Interactive communications appliance

• US 6,816,703 B1
• Filed: 11/22/2000
• Issued: 11/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Knowledge Kids Enterprises, Inc.
• Original Assignee: LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc. (VTech Holdings Ltd.)
• Inventors: Sward, Jen, Brown, Matthew, Wood, Michael C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vuong, Quochien B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jackson, Blane J.
• Application Number:
  US09/721,802
• Time in Patent Office: 1,448 Days
• Field of Search: 455/90.1, 455/3.04, 455/3.06, 455/3.01, 455/41.2, 455/88, 455/555, 379/110.01, 379/93.25
• US Class Current: 455/3.04
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/00 Electrically-operated educational appliances working with questions and answers G09B7/00; simulators G09B9/00; advertising or displaying in general G09F
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student

Abstract

An interactive communications appliance for broadcasting personalized information is disclosed. The interactive communications appliance comprises a transceiver for receiving personalized information transmitted via a wireless link. A memory stores the personalized information and an audio device broadcasts the personalized information to a user.

Claims

1. A method for broadcasting personalized information, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a user profile for a user;

(b) obtaining personalized information based on the user profile;

(c) transmitting the personalized information to a client computer via a communication medium;

(d) transmitting the personalized information to an interactive communications appliance via a wireless link for storage; and

(e) broadcasting the personalized information to the user, and

wherein the method further comprises before broadcasting and after transmitting the personalized information to the interactive communications appliance,

uncoupling the first and second transceivers.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the personalized information includes at least one of sports information, educational information, weather information, TV programming information, and music.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting schedule items to the interactive communications appliance;

and broadcasting the schedule items to the user.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the interactive communications appliance is an alarm clock.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the personalized information comprises music selected in accordance with the user'"'"'s personal profile.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

creating the user profile using graphical user interfaces on a sever computer.

2. A method for broadcasting personalized information, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a user profile for a user;

(b) obtaining personalized information based on the user profile;

(c) transmitting the personalized information to a client via a communication medium;

(d) transmitting the personalized information to an interactive communications appliance via a wireless link for storage; and

(e) broadcasting the personalized information to the user, and

wherein the method further comprises

sounding an alarm in the interactive communications appliance prior to broadcasting.

8. A method for broadcasting personalized information, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a user profile for a user;

(b) obtaining personalized information based on the user profile;

(c)transmitting the personalized information to a client computer via a communication medium;

(d) transmitting the personalized information to an interactive communications appliance via a wireless link for storage; and

(e) broadcasting the personalized information to the user, and

wherein the method further comprises

preselecting one or more radio channels on the interactive communications appliance for broadcasting at predetermined times.

9. A method for broadcasting personalized information, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a user profile for a user;

(b) obtaining personalized information based on the user profile;

(c) transmitting the personalized information to a client computer via a communication medium;

(d) transmitting the personalized information to an interactive communications appliance via a wireless link for storage; and

(e) broadcasting the personalized information to the user, and

wherein obtaining personalized information based on the user profile comprises selecting information appropriate for the user'"'"'s age.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

sending a response of the user from the interactive communications appliance to the client computer or to a server computer in communication with the client computer.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein steps (c), (d), and (e) are performed according to a streaming audio process.

12. A method for broadcasting personalized information, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a user profile for a user;

(b) obtaining personalized information based on the user profile; and

(c) transmitting the personalized information to a client computer via a communication medium;

wherein the personalized information is to be transmitted to an interactive communications appliance via a wireless link for storage, and is to be broadcasted to the user, and wherein an alarm in the interactive communications appliance sounds prior to broadcasting.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the communication medium comprises the Internet.

14. A method for broadcasting personalized information, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a user profile for a user;

(b) obtaining personalized information based on the user profile; and

(c) transmitting the personalized information to a client computer via a communication medium;

wherein the personalized information is to be transmitted to an interactive communications appliance via a wireless link for storage, is to be broadcasted to the user, and wherein obtaining personalized information based on the user profile comprises selecting information appropriate for the user'"'"'s age.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the communication medium comprises the Internet.