IP Library Granted Patent US 7,715,883
Granted Patent B2
US 7,715,883 · App. 10/312,262 · Granted May 11, 2010

Alert signal generation

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 7,715,883
App. No.
10/312,262
Granted
May 11, 2010
Kind
B2
Abstract

An alert signal of a communication device ( 1 ), such as the ring signal of a mobile phone, comprises a set of musical samples that are played by the communication device in sequence. The sequence may be randomly generated, either in response to the event causing the alert or in a set up phase. Alternatively, the user of the device can create a tune to be used as the alert signal by creating a sequence of samples. The user selects samples from a list of samples to create the sequence of samples as individual samples may appear more than once in the tune.

Claims (67)

1. A method comprising:

facilitating detection of an incoming communication;

generating a substantially random sequence of data, the sequence of data defining a plurality of musical samples;

facilitating storage of the substantially random sequence of data in a memory;

responding to the detection of an incoming communication by:

reading said sequence of data from the memory, and

generating an audio signal in dependence on said sequence of data,

wherein each sample among said samples comprises at least one note and one of said samples comprises a plurality of notes, and wherein at least one sample comprises a first null character and a second null character;

evaluating the first null character to determine that a user selected a random ring signal, the random ring signal corresponds to the random sequence of data;

evaluating the second null character to determine that the user made a selection regarding the audio signal; and

generating a random sequence of said samples using a style code, in response to evaluating the second null character,

wherein said data comprises frequency-defining data and duration-defining data for each note of each sample among said samples, and

wherein the frequency-defining data comprises a code representing pitch quantized according to a predetermined scale.

2. A method according to claim 1 , wherein said data comprises timing data for each note of each sample.

3. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the predetermined scale is the chromatic scale.

4. A method according to claim 1 , further comprising facilitating storage of said music samples in the memory.

5. A method according to claim 4 , further comprising responding to operation of a user input to generate at least one of said samples.

6. A method according to claim 1 , further comprising responding to operation of a user input to generate said sequence of data.

7. A communication device comprising at least one memory storing software comprising instructions, the instructions comprising:

a first instruction for facilitating detection of an incoming communication;

a second instruction for generating a substantially random sequence of data defining a plurality of musical samples; and

a third instruction for responding to said detected incoming communication by reading said substantially random sequence of data from said memory and generating an audio signal in dependence on said substantially random sequence of data,

wherein each sample comprises at least one note and one of said samples comprises a plurality of notes, at least one sample comprises a first null character and a second null character, and

wherein said data comprises frequency-defining data and duration-defining data for each note of each sample, the frequency-defining data comprising a code representing pitch quantized according to a predetermined scale;

a fourth instruction for evaluating the first null character to determine that a user selected a random ring signal, the random ring signal corresponds to the random sequence of data;

a fifth instruction for evaluating the second null character to determine that the user made a selection regarding the audio signal; and

a sixth instruction for generating a random sequence of said samples using a style code, in response to evaluating the second null character.

8. The communication device according to claim 7 , wherein said data comprises timing data for each note of each sample.

9. The communication device according to claim 7 , wherein said predetermined scale is the chromatic scale.

10. The communication device according to claim 7 , further comprising a seventh instruction for facilitating storage of said music samples in a first memory.

11. The communication device according to claim 10 , further comprising an eighth instruction for generating at least one of said samples in response to receipt of a user input.

12. The communication device according to claim 11 , further comprising a ninth instruction for generating said sequence of data in response to receipt of the user input.

13. The communication device according to claim 7 , wherein said first, second and third instructions are represented by temporal or spatial variation of a physical property.

14. The communication device according to claim 13 , wherein the physical property is charge in a memory cell.

15. The communication device according to claim 13 , wherein the physical property is magnetic field magnitude or orientation.

16. The communication device according to claim 13 , wherein the physical property is reflectivity.

17. The communication device according to claim 13 , wherein the physical property is the phase or amplitude of an electromagnetic wave.

18. An apparatus comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform at least the following;

facilitate detection of an incoming communication;

generate a substantially random sequence of data, the sequence of data defining a plurality of musical samples;

facilitate storage of the substantially random sequence of data in the memory;

respond to the detection of an incoming communication by:

reading said sequence of data from the memory, and

generating an audio signal in dependence on said sequence of data,

wherein each sample among said samples comprises at least one note and one of said samples comprises a plurality of notes, at least one sample comprises a first null character and a second null character; and

evaluate the first null character to determine that a user selected a random ring signal, the random ring signal corresponds to the random sequence of data;

evaluate the second null character to determine that the user made a selection regarding the audio signal; and

generate a random sequence of said samples using a style code, in response to evaluating the second null character,

wherein said data comprises frequency-defining data and duration-defining data for each note of each sample among said samples, and

wherein the frequency-defining data comprises a code representing pitch quantized according to a predetermined scale.

19. A method according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of samples comprises a number identifying a style.

20. The communication device according to claim 7 , wherein each of the plurality of samples comprises a number identifying a style.

21. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein each of the plurality of samples comprises a number identifying a style.

22. A method according to claim 1 , wherein

the style code is defined by a number.

23. The communication device according to claim 7 , wherein the style code is defined by a number.

24. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the style code is defined by a number.

25. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein said data comprises timing data for each note of each sample.

26. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the predetermined scale is the chromatic scale.

27. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the memory is rewritable.

28. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to:

facilitate receipt of a user input: and

generate at least one of said samples in response to receipt of the user input.

29. The apparatus of according to claim 28 , wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to generate said sequence of data in response to receipt of the user input.

30. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the apparatus comprises at least one of a mobile phone or a communication device.

Assignments (8)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 28, 2021
From: PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP LLC
To: RPX CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 059352/0001 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Nov 30, 2021
From: NOKIA US HOLDINGS INC.
To: PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP HOLDINGS LLC; PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP LLC
Reel/Frame 058363/0723 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Nov 30, 2021
From: CORTLAND CAPITAL MARKETS SERVICES LLC
To: PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP HOLDINGS LLC; PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP LLC
Reel/Frame 058983/0104 →
ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION AGREEMENT Recorded Feb 14, 2019
From: NOKIA USA INC.
To: NOKIA US HOLDINGS INC.
Reel/Frame 048370/0682 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 13, 2017
From: NOKIA TECHNOLOGIES OY; NOKIA SOLUTIONS AND NETWORKS BV; ALCATEL LUCENT SAS
To: PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP LLC
Reel/Frame 043877/0001 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 13, 2017
From: PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP HOLDINGS, LLC; PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP LLC
To: NOKIA USA INC.
Reel/Frame 043879/0001 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 13, 2017
From: PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP HOLDINGS, LLC; PROVENANCE ASSET GROUP, LLC
To: CORTLAND CAPITAL MARKET SERVICES, LLC
Reel/Frame 043967/0001 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 12, 2015
From: NOKIA CORPORATION
To: NOKIA TECHNOLOGIES OY
Reel/Frame 035616/0485 →