PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING SAME

• US 20110163963A1
• Filed: 01/04/2010
• Published: 07/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Original Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: KORNILOVSKY, Alexander, FUX, Vadim, SKARINE, Alexei
• Application Number:
  US12/651,775
• Publication Number:
  US 20110163963A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04805 Virtual magnifying lens, i.e. window or frame movable on top of displayed information to enlarge it for better reading or selection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A method of controlling a portable electronic device includes rendering characters on a display of the portable electronic device, detecting a touch and determining a touch location on a touch-sensitive input device, determining a plurality of the characters that are rendered near the touch location, the plurality of the characters rendered in a first area, and re-rendering the plurality of the characters in a second area, the second area being larger than the first area.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

rendering characters on a display of a portable electronic device;

detecting a touch and determining a touch location on a touch-sensitive input device;

identifying a plurality of the characters that are rendered near the touch location, the plurality of the characters rendered in a first area; and

rendering the plurality of the characters in a second area, the second area being larger than the first area.

2. The method according to claim 1, comprising receiving a selection of one of the plurality of the characters.

3. The method according to claim 1, comprising indicating a first one of the plurality of characters for selection.

4. The method according to claim 3, comprising detecting a change in the touch location and, in response to detecting the change, indicating a second one of the plurality of characters for selection, wherein the second one of the plurality of characters is identified based on the direction of the change.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein identifying the plurality of the characters comprises identifying the closest plurality of characters to the touch location.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein identifying the closest plurality comprises identifying a preset number of closest characters.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein re-rendering comprises re-rendering the characters in a larger size.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein re-rendering comprises re-rendering with a larger spacing between the characters.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second area includes the first area.

10. A computer-readable medium having computer-readable code embodied therein, the computer-readable code executable by a processor of a portable electronic device to perform the method of claim 1.

11. A portable electronic device comprising:

a display configured to display characters;

a touch-sensitive input device configured to receive a touch and determine a touch location; and

a processor configured to;

identify a plurality of the characters that are displayed near the touch location, the plurality of the characters rendered in a first area; and

cause the display to display the plurality of the characters in a second area, the second area being larger than the first area.

12. The portable electronic device according to claim 11, wherein the touch-sensitive input device comprises a touch-sensitive input strip near the display.

13. The portable electronic device according to claim 12, wherein the touch-sensitive input device comprises a plurality of touch-sensitive input strips near the display.

14. The portable electronic device according to claim 11, wherein the touch-sensitive input device comprises a touch-sensitive overlay on the display.

15. A method comprising:

rendering characters on a display of a portable electronic device;

detecting a touch and determining a touch location along a touch-sensitive strip;

identifying a plurality of the characters that are rendered near the touch location, the plurality of the characters rendered in a first area;

rendering the identified plurality of characters in a second area, the second area being larger than the first area; and

rendering an indicator to indicate one of the identified plurality of characters based on the touch location.