Mobile phone having a TV remote style user interface

• US 20060247851A1
• Filed: 03/08/2005
• Published: 11/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Scenera Technologies LLC (Scenera Research LLC)
• Original Assignee: Scenera Technologies LLC (Scenera Research LLC)
• Inventors: Morris, Robert P.
• Application Number:
  US11/076,470
• Publication Number:
  US 20060247851A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons

Abstract

The present invention provides an improved mobile device user interface. Aspects of the present invention include associating at least a portion of destinations that are reachable via the devices user interface with a respective channel, and creating a channel table for indicating which destinations are assigned to which channels; and providing the mobile device with at least one control for sequentially changing the channels independently of display of the channel table, thereby allowing the user to switch between destinations based on a TV remote metaphor.

Claims

1. A method for providing a mobile device user interface, comprising:

associating one or more heterogeneous destinations that are reachable through the device'"'"'s UI with a respective channel, and creating a channel table for indicating which destinations are assigned to which channels; and

providing the mobile device with at least one directional control for changing the channels independently of display of the channel table, thereby allowing the heterogeneous destinations to be changed directly.

2. The method of claim 1 further including:

automatically associating the heterogeneous destinations with the channels.

3. The method of claim 2 further including:

allowing the user to associate the heterogeneous destinations with the channels.

4. The method of claim 3 further including:

providing the mobile device with a channel up button and a channel down button, wherein each heterogeneous destination is associated with a channel number, and pressing the channel up button switches to a next numerically higher channel, and pressing the channel down button switches to a numerically lower channel.

5. The method of claim 3 further including:

providing mobile device with a channel guide button that when depressed causes a channel guide to be shown on a display of the mobile device showing heterogeneous destinations of the mobile device and the corresponding channel number.

6. The method of claim 5 further including:

allowing the user go directly to a desired channel by entering the channel number using a keypad on the mobile device.

7. The method of claim 5 further including:

allowing the user to change channels by,

pressing the channel guide button to display the channel guide; and

using a mobile device navigation button to scroll through the channel guide until the desired heterogeneous destination is found and activating the heterogeneous destination.

8. The method of claim 5 further including:

associating any combination of the following heterogeneous destinationheterogeneous destinations with channels;

a phone, a camera, a music player, a photo gallery, e-mail, text messaging, and URLs.

9. The method of claim 8 further including:

displaying labels in the channel guide for allowing a user to add and delete channels.

10. The method of claim 5 wherein the mobile device is only capable of one active destination at a time, and changing channels terminates a current destination and invokes the destination corresponding to a selected channel.

11. The method of claim 5 wherein the mobile device is capable of multiprocessing multiple active channels in which case an active channel runs in a foreground and other active channels run in a background, and wherein the channel guide may only displays active channels.

12. A mobile device, comprising:

hardware user interface components including a navigation button, a keypad, a display, and at least one channel button;

an I/O subsystem including a button controller coupled to the hardware user interface component for detecting button events and an identity of the button pressed;

a storage device for storing destinations reachable via the device user interface, and a channel table that includes records for associating a plurality of channels with corresponding destinations; and

a processor for executing software programs including a channel controller and a current destination, wherein the channel controller receives input from the button controller and interprets button presses, such that in response to detecting a channel button event, the channel controller switches directly to a next channel independent of display of the channel table, causing the corresponding destination to be invoked.

13. The mobile device of claim 12 wherein the heterogeneous destinations are automatically associated with the channels.

14. The mobile device of claim 13 wherein the user is allowed to associate the heterogeneous destinations with the channels.

15. The mobile device of claim 14 wherein the mobile device further includes a channel guide button that when depressed causes a channel guide to be shown on a display of the mobile device showing heterogeneous destinations of the mobile device and the corresponding channel number.

16. The mobile device of claim 14 wherein the user can go directly to a desired channel by entering the channel number using a keypad on the mobile device.

17. The mobile device of claim 15 wherein the user can change channels by,

pressing the channel guide button to display the channel guide;

and

using the navigation a button to scroll through the channel guide until the desired heterogeneous destination is found and activating the heterogeneous destination.

18. The mobile device of claim 15 wherein any combination of the following heterogeneous destinations are associated with the channels;

a phone, a camera, a music player, a photo gallery, e-mail, text messaging, and URLs.

19. The mobile device of claim 18 wherein labels are displayed in the channel guide for allowing a user to add and delete channels.

20. The mobile device of claim 15 wherein the mobile device is only capable of one active destination at a time, and changing channels terminates the current destination and invokes the destination corresponding to a selected channel.

21. The mobile device of claim 15 wherein the mobile device is capable of multiprocessing multiple active channels in which case an active channel runs in a foreground and other active channels run in a background, and wherein the channel guide may only displays active channels.

22. The mobile device of claim 15 wherein each of the records in the channel cable includes a channel ID and an ID of the corresponding destination.

23. A method for providing a mobile device user interface, comprising:

providing the mobile device with at least one channel control;

allowing a user to associate destinations reachable via the device'"'"'s user interface with respective channels, the associations being stored in a channel table for indicating which destinations are assigned to which channels; and

allowing the user to navigate among the channels using the channel control to select and activate-one of the destinations independently of display of the channel table.

24. The method of claim 23 further including:

providing a cell phone as the mobile device.

25. The method of claim 24 further including:

automatically associating the heterogeneous destinations of the mobile devices with the channels.

26. The method of claim 25 further including:

providing the mobile device with a channel up button and a channel down button, and in response to the user pressing the channel up button, switching to a next numerically higher channel, and in response to the user pressing the channel down button, switching to a numerically lower channel.

27. The method of claim 26 further including:

providing mobile device with a channel guide button that when depressed causes a channel guide to be shown on a display of the mobile device showing heterogeneous heterogeneous destinations of the mobile device and the corresponding channel number.

28. The method of claim 26 further including:

allowing the user go directly to a desired channel by entering the channel number using a keypad on the mobile device.

29. The method of claim 26 further including:

allowing the user to change channels by,

pressing the channel guide button to display the channel guide; and

using a mobile device navigation button to scroll through the channel guide until the desired heterogeneous destination is found and activating the heterogeneous destination.

30. The method of claim 26 further including:

associating any combination of the following heterogeneous destinations with channels;

a phone, a camera, a music player, a photo gallery, e-mail, text messaging, and URLs.

31. The method of claim 30 further including:

displaying labels in the channel guide for allowing a user to add and delete channels.

32. The method of claim 26 wherein the mobile device is only capable of one active destination at a time, and changing channels terminates a current destination and invokes the destination corresponding to a selected channel.

33. The method of claim 26 wherein the mobile device is capable of multiprocessing multiple active channels in which case an active channel runs in a foreground and other active channels run in a background, and wherein the channel guide may only displays active channels.