Electronic device and method for controlling displays

• US 10,423,193 B2
• Filed: 10/23/2017
• Issued: 09/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Seong Eun, Kim, Seon Il, Kim, Young Hoon, Kim, Jung Han, Kim, Ju Nyun, Park, Jung Sik, Cha, Do Hun, Choi, Seung Ki, Kim, Soo Hyung, Lee, Chang Wan, Hong, Myung Gon, Hong, Hyun Ju
• Primary Examiner(s): Chow, Van N
• Application Number:
  US15/790,770
• Publication Number:
  US 20180059717A1
• Time in Patent Office: 701 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1605 Multimedia displays, e.g. with integrated or attached speakers, cameras, microphones
• 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 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1635 Details related to the integration of battery packs and other power supplies such as fuel cells or integrated AC adapter
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1643 the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1688 the I/O peripheral being integrated loudspeakers
• 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 1/3265 Power saving in display device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1634 Integrated protective display lid, e.g. for touch-sensitive display in handheld computer
• 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 3/013 Eye tracking input arrangements G06F3/015 takes precedence
• 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 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1438 using more than one graphics controller
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1446 display composed of modules, e.g. video walls
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/023 Display panel composed of stacked panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2354/00 Aspects of interface with display user
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/04 Display device controller operating with a plurality of display units
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2370/20 : Details of the management of multiple sources of image data
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 : Display of multiple viewports
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 : Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

An electronic device and a method for controlling displaying of information in the electronic device are provided. The electronic device includes a first display formed on at least a portion of a body of the electronic device, and a second display formed on at least a portion of a cover functionally connected to the body and including a transparent display area.

Claims

1. An accessory device for a portable communication device, the accessory device comprising:

a front cover including a transparent display to be overlapped with a display forming at least one portion of a front surface of the portable communication device;

a rear cover including communication circuitry to be overlapped with a rear surface of the portable communication device; and

a processor adapted to;

receive, from the portable communication device, a notification corresponding to a message via the communication circuitry,

display, in response to the message, information related to the notification in a first area of the transparent display when the front cover is at a first position relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

display, in response to the message, the information related to the notification in a second area of the transparent display when the front cover is at a second position different from the first position relative to the display of the portable communication device,

wherein at least a part of the second area is different from the first area.

2. The accessory device of claim 1,

wherein the front cover further includes a fingerprint sensor formed therein, and

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

identify a user input received via the front cover,

authenticate the user input using the fingerprint sensor, and

activate the transparent display in response to a successful outcome of the authenticating of the user input.

3. The accessory device of claim 2, wherein the fingerprint sensor is formed in the transparent display.

4. The accessory device of claim 1,

wherein the transparent display includes a touch pad or a digitizer formed therein, and

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

display, as at least part of the information, an icon indicative of a specified function of a specified application corresponding related to the message,

receive, via a corresponding one of the touch pad and the digitizer, a user input with respect to the icon displayed in a corresponding area of the first area and the second area of the transparent display, and

transmit, via the communication circuitry, a request to perform the specified function to the portable communication device in response to the receiving of the user input.

5. The accessory device of claim 1,

further comprising a sensor,

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine, using the sensor, an angle between the front cover and the display of the portable communication device.

6. The accessory device of claim 5, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine a corresponding position of the first position and the second position based at least in part on the angle.

7. The accessory device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine that the front cover is at the first position if the front cover is closed relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

determine that the front cover is at the second position if the front cover is open relative to the display of the portable communication device.

8. The accessory device of claim 1,

wherein the information includes a text, and

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

display the text in a first horizontal direction with respect to the transparent display if the front cover is at the first position, and

display the text in a second horizontal direction opposing to the first horizontal direction with respect to the transparent display if the front cover is at the second position.

9. The accessory device of claim 1, further comprising a connecting member to be overlapped with a side surface of the portable communication device.

10. An accessory device for a portable communication device, the accessory device comprising:

communication circuitry;

a front cover including a transparent display to be overlapped with a display forming at least one portion of a front surface of the portable communication device;

a connecting member to be overlapped with a side surface of the portable communication device; and

a processor adapted to;

receive, from the portable communication device, a notification corresponding to a message via the communication circuitry,

display, in response to the message, information related to the notification in a first area of the transparent display when the front cover is at a first position relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

display, in response to the message, the information related to the notification in a second area of the transparent display when the front cover is at a second position different from the first position relative to the display of the portable communication device,

wherein at least a part of the second area is different from the first area.

11. The accessory device of claim 10, wherein the connecting member includes a magnet to contact with the portable communication device.

12. The accessory device of claim 10,

wherein the connecting member includes a pogo pin formed therein, and

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

perform the receiving of the notification using the pogo pin.

13. The accessory device of claim 10,

further comprising a sensor,

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine, using the sensor, an angle between the front cover and the display of the portable communication device.

14. The accessory device of claim 13, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine a corresponding position of the first position and the second position based at least in part on the angle.

15. The accessory device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine that the front cover is at the first position if the front cover is closed relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

determine that the front cover is at the second position if the front cover is open relative to the display of the portable communication device.

16. The accessory device of claim 15,

wherein the transparent display includes a touch pad or a digitizer formed therein, and

wherein the processor is further adapted to:

activate a corresponding one of the touch pad or the digitizer if the front cover is closed relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

deactivate the corresponding one of the touch pad or the digitizer if the front cover is open relative to the display of the portable communication device.

17. The accessory device of claim 10, wherein at least part of the communication circuitry is formed in the connecting member.

18. An accessory device for a portable communication device, the accessory device comprising:

communication circuitry;

a front cover including a transparent display to be overlapped with a display forming at least one portion of a front surface of the portable communication device;

a connecting member to be overlapped with a side surface of the portable communication device; and

a processor adapted to;

receive, from the portable communication device, a notification corresponding to a message via the communication circuitry,

display, in response to the message, information related to the notification using a first display characteristic of the transparent display when the front cover is at a first position relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

display, in response to the message, the information related to the notification using a second display characteristic of the transparent display when the front cover is at a second position different from the first position relative to the display of the portable communication device,

wherein at least a part of the first display characteristic is different from the second display characteristic.

19. The accessory device of claim 18, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine that the front cover is at the first position if the front cover is closed relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

determine that the front cover is at the second position if the front cover is open relative to the display of the portable communication device.

20. The accessory device of claim 19, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

perform the displaying of the information related to the notification using first sharpness, first transparency, or first color if the front cover is closed relative to the display of the portable communication device, and

perform the displaying of the information related to the notification using second sharpness, second transparency, or second color if the front cover is open relative to the display of the portable communication device.