Modifying a database comprising image fields

• US 7,844,597 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2003
• Issued: 11/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Kraft, Christian, Nielsen, Peter Dam
• Primary Examiner(s): Jalil; Neveen Abel
• Assistant Examiner(s): RADTKE, MARK A
• Application Number:
  US10/663,477
• Publication Number:
  US 20050060276A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,633 Days
• Field of Search: 365/299, 379/355.09, 455/566, 707/1, 707/712
• US Class Current: 707/712
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5846 using extracted text

Abstract

An electronic device provide a database application that enables a user to access personal data organized as a plurality of entries in a database, where each of the plurality of entries is associated with a different person and has one or more alphanumeric text fields and an image field. According to one embodiment, a camera control application is arranged to enable the user to control the device using a user input device to capture an image via a digital camera and to present a user selectable option, after capturing an image, for using the captured image as an image field of an entry of the database. According to another embodiment, a messaging application is arranged to display a received message including an image and to present a user selectable option for using the image as an image field of an entry of the database.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium encoded with a computer program comprising:

program instructions for controlling an electronic device, the electronic device having a digital camera and a user input device, which program instructions when loaded into a processor, provide;

a database software application;

a camera control software application that is separate from the database software application; and

an image viewing software application that is separate from the camera control software application and the database software application,

wherein the database software application provides a user interface that enables a user to access personal data organized as a plurality of contacts entries in a database, where each contacts entry is associated with a different person and has one or more alphanumeric text fields and an image field and wherein the camera control software application provides for taking a picture and then assigning the picture from a camera menu instead of from a phonebook menu, the camera control software application providing a user interface that enables the user to control the electronic device using the user input device for displaying the camera menu to capture an image via the digital camera and immediately and automatically presenting a user selectable option through the camera menu, on capturing an image, for entering the database software application while remaining in the camera menu and using the captured image as an image field of a contacts entry of the database, and presenting a user selectable option to access the captured image through the image viewing software application, wherein functionality of the camera menu is provided by the camera control software application and wherein functionality of the phonebook menu is provided by the database software application.

2. A method comprising:

for controlling an electronic device, the electronic device having a digital camera and a user input device, the method performing operations of;

capturing an image via a digital camera by a selection of an option presented via a camera menu displayed on a user interface provided by a camera control software application;

immediately and automatically upon capturing the image, providing, through the camera control software application, a user-selectable option through the user interface for entering the captured image as an image field for a contacts entry maintained by a database software application and providing a user-selectable option through the user interface to cause a image viewing software application to access the captured image, wherein the camera control software application provides for taking a picture and then assigning the picture from the camera menu instead of from a phonebook menu; and

upon selecting a user-selectable option via the camera menu for entering the captured image as an image field for the contacts entry, while remaining in the camera menu, causing the database software application to save the captured image in a database as an image field for the contacts entry, wherein functionality of the camera menu is provided by the camera control software application and wherein functionality of the phonebook menu is provided by the database software application.

3. The method as in claim 2, wherein the database is modified from within the camera control software application.

4. An apparatus comprising:

a camera control software application;

a database software application;

an image viewing software application;

a digital camera;

an input including soft keys;

a memory configured to store the database, camera control software application, the database software application, and the image viewing software application;

a display configured to provide a user interface; and

a processor configured to control the digital camera and the display, configured to access the memory, configured to receive information through the input, and configured to execute the camera, database, and image viewing software applications retrieved from the memory,

wherein the camera control software application is configured to enable a user to capture an image via the digital camera through an option displayed via a camera menu on the user interface and, immediately and automatically after capturing the image, to present via the camera menu on the user interface a plurality of user selectable options including an option to add the captured image to a database that is accessible by the database software application, while remaining within the camera control software application, and including an option to invoke the image viewing software application to access the captured image, wherein the user selectable options are selectable by the user through corresponding ones of the soft keys, wherein the camera control software application provides for taking a picture and then assigning the picture from the camera menu instead of from a phonebook menu, wherein functionality of the camera menu is provided by the camera control software application and wherein functionality of the phonebook menu is provided by the database software application.

5. The apparatus as in claim 4, wherein, upon the user selecting the option to add the captured image to the database memory, the camera control software application is configured to present a plurality of sub-options including a sub-option to create a new contacts entry in the database and a sub-option to modify an existing contacts entry in the database.

6. The apparatus as in claim 5, wherein upon the selection of one of the sub-option to create a new contacts entry and the sub-option to modify an existing contacts entry, adding the captured image to an image field of the selected one of the new contacts entry and the existing contacts entry.

7. The apparatus as in claim 6, wherein the database is modified from within the camera control software application.

8. The apparatus as in claim 4, wherein the database software application functions as at least a telephone book.

9. The apparatus as in claim 4, wherein each contacts entry has at least one alphanumeric text field for storing a telephone number.

10. The apparatus as in claim 9, operating as a telephone, wherein the processor is responsive to an incoming call to display an image from the image field of a contacts entry that has an alphanumeric text field corresponding to the telephone number originating the incoming call.

11. The apparatus as in claim 4, wherein the contacts entry can be selected by a user by scrolling the image fields of the database.

12. The apparatus as in claim 4, further comprising a temporary memory for temporarily storing a captured image.

13. The apparatus as in claim 12, wherein the camera control software application is arranged to transfer the captured image from temporary storage in the temporary memory to permanent storage accessible by the viewing application.

14. A user interface, comprising:

a display; and

an input comprising a plurality of soft keys, and

configured to enable a user to, in cooperation with a camera control software application, capture an image via a digital camera through an option displayed on a camera menu on the user interface and, immediately and automatically after capturing the image, to present a plurality of user selectable options through the camera menu including an option to add the captured image to a database that is accessible by a database software application, while remaining within the camera control software application, and comprising an option to invoke an image viewing software application to access the captured image, wherein the user selectable options are selectable by the user through corresponding ones of the plurality of soft keys, wherein the camera control software application provides for taking a picture and then assigning the picture from the camera menu instead of from a phonebook menu, wherein functionality of the camera menu is provided by the camera control software application and wherein functionality of the phonebook menu is provided by the database software application.

15. The user interface as in claim 14, wherein, upon the user selecting the option to add the captured image to the database memory, displaying a plurality of sub-options including a sub-option to create a new contacts entry in the database and a sub-option to modify an existing contacts entry in the database.

16. The user interface as in claim 15, wherein upon the selection of one of the sub-option to create a new contacts entry and the sub-option to modify an existing contacts entry, adding the captured image to an image field of the selected one of the new contacts entry and the existing contacts entry.