Portable terminal device and method of controlling the same

• US 8,410,915 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2008
• Issued: 04/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lenovo Innovations Ltd Hong Kong (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Mizoguchi, Naoki
• Primary Examiner(s): Mehmood, Jennifer
• Assistant Examiner(s): RUSHING, MARK S
• Application Number:
  US12/738,007
• Publication Number:
  US 20100238004A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,628 Days
• Field of Search: 340/407.1, 340/407.2, 340/7.6, 360/69, 360/75, 710/18, 235/384
• US Class Current: 340/407.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0727 the arrangement being a circuit facilitating integration of the record carrier with a hand-held device such as a smart phone of PDA
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/04 the ringing-current being generated at the substations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/04 including near field communication means, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/14 including a card reading device

Abstract

A portable telephone device (10) includes: a noncontact IC card communication unit (30) that performs a noncontact IC card communication; a vibration alert unit (22) that notifies the user by vibration that the noncontact IC card communication unit (30) is performing the noncontact IC card communication; and an IC card vibration alert control unit (44) that performs the control to regulate the vibration of the vibration alert unit (22) so that the vibration of the vibration alert unit (22) does not affect the communication state of the noncontact IC card communication unit (30).

Claims

1. A portable terminal device, comprising:

a communication unit which performs a noncontact IC card communication;

a vibration alert unit which notifies a user by vibration that said communication unit is performing said noncontact IC card communication; and

a control unit which performs the control to suppress said vibration of said vibration alert unit so that said vibration of said vibration alert unit does not affect a communication state of said communication unit, wherein

said control unit causes said vibration alert unit to perform a vibrating operation for a predetermined period of vibration time and stop the vibrating operation for a predetermined period of intermission time, thereby performing an intermittent operation, and

said control unit instructs said vibration alert unit so that said predetermined period of vibration time of said intermittent operation is shorten to equal to or more than the time in which said user can recognize said vibration, and equal to or less than the time in which the portable terminal device itself does not move due to said vibration.

2. The portable terminal device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said predetermined period of intermission time is a time in which said user can recognize a next vibrating operation after said vibrating operation is ended.

3. The portable terminal device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said vibration alert unit performs said vibrating operation at least once.

4. The portable terminal device as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:

a light-emitting alert unit which notifies said user through light that said communication unit is performing the noncontact IC card communication; and

a light-emission control unit which controls said light-emitting alert unit to emit light for a predetermined period of emission time that is longer than said predetermined period of vibration time of said vibration alert unit.

5. The portable terminal device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said communication unit performs the noncontact IC card communication with an IC card reader/writer.

6. A method of controlling a portable terminal device that includes a vibration alert unit which notifies a user by vibration when said portable terminal device is performing a noncontact IC card communication, the method being for controlling said vibration alert unit, the method comprising:

performing the control to suppress said vibration of said vibration alert unit so that said vibration of said vibration alert unit does not affect a communication state of said portable terminal device,

causing said vibration of said vibration alert unit to perform a vibrating operation for a predetermined period of vibration time and stop the vibrating operation for a predetermined period of intermission time, thereby performing an intermittent operation, and

instructing said vibration of said vibration alert unit so that said predetermined period of vibration time of said intermittent operation is shorten to equal to or more than the time in which said user can recognize said vibration, and equal to or less than the time in which the portable terminal device itself does not move due to said vibration.