MOTION CONTROLLABLE DUAL DISPLAY PORTABLE MEDIA DEVICE

• US 20110175805A1
• Filed: 01/20/2010
• Published: 07/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Ingrassia, Michael I. Jr., Rottler, Benjamin A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,791,898 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/0492 Change of orientation of the displayed image, e.g. upside-down, mirrored
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/14 Electronic books and readers
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T

Abstract

Methods and apparatus of interaction with and control of a portable media device through applied motion. In the embodiments described herein, the portable media device can include at least two displays arranged such that only one can be presented at a time. The portable media device can be configured to operate as a electronic book (e-book) having at least one electrophoretic type display having a refresh time less than an amount of time to rotate the e-book to view the refreshed display.

Claims

1. A method for modifying an operation of a portable media device, the portable media device having a processor, a sensor, and at least a first display and a second display mounted in a single piece housing such that only one of the displays is presented at a time, the method comprising:

detecting if the portable media device is being rotated;

determining an axis of rotation from at least three recognized axes of rotation and a direction of rotation; and

modifying an operation of the portable media device based upon the determined axis of rotation and the direction of rotation.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the modifying the operation is carried out only if an angle of rotation of the portable media device is greater than a critical angle of rotation.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an input at the portable media device; and

modifying the operation of the portable media device based upon the axis of rotation, the direction of rotation, and the received input.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

wherein when visual content is presented on the first display, then the modifying the operation of the portable media device comprises;

updating content presented by the second display, wherein an amount of time required to update the content by the second display is less than an amount of time required for the second display to come into view.

5. The method as recited in claim 4, wherein when the portable media device is an electronic book arranged to present visual content using electronic ink, then an amount of time required to refresh the second display is less than the amount of time required for the second display to come into view.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein when the visual content being presented on a first display is a page from a book stored in the electronic book and the direction of rotation is a first direction of rotation, then the updating content presented by the second display comprises;

updating the content presented by the second display as a table of contents of the book; and

presenting the table of contents when the second display comes into view after completion of the rotation of the electronic book.

7. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein when the visual content being presented on a first display is a page from a book stored in the electronic book and the direction of rotation is a second direction of rotation different from the first direction of rotation, then the updating content presented by the second display comprises;

updating the content presented by the second display as an annotation page arranged to receive information; and

presenting the annotation page when the second display comes into view after completion of the rotation of the electronic book.

8. An electronic book, comprising:

a single piece housing;

a plurality of displays, wherein at least two of the plurality of displays are mounted back to back within the single piece housing such that only one of the at least two displays is presented at a time;

a processor incorporated into the housing and coupled to the plurality of displays; and

a sensor, the sensor coupled to the processor and arranged to provide at least a signal to the processor, the signal indicative of at least a rotation of the electronic book, wherein the rotation can be around at least three recognized axes of rotation, wherein by rotating the electronic book about at least one of the at least three recognized axes of rotation in a first direction an operation of the electronic book is modified.

9. The electronic book as recited in claim 8, wherein at least one of the two displays mounted back to back is an electrophoretic type display that uses electronic ink to present visual content, the electronic ink requiring at least a refresh time to completely update visual content.

10. The electronic book as recited in claim 9, wherein the refresh time is less than an amount of time required to bring the electrophoretic type display into view when the e-book is being rotated.

11. The electronic book as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

an input interface arranged to receive an input event.

12. The electronic book as recited in claim 11, wherein when the input event is provided at the input interface prior to the rotating the e-book, then the modification of the operation of the e-book is based upon the axes of rotation, the direction of rotation, and the input event.

13. The electronic book as recited in claim 12, wherein the input interface is a touch sensitive surface arranged to receive a touch as the input event.

14. The electronic book as recited in claim 8, wherein the processor determines a type of content presented by the first display.

15. The electronic book as recited in claim 14, wherein the modification of the operation of the e-book is based upon the axes of rotation, the direction of rotation, the content displayed, and the type of content displayed by the first display.

16. The electronic book as recited in claim 15, wherein the type of displayed content includes at least a book and a magazine.

17. Computer readable medium for storing in tangible form computer instructions executable by a processor for modifying an operation of a portable media device, the portable media device having the processor, a sensor, and at least a first display and a second display mounted back to back in a single piece housing such that only one of the displays is presented at a time, the computer readable medium comprising:

computer code for detecting if the portable media device is being rotated;

computer code for determining an axis of rotation from at least three recognized axes of rotation and a direction of rotation; and

computer code for modifying an operation of the portable media device based upon the determined axis of rotation and the direction of rotation.

18. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the modifying the operation is carried out only if an angle of rotation of the portable media device is greater than a critical angle of rotation.

19. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, further comprising:

computer code for receiving an input event at the portable media device; and

computer code for modifying the operation of the portable media device based upon the axis of rotation, the direction of rotation, and the received input event.

20. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, further comprising:

wherein when visual content presented is on the first display, then the computer code for modifying the operation of the portable media device comprises;

computer code for updating content presented by the second display, wherein an amount of time required to update the content by the second display is less than an amount of time required for the second display to come into view.

21. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 20, wherein when the portable media device is an electronic book arranged to present visual content using electronic ink, then an amount of time required to refresh the second display is less than the amount of time required for the second display to come into view.

22. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 21, wherein when the visual content being presented on a first display is a page from a book stored in the electronic book and the direction of rotation is a first direction of rotation, then the computer code for updating content presented by the second display comprises;

computer code for updating the content presented by the second display as a table of contents of the book; and

computer code for presenting the table of contents when the second display comes into view after completion of the rotation of the electronic book.

23. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 21, wherein when the visual content being presented on a first display is a page from a book stored in the electronic book and the direction of rotation is a second direction of rotation different from the first direction of rotation, then the computer code for updating content presented by the second display comprises;

computer code for updating the content presented by the second display as an annotation page arranged to receive information;

computer code for presenting the annotation page when the second display comes into view after completion of the rotation of the electronic book; and

computer code for receiving information at the annotation page.