Electronic apparatus with display unit to display icon for mode and associated information-processing method

• US 8,327,283 B2
• Filed: 10/31/2007
• Issued: 12/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Shinohara, Michinari, Morikawa, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hutton, Jr., Doug
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dasgupta, Soumya
• Application Number:
  US11/933,059
• Publication Number:
  US 20080072172A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,861 Days
• Field of Search: 715/772, 715/835, 715/838, 715/815, 715/810, 715/812
• US Class Current: 715/772
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/632 for displaying or modifying preview images prior to image capturing, e.g. variety of image resolutions or capturing parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/634 Warning indications

Abstract

An image data taking unit takes image data of an object and stores the image data therein as an image data file. A display unit displays the image data stored in the image data taking unit. A mode-switching unit switches between a close-up mode and a distant-view mode of the image data taking unit. The close-up mode is for the object with a close distance and the distant-view mode is for the object with a long distance. A display control unit, when the close-up mode is on, displays a close-up mode icon on the display unit, and when the distant-view mode is on, displays a distant-mode icon on the display unit. The display control unit, when the mode-switching unit switches the distant-view mode on, replaces the close-up icon displayed on a predetermined position on the display unit by the distant-mode icon on the predetermined position.

Claims

1. A method of controlling an electronic apparatus provided with an image data taking unit that is configured to take image data of an object and store the image data therein as an image data file, and a display unit that is configured to display the image data stored in the image data taking unit, the method comprising:

switching between a close-up mode and a distant-view mode of the image data taking unit, wherein the close-up mode is for an object with a close distance and the distant-view mode is for an object with a long distance; and

icon displaying

a close-up mode icon on the display unit, when the close-up mode is on, and

a distant-view mode icon on the display unit, when the distant-view mode is on,

the icon displaying including;

displaying, when the close-up mode is switched to the distant-view mode at the switching, the distant-view mode icon in an enlarged size on a predetermined position of the display unit,

wherein the image data taking unit, even while the distant-view mode icon in the enlarged size is displayed on a major part of the image data, which is displayed on the display unit at the icon displaying, can take the image data in response to a depression of a button, and,

when the close-up mode is switched to the distant-view mode at the switching, replacing the close-up mode icon displayed on a predetermined position on the display unit by the distant-view mode icon on the predetermined position on which the close-up mode icon was displayed.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the icon displaying includes, when the close-up mode is switched to the distant-view mode at the switching, displaying the distant-view mode icon first in the enlarged size, and subsequently displaying the distant-view mode icon in a reduced size on another predetermined position on the display unit.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the icon displaying includes, when subsequently making a distant-view mode icon size reduced, gradually making the distant-view mode icon size reduced.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the electronic apparatus includes one of a digital camera and a portable phone, and the icon displaying includes displaying the distant-view mode icon with the reduced size in a peripheral portion of the display unit.

5. An electronic apparatus including a processor, the electronic apparatus comprising:

an image data taking unit that is configured to take image data of an object and store the image data therein as an image data file;

a display unit that is configured to display the image data stored in the image data taking unit;

a mode-switching unit that is configured to switch between a close-up mode and a distant-view mode of the image data taking unit, wherein the close-up mode is for an object with a close distance and the distant-view mode is for an object with a long distance; and

a display control unit that is configured to;

when the close-up mode is on, display a close-up mode icon on the display unit, and,

when the distant-view mode is on, display a distant-view mode icon on the display unit,

the display control unit displaying, when the mode-switching unit switches the distant-view mode on from the close-up mode, the distant-view mode icon in an enlarged size on a predetermined position of the display unit, wherein

the image data taking unit, even while the display control unit displays the distant-view mode icon with the enlarged size on a major part of the image data displayed on the display unit, can take the image data in response to a depression of a button, and

the display control unit, when the mode-switching unit switches the distant-view mode on, replacing the close-up mode icon displayed on a predetermined position on the display unit by the distant-view mode icon on the predetermined position on which the close-up mode icon was displayed.

6. The electronic apparatus of claim 5, wherein the display control unit, when the mode-switching unit switches the distant-view mode on from the close-up mode, displays the distant-view mode icon first in the enlarged size and subsequently displays the distant-view mode icon in a reduced size on another predetermined position on the display unit.

7. The electronic apparatus of claim 6, wherein the display control unit gradually decreases a size of the distant-view mode icon from the enlarged size to the reduced size.

8. The electronic apparatus of claim 6, wherein the electronic apparatus includes one of a digital camera and a portable phone, and the display control unit displays the distant-view mode icon with the reduced size in a peripheral portion of the display unit.

9. A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium encoded with computer executable instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by a processing unit, cause the processing unit to perform a method comprising:

switching between a close-up mode and a distant-view mode of the image data taking unit, wherein the close-up mode is for an object with a close distance and the distant-view mode is for an object with a long distance; and

icon displaying a close-up mode icon on the display unit, when the close-up mode is on, and

a distant-view mode icon on the display unit;

when the distant-view mode is on;

the icon displaying including displaying, when the close-up mode is switched to the distant-view mode at the switching, the distant-view mode icon in an enlarged size on a predetermined position of the display unit,

wherein the image data taking unit, even while the distant-view mode icon in the enlarged size is displayed on a major part of the image data, which is displayed on the display unit at the icon displaying, can take the image data in response to a depression of a button and,

when the close-up mode is switched to the distant-view mode at the switching, replacing the close-up mode icon displayed on a predetermined position on the display unit by the distant-view mode icon on the predetermined position on which the close-up mode icon was displayed.