Mobile terminal and controlling method thereof

• US 10,162,449 B2
• Filed: 07/01/2014
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Mhun, Yunjueng, Son, Jiyen, Eim, Sanghyun, Kim, Hyoungkeun, Kim, Namki, Lee, Choonjae
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu, William
• Application Number:
  US14/320,866
• Publication Number:
  US 20150022469A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,638 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/22 Illumination; Arrangements for improving the visibility of characters on dials
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72448 with means for adapting the functionality of the device according to specific conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72454 according to context-related or environment-related conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/048 Arrangements providing optical indication of the incoming call, e.g. flasher circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion

Abstract

A mobile terminal and controlling method thereof are provided, in which a face-down mode may be supported. The mobile terminal may include a first sensing device that detects a face-down mode of the mobile terminal, a second sensing device that detects a user designated direction in which the vicinity of the mobile terminal, a touchscreen, and a controller controlling a prescribed portion of the touchscreen corresponding to the detected user designated direction so that the touchscreen emits light in response to a preset event occurring in the face-down mode.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal, comprising:

at least one touchscreen light emitting device provided on at least one lateral side of the mobile terminal;

a sensing device;

a touchscreen provided on a front face of the mobile terminal; and

a controller configured to detect, via the sensing device, that the mobile terminal is in a face-down mode;

wherein the at least one touchscreen light emitting device is further configured to emit light toward a right direction or a left direction of the mobile terminal in response to at least one preset event while the mobile terminal is in the face-down mode,

wherein the at least one preset event further includes an occurrence of a missed call from a first contact, wherein the controller is further configured to extend a light emitting region of the at least one touchscreen light emitting device in proportion to an amount of missed calls from the first contact while the mobile terminal is in the face-down mode, and

wherein the controller is further configured to;

detect, via the sensing device, a color of a surface that the front face of the mobile terminal faces in the face-down mode, and

control the at least one touchscreen light emitting device to emit light of a different color complementary to the color of the surface in response to the at least one preset event while the mobile terminal is in the face-down mode.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to detect that the mobile terminal is in the face-down mode when the sensing device senses a horizontal state of the mobile terminal for a preset time.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the sensing device located at a rear side of the mobile terminal includes at least one of a photosensor, a RGB sensor or an illumination sensor.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to control the at least one touchscreen light emitting device to change at least one of a pattern or a wavelength of the emitted light according to the at least one preset event.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein, if the face-down mode is not entered, the controller is further configured to control a whole area of the display to display an occurrence of the at least one preset event.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the sensing device includes at least one of a proximity sensor, a gyro sensor, an accelerometer sensor or a photosensor,

wherein the face-down mode is a state that the mobile terminal is turned over with the front face facing down.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the at least one preset event is at least one event previously set by a user.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

adjust at least one of a brightness, a size or a pattern of the light depending on a type of the at least one preset event.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to:

control a specific region of the touchscreen to emit light in a first pattern in response to a first preset event, and

control the specific region to emit light in a second pattern in response to a second preset event,

wherein the at least one preset event includes the first preset event and the second preset event, the first preset event is different from the second preset event and the first pattern is different from the second pattern.

10. The mobile terminal of claim 9, wherein the first preset event is a call reception from a contact existing a second contact list and the second preset event is a message reception from the second contact.

11. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein, when an event which is different from the preset event is occurred, the controller is further configured to control the display not to emit light.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the sensing device includes a photosensor, and wherein the controller is further configured to:

measure a reflectivity of the light emitted toward the surface in the face-down mode via the photosensor, and

control the touchscreen to display information in an inverted manner in the face-down mode when the reflectivity is over a prescribed value.