Method and apparatus for incoming call rejection

• US 6,253,075 B1
• Filed: 12/16/1998
• Issued: 06/26/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ironworks Patents LLC
• Original Assignee: Nokia Mobile Phones UK Limited (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Beghtol, Justin, Mar, Kenneth
• Primary Examiner(s): Hunter, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, PABLO N
• Application Number:
  US09/212,757
• Time in Patent Office: 923 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404, 455/33.1, 455/54.1, 455/90, 455/525, 455/550, 455/422, 455/567, 455/455-458, 455/412-415, 455/565, 579/142, 579/127, 579/67-69, 579/201, 579/207, 579/211, 579/373, 579/372, 579/374, 579/376, 579/350, 579/140, 579/199-200
• US Class Current: 455/415
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/57 Arrangements for indicating or recording the number of the calling subscriber at the called subscriber's set at the operator set in a manual exchange H04M5/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel

Abstract

A method and apparatus for rejecting incoming calls for use in a mobile communications device. The method and apparatus permit a user of a mobile communications device to automatically reject calls intended to be received by the device. In an exemplary embodiment, a rejection memory within the mobile device is preprogrammed with identification information representative of transmitting stations to be rejected. When a call is incoming, identification information included with the incoming call is compared with identification information contained in the rejection memory. When a match is detected, a rejection message is automatically sent by the mobile communications device to the transmitting station. Upon receipt of the rejection message, the transmitting station terminates the call and may reroute the call to a voice messaging system. Additionally, upon display of the identification information of an incoming call, the user may manually trigger the transmission of the rejection message from the mobile communications device.

Claims

1. A method of selectably rejecting an incoming call to a mobile phone, said mobile phone having a transceiver circuit for transmitting and receiving transmissions to and from a remote transceiver on a communication channel in a wireless system, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving at the mobile phone a transmission from the remote transceiver signifying that there is an incoming call;

determining at the mobile phone if said incoming call is to be rejected; and

transmitting from the mobile phone a rejection message to the remote transceiver, in response to a determination being made, during said step of determining, that said incoming call is to be rejected, said rejection message comprising at least one information element indicating to the wireless system that the wireless system is to immediately release the incoming call on the communication channel between the mobile phone and remote transceiver.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile phone further comprises an actuator operable by a user for inputting a first input, said step of determining comprising the steps of:

notifying the user of said transmission; and

receiving a first input from the actuator, wherein reception of the first input indicates that said incoming call is to be rejected.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile communications device includes a memory and said transmission includes a first parameter, said step of determining comprising the steps of:

storing a second parameter in the memory;

comparing at least a portion of the first parameter with said second parameter; and

determining whether at least a portion of the first parameter matches said second parameter, wherein if a match occurs, said incoming call is to be rejected.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of transmitting further comprises the step of notifying the user of said incoming call to be rejected.

5. A method of rejecting an incoming call to a mobile phone, said mobile phone having a transceiver circuit for transmitting and receiving transmissions to and from a remote transceiver, said mobile phone in communication with a first calling station via the remote transceiver on a communication channel in a wireless system, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving at the mobile phone, a transmission from the remote transceiver signifying that there is an incoming call;

determining at the mobile phone if said incoming call is to be rejected; and

transmitting from the mobile phone a rejection message to the remote transceiver in response to a determination being made, during said step of determining, that said incoming call is to be rejected, said rejection message comprising at least one information element indicating to the wireless system that the wireless system is to immediately release the incoming call on the communication channel between the mobile phone and remote transceiver.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the mobile phone includes an actuator operable by a user for inputting a manual input to the mobile phone, said step of determining comprises the step of:

notifying the user of said incoming call; and

receiving a manual input from the actuator, wherein reception of said manual input indicates that said incoming call is to be rejected.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the mobile phone further comprises a memory and said transmission includes a first parameter, said operation of determining comprising the steps of:

storing a second parameter in the memory;

comparing at least a portion of the first parameter with said second parameter; and

determining whether at least a portion of the first parameter matches said second parameter, wherein if a match occurs, said incoming call is to be rejected.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of transmitting comprises the step of actuating manual transmission of a rejection message to the remote transceiver if a determination is made during said step of determining that said incoming call is to be rejected.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the operation of transmitting further comprises notifying the user of said incoming call to be rejected.

10. In a mobile communications device, apparatus for selectably rejecting an incoming call, said apparatus comprising:

a transceiver operable to send and receive transmissions to and from a remote transceiver in a wireless system on a communication channel, said transceiver for receiving a transmission signifying that an incoming call is being attempted; and

a control processor coupled to said transceiver, said control processor for determining if said incoming call is to be rejected, and, in response to a positive determination, said control processor for outputting a rejection message to said transceiver for transmission to said remote transceiver, wherein said rejection message comprises at least one information element indicating to the wireless system that the wireless system is to immediately release the incoming call on the communication channel between the mobile communications device and remote transceiver.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said control processor comprises:

a user notification means;

an actuator for inputting a manual input from the user; and

a message processor coupled to said user notification means, said actuator and said transceiver, said message processor for detecting said transmission, wherein when said transmission is detected, said message processor activates said user notification means, wherein upon detecting a manual input from said actuator, said message processor outputs a rejection message to said transceiver for transmission to said remote transceiver.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said transmission includes a first parameter, said control processor comprises:

a memory for storing a second parameter;

a determiner coupled to said memory and said transceiver, said determiner for comparing at least a portion of the first parameter with said second parameter, wherein if at least a portion of the first parameter matches said second parameter, said determiner outputs a rejection message to said transceiver for transmission to said remote transceiver.

13. A method of selectably terminating a transmission transmitted from a base station in a wireless system, said base station having a transceiver circuit for transmitting and receiving transmissions to and from at least a first remote station and a second remote station on a communication channel, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving at the base station a first transmission from the first remote station;

transmitting from the base station, in response to receiving said first transmission, a second transmission to the second remote station, said second transmission indicating an incoming call to the second remote station from the first remote station;

receiving at the base station a third transmission from the second remote station, said third transmission having a parameter;

detecting at the base station if said parameter has at least one information element indicating that said second transmission is rejected at said second remote station and is to be terminated; and

terminating immediately at the base station said second transmission on the communication channel between said base station and second remote station, if it is determined during said step of detecting that said second transmission is to be terminated.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the base station further comprises a message controller, said operation of terminating further comprising the step of transferring control of said first transmission to the message controller if it is determined at said step of detecting that said second transmission is to be terminated.

15. A method for selectably rejecting a transmission in a cellular communications system, said cellular communications system having a base station capable of two-way communication over a radio communication channel with a remote station, said method comprising the steps of:

transmitting a first transmission from the base station to the remote station;

determining at the remote station if said first transmission is to be rejected;

transmitting a rejection message from the remote station to the base station if it is determined at said step of determining that said first transmission is to be rejected;

receiving said rejection message at the base station;

detecting whether said rejection messages has at least one information element indicating that said first transmission is to be terminated; and

terminating immediately at the base station said first transmission to the remote station on the communication channel between said base station and the remote station if it is determined at said step of detecting that said first transmission is to be terminated.