Title of Invention

METHOD OF RENDERING A MOBILE PHONE CAPABLE OF BEING OPERATED BY A USER IN ANY VERTICAL ORIENTATION WHILE RECEIVING/MAKING A CALL

Abstract

The present invention proposes a method and system to answer anyways up down in mobile phone swap speaker microphone. The present invention deploys a loudspeaker in the place of a microphone and uses sensor functionality to detect which one of the loudspeakers should act as a microphone based on the orientation of the mobile phone. Accordingly the present invention allows a user to proceed answering to an incoming call even when the mobile phone is picked up in the inverted position.

Full Text

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the field of telephony devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method to render a mobile phone capable of being operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call. DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART It happens quite often in a mobile device say for example a flip model mobile phone, that while the user receives an incoming call or attempts to make an outgoing call, He/She may open the mobile phone in an inverted fashion. In such a scenario, the user has to once again rotate the mobile phone by 180 degree back to enable answering the call or initiating a call. This could be very much annoying if he/she repeats the mistake quite often. Figure 2 depicts the above problem in detail. As we are aware, the standard mobile phones have a loud speaker in the display section of the mobile phone and a microphone in the keypad section. It can be understood from the Figure that the process of rotating the phone 180 degree again creates a sort of inconvenience and results in wastage of time. A prior art document, viz. the patent titled 'Handset with Bidirectional Transmission/Reception Function' (Patent No. JP8125726A) describes a cordless telephone set capable of operating bi-directionally, using a headset unit that could handle both the functionalities of a transmitter and an earphone. The telephone set is equipped with sensors to identify the orientation of the telephone. The patent mentions two kinds of sensors, a gravity sensor and a temperature sensor to sense the temperature of the breath. According to the method, based on the orientation of the telephone set, the speaker and the microphone units may swap their functionality to allow communication to proceed. However, this loud speaker/microphone synergy is not depending directly on the orientation of the telephone set. Yet another patent publication in the state-of-the-art-literature, titled 'A Mobile Cellular Telephone with a Display That Is Controlled Partly by an Incline Sensor (Patent No. W02005027550) details a mobile phone with two inclination sensors to detect the orientation of the mobile phone in a plane. The Publication mentions the use of a processor to determine the approximate orientation of the mobile phone based on the inputs from the first and second inclination sensor means and the automatic display of a position (on the display screen) representative of the orientation of the mobile phone. However, the concept of a loud speaker capable of changing its functionality based on the orientation of the mobile phone has not been identified in the patent application. From the above description, it obvious that, none of the prior art literature documents talk about a system where the loud speaker doubles up as a microphone also at times based on the orientation of the Mobile Phone. It is also an advantage of the present invention, swapping the functionalities of microphone and loud speaker with respect to orientation does not have any impact on the call quality. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore the primary object of the invention to provide a system and method that confer the user with freedom to hold the mobile phone in any vertical orientation (up or down) while receiving/initiating a call without compromising basic call functionalities. It is another object of the present invention, to allow swapping the functionalities of microphone and loud speaker to allow the working of the loud speaker as earpiece/mouthpiece. It is yet another object of the invention to facilitate display panel change its orientation depending upon the mobile phone's vertical orientation. It is a further object of the invention to configure the loud speakers of the mobile phone to support enhanced media play back/media recording. It is again an objective of the invention to enhance its scalability across different mobile technologies, that include but not limited to cordless phones, mobile phones etc. Accordingly, the present invention proposes a method to render a mobile phone capable of being operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call, without affecting the basic call functionalities of the mobile phone, by featuring the re-configuration of its two loudspeakers to function as either speaker or microphone based on sensor inputs suggestive of the orientation of the mobile phone, the method comprising, been positioned as the earpiece or which one as mouthpiece for the current orientation; and • Configuring the one of the loud speaker as the microphone and the other as speaker accordingly to function as earpiece/mouthpiece based on the mobile processor instruction. The present invention also envisages a system to enable a mobile phone to be operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call, without affecting its basic call functionalities, the system comprising, • Two Loudspeakers capable of serving as either microphone or speaker as required when adjudged with such functionality as necessitated by the aligning of the mobile device in the hands of the user; • Sensors mounted on the body of the mobile near earpiece and mouthpiece for detecting which one the loudspeakers is positioned as mouthpiece and which one as earpiece; • A Processor which configures the loudspeakers accordingly as mouthpiece or speaker depending upon the sensor inputs; and • Associated circuitry and software means for setting up the operation of the mobile phone in any of the vertical position viz. up or down. According to a feature of the invention, both the loudspeakers can be configured as microphones to support enhanced media recording. According to another feature of the present invention, both the loudspeakers can be configured to support enhanced media play back. These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the ensuing detailed description of the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS Figure 1 depicts a flow chart for the operation the present invention; Figure 2 depicts the problem encountered in an existing mobile phone; Figure 3 depicts the functional diagram of the present invention; Figure 4 depicts the sensors in a mobile phone according to one embodiment of the present invention; and Figure 5 depicts the sensors in a mobile phone according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The preferred embodiments of the present invention wilt now be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood however that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. The following description is not to be construed as limiting the invention and numerous specific details are described to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention, as the basis for the claims and as a basis for teaching one skilled in the art how to make and/or use the invention. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventional details are not described in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention in detail. The present invention provides a method and system that allows the use of a mobile phone held in any vertical orientation (up or down). This is achieved by deploying a loudspeaker in the place of the microphone in a mobile phone. Sensors are used to determine the orientation of the mobile phone and the loudspeakers are configured to switch their functionality depending upon the orientation of the mobile phone. In this context, inverted position of the mobile phone refers to the position when the mobile phone is rotated by 180 degrees along the vertical axis of the mobile phone. Figure 3 depicts a functional diagram of the present invention. The mobile phone (a flip model mobile phone herein after referred to as a mobile phone) is embedded with two loud speakers L1 and L2. Loud speaker L1 is positioned in the display section of the mobile phone and loud speaker L2 is positioned in the keypad section of the mobile phone. If the user opens the mobile phone in the normal position, L1 will be configured as loudspeaker and L2 will be configured as microphone. Further, in this case, L1 can support media play back while L2 can support media recording. If the user opens the mobile phone in the inverted position, L1 will be configured as microphone and L2 will be configured as loudspeaker. Further, in this case, L2 can support media play back while L1 can support media recording. The configuration of the loudspeakers depending upon the opening of the mobile phone is facilitated by sensors mounted on the body of the mobile phone. Figure 4 depicts the sensors in a mobile phone according to one embodiment of the present invention. Accordingly the sensor 1 and sensor 2 are mounted on the body of the mobile phone. As shown sensor 1 is mounted on the display section of the mobile phone and sensor 2 is mounted on the keypad section of the mobile phone. Each sensor will be connected to a soft key. A sensor will be activated when the soft key associated with the respective sensor is pressed. When a sensor gets activated it will produce a binary output which will be given to a processor. The processor configures the loudspeakers L1 and L2 accordingly depending upon the sensor activated. Figure 5 depicts the sensors in a mobile phone according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the mobile phone is incorporated with an arrangement with sensor 1 at the top and sensor 2 at the bottom with space in between the two sensors. A movable object (for example a small ball) can move freely inside the space between the two sensors. The two sensors are aligned along the vertical axis of the mobile phone. A sensor gets activated when the movable object comes in contact with the respective sensor. When the mobile phone is picked up in the normal position, the movable object makes contact with sensor 2 and hence sensor 2 gets activated. When the mobile phone is picked up in an inverted position, the movable object moves inside the space between the sensors and comes in contact with sensor 1 and correspondingly sensor 1 gets activated. When a sensor gets activated it will produce a binary output which will be given to a processor. The processor configures the loudspeakers L1 and L2 accordingly depending upon the sensor activated. Figure 1 depicts a flow chart for the operation of the present invention. The operation of the present invention along with the various embodiments is explained with reference to figure 4 and figure 5 as follows Consider the scenario in which the user of the mobile phone receives an incoming call. The user picks up the mobile phone and answers the call. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the orientation of the mobile phone is detected with the help of an arrangement incorporated in the mobile phone with sensor 1 at the top and sensor 2 at the bottom with space in between the two sensors. The two sensors are aligned along the vertical axis of the mobile phone. A movable object moves - a small ball for example - in the space between the two sensors. When the user picks up the mobile phone in the normal position, the movable object comes in contact with sensor 2. Accordingly sensor 2 gets activated and sends a binary '0' to the processor in the mobile phone. The processor on receiving the binary '0' from sensor 2 configures L1 as the loudspeaker and L2 as the microphone and sets the display in the display panel of the mobile phone in the normal position. When the user picks up the mobile phone in the inverted position, the movable object capable of moving inside the space between the two sensors comes in contact with sensor 1. Accordingly sensor 1 gets activated and sends a binary T to the processor in the mobile phone. The processor on receiving the binary '1' from sensor 1 configures L2 as the loudspeaker and L1 as the microphone and sets the display in a inverted position in the display panel of the mobile phone facilitating the user to view it. The system for detecting the orientation of the mobile phone remains activated till the call ends. According to another embodiment of the present invention, the orientation of the mobile phone is detected by sensors depending on the soft key that is pressed. When the user picks up the mobile phone in the normal position, the soft key associated with sensor 1 gets pressed and accordingly sensor 1 gets activated. Sensor 1 sends a binary '0' to a processor in the mobile phone. The processor on receiving binary '0' configures L1 as the loudspeaker and L2 as the microphone. In this case, the processor sets the display in the display panel of the mobile phone in its normal position. When the user picks up the mobile phone in the inverted position, the soft key associated with sensor 2 gets pressed and sensor 2 gets activated. Sensor 2 then sends a binary '1' to the processor in the mobile phone. The processor on receiving binary 'V configures L2 as the loudspeaker and L1 as the microphone. In this case, the display in the display panel of the mobile phone gets inverted facilitating the user to view it conveniently. The present invention can be applied to telephony devices which include but not limited to mobile phones, cordless phones etc. The present invention has the following advantages • User can open/flip open a mobile phone and attend a call even if the mobile phone is picked up in the inverted position. • Possible call drops can be avoided by the present invention, as it reduces the response time to answer a call in case the mobile phone is picked up in the inverted position, if the mobile phone slips from the hand etc. Also, by configuring all the loudspeakers to microphones, the quality of media recording can be enhanced. Although the present invention has been fully described in connection with the preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be noted that various changes and modifications are possible and are apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications are to be understood as included within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims unless they depart there from We Claim 1. A method to render a mobile phone capable of being operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call, without affecting the basic calf functionalities of the mobile phone, by featuring the re¬configuration of its two loudspeakers to function as either speaker or microphone based on sensor inputs suggestive of the orientation of the mobile phone, the method comprising, Processing of the binary responses from the sensors indicative of the orientation of the mobile phone to ascertain which of the loud speaker has been positioned as the earpiece or which one as mouthpiece for the current orientation; and Configuring one of the loud speaker as the microphone and the other as speaker accordingly to function as earpiece/mouthpiece based on the mobile processor instruction. 2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein only one sensor gets invoked at a time, depending upon the position of the mobile phone. 3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sensors are invoked by a moving ball mechanism which incites the sensor that comes in contact with it 4. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein each sensor is connected to a soft key and the respective sensor gets invoked when the associated key is pressed. 5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sensors gets activated only at the cue of an incoming call. 6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein configuring the loudspeakers with respect to mobile phone orientation is independent of the call receiving/transmission mechanism, and hence rendering the call quality non-affected. 7. A system to enable a mobile phone to be operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call, without affecting its basic call functionalities, the system comprising, Two Loudspeakers capable of serving as either microphone or speaker as required when adjudged with such functionality as necessitated by the aligning of the mobile device in the hands of the user; Sensors mounted on the body of the mobile near earpiece and mouthpiece for detecting which one the loudspeakers is positioned as mouthpiece and which one as earpiece; A Processor which configures the loudspeakers accordingly as mouthpiece or speaker depending upon the sensor inputs; and Associated circuitry and software means for setting up the operation of the mobile phone in any of the vertical position viz. up or down. 8. The system according to Claim 7, wherein both the loudspeakers are configurable as microphones to support enhanced media recording. 9. The system according to Claim 7, wherein both the loudspeakers are configurable to support enhanced media play back. 10. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the sensors could be touch sensors, gravity sensors or incline sensors. 11. A method to render a mobile phone capable of being operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call, without affecting the basic call functionalities of the mobile phone, substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 12. A system to enable a mobile phone to be operated by the user in any vertical orientation - up or down - while receiving/making a call, without affecting its basic call functionalities, substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Documents:

2481-CHE-2006 EXAMINATION REPORT REPLY RECEIVED 14-10-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 POWER OF ATTORNEY 14-10-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 AMENDED CLAIMS 14-10-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 AMENDED PAGES OF SPECIFICATION 14-10-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM-1 14-10-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM-13 14-10-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 AMENDED PAGES OF SPECIFICATION. 28-03-2014.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 EXAMINATION REPORT REPLY RECEIVED. 28-03-2014.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM-1 28-03-2014.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM-13 12-12-2013.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 OTHERS 28-03-2014.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 POWER OF ATTORNEY 28-03-2014.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 ABSTRACT.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 CLAIMS.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 CORRESPONDENCE OTHERS.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 DESCRIPTION (COMPLETE).pdf

2481-CHE-2006 DRAWINGS.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM 1.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM 18.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM 5.pdf

2481-CHE-2006 FORM-13 16-12-2013.pdf

2481-che-2006-correspondnece-others.pdf

2481-che-2006-description(provisional).pdf

2481-che-2006-drawings.pdf

2481-che-2006-form 1.pdf

2481-che-2006-form 26.pdf