User interface for a touchscreen display

• US 9,116,615 B2
• Filed: 10/13/2010
• Issued: 08/25/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Ng, Oliver, Langlois, Michael George, Steele, Joel Paul, Bukurak, David, Lindsay, Donald James
• Primary Examiner(s): Sax, Steven
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fibbi, Christopher J
• Application Number:
  US12/903,423
• Publication Number:
  US 20110087990A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,777 Days
• Field of Search: 715/773, 715/778, 715/752, 715/788, 715/797
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A device, which may have a touchscreen display, and methods for its operation are provided using a graphical user interface and an overlay user input interface such as a virtual keyboard. The graphical user interface may include one or more user interface elements displayed in a first region of the display that are actuatable to invoke a corresponding function. When the virtual keyboard is invoked for display in the same region, the underlying graphical user interface is redrawn with a further user interface element corresponding to at least one of the user interface elements previously displayed in the first region, so that the further user interface element is actuatable to invoke a command to carry out the corresponding function. In another embodiment, the virtual keyboard may be modified instead to provide an action key corresponding to a function related to an application executing on the device.

Claims

1. A method implemented by a mobile device comprising a touchscreen display, the method comprising:

displaying a first graphical user interface on the touchscreen display, the first graphical user interface comprising;

a plurality of data entry areas including a recipient data entry area and at least one of;

a subject data entry area or a message body data entry area; and

a plurality of user interface elements comprising a first user interface element and a second user interface element, each user interface element being actuatable using the touchscreen display to invoke a corresponding function, wherein the first user interface element represents a save function and the second user interface element represents a send function;

displaying, in response to a user input into at least one of the data entry areas, a virtual keyboard overlaying the first graphical user interface such that the plurality of user interface elements are obscured and not actuatable;

determining that the first user interface element is a primary function user interface element when no valid invitee or recipient information is entered into the recipient data entry area;

displaying a modified graphical user interface on the touchscreen display wherein at least the primary user interface element, virtual keyboard and recipient data entry area are displayed and the primary user interface element is actuatable;

receiving, in the recipient data entry area of the modified graphical user interface, valid invitee or recipient information; and

in response to receiving the valid invitee or recipient information, changing the primary user interface element currently representing the save function to the second user interface element representing the send function on the modified graphical user interface.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of user interface elements is located in a first region of the touchscreen display, the virtual keyboard is displayed in a portion of the touchscreen display including the first region, and the primary user interface element is displayed in a further region of the touchscreen display outside the portion comprising the virtual keyboard.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first graphical user interface and modified graphical user interface comprise a calendar graphical user interface, and wherein valid invitee information is received and the primary user interface element is changed in response to receiving the valid invitee information.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first graphical user interface and modified graphical user interface comprise a messaging graphical user interface, and wherein valid recipient information is received the primary user interface element is changed in response to receiving the valid recipient information.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the primary user interface element corresponds to a primary function further determined by detected use of functions associated with the first graphical user interface.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the primary function is a most frequently used function associated with the first graphical user interface.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable medium bearing code which, when executed by at least one processor of a mobile electronic device comprising a touchscreen display, causes the mobile electronic device to implement the method of:

displaying a first graphical user interface on the touchscreen display, the first graphical user interface comprising;

a plurality of data entry area including a recipient data entry area and at least one of;

a subject data entry area or a message body data entry area; and

a plurality of user interface elements comprising a first user interface element and a second user interface element, each user interface element being actuatable using the touchscreen display to invoke a corresponding function, wherein the first user interface element represents a save function and the second user interface element represents a send function;

displaying, in response to a user input into at least one of the data entry areas, a virtual keyboard overlaying the first graphical user interface such that the plurality of user interface elements are obscured and not actuatable;

determining that the first user interface element is a primary function user interface element when no valid invitee or recipient information is entered into the recipient data entry area;

displaying a modified graphical user interface on the touchscreen display wherein at least the primary user interface element, virtual keyboard and recipient data entry area are are is displayed and the primary user interface element is actuatable;

receiving, in the recipient data entry area of the modified graphical user interface, valid invitee or recipient information; and

in response to receiving the valid invitee or recipient information, changing the primary user interface element currently representing the save function to the second user interface element representing the send function on the modified graphical user interface.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the plurality of user interface elements is located in a first region of the touchscreen display, the virtual keyboard is displayed in a portion of the touchscreen display including the first region, and the primary user interface element is displayed in a further region of the touchscreen display outside the portion comprising the virtual keyboard.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the first graphical user interface and modified graphical user interface comprise a calendar graphical user interface, and wherein valid invitee information is received and the primary user interface element is changed in response to receiving the valid invitee information.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the first graphical user interface and modified graphical user interface comprise a messaging graphical user interface, and wherein valid recipient information is received the primary user interface element is changed in response to receiving the valid recipient information.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the primary user interface element corresponds to a primary function further determined by detected use of functions associated with the first graphical user interface.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the primary function is a most frequently used function associated with the first graphical user interface.

13. A mobile electronic device, comprising:

a touchscreen display; and

at least one processor in communication with the touchscreen display, the at least one processor being configured to;

display a first graphical user interface on the touchscreen display, the first graphical user interface comprising;

a plurality of data entry area including a recipient data entry area and at least one of;

a subject data entry area or a message body data entry area; and

a plurality of user interface elements comprising a first user interface element and a second user interface element, each user interface element being actuatable using the touchscreen display to invoke a corresponding function, wherein the first user interface element represents a save function and the second user interface element represents a send function;

display, in response to a user input into at least one of the data entry areas, a virtual keyboard overlaying the first graphical user interface such that the plurality of user interface elements-is are obscured and not actuatable;

determine that the first user interface element is a primary function user interface element when no valid invitee or recipient information is entered into the recipient data entry area;

display a modified graphical user interface on the touchscreen display wherein at least the primary first user interface element, virtual keyboard and recipient data entry area are displayed and the primary user interface element is actuatable;

receive, in the recipient data entry area of the modified graphical user interface, valid invitee or recipient information; and

in response to receiving the valid invitee or recipient information, change the primary user interface element currently representing the save function to the second user interface element representing the send function on the modified graphical user interface.

14. The mobile electronic device of claim 13, wherein the plurality of user interface elements is located in a first region of the touchscreen display, the virtual keyboard is displayed in a portion of the touchscreen display including the first region, and the primary user interface element is displayed in a further region of the touchscreen display outside the portion comprising the virtual keyboard.