METHOD FOR SWITCHING USER INTERFACE, ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND RECORDING MEDIUM USING THE SAME

• US 20090271702A1
• Filed: 12/19/2008
• Published: 10/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HTC Corporation
• Original Assignee: HTC Corporation
• Inventors: Shotel, Micah, Bamford, Drew
• Granted Patent: US 8,171,417 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/702
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

A user interface switching method, and an electronic device and a recording medium using the same are provided. First, a plurality of user interfaces are provided, and one of the user interfaces is displayed in a touch screen of the portable electronic device. A representative icon bar and a hot key bar are displayed in the touch screen, wherein the representative icon bar comprises representative icons respectively corresponding to the user interfaces and the hot key bar comprises one or more hot keys corresponding to the user interface currently displayed in the touch screen. When the touch screen detects a touch signal which falls within the representative icon bar and is moved therein, the representative icon bar is moved correspondingly, and the displayed user interface and hot keys are also switched according to the representative icon on which the touch signal is terminated.

Claims

1. A user interface switching method, suitable for a portable electronic device having a touch screen, the method comprising:

providing a plurality of user interfaces, and displaying one of the user interfaces in the touch screen;

displaying a representative icon bar and a hot key bar in the touch screen, wherein the representative icon bar comprises a plurality of representative icons respectively corresponding to the user interfaces, and the hot key bar comprises one or multiple hot keys corresponding to the currently displayed user interface;

detecting a touch signal by the touch screen; and

moving the representative icon bar correspondingly and switching the user interface and the hot key according to the representative icon on which the touch signal is terminated when the touch signal falls in the representative icon bar and is moved within the representative icon bar.

2. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, further comprising:

switching the user interface, and switching the hot key and moving the representative icon bar according to the switched user interface when the touch signal falls in the user interface and is moved within the user interface.

3. The user interface switching method according to claim 2, further comprising:

determining whether a displacement of the touch signal exceeds a predetermined value; and

switching the user interface when the displacement exceeds the predetermined value.

4. The user interface switching method according to claim 3, wherein the displacement comprises a horizontal displacement or a vertical displacement.

5. The user interface switching method according to claim 2, wherein when the user interface displayed in the touch screen is the user interface corresponding to the representative icon at an end of the representative icon bar and the touch signal is moved within the user interface, the displayed user interface is directly switched to the user interface corresponding to the representative icon at the other end of the representative icon bar;

and the representative icon bar is moved to the representative icon at the other end of the representative icon bar.

6. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, further comprising:

enlarging the representative icon to which the touch signal is moved in the representative icon bar.

7. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, further comprising:

enlarging the representative icon corresponding to the displayed user interface in the representative icon bar.

8. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, further comprising:

determining the representative icon to which the touch signal is moved; and

displaying a user interface preview icon corresponding to the representative icon to which the touch signal is moved.

9. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, wherein the step of correspondingly moving the representative icon bar comprises:

moving the representative icon bar in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the touch signal.

10. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, wherein the step of correspondingly moving the representative icon bar comprises:

moving the representative icon bar in a direction the same as the moving direction of the touch signal.

11. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, wherein the representative icon bar is displayed below the user interface.

12. The user interface switching method according to claim 1, wherein the hot key bar is displayed at the bottom of the touch screen.

20. A recording medium containing instructions for performing the user interface switching method according to claim 1.

13. A portable electronic device adapted to switch a user interface thereof, comprising:

a touch screen, for detecting a touch signal;

a user interface display module, for displaying one of a plurality of user interfaces in the touch screen;

a representative icon bar display module, for displaying a representative icon bar in the touch screen, wherein the representative icon bar comprises a plurality of representative icons respectively corresponding to the user interfaces;

a hot key bar display module, for displaying a hot key bar in the touch screen, wherein the hot key bar comprises one or multiple hot keys corresponding to the currently displayed user interface; and

a switch module, for switching the user interface and the hot key and moving the representative icon bar according to the touch signal detected by the touch screen, wherein

when the touch signal falls in the representative icon bar and is moved within the representative icon bar, the representative icon bar is moved correspondingly, and the displayed user interface and the hot key are switched according to the representative icon on which the touch signal is terminated.

14. The portable electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the switch module further comprises switching the displayed user interface, and switching the hot key and moving the representative icon bar according to the switched user interface when the touch signal falls in the user interface and is moved within the user interface.

15. The portable electronic device according to claim 14, wherein when the user interface displayed in the touch screen is the user interface corresponding to the representative icon at an end of the representative icon bar and the touch signal is moved within the user interface, the switch module directly switches the displayed user interface to the use interface corresponding to the representative icon at the other end of the representative icon bar, and the representative icon bar is moved to the representative icon at the other end of the representative icon bar.

16. The portable electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the representative icon bar display module further comprises enlarging the representative icon to which the touch signal is moved in the representative icon bar.

17. The portable electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the representative icon bar display module further comprises enlarging the representative icon corresponding to the displayed user interface in the representative icon bar.

18. The portable electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the switch module further comprises determining the representative icon to which the touch signal is moved and displaying a user interface preview icon corresponding to the representative icon to which the touch signal is moved.

19. The portable electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the representative icon bar display module comprises moving the representative icon bar in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the touch signal.