Portable Electronic Apparatus and Control Method Thereof

• US 20100164871A1
• Filed: 07/26/2007
• Published: 07/01/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: Shigeta, Saya, Iio, Taro
• Granted Patent: US 8,704,771 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/169
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0339 Touch strips, e.g. orthogonal touch strips to control cursor movement or scrolling; single touch strip to adjust parameter or to implement a row of soft keys
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0338 with detection of limited linear or angular displacement of an operating part of the device from a neutral position, e.g. isotonic or isometric joysticks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/23 Construction or mounting of dials or of equivalent devices; Means for facilitating the use thereof by improving visibility H04M1/22
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/16 including more than one display unit

Abstract

Portable electronic apparatus includes a display unit (ELD); a first sensor element group (G1) having a plurality of sensor elements (L1-L4) for detecting a contact and arranged continuously around the display unit side by side; a switch element formed where the first sensor element group is arranged; and a control unit for controlling the portable electronic apparatus to display a plurality of selection candidate items which can be displayed as an operation target region on the display unit, to monitor a change in a detection state of the first sensor element group and a state of the switch element, to change a selection state of a selection candidate item by changing the selection candidate items and/or the operation target region based on the change in the detection state of the first sensor element group, and to execute a selection candidate item in the selection state when the switch element is pressed.

Claims

1. Portable electronic apparatus comprising:

a display unit;

a first sensor element group having a plurality of sensor elements for detecting a contact and arranged continuously around the display unit side by side;

a switch element formed where the first sensor element group is arranged; and

a control unit for allowing the display unit to display a plurality of selection candidate items which can be displayed as an operation target region on the display unit, for monitoring a change in a detection state of the first sensor element group and a state of the switch element, for changing a selection state of a selection candidate item by changing the selection candidate items and/or the operation target region based on the change in the detection state of the first sensor element group, and for executing a selection candidate item in the selection state when the switch element is pressed.

2. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a direction component of an arrangement of the plurality of sensor elements composing the first sensor element group comprises at least a first direction, and

the control unit controls the display unit to display the plurality of selection candidate items in a parallel direction to the first direction, and to change the selection candidate items and/or the operation target region along the first direction according to a change in a detection state of the first sensor element group.

3. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the switch element is formed around a central portion of a line connecting centers of the plurality of sensor elements.

4. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit regards a press of the switch element as valid when one of the selection candidate items is displayed as the operation target region,

otherwise it regards the press of the switch element as invalid.

5. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when a press of the switch element is detected, and in case that only one sensor element in the plurality of sensor elements detects a contact, the control unit regards the contact detection of the sensor element as invalid.

6. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a second sensor element group having a plurality of sensor elements arranged symmetrically to the first sensor element group, wherein the display unit is placed between them.

7. A control method of a portable electronic apparatus comprising a display unit, a first sensor element group having a plurality of sensor elements for detection a contact and arranged continuously around the display unit side by side, and a switch element formed where the first sensor element group is arranged, comprising:

displaying a plurality of selection candidate items which can be displayed as an operation target region on the display unit;

monitoring a change in a detection state of the first sensor element group and a state of the switch element;

changing a selection state of the selection candidate item by changing the selection candidate items and/or the operation target region based on the change in the detection state of the first sensor element group; and

executing a selection candidate item in the selection state when the switch element is pressed.

8. A portable electronic apparatus comprising:

a first sensor element group having a plurality of sensor elements for detecting a contact and arranged continuously and adjacently;

a display unit disposed adjacent to the first sensor element group; and

a control unit for controlling a display on the display unit,

wherein the plurality of sensor elements of the first sensor element group are arranged around the display unit in a direction comprising at least a first direction component, and

the control unit controls the display unit to display a plurality of selection candidate items which can be displayed as an operation target region on the display unit in a parallel direction to the first direction, to display at least one of the plurality of selection candidate items as an operation target region, and to change the operation target region in the plurality of selection candidate items according to a positional transition of contact detections of the plurality of sensor elements composing the first sensor element group.

9. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the control unit displays selection candidate items of the same number with the plurality of sensor elements composing the first sensor element group on a screen of the display unit.

10. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 8, wherein when detecting a transition from a state of a contact detection by a sensor element in the plurality of sensor elements to a state of a contact detection by an adjacent sensor element, the control unit changes the operation target region by one.

11. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a second sensor element group composed of sensor elements of the same number with the plurality of sensor elements composing the first sensor element group.

12. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second sensor element group is arranged symmetrically to the first sensor element group, and the display unit is placed between them.

13. The portable electronic apparatus according to claim 8, wherein an end portion of the first sensor element group is arranged adjacent to an end portion of the second sensor element group, and

the control unit detects a transition of contact detections of a plurality of sensor elements in either one of the first and the second sensor element groups, changes the operation target region displayed on the display unit in a first direction according to a positional transition of the contact detections, continuously detects a transition of contact detections of a plurality of sensor elements in another sensor element group, and changes the operation target region in an opposite direction to the first direction according to a positional transition of the contact detections.

14. A display control method of a portable electronic apparatus comprising:

detecting a positional transition of contact detections of a plurality of sensor elements for detecting a contact arranged adjacent to a display unit in a direction comprising at least a first direction component; and

displaying a plurality of selection candidate items which can be displayed as an operation target region and arranged in a parallel direction to the first direction on the display unit, and controlling the operation target region to be changed according to the transition detected.