Method for providing graphical user interface and electronic device using the same

• US 8,386,944 B2
• Filed: 11/18/2009
• Issued: 02/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kwon, Yong-hwan, Kim, Joon-hwan, Kwon, Heui-jin, Lee, Chang-soo, Lee, Jeong-yeon, Szilagyi, Victor, Ahn, Jun-mo
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cao Kevin
• Application Number:
  US12/621,067
• Publication Number:
  US 20100153872A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,196 Days
• Field of Search: 715/716, 715/723, 715/731, 715/753, 715/830, 715762-764, 715840-841, 715754-755
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus

Abstract

A method for providing a graphical user interface (GUI) and an electronic device using the method are provided. The method includes forming one or more groups of GUI items other than a GUI item selected by a user, moving the GUI items in the one or more groups, and enlarging and displaying the selected item on an area formed by movement of the GUI items. Therefore, it is possible to provide a GUI which enables easy manipulation and which is displayed with superior visual effect on a screen that is relatively small in size.

Claims

1. A method for providing a graphical user interface (GUI) comprising a plurality of GUI items, the method comprising:

a first operation for moving GUI items in a first group among GUI items other than a GUI item selected by a user, to a first area of a screen;

a second operation for moving GUI items in a second group among the GUI items other than the selected GUI item, to a second area of the screen; and

enlarging and displaying the selected GUI item on a third area of the screen formed by moving the GUI items in the first group and the GUI items in the second group,

wherein at least one of the first operation, the second operation, and the enlarging and displaying is performed using a processor.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the GUI items in the first group are displayed with a visual depth higher than the selected GUI item, and

the GUI items in the second group are displayed with a visual depth lower than the selected GUI item.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first operation comprises moving the GUI items in the first group to the first area while increasing a transparency of the GUI items in the first group.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first operation comprises moving the GUI items in the first group to the first area so that one of the GUI items in the first group partially disappears from the screen.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

displaying either

     1) a plurality of sub-items contained in the selected GUI item or

     2) a window formed as a result of activating the selected GUI item, after the selected GUI item disappears from the screen.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first area is an area containing a first corner of the screen,

the second area is an area containing a second corner of the screen,

the first operation comprises moving the GUI items in the first group to the first corner, and

the second operation comprises moving the GUI items in the second group to the second corner.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first area is an area containing a first corner of the screen,

the second area is an area containing a second corner of the screen,

the first corner and the second corner are symmetrical about a center of the screen,

the first operation comprises moving the GUI items in the first group from the second corner to the first corner, and

the second operation comprises moving the GUI items in the second group from the first corner to the second corner.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first operation comprises moving the GUI items in the first group to the first area while increasing or reducing a size of the GUI items in the first group, and

the second operation comprises moving the GUI items in the second group to the second area while increasing or reducing a size of the GUI items in the second group.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first area is an area containing a first corner of the screen,

the second area is an area containing a second corner of the screen,

the GUI items in the first group are placed closer to the first corner than the second corner, and

the GUI items in the second group are placed closer to the second corner than the first corner.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first area is an area containing a first corner of the screen,

the second area is an area containing a second corner of the screen, and

the third area is an area other than the first corner and second corner.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the first corner and the second corner are symmetrical about a center of the screen.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein overlapping areas between the GUI items in the first group are increased in size while the GUI items in the first group are moved to the first area, and

overlapping areas between the GUI items in the second group are increased in size while the GUI items in the second group are moved to the second area.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the GUI items in the first group overlap one another while moving to the first area, and

the GUI items in the second group overlap one another while moving to the second area.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the enlarging and displaying comprises enlarging the selected GUI item while moving the selected GUI item.

15. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of GUI items comprise a menu, an icon, a folder and contents, and

the contents comprise a moving image, a still image, music and text.

16. An electronic device comprising:

a graphical user interface (GUI) generator which generates a GUI comprising a plurality of GUI items which a user is able to select; and

a controller which controls the GUI generator, so that GUI items in a first group among GUI items other than a GUI item selected by the user move to a first area of a screen, GUI items in a second group among the GUI items other than the selected GUI item move to a second area of the screen, and the selected GUI item is enlarged and displayed on a third area of the screen formed by movement of the GUI items in the first group and GUI items in the second group.

17. The electronic device as claimed in claim 16, wherein the GUI items in the first group are displayed with a visual depth higher than the selected GUI item, and

the GUI items in the second group are displayed with a visual depth lower than the selected GUI item.

18. The electronic device as claimed in claim 17, wherein the controller controls the GUI generator so that the GUI items in the first group move to the first area while a transparency of the GUI items in the first group is increased.

19. A method for providing a graphical user interface (GUI) comprising a plurality of GUI items, the method comprising:

displaying the plurality of GUI items which a user is able to select on a screen; and

moving GUI items displayed with a visual depth different from a GUI item selected by the user among the plurality of displayed GUI items to a selected area of the screen while changing a transparency of the GUI items with the depth different from the selected GUI item,

wherein at least one of the displaying and the moving is performed using a processor.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the moving comprises moving GUI items displayed with a visual depth higher than the selected GUI item to the selected area of the screen while increasing the transparency of the GUI items with the visual depth higher than the selected GUI item.

21. The method as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

enlarging and displaying the selected GUI item on an area of the screen formed by moving the GUI items displayed with the visual depth different from the selected GUI item.

22. A method for providing a graphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising:

a first operation for moving GUI items displayed with a visual depth higher than a GUI item selected by a user, to a first area of a screen;

a second operation for moving GUI items displayed with a visual depth lower than the selected GUI item, to a second area of the screen; and

enlarging and displaying the selected GUI item on a third area of the screen formed by moving the GUI items displayed with the visual depth higher than the selected GUI item and the GUI items displayed with the visual depth lower than the selected GUI item,

wherein at least one of the first operation, the second operation, and the enlarging and displaying is performed using a processor.

23. A method of displaying a plurality of graphical user interface (GUI) items in a GUI on a screen, the method comprising:

displaying the GUI items in the GUI;

selecting one of the displayed GUI items;

moving the displayed GUI items other than the selected one of the displayed GUI items towards at least one corner of the screen; and

enlarging and displaying the selected one of the displayed GUI items on an area of the screen vacated by the moving of the displayed GUI items other than the selected one of the displayed GUI items,

wherein at least one of the displaying, the selecting, and the moving is performed using a processor.

24. The method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the moving comprises moving a first group of the displayed GUI items, other than the selected one of the displayed GUI items, to a first corner of the screen, and moving a second group of the displayed GUI items, other than the displayed GUI items of the first group and the selected one of the displayed GUI items, to a second corner of the screen.