Apparatus and method of controlling screens in a device

• US 9,666,158 B2
• Filed: 01/23/2014
• Issued: 05/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kang, Doo-Suk, Park, Kwang-Weon, Woo, Seung-Soo, Choi, Bo-Kun
• Primary Examiner(s): Ell, Matthew
• Application Number:
  US14/162,191
• Publication Number:
  US 20140285422A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,223 Days
• Field of Search: 345 87, 345204, 348 42, 715790, 715794, 715795, 715796, 715797
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04804 Transparency, e.g. transparent or translucent windows
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1454 involving copying of the display data of a local workstation or window to a remote workstation or window so that an actual copy of the data is displayed simultaneously on two or more displays, e.g. teledisplay
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/003 Details of a display terminal, the details relating to the control arrangement of the display terminal and to the interfaces thereto specific for a CRT G09G1/165; for a flat panel G09G3/2092
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 Display of multiple viewports
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/34 for rolling or scrolling

Abstract

An apparatus and a method of controlling screens in a device are provided. The apparatus includes a display configured to include a first screen and a second screen overlapped over the first screen, and a controller configured to control display of partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable by changing an attribute of the second screen, upon detecting a gesture on the second screen while information is being displayed separately on the first and second screens.

Claims

1. An apparatus for controlling screens in a device, the apparatus comprising:

a display configured to include a first screen and a second screen overlapped over the first screen; and

at least one processor configured to;

change an attribute of the second screen, upon detecting a gesture corresponding to performing a function related to the first screen while information is being displayed separately on the first and second screens, the gesture being at least a user eye-movement directed toward the second screen,

display the second screen that is changed by the changed attribute, and

display partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen overlapped over the first screen while the user eye-movement remains directed toward the second screen.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the attribute of the second screen includes at least one of a position, a size, or a transparency of the second screen.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the gesture on the second screen further includes at least one of a hovering gesture, an input of a key in a terminal, a motion gesture of the terminal, or a user motion detected by infrared rays.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, upon detecting a hovering gesture above the second screen while information based on a first application is being displayed on the first screen and information based on a second application is being displayed on the second screen, the at least one processor is further configured to control display of the partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable by moving the second screen from a currently displayed area of the second screen.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, upon detecting a hovering gesture above the second screen while information based on a first application is being displayed on the first screen and information based on a second application is being displayed on the second screen, the at least one processor is further configured to control display of the partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable through the second screen by increasing a transparency of the second screen.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, while information based on a first application is being displayed on the first screen and information based on a second application is being displayed on the second screen, upon detecting an input gesture on an input window of the first screen, the at least one processor is further configured to:

detect a currently displayed area of the second screen, and

if the second screen is overlapped over the input window or a keypad displayed by the input gesture, control the input window and the keypad not to be overlapped with the second screen by moving the second screen to a position at which the second screen is not overlapped over the input window and the keypad or adjusting a size of the second screen.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, while information based on at least one application is being displayed separately on a first layer and a second layer lying over the first layer, the at least one processor is further configured to upon detecting a gesture on the second layer, control display of partial information of the first layer hidden by the second layer to be viewable by changing an attribute of the second layer.

8. An apparatus for controlling screens in a device, the apparatus comprising:

a display configured to include a first screen and a second screen overlapped over the first screen; and

at least one processor configured to, while information based on a first application is being displayed on the first screen and information based on a second application is being displayed on the second screen, upon detecting an eye-gaze gesture corresponding to perform a function related to the first screen,

determine whether the eye-gaze gesture is directed toward a display area of the second screen based on coordinates of a position of the eye-gaze gesture,

determine a type of the eye gaze gesture, if the eye-gaze gesture was directed toward the second screen,

control display of partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable by moving the second screen out of a currently displayed area of the second screen while the second screen remains overlapping a portion of the first screen, if the determined type of the eye-gaze gesture is a request for moving the second screen, and

control returning of the second screen to a previous displayed area if a direction of the eye-gaze gesture moves away from the second screen or keep the second screen in a currently displayed area, if the eye-gaze gesture remains directed toward the second screen.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein, if the at least one processor determines that the gesture was directed toward the first screen based on the coordinates of the position of the eye gaze gesture, the at least one processor is further configured to:

control the information based on the first application on the first screen, and

if the determined type of the eye gaze gesture is a command to control the second screen, control the information based on the second application on the second screen.

10. A method of controlling screens in a device, the method comprising:

displaying information based on at least one application separately on first and second screens;

changing an attribute of the second screen, upon detecting a gesture corresponding to performing a function related to the first screen the second screen while the information based on the at least one application separately on the first and second screens, the gesture being at least a user eye-movement directed toward the second screen; and

displaying the second screen that is changed by the changed attribute and partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen overlapped over the first screen while the user eye-movement remains directed toward the second screen.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the attribute of the second screen includes at least one of a position, a size, or a transparency of the second screen.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the gesture on the second screen further includes at least one of a hovering gesture, an input of a key in a terminal, a motion gesture of the terminal, or a user motion detected by infrared rays.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the displaying of the partial information of the first screen comprises:

displaying information based on a first application on the first screen and displaying information based on a second application on the second screen; and

displaying the partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable by moving the second screen from a currently displayed area of the second screen, upon detecting a hovering gesture above the second screen while the information based on the first application is being displayed on the first screen and the information based on the second application is being displayed on the second screen.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the displaying of the partial information of the first screen comprises:

displaying information based on a first application on the first screen and displaying information based on a second application on the second screen; and

displaying the partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable through the second screen by increasing a transparency of the second screen, upon detecting a hovering gesture above the second screen while the information based on the first application is being displayed on the first screen and the information based on the second application is being displayed on the second screen.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

displaying information based on a first application on the first screen and displaying information based on a second application on the second screen;

detecting a currently displayed area of the second screen, upon detecting an input gesture on an input window of the first screen while the information based on the first application is being displayed on the first screen and the information based on the second application is being displayed on the second screen; and

moving the second screen to a position at which the second screen is not overlapped over the input window and a keypad displayed by the input gesture or adjusting a size of the second screen not to overlap the input window or the keypad with the second screen, if the second screen is overlapped over the input window or the keypad.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

displaying information based on at least one application separately on a first layer and a second layer lying over the first layer; and

displaying partial information of the first layer hidden by the second layer to be viewable by changing an attribute of the second layer, upon detecting a gesture on the second layer while the information based on the at least one application is being displayed separately on the first and second layers.

17. A method of controlling screens in a device, the method comprising:

displaying information based on a first application on a first screen and displaying information based on a second application on a second screen overlapped over the first screen;

determining whether an eye-gaze gesture directed toward a display area of the second screen based on coordinates of a position of the eye gaze gesture, upon detecting the eye gaze gesture corresponding to perform a function related to the first screen while the information based on the first application is being displayed on the first screen and the information based on the second application is being displayed on the second screen;

determining a type of the eye gaze gesture, if the eye-gaze gesture was directed toward the second screen;

displaying partial information of the first screen hidden by the second screen to be viewable by moving the second screen out of a currently displayed area of the second screen while the second screen remains overlapping a portion of the first screen, if the determined type of the eye-gaze gesture is a request for moving the second screen; and

returning the second screen to a previous displayed area if a direction of the eye-gaze gesture moves away from the second screen or keeping the second screen in a currently displayed area, if the eye-gaze gesture remains directed toward the second screen.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising;

controlling the information based on the first application on the first screen, if it is determined that the gesture was directed toward the first screen based on the coordinates of the position of the eye-gaze gesture; and

controlling the information based on the second application on the second screen, if the determined type of the eye-gaze gesture is a command to control the second screen.