Mobile terminal and control method thereof including turning off a display in response to specific user inputs

• US 10,191,649 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2015
• Issued: 01/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Yim, Soyeon
• Primary Examiner(s): Lowenberger, Aaron
• Application Number:
  US14/925,652
• Publication Number:
  US 20160364109A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,189 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• 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: H04M 1/724094 Interfacing with a device worn on the user's body to provide access to telephonic functionalities, e.g. accepting a call, reading or composing a message
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724095 Worn on the wrist, hand or arm
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724631 by limiting the access to the user interface, e.g. locking a touch-screen or a keypad
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

A mobile terminal including a body; a touch screen disposed on a front surface of the body, and having a touch panel and a display unit; and a controller configured to display a home screen page or an application execution screen on the touch screen in response to the display unit being turned on, turn off the display unit and execute a lock mode requiring input of a password, in response to a plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on a preset region of the home screen page, and turn off the display unit and not execute the lock mode, in response to a plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on a preset region of the application execution screen.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal, comprising:

a body;

a touch screen disposed on a front surface of the body, and having a touch panel and a display unit; and

a controller configured to;

display a home screen page or an application execution screen on the touch screen in response to the display unit being turned on,

turn off the display unit and execute a lock mode requiring input of a password, in response to a plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on a preset region of the home screen page, and

turn off the display unit and not execute the lock mode, in response to a plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on a preset region of the application execution screen,

wherein the plurality of touch inputs received on the preset region of the application execution screen include a first touch input and a second touch input,

wherein the controller is further configured to;

determine a time interval during which no touch is applied between the first touch input and the second touch input when the display unit is turned off and the lock mode is not executed according to the plurality of touch inputs received on the preset region of the application execution screen,

set an automatic locking time based on the time interval, and

execute the lock mode while keeping the display unit off when the automatic locking time elapses after the display unit is turned off, and

wherein a first automatic locking time is set when the time interval satisfies a first condition and a second automatic locking time different from the first automatic locking time is set when the time interval satisfies a second condition.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the touch panel is configured to sense a touch input applied to the touch screen, regardless of an ‘

on/off’

state of the display unit, and

wherein the controller is configured to display a lock screen on the display unit to input a password, in response to a plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on the touch screen in an ‘

off’

state of the display unit and in an executed state of the lock mode.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to display the application execution screen on the display unit, in response to the plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on the touch screen in an ‘

off’

state of the display unit and in a non-executed state of the lock mode.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to display different screen information on the display unit based on an applied position of a plurality of touch inputs, in response to the plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on the touch screen in an ‘

off’

state of the display unit and in a non-executed state of the lock mode.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising:

a proximity sensor disposed on a front surface of the body, and configured to sense an object disposed near the front surface of the body,

wherein the controller is configured to execute the lock mode when the object is sensed in an ‘

off’

state of the display unit and in a non-executed state of the lock mode.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising:

a sensing unit configured to sense a movement of the body,

wherein the controller is configured to execute the lock mode, in response to a preset movement of the body being sensed in an ‘

off’

state of the display unit and in a non-executed state of the lock mode.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising:

a wireless communication unit mounted to the body, and configured to transceive data with a preset external terminal,

wherein the controller is configured to turn off the display unit and not execute the lock mode, and to communicate with the external terminal such that the application execution screen is output from the external terminal, in response to the plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on the preset region of the execution screen, and a last touch input being maintained for a reference time without being released.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 7, further comprising:

an audio output unit mounted to the body, and configured to output an audio signal related to the application execution screen,

wherein the controller is configured to restrict the output of the audio signal, in response to the plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on the preset region of the application execution screen, and the last touch input being maintained for the reference time without being released.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to communicate with the external terminal such that the audio signal is output from the external terminal, in response to the plurality of touch inputs being consecutively received on the preset region of the application execution screen, and the last touch input being maintained for the reference time without being released.

10. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising:

a wireless communication unit mounted to the body, and configured to transceive data with a preset external terminal,

wherein the controller is configured to communicate with the external terminal such that guidance information inquiring whether to execute the lock mode or not is output from the external terminal in response to the display unit being turned off.

11. The mobile terminal of claim 10, wherein the controller is configured to execute the lock mode, in response to a locking command being received from the external terminal.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the preset region of the application execution screen is positioned near an upper end of the touch screen, and corresponds to a region where at least one of antenna information, time information and battery information is displayed.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 12, wherein an entire region of the home screen page is divided into a region where a graphic object related to a control function is displayed, and a region where the graphic object is not displayed, and

wherein the preset region of the home screen page corresponds to a region where the graphic object is not displayed.