Cellular mobile telephone apparatus

• US 6,823,182 B1
• Filed: 08/07/2000
• Issued: 11/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Okamoto, Teiji, Takahara, Yasuaki, Itoh, Fumitaka, Ogawa, Katsuo, Higuchi, Kazutoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): CRAVER, CHARLES R
• Application Number:
  US09/634,870
• Time in Patent Office: 1,569 Days
• Field of Search: 455/412, 455/414, 455/422, 455/466, 455/575, 455/550, 455/96, 455/31.3, 379/88-1-, 379/88.08, 379/88.11, 379/88.12, 379/88.16, 379/88.28
• US Class Current: 455/412.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/642 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6505 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/04 the ringing-current being generated at the substations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/048 Arrangements providing optical indication of the incoming call, e.g. flasher circuits

Abstract

A cellular mobile telephone apparatus has circuits for generating massages, a storage circuit for storing messages, and a transmitter/receiver circuit for transmitting a message. When the user of the cellular mobile telephone apparatus cannot immediately respond to an incoming call, a desired one of a plurality of previously generated and stored messages can be transmitted to a calling party through simple key manipulations or by other means.

Claims

1. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus having a response message transmitter, comprising:

a memory for storing a plurality of previously written message data corresponding to response messages that are indicative of a responding user'"'"'s circumstance at the time of receiving the incoming call from the calling party, regardless of the identity of the calling party;

a selector for selecting one of said plurality of messages according to a responding user'"'"'s circumstance at the time of receiving the incoming call from the calling party, regardless of the identity of the calling party;

a transmitter for transmitting the message selected by said selector to the calling party; and

a controller for controlling a response to an incoming call connected to said transmitter and operable when an incoming call is received, to instruct said transmitter to transmit the message selected by said selector to the calling party,

wherein said-selector has a switch having a plurality of positions arranged so as to be recognized by touching, and each of said positions is assigned to corresponding one of said response messages to be indicative of a responding user'"'"'s circumstance.

2. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of messages include a message notifying that the user of said apparatus is driving a vehicle.

3. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said selector includes a plurality of keys provided in correspondence to respective ones of said plurality of messages.

4. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said plurality of keys include a key corresponding to a message for notifying that the user of said apparatus is driving a vehicle, said key being formed to be distinguishable from other keys by a tactile sense on said key.

5. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said key corresponding to the message for notifying that the user of said apparatus is driving a vehicle comprises a touch switch.

6. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said selector includes a state-holding switch for selecting one of said plurality of messages.

7. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said selector previously selects a desired one from among said plurality of messages before said incoming call is received.

8. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said incoming call responding means includes a key to be operated in response to the incoming call.

9. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said selector includes means for previously selecting a message before said incoming call is received.

10. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said selector includes:

specifying means for specifying a desired one from among said plurality of messages; and

a pointer memory for storing an address of said memory at which a message specified by said specifying means is stored.

11. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said incoming call responding means includes means responsive to said incoming call to read said specified message based on said address stored in said pointer memory and to instruct said transmitter to transmit said specified message.

12. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said selector includes a switch for selecting one from among said plurality of messages.

13. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising message generating means for generating at least one of said plurality of messages.

14. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said message generating means includes:

an audio encoder circuit for converting a voice signal inputted from a transducer to a digital signal; and

means for storing the digital signal converted by said audio encoder circuit in said memory.

15. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said incoming call responding means includes means for detecting voice of the user.

16. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said voice detecting means includes means for recognizing a pattern of voice of said user.

17. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for cutting a communication channel for said apparatus after said transmitter transmits said selected message.

18. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said response message is audio message, and said memory stores a plurality of previously written audio message data.

19. A method of transmitting a response message in a cellular mobile telephone apparatus having a selector switch with a plurality of positions arranged so as to be recognized by touching, comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory a plurality of audio response messages to be indicative of the user'"'"'s circumstances at the time of receiving the incoming call from the calling party;

assigning different one of messages included in said response messages to different one of said positions of said selector switch so as to enable touch recognition of said message to be sent;

selecting a message by selecting a position of said selector switch from among said plurality of positions arranged so as to be recognized by touching, regardless of the identity of the calling party; and

transmitting the message selected at said selecting step to said calling party in response to reception of the incoming call.

20. A cellular mobile telephone apparatus having a response message transmitter, comprising:

a memory for storing a plurality of previously written message data to express a responding user'"'"'s circumstance and to be transmitted in response to the incoming call from the calling party, regardless of the identity of the calling party;

a selector for previously selecting one of said plurality of messages;

a transmitter for transmitting the message selected by said selector to the calling party; and

a controller for controlling a response to an incoming call connected to said transmitter and operable when an incoming call is received, to instruct said transmitter to transmit the message previously selected by said selector to the calling party,

wherein said selector has a switch having a plurality of positions arranged so as to be tactilely recognized, and each of said positions is assigned to corresponding one of said messages to express the user'"'"'s circumstances at the time of receiving the incoming call.