Portable information terminal and information transmitting method

• US 7,660,576 B2
• Filed: 01/03/2006
• Issued: 02/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Maxell, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Ikeda, Minoru, Hanaoka, Seishi, Kitajima, Hidetoshi, Suzuki, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Phu; Sanh D
• Application Number:
  US11/322,341
• Publication Number:
  US 20060111139A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,498 Days
• Field of Search: 455/412.1, 455/412.2, 455/418, 455/456.1, 455/415, 455/550.1, 455/566, 455/557
• US Class Current: 455/412.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2745 using static electronic memories, e.g. chips
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/27453 Directories allowing storage of additional subscriber data, e.g. metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/02 Protecting privacy or anonymity, e.g. protecting personally identifiable information [PII]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

The disclosed invention provides a portable information terminal making it possible to easily transmit a plurality of kinds of information. The portable information terminal allows its user to select information categories to transmit from items stored as personal and/or schedule information in its memory. The selected categories are associated with one of data class of business use, private use, and the like. When the user selects the name and instructs the terminal to transmit, the terminal reads the information belonging to selected categories of the data class from the memory and transmits them, according to the specified transmission distance or destinations.

Claims

1. A portable information terminal comprising:

a memory which stores a plurality of information, each of which belongs to one of a plurality of categories;

a category selector which selects one or more categories for a transmission data from the plurality of categories;

a distance selector which selects a distance over which the transmission data including information belonged to the selected one or more categories is transmitted;

a register which registers the selected one or more categories associated with the distance selected by the distance selector; and

a transmitter which transmits the transmission data including information belonged to the selected one or more categories at a transmission power based on the selected distance.

2. The portable information terminal according to claim 1, further comprising a display,

wherein the category selector allows a user of the portable information terminal to select the one or more categories via a graphical interface displayed on the display.

3. The portable information terminal according to claim 1, further comprising a display,

wherein the category selector allows a user of the portable information terminal to select the one or more categories using a table format displayed on the display, the table format including the plurality of categories and check boxes.

4. An information transmission control method using in a portable information terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

storing, in the portable information terminal, a plurality of information, each of which belongs to one of a plurality of categories;

selecting, using the portable information terminal, one or more categories for a transmission data from the plurality of categories;

selecting, using the portable information terminal, a distance over which the transmission data including information belonged to the selected one or more categories is transmitted;

registering, using the portable information terminal, the selected one or more categories associated with the selected distance; and

transmitting, via an antenna of the portable information terminal, the transmission data including information belonged to the selected one or more categories at a transmission power based on the selected distance.