Variable Rate Scrolling

• US 20100269038A1
• Filed: 04/17/2009
• Published: 10/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications USA Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications USA Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Tsuda, Takamoto
• Application Number:
  US12/425,665
• Publication Number:
  US 20100269038A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/702
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A method may include outputting, to a display, at least a portion of a number of items. The method may also include receiving a first user input via the display and identifying a location on the display corresponding to the first user input. The method may further include determining a scroll rate associated with the location and scrolling, via the display, the plurality of items at the determined scroll rate.

Claims

1. A device, comprising:

a touch screen display configured to;

display at least a portion of a plurality of items, and

receive a first user input;

display configuration logic configured to;

configure the touch screen display to include at least two regions, each of the at least two regions being associated with a different scroll rate for scrolling the plurality of items, and

provide a visual indicator on the touch screen display, the visual indicator identifying a relative scroll rate associated with the at least two regions; and

display control logic configured to;

identify a location on the touch screen display corresponding to the first user input, and

control the scroll rate of the plurality of items based on the location.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein when controlling the scroll rate, the display control logic is configured to:

scroll the plurality of items, via the touch screen display, at a first rate when the identified location corresponds to a first location, and

scroll the plurality of items, via the touch screen display, at a second rate when the identified location corresponds to a second location, wherein the second scroll rate is faster than the first scroll rate.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein when providing a visual indicator, the display configuration logic is configured to:

provide at least one of a plurality of colors or a plurality of brightness levels associated with a background of the touch screen display to indicate a relative scroll rate associated with each of the at least two regions.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein when providing a visual indicator, the display configuration logic is configured to:

provide at least one of a shape, a line or a graphical icon to indicate a relative scroll rate associated with each of the at least two regions.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the touch screen display is further configured to receive a second user input, and wherein the display control logic is further configured to:

change the scroll rate for scrolling the plurality of items based on a location of the second user input.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein when the second user input is located in a same one of the at least two regions as the first user input, the display control logic is further configured to:

increase the scroll rate associated with scrolling the plurality of items.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the display configuration logic is configured to

provide a graphical user interface (GUI) configured to allow the user to at least one of:

select the at least two regions associated with different scroll rates, or

select the visual indicator for identifying the relative scroll rate associated with the at least two regions.

8. The device of claim 7, where the GUI is further configured to allow the user to at least one of:

select types of scrolling associated with different types of user inputs, or

select how scrolling rates will be modified for an input provided subsequent to the first user input.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the display control logic is further configured to:

scroll, via the touch screen display, the plurality of items in response to the first user input, and

continue to scroll the plurality of items until a subsequent user input is detected.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the device comprises a mobile terminal.

11. A method comprising:

outputting, to a display, at least a portion of a plurality of items;

receiving a first user input via the display;

identifying a location on the display corresponding to the first user input;

determining a scroll rate associated with the location; and

scrolling, via the display, the plurality of items at the determined scroll rate.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the determining a scroll rate comprises:

determining a first scroll rate when the identified location corresponds to a first location, and

determining a second scroll rate when the identified location corresponds to a second location, wherein the second scroll rate is faster than the first scroll rate.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

providing, via the display, a visual indicator identifying relative scroll rates associated with different portions of the display for scrolling the plurality of items.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the providing a visual indicator comprises at least one of providing a color indicator or a brightness indicator to indicate relative scroll rates associated with the different portions of the display.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the providing a visual indicator comprises at least one of providing a shape, a line or a graphical icon to indicate a relative scroll rate associated with the different portions of the display.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving user preference information associated with configuring regions of the display to correspond to different scroll rate input regions; and

receiving user preference information associated with providing a visual indicator associated with the different scroll rate input regions.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving user preference information associated with identifying different types of user inputs provided via the display, wherein the different types of user inputs include at least two of a touch, a flicking motion or a dragging motion;

identifying a type of user input corresponding to the first user input; and

scrolling the plurality of items based on the identified type of user input.

18. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon sequences of instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to:

output, to a display, at least a portion of a plurality of items of interest;

receive, from the display, a first user input;

identify a location on the display corresponding to the first user input;

determine a scroll rate associated with the location; and

scroll, via the display, the plurality of items of interest at the determined scroll rate.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions for scrolling the plurality of items of interest cause the at least one processor to:

scroll, via the display, the plurality of items of interest at a first scroll rate when the identified location corresponds to a first side of the display, and

scroll, via the display, the plurality of items of interest at a second scroll rate when the identified location corresponds to a second side of the display, wherein the second scroll rate is faster than the first scroll rate.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, further including instructions for causing the at least one processor to:

provide a graphical user interface configured to;

receive user preference information for selecting regions corresponding to different scroll rates, and

receive user preference information for selecting a visual indicator for indicating different relative scroll rates associated with the regions.