Patent Publication Number: US-2011061024-A1

Title: Electronic device and method for accessing weather information

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present disclosure relates to electronic devices and methods for accessing weather information with the electronic device. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     With so many cities in the world, accessing weather information for a particular city using the Internet requires entering the full name of the city and possibly additional information such a zip code or country. Sometimes, after entering all the information it turns out the weather information for that particular city is not even available. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Many aspects of the embodiments can be better understood with references to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the embodiments. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an electronic device communicating with weather service via a network, in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the electronic device of the embodiment of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a flow chart of an embodiment of a method for accessing weather information through a weather service using the electronic device. 
         FIG. 4  is similar to  FIG. 3 , but is shown in another form. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The disclosure is illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements. It should be noted that references to “an” or “one” embodiment in this disclosure are not necessarily to the same embodiment, and such references mean at least one. 
     In general, the word “module,” as used herein, refers to logic embodied in hardware or firmware, or to a collection of software instructions, written in a programming language, such as, for example, Java, C, or assembly. One or more software instructions in the modules may be embedded in firmware, such as an EPROM. It will be appreciated that modules may comprise connected logic units, such as gates and flip-flops, and may comprise programmable units, such as programmable gate arrays or processors. The modules described herein may be implemented as either software and/or hardware modules and may be stored in any type of computer-readable medium or other computer storage device. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates an electronic device  10 , in accordance with an embodiment, communicating with a weather service  30  via a network  20 . In one embodiment, the electronic device  10  may be a digital photo frame. The weather service  30  can provide immediate current weather information. The network  30  may be the Internet. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates the electronic device  10  communicating with the weather service  30 . The electronic device  10  includes a display  13 , a graphical user interface (GUI) module  133 , a weather service management module  17 , and a download module  18 . 
     A GUI application is installed in the GUI module  133 . The GUI application can accept input regarding weather service queries, in one embodiment, the GUI module  133  can process and transmit input of letters. The GUI application module  133  transmits each input of letters to the weather service management module  17 . 
     The weather service management module  17  can build and modify a city result list from an available city list according to the input from the GUI module  133 , when the input of letters reach a predetermined number. For example, if the predetermined number is three and a user is inputting “Boulder”, then a list is produced, once b-o-u are input, containing available cities whose names begin with b-o-u then the list is modified when 1 is entered showing only those available cities whose names begin with b-o-u-1 and so on. The predetermined number can also be calculated by the weather service management module  17  according to a processing capability of the electronic device. The weather service management module  17  can acquire the available city list from the network before building the city result list. 
     The download module  18  can get weather content of a selected city. The selected city is selected from the city result list by user input to the GUI module  133 . 
     The display  13  can display the weather content. 
       FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4  illustrate flow charts of a method for getting weather service in the electronic device  10  via the network  20 , in accordance with one embodiment. 
     In block S 10 , the GUI application sends a weather service query to the weather service management module  17 . 
     In block S 12 , the weather service management module  17  acquires an available city list from the network  20 . 
     In block S 14 , the GUI application accepts an input of letters. 
     In block S 16 , the weather service management module  17  builds a city result list from the available city list according to the input letters of the city name when the input of letters reach a predetermined number, the weather service management module  17  modifies the city list if input continues. 
     In block S 18 , the user selects a city in the city result list. 
     In block S 20 , the download module  18  gets weather content of the selected city from the network  20 . The weather service management module  17  can send a download address to the download module  18  before the download module  18  gets the weather content. 
     In block S 22 , the display  13  displays the weather content for the selected city. 
     Depending on the embodiment, certain of the steps of methods described may be removed, others may be added, and the sequence of steps may be altered. It is also to be understood that the description and the claims drawn to a method may include some indication in reference to certain steps. However, the indication used is only to be viewed for identification purposes and not as a suggestion as to an order for the steps. 
     It is also to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages have been set forth in the foregoing description of preferred embodiments, together with details of the structures and functions of the preferred embodiments, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the disclosure to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.