Touch screen device and operating method thereof

• US 8,115,739 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2007
• Issued: 02/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Park, Ho Joo, Bae, Seung Jun, Koo, Yoon Hee, Kang, Seong Cheol
• Primary Examiner(s): Mengistu, Amare
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rodriguez, Joseph G
• Application Number:
  US11/785,399
• Publication Number:
  US 20070273665A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,764 Days
• Field of Search: 345/173, 345/179, 345/204, 702/150
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04162 for exchanging data with external devices, e.g. smart pens, via the digitiser sensing hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/66 with means for preventing unauthorised or fraudulent calling verifying user identity or authority in secret or secure digital communications H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/10 Earpieces; Attachments therefor ; Earphones; Monophonic headphones H04R1/28 takes precedence; stereophonic headphones H04R5/033
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1041 Mechanical or electronic switches, or control elements switches in general H01H

Abstract

A touch screen device and an operating method thereof are provided. More specifically, a touch screen device is provided which allows a user to selectively restrict input through a touch screen. The touch screen device includes a screen that includes a display configured to display images thereon and a detector configured to detect a touch on the display and convert the touch into an electrical signal, and a controller configured to cause images to be displayed on the display and receive and process signals from the detector. Further, a user may determine whether the controller is operated according to the signal input into the detector. The determination may be made either by a switch separately installed on an earphone or by inputting a signal into the detector by a user.

Claims

1. A touch screen device for mobile communication capable of playing multimedia files, comprising:

a headset having a switch mounted thereon, wherein the switch is configured to be manually manipulated by a user, regardless of whether the headset is worn by the user; and

a main body configured to be electronically connected to the headset, the main body comprising;

a screen having a display configured to display images thereon and a detector configured to detect a touch on the screen; and

a controller configured to control operation of the main body in accordance with the screen touch detected by the detector and first and second functions of the main body, wherein, if a holding signal has been input to the controller, the controller ignores signals from the detector until an activation signal is input to the controller, and wherein the controller is further configured to assign a first type of touch gesture for activating only the first function of the first and second functions of the main body and a second type of touch gesture for activating only the second function of the first and second functions of the main body,

wherein when the switch is manipulated in a holding mode of the main body, the controller is configured to transition from the holding mode to a partial activation mode for activating one specific function of the main body while continuing to ignore signals from the detector except the holding signal, and

wherein the activated one specific function in the partial activation mode is related to a sound function of the main body.

2. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first type of touch gesture in a first direction is for activating the first function of the main body and the first type of touch gesture in a second direction is for de-activating the first function of the main body, the second direction being opposite the first direction.

3. The device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first function of the main body is a music player function and the second function of the main body is a camera function or a video function.

4. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one of the holding and activation signals can be input or changed by a user.

5. Digital equipment comprising the touch screen device of claim 1.

6. The digital equipment of claim 5, wherein the digital equipment comprises a MP3 player, a PDA, a portable media player, a portable terminal, a navigation system, or a notebook computer.

7. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the manipulation of the switch in the holding mode generates a partial activation signal for activating the one specific function of the main body.

8. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the headset comprises a pair of wireless earphones wirelessly connected to the main body and employing a short range wireless communication signal, wherein the switch is mounted on one of the wireless earphones.

9. The device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the short range wireless communication signal is a wireless signal employing a ZigBee™

or Bluetooth™

method.

10. A method of operating a touch screen device for mobile communication capable of playing multimedia files, the touch screen device including a headset having a switch mounted thereon which is configured to be manually manipulated by a user regardless of whether the headset is worn by the user, and a main body configured to be electronically connected to the headset, the main body comprising a screen having a display configured to display images thereon, a detector configured to detect a touch on the screen, and a controller configured to control operation of the main body in accordance with the screen touch detected by the detector and first and second functions of the main body, the method comprising:

ignoring signals from the detector until an activation signal is input to the controller, if the controller is operating the main body in a holding mode in response to a holding signal input to the controller;

assigning a first type of touch gesture for activating only the first function of the first and second functions of the main body and a second type of touch gesture for activating only the second function of the first and second functions of the main body; and

when the switch is manipulated in the holding mode of the main body, transitioning from the holding mode to a partial activation mode and activating one specific function of the main body while continuing to ignore signals from the detector except the holding signal,

wherein activating the one specific function in the partial activation mode is related to a sound control function of the main body.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising:

transferring the input signal from the detector to the controller and then processing the transferred signal if the main body is in the activation mode and the input signal is a signal other than the holding signal.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein at least one of the holding and activation signals is defined and set by a user.

13. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein at least one of the holding and activation signals is defined and set by a user.

14. A method of operating digital equipment mounted with a touch screen device, comprising the method of claim 10.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the digital equipment comprises a MP3 player, a PDA, a portable media player, a portable terminal, a navigation system, or a notebook computer.