Service/device indication with graphical interface

• US 7,102,640 B1
• Filed: 03/21/2002
• Issued: 09/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Aholainen, Markus, Palin, Arto
• Primary Examiner(s): Razavi, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): WOODS, ERIC V
• Application Number:
  US10/101,688
• Time in Patent Office: 1,629 Days
• Field of Search: 345/440
• US Class Current: 345/440
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

The method disclosed gives the user rapid notice of those Bluetooth devices within communication range, and yet it selectively blocks any notice about Bluetooth devices that the user wishes to ignore. Bluetooth server devices can indicate to the user'"'"'s Bluetooth client device the service the server device has available by sewing service/device icon information to Bluetooth client device. This information can be a value in the class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet that it sends during the process of exchanging inquiry and paging packets with the Bluetooth client device. If the server device has begun by transmitting an inquiry packet, then the CoD value will be sent in its paging packet. If the server device is responding to an inquiry, then its CoD value will be in its inquiry response packet. Alternately, the service/device icon information can be sent after a connection has been made with the client device, as part of a Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) response packet.

Claims

1. A method to indicate a service available from a Bluetooth server device, comprising:

receiving at a Bluetooth client device, icon information as a value in a class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet from a Bluetooth server device characterizing the server device;

measuring a data link quality value between the client and the server based on the received FHS packet;

displaying at the client device an icon corresponding to the icon information and associating the icon with the data link quality value while within communications range of the server device without establishing a Bluetooth connection between the client device and the server device; and

removing the display of the icon after a predetermined time interval following leaving the communications range of the server device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data link quality value is displayed with the icon.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving step further comprises:

receiving from the server device, the CoD value in a paging packet.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving step further comprises:

receiving from the server device, the CoD value in an inquiry response packet.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving step further comprises:

receiving the icon information as a value in a Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) response packet.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying step further comprises:

displaying a graphic bitmap on a screen of the client device, having an appearance that serves to describe a service that the server device has to offer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying step further comprises:

displaying a graphic bitmap on a screen of the client device, having an appearance that serves to identify characteristics of a user of the server device.

8. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

storing the icon in the client device.

9. The method of claim 8, which further comprises:

downloading new icons from a network service provider and storing them in association with their icon information.

10. The method of claim 9, which further comprises:

downloading from a network service provider, representations of audible tones to be played when an icon is displayed, and storing the representations of audible tones in association with the icon information.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving step further comprises:

receiving the icon information as a value in a class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet from the server device;

reporting the CoD value over a host controller interface (HCI) when the FHS packet is received; and

processing the CoD value to display the corresponding icon.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving step further comprises:

receiving the icon information using an SDP Service Search Request packet sent to the server device.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying step further comprises:

selectively not displaying the icon based on user-defined prohibited values of the icon information.

14. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

storing the icon information in a detected icon buffer.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said storing the icon information further comprises:

storing a time stamp value at the start of the display of the icon;

periodically comparing the time stamp value with a time of day clock of the client device; and

removing the display of the icon when the time stamp is older than a threshold lease-time value.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said storing the icon information further comprises:

updating the time stamp value when additional signals are received from the server device; and

retaining the display of the icon for the server device as long as it remains in communication range of the client device.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein said storing the icon information further comprises:

enabling the user to selectively block the icon from display.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein said storing the icon information further comprises:

storing a Bluetooth device address BD_ADDR of the server device;

storing (x,y) coordinates of a displayed position of the icon with respect to an origin of coordinates on the screen;

representing a position of a cursor displayed on the screen by (X,Y) coordinates with respect to the origin of coordinates on the screen;

comparing the (X,Y) coordinates of the cursor with the (x,y) coordinates of an icon;

determining that the cursor coordinates (X,Y) are within range of an icon'"'"'s coordinates to select the icon; and

accessing the device address BD_ADDR corresponding to the selected icon to communicate with the server device.

19. The method of claim 18, which further comprises:

sending an SDP request to the server device to determine information about associated files; and

accessing the associated file from the server device.

20. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

receiving an unsolicited file from the server device;

storing the unsolicited file;

storing (x,y) coordinates of a displayed position of the icon with respect to an origin of coordinates on the screen;

representing a position of a cursor displayed on the screen by (X,Y) coordinates with respect to the origin of coordinates on the screen;

comparing the (X,Y) coordinates of the cursor with the (x,y) coordinates of an icon;

determining that the cursor coordinates (X,Y) are within range of an icon'"'"'s coordinates to select the icon; and

accessing the unsolicited file corresponding to the selected icon to display information from the file on the screen.

21. The method of claim 14, wherein said storing the icon information further comprises:

storing a first server rank value for a first server device of a given type icon information;

identifying a second server device having a different device address and said given type of icon information;

storing a second server rank value for the second server device; and

displaying a single icon on the screen representing the first and second server devices.

22. The method of claim 21, which further comprises:

displaying in association with the single icon, the number of server devices detected having the given type icon information.

23. The method of claim 21, which further comprises:

displaying in association with the single icon, a received signal strength indication (RSSI) as the data link quality value of one of the server devices detected having the given type icon information.

24. The method of claim 21, which further comprises:

displaying in association with the single icon, a received signal strength indication (RSSI) of one of the server devices detected having the given type icon information and having the strongest RSSI.

25. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

storing a received signal strength indication (RSSI) as the data link quality value for each server device detected;

ranking the detected server devices by the respective RSSI values; and

displaying a value representing the RSSI value for corresponding icons displayed on the screen.

26. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

storing prohibited icon information values;

comparing received icon information values with the prohibited icon information values; and

ignoring server devices having the prohibited icon information values.

27. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving step further comprises:

receiving the icon information as a value in a minor device class sub-field of a class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet from the server device.

28. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

storing specified icon information values to be searched;

comparing received icon information values with the specified icon information values;

displaying an icon bitmap when a match is found between a received icon information value and a specified icon information value.

29. The method of claim 28, which further comprises:

sounding an alarm tone when a match is found.

30. The method of claim 28, which further comprises:

sending a message to the server device when a match is found between a received icon information value and a specified icon information value.

31. An apparatus to indicate a service available from a Bluetooth server device, comprising:

a receiver in a Bluetooth client device, for receiving icon information as a value in a class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet from a Bluetooth server device characterizing the server device;

said receiver measuring a data link quality value between the client and the server based on the received FHS packet;

a display in the Bluetooth client device, for displaying an icon corresponding to the icon information and associating the icon with the data link quality value while within communications range of the server device without establishing a Bluetooth connection between the client device and the server device; and

a processor in the Bluetooth client device, for removing the display of the icon after a predetermined time interval following leaving the communications range of the server device.

32. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the data link quality value is displayed with the icon.

33. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein said icon information is a CoD value in a paging packet.

34. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein said icon information is a CoD value in an inquiry response packet.

35. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein said icon information is a value in a Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) response packet.

36. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein said icon is a graphic bitmap having an appearance that serves to describe a service that the server device has to offer.

37. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein said icon is a graphic bitmap having an appearance that serves to identify characteristics of a user of the server device.

38. The apparatus of claim 31, which further comprises:

a buffer storing the icon in the client device.

39. The apparatus of claim 38, which further comprises:

said buffer storing new icons received by the receiver from a network service provider.

40. The apparatus of claim 38, which further comprises:

said buffer storing representations of audible tones to be played when an icon is displayed.

41. A computer program product to indicate a service available from a Bluetooth server device, comprising:

a computer readable medium;

program code in said computer readable medium for receiving at a Bluetooth client device, icon information as a value in a class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet from a Bluetooth server device characterizing the server device;

program code in said computer readable medium for measuring a data link quality value between the client and the server based on the received FHS packet;

program code in said computer readable medium for displaying at the client device an icon corresponding to the icon information and associating the icon with the data link quality value while within communications range of the server device without establishing a Bluetooth connection between the client device and the server device; and

program code in said computer readable medium for removing the display of the icon after a predetermined time interval following leaving the communications range of the server device.

42. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein the data link quality value is displayed with the icon.

43. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein said icon information is a CoD value in a paging packet.

44. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein said icon information is a CoD value in an inquiry response packet.

45. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein said icon information is a value in a Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) response packet.

46. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein said icon is a graphic bitmap having an appearance that serves to describe a service that the server device has to offer.

47. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein said icon is a graphic bitmap having an appearance that serves to identify characteristics of a user of the server device.

48. The computer program product of claim 41, which further comprises:

program code in said computer readable medium for storing the icon in the client device.

49. The computer program product of claim 48, which further comprises:

program code in said computer readable medium for downloading new icons from a network service provider and storing them in association with their icon information.

50. The computer program product of claim 48, which further comprises:

program code in said computer readable medium for downloading from a network service provider, representations of audible tones to be played when an icon is displayed, and storing the representations of audible tones in association with the icon information.

51. A method to indicate a service available from a Bluetooth server device, comprising:

receiving at a Bluetooth client device, a first address and first icon information from a first Bluetooth server device characterizing it as a first type server device;

determining a first received signal strength indication (RSSI) for said first server device;

receiving at said Bluetooth client device, a second address and said first icon information from a second Bluetooth server device characterizing it as said first type server device;

determining a second received signal strength indication (RSSI) for said second server device;

ranking said first and second server devices according to their respective received signal strength indications (RSSI);

displaying a single icon on the screen representing said first and second server devices without establishing a Bluetooth connection between the client device and the server devices; and

initiating communications with either said first or said second servers having a stronger received signal strength indication (RSSI), in response to a user selection of said single icon.

52. The method to indicate a service available from a Bluetooth server device of claim 51, further comprising:

displaying in association with the single icon, the number of server devices detected having the given type icon information.

53. The method of claim 51, which further comprises:

displaying in association with the single icon, a received signal strength indication (RSSI) of one of the server devices.

54. The method of claim 51, which further comprises:

displaying in association with the single icon, a received signal strength indication (RSSI) of one of the server devices detected having the given type icon information and having the strongest RSSI.

55. The method of claim 51, which further comprises:

reassigning said ranking of said first or second server devices as individual server devices move out of communication range of the client device.

56. A method to indicate a service available from a Bluetooth server device, comprising:

receiving at a Bluetooth client device, icon information as a value in a class-of-device (CoD) field of a frequency hop synchronization (FHS) packet from a Bluetooth server device characterizing the server device;

accessing in the client device, a list of service indicator icons corresponding to various CoD values;

measuring a data link quality value between the client and the server based on the received FHS packet;

displaying at the client device an icon accessed from the list corresponding to the icon information and associating the icon with the data link quality value while within communications range of the server device without establishing a Bluetooth connection between the client device and the server device; and

removing the display of the icon after a predetermined time interval following leaving the communications range of the server device.

57. The method of claim 56, wherein the data link quality value is displayed with the icon.