Graphical User Interface and Methods of Use Thereof in a Multimedia Player

• US 20090241070A1
• Filed: 05/12/2009
• Published: 09/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Greg Christie, Imran Chaudhri, Jeffrey L. Robbin, Steve Jobs, Timothy Wasko
• Original Assignee: Greg Christie, Imran Chaudhri, Jeffrey L. Robbin, Steve Jobs, Timothy Wasko
• Inventors: Chaudhri, Imran, Christie, Greg, Wasko, Timothy, Jobs, Steve, Robbin, Jeffrey L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,188,357 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/854
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/632 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0008 Associated control or indicating means
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/061 MP3, i.e. MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, lossy audio compression
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/131 Library retrieval, i.e. searching a database or selecting a specific musical piece, segment, pattern, rule or parameter set

Abstract

In a portable multimedia device, a method, apparatus, and system for providing user supplied configuration data are described. In one embodiment, a hierarchically ordered graphical user interface is provided. A first order, or home, interface provides a highest order of user selectable items each of which, when selected, results in an automatic transition to a lower order user interface associated with the selected item. In one of the described embodiments, the lower order interface includes other user selectable items associated with the previously selected item from the higher order user interface.

Claims

1. A portable media player, comprising:

a storage device that stores media content for each of a plurality of media items;

a display screen that displays one of a plurality of hierarchically ordered sets of user selectable items;

a user input device that enables a user to interact with the one of more of the hierarchically ordered sets of user selectable items being displayed on said display screen; and

a processor operatively connected to said storage device and said user input device, said processor controls said portable media player to facilitate user navigation through the one of more of the hierarchically ordered sets of user selectable items to select a particular media item to be played, and then to play the media content of the particular media item that was selected,

wherein, in facilitating user navigation through the one of more of the hierarchically ordered sets of user selectable items, said processor operates to (i) display, on said display screen, a first order user interface having a first list of user selectable items each of which points to at least one second list of user selectable items;

(ii) receive, via said user input device, a user selection of one of the user selectable items from the first list; and

(iii) automatically transitioning to and displaying, on said display screen, a second order user interface based upon the selected one of the user selectable items from the first list, the second order user interface having the second list of user selectable items pointed to by the selected one of the user selectable items from the first list,

wherein said user input device user input device has an exposed upper surface that enables a user of said portable media player to scroll through the user selectable items by way of user movement with respect to the exposed upper surface of said user input device.

2. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the user selectable items in the second list points back to the corresponding one of the user selectable items in the first list and points forward to at least one user selectable item in a third list of user selectable items displayed by a corresponding third order user interface.

3. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein the particular media item pertains to one or more digital media assets.

4. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein said user input device user input device has an exposed upper surface that enables a user of said portable media player to navigate through at least the first list of user selectable items and the second list of user selectable items using one or more user movements with respect to the exposed upper surface of said user input device to at least identify the particular media item from the plurality of media items.

5. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein only a single finger of the user need be used to provide a user movement with respect to the exposed upper surface of said user input device.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the user selectable items of the second list are completely different than the user selectable items of the first list.

7. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein the user movement with respect to the exposed upper surface of said user input device comprises user movement across the exposed upper surface of said user input device.

8. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein said portable media player further comprises:

a feedback circuit operatively connected to said user input device and said processor, said feedback circuit produces a sound effect indicating degree of movement with respect to said user input device.

9. A portable media player as recited in claim 8, wherein the sound effect is electrically induced by said feedback circuit.

10. A portable media player as recited in claim 8, wherein said feedback circuit comprises a piezoelectric buzzer.

11. A portable media player as recited in claim 9, wherein said user input device further comprises a button provided at the center of said user input device.

12. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein the user movement comprises one or more revolutions of said user input device via a single finger of the user without lifting the finger from said user input device

13. A portable media player as recited in claim 1, wherein the amount of scrolling performed is dependent on the amount of the user movement with respect to said user input device.

14. A portable media player as recited in claim 1,

wherein said user input device user input device has an exposed upper surface that enables a user of said portable media player to navigate through at least the first list of user selectable items and the second list of user selectable items using one or more user movements with respect to the exposed upper surface of said user input device to at least identify the particular media item from the plurality of media items, and

wherein said portable media player further comprises another user input device that enables the user to select the particular media item following navigation through at least the first list of user selectable items and the second list of user selectable items using one or more user movements with respect to the exposed upper surface of said user input device.