Methods and apparatus to audibly provide messages in a mobile device

• US 8,655,661 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2010
• Issued: 02/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Hymel, James Allen, Lindner, Jeffery Erhard
• Primary Examiner(s): MCFADDEN, SUSAN IRIS
• Application Number:
  US12/901,401
• Publication Number:
  US 20120089401A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,229 Days
• Field of Search: 704/260
• US Class Current: 704/260
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/279 Recognition of textual entities
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/1822 Parsing for meaning understanding
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2011 Service processing based on information specified by a party before or during a call, e.g. information, tone or routing selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6072 Authentication using challenger response
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/74 with voice recognition means voice activated dialling H04M1/271; voice recognition algorithms G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4365 based on information specified by the calling party, e.g. priority or subject
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53333 Message receiving aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5335 Message type or catagory, e.g. priority, indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements

Abstract

Methods and apparatus to audibly provide messages in a mobile device at described. An example method includes receiving a message at a mobile device, wherein the message includes an identification of a sender, an identification of a recipient, and a message contents, determining that the message contents includes a predetermined phrase, in response to determining that the message contents includes the predetermined phrase, audibly presenting the message contents.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a message at an electronic device, the message including an identification of a sender, an identification of a recipient, and message content;

determining that the message contents includes a predetermined phrase; and

in response to determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase, audibly presenting the message content while the electronic device is set to at least one of a silent mode, a quiet mode, and a lock mode.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the message content includes the identification of the sender of the message and the identification of the recipient of the message.

3. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

in response to determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase, receiving a voice input at the electronic device; and

determining that the voice input includes a second predetermined phrase, wherein audibly presenting the message content is performed in response to determining that the voice input includes the second predetermined phrase.

4. The method as defined in claim 3, wherein the predetermined phrase and the second predetermined phrase are the same.

5. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the predetermined phrase is at least one word.

6. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

retrieving a set of predetermined phrases associated with message senders;

determining a predetermined phrase associated with a sender of the message, wherein determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase comprises determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase associated with the sender of the message.

7. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising converting the message from text to speech.

8. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising removing the predetermined phrase from the message.

9. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

audibly receiving a response to the message at the electronic device; and

sending the response.

10. A non-transitory computer readable storage disk or device storing instructions that, when executed by a processor cause an electronic device to at least:

receive a message including an identification of a sender, an identification of a recipient, and message content;

determine that the message content includes a predetermined phrase; and

in response to determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase, audibly present the message content while the electronic device is set to at least one of a silent mode, a quiet mode, and a lock mode.

11. An electronic device comprising:

a message receiver for receiving a message including an identification of a sender, an identification of a recipient, and message content;

a message parser to determine that the message content includes a predetermined phrase; and

a presenter for receiving a notification from the message parser that the message content includes the predetermined phrase and to, in response to the notification, audibly present the message content while the electronic device is set to at least one of a silent mode, a quiet mode, and a lock mode.

12. An electronic device as defined in claim 11, further comprising an audible command processor to, in response to the electronic device determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase, receive a voice input at the electronic device and determine that the voice input includes a second predetermined phrase, wherein audibly presenting the message content is performed in response to determining that the voice input includes the second predetermined phrase.

13. The electronic device as defined in claim 12, wherein the predetermined phrase and the second predetermined phrase are the same.

14. The electronic device as defined in claim 11, wherein the predetermined phrase is at least one word.

15. The electronic device as defined in claim 11, wherein the message parser is further to retrieve a set of predetermined phrases associated with message senders and to determine a predetermined phrase associated with a sender of the message, wherein determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase comprises determining that the message content includes the predetermined phrase associated with the sender of the message.

16. The electronic device as defined in claim 11, further comprising a message converter to convert the message from text to speech.

17. The electronic device as defined in claim 11, wherein the presenter is further to remove the predetermined phrase from the message.

18. The electronic device as defined in claim 11, wherein the presenter is further to audibly receive a response to the message at the electronic device and wherein the presenter is further to send the response.