Function updating system and function updating method

• US 8,447,362 B2
• Filed: 10/03/2007
• Issued: 05/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Takeoka, Masanori, Taniguchi, Nobuchika
• Primary Examiner(s): Figueroa, Marisol
• Application Number:
  US12/443,915
• Publication Number:
  US 20110053573A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,057 Days
• Field of Search: 455/566, 455/415
• US Class Current: 455/566
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72406 by software upgrading or downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42042 Notifying the called party of information on the calling party details within substation equipment H04M1/57, signalling details H04Q3/72

Abstract

A function updating system and function updating method enabling a user to recognize what functions are installed in a mobile terminal of a communicating party, by automatically notifying the functions in the mobile terminal and updating the address book with the functions. When a mobile terminal (1A) makes a call to another mobile terminal (1B), the mobile terminal (1A) transmits information of functions available in the mobile terminal (1A) to a function notifying server (31), the function notifying server (31) generates icon information based on the function information, and transmits the icon information to the mobile terminal (1B), and the mobile terminal (1B) updates the address book with the icon information. When the mobile terminal (1B) does not have an icon corresponding to the updated function, the mobile terminal (1B) downloads the icon from an icon server (32).

Claims

1. A function updating system comprising:

a first mobile terminal apparatus having a communication control section that transmits information of functions available in the first mobile terminal apparatus in calling, and an updating section that updates an address book with information of functions available in an apparatus of a communicating party; and

a server apparatus having an information generating section that generates function display image information based on the information of functions, and a communication control section that transmits the function display image information to a second mobile terminal apparatus;

a function display image server apparatus that manages various function display images,

wherein the communication control section of the second mobile terminal apparatus downloads a function display image corresponding to a function updated in the address book from the function display image server apparatus when the second mobile terminal apparatus does not have the function display image corresponding to the function updated in the address book.

2. The function updating system according to claim 1, wherein the information generating section has a function of deleting a function display image, while including information of a deleted function in the function display image information.

3. A function updating method comprising the steps of:

transmitting information of functions available in a first mobile terminal apparatus to a server apparatus when the first mobile terminal apparatus makes a call to a second mobile terminal apparatus;

generating, in the server apparatus, function display image information based on the information of functions;

transmitting, in the server apparatus, the function display image information to the second mobile terminal apparatus; and

updating, in the second mobile terminal apparatus, an address book with the function display image information,

wherein the second mobile terminal apparatus further has the step of making a request for download of a function display image corresponding to a function updated in the address book to a function display image server apparatus when the second mobile terminal apparatus does not have the function display image corresponding to the function updated in the address book, and the server apparatus downloads the function display image corresponding to the function updated in second mobile terminal apparatus in response to the request.

4. The function updating method according to claim 3, wherein in the step of generating the function display image information, a function display image is deleted, while information of a deleted function is included in the function display image information.