Apparatus and associated methods

• US 9,035,940 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2011
• Issued: 05/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Ronkainen, Sami Pekka
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, M Good
• Application Number:
  US13/042,979
• Publication Number:
  US 20120229447A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,533 Days
• Field of Search: 345/649
• US Class Current: 345/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0304 Detection arrangements using opto-electronic means constructional details of pointing devices not related to the detection arrangement using opto-electronic means G06F3/033; optical digitisers G06F3/042
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• 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 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object

Abstract

In one or more embodiments described herein, there is provided an apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory having computer program code stored thereon, the computer program code and at least one memory being configured to, when run on the at least one processor, perform detection of physical tilting of a display. The display is configured to provide user visual output associated with at least one running application. The at least one running application also has a virtual keyboard associated therewith provided on the display. The computer program code and at least one memory are also configured to, when run on the at least one processor, provide, in response to detection of said physical tilting of said display, corresponding graphical tilting of an onscreen area of a display to reveal a previously off-screen area of the user visual output associated with the at least one running application.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory having computer program code stored thereon, the computer program code and at least one memory being configured to, when run on the at least one processor, perform:

receive indication of a selection of a first virtual layer, and a physical tilting of a display, the display being configured to provide user visual output associated with at least one running application; and

provide, in response to receiving the indication of said physical tilting of said display, corresponding graphical tilting of the first virtual layer to reveal at least a portion of a second virtual layer previously hidden by the first virtual layer, wherein the second virtual layer remains in a same position, wherein prior to the graphical tilting, a plane of the second virtual layer is parallel to a plane of the selected first virtual layer, and after the tilting, the plane of the second virtual layer is not parallel to the first virtual layer.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first layer comprises a virtual keyboard.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is configured such that the graphical tilting results in a change of a viewing angle of the first virtual layer.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein receiving the indication of the physical tilting of the display comprises receiving indication of tilting of a device comprising the display.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the running application is one or more of the following applications:

address book application, contacts application, memo pad application, diary application, notebook application, word processing application, spreadsheet application, or online application.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is one or more of the following:

a portable electronic device, a portable radiotelephone device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device, or a module for one of these devices.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said second virtual layer provides a visual indication of the progress of one of said at least one background process.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the running application is one or more of the following applications:

a download manager, an upload manager, taskbar, application controller, or an application start bar.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the at least one background process is associated with at least one background application running in addition to the running application.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the apparatus is configured such that the at least one background process is associated with the at least one running application.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the graphical tilting comprises revealing at least one portion of the first virtual layer corresponding to the direction of graphical tilting, wherein the at least one portion was positioned off the display prior to the graphical tilting.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the graphical tilting of the first virtual layer comprises changing a perceived viewing angle of the first virtual layer using three-dimensional effects.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer program code and at least one memory are further configured to:

change a position of the first virtual layer in response to receiving the indication of the physical tilting.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first virtual layer utilizes less area of the display after the graphical tilting than before the graphical tilting, and the second virtual layer utilizes more area of the display after the graphical tilting than before the graphical tilting.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer program code and at least one memory are further configured to:

cause the first virtual layer to appear to move away from the display.

16. A computer program product comprising at least one non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising computer-executable program code instructions stored therein, the computer-executable program code instructions comprising program code instructions to:

receive indication of a selection of a first virtual layer, and a physical tilting of a display, the display being configured to provide user visual output associated with at least one running application; and

provide, in response to receiving the indication of said physical tilting of said display, corresponding graphical tilting of the first virtual layer to reveal at least a portion of a second virtual layer previously hidden by the first virtual layer, wherein the second virtual layer remains in a same position, wherein prior to the graphical tilting, a plane of the second virtual layer is parallel to a plane of the selected first virtual layer, and after the tilting, the plane of the second virtual layer is not parallel to the first virtual layer.

17. A method comprising:

receiving indication of a physical tilting of a display, the display being configured to provide user visual output associated with at least one running application; and

providing, in response to receiving the indication of said physical tilting of said display, corresponding graphical tilting of a first virtual layer to reveal at least a portion of a second virtual layer previously hidden by the first virtual layer, wherein the second virtual layer remains in a same position.