Method, system and mobile device for prioritizing a discovered device list

• US 7,747,223 B2
• Filed: 03/29/2007
• Issued: 06/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Wilson, Sean Elliott, Pattenden, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, SIMON
• Application Number:
  US11/693,385
• Publication Number:
  US 20080242220A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,188 Days
• Field of Search: 455 412- 413, 455/67.11, 455/67.13, 455/67.7, 4551153-1154, 4552261-2264, 455557-558
• US Class Current: 455/67.11
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals

Abstract

The described embodiments relate generally to methods, systems and computing devices, including at least a mobile device, for ordering a discovered device list according to a Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) of each device in the discovered device list. Thus, the discovered device list has at the top of the list the device that has the highest RSSI, with the remaining devices in the discovered device list presented in descending order of RSSI.

Claims

1. A method of ordering a list of discovered devices in a wireless personal area network (WPAN), comprising:

receiving at a first device a plurality of wireless device signals from respective devices in the WPAN;

determining a received signal strength of each of the wireless device signals; and

displaying on a display of the first device a list of devices corresponding to the devices from which the wireless device signals were received, wherein the devices in the list are ordered according to the received signal strength of the wireless device signal of the respective device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of wireless device signals are received in response to a page signal transmitted from the first device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first device transmits the page signal in response to a selection on the first device to add one of the plurality of devices to a connected device list.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising requesting by the first device a name of each device in the list in sequence from the top of the list to the bottom of the list until all device names have been received for the plurality of the devices or until a selection is made that cancels requesting the device names, wherein once the name of a respective device is received by the first device, the name of the device is displayed in the list on the display.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the selection comprises selecting a named device in the list of devices.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising initiating a device connection between the first device and the named device in response to the selection.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a device identifier and a device class of each of the plurality of devices based on the respective wireless device signals.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein for devices in the list having a same received signal strength, such devices are ordered in the list according to the device class of each such device.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising displaying an icon for each device in the list, the icon corresponding to the device class of the respective device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device is a mobile device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device is a personal computer.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein a communication technology of the WPAN is selected from the group consisting of:

Bluetooth®

, ZigBee®

, wireless universal serial bus (WUSB), ultra-wideband (UWB) and IEEE 802.15.4 compliant technologies.

13. A device for ordering a list of discovered devices in a wireless personal area network (WPAN), the device comprising:

a processor;

a display responsive to the processor;

a short-range communication subsystem coupled to the processor for enabling communication between the device and a plurality of other devices in the WPAN; and

a memory storing program code executable by the processor, wherein the program code comprises a WPAN management module which, when executed by the processor, causes the processor;

to determine a received signal strength of each of a plurality of wireless device signals received by the short-range communication subsystem from respective ones of the plurality of other devices and to cause the display to display a list of the other devices, wherein the other devices are ordered in the list according to the received signal strength of the wireless device signal of the respective other device.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the processor is configured to control the short-range communication subsystem to transmit a page signal to the other devices and wherein the plurality of wireless device signals are received in response to the page signal.

15. The device of claim 14, wherein the page signal is transmitted in response to selection of an “

add device”

option displayed on the display.

16. The device of claim 13, wherein the WPAN management module is further configured, when executed by the processor, to cause the processor to request a name of each other device in the list in sequence from the top of the list to the bottom of the list until the names of all of the other devices have been received or until a selection is made that cancels the request, wherein once the name of a respective other device is received, the name of the other device is displayed in the list on the display.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the selection comprises selecting a named device in the list of devices.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the WPAN management module is configured to initiate device connection between the first device and the named device in response to the selection.

19. The device of claim 13, wherein the WPAN management module further causes the processor to determine a device identifier and a device class of each of the other devices based on the respective wireless device signals received from the other devices.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein for devices in the list having a same received signal strength, such devices are ordered in the list according to the device class of each such device.

21. The device of claim 19, wherein the WPAN management module is configured to cause an icon to be displayed on the display for each other device in the list, wherein the icon corresponds to the device class of the respective other device.

22. The device of claim 13, wherein the device is a mobile device.

23. The device of claim 13, wherein the device is a personal computer.

24. The device of claim 13, wherein a communication technology of the WPAN is selected from the group consisting of:

Bluetooth®

, ZigBee®

, wireless universal serial bus (WUSB), ultra-wideband (UWB) and IEEE 802.15.4 compliant technologies.

25. Computer readable storage storing program instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method of ordering a list of discovered devices in a wireless personal area network (WPAN), comprising:

receiving at a first device a plurality of wireless device signals from respective devices in the WPAN;

determining a received signal strength of each of the wireless device signals; and

displaying on a display of the first device a list of devices corresponding to the devices from which the wireless device signals were received, wherein the devices in the list are ordered according to the received signal strength of the wireless device signal of the respective device.