Continuous click apparatus of mobile communication terminal and method for executing the same

• US 7,859,515 B2
• Filed: 05/18/2006
• Issued: 12/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Moon, Dea-Ho
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh; Duc Q
• Application Number:
  US11/435,732
• Publication Number:
  US 20060262097A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,685 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-169, 345173-181
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/023 Arrangements for converting discrete items of information into a coded form, e.g. arrangements for interpreting keyboard generated codes as alphanumeric codes, operand codes or instruction codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0489 using dedicated keyboard keys or combinations thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04892 Arrangements for controlling cursor position based on codes indicative of cursor displacements from one discrete location to another, e.g. using cursor control keys associated to different directions or using the tab key arrangements for controlling cursor position based on coordinate signals G06F3/038
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons

Abstract

A mobile communication terminal including an input unit including a plurality of certain keys, a calculator which calculates an interval between a consecutive selection of one of the certain keys, and a processor which executes a predetermined function if the calculated interval is within a threshold time. Further, the predetermined function is set to correspond with the consecutive selection of the one certain key within the threshold time and being different than a function associated with a single selection of the one certain key.

Claims

1. A mobile communication terminal, comprising:

an input unit including a plurality of input keys, wherein the plurality of input keys include up, down, left, and right direction keys;

a calculator calculating an interval between a consecutive selection of one of the direction; and

a processor storing information corresponding to a state of the mobile terminal prior to one of the direction keys being selected, and executing a predetermined function corresponding to the consecutive selection of one of the direction keys if the calculated interval is within a threshold time,

wherein said predetermined function is different from a function associated with a single selection of a corresponding one of the direction keys,

wherein the predetermined function includes a different predetermined function for each of the direction keys that is allocated based on an intuition,

wherein continuous selection of the up direction key within the threshold time causes the processor to display a menu that is a higher level menu than a currently displayed menu., continuous selection of the down direction key within the threshold time causes the processor to display a menu that is a lower level menu than the currently displayed menu, and

wherein continuous selection of the right direction key within the threshold time causes the processor to store currently displayed data, and continuous selection of the left direction key within the threshold time causes the processor to delete currently displayed data.

2. The mobile communication terminal of claim 1, wherein if the calculated interval is not within the threshold time, the processor executes the function associated with the single selection of the direction key.

3. The mobile communication terminal of claim 2, wherein the processor deletes the stored information corresponding to the state of the mobile terminal if the interval is greater than the threshold time and executes the function.

4. The mobile communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the information corresponds to at least one from a status of a screen and a position of a cursor on a display of the terminal prior to one of the direction keys being selected.

5. The mobile communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the threshold time is variable and can be adjusted by a user of the mobile terminal.

6. The mobile communication terminal of claim 1, wherein said predetermined function is set by at least one from a manufacture of the mobile terminal and a user using the mobile terminal.

7. The mobile communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the processor displays a popup window showing a list of received data when two or more data are received in the terminal and the calculated interval is within the threshold time.

8. The mobile communication terminal of claim 1, wherein the consecutive selection of one of the direction keys within the threshold time comprises a double clicking operation.

9. A method of controlling a mobile terminal, the method comprising:

detecting a consecutive selection of one of direction keys, wherein the direction keys includes up, down, left and right direction keys;

storing information corresponding to a state of the mobile terminal prior to one of the direction keys being selected;

checking whether an interval between the consecutive selection of one of the direction keys is within a threshold time; and

executing a predetermined function corresponding to the consecutive selection of one of the direction keys if the calculated interval is within the threshold time,

wherein said predetermined function is different from a function associated with a single selection of a corresponding one of the direction keys,

wherein the predetermined function includes a different predetermined function for each direction key that is associated based on an intuition,

wherein continuous selection of the up direction key within the threshold time causes the executing step to display a menu that is a higher level menu than a currently displayed menu, continuous selection of the down direction key within the threshold time causes the executing step to display a menu that is a lower level menu than the currently displayed menu, and

wherein continuous selection of the right direction key within the threshold time causes the processor to store currently displayed data, and continuous selection of the left direction key within the threshold time causes the processor to delete currently displayed data.

10. The mobile communication method of claim 9, wherein if the calculated interval is not within the threshold time, the executing step executes the function associated with the single selection of the direction keys on the mobile terminal.

11. The mobile communication method of claim 10, further comprising:

deleting the stored information corresponding to the state of the mobile terminal if the interval is greater than the threshold time; and

executing the function.

12. The mobile communication method of claim 9, wherein the information corresponds to at least one from a status of a screen and a position of a cursor on a display of the terminal prior to one of direction keys being selected.

13. The mobile communication method of claim 9, wherein the threshold time is variable and can be adjusted by a user of the mobile terminal.

14. The mobile communication method of claim 9, wherein said predetermined function is set by at least one from a manufacture of the mobile terminal and a user using the mobile terminal.

15. The mobile communication method of claim 9, further comprising:

displaying a popup window showing a list of received data when two or more data are received in the terminal and one of the direction keys is selected within the threshold time.

16. The mobile communication method of claim 9, wherein the consecutive selection of one of the direction keys within the threshold time comprises a double clicking operation.