Method for providing graphical user interface (GUI) using divided screen and multimedia device using the same

• US 9,052,818 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2008
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Soo-hyun, Yoo, Eun-kyung
• Primary Examiner(s): TITCOMB, WILLIAM D
• Application Number:
  US12/193,967
• Publication Number:
  US 20090193351A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,485 Days
• Field of Search: 715/724, 715/727, 715/781, 715/855, 715/769, 715/863
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/639 using playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A method of providing a graphical user interface (GUI) using divided screens, and a multimedia device using the same, the method including: displaying a plurality of items on a first screen on a display of the device; displaying a plurality of lists on a second screen on the display; and adding an item selected by a user from among the plurality of items on the first screen to a list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists on the second screen. Accordingly, the user can manage items and lists more intuitively and conveniently.

Claims

1. A method of providing a graphical user interface (GUI) on a display of a portable multimedia apparatus, the method comprising:

displaying a plurality of items on a first screen of the display;

displaying a plurality of lists on a second screen of the display;

adding an item selected by a user from among the plurality of items displayed on the first screen, to a list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists displayed on the second screen; and

deleting the item selected by the user from among the plurality of items from the first screen if the user drags the item to an outside of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus,

wherein the deleting of the item selected by the user from among the plurality of items from the first screen also comprises deleting the item added to the list selected by the user from among the plurality of the lists displayed on the second screen.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first screen and the second screen are simultaneously displayed on a first part and a second part, respectively, of the display.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the adding of the selected item comprises dragging and dropping the selected item from the first screen onto the selected list of the second screen by the user.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein:

the display is a touch screen; and

the dragging and dropping of the selected item comprises dragging and dropping the selected item by the user touching the touch screen.

5. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the dragging and dropping of the selected item comprises dragging and dropping the selected item using an input unit that is provided separately from the display showing the first screen and the second screen.

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

deleting the dragged item from any of the plurality of lists including the dragged item.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of items are arranged on the first screen in a first arrangement format and the plurality of lists are arranged on the second screen in a second arrangement form different from the first arrangement format.

8. A computer readable recording medium encoded with the method of claim 1 and implemented by a computer.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of items include image content, still image content, music content, text content, one or more menu items, and/or one or more widget items.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the displaying of the plurality of items comprises displaying groups of the items on the first screen; and

the adding of the item selected by the user comprises adding a group selected by the user from among the groups on the first screen, to the list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists on the second screen.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the groups of the items comprise groups classified according to shared characteristics of the items therein, groups classified according to persons associated with the items therein, and/or groups classified according to objects associated with the items therein.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the items are music files, and the groups of the music files comprise groups classified according to genre, groups classified according to artist, and/or groups classified according to album.

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

removing the plurality of items from the first screen if a command to execute an item from among the plurality of items is input; and

displaying an executing screen to execute the item on the first screen if the command to execute the item from among the plurality of items is input.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the adding of the selected item comprises adding the item executing on the executing screen to the list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists on the second screen.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the adding of the item executing on the executing screen comprises adding the item of the executing screen on the first screen to the selected list if an area of the executing screen is dragged and dropped to the selected list on the second screen.

16. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the plurality of items include multimedia content, and the executing screen on the first screen is a multimedia content player.

17. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the plurality of items include multimedia content, and the selected list comprises reference values to be used to access the multimedia content displayed on the first screen.

18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein each reference value comprises addresses of locations at which the multimedia content is stored, and/or an address of a location to be read first when the multimedia content is accessed.

19. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein an item on the first screen belongs to both a first list and a second list on the second screen.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the plurality of items include multimedia content, and the first list and the second list each comprise a reference value to be used to access a specific multimedia content.

21. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of items on the first screen belongs to a first list of the plurality of lists on the second screen.

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

deleting the dragged item from the first list.

23. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising deleting an item from a storage medium if the user drags the item to an outside of the first screen,

wherein the plurality of items on the first screen are stored in the storage medium.

24. The method as claimed in claim 23, further comprising deleting the dragged item from one or more list of the plurality of lists to which the dragged item belongs.

25. The method as claimed in claim 24, wherein the deleting of the dragged item from the one or more lists comprises deleting a reference value that is used to access the dragged item from the one or more lists to which the dragged item belongs.

26. The method as claimed in claim 23, further comprising deleting a reference value that is used to access the dragged item from one or more lists to which the dragged item belongs.

27. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising deleting a list of the plurality of lists selected by the user from the second screen.

28. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein the list selected by the user is a list dragged to an outside of the second screen by the user, or a list selected by the user with reference to a screen that is provided to the user in order to inform the user of lists that are used less frequently from among the plurality of lists.

29. A portable multimedia apparatus including a display to provide a graphical user interface (GUI), the multimedia apparatus comprising:

a generation unit to generate the GUI on the display of the portable multimedia apparatus; and

a control unit to control the generation unit to generate the GUI such that a plurality of items are displayed on a first screen of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus and a plurality of lists are displayed on a second screen of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus, and an item selected by a user from among the plurality of items displayed on the first screen is added to a list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists displayed on the second screen, and to delete an item from the first screen if the user drags the item to an outside of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus,

wherein the deleting of the item from the first screen of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus also comprises deleting the item added to the list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists displayed on the second screen.

30. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the first screen and the second screen are simultaneously displayed on a first part and a second part, respectively, of the display.

31. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the control unit controls the selected item to be added to the selected list when the user drags and drops the selected item of the first screen onto the selected list of the second screen.

32. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the display is a touch screen.

33. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the plurality of items include moving image content, still image content, music content, text content, one or more menu items, and/or one or more widget items.

34. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the control unit controls the generation unit to generate the GUI such that groups of the items are displayed on the first screen, and items from a group selected by the user from among the groups on the first screen are added to the list selected by the user from among the plurality of lists on the second screen.

35. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the control unit controls the generation unit to remove the plurality of items from the first screen if a command to execute an item from among the plurality of items is input, and to display an executing screen to execute the item on the first screen.

36. The apparatus as claimed in claim 35, wherein the control unit adds the item executing on the executing screen on the first screen to the selected list from among the plurality of lists on the second screen.

37. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein an item on the first screen belongs to both a first list and a second list on the second screen.

38. A method of providing a graphical user interface (GUI) on a display of a portable multimedia apparatus, the method comprising:

displaying first items of a list on a first screen of the display;

displaying second items on a second screen of the display, simultaneous to the display of the first items on the first screen;

moving a second item from the second screen to the first screen according to a manipulation of a user;

adding the moved second item to the list; and

deleting at least one of the first items from the first screen if the at least one of the first items is dragged to an outside of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus,

wherein the deleting of the at least one of the first items from the first screen also comprises deleting the second item added to the list.

39. The method as claimed in claim 38, wherein the manipulation of the user is a dragging and dropping of the second item from the second screen to the first screen.

40. The method as claimed in claim 39, wherein the display is a touch screen displaying the first screen and the second screen.

41. The method as claimed in claim 39, wherein the manipulation of the user is performed using an input unit that is provided separately from the display showing the first screen and the second screen.

42. The method as claimed in claim 38, wherein the moving of the second item comprises moving the second item to a location of the first screen on which the second item is dragged and dropped onto the first screen.

43. The method as claimed in claim 38, wherein the second items on the second screen do not belong to the list.

44. The method as claimed in claim 38, further comprising:

moving a first item from the first screen to the second screen; and

deleting the moved first item from the list.

45. The method as claimed in claim 38, further comprising:

moving a first item from a first location of the first screen to a second location of the first screen where the first item is dropped.

46. The method as claimed in claim 38, further comprising:

displaying text indicating an area on the first screen to which a second item can be moved to.

47. The method as claimed in claim 38, wherein the displaying of the second items on the second screen comprises displaying the second items on the second screen if the user touches a point on the display displaying the first screen and the second screen or if the user drags an area on the display.

48. The method as claimed in claim 38, further comprising removing the second items from the second screen if the user touches a point on the display displaying the first screen and the second screen or if the user drags an area on the display.

49. The method as claimed in claim 38, wherein the first and second items include moving image content, still image content, music content, text content, one or more menu items, and/or one or more widget items.

50. The method as claimed in claim 49, wherein the first items are text content and the second items are a portion of the text content that are the first items.

51. The method as claimed in claim 50, wherein the portion of the text content that is the second items is selected by the user from the first items, and dragged and dropped from the first screen onto the second screen by the user.

52. A computer readable recording medium encoded with the method of claim 38 and implemented by a computer.

53. A portable multimedia apparatus including a display to provide a graphical user interface (GUI), the multimedia apparatus comprising:

a generation unit to generate the GUI; and

a control unit to control the generation unit to generate the GUI such that first items belonging to a list are displayed on a first screen of the display, second items are simultaneously displayed on a second screen of the display, and a second item on the second screen is moved to the first screen according to a manipulation of a user and added to the list, and to delete at least one of the first items from the first screen if the at least one of the first items is dragged to an outside of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus,

wherein the deleting of the at least one of the first items from the first screen also comprises deleting the second item added to the list.

54. The apparatus as claimed in claim 53, wherein the manipulation of the user is a dragging and dropping of the second item from the second screen to the first screen.

55. The apparatus as claimed in claim 53, wherein the control unit controls the generation unit to generate the GUI such that the second item is moved to a dropped location on the first screen.

56. The apparatus as claimed in claim 53, wherein the second items on the second screen do not belong to the list on the first screen.

57. The apparatus as claimed in claim 53, wherein the control unit operates the generation unit to generate the GUI such that a first item is moved to the second screen according to another manipulation of the user and deleted from the list on the first screen.

58. A method of editing a graphical user interface (GUI) on a display of a portable multimedia apparatus, the method comprising:

displaying a plurality of main menu items of a main menu on a first editing screen of the display;

displaying a plurality of extra menu items, not on the main menu, on a second editing screen of the display, simultaneous to the displaying of the first editing screen;

adding an extra menu item selected by a user from among the plurality of extra menu items on the second screen to the main menu when the user moves the selected extra menu item from the second screen to the first screen; and

deleting at least one of the plurality of main menu items from the first editing screen if the at least one of the plurality of main menu items is dragged to an outside of the display of the portable multimedia apparatus,

wherein the deleting of the at least one of the plurality of main menu items from the first editing screen also comprises deleting the extra menu item added to the main menu.

59. The method as claimed in claim 58, further comprising removing, from the main menu, a main menu item selected by the user from among the plurality of main menu items on the first screen when the user moves the selected main menu item from the first screen to the second screen.

60. A computer readable recording medium encoded with the method of claim 58 and implemented by a computer.