Smart phones that include touch sensitive screen and supporting voice activated commands for managing or replying to E-mails

• US 9,383,956 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2012
• Issued: 07/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Flexiworld Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Mattel Incorporated
• Inventors: Chang, William Ho, Liu, Christina Ying
• Primary Examiner(s): Pollack, Melvin H
• Application Number:
  US13/710,295
• Publication Number:
  US 20130109353A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,303 Days
• Field of Search: 709/227, 709/206, 358/1.15, 455/3.01, 455/557, 455/151.2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/12 Digital output to print unit , e.g. line printer, chain printer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1206 resulting in increased flexibility in input data format or job format or job type
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1226 Discovery of devices having required properties
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1247 by conversion to printer ready format
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/126 Job scheduling, e.g. queuing, determine appropriate device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1292 Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3224 Transactions dependent on location of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3226 Use of secure elements separate from M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4012 Verifying personal identification numbers [PIN]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 : Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/405 : Establishing or using transaction specific rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2220/00 : Business processing using cryptography postage metering system using cryptography G06Q2250/05
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2805 : Home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2809 : indicating that an appliance service is present in a home automation network monitoring functionality H04L43/0817; discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services, H04L67/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2838 : Distribution of signals within a home automation network, e.g. involving splitting/multiplexing signals to/from different paths adaptations of television systems for transmission by electric cable for domestic distribution H04N7/106; hybrid transport H04L12/6418; home network arrangements specially adapted for distribution of digital video signals H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 : Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 : Audio/video appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/285 : Generic home appliances, e.g. refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0803 : Configuration setting
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2478 : Telephone terminals specially adapted for non-voice services, e.g. email, internet access centralized arrangements where telephones services are combined H04M7/0024; for recording text messages H04M3/5322; for accessing Internet H04M3/4938
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 : Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 : locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 : Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 : Terminal devices

Abstract

Smart Phones that support voice activated commands for managing e-mails are disclosed and enabled. This new Smart Phone may include a touch sensitive screen, a graphical user interface, an e-mail application, an Internet browsing application, and applications for playing audio/video content. The Smart Phone includes an operating system and support for installation of new applications. The Smart Phone may further support part of a wireless protocol within IEEE 802.11. In one example, a user of the Smart Phone may reply to an e-mail by using voice commands or by selecting an icon over the touch sensitive screen. The user may scroll down or up an email using the touch sensitive screen interface. In other examples, the user may further issue voice commands to synchronize, stream, transmit, play, print, display, or mirror at least part of digital content from the Smart Phone to one or more output devices over air.

Claims

1. A Smart Phone supporting both touch sensitive screen and voice activated command interfaces for interacting with a user, the Smart Phone being an Internet-Phone with access to the Internet, the Smart Phone further being a mobile and wireless computing device, and the Smart Phone being configured for including one or more of the following applications that are either installable by the user or are pre-installed by a manufacturer:

a voice communication application,

a messaging application,

a digital imaging application,

an audio application,

a video application,

a document editing application,

an Internet browsing application; and

wherein the Smart Phone further includes;

operating system software in the Smart Phone supporting an application programming interface (API) to facilitate at least one of said messaging application, said audio application, said video application, said digital imaging application, said document editing application, and said Internet browsing application interfacing with device management utilities and services in the Smart Phone, and the Smart Phone is operable to allow the user to install additional applications that are associated for running on said operating system software to further expand the functionalities of the Smart Phone; and

an email application in the Smart Phone, the email application being operable to access the application programming interface (API) supported by the operating system software for accessing one or more device management utilities and services in the Smart Phone; and

wherein, the Smart Phone further comprises;

a digital camera for taking pictures,

a touch sensitive screen interface for interacting with the user,

a graphical user interface over the touch sensitive screen,

a microphone interface,

a speaker interface for outputting sound to the user,

a voice activated command function for receiving voice commands from the user with the microphone interface,

a processing unit,

a memory or storage unit for storing at least a portion of digital content, and

a wireless communication unit that includes a radio frequency controller and an antenna for establishing radio frequency wireless communication between the Smart Phone and one or more wireless output controller devices that are distinct devices from the Smart Phone, the wireless communication unit being compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards; and

wherein the e-mail application includes;

a graphical user interface, provided by the e-mail application and over the touch sensitive screen, that includes an inbox,

a done function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen,

a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen for replying to an e-mail,

a delete function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen for deleting an e-mail; and

the e-mail application being further operable to;

receive from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a done function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen,

receive from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen,

receive from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a delete function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, and

receive from the user, with the microphone interface and the voice activated command function, a request to reply to an e-mail; and

wherein, the mobile and wireless Smart Phone is operable to support at least two types of interfaces to reply to an e-mail that include (1) voice activated commands from the user to reply to an e-mail, and (2) a selection of the reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen interface to reply to an e-mail.

2. The Smart Phone of claim 1, wherein the Smart Phone is further operable to provide to the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, one or more wireless output devices for selection by the user, the one or more wireless output devices being available for outputting or playing of the at least part of the digital content from the Smart Phone.

3. The Smart Phone of claim 2, wherein the Smart Phone is further operable to:

receive, from the user via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, a selection for a wireless output device from among the one or more wireless output devices that are provided to the user for selection by the user and that are available for outputting of the at least part of the digital content; and

establish, via the wireless communication unit that is compatible, at least in part, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards, a radio frequency wireless connection from the Smart Phone to the selected wireless output device for transfer of the at least part of the digital content to the selected wireless output device, wherein the selected wireless output device is at least one of a television, a display device, an audio output device, a printer, an output controller connectable to a television, or a projector, individually or in any combination.

4. The Smart Phone of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication unit of the Smart Phone that is compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards, further provides solutions for establishing a radio frequency wireless connection to a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN).

5. The Smart Phone of claim 1, wherein the touch sensitive screen interface on the Smart Phone is further operable for the user to scroll down or up an e-mail.

6. The Smart Phone of claim 1, wherein Smart Phone is further operable to:

obtain authentication or security information at the Smart Phone; and

establish a restricted radio frequency wireless connection from the Smart Phone to a wireless output device for transfer of at least part of the digital content to the wireless output device, the wireless output device being a distinct device from the Smart Phone.

7. The Smart Phone of claim 1, wherein the Smart Phone is further operable to interact with the user via an interface that includes the voice activated command function and the speaker interface, and the interaction further including showing an e-mail from the inbox over the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone to the user.

8. A method of managing e-mails from a Smart Phone, the Smart Phone supporting both touch sensitive screen and voice activated command interfaces for interacting with a user, the Smart Phone being a mobile and wireless computing device and being an Internet enabled wireless phone, and the Smart Phone being configured for including one or more of the following applications that are either installable by the user or are pre-installed by a manufacturer:

a voice communication application,

a messaging application,

a digital imaging application,

an audio application,

a video application,

a document editing application,

an Internet browsing application; and

wherein the Smart Phone further includes;

operating system software in the Smart Phone supporting an application programming interface (API) to facilitate at least one of said messaging application, said audio application, said video application, said digital imaging application, said document editing application, and said Internet browsing application interfacing with device management utilities and services in the Smart Phone, and the Smart Phone is operable to allow the user to install additional applications that are implemented for running on said operating system software to further expand the functionalities of the Smart Phone; and

the Smart Phone further comprising;

an image acquisition application,

a touch sensitive screen interface for interacting with the user,

a graphical user interface over the touch sensitive screen,

a microphone interface,

a speaker interface for outputting sound to the user,

a voice activated command function for receiving voice commands from the user with the microphone interface,

a processing unit,

a memory or storage unit for storing at least a portion of digital content, and

a wireless communication unit that includes a radio frequency controller and an antenna for establishing radio frequency wireless communication between the Smart Phone and one or more wireless output devices that are distinct devices from the Smart Phone, the wireless communication unit being compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards; and

wherein, the Smart Phone further includes an e-mail application, the e-mail application includes;

a graphical user interface, provided by the e-mail application and over the touch sensitive screen, that includes an inbox,

a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen for replying to an e-mail,

a delete function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen for deleting an e-mail; and

the Smart Phone method for managing e-mails including;

passing at least part of the digital content over the application programming interface (API) provided by the Smart Phone operating system software;

receiving from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen;

receiving from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a delete function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen;

receiving from the user, with the microphone interface and the voice activated command function, a request to reply to an e-mail; and

wherein, the mobile and wireless Smart Phone is operable to reply to an e-mail via at least two types of interfaces that include (1) voice activated commands from the user and the microphone interface or the speaker interface, and (2) a selection of the reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen interface; and

wherein, the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone further provides an interface for the user to scroll down an e-mail.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the wireless communication unit of the Smart Phone that is compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards, further comprising:

solutions for establishing a radio frequency wireless connection to a Wireless Local Area Network.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising receiving, from the user via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, a selection for a wireless output device from among the one or more wireless output devices that are provided to the user for selection by the user and that are available for outputting or playing of the at least part of the digital content, and wherein the selected wireless output device is at least one of a television, a display device, an audio output device, a printer, a projector, or an output controller connectable to a television, individually or in any combination.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

establishing, via the wireless communication unit that is compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards, a radio frequency wireless connection from the Smart Phone to the selected wireless output device for transferring of the at least part of the digital content from the Smart Phone to the selected wireless output device; and

transferring the at least part of the digital content from the Smart Phone to the selected wireless output device over the established radio frequency wireless connection from the Smart Phone to the selected wireless output device.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the Smart Phone further includes an output manager in the Smart Phone for managing at least part of an e-mail, and the method further comprising passing the at least part of an e-mail to the output manager in the Smart Phone, the passing of the at least part of an e-mail being facilitated, at least in part, by the application programming interface (API) provided by the Smart Phone operating system software.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

obtaining authentication or security information at the Smart Phone; and

establishing, with the authentication or security information, a restricted radio frequency wireless connection from the Smart Phone to the one or more wireless output devices for transfer of at least part of the digital content to the one or more wireless output devices.

14. The method of claim 8, further comprising interacting with the user via the voice activated command function, the speaker interface, or the microphone interface, individually or in any combination, and the interaction further including showing an e-mail from the inbox over the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone to the user.

15. A Smart Phone including Smart Phone software containing a program of commands executable by a processing unit of the Smart Phone to facilitate replying to an e-mail from the Smart Phone, the Smart Phone supporting both touch sensitive screen and voice activated command interfaces for interacting with a user, the Smart Phone being a mobile and wireless computing device and being an Internet enabled wireless phone, and the Smart Phone being configured for including one or more of the following applications that are either installable by the user or are pre-installed by a manufacturer:

a voice communication application,

a messaging application,

a digital imaging application,

an audio application,

a video application,

a document editing application,

an Internet browsing application; and

wherein the Smart Phone further includes;

operating system software in the Smart Phone supporting an application programming interface (API) to facilitate at least one of said messaging application, said audio application, said video application, said digital imaging application, said document editing application, and said Internet browsing application interfacing with device management utilities and services in the Smart Phone, and the Smart Phone is operable to allow the user to install additional applications associated for running on said operating system software to further expand the functionalities of the Smart Phone;

the Smart Phone further comprising;

an image acquisition application,

a digital camera for taking pictures,

a touch sensitive screen interface for interacting with the user,

a graphical user interface over the touch sensitive screen,

a microphone interface,

a speaker interface for outputting sound to the user,

a voice activated command function for receiving voice commands from the user over the microphone interface,

a memory or storage unit for storing at least a portion of digital content, and

a wireless communication unit that includes a radio frequency controller and an antenna for establishing radio frequency wireless communication between the Smart Phone and one or more wireless output devices that are distinct devices from the Smart Phone, the wireless communication unit being compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards; and

wherein, the Smart Phone further includes an e-mail application, the e-mail application includes;

a graphical user interface, provided by the e-mail application and over the touch sensitive screen, that includes an inbox, and

a graphical user interface, provided by the e-mail application and over the touch sensitive screen, showing to the user the number of messages that are in the inbox;

a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen for replying to an e-mail, and

a delete function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen, provided by the e-mail application, for user selection over the touch sensitive screen for deleting an e-mail; and

the Smart Phone software being further executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to facilitate the Smart Phone to;

pass at least part of the digital content over the application programming interface (API) provided by the Smart Phone operating system software;

receive from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen;

receive from the user, via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, selection of a delete function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen; and

receive from the user, via the voice activated command function, a request to reply to an e-mail; and

wherein, the Smart Phone software is executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to initiate a reply to an e-mail in response to either a voice activated command or selection of a reply function control or icon displayed on the touch sensitive screen interface.

16. The Smart Phone of claim 15, wherein the Smart Phone software is further executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to transmit at least part of the digital content, over a radio frequency wireless communication and through the wireless communication unit of the Smart Phone that is compatible, at least partly, with at least part of a protocol within IEEE 802.11 standards, to the one or more wireless output devices that are available for wireless connection with the Smart Phone and that are available for outputting or playing of the at least part of the digital content.

17. The Smart Phone of claim 15, wherein the Smart Phone software is further executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to receive, from the user via the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone, a selection of a wireless output device from among the one or more wireless output devices that are provided to the user over the touch sensitive screen interface for selection by the user for outputting or playing of the at least part of the digital content.

18. The Smart Phone of claim 15, wherein the Smart Phone software is further executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to facilitate providing an interface over the touch sensitive screen of the Smart Phone for scrolling down or up an email.

19. The Smart Phone of claim 15, wherein the Smart Phone further includes an output manager in the Smart Phone for managing transfer of at least part of an e-mail to the one or more wireless output devices, the Smart Phone software is further executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to pass the at least part of an e-mail to the output manager in the Smart Phone, the passing of the at least part of an e-mail being facilitated, at least in part, by the application programming interface (API) provided by the Smart Phone operating system software.

20. The Smart Phone of claim 15, wherein the Smart Phone software is further executable by the processing unit of the Smart Phone to interact with the user, the interaction including the voice activated command function, and the speaker interface or the microphone interface, and the interaction further including showing an e-mail over the touch sensitive screen interface of the Smart Phone to the user.