Electronic Apparatus

• US 20080231602A1
• Filed: 07/01/2005
• Published: 09/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Vodafone Group PLC
• Original Assignee: Vodafone Group PLC
• Inventors: Katayama, Takashi, Nishide, Yasuhiro, Yamazaki, Jun, Kusuda, Hirohisa, Tsujino, Daisuke
• Application Number:
  US11/631,827
• Publication Number:
  US 20080231602A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0238 Programmable keyboards key guide holders G06F3/0224
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72466 with selection means, e.g. keys, having functions defined by the mode or the status of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10

Abstract

An electronic apparatus 20 of the present invention includes operating means 220, control means 221, attitude detecting means 222, and assignment changing means 223. The operating means 220 has a plurality of keys capable of being operated independently from each other. The control means 221 performs predetermined operations different from each other assigned to the plurality of keys when the keys are operated. The attitude detecting means 222 performs attitude detection of the operating means 220. The assignment changing means 223 performs assignment changing processing for changing the assignment of the predetermined operations to be performed by the control means 221 to at least a part of the plurality of keys based on the detection results performed by the attitude detecting means 222.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus, comprising:

operating means having a plurality of keys capable of being operated independently from each other;

control means for performing predetermined operations different from each other assigned to the respective keys when the keys are operated;

attitude detecting means for detecting the attitude of the operating means; and

assignment changing means for performing assignment changing processing for changing assignment of the predetermined operations to be executed by the control means to at least a part of the plurality of keys based on the detection results of the attitude detecting means, wherein

the attitude detecting means detects a change amount in attitude of the operating means with respect to a reference attitude, and

the assignment changing means performs the assignment changing processing when the change amount in attitude detected by the attitude detecting means exceeds a preset threshold value.

2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the attitude detecting means includes an acceleration sensor and recognizes the attitude by the acceleration detected with the acceleration sensor.

3. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

reference data memory means for storing reference data, wherein

the operating means is formed by arranging the plurality of keys on a plane,

the attitude detecting means detects an orientation of a predetermined direction predetermined on the plane,

the control means stores data of the orientation of the predetermined direction obtained from the attitude detection results performed at a predetermined timing by the attitude detecting means as the reference data in the reference data memory means, and calculates an angle between the projection orientation of the orientation of the predetermined direction obtained from the attitude detection results performed by the attitude detecting means after the storing for a virtual plane at which the plane has been positioned at the predetermined timing and the orientation of the predetermined direction identified from the reference data, and

the assignment changing means performs the assignment changing processing when the angle calculated by the control means is out of a predetermined angle range.

4. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the assignment changing processing is processing for assigning the predetermined operations that have been assigned to the respective keys as operation assignment changing targets before the change to other keys.

5. The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the assignment changing processing is processing for assigning the predetermined operations that have been assigned to the respective keys as operation assignment changing targets before the change to other keys.

6. The electronic apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the assignment changing processing is processing for assigning the predetermined operations that have been assigned to the respective keys as operation assignment changing targets before the change to other keys.

7. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the assignment changing processing is processing for changing of the predetermined operation assigned to at least a part of the keys from a valid state to an invalid state or processing for changing the predetermined operation from an invalid state to a valid state.

8. The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the assignment changing processing is processing for changing of the predetermined operation assigned to at least a part of the keys from a valid state to an invalid state or processing for changing the predetermined operation from an invalid state to a valid state.

9. The electronic apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the assignment changing processing is processing for changing of the predetermined operation assigned to at least a part of the keys from a valid state to an invalid state or processing for changing the predetermined operation from an invalid state to a valid state.