Group service with information on group members

• US 9,065,579 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2003
• Issued: 06/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Turcanu, Calin, Saijonmaa, Jaakko
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tu X
• Application Number:
  US10/732,539
• Publication Number:
  US 20050054361A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,212 Days
• Field of Search: 455/518, 455/410, 455/411, 455415-419, 455/515, 455/445, 455/519, 455/520, 370/312, 370/260, 370/263, 370/266
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/80 characterised by transmission among terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2044 Group features, e.g. closed user group
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/186 Processing of subscriber group data

Abstract

Group communication service is becoming more and more popular in communications systems. The users of the group communication would benefit especially from summarized group information. A member of a group comprising at least two members can receive the summarized group information by subscribing to information on other group members; wherein information on the group is summarized at least on the basis of current information on at least one other group member whose information was subscribed to; and by showing the thus obtained summarized group member information to the member.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

subscribing to, by a user who is a group member of a talk group, information on other group members in a non-trunk communication system;

summarizing information on the group at least based on current information on at least one other group member whose information was subscribed to, the outcome being summarized group member information comprising a number of group members, a number of participating group members, numbers of participating and non-participating group members, indication of participating and non-participating group members and the number of available persons via a group; and

delivering the summarized group member information to the user,

wherein the summarized group member information comprises names of group members who are in a group call and, if no talk group call is currently active, then the summarized group member information comprises a listing of names available for a talk group call.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a subscription request from the user that the user wants to join the group;

performing the subscribing, summarizing and delivering in response to receiving the indication; and

authorizing information on the user to the at least one other member of the group in response to receiving the indication.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein authorizing is performed group-specifically.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a change in information on a member in the group;

delivering the changed information as current information to members of the group subscribed to the information; and

updating the summarized group member information.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the subscribing is performed group-specifically.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

using a first color for group members who are currently active and using a second color, different from the first color, for group members who are not active.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

basing the summarized group member information on a subset of group members.

8. the method according to claim 7, wherein the subset is selected by at least one of selection by the user, selection based on a common criteria, selection based on information related to other members of the group to whom the user is subscribed, and selection by level-specificity.

9. A device in a non-trunk communication system, comprising:

a receiving unit configured to receive group information;

a receiving unit configured to receive information on group members in the non-trunk communication system;

a forming unit configured to form summarized talk group member information on a the group at least based on received current information on the group members, the summarized group member information comprising a number of group members, a number of participating group members, numbers of participating and non-participating group members, indication of participating and non-participating group members and the number of available persons via a group; and

a user interface for showing the summarized group member information to a user of the device,

wherein the summarized group member information comprises names of group members who are in a group call and, if no talk group call is currently active, then the summarized group member information comprises a listing of names available for a talk group call.

10. The device according to claim 9, further comprising:

a subscribing and unsubscribing unit configured to subscribe and unsubscribe to information on other group members, the subscribing and unsubscribing unit being responsive to user selections.

11. The device according to claim 9, further comprising:

an authorizing and unauthorizing unit configured to authorize and unauthorize other group members to receive information on a group member using the device, the authorizing and unauthorizing unit being responsive to user selections.

12. The device according to claim 9, wherein said receiving unit said forming unit are included in a group-enhanced phonebook of the device.

13. The device according to claim 9, wherein the device is configured to subscribe to information on other group members based on information in a phonebook of the apparatus.

14. The device according to claim 9, wherein the device is configured to authorize other group members based on information in a phonebook of the apparatus.