Hands-free telephone conversation system and relay device in hands-free telephone conversation system

• US 7,031,656 B2
• Filed: 08/05/2002
• Issued: 04/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Hatakeyama, Takeshi, Kindo, Tsuyoshi, Tomoda, Masaaki, Moriguchi, Ken-ichi, Ata, Teruaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Vuong, Quochien B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHU, SANH D
• Application Number:
  US10/211,382
• Publication Number:
  US 20030027607A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,352 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/569.1, 455/11.1, 455/7, 455/569.2, 455/555, 455/557, 455/456, 455/41.2, 455/41.3
• US Class Current: 455/11.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6066 including a wireless connection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6091 including a wireless interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/02 including a Bluetooth interface

Abstract

A hands-free telephone conversation system includes a communication device having a microphone that receives a voice from a user, a speaker that outputs the other party'"'"'s voice, a control unit that detects the status of the wireless communication, and a local wireless communication unit that wirelessly communicates with a relay device. The relay device includes a microphone that receives the voice from the user, a local wireless communication unit that wirelessly communicates with the communication device, a communication control unit that detects the status of the wireless communication, a microphone switch unit that switches the voice input reception of the microphone, and a network communication unit that sends and receives the voice to and from the other party'"'"'s communication device through a network.

Claims

1. A hands-free telephone conversation system comprising:

a communication device; and

a relay device,

wherein the communication device includes;

a first voice input unit operable to receive voice from a user;

a voice output unit operable to output voice of an other party of a telephone conversation; and

a first wireless communication unit operable to wirelessly send the user'"'"'s voice to the relay device, and to wirelessly receive the other party'"'"'s voice from the relay device, and

wherein the relay device includes;

a second voice input unit operable to receive voice from the user;

a second wireless communication unit operable to wirelessly send the other party'"'"'s voice to the communication device, and to wirelessly receive the user'"'"'s voice from the communication device;

a first wireless communication status detection unit operable to detect a status of the wireless communication between the first wireless communication unit and the second wireless communication unit;

a voice input switch unit operable to select either the first voice input unit or the second voice input unit based on a detection result of the first wireless communication status detection unit;

a network communication unit operable to send the user'"'"'s voice that is received by the selected one of the first voice input unit and the second voice input unit to a communication device of the other party of the telephone conversation through a communication network; and

a voice input switch message generation unit operable to generate a message that notifies the other party of the telephone conversation of a selection by the voice input switch unit,

wherein the network communication unit sends the message generated by the voice input switch message generation unit to the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network.

2. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 1,

wherein the voice input switch unit selects the second voice input unit when the status of the wireless communication detected by the first wireless communication status detection unit is determined to be abnormal, and

wherein the voice input switch unit selects the first voice input unit when the status of the wireless communication is determined to be normal.

3. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 1,

wherein the relay device further includes:

a first wireless communication retrial unit operable to try to reconnect with the communication device when the status of the communication detected by the wireless communication status detection unit is determined to be abnormal.

4. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 1,

wherein the first wireless communication status detection unit detects the status of the wireless communication by a presence or an absence of receiving a packet.

5. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 1,

wherein the first wireless communication status detection unit detects the status of the wireless communication by detecting a level of an electric field received at the communication device of the user.

6. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 1,

wherein the communication device further includes:

a second wireless communication status detection unit operable to detect the status of the wireless communication between the first wireless communication unit and the second wireless communication unit; and

a second wireless communication retrial unit operable to try to reconnect with the relay device when the status detected by the second wireless communication status detection unit is determined to be abnormal.

7. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 6,

wherein the second wireless communication status detection unit detects the status of the wireless communication by a presence or an absence of receiving a packet.

8. The hands-free telephone conversation system according to claim 6,

wherein the second wireless communication status detection unit detects the status of the wireless communication by detecting a level of an electric field received at the communication device of the user.

9. A relay device operable to wirelessly receive a user'"'"'s voice from a communication device, the relay device comprising:

a voice input unit operable to receive voice from the user;

a wireless communication unit operable to wirelessly send and receive voice to and from the communication device;

a wireless communication status detection unit operable to detect the status of the wireless communication with the communication device;

a voice input switch unit operable to select either the communication device or the voice input unit based on a detection result of the wireless communication status detection unit;

a network communication unit operable to send the voice received from the selected one of the communication device and the voice input unit to a communication device of an other party of a telephone conversation through a communication network; and

a voice input switch message generation unit operable to generate a message that informs the other party of the telephone conversation of a switch by the voice input switch unit,

wherein the network communication unit sends the message generated by the voice input switch message generation unit to the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network.

10. The relay device according to claim 9,

wherein the voice input switch unit selects the voice input unit when the status of the wireless communication detected by the wireless communication status detection unit is determined to be abnormal, and selects the voice reception from the communication device when the status is determined to be normal.

11. The relay device according to claim 9,

wherein the relay device further includes:

a wireless communication retrial unit operable to try to reconnect with the communication device when the status of the wireless communication is determined to be abnormal by the wireless communication status detection unit.

12. A relay device operable to wirelessly receive a user'"'"'s voice from a communication device, the relay device comprising:

a wireless communication unit operable to wirelessly send and receive voice to and from the communication device;

a wireless communication status detection unit operable to detect a status of the wireless communication with the communication device;

a network communication unit operable to send and receive the voice to and from an other party'"'"'s communication device through a communication network; and

a network communication disconnection unit operable to cut off the connection with the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network based on a detection result of the wireless communication status detection unit;

a voice input unit operable to receive voice from the user; and

a voice input switch unit operable to select either the communication device or the voice input unit based on a detection result of the wireless communication status detection unit,

wherein the network communication unit is operable to send the voice received from the selected one of the communication device and the voice input unit to the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network,

wherein the relay device further includes a voice input switch message generation unit operable to generate a message that informs the other party of the telephone conversation of a switch by the voice input switch unit, and

wherein the network communication unit sends the message generated by the voice input switch message generation unit to the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network.

13. The relay device according to claim 12,

wherein the relay device further includes:

a time measurement unit operable to measure an elapsed time after the wireless communication status detection unit detects the wireless communication status, and

wherein the network communication disconnection unit cuts off the connection with the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network when the time measurement unit measures a passage of a certain amount of time after the wireless communication status detection unit detects an abnormal status.

14. The relay device according to claim 12,

wherein the relay device further includes:

a wireless communication retrial unit operable to try to reconnect with the communication device when the wireless communication status is determined to be abnormal based on the detection result of the wireless communication status detection unit; and

a trial frequency counting unit operable to count a retrial frequency of the wireless communication retrial unit, and

wherein the network communication disconnection unit cuts off the connection with the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network when the trial frequency counting unit counts a certain number of trials after the wireless communication status detection unit detects an abnormal status.

15. The relay device according to claim 12,

wherein the relay device further includes:

a telephone conversation ending message generation unit operable to generate a message to inform the other party of the telephone conversation that the telephone conversation will end; and

a network transmission unit operable to send the message generated by the telephone conversation ending message generation unit to the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network.

16. A hands-free telephone conversation method for a system comprising a communication device and a relay device,

wherein the communication device is operable to execute a method comprising:

a first voice input step of receiving voice from a user;

a voice output step of outputting voice from an other party of the telephone conversation; and

a first wireless communication step of wirelessly sending the user'"'"'s voice to the relay device, and wirelessly receiving the other party'"'"'s voice from the relay device, and

wherein the relay device is operable to execute a method comprising;

a second voice input step of receiving voice from the user;

a second wireless communication step of wirelessly sending the other party'"'"'s voice to the communication device, and wirelessly receiving the user'"'"'s voice from the communication device;

a wireless communication status detection step of detecting a status of the wireless communication between the communication device and the relay device;

a voice input switch step of selecting either the first voice input step or the second voice input step based on a detection result of the wireless communication status detection step;

a network communication step of sending the user'"'"'s voice received in the selected one of the first voice input step and the second voice input step to a communication device of the other party through a communication network; and

a voice input switch message generation step of generating a message that notifies the other party of the telephone conversation of a selection in the voice input switch step,

wherein the network communication step comprises sending the message generated in the voice input switch message generation step to the other party'"'"'s communication device through the communication network.