(19) United States
`(12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2013/0095823 A1
`(43) Pub. Date:
`Apr. 18, 2013
`KLASSEN
`
`US 2013 0095823A1
`
`(54) METHOD OF MANAGING INBOUND
`COMMUNICATIONS BASED ON THE
`CURRENT LOCATION OF A WIRELESS
`COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE
`
`(72)
`
`Inventor:
`
`(71) Applicant: Research In Motion Limited, Waterloo
`(CA)
`Gerhard Dietrich KLASSEN, Waterloo
`(CA)
`(73) Assignee: RESEARCH IN MOTION LIMITED,
`Waterloo (CA)
`Appl. No.: 13/691.987
`Filed:
`Dec. 3, 2012
`
`(21)
`(22)
`
`(63)
`
`Related U.S. Application Data
`Continuation of application No. 12/014,839, filed on
`Jan. 16, 2008, now Pat. No. 8,326,285.
`
`Publication Classification
`
`(51) Int. Cl.
`H0478/08
`(52) U.S. Cl.
`CPC ....................................... H04W 8/08 (2013.01)
`USPC ....................................................... 45S/432.1
`
`(2006.01)
`
`(57)
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`A method of managing inbound communications received by
`a roaming wireless communications device entails enabling a
`user of the roaming wireless communications device to acti
`vate an inbound communications filter having filter criteria
`based on a current location of the user and a current location
`of a sender of an inbound communication. Once the wireless
`device has determined whether the inbound communication
`satisfies the filter criteria, the wireless device notifies the user
`that the inbound communication has been received provided
`that the inbound communication satisfies the filter criteria.
`
`12
`
`14
`
`17
`
`18
`
`Enable Location - Based Filtering
`
`Receive inbound Communication
`
`
`
`Satisfy filter criteria?
`
`N
`
`Y
`
`
`
`Type of
`Communication
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Voice call
`
`
`
`Display
`E-mail in
`separate inbox
`
`
`
`
`
`Display E-mail
`in main inbox
`with distinctive
`Color 1 font
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Sound usual
`ring tone at
`increased
`volume
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Notify user
`y
`normally
`
`16
`
`2O
`
`Sound distinctive
`ring tone
`
`22
`
`24
`
`26
`
`28
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 1
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`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 1 of 8
`
`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`
`
`
`
`Enable Location - Based Filtering
`
`12
`N Receive inbound communication
`
`14
`
`17
`
`
`
`
`
`18
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Satisfy filter criteria?
`
`Notify user
`normally
`
`Type of
`Communication
`
`20
`
`
`
`Voice call
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Display
`E-mail in
`separate inbox
`
`Display E-mail
`in main inbox
`with distinctive
`Color / font
`
`Sound usual
`ring tone at
`increased
`volume
`
`
`
`Sound distinctive
`ring tone
`
`22
`
`24
`
`26
`
`28
`
`F.G. 1
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 2
`
`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 2 of 8
`
`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`ESTI
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`009
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 3
`
`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 3 of 8
`
`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`TUE MAR.27
`28 N1
`
`N14:01 p mat(Qemail.com
`I-1 4:00 p ray(CDemail.com
`s 3:45 ptedCDemail.com
`
`MEETING
`Re. hello
`hello
`Data for you
`
`1 OO
`
`
`
`112
`
`4OO
`
`41 O
`
`114
`
`116
`
`FIG. 3
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 4
`
`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 4 of 8
`
`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`100
`
`
`
`440
`
`TUE. MAR.27
`28
`(2 LOCAL)
`LOCAL INBOX
`N14:06p bobQemail.com
`N1 3:48 p billGemail.com
`11 3:41 p rayCDemail.com
`MAN NBOX
`s 4:01 p mary Qemail.com
`J-1 4:00 p maryGemail.com
`s 3:45 pted Gemail.com
`
`A ( )
`<QP Y ill
`d
`
`Our meeting
`Re: dinner?
`Dinner?
`
`Re: hello
`hello
`Data for you
`
`FIG. 4
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 5
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`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 5 of 8
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`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`100
`
`450
`
`452
`
`454
`
`460
`462
`
`464
`
`
`
`ROAMING PROFILE
`(O) Manually activate
`O Automatically activate when roaming
`Define proximity by:
`(9) Distance to sender
`Specify distance
`Select distance
`
`O Geographical area
`
`Km
`
`-->
`D10 km
`50 Km
`O 100 km
`
`FIG. 5
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 6
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`

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`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 6 of 8
`
`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`Manually activate
`Automatically activate when roaming
`Define proximity by:
`ODistance to sender
`O Geographical area
`City (MONTREAL)
`State / Province
`O Country
`O Area code
`Continent
`
`Select City
`IORONTO
`ONREA
`CHICAGO
`NEW YORK
`
`466
`
`468
`
`1OO
`
`
`
`45O
`
`452
`
`454
`
`46O
`462
`464
`
`F.G. 6
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 7
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`

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`Patent Application Publication
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`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 7 of 8
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`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`470
`
`<> GPS ON
`
`
`
`472
`
`km
`
`Continent
`Area Code
`Time zone
`Current Location 4323,
`Local
`Montreal & Suburbs
`
`
`
`474
`
`
`
`476
`
`ROAMING PROFILE
`O Manually activate
`O Automatically activate when roaming
`Define proximity by:
`O Distance to sender
`O) Geographical area
`City
`O City & Suburbs
`D County
`O Region
`D State / Province
`Countr
`y
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`FIG. 7
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 8
`
`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Apr. 18, 2013 Sheet 8 of 8
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`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`1 OO
`
`
`
`510
`
`52O
`
`53O
`
`Return to
`
`ROAMING PROFLE OPTIONS
`previous page
`Application of filter to sender
`r
`O) Apply to all inbound communications
`O Apply to communications from known
`contacts only
`Application of filter to type of communication
`O) Apply to voice & text
`O Apply to voice only
`O Apply to text only
`Distinguish text with
`Con 1 Color
`Font
`Separate inbox
`
`Distinguish voice with
`Louder ringtone
`Distinct ringtone
`
`502
`
`540
`
`FIG. 8
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 9
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`

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`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`Apr. 18, 2013
`
`METHOD OF MANAGING INBOUND
`COMMUNICATIONS BASED ON THE
`CURRENT LOCATION OF A WIRELESS
`COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE
`
`CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED
`APPLICATIONS
`0001. This application is a continuation of application Ser.
`No. 12/014,839 filed Jan. 16, 2008 which is scheduled to issue
`as U.S. Pat. No. 8,326,285 on Dec. 4, 2012, the entire disclo
`sure of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all
`purposes.
`
`TECHNICAL FIELD
`0002 The present disclosure relates generally to wireless
`communications devices and, in particular, to techniques for
`managing inbound communications based on the current
`location of the wireless device.
`
`BACKGROUND
`0003 Wireless communications devices having voice,
`e-mail and Web-browsing capabilities are rapidly increasing
`in popularity both for personal and business use. However,
`when a wireless user travels or “roams' to another city, the
`user may wish to be notified of any inbound communications
`that originate from within the city in which the user is cur
`rently roaming. Presently, wireless communications device
`do not distinguish inbound communications that originate
`locally to the roaming device from those that originate from
`other (remote) locations. A wireless device that overcame this
`deficiency would thus be highly desirable.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`0004 Further features and advantages of the present tech
`nology will become apparent from the following detailed
`description, taken in combination with the appended draw
`ings, in which:
`0005 FIG. 1 is a flowchart outlining steps of a method of
`managing inbound communications on a roaming wireless
`communications device in accordance with the present tech
`nology:
`0006 FIG. 2 is a block diagram of key components of a
`wireless communications device on which the present tech
`nology can be implemented;
`0007 FIG. 3 is a depiction of a wireless communications
`device displaying an inbox in which e-mails that have origi
`nated locally to the device are presented with a distinctive font
`to distinguish these locally originated e-mails from those that
`have not originated locally;
`0008 FIG. 4 is a depiction of a wireless communications
`device displaying a local inbox for presenting e-mails that
`have originated locally to the device and a separate main
`inbox for presenting all other e-mails that have not originated
`locally:
`0009 FIG. 5 is a depiction of a wireless communications
`device displaying an example of a user-configurable roaming
`profile that has been manually activated to give precedence to
`inbound communications received from senders that are
`within, for example, 50 km of the user's current position;
`0010 FIG. 6 is a depiction of a wireless communications
`device displaying an example of a user-configurable roaming
`
`profile that has been manually activated to give precedence to
`inbound communications received from senders that are
`within the city of Montreal;
`0011
`FIG. 7 is a depiction of a wireless communications
`device displaying an example of a user-configurable roaming
`profile that is set for automatic activation when the device
`roams to a specified geographical area ("Montreal and Sub
`urbs”) so as to give precedence to inbound communications
`received from senders that are within the city of Montreal or
`its suburbs; and
`0012 FIG. 8 is a depiction of a wireless communications
`device displaying an example of a roaming profile options
`page that can be configured by the user to define the applica
`tion of the filter to senders and to different types of commu
`nication, how to distinguish incoming text communications
`and how to distinguish incoming Voice communications.
`0013. It will be noted that throughout the appended draw
`ings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`0014. The present technology provides, in general, a
`method of managing inbound communications received by a
`roaming wireless communications device that enables the
`user to filter the inbound communications so as to exclusively
`display, prioritize, highlight or give precedence to those com
`munications (e.g. e-mails, SMS, MMS or PIN text messages,
`or phone calls) that originate from senders who themselves
`are located within the geographical area in which the user is
`currently roaming. Alternatively, the device can be config
`ured to only display those inbound communications that
`originate from the geographical area (e.g. city) in which the
`user is roaming to the exclusion of all other communications.
`Accordingly, the user can enable this roaming profile to
`ensure that he or she is readily apprised of all inbound com
`munications from contacts or other people in the city or area
`in which he or she is currently located. This new technology
`is very helpful when the roaming user wishes to focus his
`attention on any communications emanating from the area in
`which he is currently roaming, Such as, for example, when
`awaiting or expecting instructions or directions from local
`contacts, or simply to prioritize messages or calls from busi
`ness or personal contacts with whom the user is traveling to
`visit or meet.
`0015. Accordingly, an aspect of the present technology is
`a method of managing inbound communications received by
`a roaming wireless communications device. The method
`comprises enabling activation on the roaming wireless com
`munications device of an inbound communications filter hav
`ing filter criteria based on a current location of the wireless
`communications device, determining whether an inbound
`communication comprising text data satisfies the filter crite
`ria, and providing a visual notification that the inbound com
`munication satisfies the filter criteria to visually distinguish
`the inbound communication satisfying the filter from other
`inbound communications.
`0016. Another aspect of the present technology is a com
`puter readable medium that includes code adapted to perform
`the steps of the foregoing method when the computer read
`able medium is loaded into memory and executed on a pro
`cessor of a wireless communications device.
`0017. Yet another aspect of the present technology is a
`wireless communications device having a positioning Sub
`system for determining a current location of the wireless
`communications device, a processor coupled to memory for
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 10
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`

`

`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`Apr. 18, 2013
`
`activating an inbound communications filter having filter cri
`teria based on the current location of the wireless communi
`cations device, the processor being configured to determine
`whether an inbound communication comprising text data
`satisfies the filter criteria, and a user output interface for
`providing visual notification that the inbound communication
`satisfies the filter criteria to visually distinguish the inbound
`communication satisfying the filter from other inbound com
`munications.
`0018. The details and particulars of these aspects of the
`technology will now be described below, by way of example,
`with reference to the attached drawings.
`0019 FIG. 1 is a flowchart outlining steps of a method of
`managing inbound communications received by a roaming
`wireless communications device. This method includes an
`initial step (step 10) of enabling a user of the roaming wireless
`communications device to activate an inbound communica
`tions filter having filter criteria based on a current location of
`the user and a current location of a sender of an inbound
`communication. In other words, at step 10, the user of the
`wireless communications device enables the device to filter
`incoming communications based on geographical proximity.
`The device can be manually enabled, i.e. when the user travels
`to another city or place, or it can be automatically enabled (by
`having the device autonomously recognize that it has roamed
`to another city and then automatically activate a geographi
`cal-based filter or profile based on preferences or settings,
`which would be preset by the user). Optionally, the user may
`modify, change, alter or override the roaming profile that has
`been set (or any of the filter characteristics that are currently
`being used) to Suit changing needs or wishes. Activating the
`inbound communications filter (or enabling the roaming pro
`file) can be done prior to roaming or after the device has
`started roaming (or even while the device is “in transit, e.g.
`on an airplane with the wireless transceiver shut off).
`0020. After the user has activated the inbound communi
`cations filter (or roaming profile or geographically based
`filter) to thus explicitly or implicitly define the filter criteria,
`the device then determines, upon receipt of each new inbound
`communication (step 12), whether the inbound communica
`tion satisfies the filter criteria (step 14) by comparing the
`location of the sender of the inbound communication with the
`current location of the user of the device.
`0021. If the inbound communication satisfies the filter
`criteria, the device then notifies the user that the inbound
`communication has been received, as will be elaborated
`below with respect to steps 18-28. If the inbound communi
`cation does not satisfy the filter criteria, i.e. the inbound
`communication has not originated within a desired proximity
`of the user, then the device notifies the user of the inbound
`communication (step 16) in a normal manner (i.e. using a
`normal ring tone for incoming calls and displaying e-mails or
`other text messages in the normal manner, e.g. by placing
`them in the usual inbox with the usual font and color).
`0022 Provided that the inbound communication satisfies
`the filter criteria, the device determines (step 17) the type of
`incoming communication (i.e. whether the communication is
`a telephone call (voice data) or whether it is text data, such as
`an e-mail, SMS, MMS, or PIN message).
`0023. If the inbound communication is an e-mail (step 18),
`and provided, of course, that the e-mail satisfies the filter
`criteria as being Sufficiently proximate or local to the roaming
`user, the device then displays the inbound e-mail in a manner
`that exclusively displays, highlights, prioritizes or gives pre
`
`cedence to this “local inbound e-mail over other (“non
`local) inbound e-mails. Similarly, if the inbound communi
`cation is a telephone call (step 20), and provided, of course,
`that the telephone call satisfies the filter criteria as being
`sufficiently local to the roaming user, the device will notify
`the user of the incoming call in a manner that gives prece
`dence to, or otherwise distinguishes, this local incoming call
`over other (non-local) calls.
`0024 For example, at step 22, the device may be config
`ured to display all inbound e-mail messages that satisfy the
`filter criteria without displaying inbound e-mail messages
`that fail to satisfy the filter criteria. This exclusive displaying
`of local messages (i.e. to the exclusion of non-local messages)
`can be accomplished, for example, by having a dedicated (i.e.
`separate) inbox for local inbound e-mails which is shown as
`the default inbox when the user accesses his e-mail applica
`tion or which is, at least, shown more prominently than the
`main inbox containing all e-mails regardless of their point of
`origin. In this example implementation, the user can then
`switch from the (default) local inbox to the main inbox to
`view other e-mails, as desired.
`0025. As an alternative to having a separate inbox dedi
`cated to local e-mails (step 22) that exclude non-local e-mails,
`the device can also be configured to display all received
`e-mails in the same inbox (i.e. the usual main inbox), but
`display the local messages in a visually distinctive manner
`that distinguishes inbound e-mail messages satisfying the
`filter criteria from messages that do not satisfy the filter cri
`teria. For example, at step 24, the device can be configured to
`display all received e-mails in the same inbox but to show
`those that have originated locally to the roaming device using
`a distinctive font and/or a distinctive color. Alternatively, the
`e-mails that have originated locally can have an icon beside
`them. Furthermore, a distinctive beep or other auditory signal
`could be sounded to signal that the incoming e-mail has
`originated from a sender who is local to the roaming device.
`0026. For incoming voice calls (step 20), the device can be
`configured to Sound a distinctive ring tone for an inbound
`telephone call satisfying the filter criteria (step 26). Alterna
`tively, the device can be configured to Sound a ring tone at an
`increased Volume for an inbound telephone call satisfying the
`filter criteria (step 28). Of course, as a further alternative, the
`device can be configured to Sound a distinctive ring tone at an
`increased volume (combining steps 26 and 28). As will be
`appreciated, there are numerous ways of notifying the user of
`the local incoming communication so as to distinguish com
`munications that originate locally from those originate
`remotely. FIG.1 merely depicts, by way of example only, two
`different ways of distinctively notifying the user for both
`Voice and text, although other techniques could be used to
`signal that a local communication is incoming. For example,
`the wireless device could be configured to simultaneously
`vibrate (and/or play a distinct Sound and/or use synthesized
`speech to announce that a local callis incoming, etc.) to signal
`to the user that the incoming communication has originated
`locally and is thus of higher priority than other (non-local)
`communications.
`0027. In a further example, non-local e-mails might be
`received silently (with the mail envelope icon appearing or
`blinking), but if the e-mail is from a contact or IP address that
`is local to the roaming device, the device could beep, play a
`Sound, alarm or ring tone, vibrate, or cause a special icon to
`appear orblink, or cause the UI to change to a different theme.
`These various techniques are merely presented by way of
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 11
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`

`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`Apr. 18, 2013
`
`further examples to illustrate that the user can be notified of a
`locally originated communication in a distinctive manner that
`the user will recognize as being associated with a local com
`munication.
`0028. In one implementation, the filter criteria can be
`defined by enabling the user to specify a distance between the
`user of the device and the sender of the inbound communica
`tion within which the user is to be notified of inbound com
`munications from the sender. For example, the user could
`specify that he or she is to be notified of any incoming com
`munication that originates from a sender who is within a
`radius of 100 km of the user's current location.
`0029. The distance between the current location of the
`user and the location of the sender can be determined in a
`number of different ways. For example, the mobile user's
`current location can be determined fairly precisely using GPS
`(provided the device has a GPS chipset or is connected to an
`external GPS puck, such as via a Bluetooth connection).
`Alternatively, the mobile user's current location can be deter
`mined by estimating a distance to cellular base stations using
`triangulation of signals from in-range base stations, such as
`used for Wireless E911. Techniques for locating a wireless
`device using radiolocation include (i) angle of arrival (AOA)
`which entails locating the caller at the point where signals
`from two towers intersect; (ii) time difference of arrival
`(TDOA), which uses multilateration like GPS, except that the
`networks determine the time difference and therefore the
`distance from each tower; and (iii) location signature, which
`uses “fingerprinting to store and recall patterns (such as
`multipath) which mobile phone signals exhibit at different
`locations in each cell. Depending on the circumstances, and
`in particular the density of cell towers in a given area, it may
`also be possible to simply use the closest cell tower (with
`triangulation) as a sufficient approximation for the location of
`the user. Since cell towers are often more densely located in
`highly populated areas, they would accordingly provide bet
`ter resolution where it is generally most required.
`0030 The sender's location can be determined by looking
`up the sender in the user's address book of contacts and
`correlating the particular e-mail address or telephone number
`with a particular work address or home address. For commu
`nications emanating from a mobile device, i.e. for an incom
`ing e-mail or incoming telephone call originating from a
`mobile device, the mobile device itself may send its current
`location or GPS coordinates as part of the call signalling and
`setup.
`0031. If the sender's contact information is not stored in
`the user's address book, then the location of the sender can be
`determined from the area code of the incoming telephone call
`or from the IP address of the incoming e-mail.
`0032. In another implementation, the user can define the
`filter criteria by selecting a predefined geographical area (e.g.
`city, state, country, time-Zone, continent, etc.) so that the user
`is notified of any inbound communications originating from
`within the predefined geographical area. The user can select a
`generic geographical area (the granularity of the filter) so that
`the device automatically switches to the city or country in
`which it is roaming without having to specify which city or
`which country. This requires the device to correlate its GPS
`coordinates with a database of ranges of latitude and longi
`tude coordinates for cities, counties, states, provinces, coun
`tries, etc. Alternatively, as another example, the user can
`select a specific city from a menu of cities, thereby defining
`specifically the filter criteria so that any call or e-mail origi
`
`nating from within that particular city is highlighted or given
`precedence. Optionally, the user can specify whether the filter
`is to apply to any incoming communication or only those
`from recognized contacts about whom information is stored
`in the user's address book. In other words, the user can acti
`vate a roaming profile that prioritizes inbound communica
`tions from contacts whose addresses are within a specified
`geographical area, presenting these in a distinctive manner to
`distinguish these over all other incoming communications.
`0033 FIG. 2 is a block diagram depicting certain key
`components of a wireless communications device 100 on
`which the present technology can be implemented. It should
`be expressly understood that this figure is intentionally sim
`plified to show only certain components; the device 100 of
`course includes other components beyond those shown in
`FIG. 2. The device 100 includes a microprocessor 102 (or
`simply a “processor”) which interacts with memory in the
`form of RAM 104 and flash memory 106, as is well known in
`the art. The device 100 includes an RF (radio-frequency)
`transceiver 108 for communicating wirelessly with one or
`more base stations 200. The device 100 includes a GPS (Glo
`bal Positioning System) receiver chipset 110 for receiving
`GPS radio signals transmitted from one or more orbiting GPS
`satellites 300. In terms of input/output devices or user inter
`faces (UI), the device 100 typically includes a display 112
`(e.g. a small LCD screen), a thumbwheel and/or trackball
`114, a keyboard or keypad 116, a USB 118 or serial port for
`connecting to peripheral equipment, a speaker 120 and a
`microphone 122. The processor and memory thus enable an
`e-mail application to run on the wireless device for receiving
`and sending e-mails. Similarly, the processor and memory
`can enable other text messaging such as SMS, MMS or PIN
`messages. The speaker 120, microphone 122 and RF trans
`ceiver circuitry 108 form part of a voice communication
`Subsystem that enables cellular communication.
`0034. Depending on the mobile user's subscription and
`network compatibilities, the wireless communications device
`100 can usually roam to another location away from its home
`area, Such as to another city. After being turned on in another
`city or after a handover to the host network, the host network
`will recognize that the wireless device is unregistered, and
`will then attempt to identify its home network typically by
`using the IMSI number. If there is an agreement between the
`networks permitting roaming, the host network will maintain
`a temporary Subscriber record (e.g. a Visiting Location Reg
`ister, or VLR) for the roaming wireless device while the home
`network updates its own information in its Home Location
`Register (HLR) to indicate that the device is roaming on a host
`network. In detecting that the device is roaming, the device
`can then, depending on its settings, either (i) prompt the user
`to manually activate the roaming profile (or otherwise prompt
`the user to manually set filter criteria based on geographically
`based parameters) or (ii) automatically activate the roaming
`profile. The automatically activated roaming profile can
`include preset filter criteria preconfigured during the device
`set-up, or preconfigured by the system administrator, etc. As
`noted above, the filter criteria (in either manual or automatic
`activation scenarios) can be defined in terms of a particular
`city, county, state or province, country, continent, etc. or in
`terms of a particular distance from the user (e.g. any messages
`from within a 100-kilometer radius of the current location of
`the user).
`0035 FIG. 3 depicts, by way of example only, a wireless
`communications device 100 having a display 112 for display
`
`Facebook's Exhibit No. 1016 - Page 12
`
`

`

`US 2013/0095823 A1
`
`Apr. 18, 2013
`
`ing inbound e-mails or other text-based communications, and
`a trackball 114 and alphanumeric (QWERTY-style) keypad
`116 for opening, replying to, forwarding, deleting, and send
`ing e-mails, as well as selecting or accessing other functions
`of the device, as is known in the art. As depicted in the
`example presented in FIG. 3, the display 112 can display an
`inbox 400 in which any e-mail that has originated locally to
`the device is presented with a distinctive font to distinguish
`each of these locally originated e-mails (or other text mes
`sages) from those e-mails (or other text messages) that have
`not originated locally. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the
`inbox contains four e-mails: a first e-mail 420 from
`bob (a)email.com that is presented in uppercase (capital) let
`ters and/or in a distinctive font and/or in a distinctive color
`because it has originated locally to the user, thus satisfying the
`filter criteria for special (priority) treatment. In contradistinc
`tion, the second e-mail from mat(a)email.com is presented in
`lower-case letters in the usual font and color because this
`e-mail has not originated locally and is thus displayed in a
`normal manner. Likewise, the third e-mail (an outbound
`e-mail to ray(aemail.com) is presented normally (in lower
`case letters without special fonts or colors). The fourth e-mail
`(a received and read e-mail from tedia email.com) is dis
`played normally. Optionally, in addition to, or in lieu of the
`special distinctive font and/or color and/or lettering size used
`to distinguish local incoming communications, the device
`may display a small icon 410. Such an L with a circle around
`it, to indicate that the e-mail has originated locally to the user.
`As mentioned above, the device may also use an audible alert
`(play a special sound, ring tone, beep, etc.) or vibrate to
`signify that the incoming e-mail is local.
`0036 FIG. 4 depicts, again by way of example only, a
`wireless communications device 100 that displays a local
`inbox 440 for presenting e-mails that have originated locally
`to the device and a separate main inbox 445 for presenting all
`other e-mails that have not originated locally. As a further
`optional feature, the device 100 can display a numerical indi
`cation 430 of the number of local e-mails. For example, as
`depicted in FIG. 4, the number of local e-mails can be pre
`sented in parentheses in a top portion of the display beside the
`total number of e-mails that are currently waiting to be read in
`the inbox (or inboxes, in the case of a “split' inbox). In this
`particular example depicted in FIG. 4, the display shows the
`envelope icon and the number 28 to indicate that there are 28
`unread e-mails in the user's inbox (or inboxes) of which 2 are
`local, namely the unread e-mails from bob(a)email.com and
`from bill?aemail.com.
`0037 FIG. 5 depicts a wireless communications device
`100 displaying an example of a user-configurable roaming
`profile 450 that has been manually activated to give prece
`dence to inbound communications received from senders that
`are within, for example, 50 km of the user's current position.
`As depicted in the example presented in FIG. 5, the roaming
`profile 450 includes a toggle or button 452 to enable the user
`to manually activate the roaming profile as well as a corre
`sponding toggle 454 for alternatively enabling the user to
`activate the roaming profile automatically upon roaming. In
`this particular example, the manual activation is toggled. In
`addition, as depicted in the example presented in FIG. 5, the
`roaming profile 450 may include a user-configurable proxim
`ity definition 460 to enable the user to define what constitutes
`a “local communication. Specifying this proximity thresh
`old thus defines the filter criteria by which the device decides
`whether to treat an incoming communication as local or not.
`
`In this example, the user can either define the filter criteria in
`terms of a distance to the sender 462 or in terms of a geo
`graphical area 464. In this particular example, the "Distance
`to sender option has been toggled, thus causing the device to
`further display two further options, namely a first option
`enabling the user to specify a distance (e.g. in kilometres) by
`typing a numerical value into a field or box. If the “Distance
`to sender option has been toggled, a second option enables
`the user to tick off one of a plurality of predetermined dis
`tances, such as, for example, 10 km, 50 km, or 100 km. The
`roaming profile could include settings to enable the user to
`switch the units from kilometres to miles. Alternatively, the
`roaming profile could automatically Switch between kilome
`tres and miles when the device roams from a jurisdiction that
`uses the metric system (e.g. Canada) to a jurisdiction that uses
`miles (e.g. the U.S.) and vice versa.
`0038 FIG. 6 depicts a wireless communications device
`100 displaying the user-configurable roaming profile 450
`introduced in FIG.5. The roaming profile 450 has been manu
`ally activated (452) to give precedence to inbound communi
`cations received from senders that are within a specified city
`(e.g. the city of Montreal). In the example presented in FIG. 6,
`the “Geographical area” toggle 464 has been selected and the
`box corresponding to “City' 466 has been checked. In this
`particular example, the device ena