Mobile terminal and method for displaying menu thereof

• US 8,428,654 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2009
• Issued: 04/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Oh, You-Hwa, Kim, Ik-Hoon, Jo, Kyoung-Jin, Kwak, Jae-Do
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, MAHENDRA R
• Application Number:
  US12/470,421
• Publication Number:
  US 20100009719A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,433 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 455/417, 455/413, 455/445, 455/575.1, 455/414.4, 455/411, 455/518, 455/563, 455/564, 370/352, 379/211.02, 379/433.07, 379/221.08, 379/88.22, 379/211.01, 381/423, 700/94, 704/201, 707/E17.119
• US Class Current: 455/563
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/74 with voice recognition means voice activated dialling H04M1/271; voice recognition algorithms G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/485 End-user interface for client configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/141 between two video terminals, e.g. videophone telephonic communication systems combined with television receiver for reception of entertainment or information matter H04M11/085

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for automatically displaying a menu relating to a specific function by recognizing a user'"'"'s voice command in a call mode, and for directly executing the menu, and a mobile terminal having the same. A mobile terminal may include a microphone configured to receive a user'"'"'s voice in a video call mode, a display for displaying information, and a controller configured to recognize the voice, detect a voice command included in the voice, and automatically display a menu corresponding to the detected voice command on the display.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal, comprising:

a microphone configured to receive a user'"'"'s voice during a video call;

a display configured to display information;

an input unit configured to receive a user input; and

a controller configured to;

initiate the video call with a call recipient in response to a first input via the input unit;

activate a voice recognition function during the video call in response to a second input via the input unit;

receive, during the video call, an input comprising a natural language conversation of a user of the mobile terminal with the call recipient;

convert the natural language conversation into text format;

detect, during the video call, a voice command from the text format of the natural language conversation,

wherein the natural language conversation comprises one or more words which form the voice command and one or more additional words which do not form the voice command;

control the display to display a menu associated with the detected voice command in response to detecting the voice command;

execute a function associated with the displayed menu;

control the display to display an icon for sharing information associated with the executed function;

transmit the information associated with the executed function to the call recipient in response to the user dragging the icon to a specific region displayed on the display; and

control the display to sequentially display menus associated with each of a plurality of detected voice commands.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to detect the voice command by comparing words that are spoken by the user during the natural language conversation with a voice command stored in a database.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to control the display to display an execution menu associated with the executed function.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to:

control the display to display a plurality of display regions; and

control the display to display the menu associated with the detected voice command or the execution menu in one of the display regions.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to control the display to display the menu associated with the detected voice command or the execution menu in a window that is separate from the information displayed on the display.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein:

the information comprises sound; and

the controller is further configured to transmit the information associated with the executed function via a voice calling channel used during the video call.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein:

the information comprises an image or a video; and

the controller is further configured to transmit the information associated with the executed function via a video call channel.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 7, wherein the controller is further configured to transmit the information associated with the executed function as a file.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the natural language conversation can be a language other than English.

9. A method for transmitting data from a mobile terminal, the method comprising:

initiating a video call with a call recipient in response to a first input via an input unit;

activating a voice recognition function during the video call in response to a second input via the input unit;

receiving, during the video call, an input comprising a natural language conversation of a user of the mobile terminal with the call recipient;

converting the natural language conversation into text format;

detecting, during the video call, a voice command from the text format of the natural language conversation, wherein the natural language conversation comprises one or more words which form the voice command and one or more additional words which do not form the voice command;

displaying, on a display of the mobile terminal, a menu associated with the detected voice command in response to detecting of the voice command;

executing a function associated with the displayed menu;

displaying, on the display, an icon for sharing information associated with the executed function;

detecting a plurality of voice commands;

sequentially displaying menus, on the display, in response to the detecting of the plurality of voice commands; and

transmitting the information to the call recipient in response to the user dragging the icon to a specific region displayed on the display.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the voice command is a word associated with the menu or a word associated with the function.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the word associated with the menu is one of a plurality of words associated with the menu.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein executing the function further comprises displaying, on the display, an execution menu associated with the executed function.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the natural language conversation can be a language other than English.