Rapid retrieval user interface designed around small displays and few buttons for searching long lists

• US 7,698,652 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2001
• Issued: 04/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Sagar, Richard Bryan
• Primary Examiner(s): KE, PENG
• Application Number:
  US09/780,229
• Publication Number:
  US 20020109709A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,350 Days
• Field of Search: 345/830, 345/973, 715/787, 715/784, 715/785, 715/786
• US Class Current: 715/787
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2747 Scrolling on a display
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2748 by matching character strings
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones

Abstract

In a user-interface application, a computing apparatus has a user-interface to assist the user in searching for information from a data array. In an example embodiment according to the present invention, the data array is an ordered list of addresses. In a UI so equipped, the user experiences a particular sequence of events. The user begins at a point on a list of addresses. After the user presses the scroll key, the list rolls down a low rate. As the user continues to hold down the scroll button the scroll accelerates. After a predetermined time, a helper character is displayed. This character may represent a first letter of a name or a first digit of a telephone number. The UI displays the helper character to the user. The user continues to hold the scroll button until a help character, corresponding to his/her desired selection, appears. The user releases the scroll button and may slowly browse among a smaller group of data to locate the particular selection.

Claims

1. An apparatus having a user interface assisting in searching for information from items of an ordered list in a data array, the items having descriptions, the apparatus comprising:

a display;

an array scroller for sequentially displaying on the display the descriptions from the ordered list on the user interface responsive to user actuation; and

a helper character-generator operative to display a helper character representative of a portion of a description of an item in the ordered list being displayed, the displaying of the helper character being responsive to continued user actuation of the array scroller, wherein the helper character is displayed in a size which is larger than a size of the descriptions, wherein a change in the size is made based on a scrolling speed that is responsive to the continued user actuation.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the helper character shows additional helper characters by deactivating the array scroller, then reactivating the array scroller.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the helper character is displayed in a determined location on a GUI display.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises at least one of a handheld device, a mobile telephone, and an Internet-enable device with a browser.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the descriptions are selected from at least one of alpha-numerical characters, pictographs, letters in a name, and prefixes in telephone numbers.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data array is multi-dimensional.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the helper character-generator renders a helper character comprising at least one of an audio feedback, a video feedback, and a tactile feedback.

8. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the descriptions include alphabetical entries, and the helper character consist of a first alphabetical character of the description of the item in the ordered list being displayed on a display, and wherein deactivating and reactivating the array scroller adds to the display a next alphabetical character of the description.

9. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the helper character is displayed alphabetical without skipping letters not included portions of the descriptions of the ordered list.

10. A method for enabling a user to scroll through information in items of an ordered list in a data array accessible through a data processing device in a data processing environment, the items having descriptions, the method comprising the acts of:

enabling the user to scroll sequentially the descriptions from the ordered list, in response to the user actuating the data processing device;

generating a helper character representative of a portion of a description of an item in the ordered list being displayed; and

displaying the helper character on a display in response to the user continuing to actuate the data processing device, wherein the helper character is displayed on the display in a size which is larger than a size of the descriptions, and wherein a change in the size is made based on a scrolling speed that is responsive to the continuing actuation.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the data processing environment comprises a distributed environment.

12. A computer readable medium containing a set of instructions when executed by an information processing apparatus cause the information processing apparatus to display a helper character on a display representative of a portion of a description of an item in an ordered list being displayed, the display of the helper character being responsive to continued user actuation of the apparatus, wherein the helper character is displayed in a size which is larger than a size of descriptions of items of the ordered list, and wherein a change in the size is made based on a scrolling speed that is responsive to the continued user actuation.

13. A client-sever configuration comprising a client and a server, wherein:

the server provides user-access to an ordered list of information items having descriptions; and

the client is enabled to interact with the server, the server controlling the client to display a helper character representative of a portion of a description of an item in the ordered list being displayed, the display of the helper character being responsive to continued user actuation of the client, wherein the helper character is displayed in a size which is larger than a size of the descriptions, and wherein a change in the size is made based on a scrolling speed that is responsive to the continued user actuation.

14. The client-server configuration of claim 13, wherein the client comprises at least one of a handheld device, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a wireless telephone handset, a portable media-playing device, and a cell phone.

15. An information storage medium comprising:

an ordered list of information items having descriptions;

at least one respective helper character corresponding with and representative of a portion of a description of an item in the ordered list being displayed on a display, wherein displaying of the helper character is responsive to continued user actuation of a scroller, wherein the helper character is displayed in a size which is larger than a size of the descriptions, and wherein a change in the size is made based on a scrolling speed that is responsive to the continued user actuation; and

control software for controlling a rendering of a specific one of the helper characters during the actuation of the scroller of the corresponding one of the items.

16. The information storage medium of claim 15, wherein the ordered list comprises at least one a sequence of alpha-numeric characters, a sequence of pictographs, a sequence of images, a sequence of sounds.

17. The information storage medium of claim 16, wherein the rendering of the specific one of the helper characters comprises at least one of an audio feedback, a video feedback, and tactile feedback.

18. A data processing apparatus having a user interface assisting in searching for information from an ordered list in a data array, the apparatus comprising:

a display;

an array scroller adapted to scroll the information at a speed that is responsive to user actuation; and

a helper character-generator, actuated by continued user actuation of the array scroller, the helper character generator being operative to display on the display a helper character that represents a scrolling position in the list and at least some of the information corresponding to the scrolling position, wherein the helper character is displayed in a size which is larger than a size of information, and wherein a change in the size is made based on a scrolling speed that is responsive to the continued user actuation.

19. The data processing apparatus of claim 18, wherein the helper character is displayed in a size which is larger that a size of other characters of the information of the ordered list.