Method, apparatus, and software program for processing information

• US 7,768,502 B2
• Filed: 05/05/2005
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nishimura, Takanori, Sato, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Mengistu; Amare
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chow; Yuk
• Application Number:
  US11/122,616
• Publication Number:
  US 20050248545A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,916 Days
• Field of Search: 345/158, 345/173, 345/536, 345/660, 345/684, 345/341, 715/785, 715798-800
• US Class Current: 345/173
• 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 1/1671 Special purpose buttons or auxiliary keyboards, e.g. retractable mini keypads, keypads or buttons that remain accessible at closed laptop G06F1/1666 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• 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

An information processing apparatus includes a display having a display screen with a display-enabled display window, and a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting. A predetermined process is performed on the display window presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, and a size of the display window is updatable. The coordinates of the tablet are converted in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen. If a portion of the display window is hidden in response to the display window becoming larger in size than the display screen, a peripheral portion of the tablet corresponding to the hidden portion of the display window is set as a movement operation area where the movement of the display window is controlled.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a display having a display screen configured to display a display window; and

a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting, a predetermined process being performed on the display window presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, a size of the display window being updatable, the coordinates of the tablet being converted in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen, and upon a portion of the display window being hidden in response to the display window becoming larger in size than a maximum area of the display screen, a peripheral portion of the display window corresponding to the hidden portion of the display window being set as a movement operation area where the movement of the display window with respect to the display screen is controlled such that when the peripheral portion is selected, the display window is moved with respect to the display screen to display at least a part of the hidden portion of the display window.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display and the tablet are integrated into a unitary module.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an orientation of the display window is modified with respect to the display and wherein an orientation of the coordinates of the tablet are updated in response to a change in the orientation of the display window.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a movement speed of the display window is updated in response to an operation position within the movement operation area of the tablet.

5. An information processing method of an information processing apparatus including a display having a display screen configured to display a display window, and a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting, presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, and a size of the display window being updatable, the information processing method comprising:

converting the coordinates of the tablet in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen; and

upon a portion of the display window being hidden in response to the display window becoming larger in size than a maximum area of the display screen, setting a peripheral portion of the display window corresponding to the hidden portion of the display window as a movement operation area where the movement of the display window with respect to the display screen is controlled such that when the peripheral portion is selected, the display window is moved with respect to the display screen to display at least a part of the hidden portion of the display window.

6. A computer readable medium including computer executable instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for operating an information processing apparatus including a display having a display screen configured to display a display window, and a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting, a predetermined process being performed on the display window presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, and a size of the display window being updatable, the method comprising:

converting the coordinates of the tablet in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen; and

upon a portion of the display window being hidden in response to the display window becoming larger in size than a maximum area of the display screen, setting a peripheral portion of the display window corresponding to the hidden portion of the display window as a movement operation area where the movement of the display window with respect to the display screen is controlled such that when the peripheral portion is selected, the display window is moved with respect to the display screen to display at least a part of the hidden portion of the display window.

7. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a display having a display screen configured to display a display window; and

a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting, a predetermined process being performed on the display window presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, a size of the display window being updatable, the coordinates of the tablet being converted in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen, and upon a portion of the display screen being left unfilled with the display window in response to the display window becoming smaller in size than a maximum area of the display screen, an empty portion of the display screen corresponding to the unfilled portion of the display screen being set as a special operation area that enables a predetermined process to be performed on the display window such that selecting empty portion activates the predetermined process, the empty portion of the display screen being a portion of the display screen that does not include the display window.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the special operation area of the tablet is divided into a plurality of partitions having different processes to be performed on the display window.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the unfilled portion of the tablet is configured to return back to an immediately preceding display window as the predetermined process when activated.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the unfilled portion of the tablet is configured to proceed to a next display window as the predetermined process when activated.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the unfilled portion of the tablet is configured to close the display window as the predetermined process when activated.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the unfilled portion of the tablet is configured to initiate a new software program as the predetermined process when activated.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the unfilled portion of the tablet is configured to scroll the display window with respect to the display screen as the predetermined process when activated.

14. An information processing method of an information processing apparatus including a display having a display screen configured to display a display window, and a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting, a predetermined process being performed on the display window presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, and a size of the display window being updatable, the information processing method comprising steps of:

converting the coordinates of the tablet in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen; and

upon a portion of the display window being left unfilled with the display window in response to the display window becoming smaller in size than a maximum area of the display screen, setting an empty portion of the display screen corresponding to the unfilled portion of the display screen as a special operation area that enables a predetermined process to be performed on the display window such that selecting empty portion activates the predetermined process, the empty portion of the display screen being a portion of the display screen that does not include the display window.

15. A computer readable medium including computer executable instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for operating an information processing apparatus including a display having a display screen configured to display a display window, and a tablet having predetermined coordinates and permitting handwriting, a predetermined process being performed on the display window presented on the display in response to an operation on the tablet, and a size of the display window being updatable, the method comprising:

converting the coordinates of the tablet in response to the size updating of the display window presented on the display screen; and

upon a portion of the display window being left unfilled with the display window in response to the display window becoming smaller in size than a maximum area of the display screen, setting an empty portion of the display screen a corresponding to the unfilled portion of the display screen as a special operation area that enables a predetermined process to be performed on the display window such that selecting empty portion activates the predetermined process, the empty portion of the display screen being a portion of the display screen that does not include the display window.