Image providing apparatus and image providing system

• US 7,801,537 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2002
• Issued: 09/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: Matsumoto, Fumiaki, Yamaoka, Michiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Harper; Vincent P
• Assistant Examiner(s): BALAOING, ARIEL A
• Application Number:
  US10/482,263
• Publication Number:
  US 20040235494A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,128 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561-4566, 4554141-4142, 455/457, 455/466, 370/475
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42382 Text-based messaging services in telephone networks such as PSTN/ISDN, e.g. User-to-User Signalling or Short Message Service for fixed networks
• 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 1/00442 Simultaneous viewing of a plurality of images, e.g. using a mosaic display arrangement of thumbnails
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00458 Sequential viewing of a plurality of images, e.g. browsing or scrolling
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32771 in response to a request, e.g. for a particular document
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32776 using an interactive, user-operated device, e.g. a computer terminal, mobile telephone H04N1/32782, H04N1/32784 take precedence

Abstract

An image provision device that provides an image exhibiting a distinctive feature of a locality to an address. On receipt from a mobile telephone (1a) of a position information mail (21) storing position information of the mobile telephone (1a), the image provision device transmits to the mobile telephone (1a) a reply mail (39) storing thumbnail images created based on the position information in the position information mail (21). Then, on receipt from the mobile telephone (1a) of an image select mail (22) storing a selection resulting from one thumbnail image from the thumbnail images being selected, the image provision device transmits to the address an image mail (40) storing an image based on the selection result in the image select mail (22).

Claims

1. An image provision device for providing an image to a person different from a user of a mobile terminal, comprising:

a storage unit that stores a plurality of images relating to two or more of a plurality of localities and each locality corresponding to a piece of image information that is available for transmission to the mobile terminal;

a mapping table that corresponds each of the plurality of images with a range of latitude and longitude coordinates, each range of latitude and longitude coordinates corresponding to a different locality;

a position-information acquiring unit that acquires position information indicating a range of latitude and longitude coordinates for a locality of the mobile terminal;

an image specifying unit that specifies all images corresponding to the range of latitude and longitude coordinates for the locality indicated by the position information, from among the plurality of images stored in the storage unit;

an information transmitting unit that transmits to the mobile terminal pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images, the transmitted pieces of image information to be used as candidate images from which the user selects an image to be provided to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal;

a reception unit that receives a piece of image information selected, by the user of the mobile terminal, among the transmitted one or more pieces of image information; and

a providing unit that provides the person different from the user of the mobile terminal an image corresponding to the piece of image information received by the reception unit, by making the corresponding image accessible to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

2. The image provision device of claim 1, wherein the position-information acquiring unit acquires the position information from a global positioning system.

3. The image provision device of claim 1, wherein

the storing unit stores the plurality of images in correspondence with positional areas that each show a predetermined range including a related one of the plurality of localities, and

each specified image is an image corresponding to a positional area that includes the locality to which the position information relates.

4. The image provision device of claim 1, further comprising:

a message acquiring unit that acquires a message;

an incorporating unit that incorporates the acquired message in an image corresponding to the piece of information received by the receiving unit; and

the providing unit provides the message-incorporated image to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

5. The image provision device of claim 1, wherein

the providing unit attaches the image to an electronic mail to obtain an image-attached electronic mail, and provides the image-attached electronic mail to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

6. The image provision device of claim 1, wherein

the pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images are thumbnail images of the specified images.

7. The image provision device of claim 1, wherein

the pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images are information representing the specified image without use of the images.

17. The image provision device of claim 1, wherein

the reception unit receives two or more pieces of image information selected, by a user of the mobile terminal, among the transmitted pieces of image information;

and

the providing unit provides to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal the two or more images corresponding to the two or more image information received by the reception unit.

18. The image provision device of claim 4, wherein

the incorporating unit incorporates the acquired message in the image corresponding to the piece of information received by the receiving unit by extending the image to include an incorporation area and incorporating the acquired message in the incorporation area.

19. The image provision device of claim 6 further comprising

a thumbnail creating unit creating thumbnail images of the specified images.

8. A mobile terminal comprising:

an image information receiving unit that receives, from an image provision device, one or more pieces of image information, based on a position information indicating a locality of the mobile terminal, each corresponding to an image that relates to a range of latitude and longitude coordinates, the received pieces of images information to be used as candidate images from which a user selects an image to be provided to a person different from a user of the mobile terminal;

a reception unit that receives a piece of image information selected, by the user, among the one or more pieces of image information that correspond to the range of latitude and longitude coordinates;

a transmitting unit that transmits the received piece of image information to the image provision device; and

a receiving unit that receives a selected image that corresponds to the transmitted piece of image information and relates to the range of latitude and longitude coordinates.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 8, wherein

the pieces of image information relating to the specified images are thumbnail images of the specified images.

20. The mobile terminal of claim 8 further including means for selecting the image that relates to the specific position and storing the image at an image provision device remote from the mobile terminal for viewing on a second mobile terminal.

10. An image provision device for providing an image to a person different from a user of a mobile terminal comprising:

a storage unit that stores a plurality of images, each of the images relating to a range of latitude and longitude coordinates, each range of latitude and longitude coordinates corresponding to a different locality;

a position-information acquiring unit that acquires position information indicating a range of latitude and longitude coordinates for a locality of the mobile terminal;

an image specifying unit that specifies all images corresponding to the range of latitude and longitude coordinates for the locality indicated by the position information, from among the plurality of images stored in the storage unit;

an information transmitting unit that transmits, to the mobile terminal, pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images, the transmitted pieces of information to be used as candidate images from which the user selects an image to be provided to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal;

a reception unit that receives a piece of image information selected, by the user of the mobile terminal, among the transmitted one or more pieces of image information; and

a providing unit that provides to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal an image corresponding to the piece of image information received by the reception unit, by making the corresponding image accessible to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

11. The image provision device of claim 10, wherein the position-information acquiring unit acquires the position information from a global positioning system.

12. The image provision device of claim 10, wherein

the storage unit stores the plurality of images in correspondence with positional areas that each show a predetermined range including a related one of the plurality of localities, and

each specified image is an image corresponding to a positional area that includes the locality to which the position information relates.

13. The image provision device of claim 12, further comprising:

a message acquiring unit that acquires a message;

an incorporating unit that incorporates the acquired message with an image corresponding to the piece of information received by the receiving unit; and

the providing unit provides the message-incorporated image to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

14. The image provision device of claim 13, wherein

the providing unit attaches the image to an electronic mail to obtain an image-attached electronic mail, and provides the image-attached electronic mail to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

15. The image provision device of claim 14, wherein

the pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images are thumbnail images of the specified images.

16. The image provision device of claim 14, wherein

the pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images are information representing the specified image without use of the images.

21. An image provision device for providing an image to a person different from a user of a mobile terminal, comprising:

a storage unit that stores a plurality of images relating to two or more of a plurality of localities and each locality corresponding to a piece of image information that is available for transmission to the mobile terminal;

a position-information acquiring unit that acquires position information indicating a locality of the mobile terminal;

an image specifying unit that specifies all images relating to the locality indicated by the position information, from among the plurality of images stored in the storage unit;

an information transmitting unit that transmits to the mobile terminal pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images, the transmitted pieces of image information to be used as candidate images from which the user selects an image to be provided to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal;

a reception unit that receives a piece of image information selected, by the user of the mobile terminal, among the transmitted one or more pieces of image information; and

a providing unit that provides the person different from the user of the mobile terminal an image corresponding to the piece of image information received by the reception unit, by storing the corresponding image onto a specific storage medium and making the stored image accessible via the Internet to the person different from the user of the mobile terminal.

22. The device of claim 21 wherein the information transmitting unit transmits to the mobile terminal pieces of image information corresponding to the specified images via e-mail over the Internet, and the reception unit receives, via e-mail over the Internet, the pieces of image information selected.