JP2005341480A - Mobile terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mobile terminal which is small and superior in mobility, and having high operability, in relation to various functions except for telephone conversation. <P>SOLUTION: Two cabinets are made linked so as to be extendable in two different directions and is configured to expose only required operation keys responding from a shrunken state ((a)) to respective extended states ((b), (c)). The extended states of the cabinets are detected based on outputs of photo sensors 10a, 10b, and an application is activated, in response to the extended states of the cabinets. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a mobile terminal represented by, for example, a mobile phone, and more particularly to a mobile terminal in which two housings have a movable mechanism.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, mobile phones as mobile terminals have drastically improved functions, and have moved from being positioned as simple mobile phones dedicated to calls to being positioned as portable information terminals represented by PDA (Personal Digital Assistants). It has changed.
As an example of enhancement of the functionality of a mobile phone, there is a camera function equipped with an image sensor, and there is, for example, a function that enables high-quality photography, video recording, videophone function, etc. exceeding 1 million pixels. There are also television mobile phones with a built-in tuner for analog television in the market, and it is expected that mobile phones compatible with digital broadcasting will be commercialized in the near future.

A cellular phone having a built-in TV tuner is disclosed in Patent Document 1 below.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-9920

In addition, while downsizing of mobile phones is rapidly progressing from the viewpoint of convenience when being carried, recent mobile phones mainly use display screens in order to satisfy the demand for enlargement of display screens in accordance with improved functions. And a first housing having a receiver and a second housing mainly having operation keys and a transmitter are mainly slidably coupled to each other.
Especially, the large LCD (liquid crystal screen) is exposed so that it can be seen with the case closed, allowing you to browse and receive information without having to open the case. Mobile phones having a sliding mechanism of a mold have been attracting attention.

By the way, while recent cellular phones have been enhanced in functionality as described above, there is a problem that user operability is not always sufficient for the enhancement in functionality.
That is, since the mobile phone does not have an optimum form for the additional function such as the camera function and the digital broadcast receiving function, the operability of the operation keys and the like is not required when shifting from the call function to the additional function. It can be cumbersome.

  For example, since the overall size of a cellular phone is limited from the viewpoint of portability, a dedicated operation key cannot be provided for an additional function that is not frequently used. Therefore, it is necessary to assign other operation keys that are originally used for the call function only when the additional function is executed, or it is necessary to trace the additional function by tracing through the menu screen, and the operability is improved. It becomes complicated.

In addition, when receiving digital broadcasts, interactive services such as participation in quiz programs and games and TV shopping are performed through the digital broadcasts, and input operations from the viewer side are necessary to use these services. However, in order to use the interactive service on the mobile phone, it is necessary to newly provide operation keys such as color buttons.
Although it is possible to add a color button function to the operation keys of a conventional mobile phone, the operability becomes complicated and it is very difficult to use. In addition, even when a color button or the like is newly provided, the position of the mobile phone greatly affects the operability, and from the viewpoint of portability, the entire mobile phone casing in which operation keys including these color buttons are provided. Is limited in size.
Therefore, it is a very important issue to arrange the operation keys for the additional functions in the casing of the portable terminal so that the operability is not complicated.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a portable terminal that is small in size, excellent in portability, and high in operability for various functions other than a call function.

  To achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a first casing that exposes a display screen, a second casing that includes at least a plurality of operation keys, and the first casing. By sliding the second casing, a slide that can be formed into a contracted state in which the entire form is contracted and a plurality of expanded states that extend in a plurality of different directions from the contracted state. A mobile terminal having a moving means.

  Preferably, the plurality of expanded states expose different operation keys among the plurality of operation keys.

  Preferably, the image forming apparatus includes detection means for detecting that each of the plurality of expanded states is formed, and control means for operating a function assigned in advance according to the form detected by the detection means.

  Preferably, the plurality of expanded states include a first state in which a call function is pre-assigned and a second state in which functions other than a call are pre-assigned, and is exposed in the second state. The number of operation keys is limited more than in the first state.

  According to the portable terminal of the present invention, it is small and excellent in portability, and has high operability for various functions other than the call function.

Embodiment Hereinafter, a mobile phone as an embodiment of a portable terminal of the present invention will be described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a circuit block diagram showing a configuration example of a mobile phone according to the present embodiment.
As will be described later, the mobile phone according to the present embodiment is a slide type mobile phone in which two housings of a first housing 1 and a second housing 2 are slidably connected to each other. In FIG. 1, each element of the circuit block assigned to each case of the first case 1 and the second case 2 is described.
Hereinafter, components constituting the circuit block will be described.

The wireless unit 23 is configured to include a transmission / reception antenna, and modulates voice information, electronic mail, and the like processed by the control unit 22 and performs transmission to a base station (not shown) by the transmission / reception antenna 31 in order to perform wireless communication using radio waves. Send.
The wireless unit 23 demodulates various information such as e-mail and voice information transmitted from the base station by radio and received by the transmission / reception antenna 31 and transmits the demodulated information to the control unit 22.

  The memory 24 includes a nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM, and includes a control program for sending and receiving calls and mails, a digital broadcast, an Internet browser, message data, an address book in which names and telephone numbers are registered, and a book. An application program (function) for executing various applications included in the mobile phone according to the embodiment is stored. For example, the control unit 22 loads an application program stored in the memory 24 into the RAM area in order to activate the application.

The key operation unit 7 includes a plurality of operation keys disposed on the second housing 2. The plurality of operation keys include a plurality of operation keys required for a call function such as an end (end call) / power key, a start (call) key, an operation key corresponding to a number, and the like. Input information from the user is sent to the control unit 22 via these operation keys.
The color button operation unit 6 includes operation buttons for using the interactive service of digital broadcasting. Such operation buttons are used exclusively for the use of digital broadcasting.
The sub key operation unit 5 includes a plurality of operation keys disposed in the first housing 1. For example, an operation key for using a simple function such as displaying a text of an e-mail received by the user in a contracted state (a state where the entire casing is smallest) described later is included.

The transmission / reception antenna 9, the tuner 25, the demodulation unit 26, and the demultiplexing unit 29 in the control unit 22 constitute a reception function for digital television broadcasting (hereinafter referred to as digital broadcasting). Video display / audio output is controlled.
That is, a signal received by the transmitting / receiving antenna 9 from a broadcast station (not shown) is selected by a tuner 25 and a user-desired channel (frequency band) is selected, and then demodulated by an OFDM demodulator 26 to obtain transport stream data (TS data). Extracted.
The demultiplexing unit 29 mainly separates the extracted TS data into image data and audio data.
In digital broadcasting, interactive services such as participation in games and TV shopping are performed, but when a signal is transmitted from the mobile phone according to the embodiment to the base station, the signal is modulated by the control unit 22, It is transmitted via the transmission / reception antenna 31.

  The image processing unit 28 drives the display unit 3 based on the separated image data to display an image on the LCD of the display unit 3. Needless to say, the image processing unit 28 displays not only a digital broadcast image but also a so-called standby screen or telephone number corresponding to the call function on the display unit 3.

The voice processing unit 27 performs predetermined processing such as filtering processing and coding processing on the user's voice collected from the microphone 8 to generate voice data. The generated voice data is transmitted for a call to a base station (not shown) via the radio unit 23 and the transmission / reception antenna 31, for example.
The audio processing unit 27 amplifies the audio data received via the transmission / reception antenna 31 and the radio unit 23 and the audio data separated by the demultiplexing unit 29 and causes the speaker 4 to output audio.

The optical sensors 10 a and 10 b include a light detection element such as a photodiode attached to the surface of the second housing 2. For example, when light is irradiated, the photodiode becomes conductive, and thus the amount of light to be irradiated is detected by detecting the current flowing through the photodiode.
The housing state detection unit 30 that constitutes a part of the control unit 22 detects the state (form) of the housing that is changed by the sliding mechanism, based on the amount of light detected by each of the optical sensors 10a and 10b. The detection principle of the housing state detection unit 30 will be described later.
The housing state detection unit 30 is an embodiment of the detection means of the present invention.

The control unit 22 as control means of the present invention is configured mainly with a microcomputer, and controls the entire mobile phone according to the embodiment. For example, the control unit 22 controls transmission / reception of various types of information in the wireless unit 23, processing of voice information for the voice processing unit 27, display control of information on the display unit 3, from the key operation unit 7 and the sub key operation unit 5. In accordance with the input information, access control to the memory 24 is performed.
In particular, the control unit 22 according to the present embodiment activates different application programs according to the detection result of the housing state detection unit 30. The application program includes, for example, the above-described digital broadcast application.

Next, the form of the mobile phone according to the embodiment will be described.
2A and 2B are a front view and a side view of a form that the mobile phone according to the embodiment can take in accordance with the connection state of the first housing 1 and the second housing 2, and FIG. ) And (c) show the stretched states stretched in different directions, respectively.
The contracted state shown in (a) is a state in which the entire casing is minimized by the relative displacement of the first casing 1 and the second casing 2. The degenerate state is excellent in portability for the user.
In the contracted state, as shown in the figure, the speaker 4, the display unit 3, and the sub key operation unit 5 disposed on the upper surface of the first housing 1 are exposed and disposed on the upper surface of the second housing 2. The microphone 8 is exposed.

In the extended state shown in (b) (hereinafter, this state is referred to as the first extended state), the first housing 1 is slid and extended with respect to the second housing 2, so that the retracted state is achieved. As compared with the above, the key operation unit 7 and the optical sensor 10a disposed on the upper surface of the second housing 2 are newly exposed.
In the first extended state, the key operation unit 7 including the operation key corresponding to the end (end call) / power key, start (call) key, number, etc. is exposed and usable. This is suitable when using a communication function by e-mail or the like.
The first extended state corresponds to the first state of the present invention.

In the extended state shown in (c) (hereinafter, this state is referred to as a second extended state), the first housing 1 is slid and extended with respect to the second housing 2, so that it is in a degenerated state. In comparison with the second case 2, the color button operation unit 6 and the optical sensor 10b disposed on the upper surface of the second housing 2 are newly exposed, and the key operation unit 7 exposed in the first extended state is It is not exposed in the double extended state.
In the second extended state, the color button operation unit 6 that can use the interactive service of digital broadcasting is exposed and usable.
The second extended state corresponds to the second state of the present invention.

As described above, the modes that can be taken by the mobile phone according to the embodiment have been described. Next, the structure for realizing such a plurality of modes (degenerated state / first extended state / second extended state) is described with reference to FIGS. This will be described with reference to FIG.
3A and 3B are diagrams for explaining the sliding structure of the first housing 1 and the second housing 2, wherein FIG. 3A is a view of the mobile phone as viewed from the back, and FIG. 3B is a view of the mobile phone from the front. Each figure is shown. For ease of understanding, in (a), the first housing 1 is represented by a solid line, the second housing 2 is represented by a dotted line, and in (b), the second housing 2 is represented by a solid line. The first housing 1 is represented by a dotted line.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the back surface 1a of the first housing 1 includes a linear first slide rail 11 and a second slide including a rail groove 13 for restricting relative displacement of each housing. A rail 12 is provided.
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3 (b), a fixed pin 14 fitted to the first slide rail 11 and a movable pin 15 fitted to the second slide rail 12 are provided on the front surface 2 a of the second housing 2. Is arranged.
That is, each pin provided on the front surface 2a of the second housing 2 and each slide rail provided on the back surface 1a of the first housing 1 are fitted, whereby the first housing 1 and the second housing 1 2 is slidably connected.
In addition, the above-mentioned structure provided in the back surface 1a of the 1st housing | casing and the front surface 2a of the 2nd housing | casing comprises one Embodiment of the sliding means of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of the structure of the front surface 2 a of the second housing 2.
As shown in the figure, a fixing pin 14 is fixed to the front surface 2 a of the second housing 2. A rectangular recess 16 is provided in the lateral direction of the fixing pin 14, and a sliding hole 17 is provided on the bottom surface of the recess 16.
The movable pin 15 is supported by the sliding hole 17 so as to be displaced upright along the sliding hole 17. Moreover, the movable pin 15 is attached to one end of the concave portion 16 on the fixed pin 14 side via an elastic member 18 as shown in the drawing.
Therefore, the movable pin 15 is configured to slide left and right along the sliding hole 17 in the recess 16.
In addition, a circular shape having a diameter larger than the width of each slide rail of the first housing 1 is provided at the upper part of each pin of the fixed pin 14 and the movable pin 15 so that the second housing 2 is not dropped from the first housing 1. A drop prevention plate 19 is attached.

5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining the operation of the slide mechanism of the mobile phone according to the embodiment, in which FIG. 5A shows a contracted state, FIG. 5B shows a state during expansion, and FIG. 5C shows a first extension. (D) shows the second extended state.
In the contracted state shown in (a), the movable pin 15 is fixed in a state of being fitted in the central rail groove 13 of the second slide rail 12. In this state, for example, the elastic member 18 as a spring is in a state of extending beyond the natural length, and a force is applied in the center direction of the second housing 2, so that the movable pin 15 is connected to the second slide rail 12. It is fixed to the central rail groove 13. Thereby, since the whole housing | casing becomes the smallest, it is excellent in portability.
Further, in the degenerated state, as shown in (a), in the degenerated state, the optical sensors 10a and 10b are not exposed. As a result, there is no difference in the output level of each sensor.

When a force is applied to the first housing 1 upward from the retracted state, the movable pin 15 is disengaged from the rail groove 13 and is movable along the second slide rail 12 as shown in FIG. Become.
As shown in (b), when neither the first extended state nor the second extended state is set, the optical sensors 10a and 10b are configured not to be exposed as in the degenerated state. As a result, there is no difference in the output level of each sensor.

When the first casing 1 is further moved upward from the state of (b), the movable pin 15 is fixed to the rail groove 13 at the lowermost end of the second slide rail 12 as shown in (c). The first extended state. As a result, the key operation unit 7 including the operation key corresponding to the end (end call) / power key, start (call) key, number, etc. can be exposed and used. Operability is improved when using the communication function.
In this state, as shown in (c), only the optical sensor 10a is exposed and the optical sensor 10b is not exposed. As a result, only the sensor output of the optical sensor 10a shows a high level.

Further, when the first housing 1 is slid from the retracted state in the opposite direction to the first extended state, the movable pin 15 is moved to the rail groove at the uppermost end of the second slide rail 12 as shown in FIG. 13 is in the second extended state. As a result, the color button operation unit 6 is exposed, so that the operability is improved when the interactive service of digital broadcasting can be used.
In this state, as shown in (d), only the optical sensor 10b is exposed and the optical sensor 10a is not exposed. As a result, only the sensor output of the optical sensor 10b shows a high level.

The housing state detection unit 30 detects the state of the housing (degenerated state / first extended state / second extended state) based on the sensor outputs of the optical sensors 10a and 10b.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing processing in the control unit 22 according to the sensor outputs of the optical sensors 10a and 10b.
In FIG. 6, first, the housing state detection unit 30 in the control unit 22 compares the outputs of the optical sensors. If the outputs of the optical sensors are the same (step ST10), the housing is the first. It is determined that neither the extended state nor the second extended state is reached. That is, when the positional relationship between the first housing 1 and the second housing 2 is in a state as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the photosensors 10a and 10b are not exposed. Since there is no difference in output level, the condition of step ST10 is established.
When the condition of step ST10 is satisfied, the control unit 22 does nothing.

When the sensor output of the optical sensor 10a is larger than the sensor output of the optical sensor 10b (step ST11), the control unit 22 activates a predetermined application A (step ST12).
That is, when the positional relationship between the first housing 1 and the second housing 2 is the first extended state shown in FIG. 5C, the optical sensor 10a is exposed and the optical sensor 10b is not exposed. Only the optical sensor 10a has a high output level, and the condition of step ST11 is established. In such a case, the casing state detection unit 30 detects that the casing is in the first extended state, and the control unit 22 activates an application corresponding to the detection result. Note that when the application B is already activated, no new processing is performed.

  In the first extended state, the case is configured such that the key operation unit 7 is exposed. For example, if a call function program is registered in advance as the application A, the user can extend the case to the first extended state. At the same time, you can make a call immediately.

When the sensor output of the optical sensor 10a is smaller than the sensor output of the optical sensor 10b (step ST11), the control unit 22 activates a predetermined application B different from the application A (step ST13).
That is, when the positional relationship between the first housing 1 and the second housing 2 is the second extended state shown in FIG. 5D, the optical sensor 10a is not exposed and the optical sensor 10b is exposed. Only the optical sensor 10b has a high output level, and the condition of step ST11 is not satisfied. In such a case, the casing state detection unit 30 detects that the casing is in the second extended state, and the control unit 22 activates an application corresponding to the detection result. Note that when the application B is already activated, no new processing is performed.

In the second extended state, the case is configured such that the color button operation unit 6 is exposed. For example, if a digital broadcast reception program is registered in advance as the application B, the user can move the case to the second case. At the same time as expanding to the expanded state, the digital broadcast can be watched immediately.
Further, in the second extended state, the key operation unit 7 is not exposed, so that operation keys that can be operated when viewing digital broadcasting are limited, and user operability is improved. That is, the user is freed from the trouble of selecting a necessary operation key from many operation keys.

Even when the housing is in the contracted state or the first extended state, the digital broadcast receiving program exemplified as the application B can be configured to start by selecting a start menu or the like. By configuring the control unit 22 as described above, the user can receive a digital broadcast simply by sliding from the retracted state to the second extended state, thereby improving operability.
Further, the control unit 22 is configured to terminate the application B when it is detected that the housing state detection unit 30 is in the degenerated state or when an operation is performed on a specific operation key by the user.

As described above, according to the mobile phone according to the present embodiment, the two casings are connected so as to be extendable in different directions, and only the necessary operation keys are exposed according to each extended state. Thus, the operability of the mobile phone is remarkably improved, and unnecessary operation keys are not exposed, so that an erroneous operation can be prevented.
According to the mobile phone according to the present embodiment, the state of the housing (degenerated state / first extended state / second extended state) is set so as to be in an optimum form according to each function of the mobile phone. Therefore, both portability and operability of each function can be achieved.

According to the mobile phone according to the present embodiment, since the exposure area of the operation key differs depending on the expanded state, it is necessary for the casing (second casing 2 in the present embodiment) in which the operation keys are mainly arranged. Effective operation keys can be laid out effectively.
According to the mobile phone according to the present embodiment, when the expansion direction of the casing is detected, an application corresponding to the state of the casing (degenerated state / first extended state / second extended state) is started. Therefore, the user does not need to perform a complicated operation to activate the application, and the activation time is shortened.

The embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described contents, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
For example, in the mobile phone according to the above-described embodiment, the casing state detection unit 30 detects the casing state based on the outputs of the two optical sensors. It is possible to apply. For example, it is also possible to detect the housing state by arranging three magnetic sensors near the three rail grooves of the first housing 1 and placing a magnet on the movable pin 15 of the second housing 2. The casing state may be detected by a potentiometer (variable resistor) disposed along the first slide rail 11.

Moreover, in the mobile phone according to the above-described embodiment, the case where the usage mode in the second expanded state is viewing of digital broadcasting has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to digital broadcasting and can be applied to various other applications. it can. In addition, when a digital broadcast is viewed in a degenerate state, the function is changed to a data broadcast by setting the expanded state.
For example, FIG. 7 exemplifies the appearance of a mobile phone when the usage mode in the second extended state is camera photography, (a) is a front view, (b) is a side view, and (c). Shows rear views, respectively. The degenerated state and the first extended state are the same as those in the above-described embodiment.

The mobile phone shown in FIG. 7 has an imaging function. Then, by setting the second extended state, the imaging function is activated and the camera operation button 21 on the first housing is exposed. Functions necessary when the mobile phone is used as a digital camera, such as switching of the shooting mode and switching of the shot image size, are assigned to the camera operation button 21.
Moreover, as shown in (c), the photographing lens of the imaging unit 20 is exposed on the back surface by setting the second extended state.
With the above-described configuration, the mobile phone illustrated in FIG. 7 is configured so that each component constituting the imaging function is exposed by changing from the contracted state to the second expanded state. In addition, in the second extended state, the key operation unit 7 unnecessary for camera shooting is not exposed, and only the camera operation button 21 necessary for camera shooting is exposed, so that the camera shooting operability is improved.
Similarly to the mobile phone according to the above-described embodiment, the control unit includes the optical sensors 10a and 10b and the stretch direction detecting unit 30, and detects that the stretch direction detecting unit 30 is in the second stretched state. 22 operates the camera photographing function and causes the display unit 3 to display an image captured by the imaging unit 20. Accordingly, the camera photographing function can be quickly activated, and a complicated operation for activating the camera photographing function is not necessary.

In the mobile phone according to the above-described embodiment, the first casing 1 and the second casing 2 are stretched in opposite directions on the same line to form the first stretched state and the second stretched state. However, it may be configured to extend in directions that are not on the same line.
FIG. 8 is a front view of a mobile phone in which two extension directions are not collinear, (a) is in a degenerated state, (b) is in a first extension state, (c) is in a second extension state, Each is shown.
Unlike the second extended state described with reference to FIG. 2C, in the second extended state shown in FIG. 8C, the first housing 1 extends in the lateral direction from the contracted state. Thereby, compared with the state shown in FIG. 2C, the region exposed on the first housing 1 is changed, and the operation keys can be arranged in the vertical direction. This makes it easy to use in digital broadcasting for viewing with the casing sideways.
Needless to say, in order to enable the extending operation shown in FIG. 8, an L-shaped slide rail is required instead of the linear slide rail shown in FIG.
As described above, the extension direction does not necessarily have to be on the same line, and the arrangement of the operation keys can be optimized according to the application corresponding to the second extension state.
As operation keys necessary for digital broadcasting, there are display / non-display buttons for multimedia data broadcasting, and these buttons are exposed as the operation keys used for digital broadcasting in the second extended state. It may be.
Needless to say, digital broadcasting includes terrestrial digital and satellite digital broadcasting.

It is a circuit block diagram which shows the example of 1 structure of the mobile telephone of this embodiment. It is the front view and side view of the form which the mobile telephone which concerns on embodiment can take according to the connection state of a 1st housing | casing and a 2nd housing | casing, (a) is a degenerated state, (b) and (c) are Each stretched state is shown in different directions. It is a figure for demonstrating the sliding structure of a 1st housing | casing and a 2nd housing | casing, (a) is the figure which looked at the mobile phone from the back surface, (b) is the figure which looked at the mobile phone from the front surface, respectively. Show. It is a figure for demonstrating an example of the structure of the front surface of a 2nd housing | casing. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the sliding mechanism of the mobile telephone of embodiment, (a) is a degenerated state, (b) is a state in the middle of extension, (c) is a 1st extended state, ( d) shows the second extended state, respectively. It is a flowchart which shows the process in the control part according to each sensor output of two optical sensors. It is an external appearance of a mobile phone when the usage mode in the second extended state is camera photography, (a) shows a front view, (b) shows a side view, and (c) shows a rear view. It is a front view of a mobile phone in which two extension directions differ, (a) shows a degenerated state, (b) shows a first extension state, and (c) shows a second extension state, respectively.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... 1st housing | casing 1a ... Back surface of 1st housing | casing 11 ... 1st slide rail 12 ... 2nd slide rail 13 ... Rail groove 3 ... Display part 4 ... Speaker 5 ... Sub key operation part 2 ... 2nd housing | casing 2a ... Front surface of second housing 14 ... fixed pin 15 ... movable pin 16 ... concave 17 ... sliding hole 18 ... elastic member 19 ... drop-off prevention plate 6 ... color button operation unit 7 ... key operation unit 8 ... microphone 9 ... antenna 10a, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10b ... Optical sensor 20 ... Imaging part 21 ... Camera operation button 22 ... Control part 29 ... Demultiplexing part 30 ... Housing state detection part 23 ... Radio | wireless part 24 ... Memory 25 ... Tuner 26 ... Demodulation part 27 ... Audio | voice processing part 28 ... Image processing unit

Claims (7)

A first housing that exposes and displays the display screen;
A second housing including at least a plurality of operation keys;
By sliding the second housing with respect to the first housing, a contracted state in which the entire form is contracted and a plurality of expanded states that are expanded in different directions from the contracted state. And a sliding means capable of forming the portable terminal.   The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of extended states expose different operation keys among the plurality of operation keys. Detecting means for detecting that each form of the plurality of stretched states is formed;
The mobile terminal according to claim 1, further comprising: a control unit that operates a function assigned in advance according to the form detected by the detection unit. The plurality of expanded states include a first state in which a call function is pre-assigned, and a second state in which functions other than a call are pre-assigned,
The mobile terminal according to claim 3, wherein the number of operation keys exposed in the second state is more limited than in the first state. The mobile terminal according to claim 4, wherein the function pre-assigned to the second state is a digital broadcast receiving function. The mobile terminal according to claim 4, wherein the function assigned in advance to the second state is an imaging function. The mobile terminal according to claim 4, wherein the operation key exposed in the second state is an operation key used for digital broadcasting.

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