KR20140134868A - Terminal and operating method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a method for operating a terminal, regarding a method for operating a terminal, comprises the steps: confirming final execution time of a first application which is stored in the terminal; confirming a time period from the confirmed final execution time to the current time; and releasing the first application when the confirmed time period arrives within the preset period. According to an embodiment of the present invention, memory space of the terminal can be efficiently used by removing applications which have not been used for a certain period of time.

Description

[0001] TERMINAL AND OPERATING METHOD THEREOF [0002]

The present invention relates to a terminal and an operation method thereof.

A terminal can be divided into a mobile terminal (mobile / portable terminal) and a stationary terminal according to whether the terminal can be moved. The mobile terminal can be divided into a handheld terminal and a vehicle mount terminal according to whether the user can directly carry the mobile terminal.

Such a terminal has various functions, for example, in the form of a multimedia device having multiple functions such as photographing and photographing of a moving picture, reproduction of a music or video file, reception of a game and broadcasting, etc. .

In order to support and enhance the functionality of such terminals, it may be considered to improve the structural and / or software parts of the terminal.

Meanwhile, in recent years, the use of terminals has been rapidly increasing. Accordingly, as the demands of users are rapidly increasing, the types of applications provided to the terminals are also diversifying.

Accordingly, a variety of additional functions such as user authentication, global roaming, electronic commerce, credit cards, traffic cards, membership cards, and the like are implemented by providing a specific application to the terminal.

However, as in Patent Document 1, only a function of installing and managing various applications in the terminal as described above is provided, and a function for efficiently using the installed applications to efficiently use the memory space is provided .

(Patent Document 1) KR10-2011-0019678 A

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a terminal that can be automatically uninstalled from applications that have not been used for a predetermined period of time and an operation method thereof are provided.

Also, in the embodiment of the present invention, a terminal capable of displaying information indicating that the uninstallation has been performed is displayed on an icon corresponding to the automatically uninstalled application, and an operation method thereof.

In addition, the present invention provides a terminal and an operation method thereof, which can facilitate management of an application to be uninstalled by providing evaluation information on an application that is not frequently used and automatically uninstalled do.

Further, in the embodiment of the present invention, among the applications for which the automatic uninstallation function has been set, the application for which the automatic uninstallation has already been made, the application for which automatic uninstallation is to be canceled and the application for which the automatic uninstallation function is not set, The present invention provides a terminal and a method for operating the terminal so that applications can be divided into different folders.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the application is deleted from the idle screen, the terminal can delete the application itself rather than simply delete the icon of the application, and an operation method thereof.

Further, the technical problems to be solved by this embodiment are not limited to the above-mentioned technical problems, and other technical problems which are not mentioned can be attained by those having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the embodiments proposed from the following description belong It will be understood clearly.

A method of operating a terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes: checking a final execution time of a first application stored in the terminal; Confirming an elapsed time period from the last execution time to the current time; And releasing the installation of the first application if the checked elapsed period arrives within a predetermined period of time.

Further, the method may further include setting an automatic uninstall function for the first application, and the step of setting the automatic uninstall function may further include setting a term of the unexecuted period for the automatic uninstallation of the first application .

The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of displaying a warning message informing of the automatic uninstallation of the first application when the elapsed period arrives in the preset period, At least one of a first area, a second area for providing detailed information of the first application, and a third area for changing a period for the automatic uninstallation time of the first application.

The method may further include displaying an icon corresponding to at least one application provided by the terminal, wherein an icon corresponding to the automatically uninstalled first application among the displayed icons is notified that the installation of the corresponding application is canceled The first indicator is displayed.

In addition, a second indicator indicating that the application is to be uninstalled is displayed on the icon corresponding to the second application scheduled to be automatically uninstalled among the displayed icons, and the second application displays the icon corresponding to the second application, And includes applications that are earlier than a certain period of time.

The plurality of tabs may include at least one of a first tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application that is periodically executed and an icon corresponding to an application for which automatic uninstallation is performed, A third tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application scheduled to be automatically uninstalled and an icon corresponding to an application for which an unexecuted period has elapsed for a predetermined period of time And at least a plurality of fourth tabs to be displayed.

Meanwhile, a terminal according to an embodiment includes a touch sensor; A storage unit for storing at least one application; A display unit for displaying icons for execution of the stored application and displaying an execution screen of an application corresponding to a specific icon selected by the touch sensor among the displayed icons; And a step of confirming whether or not a first application arriving in a predetermined period of the unexecuted period of the stored application exists and releasing the installation of the first application in accordance with the result of the check to delete the first application And a control unit.

In addition, the control unit excludes the installation file and the icon of the first application from deletion when deleting the first application.

Further, a first indicator indicating that the installation of the application is released is displayed in the icon corresponding to the uninstalled first application among the displayed icons.

In addition, the control unit may identify a second application whose unexecuted period of time is a predetermined period before a predetermined period of time of the stored application, and accordingly, an icon corresponding to the second application among the displayed icons may be uninstalled And the second indicator indicating that the mobile terminal is scheduled to be displayed.

Also, the displayed icons are displayed separately from each other by a plurality of tabs, and the plurality of tabs include a first tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application that is periodically executed, A third tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application scheduled to be automatically uninstalled, and an application for which an uninstallation period has not expired for a predetermined period of time And a fourth tab in which an icon for displaying the icon is displayed.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, if the execution of the application is not performed for a predetermined period, the application can be automatically uninstalled, thereby providing convenience for the user to decide whether to delete the application.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, applications that are not used for a certain period of time are organized, thereby enabling efficient use of the memory space of the terminal.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, if it is difficult to determine whether to delete an application, detailed information about the application is provided, thereby making it possible to make management of the application useful.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 to 21 are views for explaining an operation method of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a mobile terminal related to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The suffix "module" and " part "for the components used in the following description are given or mixed in consideration of ease of specification, and do not have their own meaning or role.

The mobile terminal described in this specification may include a mobile phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a digital broadcasting terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a PMP (Portable Multimedia Player), and navigation. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the configuration according to the embodiments described herein may be applied to a fixed terminal such as a digital TV, a desktop computer, and the like, unless the configuration is applicable only to a mobile terminal.

Hereinafter, a structure of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The mobile terminal 100 includes a wireless communication unit 110, an audio / video input unit 120, a user input unit 130, a sensing unit 140, an output unit 150, a memory 160, A controller 170, a controller 180, a power supply 190, and the like. The components shown in FIG. 1 are not essential, and a mobile terminal having more or fewer components may be implemented.

Hereinafter, the components will be described in order.

The wireless communication unit 110 may include one or more modules for enabling wireless communication between the mobile terminal 100 and the wireless communication system or between the mobile terminal 100 and the network in which the mobile terminal 100 is located. For example, the wireless communication unit 110 may include a broadcast receiving module 111, a mobile communication module 112, a wireless Internet module 113, a short range communication module 114, and a location information module 115 .

The broadcast receiving module 111 receives broadcast signals and / or broadcast-related information from an external broadcast management server through a broadcast channel.

The broadcast channel may include a satellite channel and a terrestrial channel. The broadcast management server may refer to a server for generating and transmitting broadcast signals and / or broadcast related information, or a server for receiving broadcast signals and / or broadcast related information generated by the broadcast management server and transmitting the generated broadcast signals and / or broadcast related information. The broadcast signal may include a TV broadcast signal, a radio broadcast signal, a data broadcast signal, and a broadcast signal in which a data broadcast signal is combined with a TV broadcast signal or a radio broadcast signal.

The broadcast-related information may refer to a broadcast channel, a broadcast program, or information related to a broadcast service provider. The broadcast-related information may also be provided through a mobile communication network. In this case, it may be received by the mobile communication module 112.

The broadcast-related information may exist in various forms. For example, an EPG (Electronic Program Guide) of DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) or an ESG (Electronic Service Guide) of Digital Video Broadcast-Handheld (DVB-H).

For example, the broadcast receiving module 111 may be a Digital Multimedia Broadcasting-Terrestrial (DMB-T), a Digital Multimedia Broadcasting-Satellite (DMB-S), a Media Forward Link Only And a Digital Broadcasting System (ISDB-T) (Integrated Services Digital Broadcast-Terrestrial). Of course, the broadcast receiving module 111 may be adapted to other broadcasting systems as well as the digital broadcasting system described above.

The broadcast signal and / or broadcast related information received through the broadcast receiving module 111 may be stored in the memory 160.

The mobile communication module 112 transmits and receives radio signals to at least one of a base station, an external terminal, and a server on a mobile communication network. The wireless signal may include various types of data depending on a voice call signal, a video call signal or a text / multimedia message transmission / reception.

The wireless Internet module 113 is a module for wireless Internet access, and may be built in or externally attached to the mobile terminal 100. WLAN (Wi-Fi), Wibro (Wireless broadband), Wimax (World Interoperability for Microwave Access), HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) and the like can be used as wireless Internet technologies.

The short-range communication module 114 refers to a module for short-range communication. Bluetooth, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), infrared data association (IrDA), Ultra Wideband (UWB), ZigBee, and the like can be used as a short range communication technology.

The position information module 115 is a module for obtaining the position of the mobile terminal, and a representative example thereof is a Global Position System (GPS) module.

Referring to FIG. 1, an A / V (Audio / Video) input unit 120 is for inputting an audio signal or a video signal, and may include a camera 121 and a microphone 122. The camera 121 processes image frames such as still images or moving images obtained by the image sensor in the video communication mode or the photographing mode. The processed image frame can be displayed on the display unit 151. [

The image frame processed by the camera 121 may be stored in the memory 160 or transmitted to the outside through the wireless communication unit 110. [ Two or more cameras 121 may be provided depending on the use environment.

The microphone 122 receives an external sound signal through a microphone in a communication mode, a recording mode, a voice recognition mode, or the like, and processes it as electrical voice data. The processed voice data can be converted into a form that can be transmitted to the mobile communication base station through the mobile communication module 112 when the voice data is in the call mode, and output. Various noise reduction algorithms may be implemented in the microphone 122 to remove noise generated in receiving an external sound signal.

The user input unit 130 generates input data for a user to control the operation of the terminal. The user input unit 130 may include a key pad dome switch, a touch pad (static / static), a jog wheel, a jog switch, and the like.

The sensing unit 140 senses the current state of the mobile terminal 100 such as the open / close state of the mobile terminal 100, the position of the mobile terminal 100, the presence or absence of user contact, the orientation of the mobile terminal, And generates a sensing signal for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100. For example, when the mobile terminal 100 is in the form of a slide phone, it is possible to sense whether the slide phone is opened or closed. It is also possible to sense whether the power supply unit 190 is powered on, whether the interface unit 170 is connected to an external device, and the like. Meanwhile, the sensing unit 140 may include a proximity sensor 141.

The output unit 150 is for generating output related to the visual, auditory or tactile sense and includes a display unit 151, an audio output module 152, an alarm unit 153, and a haptic module 154 .

The display unit 151 displays (outputs) information processed by the mobile terminal 100. For example, when the mobile terminal is in the call mode, a UI (User Interface) or a GUI (Graphic User Interface) associated with a call is displayed. When the mobile terminal 100 is in the video communication mode or the photographing mode, the photographed and / or received video or UI and GUI are displayed.

The display unit 151 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), a flexible display display, and a 3D display.

Some of these displays may be transparent or light transmissive so that they can be seen through. This can be referred to as a transparent display, and a typical example of the transparent display is TOLED (Transparent OLED) and the like. The rear structure of the display unit 151 may also be of a light transmission type. With this structure, the user can see an object located behind the terminal body through the area occupied by the display unit 151 of the terminal body.

There may be two or more display units 151 according to the embodiment of the mobile terminal 100. For example, in the mobile terminal 100, a plurality of display portions may be spaced apart from one another, or may be disposed integrally with one another, and may be disposed on different surfaces, respectively.

(Hereinafter, referred to as a 'touch screen') in which a display unit 151 and a sensor for sensing a touch operation (hereinafter, referred to as 'touch sensor') form a mutual layer structure, It can also be used as an input device. The touch sensor may have the form of, for example, a touch film, a touch sheet, a touch pad, or the like.

The touch sensor may be configured to convert a change in a pressure applied to a specific portion of the display unit 151 or a capacitance generated in a specific portion of the display unit 151 into an electrical input signal. The touch sensor can be configured to detect not only the position and area to be touched but also the pressure at the time of touch.

If there is a touch input to the touch sensor, the corresponding signal (s) is sent to the touch controller. The touch controller processes the signal (s) and transmits the corresponding data to the controller 180. Thus, the control unit 180 can know which area of the display unit 151 is touched or the like.

Referring to FIG. 1, a proximity sensor 141 may be disposed in an inner region of the mobile terminal or in the vicinity of the touch screen, which is surrounded by the touch screen. The proximity sensor 141 refers to a sensor that detects the presence of an object approaching a predetermined detection surface or an object existing in the vicinity of the detection surface without mechanical contact using an electromagnetic force or an infrared ray. The proximity sensor 141 has a longer life than the contact type sensor and its utilization is also high.

Examples of the proximity sensor 141 include a transmission type photoelectric sensor, a direct reflection type photoelectric sensor, a mirror reflection type photoelectric sensor, a high frequency oscillation type proximity sensor, a capacitive proximity sensor, a magnetic proximity sensor, and an infrared proximity sensor. And to detect the proximity of the pointer by the change of the electric field along the proximity of the pointer when the touch screen is electrostatic. In this case, the touch screen (touch sensor) may be classified as a proximity sensor.

Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the act of recognizing that the pointer is positioned on the touch screen while the pointer is not in contact with the touch screen is referred to as "proximity touch & The act of actually touching the pointer on the screen is called "contact touch. &Quot; The position where the pointer is proximately touched on the touch screen means a position where the pointer is vertically corresponding to the touch screen when the pointer is touched.

The proximity sensor detects a proximity touch and a proximity touch pattern (e.g., a proximity touch distance, a proximity touch direction, a proximity touch speed, a proximity touch time, a proximity touch position, a proximity touch movement state, and the like). Information corresponding to the detected proximity touch operation and the proximity touch pattern may be output on the touch screen.

The audio output module 152 may output audio data received from the wireless communication unit 110 or stored in the memory 160 in a call signal reception mode, a call mode or a recording mode, a voice recognition mode, a broadcast reception mode, The sound output module 152 also outputs sound signals related to functions (e.g., call signal reception sound, message reception sound, etc.) performed in the mobile terminal 100. [ The audio output module 152 may include a receiver, a speaker, a buzzer, and the like.

The alarm unit 153 outputs a signal for notifying the occurrence of an event of the mobile terminal 100. Examples of events that occur in the mobile terminal include call signal reception, message reception, key signal input, touch input, and the like. The alarm unit 153 may output a signal for notifying the occurrence of an event in a form other than the video signal or the audio signal, for example, vibration. The video signal or the audio signal may be output through the display unit 151 or the audio output module 152 so that they may be classified as a part of the alarm unit 153.

The haptic module 154 generates various tactile effects that the user can feel. A typical example of the haptic effect generated by the haptic module 154 is vibration. The intensity and pattern of the vibration generated by the hit module 154 can be controlled. For example, different vibrations may be synthesized and output or sequentially output.

In addition to the vibration, the haptic module 154 may include a pin arrangement vertically moving with respect to the contact skin surface, a spraying force or suction force of the air through the injection port or the suction port, a touch on the skin surface, contact with an electrode, And various tactile effects such as an effect of reproducing a cold sensation using an endothermic or exothermic element can be generated.

The haptic module 154 can be implemented not only to transmit the tactile effect through the direct contact but also to allow the user to feel the tactile effect through the muscular sensation of the finger or arm. The haptic module 154 may include two or more haptic modules 154 according to the configuration of the portable terminal 100.

The memory 160 may store a program for the operation of the controller 180 and temporarily store input / output data (e.g., a phone book, a message, a still image, a moving picture, etc.). The memory 160 may store data on vibration and sound of various patterns outputted when a touch is input on the touch screen.

The memory 160 may be a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a multimedia card micro type, a card type memory (for example, SD or XD memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), PROM A disk, and / or an optical disk. The mobile terminal 100 may operate in association with a web storage that performs a storage function of the memory 160 on the Internet.

The interface unit 170 serves as a path for communication with all external devices connected to the mobile terminal 100. The interface unit 170 receives data from an external device or supplies power to each component in the mobile terminal 100 or transmits data to the external device. For example, a wired / wireless headset port, an external charger port, a wired / wireless data port, a memory card port, a port for connecting a device having an identification module, an audio I / O port, A video input / output (I / O) port, an earphone port, and the like may be included in the interface unit 170.

The identification module is a chip for storing various information for authenticating the use right of the mobile terminal 100 and includes a user identification module (UIM), a subscriber identity module (SIM), a general user authentication module A Universal Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), and the like. Devices with identification modules (hereinafter referred to as "identification devices") can be manufactured in a smart card format. Accordingly, the identification device can be connected to the terminal 100 through the port.

When the mobile terminal 100 is connected to an external cradle, the interface unit may be a path through which power from the cradle is supplied to the mobile terminal 100, or various command signals input by the user to the cradle may be transmitted It can be a passage to be transmitted to the terminal. The various command signals or the power source input from the cradle may be operated as a signal for recognizing that the mobile terminal is correctly mounted on the cradle.

The controller 180 typically controls the overall operation of the mobile terminal. For example, voice communication, data communication, video communication, and the like. The control unit 180 may include a multimedia module 181 for multimedia playback. The multimedia module 181 may be implemented in the control unit 180 or may be implemented separately from the control unit 180. [

The controller 180 may perform a pattern recognition process for recognizing handwriting input or drawing input performed on the touch screen as characters and images, respectively.

The power supply unit 190 receives external power and internal power under the control of the controller 180 and supplies power necessary for operation of the respective components.

The various embodiments described herein may be embodied in a recording medium readable by a computer or similar device using, for example, software, hardware, or a combination thereof.

According to a hardware implementation, the embodiments described herein may be implemented as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays May be implemented using at least one of processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, and other electronic units for performing other functions. In some cases, May be implemented by the control unit 180.

According to a software implementation, embodiments such as procedures or functions may be implemented with separate software modules that perform at least one function or operation. The software code may be implemented by a software application written in a suitable programming language. The software codes are stored in the memory 160 and can be executed by the control unit 180. [

Hereinafter, a terminal and an operation method thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 2 shows a downloading process of an application in a method of operating a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, when a download command for downloading a specific application from a user is inputted, the controller 180 executes the application for downloading in operation 101.

To this end, the control unit 180 first displays an icon for a plurality of applications stored in the terminal 100 on the display unit 151. The control unit 180 causes the application corresponding to the selected icon to be executed according to selection of any one of the icons displayed on the display unit 151.

At this time, the step (101) corresponds to a case where an icon for downloading an application among the displayed icons is selected.

Accordingly, the control unit 180 displays a screen including icons for various applications that can be down loaded on the display unit 151.

Fig. 3 is a view showing the displayed screen.

Referring to FIG. 3, information on applications provided from various providers is displayed on the display unit 151, and download icons for downloading the provided applications are displayed.

The user can download an application corresponding to the selected icon by selecting a specific icon of the download icons.

Again, FIG. 2 will be described.

In the state that the screen including the download icons is displayed, the controller 180 determines whether the download command of the specific application corresponding to the selected icon is inputted after the specific download icon is selected (step 102 ).

That is, referring to FIG. 3, when one of the displayed icons is selected, a detailed information screen for providing information of the application corresponding to the selected icon is displayed.

At this time, the detailed information screen includes information on evaluation and review of the application, a game screen, function information, and the like.

Further, the displayed detailed information screen includes an install icon for starting downloading of the application.

Accordingly, the control unit 180 determines whether an install icon for starting downloading of the application is selected in the displayed detailed information screen.

Fig. 2 will be described again.

If the download command of the specific application corresponding to the selected icon is input (the install icon is selected), the controller 180 starts downloading the specific application to which the download command is input (step 103) ). At this time, the download is preferably an installation file for installing the specific application.

Thereafter, the controller 180 displays an automatic uninstall menu for setting an automatic uninstall function for the downloaded application (operation 104).

At this time, the automatic uninstall function is a function for automatically canceling the installation of the application if the application is not used for a predetermined period of time after the application is downloaded into the terminal.

That is, if the application is not used after installing the application, a meaningless memory space is wasted depending on the installation of the application.

Accordingly, the user can use the automatic uninstall function to automatically uninstall the application that is not used by the user, thereby eliminating the inconvenience of having to delete the application directly.

That is, the automatic uninstall function is a function for automatically uninstalling an application that has been installed without a user's instruction.

At this time, the general un-installation operation is performed by deleting all information corresponding to the specific application to be deleted.

For example, the general uninstallation deletes all of the programs for the specific application, the installation file of the application, and the icons for starting execution of the application.

However, the automatic uninstall function in the present invention deletes only the program for the specific application, and accordingly does not delete the installation file for reinstalling the deleted application or the icon for starting execution of the application.

This is to inform the user of the existence of an application that the user has not used for a certain period of time through the icon as a specific application is deleted without the user's instruction. Also, when the icon is selected, reinstallation of the deleted application So that it can be easily executed.

This will be described in more detail below.

FIG. 5 shows the above-described automatic uninstall menu.

Referring to FIG. 5, the automatic uninstall menu includes a message asking whether to set the automatic uninstall function of the downloaded application.

Also, in the automatic uninstall menu, if the automatic uninstall function for the downloaded application is to be set, a period setting for setting whether to execute the automatic uninstall function when the application is not used for a certain period of time ≪ / RTI >

Wherein the period setting item includes a first period setting item for uninstalling the application when the application is not used for 30 days and a second period setting item for uninstalling the application when the application is not used for 6 months A third period item for uninstalling the application when the application is not used for 12 months, and a fourth period item for allowing the user to directly enter a period for uninstalling the application .

Accordingly, the user can set an automatic uninstall function for the application by selecting any one of the period items included in the automatic uninstall menu.

At this time, if the term item is not selected in the automatic uninstall menu, and the cancel item is selected, the controller 180 does not set the automatic uninstall function for the application.

In other words, if the cancel item is selected in the above, automatic uninstallation of the application is not performed even if the user does not use the application infinitely.

Again, FIG. 2 will be described.

The control unit 180 stores the setting state of the automatic uninstall function for the application set on the automatic uninstall menu (step 105).

That is, if the automatic uninstallation function for the application is set, the controller 180 stores the period of time during which the automatic uninstallation is to be applied to the application, and if the automatic uninstallation function for the application is not set, It stores information that the automatic uninstall function is not set.

Thereafter, the controller 180 determines whether downloading of the application is completed (operation 106). In other words, the control unit 180 determines whether downloading of the installation file for installing the application is completed.

Next, in step 107, the controller 180 installs the application using the downloaded installation file if downloading of the installation file is completed.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method of executing an automatic uninstall function of an application in an operation method of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, first, the controller 180 checks an application having the automatic uninstall function and confirms a final execution time of the checked application (step 201).

If the application having the automatic uninstall function is present, the controller 180 counts the elapsed time from the last execution time of the application to the current time based on the last execution time that has been checked in operation 202.

In this case, steps (steps 201 and 202) may be performed as follows.

The control unit 180 periodically monitors the execution state of the application having the automatic uninstall function, and continuously counts the elapsed time from the last execution time of the application to the current time.

Thereafter, the controller 180 determines whether the elapsed time from the last execution time of the application has passed a preset period of time (step 203).

In other words, the controller 180 determines whether execution of the application has not been performed for a predetermined period of time. At this time, the predetermined period is a period selected at the time of setting the automatic uninstall function of the application.

If the execution of the application is not performed for a preset period of time, the control unit 180 displays a message indicating that the application is to be uninstalled due to the execution of the application being not performed for a predetermined period of time step).

7 shows a message informing the uninstallation of the application provided above.

Referring to FIG. 7, the display unit 151 of the terminal displays information on a specific application, information on a non-execution period of the application, and information indicating that the specific application is to be uninstalled.

In addition, the display unit 151 displays a menu item asking whether to continue the uninstallation of the specific application or to reset the time point at which the specific application is to be uninstalled.

Accordingly, if the 'Yes' item of the menu item is selected, the control unit 180 performs the uninstallation for the specific application. If the 'No' item is selected, the control unit 180 notifies the application Displays the period setting screen for resetting the point at which uninstallation is to be performed

Again, Fig. 6 will be described.

The controller 180 determines whether a menu item (No item) for resetting the automatic uninstallation time of the application is selected on the screen shown in FIG. 7 (step 205).

If the menu item for resetting the automatic installation cancellation point of the application is selected, the controller 180 displays a menu screen for resetting the automatic installation cancellation point of the application (step 206) step).

FIG. 8 shows a menu screen for resetting the automatic uninstallation point of time for the application.

Referring to FIG. 8, as shown in FIG. 6, period items for setting an automatic installation cancellation point for the application are displayed on the menu screen.

The term item may include items such as 30 days, 6 months, 12 months and user settings.

Again, Fig. 6 will be described.

In the menu screen, when the specific period is selected, the controller 180 stores the period corresponding to the selected period as the point at which the automatic uninstallation of the application is to be performed (operation 207).

However, if the menu item (Yes) is selected to execute the automatic uninstallation of the application (step 205), the controller 180 proceeds to uninstall the specific application (step 208 ).

At this time, the control unit 180 deletes only the remaining information without deleting the installation file or the icon for the application to be uninstalled.

If it is determined in step 203 that the elapsed time from the last execution time of the application to the current time has not elapsed, the controller 180 determines whether an execution command for the specific application is input (Step 209).

If the execution command of the specific application is input, the control unit 180 initializes the counted elapsed time in step 210, returns to step 202, Otherwise, the process returns to step 201.

In conclusion, the present invention is characterized in that when the application is not executed for a predetermined period from the time when the application is finally executed (used) (if the installation is not performed and the execution is not performed, the application is installed) And displays a warning message informing the user of the uninstallation of the application while changing the application to the uninstall state.

At this time, the warning message may include a message indicating that the application is to be uninstalled, as described above, and a message asking whether to reset the uninstallation point.

When the uninstallation point of the application is reset on the warning message, the elapsed time for uninstalling the application is counted again from the uninstallation point.

According to the embodiment of the present invention described above, if the application is not executed for a predetermined period of time, the application can be automatically uninstalled, thereby providing the convenience of the user in deciding whether to delete the application.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, applications that are not used for a certain period of time are organized, thereby enabling efficient use of the memory space of the terminal.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, if it is difficult to determine whether to delete an application, detailed information about the application is provided, thereby making it possible to make management of the application useful.

FIG. 10 shows a method of displaying an icon displayed differently depending on whether the terminal is installed in an operation method of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 10, the control unit 180 displays an icon for executing at least one of the plurality of applications stored in the terminal (step 301) as an execution menu entry command of the application is input from the outside step).

The execution menu entry instruction of the application may correspond to a case where an instruction for starting the operation of the terminal (for example, an input of a home button provided in the terminal, etc.) is inputted.

At this time, the displayed icon includes a first icon 1010 indicating that the corresponding application is installed in the terminal and a second icon 1020 indicating that the corresponding application is uninstalled in the terminal depending on whether the corresponding application is installed or not.

That is, the first icon 1010 is an icon indicating that the corresponding application is installed in the terminal and that the corresponding application can be executed normally.

If the user selects the first icon 1010, the application corresponding to the selected first icon 1010 will be executed.

The second icon 1020 is an icon indicating that the application corresponding to the second icon 1020 has been uninstalled from the terminal by the automatic uninstall function.

That is, when the installation of the corresponding application is automatically canceled because the second icon 1020 does not directly input the uninstall command of the application but the execution of the application is not performed for a predetermined period Is displayed.

At this time, the second icon 1020 is substantially the same as the first icon 1010. In other words, the second icon 1020 has the same shape as the icon for executing the application before uninstalling the application corresponding to the second icon.

However, an indicator 1030 indicating that the installation of the application corresponding to the second icon 1020 has been canceled is displayed on one side of the second icon 1020.

In other words, a plurality of icons for executing the application are displayed on the screen. At this time, the icon of the application, which is automatically uninstalled, displays an indicator 1030 informing of the uninstallation as described above.

Accordingly, the user can easily distinguish between an application installed in the terminal and an application automatically uninstalled.

Again, Fig. 10 will be described.

The controller 180 selects one of the displayed icons (operation 303). At this time, the selection of the icon may be performed by touching a display area in which any one of the icons is displayed.

Thereafter, the controller 180 determines whether the selected icon is an icon corresponding to an application installed in the terminal or an icon corresponding to an uninstalled application (operation 304).

If the selected icon is an icon corresponding to the uninstalled application, the controller 180 displays the detailed information about the uninstalled application (operation 305).

FIG. 12 shows detailed information about the application.

Referring to FIG. 12, the detailed information includes unused period information for notifying the uninstalled application for a certain period of time, evaluation information of other users for the application, Review information of users, reinstallation information for reinstalling the application, and further information for viewing additional installation information for the application.

FIG. 13 shows additional installation information included in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 13, if the user selects the view information in the detailed information, additional detailed information about the application as shown in FIG. 13 is displayed.

The additional detailed information may include at least one of installation date of the application, server information of downloading the application, location information of the application, capacity information of the application, supplier information of the application, and snapshot information .

As described above, in the present invention, by providing additional installation information for the uninstalled application, the user can easily determine whether or not to reinstall the uninstalled application while viewing additional installation information.

At this time, when the application is executed, the control unit 180 stores the actual execution screen for the executed application as a snapshot, and when providing the additional installation information, the controller 180 provides the stored snapshot together Please give.

Again, Fig. 10 will be described.

In a state where the reinstallation menu is displayed as described above, the controller 180 determines whether an instruction to reinstall the uninstalled application is input (operation 306).

If the re-installation instruction of the uninstalled application is inputted, the controller 180 re-installs the application (step 307).

At this time, when the installation of the application is canceled, the installation file of the application is not deleted, so that the controller 180 can easily reinstall the application using the installation file.

If the selected icon is an icon corresponding to the application installed in the terminal, the controller 180 executes the application corresponding to the selected icon (step 308).

FIG. 14 shows a method of displaying an icon displayed differently depending on whether the terminal is installed in an operation method of a terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 14, the control unit 180 displays an icon for executing at least one of the plurality of applications stored in the terminal (step 401) To 405).

The execution menu entry instruction of the application may correspond to a case where an instruction for starting the operation of the terminal (for example, an input of a home button provided in the terminal, etc.) is inputted.

At this time, the controller 180 checks the states of the applications stored in the terminal to display the icon (step 402).

In other words, for each icon stored in the terminal, the control unit 180 checks whether the application corresponding to the icon is installed or uninstalled. In addition, the control unit 180 determines whether the application is to be uninstalled after a predetermined period of time because the application is not used for a specific period of time.

Thereafter, the controller 180 displays an indicator indicating that the application corresponding to the icon is uninstalled to the icon corresponding to the uninstalled application (step 403), and the icon corresponding to the uninstalled application , And an indicator indicating whether the installation of the application corresponding to the icon will be performed is displayed (operation 404).

In step 405, the controller 180 displays icons having the above-described indicators on the display unit 151.

FIG. 15 shows icons including the indicators.

Referring to FIG. 15, the icon displayed on the display unit 151 includes a first icon that does not include an indicator, a second icon that includes a first indicator, and a third icon that includes a second indicator.

The first indicator 1510 is information for notifying that the application corresponding to the icon is already installed.

That is, for example, if the automatic uninstallation period is set to six months for a specific application and the unused period of the specific application has passed six months, the installation for the specific application is automatically canceled, The first indicator 1510 is displayed.

The second indicator 1520 is information for notifying that the application corresponding to the icon will be uninstalled soon.

That is, for example, if the automatic uninstallation period is set to 6 months for a specific application and the unused period of the specific application has passed 5 months shorter than the 6 months, the uninstall for the specific application will be performed soon A second indicator 1520 is displayed.

Accordingly, the user can easily check the uninstalled application and the uninstalled application as soon as the user does not use the icon for a certain period of time while viewing the icons.

FIG. 16 shows a method of displaying icons differently displayed according to the state of an application in an operation method of a terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

16, the control unit 180 displays an icon for executing at least one application among a plurality of applications stored in the terminal (step 501) in response to an instruction for entering an execution menu of an application from the outside (step 501) To step 504).

The execution menu entry instruction of the application may correspond to a case where an instruction for starting the operation of the terminal (for example, an input of a home button provided in the terminal, etc.) is inputted.

At this time, icons for executing the application are classified according to the following conditions, and can be provided through different tabs accordingly.

The condition is whether the application is periodically used by the user or is an application that has been uninstalled due to not using the application for a certain period of time or an application that is scheduled to be uninstalled due to not using the application for a certain period of time , Or whether it is an application that has not been auto-uninstalled for a while, but has not been used for a long period of time.

Accordingly, the controller 180 checks the states of the plurality of applications according to the above conditions (step 502), and displays icons corresponding to the states of the plurality of applications in different folders (tabs) (Step 503).

Then, the controller 180 displays the icons classified into the different folders according to the above-described status (step 504).

17 and 18 show icons displayed in the different folders.

17, there are a plurality of folders, that is, tabs, on the screen where the icons are displayed.

When one of the tabs is selected, icons corresponding to the selected tab condition are displayed.

The tab includes a first tab 1710 for displaying an icon corresponding to an application periodically used by a user and an icon corresponding to an application in which the application is already uninstalled due to not using the application for a certain period of time A third tab 1730 for displaying an icon corresponding to an application scheduled to be uninstalled soon after the application is not used for a certain period of time, , But includes a fourth tab 1740 for displaying an icon corresponding to an application that has not been used for a long period of time.

FIG. 17 shows icons displayed when the first tab 1710 of the first to fourth tabs is selected.

The displayed icons include icons corresponding to applications that the current user periodically uses.

Accordingly, the displayed icon does not include a separate indicator.

Fig. 18 shows icons displayed when the second tab is selected in Fig.

17, when the user selects the second tab 1720, the display unit 151 displays icons corresponding to the applications automatically uninstalled by the automatic uninstall function.

At this time, an icon 1810 indicating that the installation of the application corresponding to the icon is automatically canceled is displayed on the displayed icon.

Likewise, when the user selects the third tab or the fourth tab, icons corresponding to the selected tabs are displayed, and an indicator indicating an icon of the application in which the displayed icon is displayed is displayed.

19 shows a method of deleting an application in a method of operating a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 19, the controller 180 displays an execution menu of an application including an icon for executing an application (Step 601).

If a specific icon is selected in step 602, the controller 180 determines whether a delete command for the application corresponding to the selected icon is input in step 603.

FIG. 20 shows a process of inputting a delete command of the application.

Referring to FIG. 20, when a specific icon is long-touched in the execution menu, a menu for editing various functions of the application corresponding to the icon is displayed.

At this time, the menu includes an icon change menu item for changing an icon corresponding to the application, a name change item for changing the name of the application, and a deletion item for deleting the application.

Accordingly, the control unit 180 determines whether or not the deletion item is selected in the displayed menu.

Thereafter, if the deletion item is selected, the controller 180 displays a menu screen for selecting whether to simply delete the icon or delete the application corresponding to the icon corresponding to the selected icon (operation 604) .

FIG. 21 shows a menu screen for selecting a deletion condition of the application.

Referring to FIG. 21, in the menu screen for selecting the deletion condition, when the delete item is selected in FIG. 20, it is determined whether to delete only the icon or the application corresponding to the icon, ≪ / RTI >

That is, in general, when selecting the deletion item by touching the icon with a long touch, only the selected icon is deleted.

However, in the present embodiment, when the deletion item is selected, it is possible to simply select whether to delete only the icon, or whether to delete the entire application corresponding to the icon.

15 and 17, when the icon corresponding to the uninstalled application is selected, the icon corresponding to the application installed in the terminal is long-touched .

According to the embodiment of the present invention, if the execution of the application is not performed for a predetermined period, the application can be automatically uninstalled, thereby providing convenience for the user to decide whether to delete the application.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, applications that are not used for a certain period of time are organized, thereby enabling efficient use of the memory space of the terminal.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, if it is difficult to determine whether to delete an application, detailed information about the application is provided, thereby making it possible to make management of the application useful.

The foregoing description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention and various changes and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are intended to illustrate rather than limit the scope of the present invention, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The scope of protection of the present invention should be construed according to the following claims, and all technical ideas within the scope of equivalents should be construed as falling within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (11)

A method of operating a terminal,
Confirming a final execution time of the first application stored in the terminal;
Confirming an elapsed time period from the last execution time to the current time; And
And releasing the installation of the first application if the checked elapsed period comes within a predetermined period of time
A method of operating a terminal. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising the step of setting an automatic uninstall function for the first application,
Wherein the step of setting the automatic uninstall function comprises:
And setting period information for an unexecution period for automatic uninstallation of the first application
A method of operating a terminal. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising the step of displaying a warning message informing of the automatic uninstallation of the first application when the elapsed period arrives in the preset period,
In the warning message,
At least one of a first area informing of the automatic uninstallation of the first application, a second area providing detailed information of the first application, and a third area for changing the period for the automatic uninstallation time of the first application Containing
A method of operating a terminal. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising displaying an icon corresponding to at least one application provided by the terminal,
The icon corresponding to the automatically uninstalled first application among the displayed icons is displayed on the icon corresponding to the first indicator indicating that the installation of the corresponding application is released
A method of operating a terminal. 5. The method of claim 4,
An icon corresponding to the second application scheduled to be automatically uninstalled among the displayed icons is displayed in a second indicator indicating that the application is to be uninstalled,
Wherein the second application comprises:
The application including an application whose elapsed time period is earlier than the predetermined time period
A method of operating a terminal. 5. The method of claim 4,
The icon is displayed by a plurality of tabs,
The plurality of tabs
A first tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application that is periodically executed,
A second tab in which an icon corresponding to an application in which the automatic uninstallation is made is displayed,
A third tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application scheduled to be automatically uninstalled,
And an icon corresponding to the application whose unexecution period has lapsed by a predetermined period among the applications for which the automatic uninstall function is not set,
A method of operating a terminal. Touch sensor;
A storage unit for storing at least one application;
A display unit for displaying icons for execution of the stored application and displaying an execution screen of an application corresponding to a specific icon selected by the touch sensor among the displayed icons; And
A control unit for confirming whether or not a first application arriving in a predetermined period of the unexecuted period of the stored application exists and releasing the installation of the first application according to the result of the check, Containing
terminal. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein,
When the first application is deleted, the installation file and the icon of the first application are excluded from the deletion target
terminal. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the icon corresponding to the uninstalled first application among the displayed icons includes:
A first indicator indicating that the application is uninstalled is displayed
terminal. 10. The method of claim 9,
Wherein,
A second application that has not been executed for a predetermined period of time before a predetermined period of time among the stored applications and that displays an icon corresponding to the second application among the displayed icons, Make the indicator visible
terminal. 11. The method of claim 10,
The displayed icons are displayed separately from each other by a plurality of tabs,
The plurality of tabs
A first tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application that is periodically executed,
A second tab in which an icon corresponding to an application in which the automatic uninstallation is made is displayed,
A third tab for displaying an icon corresponding to an application scheduled to be automatically uninstalled,
And an icon corresponding to the application whose unexecution period has lapsed by a predetermined period among the applications for which the automatic uninstall function is not set,
terminal.

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