E-mail notification device

• US 8,001,209 B2
• Filed: 12/29/2004
• Issued: 08/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Buffalo Patents, LLC
• Original Assignee: Auctnyc 16 LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Gottlieb, Mark M.
• Primary Examiner(s): SALAD, ABDULLAHI ELMI
• Application Number:
  US11/023,360
• Publication Number:
  US 20050114458A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,421 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/217, 709/205
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• 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

Abstract

A method, system and computer program product for notifying a user of recently received information while away from the display connected to the computer. Using a non-commercial, private network, the information is forwarded from a computer through a transmitter to a portable receiver with an integrated display. Such information may be in the form of e-mails, stock quotes, and calendar alarms.

Claims

1. An information notification device, comprising:

a non-commercial, private network receiver configured to receive an entirety of received information downloaded by a computer and forwarded from the computer, wherein the receiver is configured to operate at a receiving power during transmissions by a transmitter coupled to the computer and to operate at a reduced power, with respect to the receiving power, between the transmissions by the transmitter, the receiver being further configured to be restored to the receiving power for a first predefined duration before a first scheduled transmission the transmitter and to remain at the receiving power for a second predefined duration after the first scheduled transmission by the transmitter, and the receiver being still further configured to increase a length of the first predefined duration for a second scheduled transmission by the transmitter if no transmission is received during the first scheduled transmission; and

a display configured to display less than the entirety of the received information, wherein the less than the entirety of the received information includes at least a header.

2. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an information parsing code device configured to parse out information fields from the received information, and wherein the display is further configured to display like information fields together.

3. The information notification device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the received information includes a plurality of e-mail messages, and wherein the display is further configured to display at least one line of a header of each of the plurality of e-mail messages, the headers grouped together.

4. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the display comprises a graphic display.

5. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the transmitter is a low-power transmitter.

6. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the transmitter is configured to operate in a frequency range from about 300 MHz to about 450 MHz.

7. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the received information downloaded by the computer and forwarded from the computer includes an alarm to alert a user of the information notification device.

8. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the received information downloaded by the computer and forwarded from the computer is a part of a message parsed from other parts of the message so that the part is configured to be processed independent of processing the other parts.

9. The information notification device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the received information downloaded by the computer and forwarded from the computer is a message that has successfully passed a filtering module on the computer.

10. A method for displaying information comprising:

receiving, at a private, non-commercial network receiver, an entirety of at least some of information having been downloaded by and forwarded from a computer, wherein the receiver, is configured to operate at a receiving power during transmissions by a transmitter coupled to the computer and to operate at a reduced power with respect, to the receiving power between the transmissions by the transmitter, the receiver being further configured to be restored to the receiving power for a first predefined duration before a first scheduled transmission by the transmitter and to remain at the receiving power for a second predefined duration after the first scheduled transmission by the transmitter, and the receiver being still further configured to increase a length of the first predefined duration for a second scheduled transmission by the transmitter if no transmission is received during the first scheduled transmission; and

displaying less than the entirety of the at least some of the information on a display, wherein the less than the entirety of the at least some of the information includes at least a header.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising parsing out information fields from the at least some of the information;

and wherein the displaying comprises displaying like information fields together on the display.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least some of the information includes a plurality of e-mail messages, and wherein the displaying further comprises displaying at least one line of headers of the plurality of e-mail messages grouped together.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the private, non-commercial network operates in a radius of about one hundred feet or less.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the private, non-commercial network operates in a frequency range from about 300 MHz to about 450 MHz.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the at least some of the information includes an alarm to alert a user of the private, non-commercial network receiver.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the at least some of the information having been downloaded by and forwarded from the computer is a part of a message parsed from other parts of the message so that the part is configured to be processed independent of processing the other parts.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the at least some of the information having been downloaded by and forwarded from the computer is a message that has successfully passed a filtering module on the computer.

18. An information notification device, comprising:

a first receiver configured to receive an entirety of a portion of first information that was downloaded from a wide area network by a computer and transmitted by a first transmitter, wherein the computer is coupled to the first transmitter, and wherein the first transmitter and the first receiver are configured to operate in a private, non-commercial network, wherein the first receiver is configured to operate at a receiving power during transmissions by the first transmitter and to operate at a reduced power, with respect to the receiving power, between the transmissions by the first transmitter, the first receiver being further configured to be restored to the receiving power for a first predefined duration before a first scheduled transmission by the first transmitter, and to remain at the receiving power for a second predefined duration after the first scheduled transmission by the first transmitter, and the first receiver being still further configured to increase a length of the first predefined duration for a second scheduled transmission by the first transmitter if no transmission is received during the first scheduled transmission; and

a display configured to display less than the entirety of the received portion of the first information, wherein the less than the entirety of the received portion includes at least a header, and

wherein the first receiver and the display are disposed within a portable housing.

19. The information notification device of claim 18, wherein the private, non-commercial network uses at least one of radio frequency-based transmissions, optical-based transmissions, and power-line-based transmissions.

20. The information notification device of claim 18, wherein the first information includes an e-mail message and wherein the portion is at least one of a “

From;

”

field of the e-mail message and a “

Subject;

”

field of the e-mail message.

21. The information notification device of claim 18, wherein the first receiver is further configured to operate continuously at the receiving power for a period of time if no transmission is received during a predefined number of consecutive scheduled transmissions.

22. The information notification device of claim 21, further comprising a user interface, wherein the first receiver is configured receive an override signal from the user interface, and wherein the override signal is configured to extend the period of time.

23. The information notification device of claim 18, further comprising a second transmitter configured to transmit a second information to a second receiver coupled to the computer, wherein the first transmitter, the first receiver, the second transmitter, and the second receiver are configured to operate in the private, non-commercial network, and wherein the first receiver, the display, and the second transmitter are disposed within the portable housing.

24. The information notification device of claim 18, wherein the first information includes an alarm to alert a user of the information notification device.

25. The information notification device of claim 18, wherein the first information is a part of a message parsed from other parts of the message so that the part is configured to be processed independent of processing the other parts.

26. The information notification device of claim 18, wherein the first information is a message that has successfully passed a filtering module on the computer.

27. The information notification device of claim 25, wherein the filtering module is configured to use a set of rules to determine whether to block or pass a message.

28. An information notification device, comprising:

a non-commercial, private network means for receiving an entirety of received information downloaded by a computer and forwarded from the computer, wherein the means for receiving configured to operate at a receiving power during transmissions by a transmitter coupled to the computer and to operate at a reduced power, with respect to the receiving power, between the transmissions by the transmitter, the means for receiving being further configured to be restored to the receiving power for a first predefined duration before a first scheduled transmission by the transmitter and to remain at the receiving power for a second predefined duration after, the first scheduled transmission by the transmitter ,and the means for receiving being still further configured to increase a length of the first predefined duration for a second scheduled transmission by the transmitter if no transmission is received during the first scheduled transmission; and

means for displaying less than the entirety of the received information, wherein the less than the entirety of the received information includes at least a header of the e-mail message.