WHEELED USER INPUT DEVICE IN COOPERATION WITH A HANDHELD ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION DEVICE

• US 20090174655A1
• Filed: 01/07/2008
• Published: 07/09/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/07/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: GRIFFIN, Jason T., Fyke, Steven
• Granted Patent: US 7,843,428 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/157
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0213 Arrangements providing an integrated pointing device in a keyboard, e.g. trackball, mini-joystick for pointing devices integrated in a laptop computer G06F1/169; joysticks G05G9/047; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/033 Pointing devices displaced or positioned by the user , e.g. mice, trackballs, pens or joysticks; Accessories therefor digitisers characterised by the transducing means G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0362 with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2221/01 also rotatable

Abstract

A handheld wireless communication device includes a device body having a display screen. The display screen is located above a user input device located on a front face of the body. The user input device includes a set of four rotatable wheels, each mounted on an axle having a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular relative the front face of the body. At least one sensor is operatively associated with the set of four wheels and is configured to sense motion induced in any of the four wheels. Additionally the at least one sensor is further configured to output electronic data representative of sensed wheel motion. The device further includes a microprocessor that is programmed to process input data into cursor guidance instructions that are outputted to the display screen and which affect x-direction and y-direction cursor movement on the display screen in correspondence with the sensed wheel motion.

Claims

1. A handheld electronic communication device, comprising:

a device body having a display screen located above a four-wheeled user input device located on a front face of the body, said four-wheeled user input device comprising a set of four rotatable wheels, each mounted on an axle having a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular relative the front face of the body and said axles being arranged in a substantially square pattern in a plan view toward the front face of the body;

at least one sensor operatively associated with the set of four wheels, said at least one sensor configured to sense motion induced in any of said four wheels and said at least one sensor further configured to output electronic data representative of sensed wheel motion; and

a microprocessor communicatively interposed between the at least one sensor and the display screen and programmed to receive the output electronic data from the at least one sensor as input data and to process said input data into cursor guidance instructions that are outputted to the display screen and which affect at least one of x-direction and y-direction cursor movement on the display screen in correspondence with the sensed wheel motion.

2. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the substantially square pattern arrangement of the axles defines, in the plan view toward the front face of the body, an upper-left wheel, an upper-right wheel, a lower-left wheel and a lower-right wheel.

3. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct y-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous opposite direction rotation of the upper-left wheel and the upper-right wheel is sensed.

4. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct y-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous clockwise direction rotation of the upper-left wheel is sensed and counterclockwise direction rotation of the upper-right wheel is sensed.

5. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct y-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous opposite direction rotation of the lower-left wheel and the lower-right wheel is sensed.

6. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct y-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous clockwise direction rotation of the lower-left wheel is sensed and counterclockwise direction rotation of the lower-right wheel is sensed.

7. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct x-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous opposite direction rotation of the upper-left wheel and the lower-left wheel is sensed.

8. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct x-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous counterclockwise direction rotation of the upper-left wheel is sensed and clockwise direction rotation of the lower-left wheel is sensed.

9. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct x-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous opposite direction rotation of the upper-right wheel and the lower-right wheel is sensed.

10. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct x-direction cursor movement on the display screen when substantially simultaneous counterclockwise direction rotation of the upper-right wheel is sensed and clockwise direction rotation of the lower-right wheel is sensed.

11. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said microprocessor is further programmed to instruct diagonal cursor movement on the display screen when first direction rotation is sensed in a first wheel, substantially opposite direction rotation is subsequently sensed in a wheel positioned adjacent to said first wheel and then substantially first direction rotation is thereafter sensed in the wheel positioned catercorner to the first wheel.

12. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, further comprising said four-wheeled user input device being mounted atop a depressibly actuable platform.

13. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one of the four rotatable wheels is depressibly actuable for initiating execution of a corresponding programmed application on the handheld electronic communication device.

14. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the four rotatable wheels is depressibly actuable for initiating execution of a respectively corresponding programmed application on the handheld electronic communication device.

15. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the four rotatable wheels is rotatably mounted upon a respective non-rotatable axle and a top end of each axle is exposed with a device function indicia associated therewith.

16. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 15, wherein at least one of the non-rotatable axles has a top end marked with indicia for telephone call initiation.

17. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 15, wherein at least one of the non-rotatable axles has a top end marked with indicia for telephone call end.

18. The handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 15, wherein at least one of the non-rotatable axles has a top end marked with indicia for menu display.

19. A method for executing cursor navigation on a display screen of a handheld electronic communication device, the method comprising:

sensing, via at least one sensor, motion induced in any one of four rotatable wheels of a four-wheeled user input device located on a front face of the body, each of said four rotatable wheels mounted on a respective axle having a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular relative the front face of the body and said axles being arranged in a substantially square pattern in a plan view toward the front face of the body and wherein said body further comprises a display screen located above the four-wheeled user input device;

inputting data indicative of the sensed motion to a microprocessor communicatively interposed between the at least one sensor and the display screen, said microprocessor being programmed to receive cursor guidance instructions via the sensor and to cause corresponding cursor movement on the display screen; and

processing said input data into cursor guidance instructions that are outputted to the display screen and which affect at least one of x-direction and y-direction cursor movement on the display screen in correspondence with the sensed wheel motion.

20. A computer program for executing cursor navigation on a handheld electronic communication device, said program configured to run on a microprocessor in the handheld electronic communication device and programmed to receive data from at least one sensor indicative of sensed motion induced in any one of four rotatable wheels of a four-wheeled user input device located on a front face of the body, each of said four rotatable wheels mounted on a respective axle having a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular relative the front face of the body and said axles being arranged in a substantially square pattern in a plan view toward the front face of the body and wherein said body further comprises a display screen located above the four-wheeled user input device and wherein the microprocessor is communicatively interposed between the at least one sensor and the display screen, and said program being further programmed to cause at least one of x-direction and y-direction cursor movement on the display screen in correspondence with the sensed wheel motion.