Mobile electronic apparatus, display method for use in mobile electronic apparatus, and non-transitory computer readable recording medium

• US 10,048,845 B2
• Filed: 10/14/2016
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: Yamada, Seiji, Honda, Natsuhito
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhou, Hong
• Application Number:
  US15/294,449
• Publication Number:
  US 20170123638A1
• Time in Patent Office: 669 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A mobile electronic apparatus comprises a display including a display area having a first edge and a second edge, an input unit including a detector, and at least one processor. The display displays a display screen on the display area. The detector detects an operation performed on the display area. The at least one processor places a mode change element adjacent to the first edge or the second edge of the display area, scales down the display screen in response to detection of a first operation performed on the mode change element, and displays the display screen, which is scaled down, as a scaled-down screen on a part of the display area. The at least one processor determines, in response to a user'"'"'s input to the input unit, which one of the first edge and the second edge is to be adjacent to the mode change element.

Claims

1. A mobile electronic apparatus comprising:

a display including a display area having a first edge and a second edge, the display being configured to display a display screen on the display area;

an input unit including a detector configured to detect an operation performed on the display area; and

at least one processor configured to

place a movable mode change element adjacent to the first edge or the second edge of the display area,

scale down the display screen in response to detection of a first operation performed on the mode change element, and

display the scaled down display screen in a first sub-region of the display area, wherein the first sub-region is adjacent to the first edge when the movable mode change element is adjacent to the first edge when the first operation is detected and is adjacent to the second edge when the movable mode change element is adjacent to the second edge when the first operation is detected, wherein the movable mode change element is not scaled down but changes appearance thereof when the display screen is scaled down, and wherein the at least one processor displays, when accepting an operation performed on a corner of the scaled-down screen, a symbol near the corner such that at least a part of the symbol is located outside the scaled-down screen.

2. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the display area includes a first area that extends from a predetermined reference line to the first edge and a second area that extends from the predetermined line to the second edge, and

the at least one processor

sets a position of the mode change element to the first edge in response to a second operation performed on the first area, and

sets the position of the mode change element to the second edge in response to the second operation performed on the second area.

3. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the at least one processor

sets, in response to the second operation performed on the first area, a display position of the scaled-down screen in such a manner that the scaled-down screen adjoins the first edge, and

sets, in response to the second operation performed on the second area, the display position of the sealed-down screen in such a manner that the scaled-down screen adjoins the second edge.

4. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the second operation comprises ending of a drag operation performed on the mode change element.

5. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the at least one processor sets a size of the scaled-down screen in such a manner that the size increases with decreasing distance between the reference line and an endpoint of the drag operation performed on the mode change element.

6. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the at least one processor sets, in response to an input to the input unit, a position of the mode change element in a first direction adjacent to the first edge or the second edge.

7. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the at least one processor sets a position of the scaled-down screen in the first direction in accordance with the position of the mode change element in the first direction.

8. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the detector detects a drag operation performed on one of sides that define an outline of the scale-down screen, and

the at least one processor sets a position of the scaled-down screen in a first direction adjacent to the first edge or the second edge based on an endpoint of the drag operation performed on the side.

9. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the detector detects a drag operation performed on a corner of an outline of the scaled-down screen, and

the at least one processor sets a size of the scaled-down screen based on an endpoint of the drag operation performed on the corner.

10. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the at least one processor displays, on the display area, at least one of a first setting element for determining which one of the first edge and the second edge is to adjoin the scaled-down screen, a second setting element for setting a position of the scaled-down screen in a first direction adjacent to the first edge or the second edge, or a third setting element for setting a size of the scaled-down screen.

11. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the at least one processor

displays, on the display area, a plurality of positions adjacent to the first edge and a plurality of positions adjacent to the second edge, and

sets a position of the mode change element to one of the plurality of positions selected by a user through the input unit.

12. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the at least one processor accepts an input for determining which one of the first edge and the second edge is to be adjacent to the mode change element when the detector detects a second operation performed on the mode change element, the second operation being different from the first operation.

13. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a hold orientation detector configured to detect an orientation of the mobile electronic apparatus in a state in which the mobile electronic apparatus is held, wherein

the display area includes an oblong shape elongated in a longitudinal direction,

the first edge and the second edge extend along the longitudinal direction, and

when the mobile electronic apparatus, on which the scaled-down screen is displayed, is held in such a manner that the longitudinal direction is nearly horizontal rather than vertical, the at least one processor scales up the scaled-down screen and then displays the scaled-down screen, which is scaled up, as the display screen on the display area.

14. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 13,

wherein when the first operation is performed on the mode change element in the state in which the mobile electronic apparatus is held in such a manner that the longitudinal direction is nearly horizontal rather than vertical, the at least one processor does not scale down the display screen.

15. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a wireless communication unit configured to receive an incoming call signal for a voice call,

wherein when the incoming call signal is received, the at least one processor displays, on the display area, the display screen obtained before an occurrence of a scale-down of the display screen.

16. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a power key that is located closer to the first edge than the second edge and is opposed to one part of the first edge,

wherein the at least one processor

performs, in response to a press down operation performed on the power key, switching between enabling and disabling a standby mode in which the display stops performing display, and

places the mode change element adjacent to the one part of the first edge when the standby mode is disabled in response to the press down operation performed on the power key.

17. The mobile electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor displays the symbol such that the symbol is located outside the scaled-down screen.

18. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium configured to store a control program for controlling a mobile electronic apparatus, the control program causing the mobile electronic apparatus to execute the steps of:

placing a movable mode change element adjacent to a first edge or a second edge of a display area included in a display,

scaling down a display screen displayed by the display in response to detection of a first operation performed on the mode change element, and

displaying the scaled down display screen in a first sub-region of the display area,

wherein the first sub-region is adjacent to the first edge when the movable mode change element is adjacent to the first edge when the first operation is detected and adjacent to the second edge when the movable mode change element is adjacent to the second edge when the first operation is detected, wherein the movable mode change element is not scaled down but changes appearance thereof when the display screen is scaled down, and wherein when accepting an operation performed on a corner of the scaled down display screen, a symbol is displayed near the corner such that at least a part of the symbol is located outside the scaled-down screen.

19. A mobile electronic apparatus comprising:

a display including a display area having a first edge and a second edge, the display being configured to display a display screen on the display area;

an input unit including a detector configured to detect an operation performed on the display area; and

at least one processor configured to

place a movable mode change element adjacent to the first edge or the second edge of the display area,

scale down the display screen in response to detection of a first operation performed on the movable mode change element,

display the scale down display screen in a first sub-region of the display area, and

change a position of the scale down display screen on the display area in response to detection of a second operation performed on the scale down display screen, wherein

the first sub-region is adjacent to the first edge when the movable mode change element is adjacent to the first edge when the first operation is detected and

the first sub-region is adjacent to the changed position when the first operation is detected after the second operation is detected and wherein

the movable mode change element is not scaled down but changes appearance thereof when the display screen is scaled down, wherein the at least one processor displays, when accepting an operation performed on a corner of the scaled-down screen, a symbol near the corner such that at least a part of the symbol is located outside the scaled-down screen.