SPEED DEPENDENT DISPLAYING OF INFORMATION ITEMS IN A GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE

• US 20080288880A1
• Filed: 09/26/2006
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Conversant Wireless Licensing S.à.r.l. (f/k/a Core Wireless Licensing S.a.r.l.) (Conversant Intellectual Property Management, Inc. (f/k/a MOSAID Technologies))
• Original Assignee: 2011 Intellectual Property Asset Trust (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Reponen, Erika, Elomaa, Timo
• Granted Patent: US 8,832,575 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• 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

Electronic device with a display screen and a navigational input device places information items in a string along a path on the display screen. The user can move the string of information items along the path at a variable speed by using the navigational input means. The shape of the path is changed in relation to the speed at which the string of information items is moved along the path. At low speeds the path is substantially rectangular and follows the outline of the rectangular display screen. At higher speeds the path becomes more and more curved.

Claims

1. An apparatus with a graphical user interface, said apparatus comprising:

a processor;

a display screen coupled to said processor;

a navigational input device coupled to said processor;

said processor being configured to display a plurality of information items on the display screen,

said processor being configured to position the information items on the display as a string of information items along a path;

said processor being configured to move the string of information items along said path in response to user input from said navigational input device; and

said processor being configured to change the shape of said path in relation to the speed at which the string of information item moves along the path.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said display has a substantially rectangular outline, wherein said path includes only straight sections at low or zero speed of movement of the string of information items, wherein said path becomes curved at high speeds of movement of the string of information items and vice versa.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the path becomes increasingly curved with increasing speed of movement of said string and vice versa.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the path is U-shaped or rectangular at low or zero speeds of movement of the string of intimation items, and wherein the path gradually or stepwise becomes substantially elliptic with increasing speed of movement of the string of information items and vice versa.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said processor is configured to equally space the information items in said string along said path at a distance that is varied in relation to the speed at which the string moves.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the distance between neighboring information items is decreased with increasing speed of movement of said string of information items and vice versa.

7. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said neighboring information items do not overlap one another at zero or low speed of movement of said string of information items, and wherein said neighboring information items overlap one another at high speeds of movement of said string of information items.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the shape of the outline and/or the size and/or the color of at least one of the information items in said string of information items changes in relation to be speed of movement of said string of information items.

9. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said path is a closed path that fits within the boundaries of the display screen, so that all information items in said string are displayed simultaneously on said display screen.

10. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said path is a virtually closed path that does not fit within the boundaries of said display screen, and wherein only a portion of the information items in said string of information items is displayed at any given point of time on said display screen.

11. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said information items are icons in a menu application or thumbnails of pictures in a gallery application.

12. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one of said information items is highlighted for selection.

13. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the highlighted information item is displayed larger than the other information items in the string.

14. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information items are selectable items.

15. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information items are objects of the graphical user interface.

16. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information items are menu items or virtual command buttons.

17. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the navigational device is a navigation key, a navigation plus select key, a scrollbar, a touchpad, a scroll wheel, a rotator, a joystick or a touch sensitive scroll ring.

18. A method for operating a graphical user interface of an apparatus that is provided with a display screen and a navigational input device, said method comprising:

displaying a string of information items on the display screen along a path,

moving said string of information items along said path in response to user input from said navigational input device, and

changing the shape of said path in relation to the speed at which the string of information item moves along the path.

19. A method according to claim 18, wherein said path assumes an increasingly curved shape with increasing speed of said string of information items, and wherein said path assumes an increasingly straight shape with decreasing speed of said string of information items.

20. A method according to claim 18, wherein the speed of movement of said string of information items is controlled by the user via the navigational input device.

21. A method according to claim 18, wherein the contour or shape of the information items is changed in relation to the speed of the movement of said string of information items.

22. A method according to claim 18, wherein the distance between neighboring information items in the string of information items is changed in relation to be speed of moments of the string of information items.

23. A software product for use in an apparatus that is provided with a processor, a display screen and a navigational input device, said software code, comprising:

software code for displaying a string of information items on the display screen along a path,

software code for moving said string of information items along said path in response to user input from said navigational input device, and

software code for changing the shape of said path in relation to the speed at which the string of information item moves along the path.

24. An apparatus comprising:

means for displaying a string of information items on a display screen of the apparatus along a path,

means for moving said string of information items along said path in response to user input from a navigational input device of the apparatus, and

means for changing a shape of said path in relation to a speed at which the string of information item moves along the path.