DISPLAYING MESSAGES ON HANDHELD DEVICES

• US 20110087993A1
• Filed: 12/16/2010
• Published: 04/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Zinn, Scotte, Yach, David
• Granted Patent: US 9,542,073 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/786
• 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: H04M 1/7243 with interactive means for internal management of messages

Abstract

A method of displaying messages on handheld devices. The device displays messages in a scrollable viewport of vertically arranged fields. Date separators inserted into the vertically arranged list of messages to enable the user to associate the messages with a date. The date separators have “sticky” operation, meaning that the device ensures a date separator always appears within the viewport, even when the viewport has been scrolled to the middle of a long list of messages all associated with the same date. The device may ensure that the top field of the viewport always contains a date separator associated with the message immediately below.

Claims

1. A method of displaying message items on a display of an electronic device, each message item having an associated date, the method comprising:

displaying a date separator item in a topmost field of a viewport on the display, wherein the date separator item is based upon the associated date of a message item displayed in a second field of the viewport;

determining whether a next date separator item would appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied; and

after receiving an upward scrolling command to scroll message items upward in the viewport, if a next date separator item would not appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied, maintaining the display of the date separator item in the topmost field.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

after receiving an upward scrolling command, if a next date separator item would appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied, displaying a message item in the topmost field.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the date separator item includes a date indicator identifying the associated date of the message item displayed in the second field of the viewport.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the date separator item includes a message count indicator, the message count indicator identifying a number of message items associated with the date which the date separator item is based upon.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the message item is a calendar item.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the message item includes header information.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the header information comprises any of:

a sender of a message, a title of the message, or an urgency indicator.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the viewport displays a plurality of message items and wherein the plurality of message items are arranged in a chronological format based upon a date and time associated with each message item.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the second field is immediately below the topmost field.

10. An electronic device comprising:

a display;

an input device; and

a processor connected to the display for controlling operation of the display, the processor being configured for;

displaying a date separator item in a topmost field of a viewport on the display, wherein the date separator item is based upon the associated date of a message item displayed in a second field of the viewport;

determining whether a next date separator item would appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied; and

after receiving an upward scrolling command to scroll message items upward in the viewport, if a next date separator item would not appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied, maintaining the display of the date separator item in the topmost field.

11. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured for:

after receiving an upward scrolling command, if a next date separator item would appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied, displaying a message item in the topmost field.

12. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the date separator item includes a date indicator identifying the associated date of the message item displayed in the second field of the viewport.

13. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the date separator item includes a message count indicator, the message count indicator identifying a number of message items associated with the date which the date separator item is based upon.

14. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the message item is a calendar item.

15. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the message item includes header information.

16. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the header information comprises any of:

a sender of a message, a title of the message, or an urgency indicator.

17. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the viewport to display a plurality of message items and wherein the plurality of message items are arranged in a chronological format based upon a date and time associated with each message item.

18. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the second field is immediately below the topmost field.

19. A computer program product having a computer readable medium tangibly embodying computer executable instructions for displaying message items on a display of an electronic device, each message item having an associated date, the computer executable instructions comprising:

instructions for displaying a date separator item in a topmost field of a viewport on the display, wherein the date separator item is based upon the associated date of a message item displayed in a second field of the viewport;

instructions for determining whether a next date separator item would appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied; and

instructions for, after receiving an upward scrolling command to scroll message items upward in the viewport, if a next date separator item would not appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied, maintaining the display of the date separator item in the topmost field.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein the computer executable instructions further comprise:

instructions for, after receiving an upward scrolling command, if a next date separator item would appear in the viewport after upward scrolling is applied, displaying a message item in the topmost field.