Abstract: Improved approaches are disclosed for processing overloaded keys substantially more in accordance with user's expected behavior. With the improved approaches, users are less likely to undergo unexpected processing in response to overloaded key presses. In one embodiment, the processing ignores certain overloaded key presses and/or imposes delays to ensure that users have an opportunity to appreciate when an overloaded key has switched to another function. These approaches are particularly well suited for small-scale mobile devices having reduced size displays and overloaded keys such as mobile phones (e.g., cellular phones), two-way pagers, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), or other two-way mobile communication devices.

Abstract: This invention concerns a process and a system for providing location information for a wireless unit in a wireless network to a location-based service provider, using a data network. In particular, the location information is provided to the location-based service provider without necessarily providing the identity of wireless unit, e.g., a subscriber's wireless identification number, to the service provider. In this regard, a subscriber's identification number may be hidden from the positioning service provider via a process in which an alias is used instead of the subscriber's normal identity. The subscriber's number may further be concealed from the service provider via a process wherein encrypted information is used instead of the subscriber's normal identity.

Abstract: A two-way data communication device such as a data ready cellular telephone, a two-way pager, or a telephone communicates via a two-way data communication network with a server computer on a computer network that has an interface to the two-way data communication network, i.e., is coupled to the two-way data communication network. For example, the computer network can be a corporate wide area network, a corporate local area network, the Internet, or any combination of computer networks. The two-way data communication device utilizes a client module to transmit message including a resource selector chosen by the user to a server on a server computer on the computer network. The server processes the message and transmits a response over the two-way data communication network to the client module. The client module interprets the response and presents the response to the user via a structured user interface.

Abstract: The invention provides a method of registering a communication device with a proxy based service. In one embodiment a request is received from a communication device at a proxy server device, where the communication device is transmitting a request to access an on-line service. The proxy server determines whether additional information from a proxy based service is required. Also, the proxy server recognizes if future requests will require the additional information from the proxy based service. If future requests require the proxy based service, then the proxy server will register the communication device with the proxy based service.

Abstract: The inventive system allows for more efficient use of resources for providing location information in a wireless network where multiple sources of such information may be available. In one implementation, a first source of location information such as Cell ID information is used to monitor the location of a mobile unit. The first source may provide sufficient location information in many instances. For example, in the case of a location-based billing application, Cell ID information may be sufficient in some cases to indicate that a subscriber is within or outside of a home zone. In other cases, more accurate information may be required to make such a determination. When required, a more accurate source of information such as TDOA or GPS information may be invoked. The invention allows for more efficient use of the multiple sources by allowing for reduction of the instances where a high resource location information source is accessed.

Abstract: Access to hypermedia servers connected to networks such as the Internet can be provided through mobile devices such as wireless telephones. Hypermedia links such as Uniform Resource Locators (URL) are used to identify and control access to resources on the network. These links are usually very long, are difficult to remember, and are difficult to enter into many mobile devices. These difficulties could be overcome by storing lists of frequently used links or “bookmarks” in the mobile device but limited memory in the device generally prevents this. This limitation is overcome by storing designated hypermedia links on a bookmark server. In one embodiment, the URL of the bookmark server is sent to the mobile device during initialization of the device. By allowing a user can to save, retrieve and maintain lists of frequently used links on the bookmark server, access to favorite resources on a network is greatly simplified.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method for authenticating a user of a mobile device is provided. The method comprises receiving a request from a client device to access a resource on a network; identifying a network address of the client device; retrieving a mapping of the network address to user identification information and device identification information; determining if the mapping is valid; preventing the request from reaching the resource if the mapping is not valid.

Abstract: A centralized synchronization system synchronizes data stored in multiple devices distributed over a relatively unreliable network, to provide automatic recovery from synchronization failures. The synchronization system maintains a truth database indicating the true state of the data and action tables indicating actions to be performed on each of the devices during a next update of the data. Data is retrieved from the devices over the network, and actual states of the data are determined from the action tables and the retrieved data. The truth database and action tables are updated accordingly. An effective action table is then generated to account for any of the devices which were offline during the most-recent synchronization. The truth database and effective action tables are saved to a central database in an atomic transaction. The effective action tables are then used to update the data on the devices over the network.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are disclosed for providing subscriber delivered and personalized location-based services. In one embodiment, the invention is implemented in an intelligent wireless network (100). A subscriber initiates the location-based service process by entering a service request using a wireless telephone (102). The request is transmitted to an intelligent network platform (112) via cell site equipment (108) and MSC (110). An application implementing the process that runs on the platform (112) receives subscriber profile information (114), location finding equipment inputs (116) and service information (118) related to the service request. Based on these inputs, the application selects location-based service data that is transmitted to the telephone (102) via a data server (120), the MSC (110) and the cell site equipment.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for providing hypermedia content maintained remotely on a network to a wireless device without a browser are described. A Short Message Service (SMS) request for Internet-based content is received from the wireless device at a proxy server, via an SMS Center (SMSC). The SMS request is transmitted to the SMSC on a wireless network. The proxy server transcodes the SMS request from a character set of the SMSC to a character set of an application and extracts a keyword from the trancoded request. The proxy server maintains a mapping of keywords to URLs. The proxy server looks up the extracted keyword in the keyword-to-URL mapping to identify the URL of an application associated with the keyword. The proxy server constructs an HTTP POST operation containing the keyword and the URL, and submits the HTTP POST operation to the application over a wireline network such as the Internet.

Abstract: Techniques for displaying information on communication devices are disclosed. The techniques are highly beneficial for devices with relatively small viewing areas (e.g., remote wireless phones). An enhanced communication device can be implemented which can dynamically display information on an associated display. This means that there is no need to reserve various areas on the display for displaying. Instead, information may be assigned or unassigned to the different display portions dynamically. As a result, the display area can be used more efficiently.

Abstract: Techniques for controlling a network connection in accordance with connection information associated with a destination location on a network are disclosed. Controlling of the network connection in accordance with connection information associated with the destination location can be achieved in a variety of ways. One way is in the selection of a network transport (e.g., bearer selection). Another way is in the configuration of parameters associated with the connection (i.e., connection parameters). In either case, the connection information includes information with which the selection of the network transport and/or connection parameters can be made. The controlling of the network connection impacts quality of service provided to a requestor that is requesting use of the connection.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for implementing a heuristic user interface for a mobile device that assists a user with the management and utilization of contact identifiers (e.g. phone numbers, facsimile numbers, email addresses and uniform resource identifiers (URIs)). Content stored on or being processed by a mobile device is analyzed for the presence of predetermined classes of contact identifiers. When a contact identifier belonging to one of the predetermined classes is encountered, it is presented to the user of the mobile device on the display screen and the user interface of the mobile device is provisioned (e.g., softkey assignments and screen displays) for the particular class of contact identifier encountered. The encountered contact identifiers may be used as direct contact identifiers or indirect contact identifiers. Direct contact identifiers are used to initialize the appropriate application for the class of identifier encountered (e.g.

Abstract: The invention allows access to the Internet by two-way mobile communication devices capable of wireless communication via a link server. Despite limited computing resources in the mobile devices, the invention allows the mobile devices to interact with Internet entities using a control engine in the link server and an interface engine in the mobile devices. The control engine utilizes the computing resources of the link server and handles tasks requiring considerable computing resources, such as processing of URL requests, interpreting markup language files, managing a data cache and variable states. Working with a message processor in the link server, the control engine communicates with an interface engine using a compact data format that is efficiently transportable in the wireless data network. The interface engine typically performs tasks that do not require considerable computing resources, such as receiving input from users and rendering data received from the link server.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing the selection of location information sources (e.g., position determining equipment sites and handset-based location finding capabilities) to provide location information for a mobile communications unit (e.g., a cellular phone) are disclosed. Embedded within a request for location information on a particular mobile communications unit are one or more specifications regarding the quality of the requested location information. Such specifications is used to determine if any location information sources are able to provide the location information with the desired location information quality. Upon locating a location information source capable of providing the requested location information, the source is invoked to provide the particular location information. Once the location information is provided by the location information source, it is provided to the requesting party.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for establishing a secure tunnel through a proxy between a user device and a secure server on a network are described. The method comprises storing information retrievable by the proxy server, in the event of the user device sending a request to the proxy server to access the secure server during a current session with the proxy server. The information indicates that the user device wishes to access the secure server. Thereafter, the current session between the user device and the proxy server is terminated. A tunnel is set through the proxy server between the user device and the secure server (via a trusted domain proxy/firewall) in the event of the user device sending a further request to the proxy server to access the secure server.

Abstract: An information broker operates a location server coupled to a wireless network and a wireline network, which acquires and processes information indicating locations of mobile communication devices on the wireless network. The information broker provides the processed information to one or more recipients. The processed information may be provided by the information broker to a recipient in exchange for payment, as part of a business transaction. The raw or processed location related information may include a history of locations of a mobile communication device and times and durations associated with the locations. The processed information may include graphs or maps of geographic areas in which the mobile devices have been located, movement trends, or other behavioral patterns of mobile users. The processed location data can also be used in performing location-based searches and other location-related applications and for customer analysis, among other uses.

Abstract: Improved techniques for synchronizing different electronic mail mailboxes (accounts) of a user are disclosed. The user is able to effectively see and interact with only a single “virtual” mailbox, which is the synchronized combination of the two different electronic mailboxes. The electronic mailboxes are used to receive, store, read and send electronic mail over a network to electronic mailboxes associated with recipients. The electronic mail can include electronic messages that contain text, graphics or video. The synchronization of the two different electronic mailboxes can be performed automatically in a two-way manner without user interaction. The synchronization can also be performed securely even though electronic messages are transmitted over a public network.

Abstract: A method of providing location-based services for a mobile unit operating in a wireless network including network structures. The method includes receiving an identifier associated with the mobile unit. The method also includes monitoring a location of the mobile unit using the identifier and a network-assisted location finding system to identify a crossing of a service zone boundary by the mobile unit. The service zone boundary is defined by reference to at least one of the network structures. The service zone boundary also corresponds to a geographic zone boundary. The method further includes transmitting service information to a system user in response to the crossing of the service zone boundary.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for selecting an optimum gateway for a mobile client are described. The mobile client receives an acknowledgement from a home agent, indicating that the mobile client has moved from the home agent to a foreign agent. An optimum gateway is then determined from several gateways and then selected for the mobile client.