Sounding alert for recent calls

• US 6,751,485 B2
• Filed: 06/28/2001
• Issued: 06/15/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Ranta, Jukka
• Primary Examiner(s): Gary, Erika
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Huy D
• Application Number:
  US09/894,737
• Publication Number:
  US 20030003966A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 455/414.1, 455/415, 455/418, 455/550.1, 455/567, 455/575.1, 379/67.1, 379/88.11, 379/88.12, 379/88.19, 379/88.2, 379/88.21, 379/911, 379/252, 379/142.01, 379/142.09
• US Class Current: 455/567
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/041 Encoding the ringing signal, i.e. providing distinctive or selective ringing capability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/911 Distinctive ringing

Abstract

Phone numbers of recently made, received or missed phone calls are stored (16) in a memory of a mobile telephone and associated with a distinctive alerting sound. An incoming call matching (34) one of the stored phone numbers causes the distinctive alerting sound to be sounded unless the phone number matches (26) a number prestored by the user and associated with an individual or organization known to the user.

Claims

1. Method, for use in a mobile telephone having means for storing phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls, wherein said mobile telephone stores said phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls in a memory having capacity dedicated for only a limited number of phone numbers of said recently made or received phone calls which are removed one or more at a time according to a selected capacity management methodology, said method comprising the steps of:

associating said stored phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls with a distinctive alerting sound generally indicative of recently made or received phone calls, and

sounding said distinctive alerting sound upon receiving a call from one of said phone numbers of recently made or received calls,

wherein said distinctive alerting sound is separately generally indicative of recently made, received or missed calls with recently made calls, recently received calls, and recently missed calls having alerting sounds distinct from each other.

2. Method, for use in a mobile telephone that stores phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls in a memory having capacity dedicated for only a limited number of phone numbers which are removed one or more at a time according to a selected capacity management process, said method comprising the steps of:

comparing a phone number of an incoming phone call to said recently made or received phone numbers stored in said memory and upon finding a match,

sounding a distinctive alerting sound,

wherein said distinctive alerting sound for recently made calls is distinct from that for recently received calls.

3. Method for use in a mobile telephone having means for storing phone numbers of recently made, received, or missed calls, wherein said mobile telephone stores said phone numbers of recently made, received, or missed calls in a memory having capacity dedicated for only a limited number of phone numbers of said recently made, received, or missed calls that are removed one or more at a time according to a memory management technique, said method comprising the steps of:

comparing a phone number of an incoming phone call to said phone numbers of recently made, received, or missed calls stored in said memory and also to phone numbers stored by a user, and

sounding a distinctive alerting sound generally indicative of recently made, received, or missed calls upon said step of comparing yielding a match between said phone number of said incoming phone call and a phone number of a recently made, received, or missed call stored in said memory except upon said step of comparing also yielding a match between said phone number of said incoming phone call and a phone number stored by the user, in which case said distinctive alerting sound is indicative of a particular party having said phone number stored by the user,

wherein said distinctive alerting sound is separately generally indicative of recently made, received or missed calls with recently made calls, recently received calls, and recently missed calls having alerting sounds distinct from each other.

4. Method, for use in a mobile telephone having phone numbers stored by a user in groups in a memory with separate sequences of alerting tones associated by the user with each group, comprising the steps of:

defining a new group for storing a selected number of phone numbers of most recently made or received phone calls in a portion of said memory or in a separate memory having a storage capacity limited by a memory management process to storing a maximum of said selected number of phone numbers, and

alerting the user to a received phone call from a phone number presently stored in said portion of said memory or in said separate memory with a distinctive sequence of alerting tones associated with said new group wherein said new group also includes phone numbers of most recently missed phone calls.

5. Mobile telephone having means for storing phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls, wherein said mobile telephone stores said phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls in a memory having capacity dedicated for only a limited number of phone numbers of said recently made or received phone calls which are removed one or more at a time according to a selected capacity management methodology, said mobile telephone further comprising:

means for associating said stored phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls with a distinctive alerting sound generally indicative of recently made or received phone calls; and

means for sounding said distinctive alerting sound upon receiving a call from one of said phone numbers of recently made or received calls,

wherein said distinctive alerting sound is separately generally indicative of recently made, received or missed calls with recently made calls, recently received calls, and recently missed calls having alerting sounds distinct from each other.

6. Mobile telephone that stores phone numbers of recently made or received phone calls in a memory having capacity dedicated for only a limited number of phone numbers which are removed one or more at a time according to a selected capacity management process, said mobile telephone further comprising:

means for comparing a phone number of an incoming phone call to said recently made or received phone numbers stored in said memory; and

means for sounding a distinctive alerting sound upon finding a match,

wherein said distinctive alerting sound for recently made calls is distinct from that for recently received calls.

7. Mobile telephone having means for storing phone numbers of recently made, received, or missed calls, wherein said mobile telephone stores said phone numbers of recently made, received, or missed calls in a memory having capacity dedicated for only a limited number of phone numbers of said recently made, received, or missed calls that are removed one or more at a time according to a memory management technique, said mobile telephone comprising:

means for comparing a phone number of an incoming phone call to said phone numbers of recently made, received, or missed calls stored in said memory and also to phone numbers stored by a user; and

means for sounding a distinctive alerting sound generally indicative of recently made, received or missed calls upon said means for comparing yielding a match between said phone number of said incoming phone call and a phone number of a recently made, received, or missed call stored in said memory except upon said means for comparing also yielding a match between said phone number of said incoming phone call and a phone number stored by the user, in which case said distinctive alerting sound is indicative of a particular party having said phone number stored by the user,

wherein said distinctive alerting sound is separately generally indicative of recently made, received or missed calls with recently made calls, recently received calls, and recently missed calls having alerting sounds distinct from each other.

8. Mobile telephone having phone numbers stored by a user in groups in a memory with separate sequences of alerting tones associated by the user with each group, comprising:

means for defining a new group for storing a selected number of phone numbers of most recently made or received phone calls in a portion of said memory or in a separate memory having a storage capacity limited by a memory management process to storing a maximum of said selected number of phone numbers; and

means for alerting the user to a received phone call from a phone number presently stored in said portion of said memory or in said separate memory with a distinctive sequence of alerting tones associated with said new group,

wherein said new group also includes phone numbers of most recently missed phone calls.