Mobile terminal device, operation method, program, and storage medium

• US 9,507,401 B2
• Filed: 07/15/2015
• Issued: 11/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Mobile Communications Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Tokutake, Kenji
• Primary Examiner(s): Shankar, Vijay
• Application Number:
  US14/800,229
• Publication Number:
  US 20160011643A1
• Time in Patent Office: 503 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-179, 178 1801- 1809, 178 2001- 2004
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3218 of display devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3262 Power saving in digitizer or tablet
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0421 by interrupting or reflecting a light beam, e.g. optical touch-screen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A mobile terminal device includes a touch panel where a specified input operation is performed with an indicator, an input detection unit, and an operation determination unit. The input detection unit detects the pattern of the input operation based on the position of the indicator on the touch panel, and decreases the frequency of execution of processing arranged to detect the input operation performed on the touch panel when an input operation performed on the touch panel is not detected over a specified time period. When the pattern of the input operation is detected in the case where the execution frequency of the processing arranged to detect the input operation is low, the operation determination unit causes a controlled unit determined to be an operation target in relation to the pattern of the input operation to execute a specified operation.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a mobile terminal device, the method comprising:

detecting an input operation associated with a touch panel;

detecting a predetermined contact of the input operation associated with the touch panel;

shifting the mobile terminal device to a suspend state when an input operation is not detected over a specified time period; and

executing a specific operation when the predetermined contact of the input operation associated with the touch panel corresponding to the specific operation is detected when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

2. The method for controlling a mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein each of the predetermined contact differs depending on the corresponding specific operation.

3. The method for controlling a mobile terminal according to claim 1,

wherein the touch panel includes a plurality of panels, and

wherein the method further comprises:

decreasing a frequency of detection by one or more of the panels to a certain level; and

decreasing the frequency of detection by the other panels to another level lower than the certain level when said detecting the input operations does not detect the input operation by certain one or more of the panels over the specified time period.

4. The method for controlling a mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the specific operation is displaying a home screen, starting a camera application, or reproducing music.

5. The method for controlling a mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined contact includes sequential contacts of predetermined locations and/or simultaneous contacts of predetermined multiple locations.

6. A non-transitory computer readable medium including executable instructions, which cause processing circuitry to execute a method for controlling a mobile terminal device, comprising:

detecting an input operation associated with a touch panel;

detecting a predetermined contact of the input operation associated with the touch panel;

shifting the mobile terminal device to a suspend state when an input operation is not detected over a specified time period; and

executing a specific operation when the predetermined contact of the input operation on the touch panel corresponding to the specific operation is detected when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

7. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to 6, wherein each of the predetermined contact differs depending on the corresponding specific operation.

8. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 6,

wherein the touch panel includes a plurality of panels, and

wherein the method further comprises:

decreasing a frequency of detection by one or more of the panels to a certain level; and

decreasing the frequency of detection by the other panels to another level lower than the certain level when said detecting the input operations does not detect the input operation by certain one or more of the panels over the specified time period.

9. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 6, wherein the specific operation is displaying a home screen, starting a camera application, or reproducing music.

10. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 6, wherein the predetermined contact includes sequential contacts of predetermined locations and/or simultaneous contacts of predetermined multiple locations.

11. A mobile terminal device comprising:

a touch panel that detects an input operation; and

processing circuitry that

detects a predetermined contact of the input operation on the touch panel;

controls the mobile terminal device to shift to a suspend state when an input operation is not detected by the touch panel over a specified time period; and

executes a specific operation when the predetermined contact of the input operation on the touch panel corresponding to the specific operation is detected when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

12. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the predetermined contact includes sequential contacts of predetermined locations, the sequential contacts including continuous contact of the predetermined locations.

13. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein each of the predetermined contact differs depending on the corresponding specific operation.

14. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the processing circuitry displays a home screen, starts a camera application, or reproduces music when the predetermined contact of the input operation on the touch panel corresponding to the specific operation is detected when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

15. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, further comprising:

a sensor unit that outputs a sensor value,

wherein the processing circuitry determines which of a specific operation to execute from a plurality of specific operations based on the sensor value, when the predetermined contact of the input operation on the touch panel is detected when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

16. The mobile terminal device according to claim 15, wherein the sensor unit includes an acceleration sensor, and the processing circuitry executes the determined specific operation according to the sensor value.

17. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the processing circuitry executes the specific operation when a predetermined combination of plurality of predetermined contacts of the input operation on the touch panel corresponding to the specific operation is detected when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

18. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, further comprising:

a display,

wherein the processing circuitry judges whether the input operation detected by the touch panel is similar to the predetermined contact and controls the display to display a guide representing the predetermined contact when the processing circuitry judges the input operation is similar to the predetermined contact.

19. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the processing circuitry controls a sleep period where at least one of the functions of the mobile terminal device is stopped between detection periods of the touch panel when the mobile terminal device is in the suspend state.

20. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11,

wherein the touch panel includes a plurality of panels, and

wherein the processing circuitry decreases a frequency of detection by one or more of the panels to a certain level and to decrease the frequency of detection by the other panels to another level lower than the certain level when the input operation is not detected by certain one or more of the panels over the specified time period.

21. The mobile terminal device according to claim 20, wherein one of the panels is a front panel located on a front side of the mobile terminal device and two of the other panels are side panels located on one or more lateral sides of the mobile terminal device.

22. The mobile terminal device according to claim 21, wherein the processing circuitry decreases the frequency of detection by the front panel to be a deep sleep mode or a power off mode which is lower than the frequency of detection by the side panels.

23. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the processing circuitry changes the predetermined contact of the input operation to another predetermined contact of the input operation based on the input from the touch panel.

24. The mobile terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the predetermined contact includes sequential contacts of predetermined locations and/or simultaneous contacts of predetermined multiple locations.