Car-safe messaging interfaces for interactive pagers and related methods

• US 7,254,417 B2
• Filed: 01/29/2004
• Issued: 08/07/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Slemmer, John Blake, Schaub, Ryan Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Urban; Edward F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Tu X.
• Application Number:
  US10/767,186
• Publication Number:
  US 20050170869A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,286 Days
• Field of Search: 455/557, 455/569.1, 455/569.2, 455/563, 455/575.1, 455/556.1, 455/90.3, 345/172, 345/173, 250/214.P, 250/214.LA
• US Class Current: 455/556.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 11/0241 for telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/04 Supports for telephone transmitters or receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails

Abstract

Messaging interfaces that may be used in conjunction with interactive pagers include a housing that contains a message processing circuit, a user interface, and a communications circuit that is used to forward the text messages between the message processing circuit and an interactive pager. The user interface may be used to forward messages between a user of the interactive pager and the message processing circuit. The user interface may be a keypad (or any other collection of user-selectable keys, buttons, menu items, etc.), a microphone, an internal speaker and/or an external speaker such as the speakers on an automobile stereo system.

Claims

1. A messaging interface for an interactive pager, comprising:

a housing;

a message processing circuit located within the housing;

a user interface that comprises a microphone located at least partly within the housing, the user interface configured to convey an audio message received via the microphone between a user of the interactive pager and the message processing circuit, wherein the message processing circuit includes a voice recognition circuit that is configured to convert the audio message into a text message;

a communications circuit that is coupled to the message processing circuit and that is configured to convey the text message from the message processing circuit to the interactive pager; and

a voice synthesis circuit located within the housing that is configured to convert the text message into an audio signal and to play the audio signal to the user before the text message is forwarded to the interactive pager so that the user can confirm that the audio message was properly converted into the text message.

2. The messaging interface of claim 1, further comprising a power supply located within the housing.

3. A messaging interface for an interactive pager, comprising:

a housing;

a message processing circuit located within the housing;

a user interface located at least partly within the housing that is configured to convey a message that is associated with a text message between the interactive pager and the message processing circuit;

a communications circuit that is coupled to the message processing circuit and that is configured to convey the text message between the message processing circuit and the interactive pager; and

wherein the user interface comprises a microphone, the message comprises an audio message received via the microphone, and the message processing circuit includes a voice recognition circuit;

wherein the text message comprises a text message that is conveyed from the message processing circuit to the interactive pager for transmission by the interactive pager

wherein the messaging interface further comprises a memory storage device located within the housing that stores a plurality of pre-defined text messages, and

wherein the audio message comprises a command that selects one of the plurality of pre-defined text messages as the text message that is conveyed from the message processing circuit to the interactive pager for transmission by the interactive pager;

wherein the user interface further comprises a speaker and an associated driving circuit and the message processing circuit further comprises a voice synthesis circuit;

wherein the voice synthesis circuit is configured to play through the speaker a second text message that is associated with a second message input via the microphone before the second text message is forwarded to the interactive pager to facilitate confirming that the second text message accurately reproduces the contents of the second message.

4. The messaging interface of claim 3, wherein the user interface further comprises a keypad and wherein at least some of the keys on the keypad may be used to select respective ones of the plurality of pre-defined text messages.

5. The messaging interface of claim 3, wherein the speaker is part of an automobile stereo system.

6. The messaging interface of claim 3, further comprising a docking cradle, and wherein the communications circuit comprises a communications port.

7. The messaging interface of claim 3, wherein the messaging interface is powered via an external power supply.

8. The messaging interface of claim 3, wherein at least some of the plurality of pre-defined text messages comprise pre-defined messages that are specified by the user of the interactive pager.

9. The messaging interface of claim 3, wherein at least some of the plurality of pre-defined text messages comprise factory pre-set pre-defined messages.

10. The messaging interface of claim 3, wherein the housing includes a docking cradle that is configured to mate with the interactive pager.

11. A messaging interface for an interactive pager, comprising:

a housing;

a microphone located within the housing;

a voice recognition circuit located within the housing that is configured to convert an audio signal received by the microphone into a text message; and

a communications circuit in the housing that is configured to forward the text message from the voice recognition circuit to the interactive pager;

a memory storage device located within the housing that stores a plurality of pre-defined text messages, wherein at least some of the plurality of pre-defined messages are forwarded to the interactive pager in response to a voice command; and

a voice synthesis circuit;

a speaker coupled to the voice synthesis circuit;

wherein the voice synthesis circuit is configured to play through the speaker a second text message that is associated with a second message input via the microphone before the second text message is forwarded to the interactive pager to facilitate confirming that the second text message accurately reproduces the contents of the second message.

12. The messaging interface of claim 11, wherein the text message is formatted so as to be suitable for transmission by the interactive pager, and wherein the messaging interface further comprises a keypad having a plurality of keys that are associated with at least some of the plurality of pre-defined text messages.

13. The messaging interface of claim 12, further comprising a speaker and a voice synthesis circuit that is configured to convert a second text message received by the interactive pager into an electronic signal that is played through the speaker.

14. The messaging interface of claim 12, wherein the housing includes a docking cradle that is configured to mate with the interactive pager, and wherein the communications circuit comprises a communications port.

15. The messaging interface of claim 12, further comprising a connection that draws power from a DC power source in an automobile.

16. A messaging interface for an interactive pager, comprising:

a housing;

a microphone located within the housing;

a memory storage device within the housing, the memory storage device containing a plurality of pre-defined text messages;

a plurality of user selectable indicia provided on the housing, a respective one of which is associated with a respective one of the plurality of pre-defined text messages; and

a communications circuit configured to forward one of the plurality of pre-defined text messages from the messaging interface to the interactive pager for transmission by the interactive pager in response to the selection of one of the plurality of user selectable indicia;

a voice synthesis circuit;

a speaker coupled to the voice synthesis circuit;

wherein at least some of the plurality of pre-defined text messages comprise pre-defined messages that are specified by the user of the interactive pager;

wherein the voice synthesis circuit is configured to play through the speaker a text message that is associated with a message input via the microphone before the text message that is associated with a message is forwarded to the interactive pager to facilitate confirming that the text message accurately reproduces the contents of the message input via the microphone.

17. The messaging interface of claim 16, wherein the plurality of user selectable indicia comprise a plurality of buttons.

18. The messaging interface of claim 17, wherein at least some of the plurality of buttons are shaped differently than other of the plurality of buttons.

19. The messaging interface of claim 17, wherein the top surface of at least some of the plurality of buttons are configured differently than the top surface of other of the plurality of buttons.

20. The messaging interface of claim 17, further comprising a backlight that illuminates one or more of the plurality of buttons.

21. The messaging interface of claim 20, wherein the messaging interface further comprises a photo detector, and wherein the backlight is responsive to a signal from the photo detector.

22. The messaging interface of claim 16, wherein one of the plurality of user selectable indicia activates a SEND command.

23. The messaging interface of claim 16, wherein repeatedly selecting one of the plurality of user selectable indicia within a predetermined time period activates a SEND command.

24. The messaging interface of claim 16, further comprising a voice recognition circuit that is configured to convert an audio signal input via the microphone into a second text message, and wherein the communications circuit is further configured to forward the second text message provided by the voice recognition circuit to the interactive pager.

25. The messaging interface of claim 24, wherein the second text message provided by the voice recognition circuit may comprise one of the plurality of pre-defined text messages.

26. The messaging interface of claim 17, wherein the speaker and the voice synthesis circuit are configured to convert a second text message received by the interactive pager into an electronic signal that is played through the speaker.

27. The messaging interface of claim 26, wherein at least one of the plurality of buttons may he used to cause the voice synthesis circuit to output through the speaker a synthesized voice signal that reads identifying information associated with a received text message.

28. The messaging interface of claim 16, wherein the housing includes a docking cradle that is configured to mate with the interactive pager, and wherein the communications circuit comprises a communications port.

29. A messaging interface for an interactive pager, comprising:

a housing;

a voice synthesis circuit located within the housing that is configured to convert a text message into an audio signal;

a speaker responsive to the voice synthesis circuit;

a communications circuit, located at least partly within the housing, that is coupled to the voice synthesis circuit and that is configured to forward the text message from the interactive pager to the voice synthesis circuit; and

a microphone and a voice recognition circuit that is configured to convert an audio signal input via the microphone into a second text message,

wherein the communications circuit is further configured to forward the second text message provided by the voice recognition circuit to the interactive pager,

wherein the messaging interface further includes a memory storage device located within the housing that stores a plurality of pre-defined text messages, and wherein the voice recognition circuit is configured to forward one of the plurality of pre-defined messages to the interactive pager in response to the audio signal input via the microphone;

wherein the voice synthesis circuit is configured to play back a message input via the microphone before the message input via the microphone is forwarded as a text message to the interactive pager to facilitate confirming that the text message accurately reproduces the contents of the message input via the microphone.

30. The messaging interface of claim 29, wherein the speaker is part of an automobile stereo system.

31. The messaging interface of claim 29, wherein the messaging interface further includes a keypad having a plurality of keys and a memory storage device located within the housing that stores a plurality of pre-defined text messages, and wherein at least some of the plurality of keys may be used to select respective of the plurality of pre-defined text messages.