EVENT INFORMATION DISPLAY APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MOBILE COMMUNICATION TERMINAL

• US 20080081594A1
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Published: 04/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Lee, Eun-Young
• Granted Patent: US 8,548,440 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/412.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72427 for supporting games or graphical animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72451 according to schedules, e.g. using calendar applications

Abstract

Disclosed is an event information display apparatus and method for a mobile terminal, which collects information of sent/received/missed call events, sent/received message events, schedule events, alarm events, wake-up call events, memo events, D-day events, etc. that are recorded in a mobile terminal, and then displays the collected event information as indicators on a timeline, thereby enabling easy checking and management of various types of events.

Claims

1. An event information display method for a mobile communication terminal, comprising:

detecting information of events; and

displaying the detected event information as indicators on a timeline that expresses time transitions in terms of a linear track.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the events include one or more events among a sent/received/missed call event, a sent/received message event, a schedule event, an alarm event, a wake-up call event, a memo event and a D-day event.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the indicators are displayed iconically.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying the detected event information as an indicator representing an event group, after determining times and frequencies in which the detected events have occurred and if events occur in more than a predetermined frequency within a predetermined time.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the indicator representing the event group displays information of the events, which are detected as occurring in more than the predetermined frequency, as one icon.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the timeline is displayed as a circle shape.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the timeline is displayed with an AM time slot, a PM time slot and a whole day time slot.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of displaying the detected information of events as indicators further comprises:

updating and displaying the timeline and the event information, as time elapses.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein in the step of displaying the detected event information as indicators, the display of timeline and the event information is updated at predetermined time intervals.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein in the step of displaying the detected event information as indicators, the display of the timeline and the event information is updated whenever a new event occurs.

11. The method of the claim 4, wherein if same events occur with more than a predetermined frequency within a predetermined time, an indicator representing the event group is displayed together with the number of events that occurred.

12. The method of claim 4, wherein the indicator representing the event group is differently displayed in size according to the number of the detected events.

13. The method of claim 4, wherein the indicator representing the event group is displayed in a larger size, depending on the number of events represented thereby.

14. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

if there is a user'"'"'s input selecting the indicator representing the event group, outspreading and displaying on the timeline information of those events included in the indicator representing the event group.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein when the information of events included in the indicator representing the event group are outspread and displayed on the timeline, a portion of the timeline at which the event information is displayed is expanded.

16. An event information display apparatus for a mobile communication terminal, comprising:

a control unit that performs control such that, upon detecting information of events, such detected event information is shown as indicators on a timeline that expresses time transitions in terms of a linear track; and

a display unit for displaying the timeline and the indicators under the control of the control unit.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein if events are detected as occurring with more than a predetermined frequency within a predetermined time, information of those detected events is displayed on the display unit as an indicator representing an event group.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein if the same events occur in more than a predetermined frequency within a predetermined time, an indicator representing an event group together with the number of times that the events occurred is displayed on the display unit.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the size of the displayed indicator representing the event group is displayed differently according to the number of the detected events represented thereby.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the indicator representing the event group is displayed on the display unit so as to have an enlarged size, depending on the number of events included.

21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein when the indicator representing the event group is selected, the event information of events included in the indicator representing the event group is outspread on the displayed timeline.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein when the event information of events included in the indicator representing the event group are outspread and displayed on the timeline, a portion of the timeline displaying the outspread event information is expanded on the display unit.

23. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising:

an input unit for receiving an input from a user to modify a time slot displayed by the timeline.

24. The apparatus of the claim 23, wherein the input unit includes up, down, right and left direction keys or a user-manipulable means for providing at least equivalent directional control of a cursor displayed on the display unit.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the time slot displayed by the timeline is changeable between an AM time slot and a PM time slot according to directional input of the direction keys.

26. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein according to directional input of the direction keys, the time slot displayed by the timeline is changeable between past, present and future time slots.