Systems and methods for providing information to a user via a mobile appliance

• US 20040080538A1
• Filed: 10/28/2002
• Published: 04/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Jollis, Roger
• Application Number:
  US10/281,491
• Publication Number:
  US 20040080538A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/772
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/08 Arrangements within a display terminal for setting, manually or automatically, display parameters of the display terminal
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/145 related to small screens
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/003 Details of a display terminal, the details relating to the control arrangement of the display terminal and to the interfaces thereto specific for a CRT G09G1/165; for a flat panel G09G3/2092
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72445 for supporting Internet browser applications

Abstract

Methods for providing information to users via mobile appliances are provided. One such method includes: using an executing application to generate a display field on a mobile appliance; receiving information at the mobile appliance; and displaying an indicium to the user within the mobile appliance, the indicium being configured to inform the user of a category of content associated with the information received, the indicia lacking at least a portion of the content associated with the information received. Systems and computer-readable media also are provided.

Claims

1. A method for providing information to a user via a mobile appliance, said method comprising:

using an executing application to generate a display field on a mobile appliance;

receiving information at the mobile appliance; and

displaying an indicium to the user with the mobile appliance, the indicium being configured to inform the user of a category of content associated with the information received, the indicium lacking at least a portion of the content associated with the information received.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

enabling the user to actuate the indicium; and

displaying at least a portion of the content associated with the information received in response to actuation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying the indicium is enabled despite the mobile device being unable to display an intersticial.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein in displaying the indicium, the indicium is displayed at least partially within the display field of the executing application.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically selecting the indicium from among a group of indicia stored by the mobile appliance, each of the indicia being associated with a category of content.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

enabling the user to actuate the indicium selectively; and

processing the information received in a manner corresponding to a selected actuation of the indicia.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein enabling the user to actuate the indicium selectively comprises enabling the user to actuate the indicium selectively in at least one of:

a first mode such that the content of the information received is displayed to the user;

a second mode such that the content of the information received is stored in memory of the mobile appliance and the indicium is removed from the display field; and

a third mode such that the content of the information received is deleted from the mobile appliance and the indicium is removed from the display field.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, in enabling an indicium to be displayed, the indicium visually indicates the category of content associated with the information received, the category being selected from:

an alert message, an advertisement, a help message, an information message and an error message.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether another application associated with the mobile appliance has changed state; and

if the state has changed, displaying an indicium to the user to inform the user of the change of state.

10. A method for providing information to a user, said method comprising:

providing information to a user via a mobile appliance, the information including an indication of content such that the mobile appliance is enabled to display an indicium, the indicium being configured to inform the user of a category of the content associated with the information received, the indicium lacking at least a portion of the content associated with the information received.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the mobile appliance is enabled to display the indicium despite being unable to display an intersticial.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein, in providing the information, the content is identified by a category selected from:

an alert message, an advertisement, a help message, and an error message.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein in providing the information, the information is preformatted as a text stream.

14. A system for providing information to a user, said system comprising:

a mobile appliance having an information alert system operative to receive information provided to a mobile appliance and display an indicium, the indicium being configured to inform the user of a category of content associated with the information received, the indicium lacking at least a portion of the content associated with the information received.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the information alert system is operative to enable the user to actuate the indicium and display at least a portion of the content associated with the information received upon actuation.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the information alert system is operative to select the indicium automatically from among a group of indicia stored by the mobile appliance, each of the indicia being associated with a category of content.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the information alert system is operative to enable the user to actuate the indicium selectively in at least one of:

a first mode such that the content of the information received is displayed to the user;

a second mode such that the content of the information received is stored in memory of the mobile appliance and the indicium is removed from the display field; and

a third mode such that the content of the information received is deleted from the mobile appliance and the indicium is removed from the display field.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the information alert system is operative to store a group of indicia, each of the indicia corresponding to a category of content associated with the information received, the category being selected from:

an alert message, an advertisement, a help message, and an error message.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the mobile appliance is unable to display content of an intersticial received at the mobile appliance.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the information is a text stream;

and

wherein the information alert system populates text fields with the information for display to the user.

21. A system for providing information to a user comprising:

means for executing an application to generate a display field on a mobile appliance;

means for receiving information at the mobile appliance; and

means for displaying an indicium such that the indicium informs the user of a category of content associated with the information received, the indicium lacking at least a portion of the content associated with the information received.

22. The system of claim 21, further comprising:

means for storing a group of indicia; and

means for automatically selecting the indicium from among stored group of indicia, each of the indicia being associated with a category of content.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the means for displaying an indicium is operative to display the indicium at least partially within the display field of the application.

24. A computer-readable medium having a computer program for providing information to a user via a mobile appliance, said computer program comprising:

logic configured to receive a preformatted text stream provided to a mobile appliance; and

logic configured to display an indicium via the mobile appliance, the indicium being configured to inform the user of a category of content associated with the preformatted text stream received, the indicium lacking at least a portion of the content associated with the preformatted text stream received.

25. The computer-readable medium of claim 24, further comprising logic configured to enable the user to actuate the indicium;

and

logic configured to display at least a portion of the content associated with the preformatted text stream received upon actuation.

26. The computer-readable medium of claim 24, further comprising logic configured to select the indicium automatically from among a group of indicia stored by the mobile appliance, each of the indicia being associated with a category of content.

27. The computer-readable medium of claim 24, further comprising logic configured to actuate the indicium selectively in at least one of:

a first mode such that at least a portion of the content of the preformatted text stream received is displayed to the user;

a second mode such that at least a portion of the content of the preformatted text stream received is stored in memory of the mobile appliance and the indicium is removed from the display field; and

a third mode such that at least a portion of the content of the preformatted text stream received is deleted from the mobile appliance and the indicium is removed from the display field.