3D MOBILE USER INTERFACE WITH CONFIGURABLE WORKSPACE MANAGEMENT

• US 20110246950A1
• Filed: 03/30/2011
• Published: 10/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seven Networks LLC (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Seven Networks Inc
• Inventors: Luna, Michael, Fiatal, Trevor A.
• Granted Patent: US 9,043,731 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/848
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72469 for operating the device by selecting functions from two or more displayed items, e.g. menus or icons

Abstract

Systems and methods of a 3D mobile user interface with configurable workspace management are disclosed. In one aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure include a method, which may be implemented on a system, of a three-dimensional, multi-layer user interface of a mobile device in a mobile network. User environment may include one or more layers or levels of applications, services, or accounts that are all easily accessible to and navigable by the user. For example, an indicator can be used to access a workspace in 3D representing a category or grouping of services or applications for the user. The user can customize or create a unique, non-mutually exclusive grouping, aggregation, or category of applications, services, accounts, or items. The grouping of indicators can be used to swiftly and efficiently navigate to a desired application, service, account or item, in a 3D-enabled user environment.

Claims

1. A machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions, which when executed, cause a processor to perform a method for multiple workspace access on a mobile device, the method, comprising:

depicting a first indicator in a user environment selectable in operation of the mobile device to access a workspace through the user environment;

wherein, the workspace is defined for a first associated function, the workspace being associated with one or more services corresponding to the first associated function;

graphically presenting the workspace in the user environment as having a third dimension relative to an interface in the user environment, responsive to selection of the first indicator,

the workspace including a first grouping of indicators each of which is selectable to access a corresponding service in the one or more services corresponding to the first associated function;

wherein, each of the first grouping of indicators are viewable in the third dimension in the workspace.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first associated function is a professional function.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first associated function is a personal function.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, the workspace is presented as having the third dimension via a zooming action.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising,

responsive to selection of an indicator in the first grouping of indicators, graphically presenting another interface or work space as having a third dimension in the user environment.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, the another interface includes another grouping of indicators each of which is selectable to access a corresponding service in the services corresponding to the first associated function.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein, the another interface enables access to a service associated with the indicator in the first grouping of indicators which was selected.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first associated function is user-defined.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first associated function is platform dependent.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first grouping of indicators are user-selected.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein, the one or more services corresponding to the first associated function are user-defined.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

depicting a second indicator in the user environment selectable in operation of the mobile device to access a second workspace through the user environment;

wherein, the second workspace is defined for a second associated function, the workspace being associated with one or more services corresponding to the second associated function.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

graphically presenting the second work space in the user environment as having a third dimension relative to an interface in the user environment, responsive to selection of the second indicator,

the second workspace including a second grouping of indicators each of which is selectable to access a corresponding service in the one or more services corresponding to the second associated function.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein, the first and second indicators are depicted in a home screen in the user environment.

15. A machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions, which when executed, cause a processor to perform a method for multiple workspace three dimensional access on a mobile device, the method, comprising:

depicting a first indicator in a home screen of a user environment selectable in operation of the mobile device to access a workspace through the user environment;

graphically presenting the workspace in the user environment as having a third dimension relative to an interface in the user environment, responsive to selection of the first indicator, the workspace including a first grouping of indicators each selectable for application or service access;

depicting a second indicator in the home screen of the user environment selectable to access a second workspace through the user environment;

graphically presenting the second workspace in the user environment as having a third dimension relative to an interface in the user environment, responsive to selection of the second indicator,

the second workspace including a second grouping of indicators each selectable for application or service access.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein, the user environment is able to be navigated between the first and second workspaces without returning to the home screen.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

responsive to selection of an indicator in the first grouping of indicators, graphically presenting another interface in the work space as having a third dimension in the user environment;

wherein, the another interface includes another grouping of indicators.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second workspaces are user-configured for different functions including a professional function and a personal function.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second workspaces are positioned in the user environment as having different depths the ordering of which is determined based on contextual data of the user or the mobile device.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein, the first and second workspaces are presented as having the third dimension via a zooming action.

21. A system that provides multiple work space access on a mobile device, the system, comprising:

means for, depicting a first indicator in a user environment selectable in operation of the mobile device to access a workspace through the user environment;

wherein, the workspace is defined for a first associated function, the workspace being associated with one or more services corresponding to the first associated function;

means for, graphically presenting the workspace in the user environment as having a third dimension relative to an interface in the user environment, responsive to selection of the first indicator;

means for, presenting the workspace the third dimension via a zooming action;

the workspace including a first grouping of indicators each of which is selectable to access a corresponding service in the one or more services corresponding to the first associated function.

22. A method for configuration of multiple workspaces in a user environment on a mobile device, the method, comprising:

receiving, from a user, identification of mobile applications to be associated with a workspace in the user environment to be accessed via the mobile device;

creating the workspace in the user environment, the workspace to be associated with a graphical indicator depicted on a user interface in the user environment selectable by the user to access the workspace;

wherein, the workspace is further created to be associated with application indicators each associated with one of the mobile applications identified by the user to be associated with the workspace;

graphically presenting the work space in the user environment, responsive to selection of the graphical indicator, the workspace including the application indicators each selectable to access the mobile applications.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein, the workspace is graphically presented as having a third dimension relative to a planar interface in the user environment.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the graphical indicator to access the workspace is depicted on a user interface on the home screen.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the workspace is associated with a specific user account and different workspaces having different application associations are created for different user accounts on the mobile device.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the workspace is created for a user-defined function.

27. The method of claim 22, further comprising, creating multiple workspaces in the user environment;

wherein, each of the workspace has an associated set of mobile applications accessible in the workspace, the associated set of mobile applications selected by the user or set in default based on a platform.