HK1037089B - A personal information management system - Google Patents

Description

Personal information management system

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a personal information management system, in particular to a system comprising at least one personal information manager comprising first transceiver means and first memory means for personal information and at least one communication system connected to second transceiver means and second memory means for personal information.

Background

The need for personal information management is becoming increasingly important to personal computer users who live busy. Recent developments in hand-held PCs and portable digital organizers have clearly demonstrated the trend to bring personal information closer to the user himself. To meet this demand, many suppliers offer different types of equipment, such as digital planners, digital personal organizers, electronic calendars, and the like.

The Timex Data Link of the Timex corporation, disclosed in the Timex Data Link user manual of 1994, comprises a timepiece which can store different types of information provided by an application on a PC (personal computer). This information is transmitted to the timepiece by an optical signal on the screen of the PC. Thus, information transfer can only be unidirectional. This Timex data link has the ability to store appointments, anniversaries, phone numbers, and tasks. In addition, it has alarms and a stopwatch, which can provide time in two time zones. Timex is updated by a PC running the Schedule + (Schedule +) program under Microsoft's Windows. In Schedule + there is a button that causes data to be transferred to Timex by flashing the screen when the user places the watch in front of the screen. The light emanating from the flashing screen is recorded by Timex and translated into data. Depending on the size of the amount of data transferred, this update takes approximately 1 minute. The user selects the data to be transferred before the transfer because the space of the timepiece is limited. The transfer is not incremental, so all information is transferred each time.

CASIO VDB-200B of 1996, company Ketonic AB, wine * f, is a timepiece with a memory for telephone numbers and other personal information. In addition, the DB 200 also provides basic functions of the timepiece, such as stopwatch, time alarm, and remote memo functions. However, such a timepiece does not have the capability of being synchronized with other products, such as a PC, anyway.

Another product from Casio is Casio DBC-310, a product of 1996 blacki BackenAB/Cebes prod. akesberga, a wrist-worn timepiece (watch) that has, in addition to conventional clock functions, the function of storing telephone numbers and appointments. It also has a built-in calculator. This watch does not have any function that enables it to be synchronized with any other source of information.

Experience has shown that if an information update requires user involvement and the user updates the information only once every few weeks, the update is aborted.

The palm pilot from US Robotics is a product that works in close connection with the PIM application of a PC. It is a small computer-like device with a relatively large touch screen. It synchronizes with the PIM application after it is placed on a docking station connected to the computer.

Another device is REX by Rolodex, which is a PC card equipped with a screen and buttons. REX synchronizes with PIM applications upon insertion into a PC card slot.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention relates to a personal information management system comprising a wearable personal information manager and a communication system, wherein said management system provides two-way information exchange between said information manager and said communication system. It should therefore be possible to modify or discard information in said information manager and to send the modified information from the information manager to the communication system. A personal information management system according to the present invention is achieved by utilizing a bi-directional link that, in conjunction with a specialized communication protocol, provides regular synchronization between the information manager and the communication system. Thus, no user intervention is required for information exchange between the information manager and the communication system.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of information exchange between a communication system and an information manager.

In one aspect of the invention there is provided a method for storing a current event time in said information manager, wherein said event time is transferred as modified information to said communication system computer device where a database update is performed.

Another aspect of the invention is to provide a method for storing a time interval between at least two control timestamps between the start and the end of a particular task.

These aspects are achieved with an integrated real time clock of the information manager.

The technical scheme of the invention comprises the following steps:

a personal information management system comprising at least one information manager comprising first transceiver means and first memory means for personal information and at least one communication system comprising second memory means for personal information connected to second transceiver means, characterized by a wireless bidirectional link between said first and second transceiver means for exchanging information between said communication system and said information manager without user intervention when said communication system and information manager are within range of said link.

A method of exchanging information between at least one personal information manager and at least one communication system, the former comprising first transceiver means and first memory means for personal information and the latter comprising second memory means for personal information and being connected to the second transceiver means, the method being characterized by the steps of:

establishing a wireless, two-way connection between said communication system and said information manager for information exchange without user intervention;

sending a command to said information manager via said connection to cause operations to be performed on the database and settings in said information manager if information in the communication system is modified or discarded;

sending a polling command signal from said communication system to said information manager to cause a change in direction of transmission so that said information manager can send a command signal to said communication system; and

sending a command signal to said communication system over said connection to cause an operation on a database in said information manager if information in said information manager is modified or discarded; and

the connection is broken.

In order to explain the present invention and its advantages and features in more detail, a preferred embodiment will be explained in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a personal information management system, which is comprised of a wearable information manager and computer device according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the information manager of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a protocol stack according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the hardware components of the information manager of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a method of information exchange in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a database of the information management system of FIG. 1.

Detailed Description

The invention is a personal information management system consisting of a personal information manager 1 comprising a real time clock, first transceiver means and first storage means for personal information, and a communication system 2, such as a computer device, comprising second transceiver means 2' (which are connected to said device 2 via a physical link 2 "), and a link 3 for bidirectional information exchange between said information manager 1 and said computer device 2. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the information manager 1 is in the form of a watch worn by a person. In the embodiment shown in fig. 1 the communication system or computer device 2 is a desktop computer (PC). However, in other embodiments of the present invention, the computer device 2 may be a notebook computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld computer, or the like. The system according to the invention provides a convenient and powerful assistance to a user, e.g. a PDA. The personal information stored in the PC is transferred to the information manager automatically or without user intervention when they are within the range of the link 3, which will be described later. The information, once transferred, is stored in the information manager 1 where it is available for use even if the user is out of range of the link.

It is also possible to modify or discard parts of the information in the information manager 1 and to send such changes back from the information manager 1 to the computer device 2. In the preferred embodiment of the invention this is done using a short-range wireless link 3, which together with a special communication protocol to be described later provides regular synchronization between the information manager 1 and the computer device 2. In this way, the information exchange on the link 3 does not require any user intervention. The information exchange may be initiated based on certain conditions and limitations. As mentioned above, both the information manager 1 and the computer device 2 should be within range of the link 3. Furthermore, predetermined conditions may be set in the computer device 2 in order to control when an attempt to establish a connection for information exchange should be made, for example once every hour.

In fig. 2, a front view of the information manager 1 and its application are shown. In the embodiment shown in fig. 2, the information manager 1 has 4 buttons 5, 6, 7, 8 serving as input means, each of which has the same function at all times. This is done for user friendliness, i.e. the user always knows the role of each particular button. The button 5 in the upper left corner is a return button which lets the user return to the previous screen. The button 6 in the upper right corner launches the application, opens the menu and performs the action. The button 7 in the lower left corner is used to scroll the screen left and up, and the button 8 in the lower right corner is used to scroll the screen right and down. In embodiments of the present invention, icons, menus, lists, pop-up windows, and status bars are used to display information to the user. Functions such as sound, text scrolling, and backlighting may be used to enhance the user's interface. Thus, the information selected by the user 4 is displayed on the screen 9.

In addition to the information exchange function, the information manager 1 has additional applications: a calendar application 10, which indicates events, meetings, and tasks; a task application 11, indicating various tasks; contact application 12, indicating name, email, and phone number; in-box (inbox)13, indicating the subject of the e-mail, SMS; information 14 indicating various information collected from the internet such as weather forecast, stock market quotations, etc.; clock functions 15, such as universal time, alarm clock, stop watch, timer, etc., are provided by a real time clock. The first 5 applications 10-14 display and process information sent by the computer device 2.

A dedicated protocol is provided to ensure efficient use of the radio link 3 shown in figure 3. The protocol also handles error detection and flow control. In addition, a data protection code is attached to each data packet so that the information is not sent to the wrong destination time.

The protocol is implemented on the information manager to ensure reliable error-free data communication to the computer device over the point-to-point wireless link 3. In order to establish a connection and transfer information between the information manager 1 and the computer device 2, transceiver means are required in both the information manager 1 and the computer device 2. The information manager 1 has first transceiver means, which will be described later, and the computer device 2 has second transceiver means 2', which in this embodiment is a plug-in wireless device, see fig. 1. The plug-in wireless device is connected to the computer apparatus 2 via a serial PC card. The protocol is based on the high level data link control (HDLC) protocol. Fig. 3 shows the protocol stack used for the protocol for transferring data between the information manager 1 and the application running in the computer device 2. The communication system stack 16 represents the computer device 2. It has a direct physical connection 2 "with the plug-in radio device, which is represented by the physical connection layer 17 of one of the two stacks 18 shown in fig. 3. The wireless device and the information manager 1 communicate via a wireless link 3, represented by a wireless link layer 19, which is a single half-duplex wireless channel. The stack 20 on the left represents the stack of the information manager.

Commands and responses are communicated by the command layer 21 between the computer device 2 and the application on the information manager 1, respectively. It is the application that initiates all transfers at the highest level, the application layer 22. The frame layer 23 ensures reliable and error-free transmission of frames. It also handles flow control, provides error control and data transparency. In addition, the byte layer 24 is responsible for synchronization with the wireless devices and peer entities at the lowest level of communication. It also establishes an association, i.e. a radio link layer 25, between the wireless device 2' and the information manager 1 when a transmission link is needed.

As described above, there are two separate physical layers between the information manager 1 and the computer device 2. The first layer is the wireless link 3 between the information manager 1 and the wireless device 2'. The wireless device is then connected to the computer apparatus 2 via a physical link 2 ", i.e. a serial PC card managed by a physical connection layer 25' in the computer apparatus 2.

The information manager 1 is constituted by electronic hardware components provided by various manufacturers. One embodiment of the information manager hardware is shown in FIG. 4. The processing element of the information manager 1 is a microchip technology PIC17C756 microcontroller 26. This device has 32 kbits of integrated program memory and 902 bytes of RAM. The device clock uses 3.579 mhz. The microcontroller 26 includes a number of peripheral features that are of some importance to the functioning of the invention. These functions are: power-off mode with wake-up from external and internal interrupts, two independent USART (Universal Transmit and receive Transceiver) modules, with fully implemented Master/Slave I²A C-mode synchronous serial port, and 4 a timer module with interrupt generation.

In the embodiment, the information manager 1 is equipped with a display 27S-4548ACG provided by Seiko Instruments (Seiko). It is a liquid crystal controller/driver featuring a 40 x 101 graphic display segment and an on-chip oscillator circuit. All communication with the microcontroller 26 is via the built-in I²C bus interface 28.

The display 27 is also provided with a backlight in the form of an electroluminescent sheet of plastic. Sipex sp44288 circuit 29 is used as a driver.

A 256K bit electrically erasable programmable memory EEPROM30 from SGS thomson microelectronics is used as a non-volatile memory to store user data. All memory access from the microcontroller 26 to the EEPROM30 is accomplished via the bus 28.

Also connected to the bus 28 is a calendar circuit 31, PCF8583, from Philips semiconductors. It is arranged in a clock mode and uses a 32.768 khz crystal oscillator. All communication with the microcontroller 26 except for the interrupt signal is by I²C-compatible interface 28.

The first transceiver 32 is constructed in this embodiment from a module available from Monolithics corporation. It is key-on and has a maximum data rate of 2.4 kbits/sec and an operating frequency of 433.92 mhz. Data to be sent in or out of the transceiver 32 is passed via the serial bus 33 through a built-in USART module inside the microcontroller 26. Similar to the backlight 29, the piezoelectric sounder element 34 and the set of buttons 35 are connected to the microcontroller 26 by a parallel bus 36. To implement the various clocking functions of the information manager 1, an integrated real clock 36' is provided to generate the appropriate timing signals. The real time clock 36' may be part of the calendar circuit 31.

The information exchange according to the invention is represented by the flow chart in fig. 5. Since the computer device is always the master, it initiates all transfers between the computer device 2 and the information manager 1. In step 37 a bidirectional wireless connection or link 3 is established between said computer device 2 and said information manager 1. If some information is modified or discarded in the database in said computer device 2, a command signal is sent via said link 3 and received by the information manager 1 at a later time in step 38. Thus, if the database in the computer device 2 has modified or discarded information and no polling command signal is sent in the check of step 39, the signal manager executes the current command to operate on the database and settings in the information manager at step 40. This process repeats until there are no more commands accompanying the modified or discarded information. Then, the computer device 2 sends a polling command to the information manager, which checks in step 39, and a change of transmission direction is executed, so that said information manager 1 sends a command signal to said computer device 2.

If some information is modified or discarded in said information manager 1, which is checked in step 41, the information manager 1 sends the active command to the computer device 2 in step 42. The active command initiates an operation on the database in the computer device 2. If there are no more commands, the information manager sends a command to stop the transfer in step 43 and disconnects the connection in step 44.

As described above, in order to operate the database and settings in the information manager 1, a set of commands that can be used is sent to the information manager. There are some very common commands, which means that they can be used for all databases and settings. By using simple and general commands, the command interpreter in the information manager can be kept at a minimum level.

In order to use these generic commands, an accurate copy of the information manager's database is maintained in the computer device 2. This enables the computer device 2 to perform many of the logical operations required to add, modify and delete records (information is stored per record). For example, when a new record arrives, it is not necessary for the information manager to find the location of the record in the linked list, as this has already been done in the computer device 2.

The database and the links used in the computer device 2 and also in the information manager 1 are represented in fig. 6. To add a record, the computer device 2 first looks for an empty location in its link list, then it sends one or more write commands to the information manager 1 to fill that location in the EEPROM30 with data, and finally it adds the record to the current link list by sending an add command. Since the add command is sent out only at the end, there is no such danger because a half-filled record is added to the linked list.

To modify a record, the computer device 2 sends one or more correct commands to the information manager 1 to write into the EEPROM 30. The deletion of the record is realized by sending out a deletion command.

When all commands have been sent from the computer device 2 to the information manager 1, the computer device 2 sends a command "information to send". This command changes the direction of the communication channel. The information manager 1 responds by sending a command to operate on the database of the computer device 2, for example to remove a record from the calendar and task database. When the information manager receives a "to send info" command, it begins looking for items marked with bad flags or to delete flags in the calendar and tasks database. The information manager 1 sends a command to the computer device 2 to check the calendar for each record marked with a bad mark, and a delete command for each record marked with a delete mark. The information processor 1 sends a "no information to send" command to tell the computer device 2 to stop transmitting information when the entire calendar and task database has been run. As shown in fig. 6, the databases in the information manager are stored like link tables 45, 46, 47, and 48. Exact copies of these linked lists (referred to as virtual linked lists 49, 50, 51 and 52) are maintained in computer device 2. These virtual tables enable the computer device 2 to perform the logical operations needed to add, modify and delete records in the information manager 1, since the computer device 2 always knows what should be found in the linked list and knows the contiguous parts of the records. To add a record, the computer device 2 simply inserts it into a particular linked list. Virtual tables 49-52 may contain records already in the linked list and records not yet added to the table. Records already in the table, each having its own location, filled with content in preceding and subsequent sections, may be marked as bad or as deleted. Records that have not yet been added to the linked list wait for their assignment of a position in the linked list. This will be done on the next transfer. In order for the virtual linked list to remain updated with data from the actual database, it always "listens" for changes in the calendar 53, tasks 54, and contacts 55 in the corresponding database in the computer device 2. If one of the records in these databases 53-54 and 55 changes, the corresponding record in the virtual linked list will be found and updated with the new data table and marked as bad. On the next connection of the computer device 2 and the information manager 1, the computer device 2 will communicate the change to the information manager 1. Similarly, a new record and a record to be deleted are detected.

The in-box database 56 is associated with information applications, as described above, that store information collected from the internet, such as weather forecasts, stock market conditions, and the like.

Furthermore, it is also possible for the user to make adjustments to the user interface in the information manager 1, for example to specify update interval times, to specify filters, to set alarms and timed sounds, and to synchronize the time of the information manager 1 with the time of the computer device. It is also possible to clear the databases 45-48 in the information manager 1 and enforce an update. These updates and adjustments are implemented by a dedicated application 57 in the computer device 2.

An important characteristic feature of the method according to the invention is the possibility to record and store time stamps of various events, e.g. of various tasks in the task database 54. This is done by executing a specific button sequence, wherein the time of the current event is recorded while the information is sent from the information manager 1 to the computer device 2. The current time stamp for this particular event is deposited in the record of the associated task. It is also possible to store a time interval, for example the time between the start of a particular task and the end of the task, when the user presses a button sequence on the information manager 1 when the task starts, the current start time being stored in the EEPROM30 of the information manager 1. At the end of the task, the user presses another button sequence on the information manager 1, at which point the stop time is recorded. In addition, the time stamp is calculated and stored in the record associated with the particular task in EEPROM 30. This information is sent as a conventional command transmission from the information manager 1 to the computer device 2 as described above.

Thus, the present invention provides a personal information management system capable of establishing a bidirectional link between an information manager 1 and a computer device 2 to exchange information between the information manager and the computer device. The present disclosure of the illustrated embodiments should be considered as an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments.

For example, in another embodiment of the present invention, the information manager 1 may have the form of a mobile phone, and the computer device 2 may be a laptop, notebook, or handheld computer, or a mobile phone, etc. Further, the above-mentioned computer device 2 may be any communication system such as a LAN (local area network) or a GSM (global system for mobile communications) system. The bi-directional link may be implemented with an IR (infrared) link in other embodiments. In the illustrated embodiment the buttons (5, 6, 7, 8) are used as input means, but the information manager 1 may be controlled by voice input in other embodiments. Additional databases, applications and functions may be added to the present invention, but in any event are within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims (7)

1. A personal information management system comprising at least one information manager (1) comprising first transceiver means (32) and first memory means (30) for personal information, and at least one communication system (2) comprising second memory means for personal information, which is connected to second transceiver means (2'), characterized by a wireless bidirectional link (3) between said first and second transceiver means for exchanging information between said communication system (2) and said information manager without user intervention when said communication system (2) and information manager (1) are within the range of said link (3).

2. A personal information management system according to claim 1, characterized in that said link (3) is a wireless link or an infrared link.

3. A personal information management system according to claim 1, characterized in that when the transceiver (2') of said communication system (2) and the information manager (1) are within the range of said link (3), the personal information stored in said first memory means (30) of said information manager (1) is transferred via said link (3) to/from said second memory means in said communication system (2) without user intervention by means of communication protocol means (16, 18, 20).

4. A personal information management system according to any preceding claim, characterized in that said information manager (1) comprises: a microcontroller (26) serving as a processing unit; a display (27) in communication with the microcontroller (26) through a built-in bus interface (28); a backlight driver circuit (29) for backlighting said display (27); -memory means (30) for storing user data, wherein all memory accesses from said microcontroller (26) to said memory means (30) are effected via a bus interface (28); a calendar circuit also connected to the bus interface (28), said first transceiver means (32) being for communicating with said computer device (2); a serial bus (33) for data transfer to and from said transceiver (32) and said microcontroller (26); a piezoelectric sound generating element (34) and a set of buttons (35), both connected to the microcontroller (26) by a parallel bus (36); and an integrated real time clock (36') for generating appropriate timing signals for the various clock functions, the aforementioned components of the personal information management system being operatively interconnected.

5. A method of exchanging information between at least one personal information manager (1) and at least one communication system (2), the former comprising first transceiver means (32) and first memory means (30) for personal information, the latter comprising second memory means for personal information and being connected to second transceiver means (2'), the method being characterized by the steps of:

establishing a wireless, bidirectional connection (3) between said communication system (2) and said information manager (1) for the exchange of information without user intervention;

-if the information in the communication system (2) is modified or discarded, sending a command to said information manager (1) via said connection (3) to cause an operation on the database and settings in said information manager;

sending a polling command signal from said communication system (2) to said information manager (1) to cause a change in the direction of transmission so that said information manager (1) can send a command signal to said communication system (2); and

-if the information in said information manager (1) is modified or discarded, sending a command signal to said communication system (2) via said connection (3) to cause an operation on a database in said information manager (1); and

the connection is broken.

6. A method according to claim 5, characterized in that it comprises, before the step of establishing the bidirectional connection (3), the further step of:

at a specific event, the current event time read from the real time clock (36') is stored as modified information in the first memory means (30) by activating the input means (5, 6, 7, 8) on the information manager (1).

7. A method according to claim 5, characterized in that it comprises, before the step of establishing the bidirectional connection (3), the further step of:

-at the start of a specific task, storing the current start time read from said real time clock (36') as modified information in a first memory means (30) by activating said input means (5, 6, 7, 8) on said information manager (1); and

at the end of the task, the input means (5, 6, 7, 8) on the information manager (1) are activated, whereby the current stop time read from the real time clock (36') is stored as modified information in the first memory means (30).