Personal digital assistant with wireless telephone

Abstract

A wireless telephone engine, smart-card engine and Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) engine are integrated in a single device, wherein an address book is shared by the wireless telephone engine and PDA engine. An associated display unit including a touch screen is coupled to the PDA. The smart-card engine is configured to communicate with external devices via a short-range transceiver. Additionally, the PDA engine is configured to automatically balance an electronic account ledger based upon point of sale transactions, and control a remote device by transmitting signals to the device via the short-wave transceiver and/or the wireless telephone engine. The PDA engine is also configured to receive signals from the remote device regarding the status of the remote device. Further, the PDA engine is configured to exchange data with a remote computer via the wireless telephone engine. The exchanged data includes information stored within the PDA engine and the address book. In another embodiment, the device includes a digital camera for recording images, a modem coupled to the wireless telephone engine and the PDA engine, input/output (I/O) circuitry coupled to the wireless telephone engine, smart-card engine and the PDA engine, and speech recognition circuitry configured to access the wireless telephone engine, the address book and the PDA engine. In addition, the device includes a Global Positioning System (GPS) antenna and a GPS engine coupled to the GPS antenna.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . An apparatus comprising: 
 a wireless telephone engine;    a smart-card engine;    a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) engine; and    an address book shared by to the wireless telephone engine and PDA engine.    
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of    claim 1    further comprising a display unit coupled to the PDA.  
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of    claim 1   , wherein the smart-card engine is configured to communicate with external devices via a short-range transceiver.  
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of    claim 3   , wherein the PDA engine is configured to automatically balance an electronic account ledger based upon point of sale transactions.  
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of    claim 1    further comprising speech recognition circuitry.  
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of    claim 1    further comprising a digital camera for recording images.  
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of    claim 5   , wherein the speech recognition circuitry is configured to access the wireless telephone engine, the address book and the PDA engine.  
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of    claim 1    further comprising a modem coupled to the wireless telephone engine and the PDA engine.  
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of    claim 1    further comprising input/output (I/O) circuitry coupled to the wireless telephone engine, smart-card engine and the PDA engine.  
     
     
         10 . The apparatus of    claim 2   , wherein the display unit comprises a touch screen.  
     
     
         11 . The apparatus of    claim 1    further comprising: 
 a Global Positioning System (GPS) antenna; and  
 a GPS engine coupled to the GPS antenna.  
 
     
     
         12 . An apparatus comprising: 
 a display screen set into a first side of the apparatus; and    a protective cover;    wherein the protective cover is configured to rotate between a position covering the display screen on the first side of the apparatus and a position on a second side of the apparatus, wherein the protective cover functions as a support stand for the apparatus while positioned on the second side of the apparatus.    
     
     
         13 . The apparatus of    claim 12   , further comprising: 
 a wireless telephone for sending and receiving signals; and    a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA).    
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of    claim 13   , further comprising: 
 a telephone interface means; and    operational buttons for accessing the wireless telephone and the PDA.    
     
     
         15 . The apparatus of    claim 14   , wherein the telephone interface means is located on the first side of the apparatus.  
     
     
         16 . The apparatus of    claim 14   , wherein the telephone interface means is located on the second side of the apparatus.  
     
     
         17 . The apparatus of    claim 13   , wherein the telephone interface means comprises: 
 a first speaker; and    microphone.    
     
     
         18 . The apparatus of    claim 17   , wherein the telephone interface means further comprises a second speaker.  
     
     
         19 . The apparatus of    claim 13   , wherein the wireless telephone may be accessed while the protective cover is covering the display screen.  
     
     
         20 . The apparatus of    claim 12   , further comprising a smart-card reader.  
     
     
         21 . The apparatus of    claim 12   , further comprising: 
 a means for storing smart-cards; and    a locking mechanism coupled to the means for storing smart-cards.    
     
     
         22 . The apparatus of    claim 12   , further comprising a short-range transceiver, wherein the PDA engine is configured to control a remote device by transmitting signals to the device via the short-range transceiver and/or the wireless telephone.  
     
     
         23 . The apparatus of    claim 22   , wherein the PDA is configured to receive signals from the remote device regarding the status of the remote device.  
     
     
         24 . The apparatus of    claim 12   , wherein the PDA is configured to exchange data with a remote computer via the wireless telephone engine, wherein the data includes information stored within the PDA, including the address book.  
     
     
         25 . The apparatus of    claim 12   , further comprising a pair of hinges coupled to the protective cover and apparatus, wherein the protective cover is configured to rotate around the pair of hinges.  
     
     
         26 . The apparatus of    claim 13   , further comprising a Global Positioning System (GPS).  
     
     
         27 . The apparatus of    claim 13   , further comprising a digital camera.  
     
     
         28 . The apparatus of    claim 27   , wherein the apparatus operates as a video speakerphone.  
     
     
         29 . A method of executing instructions on a wireless telephone with Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) comprising: 
 issuing a voice command into the wireless telephone;    determining whether the voice command is a recognizable instruction;    and, if so,    executing the voice command.    
     
     
         30 . The method of    claim 29   , wherein the wireless telephone with PDA includes a microphone for receiving the issued voice command.  
     
     
         31 . The method of    claim 30   , wherein the wireless telephone with PDA includes a voice recognition engine for determining whether the voice command is a recognizable instruction.  
     
     
         32 . The method of    claim 29   , wherein the issued voice command is a request to initiate a telephone call.  
     
     
         33 . The method of    claim 29   , wherein the issued voice command is a request to activate a Global Positioning System (GPS).  
     
     
         34 . The method of    claim 29   , further comprising determining whether the voice that issued the command has an identifiable speech pattern if it is determined that the voice command is a recognizable instruction.  
     
     
         35 . A method of executing a point of sale transaction at a device including a smart card engine coupled to a transceiver, the method comprising: 
 initiating a wireless communication link between an appliance and the smart card engine via the transceiver;    reading account information from a smart card stored within the smart card engine; and    transmitting the account information to the appliance.    
     
     
         36 . The method of    claim 35   , wherein the device further includes a wireless telephone engine and a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) engine.  
     
     
         37 . The method of    claim 36   , further comprising: 
 transmitting confirmation information from the appliance to the smart card engine;    transmitting the confirmation information from the smart card engine to the PDA engine; and    updating a financial accounting record.    
     
     
         38 . The method of    claim 37   , further comprising; 
 transmitting the updated financial accounting record to a financial institution via the wireless telephone engine; and    transmitting a new balance from the financial institution to the device.    
     
     
         39 . The method of    claim 35   , wherein the appliance is a point-of-sale terminal.