Automatic contact recognition from SMS

• US 8,874,148 B2
• Filed: 09/09/2008
• Issued: 10/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Herz, Scott, Van Os, Marcel
• Primary Examiner(s): SAMS, MATTHEW C
• Application Number:
  US12/207,278
• Publication Number:
  US 20090305730A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,240 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 455/566
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication

Abstract

A first mobile device receives an input to send data via a text messaging protocol to a second mobile device. The data is marked up with one or more transparent text message characters to delimit fields in the data. The marked up data is transmitted via the text messaging protocol to the second mobile device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving at a first mobile device an indication to send data having an electronic business card via a text messaging protocol to a second mobile device;

detecting the electronic business card;

marking up the data to create marked up data by (1) adding at least three different length patterns of at least three different combinations of two or more transparent text message characters to delimit at least three different types of data fields in the data, the fields associated with the electronic business card, wherein at least two of the two or more transparent text message characters are different characters;

and (2) using a first instance of a first length pattern of a first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a first type of a data field;

then

using a second instance of the first length pattern of the first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a second type of a data field; and

transmitting the marked up data via the text messaging protocol to the second mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data comprises contact information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the contact information comprises data selected from the group consisting of address data, phone number data, fax number data, email address data, name data, employer data, or web address data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the transparent characters are one of Unicode characters or Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) characters.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the two or more transparent characters include (1) a space character or a non-breaking space character, and (2) a carriage return character or a new line character.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the text messaging protocol is Short Message Service (SMS).

7. The method of claim 1, wherein a first instance of a pattern of one or more transparent characters constitutes a first field delimiter and a second instance of the pattern of one or more transparent characters constitutes a second field delimiter.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein marking up comprises parsing the electronic business card into a plurality of fields and adding the transparent text message characters between pairs of fields.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the transparent characters are selected from the group consisting of space characters, non-breaking space characters, carriage returns, and newlines.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters, one of (1) comprise a space character or a non-breaking space character followed by a carriage return, (2) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters followed by a carriage return, or (3) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters comprise recognizable character patterns that signify 3 or more different types of data fields.

12. An article of manufacture, comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium having content stored thereon to provide instructions to result in an electronic device performing operations including:

receiving at a first mobile device an indication to send data via a text messaging protocol to a second mobile device, wherein the data includes a plurality of fields from an electronic business card;

detecting the plurality of fields;

marking up the data to create marked up data (1) with at least three different length patterns of at least three different combinations of two or more transparent text message characters to delimit at least three different types of data fields of the plurality of fields in the data, wherein at least two of the two or more transparent text message characters are different characters;

and (2) using a first instance of a first length pattern of a first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a first type of a data field;

then using a second instance of the first length pattern of the first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a second type of a data field; and

transmitting the marked up data via the text messaging protocol to the second mobile device.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the text messaging protocol includes business card file format having the plurality of fields and the data comprises contact information.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 13, wherein the contact information comprises data selected from the group consisting of address data, phone number data, fax number data, email address data, name data, employer data, or web address data.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the transparent characters are one of Unicode characters or Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) characters.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the two or more transparent characters include (1) a space character or a non-breaking space character, and (2) a carriage return character or a new line character.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the text messaging protocol is Short Message Service (SMS).

18. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein a first instance of a pattern of one or more transparent characters constitutes a first field delimiter and a second instance of the pattern of one or more transparent characters constitutes a second field delimiter.

19. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters, one of (1) comprise a space character or a non-breaking space character followed by a carriage return, (2) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters followed by a carriage return, or (3) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters.

20. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters comprise recognizable character patterns that signify 3 or more different types of data fields.

21. A mobile device, comprising:

a conversion engine to receive an indication to send a plurality of fields of business card data via a text messaging protocol to a second mobile device, to detect the plurality of fields, and to markup the data to create marked up data by;

(1) adding at least three different length patterns of at least three different combinations of two or more transparent text message characters to delimit at least three different types of data fields of the plurality of fields in the data, wherein at least two of the two or more transparent text message characters are different characters, and (2) using a first instance of a first length pattern of a first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a first type of a data field;

then using a second instance of the first length pattern of the first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a second type of a data field;

a transmitter to transmit the marked up data as a first text message via the text messaging protocol to the second mobile device; and

the conversion engine further to

receive a second text message, recognize transparent text message characters as field delimiters for data in the text message, and

convert data in the text message into an electronic business card based at least in part on the field delimiters.

22. The mobile device of claim 21, further comprising a display screen to display an accentuated portion of the data with the data in the second text message, wherein a user-selection of the accentuated portion causes the electronic business card in the second text message to be displayed.

23. The mobile device of claim 22, wherein the accentuated portion is accentuated based on one or more of highlighting, displaying an image, or including an icon.

24. The mobile device of claim 22, wherein the text messaging protocol is Short Message Service (SMS).

25. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the data comprises data selected from the group consisting of address data, phone number data, fax number data, email address data, name data, employer data, or web address data.

26. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the transparent text messaging characters are one of Unicode characters or Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) characters.

27. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the two or more transparent text messaging characters include (1) a space character or a non-breaking space character, and (2) a carriage return character or a new line character.

28. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the text messaging protocol includes business card file format having the plurality of fields.

29. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters, one of (1) comprise a space character or a non-breaking space character followed by a carriage return, (2) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters followed by a carriage return, or (3) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters.

30. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters comprise recognizable character patterns that signify 3 or more different types of data fields.

31. A method, comprising:

receiving at a first mobile device an indication to send data having a personal or contact information via a text messaging protocol to a second mobile device;

detecting the personal or contact information;

automatically marking up the data to create marked up data by (1) adding at least three different length patterns of at least three different combinations of two or more transparent text message characters to delimit at least three different types of data fields associated with the personal or contact information in the data, wherein at least two of the two or more transparent text message characters are different characters;

and (2) using a first instance of a first length pattern of a first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a first type of a data field;

then

using a second instance of the first length pattern of the first two or more transparent text message characters to distinguish a second type of a data field; and

transmitting the marked up data via the text messaging protocol to the second mobile device.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the text messaging protocol includes business card file format.

33. The method of claim 31, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters, one of (1) comprise a space character or a non-breaking space character followed by a carriage return, (2) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters followed by a carriage return, or (3) are three space characters or non-breaking space characters.

34. The method of claim 31, wherein the two or more transparent text message characters comprise recognizable character patterns that signify 3 or more different types of data fields.