Mobile terminal and method for controlling the same

• US 9,742,904 B2
• Filed: 10/06/2014
• Issued: 08/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics USA Incorporated (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Choi, Jinhae, Kim, Jonghoon, Lee, Younghoon, Chi, Jumin
• Primary Examiner(s): Afshar, Kamran
• Assistant Examiner(s): Seyedvosoghi, Farid
• Application Number:
  US14/507,489
• Publication Number:
  US 20150148106A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,051 Days
• Field of Search: 455566, 345173-178, 713182, 715863
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/36 by graphic or iconic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0266 for a display module assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724634 With partially locked states, e.g. when some telephonic functional locked states or applications remain accessible in the locked states
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/68 Gesture-dependent or behaviour-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A mobile terminal including a terminal body; a wireless communication unit configured to perform wireless communication; a touchscreen display unit configured to switch between an inactivated state in which illumination is not applied to the touchscreen display unit and an activated state in which illumination is applied to the touch screen display unit; and a controller configured to receive a touch input on the touchscreen display unit when the touchscreen display unit is in the inactivated state, and execute a function corresponding to the received touch input and activate the touchscreen display unit.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal comprising:

a terminal body;

a wireless communication unit configured to perform wireless communication;

a touchscreen display unit configured to switch between an inactivated state in which illumination is not applied to the touchscreen display unit and an activated state in which illumination is applied to the touchscreen display unit; and

a controller configured to;

receive a touch pattern input while the touchscreen display unit is in the inactivated state,

receive a pre-set tapping input while the touchscreen display unit is in the inactivated state, and

in response to receiving the pre-set tapping input within a first predetermined time period after the touch pattern input, switch the touchscreen display unit from the inactivated state to the activated state, execute a function corresponding to the touch pattern input and display an execution screen of the function on the touchscreen display unit,

wherein the function is varied based on a shape or a pattern of the touch pattern input,

wherein the pre-set tapping input includes at least a first tap and a second tap, the second tap being received within a second predetermined time period after the first tap,

wherein the function corresponding to the touch pattern input includes;

dividing the touchscreen display unit into a first region and a second region; and

activating the first region based on the pre-set tapping input while maintaining the second region in the inactivated state, and

wherein a location and a size of the first region are varied according to a touch track of the received touch pattern input.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to maintain the touchscreen display unit in the inactivated state before the pre-set tap input is sensed.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to maintain the touchscreen display unit in the inactivated state when the pre-set tapping input is sensed within the first predetermined time period and there is no function corresponding to the touch track of the received touch input.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the pre-set tapping input occurs on one of the mobile terminal itself or an object the mobile terminal is placed on.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to execute different functions for different shapes formed by a touch track of the received touch pattern input.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the touch pattern input corresponds to a superordinate function, and

wherein the controller is further configured to execute a subordinate function of the superordinate function based on at least one of a position to which the pre-set tapping input has been applied and a number of applied tapping gestures corresponding to the pre-set tapping input.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 6, wherein the superordinate function corresponding to the touch pattern input corresponds to a call origination function, and

wherein the controller is further configured to:

execute a call origination function with respect to a first counterpart, when a first tapping gesture applied to the terminal body by a first reference number of times is input, and

execute a call origination function with respect to a second counterpart, when a second tapping gesture applied to the terminal body by a second reference number of times different from the first reference number of times is input.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 1, further comprising:

a light emitting unit disposed on a front surface of the terminal body and configured to emit light based on the function when the function is executed.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to:

control the light emitting unit to emit a first light when the function corresponds to a first function, and

control the light emitting unit to emit a second light when the function corresponds to a second function different from the first function.

10. The mobile terminal of claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to control the light emitting unit to emit light during the touch pattern input or until a point in time at which the pre-set tapping input is sensed.

11. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to display executed screens of different functions in the first region, based on at least one of a position to which the pre-set tapping input is applied and a number of applied tapping gestures corresponding to the pre-set tapping input.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to release a locked state of the mobile terminal without inputting a password, when the shape formed by the touch pattern input matches a signature stored in advance.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

activate a doze mode in the mobile terminal, after the touchscreen display unit is deactivated, and

when a first touch input of the touch pattern input is moved from a first touch position rather than being released, enter an active mode for receiving the pattern touch input.

14. The mobile terminal of claim 13, wherein when the pre-set tapping input is not received within the first predetermined time period after the touch pattern input, the controller is further configured to re-activate the doze mode.

15. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the inactivated state is a state in which no information and no graphic images are displayed on the touchscreen display unit.

16. A method of controlling a mobile terminal, the method comprising:

receiving, via a controller of the mobile terminal, a touch pattern input while a touchscreen display unit is in an inactivated state in which illumination is not applied to the touch screen display unit of the mobile terminal;

receiving, via the controller, a pre-set tapping input while the touchscreen display unit is in the inactivated state; and

in response to receiving the pre-set tapping input within a first predetermined time period after the touch pattern input, switching, via the controller, the touchscreen display unit from the inactivated state to an activated state in which illumination is applied to the touchscreen display unit, executing a function corresponding to the touch pattern input and displaying an execution screen of the function on the touchscreen display unit,

wherein the function is varied based on a shape or a pattern of the touch pattern input,

wherein the pre-set tapping input includes at least a first tap and a second tap, the second tap being received within a second predetermined time period after the first tap,

wherein the switching the touchscreen display unit from the inactivated state to the activated state comprises;

dividing the touchscreen display unit into a first region and a second region; and

activating the first region based on the pre-set tapping input while maintaining the second region in the inactivated state, and

wherein a location and a size of the first region are varied according to a touch track of the received touch pattern input.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the inactivated state is a state in which no information and no graphic images are displayed on the touchscreen display unit.