Apparatus and method for browsing a map displayed on a touch screen

• US 9,250,096 B2
• Filed: 04/26/2012
• Issued: 02/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kwak, Hyun-Mi, Song, Moon-Bae
• Primary Examiner(s): Ng, Amy
• Assistant Examiner(s): VU, TOAN H
• Application Number:
  US13/456,908
• Publication Number:
  US 20120311482A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,377 Days
• Field of Search: 715/781, 715/788, 715/772, 715/765
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/367 Details, e.g. road map scale, orientation, zooming, illumination, level of detail, scrolling of road map or positioning of current position marker
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/005 Map projections or methods associated specifically therewith
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/007 using computer methods

Abstract

A method and apparatus for browsing a map displayed on a device including a touch screen display. The method includes displaying the map on a full screen of the touch screen display; receiving a user input for setting a variation axis on the map; setting the variation axis according to the user input; dividing the full screen into a first area and a second area, using the variation axis as a boundary; receiving a first map shift command in the first area; and shifting a displayed portion of the map in the first area and maintaining a displayed portion of the map in the second area, in response to the first map shift command in the first area.

Claims

1. A method of browsing a map displayed on a device including a touch screen display, the method comprising:

displaying the map on a substantially full screen of the touch screen display;

detecting a user'"'"'s touch input for setting a variation axis on the map;

setting the variation axis in any direction upon the user'"'"'s touch input on the touch screen display;

dividing the substantially full screen into a first area and a second area, using the variation axis as a boundary;

displaying a distorted portion of the map in a distortion area;

detecting a first map shift command from at least one area of the first area and the second area; and

shifting a displayed portion of the map from the at least one area of the first area and the second area, in response to the first map shift command,

wherein setting the variation axis comprises;

detecting two touch inputs;

setting a reference point at a middle point of the two touch inputs; and

setting the variation axis as a line orthogonal to a line that connects the two touch inputs, passing through the reference point, and

wherein the distortion area is between the first area and the second area and expands from the variation axis with a width in a direction perpendicular to the variation axis.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

simultaneously detecting a second map shift command in the second area, when detecting the first map shift command in the first area; and

shifting the displayed portion of the map according to a direction of the second map shift command in the second area and shifting the displayed portion of the map according to a direction of the first map shift command in the first area.

3. The method of claim 1,

wherein the distortion area includes a distortion type.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the distortion type includes at least one of creased, compressed in a widthwise direction, and filled with shadow.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the width of the distortion area is determined according to a level of shifting the map.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising transitioning to a normal browsing mode.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein transitioning to the normal browsing mode comprises displaying the map without distortion according to a current scale of the map while maintaining any one of the displayed portions of the first area and the second area.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein transitioning to the normal browsing mode comprises displaying the map without distortion by decreasing a scale of the map while including the displayed portions of the first area and the second area.

9. An apparatus for providing a map display function, the apparatus comprising:

a map data provider for providing map data for the map display function;

a touch screen display for displaying a map based on the map data on a substantially full screen of the touch screen display, and detecting a user'"'"'s touch input for setting a variation axis on the map; and

a processor for setting the variation axis in any direction upon the user'"'"'s touch input on the touch screen display, for dividing the substantially full screen into a first area and a second area, using the variation axis used as a boundary, for controlling the touch screen to display a distorted portion of the map in a distortion area, and when a first map shift command is detected from at least one area of the first area and the second area by the touch screen display, shifting a displayed portion of the map from the at least one area of the first area and the second area, in response to the first map shift command,

wherein the processor sets the variation axis by receiving two touch inputs from the touch screen display, sets a reference point at a middle point of the two touch inputs, and sets the variation axis as a line orthogonal to a line that connects the two touch inputs, passing through the reference point, and,

wherein the distortion area is between the first area and the second area and expands from the variation axis with a width in a direction perpendicular to the variation axis.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processor shifts the displayed portion of the map according to a direction of the second map shift command in the second area and shifts the displayed portion of the map according to a direction of the first map shift command in the first area, when a second map shift command is simultaneously detected by the touch screen display the in the second area when detecting the first map shift command in the first area.

11. The apparatus of claim 9,

wherein the distortion area includes a distortion type.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the distortion type includes at least one of creased, compressed in a widthwise direction, and filled with shadow.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the width of the distortion area is determined by the processor according to a level of shifting the map.

14. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processor transits a normal browsing mode.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor transitions the apparatus from a variation-axis browsing mode to the normal browsing mode by controlling the touch screen display to display the map without distortion, according to a current scale of the map while maintaining any one of the displayed portions of the first area and the second area.

16. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processor transitions the apparatus from a variation-axis browsing mode to a normal browsing mode by controlling the touch screen display to display the map without distortion, by decreasing a scale of the map while including the displayed portions of the first area and the second area.

17. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a memory for storing the map data.

18. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a communication unit for communicating with an external device that stores the map data.