INFORMATION INPUT DEVICE, ON-SCREEN ARRANGEMENT METHOD THEREOF, AND COMPUTER-EXECUTABLE PROGRAM

• US 20120026200A1
• Filed: 07/05/2011
• Published: 02/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo PC International Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Singapore Pte Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Mori, Hidetoshi, Matsubara, Masaki, Okada, Mamoru, Tsukiyama, Masahiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,898,590 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/660
• 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

Provided are an information input device, an on-screen arrangement method thereof, and a computer-executable program capable of preventing deterioration of operability even when an input disable region is set on a touch panel. An information input device capable of inputting information by an indicator touching a touch panel formed on a display screen includes an input disable region setting controller that sets an input disable region on a part of the touch panel and a display controller that rearranges an object being displayed on the display screen to avoid the set input disable region.

Claims

1. An information input device comprising:

a touch panel formed on a display screen that is capable of receiving information;

an input disable region setting controller that sets an input disable region on a part of the touch panel; and

a display controller that rearranges an object being displayed on the display screen to avoid the set input disable region.

2. The information input device according to claim 1, wherein the display controller executes at least one of moving and resizing the object when rearranging the object.

3. The information input device according to claim 1, wherein the object is one of a window, an icon, a taskbar, and a button.

4. The information input device according to claim 1, wherein the display controller rearranges one of all the objects on the screen, part of the objects on the screen, and only the front-most window on the screen.

5. The information input device according to claim 1, wherein the input disable region is set by one of a graphical user interface and a hardware button, and wherein the input disable region setting is cleared by one of a graphical user interface and a hardware button.

6. The information input device according claim 1, wherein the touch panel has a detection region corresponding to an effective display region of the display screen and an extension region surrounding the periphery of the detection region, and wherein responsive to touch of the extension region, the display controller sets the detection region present around the touched position as the input disable region.

7. The information input device according to claim 1, wherein responsive to the set input disable region being cleared by the input disable region setting controller the display controller restores the arrangement of the object on the display screen.

8. An on-screen arrangement method comprising:

setting an input disable region on a portion of a touch panel formed on a display screen that is capable of receiving information; and

rearranging an object being displayed on the display screen to avoid the set input disable region.

9. The on-screen arrangement method according to claim 8, wherein rearranging the object comprises at least one of moving and resizing the object.

10. The on-screen arrangement method according to claim 8, wherein the object is one of a window, an icon, a taskbar, and a button.

11. The on-screen arrangement method according to claim 8, wherein rearranging the object comprises rearranging one of all of the objects on the screen, part of the objects on the screen, and only the front-most window on the screen.

12. The on-screen arrangement method according to claim 8, wherein the step of setting the input disable region is initiated by one of a graphical user interface and a hardware button.

13. The on-screen arrangement method according to claim 8, wherein the touch panel has a detection region corresponding to an effective display region of the display screen and an extension region surrounding the periphery of the detection region, and wherein responsive to touch of the extension region being detected, the detection region present around the touched position is set as the input disable region.

14. The on-screen arrangement method according to claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

clearing the input disable region setting; and

restoring the arrangement of the object being displayed on the display screen.

15. A computer program product comprising a storage device storing machine readable code executed by a processor to perform the operations of:

setting an input disable region on a portion of a touch panel formed on a display screen that is capable of receiving information; and

rearranging an object being displayed on the display screen to avoid the set input disable region.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein rearranging the object comprises at least one of moving and resizing the object.

17. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the object is one of a window, an icon, a taskbar, and a button.

18. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein rearranging the object comprises rearranging at least one of all of the objects on the screen, part of the objects on the screen, and only the front-most window on the screen.

19. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the touch panel has a detection region corresponding to an effective display region of the display screen and an extension region surrounding the periphery of the detection region, and wherein responsive to touch of the extension region being detected, the detection region present around the touched position is set as the input disable region.

20. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

clearing the input disable region setting; and

restoring the arrangement of the object being displayed on the display screen.