Handheld electronic device including cross application use of phone
Contents
1. FRI JUL 23 43 Doocs ae as a 8 64 oe TARA S Pt ax IS cal 8 INCOMING CALL ABDRESS CONTACT 62 XYZ COMPANY Mary Smith XXX XXX XXXX seor N perce Eo U S Patent Dec 27 2011 Sheet 2 of 5 US 8 086 274 B2 From John Smith Sub ject Phone Number Below is a hyperlink for my phone number 7 XXXXXXXXXXXK Z 12 P Volume D A My Number X XXX XXX XXXX Calling John Smith XXXXXXXXXXX Work 45 FRI JUL 23 2 56pm GPRS Test tras FIG 3B U S Patent Dec 27 2011 Sheet 3 of 5 US 8 086 274 B2 PPD DT PT 12 From John Smith ae LEI LR ID Sub ject Conference Call This confirms our conference call For 3PM today FIG 4A Pa valne Ye a My Number X XXX XXX XXXX Calling John Smith XXXXXXXXXXX Work 48 FRI JUL 23 2 36pm GPRS GPRS Test Networki FIG 4B U S Patent Dec 27 2011 Sheet 4 of 5 US 8 086 274 B2 12 4M 0093 Be es FRI JUL 23 3 03PM GPRS GPRS Test Networkl Messages A BROWSER O Address Book A Calendar A Applications A Profiles Default A Settings Keyboard Lock A FIG 5A PAA a 0 00 Volume cand S as My Number X XXX XXX XXXX Disconnected John Smith XXXXXXXX XXX Work 4M FRI JUL 23 3 04pm GPRS Test renee fHIG OB 100 DETECT lt SEND gt OR lt END gt KEY BEING DEPRESSED 105 DETERMINE USE STATE OF THE HANDHELD ELECTRONI2. activated while said screen of first information is present on said display determining whether said selected portion includes a phone number if said selected portion does not include a phone number determining whether said selected portion is associated with a selected one of said contact entries by using said selected portion to search said contact entries if said selected portion is associated with a selected one of said contact entries making said phone application active and placing a phone call to a phone number form ing a part of said selected one of said contact entries 2 The method according to claim 1 said one of said other applications being one of a messaging application a browser application a memo application a calendar application and a task application 3 The method according to claim 1 said selected one of said contact entries having a plurality of phone numbers the method further comprising accepting input from said user to select one of said plurality of phone numbers and placing the phone call to the selected one of said plurality of phone numbers 4 The method according to claim 1 said selected portion being a person s name 5 The method according to claim 4 said one of said other applications being a messaging application for sending and receiving a plurality of messages said name forming a part of one of said messages 6 The method according to claim 1 said selected portion being an ema
3. at 105 processor 20 determines the cur rent use state of handheld electronic device 4 Then at 110 once the current use state is established processor 20 initiates 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 8 and executes the function or functions associated with the established use state of handheld electronic device 4 and either lt SEND gt key 30 or lt END gt key 32 whichever was depressed at 100 As will be appreciated by those of skill in the art memory 44 may store a table or the like that associates each use state with the predetermined function or functions that are executed upon depression of lt SEND gt key 30 or lt SEND gt key 32 in that use state FUNCTION INITATE BY lt END gt KEY End the call and return the user to the state application the device was in immediately prior to the call being made or received End the current call and i play an audible hang up tone and ii flash the active call screen momentarily with a disconnected message return user to the state application the device was in immediately before the FIG 7 is a flow chart of a particular implementation of the routine shown in FIG 6 that implements the use states of Tables 1 and 2 In this embodiment the information in Tables 1 and 2 is stored in memory 44 At 115 lt SEND gt key 30 or lt END gt key 32 is depressed and such depression is detected by processor 20 Next at 120 processor 20 determines the current use st
4. enabling the user to quickly and easily initiate telephone related functions such as placing a telephone call directly from applications other than the device s phone and address book applications using a dedi cated phone related key While specific embodiments of the invention have been described in detail it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure Accordingly the particular arrangements dis closed are meant to be illustrative only and not limiting as to the scope of the invention which is to be given the full breadth of the claims appended and any and all equivalents thereof What is claimed is 1 Ina handheld electronic device having a phone applica tion an address book application having a plurality of contact entries and one or more other applications wherein one of said other applications is the currently active application of said handheld electronic device wherein a screen of first informa tion is present on a display of said handheld electronic device and wherein a portion of said first information has been selected on said handheld electronic device a method of using a dedicated phone related key of said handheld elec tronic device to initiate and execute a phone related function in the handheld electronic device the method comprising detecting that said phone related key has been
5. ii entered or initiated the device s address book application and selected a stored phone number In such a device the lt SEND gt and lt END gt keys are not able to be used from other active applications to initiate telephone related activity However with more and more handheld electronic devices including multiple applications it would be convenient and useful for a user to be able to quickly and easily initiate telephone related activity from applications other than the telephone and address book appli cations particularly those applications that may include con tact related information for an individual that the user desires to call For example a user may receive an email SMS message or MMS message from an individual and may while viewing the email SMS message or MMS message in the associated application desire place a call to that individual With known handheld electronic devices the individual would need to leave the current application e g email SMS or MMS activate the telephone application either enter that individual s phone number or access that individual s phone number from the address book application and activate or depress the lt SEND gt key These steps while ultimately achieving the purpose of placing the desired call are incon venient and time consuming Thus there is a need for a handheld electronic device that will enable a user to utilize phone related inputs such as the activation e g de
6. other than the device s phone and 58 Field of Classification Search 455 556 2 address book applications using a dedicated phone related 455 550 1 566 564 414 1 key The device includes a plurality ofuse states and each one See application file for complete search history of the use states has an associated function that is to be initiated upon depression of the phone related key When the 56 References Cited phone related key is depressed the current use state is deter U S PATENT DOCUMENTS 5 708 804 A 1 1998 Goodwin et al 5 815 142 A 9 1998 Allard et al 6 766 017 B1 7 2004 Yang eeen 379 355 02 mined and the function that is associated with the current use state is executed 16 Claims 5 Drawing Sheets 115 DETECT lt SEND gt OR lt END gt KEY BEING DEPRESSED g 130 DETERMINE USE STATE OF THE HANDHELD 20 ELECTRONIC DEVICE INTIATE AND EXECUTE FUNCTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE STATE KEY AS APPROPRIATE PROMPT USER ps TO SELECT A PHONE NUMBER AND THE lt SEND gt OR lt END gt JORE THEN ONE PHONE NUMBER USE STATE WHEREIN PORTION S ARE SELECTED SELECTED PORTION A PHONE NUMBER 155 SELECTED PORTION ASSOCIATED WITH ADDRESS BOOK CONTACT ENTRY CONTACT ENTRY HAVE A PHONE NUMBER YES U S Patent Dec 27 2011 Sheet 1 of 5 US 8 086 274 B2
7. C DEVICE INITIATE AND EXECUTE FUNCTION ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE STATE AND THE lt SEND gt OR lt END gt KEY AS APPROPRIATE U S Patent Dec 27 2011 Sheet 5 of 5 US 8 086 274 B2 115 DETECT lt SEND gt OR lt END gt KEY BEING DEPRESSED DETERMINE USE STATE OF THE HANDHELD 20 130 ELECTRONIC DEVICE a INITIATE AND EXECUTE 125 FUNCTION S ASSOCIATED USE STATE WITH THE USE STATE WHEREIN PORTION S AND THE lt SEND gt OR lt END gt ARE SELECTED KEY AS APPROPRIATE 140 ERROR 155 PORTION ASSOCIATED NO WITH ADDRESS BOOK ERROR CONTACT ENTRY 2 YES CONTACT ENTRY HAVE A ii PHONE NUMBER PROMPT USER GORE THEN 10 SELECT A be tES ONE PHONE oe PHONE NUMBER NUMBER NO US 8 086 274 B2 1 HANDHELD ELECTRONIC DEVICE INCLUDING CROSS APPLICATION USE OF PHONE RELATED INPUTS AND ASSOCIATED METHOD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1 Field of the Invention The invention relates generally to handheld electronic devices and more particularly to a handheld electronic device that utilizes phone related inputs for example from lt SEND gt and lt END gt keys across multiple applications executed by the device The invention also relates to a method of utilizing phone related inputs across multiple applications executed by the device 2 Description of the Related Art Numerous types of handheld electronic devices are known Examples of such handheld el
8. US008086274B2 az United States Patent 10 Patent No US 8 086 274 B2 Bocking et al 45 Date of Patent Dec 27 2011 bd 54 HANDHELD ELECTRONIC DEVICE 6 771 980 B2 8 2004 Moon ou eee 455 553 1 INCLUDING CROSS APPLICATION USE OF 6 781 575 B1 8 2004 Hawkins etal a 345 173 PHONE RELATED INPUTS AND 7 167 728 B1 1 2007 Wagner etal wo 455 566 9 ASSOCIATED METHOD FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS EP 1104 151 A2 5 2001 75 Inventors Andrew D Bocking Waterloo CA EP 1104151 A2 5 2001 Raymond P Vander Veen Waterloo CA OTHER PUBLICATIONS 73 Assignee Research In Motion Limited Waterloo Information and Communication Mobile Siemens CA XP 0023 10504 pp 1 62 Sony Mobile Telephone User Guide XP 002310503 pp 1 81 Notice Subject to any disclaimer the term of this Siemens AG 2002 User s Manual for Model S55 Mobile Phone patent is extended or adjusted under 35 yay U S C 154 b by 1586 days cited by examiner CD Appl No 10233622 Primary Examiner Pierre Louis Desir 22 Filed Sep 13 2004 74 Attorney Agent or Firm Ridout amp Maybee LLP 65 Prior Publication Data 57 ABSTRACT US 2006 0058063 A1 Mar 16 2006 An improved handheld electronic device and an associated 51 Int Cl method provide added convenience for the user by enabling HO4W 4 00 2009 01 the user to quickly and easily initiate telephone related func 52 US CE siei 455 566 455 414 1 455 564 tions from applications
9. ate of handheld electronic device 4 At 125 a determination is made as to whether the established use state is a use state wherein one or more portions of information displayed on display 12 are selected by the user using input apparatus 16 If the answer is no then at 130 processor 20 initiates and executes the function or functions associated with the established use state and either lt SEND gt key 30 or lt END gt key 32 whichever was depressed If the answer at 125 is yes a determination is made at 135 as to whether the selected portion of information is contact related meaning it is a phone number an email address a name or other contact related information appearing in for example a header of an email SMS or MMS message or a portion of another appli cation that may also be stored by the address book applica tion of handheld electronic device 4 Ifthe answer at 135 is no then as shown at 140 an error state is determined because the selected information cannot be utilized to place a phone call or obtain information required to place a phone call according to the invention If however the answer at 135 is yes another determination is made at 145 as to whether the selected por tion of information is a telephone number or telephone num ber hyperlink If it is then the routine proceeds to 130 where the phone application of handheld electronic device 4 is acti vated and places a phone call to the telephone number If the sele
10. component and one or more antennas Other known components such as a digital signal processor and a local oscillator may also be part of commu nications subsystem 45 The specific design and implemen tation of communications subsystem 45 is dependent upon the communications network in which handheld electronic device 4 is intended to operate For example handheld elec tronic device 4 may include a communications subsystem 45 designed to operate with the Mobiltex Dat TAC or Gen eral Packet Radio Service GPRS mobile data communica tion networks and also designed to operate with any of a variety of voice communications networks such as AMPS TDMA CDMA PCS GSM and other suitable networks Other types of data and voice networks both separate and integrated may also be utilized with handheld electronic device 4 Together processor 20 memory 44 and communi cations subsystem 45 may along with other components having various types of functionality be referred to as a processing unit In FIG 1 the display 12 is depicted as displaying a home screen 43 that includes a number of applications depicted as discrete icons 46 including an icon representing a phone application 48 an address book application 50 for storing information for a plurality of contacts a messaging applica tion 52 which includes email SMS and MMS applications a calendar application 54 a memo application 56 for enabling a user to create documents and to
11. cted portion of information is not a telephone number but rather is some other type of contact related information then at 150 a determination is made as to whether the selected portion of information is associated with a contact entry stored by the address book application of handheld electronic device 4 Ifnot then at 155 an error condition is detected and the user is preferably notified that a phone call cannot be placed based on the selected information Otherwise at 160 a determination is made as to whether the contact entry asso ciated with the selected portion of information includes at least one telephone number If not then the routine proceeds to 155 If there is at least one telephone umber then at 165 a determination is made as to whether there is more than one US 8 086 274 B2 9 telephone number for the contact entry If there is more than one telephone number then at 170 the user is prompted to select one of the numbers after which the routine proceeds to 130 where the phone application of handheld electronic device 4 is activated and places a phone call to the selected telephone number If at 165 the answer is no then the routine simply proceeds to 130 and the phone application of handheld electronic device 4 is activated and places a call to the tele phone number Thus the invention provides a handheld electronic device capable of executing multiple applications that delivers added convenience for the user by
12. d printed on hard copy be computer modified or be combined with other data and all such processing shall be deemed to fall within the terms display or displaying as employed herein Examples of handheld electronic devices are included in U S Pat Nos 6 452 588 and 6 489 950 which are incorporated by reference herein The handheld electronic device 4 is of a type that includes a cellular tele phone capability and as will be described in greater detail below allows for cross application use of phone related inputs to initiate phone functions As used herein the terms phone and telephone shall refer to any type of voice communica tion initiated and conducted over a wired and or wireless network As can be understood from FIG 1 the input apparatus 16 includes a keyboard 24 having a plurality of keys 26 and a rotatable thumbwheel 28 As used herein the expression key and variations thereof shall refer broadly to any of a variety of input members such as buttons switches and the like without limitation The keys 26 and the rotatable thum bwheel 28 are input members of the input apparatus 16 and each of the input members has a function assigned thereto Keys 26 include a lt SEND gt key 30 and an lt END gt key 32 the functions of which will be described in greater detail below The keys 30 32 may include suitable text and or graphics as 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 4 s
13. e number and activates the phone application to place a call to the corresponding number all based simply on the depression of lt SEND gt key 30 FIGS 4A and 4B are exemplary views of a portion of display 12 before and after lt SEND gt key 30 is depressed in use state number 7 of Table 1 As will be appreciated the selected portion in FIG 4A cross hatched may be another type of contact related infor mation such as an email address e g jsmith xyzcompany com Also similar is use case number 2 ofTable 2 in which a user is on a current telephone call but is at the same time utilizing an application other than the phone application such as the email browser SMS or MMS appli cation In this case when lt END gt key 32 is depressed hand held electronic device 4 activates the phone application to end the call plays an audible hang up tone and momentarily flashes the active call screen with a disconnected message FIGS 5A and 5B are exemplary views ofa portion of display 12 before and after lt END gt key 32 is depressed in use case 2 of Table 2 FIG 6 is a flow chart of a routine for initiating various phone related functions of handheld electronic device 4 basedon phone related inputs e g inputs from lt SEND gt key 30 and lt END gt key 32 according to the invention As seen in FIG 6 at 100 lt SEND gt key 30 or lt END gt key 32 is depressed by the user and such depression is detected by processor 20 Next
14. ectronic devices include for instance personal data assistants PDAs handheld comput ers two way pagers cellular telephones and the like Such handheld electronic devices are generally intended to be por table and thus are relatively small Many handheld electronic devices also feature wireless communication capability although many such handheld electronic devices are stand alone devices that are functional without communication with other devices Many handheld electronic devices include and provide access to a wide range of integrated applications including without limitation email telephone short message service SMS multimedia messaging service MMS browser cal endar and address book applications such that a user can easily manage information and communications from a single integrated device These applications are typically selectively accessible and executable through a user interface that allows a user to easily navigate among these applications Many devices that provide telephone functionality include dedicated lt SEND gt and lt END gt keys or the like for enabling a user to initiate a new call answer an incoming call or terminate a call that is in progress The lt SEND gt key however is typically only able to initiate a call after the user has either i entered or initiated the device s telephone appli cation and entered a phone number or selected a stored phone number such as in a call log or
15. es has an associated function that is to be initiated upon depres sion of the phone related key The method of the invention includes detecting that the phone related key has been depressed by a user and then determining the current use state of the handheld electronic device The current use state is one of the plurality of use states that has an associated function as described above Also one of the other applications other than the phone and address book applications is the currently active application in the current use state The method after determining the current use state further includes making the phone applica tion active and initiating and executing the function that is associated with the current use state According to one aspect of the invention a portion of information comprising contact related information is selected by the user in the current use state and the associated function comprises placing a phone call based on the selected portion of information The contact information may include a phone number wherein the phone call will be placed to the phone number Alternatively the contact related information such as a person s name or an email address may be used to search the entries stored by the address book application to find an associated phone number Once found the phone call is placed to the phone number The other applications of the handheld electronic device may include one or more of a messaging ap
16. hat Table 2 is not meant to be exhaustive and instead other use states and corresponding functions are pos sible without departing from the scope of the invention TABLE 2 USE STATE 1 On a current active phone call in the the phone application active call screen being displayed 2 On a current active phone call but an application other than the phone application is the currently active application lt END gt key was depressed Ignore the incoming call Return user to the home screen 3 Incoming phone call in any application 4 Idle meaning a state or no user action for a period of time As seen in Tables 1 and 2 a number of use states and corresponding functions involve execution across two or more applications of handheld electronic device 4 For example in use case number 2 of Table 1 handheld electronic device 4 begins in for example the email browser SMS or MMS application with a phone number hyperlink selected and activates the phone application to place a call to the phone number of the hyperlink based simply on the depression of lt SEND gt key 30 FIGS 3A and 3B are exemplary views of a portion of display 12 before and after lt SEND gt key 30 is depressed in use state number 2 of Table 1 Similarly in use state number 7 of Table 1 handheld electronic device 4 begins in the email SMS or MMS application with a name high lighted utilizes the address book application to find a corre sponding phon
17. hown disposed e g printed thereon As used herein the expression function and variations thereof can refer to any type of process task procedure routine subroutine function call or other type of software or firmware operation that can be performed by the processor 20 of the handheld electronic device 4 As is shown in FIG 2 the processor 20 is in electronic communication with memory 44 Memory 44 can be any ofa variety of types of internal and or external storage media such as without limitation RAM ROM EPROM s EEPROM s and the like that provide a storage register for data storage such as in the fashion of an internal storage area of a computer and can be volatile memory or nonvolatile memory The memory 44 further includes a number of appli cations executable by processor 20 for the processing of data The applications can be in any of a variety of forms such as without limitation software firmware and the like and the term application herein shall include one or more routines subroutines function calls or the like alone or in combina tion As is also shown in FIG 2 processor 20 is in electronic communication with communications subsystem 45 Com munications functions for handheld electronic device 4 including data and voice communications are performed through communications subsystem 45 Communications subsystem 45 includes a transmitter and a receiver possibly combined in a single transceiver
18. il address 0 20 25 35 40 45 65 10 7 The method according to claim 6 said one of said other applications being a messaging application for sending and receiving a plurality of messages said email address forming a part of one of said messages 8 The method according to claim 1 said phone related key being a lt SEND gt key 9 A handheld electronic device comprising a display displaying a screen of first information wherein a portion of said first information is selected a communications subsystem an input apparatus including a dedicated phone related key and a processing unit including a processor adapted to respond to inputs from said input apparatus and a memory in electronic communication with said processor said memory having a phone application an address book application having a plurality of contact entries one or more other applications and one or more routines executable by said processor said one or more routines when one of said other applications is the currently active application of said handheld electronic device being adapted to detect that said phone related key has been activated while said screen of first information is present on said display determine whether said selected portion includes a phone number if said selected portion does not include a phone number search said contact entries using said selected portion to determine whether said selected porti
19. in the direction indicated by the arrow 64 in FIG 1 According to the invention certain predetermined func tions of handheld electronic device 4 are initiated when either lt SEND gt key 30 or lt END gt key 32 is pressed by a user USE STATE 1 Idle meaning a state or no user action for a period of time 2 Phone number hyperlink selected in an application other than phone application such as email browser SMS or MMS 3 In the phone application with a hot list list of most frequently called names numbers or call log item selected 4 In phone application with a number entered in Enter Number field 5 In the address book application showing a list of contacts with a listed contact selected 6 In the address book application with a specific contact s information open and displayed without a phone number field being selected 6 depending on the current use state of handheld electronic device 4 As used herein the term use state refers to the application and or portion thereof that is currently active and in use on handheld electronic device 4 and the information if any that is selected or highlighted by the user using input apparatus 16 Table 1 below shows a number of use states of handheld electronic device 4 and the corresponding function that will be implemented by handheld electronic device 4 upon activation e g depression of lt SEND gt key 30 in each use state according to one embodiment of
20. lowing Description of the Preferred Embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which FIG 1 is a top plan view of an improved handheld elec tronic device in accordance with the invention FIG 2 is a block diagram of the handheld electronic device of FIG 1 FIGS 3A 3B 4A 4B 5A and 5B are exemplary views of a portion of the display of the handheld electronic device of FIGS 1 and 2 according to the invention FIG 6 is a flowchart depicting a routine executed by the processor of the handheld electronic device of FIGS 1 and 2 for initiating functions based on phone related inputs accord ing to the invention and FIG 7 is a flow chart depicting a particular embodiment of the routine shown in FIG 6 Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the specification DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An improved handheld electronic device 4 in accordance with the invention is depicted generally in FIGS 1 and 2 The handheld electronic device 4 includes a housing 8 a display 12 an input apparatus 16 and a processor 20 FIG 2 which may be without limitation a microprocessor uP The pro cessor 20 is responsive to inputs received from the input apparatus 16 and provides outputs to the display 12 While for clarity of disclosure reference has been made herein to the exemplary display 12 for displaying various types of infor mation it will be appreciated that such information may be store
21. messages said email address forming a part of one of said messages 16 The handheld electronic device according to claim 9 said phone related key being a lt SEND gt key
22. n in connection with a contact 8 In the address book application with a specific contact s information open and displayed and with a particular phone number field being selected 9 In any application with a phone call incoming 10 In any application and connected to a phone call Immediately call the phone number from the address book application that is associated with the selected name if only one phone number is stored in the address book application for the corresponding contact if more than one phone number is stored for that contact provide a prompt to the user to select a phone number to call Immediately call the selected phone number Answer the incoming phone cal Make the phone application the currently active application if not so already activate await entry of a phone number to be conferenced in after number is entered and lt SEND gt key is depressed again the first call is placed on the conference call function an hold and the second phone number is dialed the first phone number is conferenced in when the lt SEND gt key is depressed yet again US 8 086 274 B2 7 Table 2 below shows a number of use states of handheld electronic device 4 and the corresponding function that will be implemented by handheld electronic device 4 upon depres sion of lt END gt key 32 in each state according to one embodi ment of the invention As was the case with Table 1 it will be appreciated t
23. on is associated with a selected one of said contact entries and if said selected portion is associated with a selected one of said contact entries make said phone application active and place a phone call using said communications sub system to a phone number forming a part of said selected one of said contact entries 10 The handheld electronic device according to claim 9 said one of said other applications being one of a messaging application a browser application a memo application a calendar application and a task application 11 The handheld electronic device according to claim 9 said selected one of said contact entries having a plurality of phone numbers said routine being further adapted to enable selection of one of said plurality of phone numbers and place the phone call to the selected one of said plurality of phone numbers 12 The handheld electronic device according to claim 11 said selected portion being a person s name 13 The handheld electronic device according to claim 12 said one of said other applications being a messaging appli cation for sending and receiving a plurality of messages said name being part of one of said messages 14 The handheld electronic device according to claim 11 said selected portion being an email address 15 The handheld electronic device according to claim 14 said one of said other application being a messaging applica tion for sending and receiving a plurality of
24. plication such as an email SMS or MMS appli cation a browser application a memo application a calendar application and a task application According to another aspect of the invention in the current use state the user is connected to an active phone call When the phone related key such as a lt SEND gt key is depressed the handheld electronic device activates a conference call routine for conferencing another call in to the current call According to another aspect of the invention an improved handheld electronic device is provided that includes an input apparatus including a dedicated phone related key such as a lt SEND gt or lt END gt key a processor and a memory The memory stores a phone application an address book applica tion and one or more other applications executable by the processor The memory also stores use state information inducing a plurality of use states of the handheld electronic US 8 086 274 B2 3 device and a phone related function associated with each use state that is to be initiated upon depression of the phone related key The memory further stores one or more routines executable by the processor that include instructions for implementing the various embodiments of the method for using a dedicated phone key to initiate and execute phone related functions across applications as described above BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A full understanding of the invention can be gained from the fol
25. pression 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 2 ofthe lt SEND gt key to execute phone related functions while another application is active and in use SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An improved multi application handheld electronic device and an associated method provide added convenience for the user by enabling the user to quickly and easily initiate tele phone related functions such as placing a phone call directly from applications other than the device s phone and address book applications using a dedicated phone related key A user when using an application other than the phone or address book application no longer needs to exit or navigate out of the current application and activate the phone or address book application to initiate telephone functionality as was the case in the known prior art These and other aspects of the invention are provided by a method of using a dedicated phone related key of a handheld electronic device such as a lt SEND gt or lt END gt key to initiate and execute phone related functions The handheld electronic device includes a plurality of applications includ ing a phone application an address book application and one or more other applications The device also includes a plural ity of use states that are based on the application or portion thereof that is currently active and the information if any that is selected by the user Each one of the plurality of use stat
26. record notes lists and the like a task application 58 for enabling a user to create and manage lists of tasks anda browser application 60 for access ing and navigating the Internet As is known in the art address book application 50 allows the user of handheld electronic device 4 to store contact related information for a number of contacts including among other things the contact s name phone number home and office addresses email address and other information that may be used to contact the person In FIG 1 the home screen 43 is currently active and would constitute a portion of an application In addition display 12 shown in FIG 1 shows a pop up box 62 that indicates that there is currently a phone call coming into handheld elec tronic device 4 Pop up box 62 provides certain information relating to the incoming call including for example the US 8 086 274 B2 5 caller s phone number and identifying information if the caller and phone number are stored as a contact by address book application 50 of handheld electronic device 4 Other applications such as phone application 48 address book application 50 messaging application 52 calendar applica tion 54 memo application 56 task application 58 or browser application 60 can be initiated from the home screen 43 by providing an input through the input apparatus 16 such as by rotating the thumbwheel 28 and providing a selection input by translating the thumbwheel 28
27. the invention It will be appreciated that Table 1 is not meant to be exhaustive and instead other use states and corresponding functions are possible without departing from the scope of the invention TABLE I FUNCTION INITATED BY lt SEND gt KEY Make phone application the currently active application if lt SEND gt key is depressed again without any other actions the last number dialed will immediately be called Immediately call the selected phone number Immediately call the phone number associated with the selected hot list or call log item Immediately call the entered number Immediately call the phone number associated with the selected contact if only one phone number is stored for that contact if more than one phone number is stored for that contact provide a prompt to the user to select a phone number to call Immediately call the phone number associated with the opened contact if only one phone number is stored for that contact if more than one phone number is stored for that contact provide a prompt to the user to select a phone number to call 7 In the email SMS or MMS application with contact related information such as a name or email address that appears in the header or body of an email SMS message or MMS message selected or in an application such as the calendar or task application with contact related information selected and the selected information is also stored by the address book applicatio
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