Providing interactive alert information

• US 9,525,769 B1
• Filed: 08/06/2013
• Issued: 12/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Bauer, German W., Cleron, Michael A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Fayyaz
• Application Number:
  US13/960,253
• Time in Patent Office: 1,232 Days
• Field of Search: 455/550.1, 455/556.1, 455/456, 455/566, 455/56, 345173-178, 715700-702, 715/752, 715/772, 715/764, 715783-788, 715790-793, 715/831, 715841-845, 715/863, 715/864, 715/866
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]

Abstract

In some implementations, a computer-implemented method of displaying alert information with a mobile communication device includes displaying device status indicators to a user of a mobile device in a status area; receiving information from an application to display an alert in the status area; displaying in the status area a first level of information for the alert and a user-selectable control; and displaying, in response to a selection of the user-selectable control, a second level of information for the alert that provides greater detail than the first level of information.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving, by a computing system, an indication to display information for an alert;

displaying, by the computing system, a first level of information for the alert in a status area of a user interface that is displayed by the computing system,

wherein the status area of the user interface is distinct from an application area of the user interface in which the computing system is configured to display user interfaces of applications that are executed by the computing system;

receiving, by the computing system, a first user input associated with the status area;

displaying, by the computing system in response to receiving the first user input associated with the status area, a second level of information for the alert in a window that occupies less than all of the application area,

wherein the second level of information for the alert provides information not included in the first level of information for the alert;

receiving, by the computing system, a second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert; and

displaying, by the computing system in response to receiving the second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert, a third level of information for the alert,

wherein the third level of information for the alert provides information not included in the first level of information for the alert and not included in the second level of information for the alert.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the first level of information for the alert includes text; and

displaying the first level of information for the alert in the status area includes displaying the text in the status area.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first user input associated with the status area includes receiving user input selecting a portion of the status area in which the first level of information for the alert is displayed.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising displaying, by the computing system, at least one device status indicator in the status area concurrently with the display of the first level of information for the alert.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the at least one device status indicator in the status area includes a first icon that indicates a current battery level and a second icon that indicates a detected strength of a wireless communication signal.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first user input associated with the status area includes receiving an indication that user input contacted a region of a touchscreen display at which a portion of the status area was being displayed.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein displaying the third level of information for the alert includes activating, in response to receiving the second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert, a particular application program that provides the third level of information for the alert for display.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein receiving the indication to display the information for the alert includes receiving the indication from the particular application program.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

receiving the indication to display the information for the alert includes receiving an indication that a short message service (SMS) message has been received by the computing system;

displaying the second level of information for the alert includes displaying only a portion of the SMS message; and

displaying the third level of information for the alert includes displaying all of the SMS message.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the alert is an indication that a messaging application received a message; and

the method further comprises;

receiving, by the computing system a third user input that selects the second level of information for the alert; and

activating, by the computing system in response to receiving the third user input that selected the second level of information for the alert, a control within the window that, when selected causes the messaging application to delete the message or route the message to a folder.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the alert is an indication that a messaging application received a message;

the first level of information that is displayed in the status area identifies a sender of the message without identifying a subject of the message; and

the second level of information for the alert that is displayed in the window includes the subject of the message.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the alert is an indication that a messaging application received a message;

the first level of information that is displayed in the status area includes text of the message; and

the computing system removes the text of the message from the status area after a determined amount of time.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 21 wherein:

the first level of information that is displayed in the status area includes an icon that indicates that the messaging application received a message; and

the computing system retains in the status area the icon that indicates that the status messaging application received the message area after the determined amount of time and after the computing system has removed the text.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to receiving the second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert, removing the first level of information for the alert from the status area.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein displaying the second level of information for the alert in the window includes displaying the window in the application area over a display, in the application area, of a user interface of an application that is executing by the computing system.

10. A computerized system, comprising:

one or more computer processors; and

one or more computer-readable devices storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more computer processors, cause performance of operations that comprise;

receiving, by a computing system, an indication to display information for an alert;

displaying, by the computing system, a first level of information for the alert in a status area of a user interface that is displayed by the computing system,

wherein the status area of the user interface is distinct from an application area of the user interface in which the computing system is configured to display user interfaces of applications that are executed by the computing system;

receiving, by the computing system, a first user input associated with the status area;

displaying, by the computing system in response to receiving the first user input associated with the status area, a second level of information for the alert in a window that occupies less than all of the application area,

wherein the second level of information for the alert provides information not included in the first level of information for the alert;

receiving, by the computing system, a second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert; and

displaying, by the computing system in response to receiving the second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert, a third level of information for the alert,

wherein the third level of information for the alert provides information not included in the first level of information for the alert and not included in the second level of information for the alert.

11. The computerized system of claim 10, wherein:

the first level of information for the alert includes text; and

displaying the first level of information for the alert in the status area includes displaying the text in the status area.

12. The computerized system of claim 10, wherein receiving the first user input associated with the status area includes receiving user input selecting a portion of the status area in which the first level of information for the alert is displayed.

13. The computerized system of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise displaying, by the computing system, at least one device status indicator in the status area concurrently with the display of the first level of information for the alert.

14. The computerized system of claim 13, wherein the at least one device status indicator in the status area includes a first icon that indicates a current battery level and a second icon that indicates a detected strength of a wireless communication signal.

15. The computerized system of claim 10, wherein receiving the first user input associated with the status area includes receiving an indication that user input contacted a region of a touchscreen display at which a portion of the status area was being displayed.

16. The computerized system of claim 10, wherein displaying the third level of information for the alert includes activating, in response to receiving the second user input associated with the displayed second level of information for the alert, a particular application program that provides the third level of information for the alert for display.

17. The computerized system of claim 16, wherein receiving the indication to display the information for the alert includes receiving the indication from the particular application program.

18. The computerized system of claim 10, wherein:

receiving the indication to display the information for the alert includes receiving an indication that a short message service (SMS) message has been received by the computing system;

displaying the second level of information for the alert includes displaying only a portion of the SMS message; and

displaying the third level of information for the alert includes displaying all of the SMS message.