Apparatus and method for controlling operation of mobile terminal

• US 10,268,311 B2
• Filed: 06/22/2017
• Issued: 04/23/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Chang, Wook, Park, Joon-Ah, Lee, Hyun-Jeong
• Primary Examiner(s): Merkoulova, Olga V
• Application Number:
  US15/630,249
• Publication Number:
  US 20170285856A1
• Time in Patent Office: 670 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1615 with several enclosures having relative motions, each enclosure supporting at least one I/O or computing function constructional details of portable telephones comprising a plurality of mechanically joined movable body parts H04M1/0206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1652 the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• 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 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04111 Cross over in capacitive digitiser, i.e. details of structures for connecting electrodes of the sensing pattern where the connections cross each other, e.g. bridge structures comprising an insulating layer, or vias through substrate
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04804 Transparency, e.g. transparent or translucent windows
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0414 using force sensing means to determine a position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/36 using liquid crystals

Abstract

A method of controlling the operation of a mobile terminal is provided. By dynamically selecting or setting a specific function of a mobile terminal according to a change in pressure or contact areas sensed by a plurality of touch sensors which cover the mobile terminal, a user can easily select or set a specific function of the mobile terminal according to his or her intention, and easily recognize information displayed on a screen of the mobile terminal.

Claims

1. A portable communication device comprising:

a display;

at least one sensor disposed on at least a portion of the display; and

a controller configured to;

display content within an area of the display,

detect a touch input that depresses at least a portion of the area within which the content is being displayed,

identify, based on change of capacitance caused in the at least one sensor by the touch input intensity of the depression of the touch input, and

differently adjust, according to the intensity, a characteristic with respect to the displaying of at least one portion of the content.

2. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor is capable of being deformed.

3. The portable communication device of claim 1,

wherein the at least one sensor includes a first and second sensor formed in an interior of the portable communication device,

wherein the first sensor is disposed with respect to a front surface of the portable communication device, and

wherein the second sensor disposed with respect to a rear surface of the portable communication device.

4. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the intensity is differently identified according to a level of the change of the capacitance.

5. The portable communication device of claim 4, wherein the controller is configured to differently adjust the characteristic with respect to the displaying of the at least one portion of the content to perform a function corresponding to the intensity among a plurality of functions.

6. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

in response to identifying that the intensity is within a designated range, displaying the content as enlarged, as at least part of the adjusting; and

in response to identifying that the intensity is outside of the designated range, displaying the content as reduced, as at least part of the adjusting.

7. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

perform a specified function corresponding to a location at which the touch input is received, as at least part of the adjusting.

8. The portable communication device of claim 1,

wherein the display includes the area to display the content thereon, and

wherein the at least one sensor is arranged with the at least portion of the area.

9. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

display the at least portion of the content with magnification identified based on the intensity, as at least part of the adjusting.

10. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor comprises a capacitive sensor.

11. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the display comprises at least one of a liquid crystal display, an organic light emitting diodes display, a quantum dot display, an electronic ink display or a flexible display.

12. A portable communication device comprising:

a display;

at least one sensor disposed on the display; and

a controller configured to;

receive a touch input that depresses at least a portion of the display,

identify, based on a capacitance value that is changed in the at least one sensor by the touch input, intensity of the depression of the touch input,

select, among a plurality of functions, a first function based at least in part on a determination that the intensity corresponds to a first condition,

select, among the plurality of functions, a second function, based at least in part on a determination that the intensity corresponds to a second condition, and

perform a corresponding function selected from the first function and the second function.

13. The portable communication device of claim 12, wherein the at least one sensor is capable of being deformed.

14. The portable communication device of claim 12, wherein the controller is further configured to:

enlarge at least a portion of content being displayed via the display, as at least part of the performing of the first function, and

reduce the at least portion of the content being displayed via the display, as at least part of the performing of the second function.

15. The portable communication device of claim 12, wherein the controller is further configured to:

identify, using the at least one sensor, a contact area in which the touch input is received, and

perform the selecting of the first function or the selecting of the second function further based at least in part on the contact area.

16. The portable communication device of claim 12, wherein the touch input causes deflection or folding of the display.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a housing;

a display exposed via at least a portion of a first surface of the housing;

at least one sensor exposed via at least a portion of the first surface of the housing, the at least one sensor disposed on the display; and

a controller configured to;

receive a touch input with respect to the apparatus, the touch input depressing at least a portion of the display,

identify, based on change of capacitance caused in the at least one sensor by the touch input, intensity of the depression of the touch input,

select a corresponding function from a first function and a second function based at least in part on the intensity, and

display information related to the corresponding function via the display.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising:

at least another sensor exposed via at least a portion of a second surface of the housing distinct from the first surface,

wherein the at least one sensor comprises a transparent touch sensor, and

wherein the at least other sensor comprises an opaque touch sensor.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the second surface is opposite to the first surface.