Mobile terminal

• US 9,854,073 B2
• Filed: 01/13/2017
• Issued: 12/26/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Jaichul, Cha, Ilgu
• Primary Examiner(s): Sternbane, Larry
• Assistant Examiner(s): Edwards, Mark
• Application Number:
  US15/405,967
• Publication Number:
  US 20170134543A1
• Time in Patent Office: 347 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1671 Special purpose buttons or auxiliary keyboards, e.g. retractable mini keypads, keypads or buttons that remain accessible at closed laptop G06F1/1666 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0202 Portable telephone sets, e.g. cordless phones, mobile phones or bar type handsets constructional features of telephone transmitters or receivers, e.g. of speakers or microphones H04M1/03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0262 for a battery compartment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0277 for a printed circuit board assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/236 including keys on side or rear faces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/38 Displays
• 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: H04M 2250/52 including functional features of a camera constructional features concerning the integration of cameras in portable phones H04M1/0264

Abstract

A mobile terminal including of a terminal body having a front side and a rear side, a mobile communication module configured to transmit and receive a wireless signal, a touch screen disposed at the front side, a battery, a battery cover disposed at the rear side, the battery cover having a first through hole and a second through hole, a camera exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the first through hole of the battery cover, an input unit configured to receive an input, the input unit being exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the second through hole of the battery cover and a controller configured to process the input as control commands for different functions according to operating states of the mobile terminal. Further, a first function to release a locked state of the mobile terminal is performed based on a first input applied in a first state that a lock screen is displayed on the touch screen, a second function to connect an incoming call is performed based on a second input applied in a second state that a screen indicating the incoming call is displayed on the touch screen, and a third function to capture an image through the camera is performed based on a third input applied in a third state that a camera preview is displayed on the touch screen.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal comprising:

a terminal body having a front side and a rear side;

a mobile communication module transmitting and receiving a wireless signal;

a touch screen disposed at the front side;

a battery;

a battery cover disposed at the rear side, the battery cover having a first through hole and a second through hole;

a camera exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the first through hole of the battery cover;

an input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body to receive an input, the input unit being exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the second through hole of the battery cover; and

a controller processing the input as control commands for different functions according to operating states of the mobile terminal,

wherein a first function to release a locked state of the mobile terminal is performed based on a first input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in a first state that a lock screen is displayed on the touch screen,

wherein a second function to connect an incoming call is performed based on a second input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in a second state that a screen indicating the incoming call is displayed on the touch screen, and

wherein a third function to capture an image through the camera is performed based on a third input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in a third state that a camera preview is displayed on the touch screen.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the terminal body is provided with a bar-type terminal body,

wherein a front side of the bar-type terminal body does not have any manipulation unit for inputting a control command except for the touch screen, and

wherein the input unit is disposed at a rear side of the bar-type terminal body between the battery and the camera.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 2, further comprising:

a supporting member supporting the input unit, the supporting member being provided at the bar-type terminal body and overlapping at least a part of the input unit to support the input unit.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 3, wherein the supporting member is obscured by the battery cover and the button member is exposed to an outside of the terminal body through the second through hole of the battery cover.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the input unit includes:

a button member disposed at the second through hole of the battery cover; and

a touch sensing unit sensing a touch input in response to a touch applied to the button member.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 5, wherein the incoming call is connected in response to the touch input sensed by the touch sensing unit in the second state.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 5, wherein the locked state of the mobile terminal is converted to an unlocked state in response to the touch input sensed by the touch sensing unit in the first state.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 5, wherein a perimeter of the button member is coplanar with an outer surface of the rear side of the terminal body.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the image is captured through the camera when the input is applied for a holding time in the third state.

10. The mobile terminal of claim 9, wherein the touch screen outputs information which is variable according to the holding time.

11. A mobile terminal comprising:

a terminal body having a front side and a rear side;

a touch screen disposed at the front side, the touch screen being configured to display visual information;

a battery cover having a through hole; and

an input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body, the input unit including;

a button member exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the through hole of the battery cover; and

a touch sensing unit sensing a touch input in response to a touch applied to the button member,

wherein a locked state of the mobile terminal is converted to an unlocked state based on a first touch input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in a first state that a lock screen is displayed on the touch screen, and

wherein an incoming call is connected based on a second touch input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in a second state that a screen indicating the incoming call is displayed on the touch screen.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 11, wherein the terminal body is provided with a bar-type terminal body having a battery and a camera,

wherein the camera is disposed at a rear side of the bar-type terminal body,

wherein a front side of the bar-type terminal body does not have any manipulation unit for inputting a control command except for the touch screen, and

wherein the input unit is disposed at the rear side of the bar-type terminal body between the battery and the camera.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 12, further comprising:

a supporting member supporting the input unit, the supporting member being provided at the bar-type terminal body and overlapping at least a part of the input unit to support the input unit.

14. The mobile terminal of claim 12, wherein an image is captured through the camera when an input is applied for a holding time in a third state that a camera preview is displayed on the touch screen.

15. The mobile terminal of claim 14, wherein the touch screen outputs information which is variable according to the holding time.

16. The mobile terminal of claim 11, wherein a perimeter of the button member is coplanar with an outer surface of the rear side of the terminal body.

17. A mobile terminal comprising:

a terminal body having a front side and a rear side;

a touch screen disposed at the front side, the touch screen being configured to display visual information;

a battery cover disposed at the rear side, the battery cover having a first through hole and a second through hole;

a camera exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the first through hole of the battery cover; and

an input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body to receive an input, the input unit being exposed to an outside of the terminal body at the second through hole,

wherein a locked state of the mobile terminal is released based on a first input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in the locked state, and

wherein an image is captured through the camera based on a second input applied to the input unit provided at the rear side of the terminal body in a camera preview state.

18. The mobile terminal of claim 17, wherein the terminal body is provided with a bar-type terminal body having a battery,

wherein a front side of the bar-type terminal body does not have any manipulation unit for inputting a control command except for the touch screen, and

wherein the input unit is disposed at a rear side of the bar-type terminal body between the battery and the camera.

19. The mobile terminal of claim 18, further comprising:

a supporting member supporting the input unit, the supporting member being provided at the bar-type terminal body, overlapping at least a part of the input unit to support the input unit, and being obscured by the battery cover.

20. The mobile terminal of claim 17, wherein the input unit includes:

a button member disposed at the second through hole of the battery cover; and

a touch sensing unit sensing a touch input in response to a touch applied to the button member.

21. The mobile terminal of claim 20, wherein the locked state of the mobile terminal is converted to an unlocked state in response to the touch input sensed by the touch sensing unit in the locked state.

22. The mobile terminal of claim 20, wherein an incoming call is connected in response to the touch input sensed by the touch sensing unit when a screen indicating the incoming call is displayed on the touch screen.