MOBILE TERMINAL AND CONTROL METHOD FOR THE MOBILE TERMINAL

• US 20130321264A1
• Filed: 05/22/2013
• Published: 12/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: PARK, Hyekyung, LEE, Joowoo, KIM, Hyehyun, LEE, Sunjung
• Granted Patent: US 9,152,225 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1652 the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1677 for detecting open or closed state or particular intermediate positions assumed by movable parts of the enclosure, e.g. detection of display lid position with respect to main body in a laptop, detection of opening of the cover of battery compartment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04102 Flexible digitiser, i.e. constructional details for allowing the whole digitising part of a device to be flexed or rolled like a sheet of paper
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/002 Specific input/output arrangements not covered by G06F3/01 - G06F3/16 other optical apparatus G02B27/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/01 Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer G06F3/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0487 using specific features provided by the input device, e.g. functions controlled by the rotation of a mouse with dual sensing arrangements, or of the nature of the input device, e.g. tap gestures based on pressure sensed by a digitiser
• 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 mobile terminal including a flexible display unit and a related control method are provided. The mobile terminal may include a flexible display unit configured to display first screen information that is flexible in response to an external physical force, a sensing unit configured to sense flexure of the flexible display unit and a controller configured to control the flexible display unit to output second screen information containing information associated with the first screen information on one region of the flexible display unit in response to the flexure.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal, comprising:

a flexible display unit comprising at least one flexible display configured to display information;

a sensing unit configured to sense at least one flexure of the flexible display unit; and

a controller configured to control the flexible display unit to display first screen information and second screen information in response to the at least one flexure, wherein the second screen information is associated with the first screen information.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein:

the controller is further configured to divide the at least one flexible display into a first region and a second region at a boundary defined by a location of the at least one flexure;

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display the first screen information on the first region and the second screen information on the second region; and

the second screen information includes at least one second screen information item.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to no longer divide the at least one flexible display into the first region and second region, and control the flexible display unit to no longer display the second screen information in response to the sensing unit no longer sensing the at least one flexure.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein:

the flexible display unit is further configured to receive touch inputs; and

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display updated second screen information on the second region in response to a change in the first screen information on the first region, the change in the first screen information in response to a touch input received on the first region.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to change the visual appearance of the at least one second screen information item when the at least one second screen information item is moved from the second region to the first region.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 5, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display a preview screen of the at least one second screen information item when the at least one second screen information item is moved within a predetermined threshold distance from the boundary.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 6, wherein:

the flexible display unit is further configured to display information in a three-dimensional stereoscopic mode; and

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display the preview screen of the at least one second screen information item with a three-dimensional depth value other than “

0”

.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 7, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display the preview screen with a three-dimensional depth value based on a direction in which the at least one flexure of the flexible display unit is sensed by the sensing unit.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 5, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display a detailed information screen of the at least one second screen information item when the at least one second screen information item is moved from the second region to the first region.

10. The mobile terminal of claim 5, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to change the visual appearance of the at least one second screen information item by displaying the at least one second screen information item in a highlight mode.

11. The mobile terminal of claim 10, wherein:

the flexible display unit is further configured to display information in a three-dimensional stereoscopic mode; and

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to change the visual appearance of the at least one second screen information item by displaying the at least one second screen information item with at least one changed visual attribute, the at least one visual attribute including at least a three-dimensional depth value, an enlarged size, or a visual trace of a movement of the at least one second screen information item.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein:

the second region includes at least one group item containing the at least one second screen information item; and

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display a preview screen of the contents of the at least one group item when the at least one group item is moved within a predetermined threshold distance from the boundary.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 12, wherein:

the at least one second screen information item is selectable from the preview screen of the contents of the at least one group item; and

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to move the at least one second screen information item from the second region to the first region when the at least one second screen information item is selected from the preview screen.

14. The mobile terminal of claim 13, wherein:

the at least one group item comprises at least one folder;

the at least one second screen information item comprises at least one image file; and

the preview screen comprises at least one thumbnail view of the at least one image file.

15. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display a preview screen of one of the at least one second screen information item on the first region in response to a selection of the one of at least one second screen information item on the second region.

16. The mobile terminal of claim 15, wherein:

the flexible display unit is further configured to receive touch inputs;

the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display a preview screen of another of the at least one second screen information item in response to a predefined input received in the first region; and

the another of the at least one second screen information item is different than the selected one of the at least one second screen information item.

17. The mobile terminal of claim 15, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to display the preview screen of the selected one of the at least one second screen information item on the entirety of the at least one flexible display in response to the sensing unit no longer sensing the at least one flexure.

18. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to control the flexible display unit to change the second screen information displayed in the second region based on an attribute of the at least one flexure, the attribute related to at least a number, a strength, a degree, a location, a duration, or a direction of the at least one flexure.

19. A method for controlling a mobile terminal, the method comprising:

displaying first screen information on a flexible display of the mobile terminal;

dividing the flexible display into a first region and a second region in response to at least one flexure of the flexible display, the at least one flexure defining a boundary between the first region and the second region; and

displaying the first screen information on the first region and second screen information on the second region, the second screen information associated with the first screen information.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

no longer dividing the flexible display into a first region and a second region and displaying only the first screen information on the flexible display in response to an absence of the at least one flexure.