Patent Publication Number: US-2010113103-A1

Title: Communication apparatus with incoming call prompt

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The disclosure relates to a communication apparatus with incoming call prompt. 
     DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART 
     Communication apparatuses such as mobile phones play an important role in people&#39;s life and are a necessary part of daily life. Generally, when there is an incoming call or message, a phone is set to play a melody, however, in hospitals, offices, libraries etc., the melody prompt may be unwelcome and intrusive. Of course, the phone can be set to a vibration mode, but the vibration prompt is easy to miss if you are not near your phone. 
     a communication apparatus that uses a light as a prompt seems to resolve the problems described above, for example, when there is an incoming call, a light on the phone can flash, but the light prompt cannot impart other information, such as a caller name, to the user other than alerting the user to an incoming call or message. Therefore, what is needed is a communication apparatus with an incoming call prompt which can overcome the aforementioned shortcomings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The components of the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of communication apparatus. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout several views. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a communication apparatus in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a portable phone with an indicator light in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is an exemplary schematic diagram illustrating a incoming call prompt table with an exemplary embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a hardware infrastructure of a communication apparatus in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. The communication apparatus includes at least one input unit  11 , a memory  12 , a processor  13 , an indicator light  14 , a receiver  15 , and a power supply  16 . 
     The input unit  11  is configured for receiving user input. 
     The memory  12  is configured for storing an incoming call prompt table (see  FIG. 3 ), wherein the incoming call prompt table can be defined by a user manually. The incoming call prompt table includes, in this embodiment, a row for incoming caller and a row for associating a caller name with a specific color of light. The incoming call information may instead be or include, but is not limited to, incoming call phone number, area or region from which the incoming call is made, and so on. For example, as shown in  FIG. 3 , incoming calls from caller named Jane as programmed by user is associated with a red light as a prompt, incoming calls from John Smith are associated with a purple light, and incoming calls from unknown callers are associated with a yellow light and means caller ID of the incoming call has not been associated with a colored light. In another exemplary embodiment, calls could be associated with different colored lights according to region from which the call originated. For example, Detroit may be associated with a yellow light. 
     The receiver  15  is configured for receiving the incoming call. 
     The indicator light  14  is configured for emitting different colored lights. The indicator light  14  is installed in a visible place in the communication apparatus. For example, in the exemplary embodiment as shown in  FIG. 2 , an indicator light  22  is installed in the front of the portable phone  21 . 
     The power supply  16  is configured for supplying electrical power to all elements of the communication apparatus. 
     The processor  13  is connected with the input unit  11 , the indicator light  14 , the receiver  15 , and the power supply  16 . The processor  13  is configured for controlling the indicator light  14  to emit corresponding colored light according to the incoming call prompt table and the incoming call. In the exemplary embodiment, when the incoming call is from Smith, the processor  13  controls the indicator light  14  to emit purple light as a prompt according to the table in  FIG. 3 , and when the incoming call is from an unknown caller, the processor  13  controls the indicator light  14  to emit yellow light. In the exemplary embodiment as shown in  FIG. 2 , the portable phone  21  is taken as the communication apparatus, and when there is an incoming call, the processor  13  controls the indicator light  22  to emit corresponding colored light according to the incoming call prompt table. 
     Although the present invention has been specifically described on the basis of the exemplary embodiment thereof, the invention is not to be construed as being limited thereto. Various changes or modifications may be made to the embodiment without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.