Telephone set, communication adaptor, home appliance control method, and program recording medium

• US 7,650,145 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2007
• Issued: 01/19/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kakuda, Hiroshi, Ukita, Yoshitaka, Hattori, Masakazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Tuan A
• Application Number:
  US11/812,604
• Publication Number:
  US 20070249295A1
• Time in Patent Office: 944 Days
• Field of Search: 455418-420, 455 411- 412, 455 301- 306, 4555561-5562, 455/557, 455/567, 455/569.1, 455 901- 902, 455 73- 741, 455/552.1, 34082571-82572, 379/90.01, 37910201-10207, 379/110.01, 348 1402- 1405
• US Class Current: 455/420
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6066 including a wireless connection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72415 for remote control of appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72442 for playing music files
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/02 including a Bluetooth interface

Abstract

The invention relates to a telephone set comprises a connection apparatus to execute a connecting process for enabling transmission and reception of an information signal to and from a home appliance such as a general audio device remote-controllable by radio communication; a control apparatus for generating, upon arrival of an incoming call, a remote control signal such as a pause command to the home appliance; and a radio communication apparatus for sending the remote control signal to the home appliance by radio communication. Thus, upon arrival of an incoming call at the telephone set, the remote control signal is sent to the audio device or the like either directly from the telephone set or via a communication adaptor installed therein, hence pausing or muting the output of the audio device under remote control. Such control action enables a user to perceive the incoming call with facility.

Claims

1. An audio player for communicating with a mobile phone and with at least one speaker for outputting an audio signal, the audio player comprising:

a receiver;

a transmitter; and

a wireless controller configured to;

receive mobile phone identification information from the mobile phone;

establish a communication link with the mobile phone based on the received identification information;

receive, on the communication link, a request by the mobile phone to access the speaker;

authenticate the mobile phone in response to the request to access; and

after the mobile phone is authenticated;

receive, on the communication link, a first control signal transmitted from the mobile phone when the mobile phone receives an incoming call; and

automatically transmit a second control signal to the speaker to inhibit audio output from the speaker in response to receiving the first control signal.

3. The audio player according to claim 1, wherein the communication link is a Bluetooth link.

2. An audio player for communicating with a mobile phone and with at least one speaker for outputting an audio signal, the audio player comprising:

a receiver;

a transmitter; and

a wireless controller configured to;

receive mobile phone identification information from the mobile phone;

establish a communication link with the mobile phone based on the received identification information;

receive, on the communication link, a request by the mobile phone to access the speaker;

authenticate the mobile phone in response to the request to access; and

after the mobile phone is authenticated;

receive, on the communication link, a first control signal transmitted from the mobile phone when the mobile phone receives an incoming call;

receive, on the communication link, a second control signal transmitted from the mobile phone when the incoming call is terminated;

automatically transmit a third control signal to the speaker to inhibit audio output from the speaker in response to receiving the first control signal; and

automatically transmit a fourth control signal to the speaker to resume the audio output from the speaker in response to receiving the second control signal.

4. An audio player, comprising:

a communication unit for communicating with a mobile phone wirelessly and with a speaker, and for transmitting an audio signal to the speaker; and

a controller configured to;

receive mobile phone identification information from the mobile phone;

establish a communication link with the mobile phone based on the received identification information;

receive, on the communication link, a request by the mobile phone to access the audio player;

authenticate the mobile phone in response to the request to access; and

after the mobile phone is authenticated, notify a user through the speaker when an incoming call is received by the mobile phone.

5. The audio player according to claim 4, wherein the controller notifies the user by outputting a ring tone through the speaker.

6. The audio player according to claim 4, wherein the controller further controls the speaker to stop outputting the audio signal after the mobile phone receives the incoming call, and to resume outputting the audio signal when the incoming call ends.

7. The audio player according to claim 4, wherein the speaker is a wireless headphone.

8. The audio player according to claim 4, wherein the speaker is a headphone.

9. An audio player, comprising:

a unit for reading audio data stored on a recording medium;

a wireless communication unit for wirelessly communicating with a wireless speaker and for wirelessly transmitting an audio signal containing the audio data to the wireless speaker;

a receiver; and

a controller configured to;

receive mobile phone identification information from the mobile phone;

establish a communication link with the mobile phone based on the received identification information;

receive, on the communication link, a request by the mobile phone to access the audio player;

authenticate the mobile phone in response to the request to access; and

after the mobile phone is authenticated;

receive from the mobile phone notification of an incoming call; and

notify a user through the wireless speaker of the incoming call.

10. The audio player according to claim 9, wherein the controller notifies the user by outputting a ring tone through the wireless speaker.

11. The audio player according to claim 9, wherein the controller further controls the wireless speaker to stop outputting the audio signal after the incoming call is received, and to resume outputting the audio signal when the incoming call ends.

12. The audio player according to claim 9, wherein the wireless speaker is a wireless headphone.