read-out signal for delivering electrical data signals corresponding to said call charges from said storage means for utilization at a utilization station.

18. A mobile telephone rental system, said system comprising:

at least one mobile telephone device, at a rental station, said telephone device including;

a transceiver means for making and receiving telephone calls;

storage means for storing data representing a plurality of call charge rates and call detail record data;

an on-board computer for using selected ones of said charge rates, and computing the usage charges for each telephone call made or received by said device during its rental;

a read-out device for reading out said call detail record information and said usage charges in response to the receipt of a coded interrogation signal;

means for changing the plurality of call charge rates to a new plurality of call charge rates;

and a control device at said rental station, said control device including a retrieval device for sending said coded interrogation signal to said telephone device and retrieving said call detail record information signals.

19. A method of renting a mobile telephone device, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) providing at a rental station a mobile telephone device with an on-board computer and an electronic registering device for registering data, said registering device containing charge rate data representing a plurality of different charge rates for a plurality of different telephone calls which can be made during the rental of said device, and charge limit data defining a total charge limit for usage charges for the use of said device said data storage device being adapted to store new charge rates upon the input of new charge rate data;

(b) renting said telephone device;

(c) retrieving said charge rate data from said registering means and using said on-board computer and said charge rate data to compute usage charges for telephone calls made by the use of said telephone device;

(d) computing the total of said usage charges and detecting when said total charge limit has been reached; and

(e) indicating when said charge limit has been reached; and

(f) changing said charge rate data for at least one rental of said telephone device.

20. A method as in claim 19 including the step of producing a warning signal when said total of said usage charges approaches said charge limit within a pre-determined range below said charge limit.

21. A method as in claim 19 including the step of retrieving said total charges from said registering device when the telephone device is returned to said rental station.

22. A method as in claim 21 in which said retrieving step comprises connecting a hand-held printer to said telephone device and causing the total charges to be printed out.

23. A method as in claim 19 including the step of displaying telephone cost information on a display during a telephone call.