Mobile terminal having dual touch screen and method of controlling content therein

• US 9,591,122 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2010
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Yoo, Eun Kyung, Yoon, Soo Yeoun, Yang, Hui Chul, Kim, Hyun Jin, Park, Yong Gook, Kwak, Ji Yeon, Kweon, Ji Hyeon, Lee, Keum Koo
• Primary Examiner(s): Gaffin, Jeffrey A
• Assistant Examiner(s): HUERTAS TORRES, AYESHA E
• Application Number:
  US12/691,982
• Publication Number:
  US 20100188353A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,601 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72442 for playing music files
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041

Abstract

A terminal device having a dual touch screen capable of controlling a content is disclosed. The terminal device displays at least one content to a display unit. A processor coupled to the terminal is configured to checking content mapped to an area at which a touch event is detected and released from the dual touch screen including a first touch sensor and a second touch sensor and to control the content according to the touch event.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a touch event on a transparent display, the transparent display displaying content and comprising a first touch sensor formed at a front side of the transparent display and a second touch sensor formed at a rear side of the transparent display, wherein the content is visible from both sides of the transparent display simultaneously;

detecting the touch event by at least one of the first touch sensor and the second touch sensor and identifying a side at which the touch event is detected; and

controlling the content according to the touch event,

wherein controlling the content comprises;

performing a first function associated with the content in response to the touch event detected by the first touch sensor; and

performing a second function associated with the content in response to the touch event detected by the second touch sensor,

wherein the second function is different from the first function, and

wherein a gesture corresponding to the touch event detected by the first touch sensor is the same as a gesture corresponding to the touch event detected by the second touch sensor.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

performing the first function comprises performing a playback function associated with the content; and

performing the second function comprises displaying detailed information associated with the content.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether a first area, corresponding to a first contact detected by the first touch sensor, is matched to a second area corresponding to a second contact detected by the second touch sensor;

determining whether the first contact and the second contact move; and

changing a position of the content according to determined movement of the first contact and the second contact.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein changing the position of the content further comprises deleting the content according to the determined movement.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein:

determining whether the first contact and the second contact move comprises determining a duration of time for which the first contact and the second contact are maintained; and

zooming in or zooming out the content is performed according to the duration of time.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein:

determining whether the first contact and the second contact move comprises determining sizes of the first area and the second area; and

zooming in or zooming out the content is performed according to sizes of the first area and the second area.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining whether at least one of the first contact and the second contact moves in response to detection of the first area that is not matched to the second area; and

controlling a size of the content according to the determined movement.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein controlling the size of the content comprises:

determining a distance between the first contact and the second contact according to the movement;

enlarging the size of the content when the distance increases; and

reducing the size of the content when the distance decreases.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

rotating the content according to the determined movement of the at least one of the first contact and the second contact according to the determined movement.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the content comprises a menu icon to select a function, a multimedia icon to reproduce moving picture data and music data, an image, a thumbnail, and a data name set by data types; and

the touch event comprises a release event, a move event, a rotate event, a hold event, or a combination of at least one of the release event, the touch event, the move event, the hold event, and the rotate event.

11. A terminal device, comprising:

a transparent display configured to display content;

a first touch sensor formed at a front side of the transparent display and a second touch sensor formed at a rear side of the transparent display, wherein the first touch sensor and the second touch sensor are configured to detect a touch event, and wherein the transparent display is configured to display the content such that the displayed content is visible from both sides of the transparent display simultaneously; and

a controller configured to identify a side at which the touch event is detected by at least one of the first touch sensor and the second touch sensor, and to control the content according to the touch event,

wherein the controller is configured to;

perform a first function associated with the content in response to the touch event detected by the first touch sensor; and

perform a second function associated with the content in response to the touch event detected by the second touch sensor,

wherein the second function is different from the first function, and

wherein a gesture corresponding to the touch event detected by the first touch sensor is the same as a gesture corresponding to the touch event detected by the second touch sensor.

12. The terminal device of claim 11, wherein the first function comprises a playback function associated with the content and the second function comprises displaying detailed information associated with the content.

13. The terminal device of claim 11, wherein the controller is configured to control the content according to whether a first area, at which a first contact is detected by the first touch sensor, is matched to a second area at which a second contact is detected by the second touch sensor.

14. The terminal device of claim 13, wherein the controller is configured to determine whether the first contact and the second contact move when the first area is matched to the second area, and to control the transparent display to change a position of the content according to movement of the first contact and the second contact in response to detection of the movement of the first contact and the second contact.

15. The terminal device of claim 14, wherein the controller is configured to control the transparent display to zoom in or zoom out the content according to a time duration for which the first contact and the second contact are maintained.

16. The terminal device of claim 14, wherein the controller is configured to control the transparent display to zoom in or zoom out the content according to sizes of the first area and the second area.

17. The terminal device of claim 13, wherein the controller is configured to determine whether one of the first contact and the second contact moves when the first area is not matched to the second area, and to control a size of the content according to a movement of at least one of the first contact and the second contact in response to detection of the movement of the at least one of the first contact and the second contact.

18. The terminal device of claim 17, wherein the controller is configured to check a distance between the first contact and the second contact according to the movement, to control the transparent display to enlarge the size of the content when the distance increases, and to reduce the size of the content when the distance decreases.

19. The terminal device of claim 17, wherein the controller is configured to control the transparent display to rotate and display the rotated content when one of the first contact and the second contact is fixed and the other one of the first contact and the second contact moves based on the fixed contact.

20. The terminal device of claim 11, wherein:

the content comprises a menu icon to select a function, a multimedia icon to reproduce moving picture data and music data, an image, a thumbnail, and a data name set by data types; and

the touch event comprises a release event, a move event, a rotate event, a hold event, or a combination of at least one of the release event, the touch event, the move event, the hold event, and the rotate event.