System and method for interrupt control on a handheld device

• US 7,418,265 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2005
• Issued: 08/26/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Wormald, Christopher R., Klassen, Gerhard D., Hardy, Michael Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Duc
• Assistant Examiner(s): Perez; Julio R
• Application Number:
  US11/068,076
• Publication Number:
  US 20050243771A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,275 Days
• Field of Search: 455/507, 455/508, 455/445, 379/93.09, 379/100.12, 379/93.35, 379/156, 379/157, 379/93.07, 379/160, 370/93.09, 370/100.12
• US Class Current: 455/445
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/7243 with interactive means for internal management of messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/265 for initial activation of new user

Abstract

An interrupt message is sent over one of a plurality of transport mediums from a first mobile device to a second mobile device. The interrupt message may include a first mobile device identifier associated with a transport medium that is independent of the plurality of transport mediums. Upon receipt of the interrupt message at the second mobile device an interruption of any current mobile device operation may occur to notify a user of the interrupt message.

Claims

1. A method of providing an interrupt message between a plurality of mobile devices, comprising:

at a first mobile device;

selecting a message recipient to receive a first message;

determining if the first message is an interrupt message;

if the first message is determined to be an interrupt message, automatically selecting one of a plurality of transport mediums over which to send the interrupt message; and

if the first message is determined to be an interrupt message, including a first mobile device identifier associated with one of the plurality of transport mediums, wherein the first mobile device identifier is independent of the automatically selected transport medium, and wherein the first mobile device identifier enables the message recipient to communicate with a sender of the first message using the transport medium associated with the first mobile device identifier.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mobile device identifier is a PIN identifier.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising at the first mobile device:

receiving a second message over one of the plurality of transport mediums;

determining if the second message is a reply message to the interrupt message; and

if the second message is a reply message to the interrupt message, associating the reply message to the interrupt message;

wherein the transport medium over which the reply message is received is independent of the transport medium over which the interrupt message is sent.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the reply message comprises an acknowledge message.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the reply message comprises an automatic delivery notification message.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the reply message is delivered over the transport medium associated with the first mobile device identifier.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the reply message comprises a peer-to-peer communication established over the transport medium associated with the first mobile device identifier.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

at a second mobile device;

receiving the interrupt message over the automatically selected transport medium;

determining if the message is an interrupt message;

if the message is determined to be an interrupt message, interrupting any current second mobile device operation to notify a user of the second mobile device of the interrupt message.

9. A method of providing an interrupt message between a plurality of mobile devices, comprising:

at a first mobile device;

receiving a message sent by a second mobile device over one of a plurality of transport mediums, wherein the transport medium over which the message is sent is automatically selected by the second mobile device;

determining if the message is an interrupt message; and

if the message is determined to be an interrupt message, interrupting any current first mobile device operation to notify a user of the first mobile device of the interrupt message;

wherein the interrupt message includes a second mobile device identifier associated with one of the plurality of transport mediums, the second mobile device identifier independent of the transport medium over which the interrupt message was received, and wherein the second mobile device identifier enables the first mobile device to communicate with the second mobile device using transport medium associated with the second mobile device identifier.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising at the first mobile device:

if the message is determined to be an interrupt message, precluding resumption of the any current first mobile device operation until the user causes the first mobile device to send a reply message to the interrupt message.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising at the first mobile device:

automatically sending a delivery notification message indicating delivery of the interrupt message to the second mobile device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the automatically sending a delivery notification message indicating delivery of the interrupt message to the second mobile device comprises automatically sending the delivery notification message over a transport medium independent of the transport medium over which the interrupt message was received.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the delivery notification message is sent over the transport medium associated with the second mobile device identifier.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein interrupting any current first mobile device operation to notify a user of the interrupt message comprises:

presenting the user of the first mobile device an option to establish a reply communication with the second mobile device over a transport medium associated with the second mobile device identifier.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the reply communication comprises a peer-to-peer communication.

16. A computer readable medium encoded with mobile device program instructions for providing an interrupt message between a plurality of mobile devices, the program instructions comprising instructions that upon execution cause a first mobile device to:

select a message recipient to receive a first message;

determine if the first message is an interrupt message;

if the first message is determined to be an interrupt message, automatically select one of a plurality of transport mediums over which to send the interrupt message; and

if the first message is determined to be an interrupt message, include a first mobile device identifier associated with one of the plurality of transport mediums, wherein the first mobile device identifier is independent of the automatically selected transport medium, and wherein the first mobile device identifier enables the message recipient to communicate with the first mobile device using the transport medium associated with the first mobile device identifier.

17. The mobile device program instructions stored in a processor-readable medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions that upon execution cause the first mobile device to:

receive a second message over one of the plurality of transport mediums;

determine if the second message is a reply message to the interrupt message; and

if the second message is determined to be a reply message to the interrupt message, associate the reply message to the interrupt message;

wherein the transport medium over which the reply message is received is independent of the transport medium over which the interrupt message is sent.

18. A computer readable medium encoded with mobile device program instructions for providing an interrupt message between a plurality of mobile devices, the program instructions comprising instructions that upon execution cause a first mobile device to:

receive a message sent by a second mobile device over one of a plurality of transport mediums, wherein the transport medium over which the message is sent is automatically selected by the second mobile device;

determine if the message is an interrupt message; and

if the message is determined to be an interrupt message, interrupt any current first mobile device operation to notify a user of the interrupt message;

wherein the interrupt message includes a second mobile device identifier associated with one of the plurality of transport mediums, the second mobile device identifier selected independent of the transport medium over which the interrupt message was received, and wherein the second mobile device identifier enabling the first mobile device to communicate with the second mobile device using the transport medium associated with the second mobile device identifier.

19. The mobile device program instructions stored in a processor-readable medium of claim 18, further comprising instructions that upon execution cause the first mobile device to preclude resumption of the any current first mobile device operation until the user causes the second mobile device to send a reply message to the interrupt message if the message is determined to be an interrupt message.

20. The mobile device program instructions stored in a processor-readable medium of claim 18, further comprising instructions that upon execution cause the first mobile device to automatically send a delivery notification message to the second mobile device indicating delivery of the interrupt message.

21. The mobile device program instructions stored in a processor-readable medium of claim 18, further comprising instructions that upon execution cause the first mobile device to establish a reply communication with the second mobile device over a transport medium associated with the second mobile device identifier.

22. A mobile communication device operable to communicate over a plurality of transport mediums, comprising

a processing subsystem, a memory subsystem, a display subsystem, a communication subsystem, and an input/output subsystem, the processing subsystem coupled to the memory subsystem, display subsystem, input/output subsystem and communication subsystem, and operable to store and retrieve data in the memory subsystem, to execute instructions stored in the memory subsystem, receive input data from the input/output subsystem, and to cause the communication subsystem to transmit and receive data over the plurality of transport mediums;

and

mobile communication device program code comprising program instructions executable by the processing subsystem and stored in the memory subsystem and upon execution cause the mobile communication device to;

designate a message to be transmitted to a message recipient an interrupt message;

automatically select one of a plurality of transport mediums over which to transmit the interrupt message; and

including a mobile communication device identifier associated with one of the plurality of transport mediums, wherein the first mobile communication device identifier is independent of the automatically selected transport medium, and wherein the first mobile communication device identifier enables message recipient to communicate with the mobile communication device using the transport medium associated with the first mobile communication device identifier.

23. The mobile communication device of claim 22, wherein the mobile communication device program code further comprises program instructions executable by the processing subsystem and stored in the memory subsystem and upon execution cause the mobile communication device to:

receive a message over one of the plurality of transport mediums, the one of the plurality of transport mediums over which the message is received independent of the one of the plurality of transport mediums over which the interrupt message was transmitted;

determine if the received message is a reply message to the interrupt message; and

if the received message is determined to be a reply message to the interrupt message, associate the reply message to the interrupt message.

24. The mobile communication device of claim 22, wherein the mobile communication device program code further comprises program instructions executable by the processing subsystem and stored in the memory subsystem and upon execution cause the mobile communication device to:

receive a message over one of a plurality of transport mediums;

determine if the received message is an interrupt message; and

if the received message is determined to be an interrupt message, interrupt any current first mobile device operation to notify a user of the interrupt message by displaying an interrupt environment on the display subsystem.