Mobile phone and dialing method thereof

• US 8,437,804 B2
• Filed: 12/25/2008
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HTC Corporation
• Original Assignee: HTC Corporation
• Inventors: Chou, Fu-Chiang
• Primary Examiner(s): WILLIAMS, HOWARD L
• Application Number:
  US12/344,274
• Publication Number:
  US 20090170561A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,594 Days
• Field of Search: 455/563, 455/569.1, 379/420.01, 379/420.02, 379/420.03, 704/270, 704/275
• US Class Current: 455/563
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/23 Construction or mounting of dials or of equivalent devices; Means for facilitating the use thereof by improving visibility H04M1/22
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041

Abstract

A dialing method of a mobile phone having no physical keyboard is provided. The dialing method includes the following steps. Firstly, a dialing instruction is enabled. Then, a virtual keyboard and a voice recognition module are enabled according to the dialing instruction, so as to receive an input datum from a user. Further, the mobile phone performs a dialing function selected by the user.

Claims

1. A dialing method of a mobile phone with a touch screen having neither a physical dialing keyboard nor a front cover, comprising:

waiting for receiving a dialing instruction, which is provided only by pressing a virtual dial button, instead of only opening a front cover of the mobile phone, wherein the dialing instruction still remains not activated until the virtual dial button is pressed;

simultaneously activating, in response to the dialing instruction, both a virtual keyboard function for receiving a keyboard datum and a voice recognition module ready for receiving a keyboard datum or a voice control datum, and

performing the dialing function according to a voice control datum if the voice control datum is received within a predetermined time period;

disabling the voice recognition module and performing the dialing function according to a keyboard datum if the keyboard datum is received within the predetermined time period; and

disabling the voice recognition module when the predetermined time period is over.

2. The dialing method as claimed in claim 1, wherein, after the step of performing the dialing function according to the voice control datum if the input datum received within the predetermined time period is the voice control datum, the dialing method further comprises:

acquiring a telephone number corresponding to the voice control datum from a phone book and performing dialing.

3. The dialing method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of activating the virtual keyboard function and the voice recognition module according to the dialing instruction after the dialing instruction is provided further comprises displaying a voice control icon.

4. The dialing method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of activating the virtual keyboard function and the voice recognition module according to the dialing instruction after the dialing instruction is provided further comprises playing a reminder sound of voice control dialing function.

5. A mobile phone, comprising:

a touch screen;

a voice recognition module for recognizing a voice;

an input module comprising a voice receiving element and at least a virtual dial button displayed on the touch screen to receive an input of a dialing instruction, which is provided only by pressing the virtual dial button, wherein the dialing instruction still remains not activated until the virtual dial button is pressed; and

a calculation unit coupled to the touch screen and the input module for performing a dialing function;

wherein when the input module receives the dialing instruction, the calculation unit is configured simultaneously to control the touch screen to display a virtual keyboard and to enable said voice recognition module for receiving an input datum, and then the calculation unit is further configured to execute the dialing function according to the input datum;

wherein the calculation unit is configured to start counting a predetermined time period after displaying the virtual keyboard and the voice recognition module;

within the predetermined time, if a voice control datum is received, the dialing function is performed according to the voice control datum;

if a keyboard datum is received, the voice recognition module is disabled and the dialing function is performed according to the keyboard datum; and

if the predetermined time period is over, the voice recognition module is disabled; and

wherein the mobile phone has neither a physical dialing keyboard nor a front cover.

6. The mobile phone as claimed in claim 5, wherein the calculation unit is further configured to display a voice control icon on the touch screen when the input module receives the dialing instruction.

7. The mobile phone as claimed in claim 5, wherein the calculation unit further plays a reminder sound of voice control dialing function when the input module receives the dialing instruction.

8. A dialing method of a mobile phone, comprising:

waiting for a virtual dial button to be enabled, only by pressing the virtual dial button, wherein a dialing instruction still remains not activated until the virtual dial button is pressed;

simultaneously activating, in response to the virtual dial button enabled, both a virtual keyboard function for receiving a keyboard datum and a voice recognition module for receiving a voice control datum if the virtual dial button is enabled;

performing a dialing function according to the voice control datum if the voice control datum is received within a predetermined time period;

disabling the voice recognition module and performing the dialing function according to the keyboard datum if the keyboard datum is received within the predetermined time period; and

disabling the voice recognition module when the predetermined time period is over,

wherein the mobile phone has a touch screen and neither a physical dialing keyboard nor a front cover.

9. The dialing method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the step of performing the dialing function according to the voice control datum if the voice control datum is received within the predetermined time period further comprises:

acquiring a telephone number corresponding to the voice control datum from a phone book and performing the dialing function.

10. The dialing method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the step of activating, in response to the virtual dial button enabled, both a virtual keyboard function for receiving a keyboard datum and a voice recognition module for receiving a voice control datum further comprises displaying a voice control icon.

11. The dialing method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the step of activating, in response to the virtual dial button enabled, both a virtual keyboard function for receiving a keyboard datum and a voice recognition module for receiving a voice control datum further comprises playing a reminder sound of voice control dialing function.