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Smart Phone / Tablet (53)
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Internet Communication (12)
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U.S. Patent: 9,069,510

Patent Title

Touch sensitive screen information apparatus that includes close proximity or near distance radio frequency field communication

Meta Information

Issued Date: June 30, 2015
Inventor: William Ho Chang et al
External Links: UPSTO, Google Patents

Technical Fields

Smart Phone / Tablet, Smart TV, Smart Watch, Streaming Device, Projector

Abstract

A touch sensitive screen mobile information apparatus having a wireless communication unit for wireless device discovery is herein disclosed. Close proximity wireless device discovery is enabled by wireless searching near distance via radio frequency field for a wireless device, receiving information from the wireless device over the near distance wireless communication, and storing the received information at the information apparatus for future wireless connections. Authentication or pairing of devices may be eliminated due to close proximity of the direct wireless device discovery. After wireless device discovery, the information apparatus and the wireless device may become locked or paired for subsequent wireless communication over any number of wireless communication protocols or standards (e.g., Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11, 2.4GHz) without the need to repeat wireless discovery or pairing. Examples of information apparatus include smart phones, digital camera, laptops, or information pads. Examples of wireless devices include televisions, audio output devices, or printers.

Sample Claim

1. A wireless information apparatus method for wireless device discovering in close proximity of one or more output devices over short range wireless communication and for transferring, from the wireless information apparatus to the one or more output devices over a wireless communication channel, at least part of digital content accessible, at least partly, by the wireless information apparatus, the short range wireless communication being a close proximity wireless communication directly between the wireless information apparatus and the one or more output devices, and the wireless information apparatus being a distinct device from the one or more output devices, the one or more output devices being at least one of a printing device, a display device, a projection device, an audio output device, a sound output device, and a television, individually or in any combination, the wireless information apparatus including:

a wireless communication unit supporting at least one protocol or standard for establishing short range wireless communication directly between the wireless information apparatus and the one or more output devices,

an interface that includes a touch sensitive screen interface and a graphical user interface for interacting with a user, and

one or more applications for enabling the user to view at least part of the digital content over the graphical user interface, and

an operating system to facilitate operation of the one or more applications; and the wireless information apparatus method comprising:

(a) wireless device discovering, over short range wireless communication with the wireless communication unit at the wireless information apparatus, for one or more output devices available within close proximity for short range wireless communication directly between the wireless information apparatus and the one or more output devices;

(b) establishing, with the wireless communication unit and at the wireless information apparatus, a short range wireless communication directly between the wireless information apparatus and the one or more output devices discovered in the wireless device discovery step (a);

(c) receiving, at the wireless information apparatus and directly from the one or more output devices, information over the short range wireless communication established in step (b), the received information related to the one or more output devices not previously available and not previously stored in the wireless information apparatus prior to having executed at least part of the wireless device discovery step (a);

(d) providing, over the interface of the wireless information apparatus to the user, at least an indication associated with at least part of said information related to the one or more output devices discovered in the wireless device discovery step (a) and directly received from the one or more output devices in step (c) over the short range wireless communication established in step (b);

(e) establishing, at the wireless information apparatus, a wireless communication channel with one of the discovered output devices from among the one or more output devices wireless discovered over the short range wireless communication in step (a);

(f) generating, at the wireless information apparatus, output data associated with at least part of the digital content for output at the one of the discovered output devices over the established wireless communication channel in step (e);

(g) wireless transferring, from the wireless information apparatus, at least part of the output data associated with at least part of the digital content to the one of the discovered output devices over the wireless communication channel established in step (e) for outputting of the at least part of the digital content; and

(h) repeating, at the wireless information apparatus, any combination of steps (d) to (g) for wireless connecting and transferring of at least part of digital content from the wireless information apparatus to the one or more output devices discovered in step (a), without the need for repeating the wireless device discovering step (a).