In-vehicle handsfree apparatus

• US 8,155,709 B2
• Filed: 02/18/2009
• Issued: 04/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/19/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Abeta, Takehiro, Kakehi, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Ismail, Shawki S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hammond, Crystal L
• Application Number:
  US12/378,708
• Publication Number:
  US 20090209298A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,147 Days
• Field of Search: 455/575.1, 455/575.9, 455/297, 455563-567, 4555691-5692, 455/403, 455/412.1, 455/412.2, 455415-417, 455/41.2, 455/456.2, 455/99
• US Class Current: 455/569.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/575 Means for retrieving and displaying personal data about calling party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6091 including a wireless interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/04 the ringing-current being generated at the substations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041

Abstract

An in-vehicle handsfree apparatus is disclosed. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus includes a handsfree connection section and a control section. The connection section establishes connection with first and second cellular phones by using a handsfree communication protocol. When the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving incoming calls at a same time, the control section causes an display unit to distinctly display information associated with the incoming call of the first cellular phone and information associated with the incoming call of the second cellular phone.

Claims

1. An in-vehicle handsfree apparatus, comprising:

a handsfree connection section configured to establish connection with a plurality of cellular phones by using a handsfree communication protocol; and

a control section configured to;

determine whether, of the plurality of cellular phones, a first cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section and a second cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section are respectively receiving a first incoming call and a second incoming call at a same time; and

cause an external display unit, when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, to distinctly display;

(i) a first incoming call information item associated with the first incoming call and a first operation information item associated with a user operation on the first incoming call; and

(ii) a second incoming call information item associated with the second incoming call and a second operation information item associated with a user operation on the second incoming call,

wherein

when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, the control section further

causes a first external sound output unit and a second external sound output unit to respectively output a first ring tone corresponding to the first cellular phone and a second ring tone corresponding to the second cellular phone at the same time

while causing the external display unit to simultaneously display

the first incoming call information item and the first operation information item on a first region of a display screen of the external display unit and

the second incoming call information item and the second operation information item on a second region of the display screen of the external display unit, such that;

the first and second regions of the display screen respectively correspond in location to the first and second external sound output units such that the first region is closer to the first external sound output unit than the second region is, and the second region is closer to the second external sound output unit than the first region is;

the first operation information item displayed on the first region of the display screen is a first switch that is user operable to respond to the first incoming call; and

the second operation information item displayed on the second region of the display screen is a second switch that is user operable to respond to the second incoming call.

2. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a ring tone acquire section configured to receive from the first cellular phone a third ring tone registered on the first cellular phone, and configured to receive from the second cellular phone a fourth ring tone registered on the second cellular phone,

wherein;

the control section causes the first ring tone, which corresponds to the first cellular phone and is outputted from the first external sound output unit, to be generally identical to the third ring tone; and

the control section causes the second ring tone, which corresponds to the second cellular phone and is outputted from the second external sound output unit, to be generally identical to the forth ring tone.

3. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an identification information reception section configured to receive first identification information for identification of the first cellular phones from the first cellular phones, and configured to receive second identification information for identification of the second cellular phones from the second cellular phones; and

a memory unit configured to store a correspondence relation between a fifth ring tone and first phone information about the first cellular phone, and between a sixth ring tone and second information about the second cellular phone,

wherein;

the control section is configured to specify the first cellular phones based on the first identification information, and configured to cause the first ring tone, which corresponds to the first cellular phone and is outputted from the first external sound output unit, to be the fifth ring tone;

the control section is configured to specify the second cellular phones based on the second identification information, and configured to causes the second ring tone, which corresponds to the second cellular phone and is outputted from the second external sound output unit, to be the sixth ring tone.

4. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claims 1, wherein:

when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, the control section further causes the external display unit to distinctly display;

a first remaining battery level information item indicative of a remaining battery level of the first cellular phone; and

a second remaining battery level information item indicative of a remaining battery level of the second cellular phone.

5. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claims 1, wherein:

when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, the control section causes further causes the external display unit to distinctly display;

a first radio reception information item indicative of a radio reception sensitivity level of the first cellular phone; and

a second radio reception information item indicative of a radio reception sensitivity level of the second cellular phone.

6. An in-vehicle handsfree apparatus, comprising:

a handsfree connection section configured to establish connection with a plurality of cellular phones by using a handsfree communication protocol; and

a control section configured to;

determine whether, of the plurality of cellular phones, a first cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section and a second cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section are respectively receiving a first incoming call and a second incoming call at a same time; and

cause an external ring tone output unit to time-divisionally perform an output of a first ring tone corresponding to the first incoming call and an output of a second ring tone corresponding to the second incoming call when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, so that the first ring tone and the second ring tone are alternately outputted from the external ring tone output unit at predetermined time intervals;

a ring tone reception section configured to receive from the first cellular phone a third ring tone registered on the first cellular phone; and

a ring tone memory unit configured to store the third ring tone received from the first cellular phone,

wherein;

when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time and when the third ring tone stored in the ring tone memory unit is in a form of a ringer melody, the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to alternately output the ringer melody corresponding to the first cellular phone and the second ring tone corresponding to the second cellular phone at the predetermined time intervals, such that

each time the ringer melody is outputted during an alternate output of the ringer melody and the second ring tone, the output of the ringer melody starts with a beginning part of the ringer melody.

7. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 6, wherein:

the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to time-divisionally perform the output of the first ring tone and the output of the second ring tone at regular time intervals.

8. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 6, wherein:

the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to time-divisionally perform the output of the first ring tone and the output of the second ring tone at unequal time intervals.

9. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 6, wherein:

the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to time-divisionally perform the output of the first ring tone, the output of the second ring tone, and a stop of the output of both of the first ring tone and second ring tone.

10. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 6, wherein:

the ring tone reception section is configured to receive from the second cellular phone a fourth ring tone registered on the second cellular phone,

wherein;

the control section causes the first ring tone, which corresponds to the first cellular phone and is outputted from the external ring tone output unit, to be generally identical to the third ring tone; and

the control section causes the second ring tone, which corresponds to the second cellular phone and is outputted from the external ring tone output unit, to be generally identical to the forth ring tone.

11. The in-vehicle handsfree apparatus according to claim 10, wherein:

the ring tone memory unit is configured to store the fourth ring tone received from the second cellular phone,

wherein;

when the third ring tone is a first ringer melody and when the ring tone memory unit stores the first ring melody, the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to start to output the first ringer melody from a beginning part of the first ringer melody in each time of the output of the first ringer melody; and

when the fourth ring tone is a second ringer melody and when the ring tone memory unit stores the second ring melody, the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to start to output the second ringer melody from a beginning part of the second ringer melody in each time of the output of the second ringer melody.

12. An in-vehicle handsfree apparatus, comprising:

a handsfree connection section configured to establish connection with a plurality of cellular phones by using a handsfree communication protocol; and

a control section configured to;

determine whether, of the plurality of cellular phones, a first cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section and a second cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section are respectively receiving a first incoming call and a second incoming call at a same time; and

cause an external ring tone output unit to time-divisionally perform an output of a first ring tone corresponding to the first incoming call and an output of a second ring tone corresponding to the second incoming call when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, so that the first ring tone and the second ring tone are alternately outputted from the external ring tone output unit at predetermined time intervals;

a ring tone reception section configured to receive from the first cellular phone a third ring tone registered on the first cellular phone;

a ring tone memory unit configured to store the third ring tone received from the first cellular phone;

an operation section configured to receive, when the third ring tone is in a form of a ringer melody, a user operation for setting a part of the ringer melody as a feature part of the ringer melody,

wherein;

when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time and when the third ring tone stored in the ring tone memory unit is in the form of the ringer melody, the control section causes the external ring tone output unit to alternately output the ringer melody corresponding to the first cellular phone and the second ring tone corresponding to the second cellular phone at the predetermined time intervals, such that

each time the ringer melody is outputted during an alternate output of the ringer melody and the second ring tone, the output of the ringer melody starts with the feature part set by the user operation via the operation section.

13. An in-vehicle handsfree apparatus, comprising:

a handsfree connection section configured to establish connection with a plurality of cellular phones by using a handsfree communication protocol; and

a control section configured to;

determine whether, of the plurality of cellular phones, a first cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section and a second cellular phone connected with the handsfree connection section are respectively receiving a first incoming call and a second incoming call at a same time; and

cause an external display unit, when the control section determines that the first and second cellular phones are respectively receiving the first and second incoming calls at the same time, to simultaneously distinctly display both;

(i) a first incoming call information item associated with the first incoming call and a reject switch and an answer switch associated with the first incoming call; and

(ii) a second incoming call information item associated with the second incoming call and a reset switch and an answer switch associated with the second incoming call.