Virtual wheel interface for mobile terminal and character input method using the same

• US 8,223,127 B2
• Filed: 05/18/2007
• Issued: 07/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Park, Won-Joo, Choi, Hyang
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Nitin
• Assistant Examiner(s): HARRIS, DOROTHY H
• Application Number:
  US11/804,684
• Publication Number:
  US 20070296704A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,887 Days
• Field of Search: 345/169
• US Class Current: 345/169
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0362 with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts
• 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

Abstract

A virtual wheel interface structure of a mobile terminal having a wheel input unit and a character input. A virtual keypad in a wheel shape is displayed on a display unit adjacent to the wheel input unit having a wheel, a selection, and navigation keys. The virtual wheel keypad includes a plurality of virtual keys disposed in the wheel rotation direction. A screen highlight and a cursor are displayed on the display unit. The screen highlight is located at a specific position on the virtual wheel keypad to select a virtual key, and the cursor indicates a character input position. If the wheel key rotates, the virtual wheel keypad rotates correspondingly and the screen highlight is located at a specific virtual key. A character allocated to the virtual key in the screen highlight is input by pressing the selection key or a navigation key, or by rotating the wheel key.

Claims

1. A virtual wheel interface structure of a mobile terminal comprising:

a display unit formed in a first area of the mobile terminal;

a wheel input unit formed adjacent to the display unit in a second area of the mobile terminal and having a rotatable wheel key, a selection key disposed in the center of the wheel key, and navigation keys disposed around the wheel key;

a virtual wheel keypad having a plurality of virtual keys disposed in a rotational direction of the wheel and displayed on the display unit in a wheel form corresponding to a portion of the wheel key;

a screen highlight displayed at a specific position on the virtual wheel keypad of the display unit and indicating a selection status of a virtual key; and

a cursor displayed on the display unit and indicating a character input position,

wherein the virtual wheel interface structure is configured to be converted between an input mode and a cursor mode,

in the input mode, the virtual wheel keypad rotates according to rotation of the wheel key, the screen highlight is displayed at a specific position on the virtual wheel keypad, a virtual navigation key is displayed in a direction of a location of the cursor, and when a navigation key of the wheel input unit which is disposed in a direction toward the cursor is input, the virtual wheel interface structure is converted to the cursor mode, and

in the cursor mode, the cursor moves according to rotation of the wheel key, the screen highlight disappears from the specific position on the virtual wheel keypad, the virtual navigation key is displayed in a direction of a location of the virtual wheel keypad, and when a navigation key of the wheel input unit which is disposed in a direction away from the cursor is input, the virtual wheel interface structure is converted to the input mode.

2. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the cursor is located outside the virtual wheel keypad.

3. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the cursor is located inside the screen highlight.

4. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the first area is larger than the second area.

5. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the virtual wheel keypad is displayed on a partial area of the display unit, adjacent to the wheel input unit.

6. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the plurality of virtual keys are divided into a plurality of types.

7. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 6, wherein the type comprises upper case characters, lower case characters, numbers, and symbols.

8. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 6, wherein the virtual wheel keypad comprises a plurality of tracks and the virtual keys of each type are disposed on different respective tracks.

9. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein one character is allocated to each virtual key.

10. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein a plurality of characters are allocated to each virtual key.

11. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the virtual wheel keypad rotates in the clockwise or counter-clockwise direction corresponding to the rotation of the wheel key.

12. The virtual wheel interface structure of claim 1, wherein the screen highlight rotates in the clockwise or counter-clockwise direction corresponding to the rotation of the wheel key.

13. A character input method using a virtual wheel interface in a mobile terminal having a rotatable wheel key, a selection key disposed in the center of the wheel key, and navigation keys disposed around the wheel key, the method comprising:

displaying a virtual wheel keypad on a display unit of the mobile terminal, wherein the virtual wheel keypad is formed in a wheel shape corresponding to a portion of the wheel key and has a plurality of virtual keys disposed in a rotational direction of the wheel;

displaying a screen highlight at a specific position on the virtual wheel keypad to select one of the virtual keys and displaying a cursor at a specific position on the display unit to indicate a character input position;

identifying whether the wheel key rotates;

rotating the virtual wheel keypad corresponding to the rotation of the wheel key;

selecting a virtual key located at the screen highlight from the virtual keys; and

inputting a character allocated to the selected virtual key at the position of the cursor,

wherein the virtual wheel interface structure is configured to be converted between an input mode and a cursor mode,

in the input mode, the virtual wheel keypad rotates according to rotation of the wheel key, the screen highlight is displayed at a specific position on the virtual wheel keypad, and a virtual navigation key is displayed in a direction of a location of the cursor, and when a navigation key of the wheel input unit which is disposed in a direction toward the cursor is input, the mobile terminal converts current mode from the input mode to the cursor mode, and

in the cursor mode, the cursor moves according to rotation of the wheel key, the screen highlight disappears from the specific position on the virtual wheel keypad, and the virtual navigation key is displayed in a direction of a location of the virtual wheel keypad, and when a navigation key of the wheel input unit which is disposed in a direction away from the cursor is input, the mobile terminal converts current mode from the cursor mode to the input mode.

14. The character input method of claim 13, wherein selecting of the virtual key includes identifying whether the selection key is pressed, and selecting the virtual key located at the screen highlight if the selection key is pressed.

15. The character input method of claim 13, wherein selecting of the navigation key includes identifying whether the navigation key is pressed, and selecting the virtual key located at the screen highlight if the selection key is pressed.

16. The character input method of claim 13, wherein selecting of the virtual key includes identifying whether a time period has elapsed since rotating the virtual wheel keypad, and selecting a virtual key located at the screen highlight if the time period is elapsed.

17. The character input method of claim 13, wherein displaying the virtual wheel keypad includes displaying the virtual wheel keypad in a partial area of the display unit adjacent to the wheel input unit.

18. The character input method of claim 13, wherein displaying the virtual wheel keypad includes displaying a plurality of tracks on the virtual wheel keypad, and disposing the virtual keys sorted by types on the plurality of tracks.

19. The character input method of claim 18, wherein the plurality of tracks are disposed in a wheel form adjacent to each other, and one track on which virtual keys that are currently activated as input subjects are located is displayed darker than all others of the plurality of tracks.

20. The character input method of claim 13, wherein displaying the cursor includes displaying the cursor outside the virtual wheel keypad.

21. The character input method of claim 13, wherein displaying the cursor includes displaying the cursor inside the screen highlight.

22. The character input method of claim 13, wherein inputting the character utilizes one of a single-tap system, a multi-tap system, a dictionary system, and a code system.