Portable composite communication terminal for transmitting/receiving voice and images, and operation method and communication system thereof

• US 7,139,014 B1
• Filed: 03/31/2000
• Issued: 11/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Jae-Min, Oh, Jeong-Seok, Park, Sang-Ryul
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramakrishnaiah, Melur
• Application Number:
  US09/540,830
• Time in Patent Office: 2,426 Days
• Field of Search: 348 1401- 1405, 348 1407- 141, 348 1412- 1413, 348/207, 455556-557, 455/566, 709204-207, 379/93.24, 379/100.08, 345752-753, 345/87, 386/46
• US Class Current: 348/14.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72439 for image or video messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/52 including functional features of a camera constructional features concerning the integration of cameras in portable phones H04M1/0264
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00307 with a mobile telephone apparatus constructional features of portable telephone sets H04M1/0202; mobile radio systems H04W84/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2007/145 Handheld terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4341 Demultiplexing of audio and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43637 involving a wireless protocol, e.g. Bluetooth, RF or wireless LAN [IEEE 802.11] arrangements for wireless networking or broadcasting of information in indoor or near-field type systems H04B10/114
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/437 Interfacing the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. for transmitting client requests to a VOD server flow control in data networks H04L47/10; streaming protocols, e.g. RTP or RTCP, H04L65/65; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests in data packet switching networks H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4432 Powering on the client, e.g. bootstrap loading using setup parameters being stored locally or received from the server resetting in general G06F1/14; program loading or initiating in general G06F9/445; bootstrapping in general G06F9/4401; secure boots of computer platforms G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4786 e-mailing message switching systems, e.g. electronic mail systems H04L51/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6131 involving transmission via a mobile phone network wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/001 Sharing resources, e.g. processing power or memory, with a connected apparatus or enhancing the capability of the still picture apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0065 Converting image data to a format usable by the connected apparatus or vice versa
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/007 Selecting or switching between a still picture apparatus or function and another apparatus or function H04N2201/0022 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 : Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 : by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 : in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A portable composite communication terminal for voice communication and image transmission and reception, and an operation method and communication system thereof. The communication system includes a portable composite communication terminal, a mobile communication network, and a server. The portable composite communication terminal has a camera unit for digitally capturing the image of an object, constructing the image in a predetermined format, compressing the formatted image, and storing the compressed image in the camera memory under a predetermined camera control, a portable phone unit for providing overall control to the mobile visible phone and selectively performing voice communication and image transmission and reception according to a selected transmission mode among predetermined modes, a display for displaying images and characters under the control of the portable phone unit, and an interface unit for interfacing between the portable phone unit and the display to display images and characters on the display under the control of the portable phone unit. The mobile communication network transmits and receives voice and images to and from the portable composite communication terminal. The server is connected to the mobile communication network and provides transmission and reception service of image data over the mobile communication network.

Claims

1. A portable composite communication terminal for voice communication and image transmission/reception, comprising:

a camera unit that digitally captures an image of an object, constructs the image in a predetermined format, compresses the formatted image, and stores the compressed image in the camera memory under a predetermined camera control;

a portable phone unit having a controller that provides overall control to the portable composite communication terminal and selectively performs voice communication and image transmission/reception of at least one image included in an e-mail according to a selected transmission mode among predetermined modes;

a display that displays external images produced by the camera unit images and characters produced by the portable phone unit for an on screen display (OSD) under the control of the portable phone unit; and

an interface between the portable phone unit and the display to display images and characters on the display under the control of the portable phone unit, the interface comprising;

an OSD controller that controls the overlay display of characters and background images, said background images received from the portable phone unit or previously downloaded, at a specific position of a currently-displayed external images on the display in synchronization with one of an external color sync signal received from the camera unit when the background image is received from the portable phone unit or in synchronization with an internal color sync signal when the background image is previously downloaded; and

a selector that selectively outputs an external image signal received from the camera unit and an OSD image signal received from the OSD controller to be composed of one image on the display under the control of the OSD controller.

2. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 1, further comprising a key pad having a plurality of keys that interface with the portable phone unit and a plurality of keys that interface with the camera unit, for use in photographing and reproducing an image.

3. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 2, wherein the keys related with the camera unit include a photography/play key, a mode key for selecting a camera environment, a shutter key for capturing an object image, an enter key for setting a camera environment selected by the mode key, and a camera on/off switch.

4. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 3, wherein the mode key, the shutter key, and the enter key are located on the frontal surface of the portable composite communication terminal.

5. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 3, wherein modes selected by the mode key includes a delete function mode, a data function mode, a display function mode, and a sensitivity function mode.

6. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 3, wherein the photography/play key and the camera on/off switch are provided on a side of the portable composite communication terminal.

7. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 4, wherein the mode key, the shutter key, and the enter key are exposed when a flip is folded in the portable composite communication terminal.

8. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the camera unit has a lens at an upper portion of the rear surface of the portable composite communication terminal.

9. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the portable phone controller controls a battery power voltage to be supplied to the camera unit when a user turns on the camera on/off switch.

10. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the portable phone controller controls an LCD power supply to the display unit when a user turns on the camera on/off switch.

11. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 9, wherein the portable phone controller controls an operational voltage supplied to the camera controller when the terminal is in a portable phone mode by turning off the camera on/off switch.

12. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the portable phone unit comprises a memory having an operation program, an application program, a data function, and a user interface function, an Internet protocol inclusive of a protocol to connect the portable composite communication terminal to a point to point (PPP) protocol server and a protocol needed over an Internet, a radio link protocol for establishing a radio link, and a communication protocol.

13. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 12, wherein the application program includes the additional functions of a voice dialing, character recognition, game information management, and game function, the data function includes a browsing, E-mail, and facsimile function, and the user interface function includes a graphics user interface.

14. The portable composite communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the camera unit comprises means for converting the digitally captured image to a JPEG format, compressing the formatted image data, storing the compressed image data in the camera memory, and decompressing the stored compressed image data under a predetermined read control.

15. A communication system for transmission and reception of voice and images, comprising:

a portable composite communication terminal having a camera unit that digitally captures an image of an object, constructs the image in a predetermined format, compresses the formatted image, and stores the compressed image in the camera memory under a predetermined camera control, a portable phone unit that provides overall control to the portable composite communication terminal and selectively performs voice communication and image transmission and reception according to a selected transmission mode among predetermined modes, a display that displays external images produced by the camera unit images and characters produced by the portable phone unit for an on screen display (OSD) under the control of the portable phone unit, and an interface between the portable phone unit and the display that displays images and characters on the display under the control of the portable phone unit, the interface comprising;

an OSD controller that controls the simultaneous display of a downloaded background image and characters; and

a selector that selectively outputs an external image signal received from one of the camera unit and an OSD image signal received from the OSD controller under the control of the OSD controller;

a mobile communication network for transmission and reception of voice and images to and from the portable composite communication terminal; and

a server connected to the mobile communication network, for providing transmission and reception service of image data over the mobile communication network.