APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING PREVIEW OF MENU OBJECT

• US 20080195975A1
• Filed: 10/12/2007
• Published: 08/14/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Choi, Sun-il, Shin, Min-ho, Ko, Hye-kyung
• Granted Patent: US 8,615,722 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/835
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting

Abstract

Provided are an apparatus and method for providing a preview of a menu object in a technique of displaying a menu object. The apparatus includes an input unit that receives an event from a user, an event processing unit that highlights objects, from among objects displayed on a screen, to which a user input can be applied according to the received event, and a display unit that displays the highlighted objects.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing a preview of a menu object, the apparatus comprising:

an input unit which receives an event from a user;

an event processing unit which highlights at least one object, from among a plurality of objects displayed on a screen, operable to receive a user input, according to the received event; and

a display unit which displays the highlighted object.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an object setting unit which determines whether the displayed highlighted object is one of user interface (UI) objects operable to receive a key event;

and

a visible object determining unit which determines whether the displayed object is an object operable to receive a user input, in response to a request from the event processing unit.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, further comprising a storage unit which separately stores only the UI objects.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the visible object determining unit checks the displayed object from among the UI objects stored in a storage unit, and determines whether the checked object includes an object operable to receive a user input.

5. A method of providing a preview of a menu object in a display unit, the method comprising:

receiving an event from a user;

highlighting at least one object, from among a plurality of objects displayed on a screen, operable to receive a user input, according to the received event; and

displaying the highlighted object.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising determining whether the displayed highlighted object is one of user interface (UI) objects operable to receive a key event.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising determining whether the displayed object includes an object operable to receive a user input.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the UI objects are separately stored.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the highlighting of the objects comprises:

checking the displayed object from among the stored UI objects; and

determining whether the checked object includes an object operable to receive a user input.