Electronic device including rotary member and display method thereof

• US 10,386,942 B2
• Filed: 04/25/2016
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Keun Young, Kang, Cheol Hoon, Kim, So Ra, Hong, Seung Hwan, Geum, Hye Gyung, Kim, Lee Bin
• Primary Examiner(s): Sitta, Grant
• Application Number:
  US15/137,783
• Publication Number:
  US 20160313810A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,212 Days
• Field of Search: 345173, 345156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• 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 3/0338 with detection of limited linear or angular displacement of an operating part of the device from a neutral position, e.g. isotonic or isometric joysticks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0362 with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts
• 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 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34

Abstract

An electronic device and a display method thereof are provided. The electronic device includes a display; a rotary member configured to surround the display and to rotate around the display; and a control module configured to display a plurality of object groups on a plurality of layers of the display according to rotation of the rotary member.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a display;

a rotary member configured to surround the display and rotatable around the display in a first direction or in a second direction opposite to the first direction; and

a processor configured to;

display, on the display, objects included in a first object group, the objects included in the first object group are respectively placed in positions consecutively disposed in the first direction, and a pointer indicating a single object in the first object group, and

display, on the display, at least one object included in a second object group in response to a rotation of the rotary member in the first direction, if, prior to the rotation of the rotary member, the single object indicated by the pointer corresponds to a last positioned object of the first object group in the first direction,

wherein the at least one object included in the second object group is placed in at least one of the positions consecutively disposed in the first direction which the objects included in the first object group are previously placed,

wherein the at least one object included in the second object group is different from each of the objects included in the first object group, and

wherein the processor is further configured to display, on the display, the first object group on a first layer and the second object group on a second layer located under the first layer in response to the rotation of the rotary member.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to remove the first object group from the first layer of the display and display the second object group, in response to the rotary member rotating in the first direction by a predetermined angle.

3. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the processor is further configured to move the pointer to a position corresponding to the last positioned object in the first direction of the rotary member, when the rotary member rotates by a multiple of the predetermined angle in a predetermined time in the first direction.

4. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the rotary member rotates at intervals of the predetermined angle, and

wherein the rotary member automatically rotates to a rotation angle corresponding to the intervals of the predetermined angle, if a rotation angle of the rotary member made by a user of the electronic device is different from the intervals of the predetermined angle.

5. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the second object group is an object group corresponding to the first direction of the rotary member.

6. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the processor is further configured to display a graphic effect indicating that there is no second object group corresponding to the rotation direction of the rotary member, if there is no second object group corresponding to the rotation direction of the rotary member.

7. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein, when a first object group is displayed on the display, the processor is further configured to display a name of a first object included in the first object group displayed on the first layer, when the rotation of the rotary member is detected.

8. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to display an indicator indicating a total number of object groups and an order of an object group that is currently displayed on the display.

9. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the objects included in the first object group and the at least one object included in the second object group includes an icon corresponding to an application, a menu, or a notification message.

10. A method for displaying object groups on a display of an electronic device, the method comprising:

displaying, on the display, objects included in a first object group and a pointer indicating a single object in the first object group, the objects included in the first object group being respectively placed in positions consecutively disposed in a first direction;

moving the pointer according to a first rotation of a rotary member of the electronic device, wherein the rotary member is configured to surround the display and is rotatable around the display in the first direction or in a second direction opposite to the first direction;

in response to a second rotation of the rotation member in the first direction, displaying, on the display, at least one object included in a second object group,

wherein prior to the second rotation of the rotary member, the single object indicated by the pointer corresponds to a last positioned object of the first object group in the first direction,

wherein the at least one object included in the second object group is placed in at least one of the positions consecutively disposed in the first direction which the objects included in the first group are previously placed,

wherein the at least one object included in the second object group is different from each of the objects included in the first object group, and

wherein the first object group is displayed on a first layer and the second object group is displayed on a second layer located under the first layer in response to the first rotation of the rotary member is detected.

11. The display method of claim 10, wherein displaying at least one object included in the second object group comprises:

removing the first object group from the display; and

displaying the second object group on the display, in response to the rotary member rotating in the first direction by the predetermined angle.

12. The display method of claim 11, wherein moving the pointer comprises moving the pointer to a position corresponding to the last positioned object in the first direction of the rotary member, when the rotary member rotates by a multiple of the predetermined angle in a predetermined time in the first direction.

13. The display method of claim 10, wherein the second object group is an object group corresponding to the first direction of the rotary member.