Mobile terminal and control method thereof

• US 10,133,394 B2
• Filed: 07/03/2014
• Issued: 11/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Jong Hwan, Hong, Seok Jeong, Kim, Min Kyeong, Park, Nam Yong
• Primary Examiner(s): Eurice, Michael J
• Application Number:
  US14/909,624
• Publication Number:
  US 20170097715A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,601 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1652 the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0339 Touch strips, e.g. orthogonal touch strips to control cursor movement or scrolling; single touch strip to adjust parameter or to implement a row of soft keys
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04101 2.5D-digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface and also measures the distance of the input means within a short range in the Z direction, possibly with a separate measurement setup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04102 Flexible digitiser, i.e. constructional details for allowing the whole digitising part of a device to be flexed or rolled like a sheet of paper
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0266 for a display module assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0268 including a flexible display panel
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector

Abstract

Disclosed is a mobile terminal. The mobile terminal includes at least one display unit disposed on a front surface and lateral surface of a terminal body, and a controller for, upon receiving a preset touch input through a first display region disposed on the front surface of the terminal body in a sleep mode, enabling a predetermined second display region according to a position of the received touch input and controlling the display unit to display a preset operation image on the enabled second display region.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal comprising:

a front display unit disposed on a front surface and lateral display units disposed on lateral surfaces of a terminal body; and

a controller configured to;

in response to receiving a first preset touch input through a first display region of the front display unit disposed on the front surface of the terminal body in a sleep mode, enable a predetermined second display region on one of the lateral display units that is located adjacent to a position of the received first preset touch input and switch from the sleep mode to an active mode,

control the display unit to display a preset operation image on the enabled second display region, and

in response to receiving a second preset touch input applied at an item displayed on the enabled second display region, display a preview window corresponding to the item,

wherein the front display unit comprises a left region, a central region, and a right region, and

wherein the first display region is one of the left region, the central region, and the right region of the front display unit.

2. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the display units are flexible display units.

3. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein, when the first preset touch input is received through the right region of the front display unit, the controller is configured to enable only the lateral display unit disposed on the right of the terminal body.

4. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first preset touch input is a double-touch input of tapping the first display region or a plurality of touch inputs of sequentially tapping a plurality of points within the first display region according to a predetermined order.

5. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to receiving a touch input applied to a boundary of the preview window, close the preview window and disable the front display unit.

6. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to receiving a touch input applied to an inner portion of the preview window, display information corresponding to the item on all display units.

7. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein, when the first preset touch input is received through the left region of the front display unit, the controller is configured to enable only the lateral display unit disposed on the left of the terminal body.

8. The mobile terminal according to claim 7, wherein the preset operation image displayed on the enabled second display region comprises at least one of an image corresponding to one region of an operation image that is lastly executed prior to entrance into a sleep mode, an image listing event information items that are not checked by a user, or an image listing an app icon and/or widget preset by the user.

9. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein, when the first preset touch input is received through the central region of the front display unit, the controller is configured to enable all the display units.

10. The mobile terminal according to claim 9, wherein the operation image displayed on all the enabled display units is a lock screen or a home screen.

11. A method for controlling a mobile terminal comprising a front display unit disposed on a front surface and display units disposed on lateral surfaces of a terminal body, the method comprising:

entering a sleep mode;

receiving a first preset touch input through a first display region of the front display unit;

enabling a predetermined second display region on one of the lateral display units that is located adjacent to a position of the received first preset touch input and switching from the sleep mode to an active mode;

displaying a preset operation image on the enabled second display region;

receiving a second preset touch input at an item disposed at the enabled second display region; and

displaying a preview window corresponding to the item,

wherein the front display unit comprises a left region, a central region, and a right region, and

wherein the first display region is one of the left region, the central region, and the right region of the front display unit.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the display units are flexible display units.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein, when the first preset touch input is received through the right region of the front display unit, the enabling comprises enabling only the lateral display unit disposed on the right of the terminal body.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the first preset touch input is a double-touch input of tapping the first display region or a plurality of touch inputs of sequentially tapping a plurality of points within the first display region according to a predetermined order.

15. The method according to claim 11, further comprises in response to receiving a touch input applied to a boundary of the preview window, closing the preview window and disabling the front display unit.

16. The method according to claim 11, further comprises in response to receiving a touch input applied to an inner portion of the preview window, displaying information corresponding to the item on all display units.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein, when the first preset touch input is received through the left region of the front display unit, the enabling comprises enabling only the lateral display unit disposed on the left of the terminal body.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the preset operation image displayed on the enabled lateral display unit comprises at least one of an image corresponding to one region of an operation image that is lastly executed prior to entrance into a sleep mode, an image listing event information items that are not checked by a user, and an image listing an app icon and/or widget preset by the user.

19. The method according to claim 11, wherein, when the first preset touch input is received through the central region of the front display unit, the enabling comprises enabling all display units disposed on the terminal body.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the preset operation image displayed on all the enabled display units is a lock screen or a home screen.