Selection mechanism in a portable terminal

• US 20040076444A1
• Filed: 10/10/2003
• Published: 04/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Océ-Technologies B.V. (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Océ-Technologies B.V. (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Stok, Estella, Badovinac, Jan M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,536,653 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/81
• 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 1/169 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 3/0362 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 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus

Abstract

A portable terminal for presenting status data of a plurality of devices in a proximate environment, wherein the portable terminal includes a display for displaying operating status data of anyone of the devices and a means for selecting anyone of these devices. The portable terminal contains an array of objects representing individual devices being at least partially displayed on the display and movable along a marker, or vice versa, in response to an operator actuating an operating element. The display image is so configured that the array of objects or the marker appears to be an integral part of the operating element.

Claims

1. A portable terminal for presenting information regarding a plurality of devices in a proximate environment, said portable terminal having

a digital processor and related memory,

a movable operating element,

a display for selectively displaying information data of a selected one of said devices, and

means for selecting any one of said devices comprising:

an array of display objects representing individual devices, said array being at least partially displayed on said display,

and a marker displayed on said display,

said array being movable along said marker or vice versa,

wherein

the movement of said array or marker substantially coincides with the movement of the movable operating element and

said movable operating element is positioned so that perceptively, it at least partially overlaps with the display such that said array or said marker appears to be part of the operating element.

2. The portable terminal according to claim 1, wherein the movable, operating element is positioned underneath the display, and wherein the array or marker moves in unison with the movable operating element.

3. The portable terminal according to claim 1, wherein the movable operating element is positioned at a side of the display, and wherein the array or marker moves in unison with the movable operating element.

4. The portable terminal according to claim 1, wherein the movable element is a slide switch and the array is substantially linear in its display.

5. The portable terminal according to claim 1, wherein the movable element is a rotary ring and the array is circular or at least arc shaped in its display.

6. The portable terminal according to claim 2, wherein the movable, operating element is provided with a number of arresting positions, and whereby the position of one of the objects of said array coincides with said marker at one of said arresting positions.

7. The portable terminal according to claim 5, wherein said rotary ring is a thumbwheel which protrudes from at least one side surface of the portable terminal.

8. The portable terminal according to claim 2, wherein the movement of the movable operating element in a first state of the portable terminal scrolls the array of objects, and the movement of the movable operating element in a second state of the portable terminal scrolls an array of menu items.

9. The portable terminal according to claim 8, wherein said movable operating element is positioned to allow the actuation of a switch, through the application of pressure, on the movable operating element for controlling menu options.

10. The portable terminal according to claim 9, wherein the movable operating element is made of flexible material so as to allow actuation of an internal switch.

11. The portable terminal according to claim 9, wherein the suspension of the movable operating element allows the latter to make translative movements for actuating a switch.

12. The portable terminal according to claim 1, further comprising a transceiver for receiving a wireless signal incorporating said information.

13. The portable terminal according to claim 1, wherein said information includes operational status data for each of said devices.

14. The portable terminal according to claim 1, further comprising means for producing an audible signal for an operator.

15. A system for controlling the operational status of a plurality of image processing devices which comprises:

a network for receiving the operational status information of said plurality of image processing devices;

a server and transmitter for receiving the operational status information from the network; and

a portable terminal as defined in claim 1, for receiving the operational status information for presentation to an operator.