ELECTRONIC APPARATUS, KEY INPUTTING METHOD AND COMPUTER-READABLE MEDIUM

• US 20130321277A1
• Filed: 12/27/2012
• Published: 12/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: HA, Kwang-soo, KIM, Hee-jeong, JEON, Jin-hee, JO, Han-kyung, FUJIMURA, Noriyuki
• Application Number:
  US13/727,935
• Publication Number:
  US 20130321277A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/02 Input arrangements using manually operated switches, e.g. using keyboards or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0202 Constructional details or processes of manufacture of the input device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0238 Programmable keyboards key guide holders G06F3/0224
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2219/01 Liquid crystal
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 9/181 using a programmable display, e.g. LED or LCD
• 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 1/72466 with selection means, e.g. keys, having functions defined by the mode or the status of the device

Abstract

An electronic apparatus includes a key pad unit which is disposed on the key board and displays a plurality of divided button areas, a mode determination unit which determines an operation mode of the key pad unit, and a control unit which controls the key pad unit to display information regarding a plurality of keys corresponding to the determined operation mode on the plurality of button areas.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus having a key board, comprising:

a key pad unit disposed on the key board to display a plurality of divided button areas;

a mode determination unit to determine an operation mode of the key pad unit; and

a control unit to control the key pad unit to display information regarding a plurality of keys corresponding to the determined operation mode on the plurality of button areas,

wherein the key pad unit has at least one image display element on an upper portion of each button area.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the key pad unit receives a selection of at least one button area from among the plurality of button areas; and

the control unit performs an event corresponding to the selected button area and a current operation mode.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of button areas comprises:

a first button group to display a plurality of operation modes individually; and

a second button group display information regarding the plurality of keys corresponding to the determined operation mode individually.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of key areas displays key information in an icon form.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein:

the first button group receives a selection of an operation mode of the key pad; and

the control unit controls the key pad unit to display information regarding a plurality of keys corresponding to the operation mode selected through the first button group on the second button group.

6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the control unit controls the key pad unit to display a button area of a first button group corresponding to the determined operation mode in a different shadow or color from that of other button areas of a first button group.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the mode determination unit, when the plurality of button areas are selected in a predefined order, changes a current operation mode to an operation mode corresponding to the predefined order.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an authentication unit to perform user authentication by determining whether a plurality of button areas selected through the key pad unit are a plurality of predefined button areas,

wherein the control unit inactivates a display operation of the plurality of button areas before the user authentication and activates a display operation of the plurality of inactivated button areas after the user authentication.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the operation mode of the key pad unit is at least one of a login mode, a number key mode, a multimedia mode, a symbol mode, a shortcut mode, and an image display mode.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the control unit controls the key pad unit to display an image corresponding to contents currently being reproduced on at least one of the plurality of button areas if the operation mode of the key pad unit is the multimedia mode.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the control unit controls the key pad unit to display an image corresponding to a reproduction time of contents currently being reproduced on at least one of the plurality of button areas if the operation mode of the key pad unit is the multimedia mode.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the control unit controls the key pad unit to divide and display a pre-stored image on the plurality of button areas if the operation mode of the key pad unit is the image display mode.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control unit, when an external apparatus is connected to the electronic apparatus, controls the key pad unit to display at least one information from among apparatus information and connection information of the external apparatus on at least one of the plurality of button areas.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the display element is one of E-ink, LCD, and AMOLED.

15. A key inputting method in an electronic apparatus including a key pad unit which is disposed on a key board and displays a plurality of divided button areas, the method comprising:

determining an operation mode of the key pad unit;

displaying information regarding each of a plurality of keys corresponding to the determined operation mode in the plurality of button areas;

receiving a selection of at least one button area from among the plurality of button areas; and

performing an event corresponding to the selected button area and a current operation area,

wherein the key pad unit has at least one image display element on an upper portion of each button area.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein each of the plurality of key areas displays key information in an icon form.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the displaying comprises displaying a plurality of operation modes on a first button group individually, and displaying information regarding a plurality of keys corresponding to the determined operation mode on a second button group.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein an operation mode of the key pad unit is at least one of a login mode, a number key mode, a multimedia mode, a symbol mode, a shortcut mode, and an image display mode.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the displaying comprises displaying an image or a reproduction time corresponding to contents currently being reproduced in at least one of the plurality of button areas if an operation mode of the key pad unit is a multimedia mode.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the displaying comprises dividing and displaying a pre-stored image on the plurality of button areas if an operation mode of the key pad unit is an image display mode.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein the image display element is one of E-ink, LCD, and AMOLED.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable medium to contain computer-readable codes as a program to execute a key inputting method in an electronic apparatus including a key pad unit which is disposed on a key board and displays a plurality of divided button areas, the key inputting method of claim 15.

23. An electronic apparatus having a key board, comprising:

a key pad unit disposed on the key board, having a plurality of divided button areas each having a button portion to generate an input signal and each having an image display element to correspond to the button portion; and

a control unit configured to control the image display element of the corresponding button area to display first information according to a first operation mode of the electronic apparatus, to receive the input signal from the button portion of the corresponding button area to perform a first operation corresponding to the first operation mode, to control on the display element of the corresponding button area to display second information according to a second operation of the electronic apparatus, and to receive the input signal from the button portion of the corresponding button area to perform a second operation corresponding to the second operation mode of the electronic apparatus.

24. The electronic apparatus of claim 23, wherein the key pad unit comprises:

a first button group having a plurality of first button areas to correspond to operation modes; and

a second button group having a plurality of second button areas to correspond to sub-operations according to one of the operation modes.

25. An electronic apparatus having a key board, comprising:

an input unit disposed on a first portion of the key board to input data;

a key pad unit disposed on a second portion of the key board, having a plurality of divided button areas each having a button portion to generate an input signal and each having an image display element to display different information correspond to different operation modes; and

a control unit to receive the input data from the input unit to perform an input operation according to the received input data regardless of the different operation modes, and to receive an input signal to perform an operation according to the receive input signal and the displayed information corresponding to one of the different operation modes.

26. The electronic apparatus of claim 25, wherein:

the input unit selectively generates the input data in predetermined ones of the different operation modes in response to selection of a key of the input unit; and

the key pad unit generates the input signal in the different operation modes in response to selection of one of the button areas of the key pad unit.