Information processing apparatus and display control method

• US 9,609,588 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2013
• Issued: 03/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Client Solutions CO., Ltd. (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Tonouchi, Kenichi, Kasuga, Susumu, Honda, Yoshinori, Tajima, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Luu
• Assistant Examiner(s): Baum, Ronald
• Application Number:
  US13/865,073
• Publication Number:
  US 20130232569A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,441 Days
• Field of Search: 726/17
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

According to one embodiment, an information processing apparatus comprises a wireless communication device, a display, a logon process module, and a display control module. The logon process module is configured to cause the display to display a logon screen, in a logon process of identifying a user account which uses an operating system. The display control module is configured to cause the display to display, together with the logon screen, a state of an access point detected by the wireless communication device.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a wireless communication device;

a display; and

a processor configured to;

(i) execute, by an operating system, a first process of causing the display to display a logon screen for logging on the operating system, wherein the logon screen displays a user identification (ID) of a user, an input field for inputting a password corresponding to the user ID, and a first icon for starting a first function of displaying on the logon screen a state regarding wireless communication of the wireless communication device, and wherein the first icon is displayed on the logon screen together with the user ID and the input field;

(ii) responsive to the first process being executed, determine whether one or more registered access points, which are managed by the operating system and which were previously connected to the wireless communication device, are present in one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device;

(iii) responsive to determining that one or more registered access points are present in one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device, and responsive to a second process executed that performs a logon operation for inputting a password to the input field, execute a logon process to authenticate the user by verifying an input password which is input to the input field on the logon screen;

(iv) responsive to determining that either (a) one or more registered access points are not present in the one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device or (b) no access points are detected by the wireless communication device, block the logon process authentication verification of the user; and

(v) responsive to a user input for operating the first icon being detected before the logon operation is performed on the logon screen, execute a process of causing the display to display on the logon screen a current state regarding the wireless communication, wherein the current state regarding the wireless communication is displayed on the logon screen together with the user ID and the input field,

wherein the current state regarding the wireless communication comprises (1) a list of one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device, (2) one or more icons indicative of intensities of wireless signals received from the one or more access points, and (3) information for identifying access point being currently connected to the wireless communication device.

2. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to display the current state regarding the wireless communication on a movable window displayed on the logon screen, to store position information indicative of a destination position to which the window has been moved on the logon screen, and to display, when the logon screen is displayed at a next time, the window at a position on the logon screen, which is indicated by the stored position information.

3. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device is a wireless LAN device.

4. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to execute a setup process for enabling or disabling the first function based on an operation by a user, and to execute, when the first function is in an enabled state, a process of causing the display to display on the logon screen the first icon.

5. A display control method executed by a processor of an information processing apparatus comprising the processor, a display and a wireless communication device, the processor configured to execute an operating system, the method comprising:

executing, by the processor, a first process of causing the display to display a logon screen for logging on the operating system, wherein the logon screen displays a user identification (ID) of a user, an input field for inputting a password corresponding to the user ID, and a first icon for starting a first function of displaying on the logon screen a state regarding wireless communication of the wireless communication device, and wherein the first icon is displayed on the logon screen together with the user ID and the input field;

responsive to the first process being executed, determining whether one or more registered access points, which are managed by the operating system and which were previously connected to the wireless communication device, are present in one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device;

responsive to determining that one or more registered access points are present in one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device, and responsive to a second process executed that performs a logon operation for inputting a password to the input field, executing, by the processor, a logon process to authenticate the user by verifying an input password which is input to the input field on the logon screen;

responsive to determining that either (a) one or more registered access points are not present in the one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device or (b) no access points are detected by the wireless communication device, blocking the logon process authentication verification of the user; and

responsive to a user input for operating the first icon being detected before the logon operation is performed on the logon screen, executing, by the processor, a process of causing the display to display on the logon screen a current state regarding the wireless communication, wherein the current state regarding the wireless communication is displayed on the logon screen together with the user ID and the input field,

wherein the current state regarding the wireless communication comprises (1) a list of one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device, (2) one or more icons indicative of intensities of wireless signals received from the one or more access points, and (3) information for identifying an access point being currently connected to the wireless communication device.

6. The display control method of claim 5, wherein the wireless communication device is a wireless LAN device.

7. The display control method of claim 5, further comprising executing a setup process for enabling or disabling the first function based on an operation by a user, wherein the first icon is displayed on the logon screen when the first function is in an enabled state.

8. A computer readable, non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon a program which is executable by a computer, the computer comprising a wireless communication device, and a processor configured to execute an operating system, the program controlling a computer to execute functions of:

executing, by the processor, a first process of causing a display in the computer to display a logon screen for logging on the operating system, wherein the logon screen displays a user identification (ID) of a user, an input field for inputting a password corresponding to the user ID, and a first icon for starting a first function of displaying on the logon screen a state regarding wireless communication of the wireless communication device, and wherein the first icon is displayed on the logon screen together with the user ID and the input field;

responsive to the first process being executed, determining whether one or more registered access points, which are managed by the operating system and which were previously connected to the wireless communication device, are present in one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device;

responsive to determining that one or more registered access points are present in one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device, and responsive to a second process executed that performs a logon operation for inputting a password to the input field, executing, by the processor, a logon process to authenticate the user by verifying an input password which is input to the input field on the logon screen;

responsive to determining that either (a) one or more registered access points are not resent in the one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device or (b) no access points are detected by the wireless communication device, blocking the logon process authentication verification of the user; and

responsive to a user input for operating the first icon being detected before the logon operation is performed on the logon screen, executing, by the processor, a process of causing the display to display on the logon screen a current state regarding the wireless communication, wherein the current state regarding the wireless communication is displayed on the logon screen together with the user ID and the input field,

wherein the current state regarding the wireless communication comprises (1) a list of one or more access points detected by the wireless communication device, (2) one or more icons indicative of intensities of wireless signals received from the one or more access points, and (3) information for identifying access point being currently connected to the wireless communication device.

9. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the wireless communication device is a wireless LAN device.

10. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the program further controls the computer to execute a function of executing a setup process for enabling or disabling the first function based on an operation by a user, and wherein the first icon is displayed on the logon screen when the first function is in an enabled state.