JP2002041015A - Display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To use an apparatus including a display for displaying a character along with a direction with which an operator is most facilitated, by displaying the character so as to be disposed opposite the operator. SOLUTION: It is judged whether an up-and-down direction of the operator agrees with, or is laid at right angle to, an up-and-down direction of the display, by means of a plurality of magnetic sensors (magnetoresistive elements) and a permanent magnet. The character is displayed on the display so that the up-and-down direction of the character agrees with the up-and-down direction of the display in the case of agreement (a), or the character is displayed so that the up-and-down direction of the character is laid at right angle to the up-and-down direction of the display in the case of right angle (b).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a display device having a display for displaying characters, and more particularly to a portable display device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, needs for transmitting and receiving voice information, character information, image information, and the like while moving or going out are increasing more and more. In order to satisfy these requirements, many proposals have been made for further improving the portability, particularly of mobile phones having an information communication function via wireless radio waves.

As one example, there has been proposed a portable telephone which can be freely attached to and detached from a band similar to a so-called "watch band" of the prior art. 8 to 10
It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the usage of such an apparatus.
This device is usually used while worn on the wrist as shown in FIG. 8, but can be operated while being held as shown in FIG. 9 if necessary.

[0004] With the recent increase in the number of functions of mobile phones, the above-mentioned devices are not limited to transmitting and receiving voice information, but also have a function of transmitting and receiving e-mails and the like composed of character information and displaying the character information on a liquid crystal display. are doing.

Here, when carrying the above-mentioned device attached to a band, it is easier to carry the device as a whole if the device is placed "sideways" as viewed from the operator as shown in FIG. Therefore, the character strings on the display are also displayed in the orientation shown in FIG. 8 on the assumption that they are read in this state.

On the other hand, when the above-mentioned device is detached from the band and operated, originally, as shown in FIG.
When the whole is set to “vertical orientation” when viewed from the operator, the back side of the device is supported by the palm, so that the device is easily stabilized.

[0007]

However, in the prior art, if it is attempted to operate in such a vertical orientation,
As shown in FIG. 10, the characters on the display fall right beside the operator, making it very difficult to read. Therefore, such an operation is not allowed as a practical problem, and as shown in FIG. 9, when the user removes the band from the band, he or she has to operate it by holding it sideways in the same manner as when attaching to the band.

[0008] That is, in the prior art, even if the orientation of the display with respect to the operator changes, the orientation of the character with respect to the display does not change. Therefore, it is practically impossible to operate the apparatus in a direction in which the character does not face the operator. There was a problem that it is.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a display device which solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art and which can be used in an orientation which is most easily handled by an operator.

[0010]

Means for Solving the Problems The above-mentioned problems are solved,
In order to achieve the object, a display device according to the present invention is a display device provided with a display for displaying characters, wherein a determination is made as to whether the vertical direction for an operator and the vertical direction of the display are coincident or orthogonal. Means, when it is determined by the determination means that the vertical direction for the operator and the vertical direction of the display match, the character is so described that the vertical direction of the display matches the vertical direction of the character. Displayed on a display, and when it is determined by the determination means that the vertical direction for the operator is perpendicular to the vertical direction of the display, the vertical direction of the display is perpendicular to the vertical direction of the character. Display means for displaying the characters on the display.

According to the present invention, the vertical direction of the characters displayed on the display always coincides with the vertical direction for the operator, regardless of the orientation of the display with respect to the operator. The characters on the display always face the operator).

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of a display device according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Embodiment) First, a hardware configuration of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1 and 2 are explanatory diagrams illustrating a hardware configuration of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In these drawings, only the minimum hardware necessary to explain the orientation determination process (whether portrait or landscape), which is a characteristic part of the present invention, is shown, and other components are omitted. ing.

The display device according to the present embodiment comprises two parts which can be arbitrarily attached and detached. FIG. 1 is a diagram in which they are viewed from the front (directly above), and FIG.
Is a side view. In the figure, dotted lines indicate elements incorporated in the housing, protrusions on the back side of the housing, and the like, and indicate that they are not actually seen from the viewpoint.

1 and 2, reference numeral 101 denotes a portable telephone having a function of displaying characters on a liquid crystal display 102, and reference numeral 103 denotes a band provided with a fixture for attaching the portable telephone 101. In the following, the “vertical direction” of the liquid crystal display 102 will be referred to as an arrow A in FIG.
It indicates the direction indicated by -A '.

In the present embodiment, the mobile phone 101 can be rotated while being attached to the band 103, so that the mobile phone 101 can be turned sideways as shown in FIG.
Any of the vertical orientations as shown in FIG. 4A can be selected. This is because when carrying on the wrist, it is more convenient to carry it horizontally, but when carrying it on the wrist, it may be easier to handle it vertically without disturbing the cuffs of clothes. .

When the portable telephone 101 is detached from the band 103, the portable telephone 101 can be set in either the horizontal direction shown in FIG. 5A or the vertical direction shown in FIG. 6A.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numerals 104a and 104b denote MR elements incorporated in the portable telephone 101, and reference numerals 105a and 105b denote permanent magnets incorporated in a fixture of the band 103.

Note that the MR element means that when a magnetic field changes around a certain kind of semiconductor that is energized, electrons moving in the magnetic field are affected by Lorentz force and appear as an increase or decrease in the electric resistance of the semiconductor. It is a kind of magnetic sensor that measures the presence or absence and strength of a magnetic field by using it.

The MR element 104a is arranged so as to be directly above the permanent magnet 105a when the mobile phone 101 is mounted on the band 103 sideways as shown in FIG. The same applies to the positional relationship between the MR element 104b and the permanent magnet 105b. Further, the MR element 104a is disposed so as to be directly above the permanent magnet 105b when the mobile phone 101 is attached to the band 103 vertically as shown in FIG.

Therefore, as shown in FIG.
01 is attached to the band 103 horizontally, in other words, when the vertical direction of the liquid crystal display 102 matches the vertical direction for the operator, M
The R element 104a detects a magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet 105a, and the MR element 104b detects a magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet 105b.

When the mobile phone 101 is vertically attached to the band 103 as shown in FIG. 4A, in other words, when the vertical direction of the liquid crystal display 102 is orthogonal to the vertical direction for the operator. Is the MR element 1
04a detects the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet 105b.
The R element 104b does not detect anything.

When the mobile phone 101 is removed from the band 103 as shown in FIGS. 5A and 6A, neither of the MR elements 104a and 104b detects a magnetic field.

As described above, depending on the combination of the MR element and the permanent magnet, whether or not the portable telephone 101 is attached to the band 103, and if attached, the direction is vertical or horizontal. (In other words, whether the vertical direction of the liquid crystal display 102 matches or is orthogonal to the vertical direction for the operator).

However, this alone cannot determine the relationship between the vertical direction of the liquid crystal display 102 and the vertical direction for the operator when the mobile phone 101 is removed from the band 103. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the posture sensor 1 for determining this in this case as well.
06 is provided inside the mobile phone 101.

This posture sensor 106 is used for the mobile phone 101.
It is installed so as to be linked with the tilt of. As the attitude sensor 106, a sensor having a principle in which a switch is turned on by its own weight or weight is known. Mobile phone 10
An output is obtained when 1 is in the portrait orientation as shown in FIG. The MR element 104a
The reference numeral 104b, the permanent magnets 105a and 105b, and the attitude sensor 106 correspond to "determination means" of the present invention.

The mobile phone 101 is similar to the MR element 104 described above.
a, 104b and the presence or absence of an output from the attitude sensor 106 to determine its own orientation with respect to the operator. The received electronic mail or the like is displayed on a liquid crystal display so that the vertical direction of each character always matches the vertical direction for the operator. Display 1
02 is displayed.

Next, a description will be given of character display processing in the display device according to the present embodiment. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a character display process of the display device according to the present embodiment.

In step S701, the MR element 10
By 4a, it is determined whether the magnetic field by the permanent magnet 105a or 105b is detected.

When a magnetic field is detected by the MR element 104a (Yes at Step S701), Step S702 is performed.
, The permanent magnet 105
It is determined whether the magnetic field due to b is detected.

When a magnetic field is detected by the MR element 104b (Yes at step S702), FIG.
The mobile phone 101 is attached horizontally to the band 103 as shown in FIG.
Is displayed so as to coincide with the vertical direction of. FIG. 3B shows a display example at this time.

If no magnetic field is detected by the MR element 104b (No at step S702), the process shown in FIG.
Since the mobile phone 101 is vertically attached to the band 103 as shown in FIG.
At 05, the characters are displayed such that the vertical direction is orthogonal to the vertical direction of the liquid crystal display 102. A display example at this time is shown in FIG.

If no magnetic field is detected by the MR element 104a (No at step S701), it means that the mobile phone 101 has been removed from the band 103.
6 is determined.

When there is no output from the posture sensor 106 (No at step S704), it means that the character is horizontal as shown in FIG. 5A, so that the vertical direction of the character matches the vertical direction of the liquid crystal display 102 at step S703. To be displayed. FIG. 5 shows a display example at this time.
(B).

If there is an output from the attitude sensor 106 (Yes at step S704), it means that the character is portrait as shown in FIG. 6A. It is displayed so as to be orthogonal. FIG. 6 shows a display example at this time.
(B).

Note that the algorithm for displaying characters at right angles to the screen in step S705 is the same as that known in the prior art as "rotation of characters", and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, regardless of whether the mobile phone 101 is oriented vertically or horizontally, the characters on the liquid crystal display 102 are oriented vertically. Always match the vertical direction for That is, regardless of the orientation of the mobile phone 101 with respect to the operator, the characters on the liquid crystal display 102 always face the operator.

In this embodiment, the mobile phone 101 can be used vertically or horizontally regardless of whether the mobile phone 101 is attached to or detached from the band 103. , The operation may always be performed in the vertical direction. In this case, a switch may be provided at the physical contact between the mobile phone 101 and the band 103, and it may be determined whether the mobile phone 101 is on or off depending on whether power is supplied or not.

Although the display device according to the present embodiment is a mobile phone that can be used in a portrait or landscape orientation, it is not limited to a mobile phone as long as it has a function of displaying characters and the like. You may.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the display of characters has been described as an example, but the object whose display direction is changed depending on the orientation of the apparatus may be an image or a moving image having a distinction between top and bottom. In addition to the characters on the display, the functions of buttons and the like provided beside or below the display may be switched depending on the orientation of the device. For example, the number “1” button is always in the upper left corner when viewed from the operator,
The "9" button may be controlled to come to the lower right corner.

[0041]

As described above, according to the present invention, in a display device having a display for displaying characters,
The determining means determines whether the vertical direction for the operator and the vertical direction of the display are coincident or orthogonal, and the display means determines that the vertical direction for the operator and the vertical direction of the display are determined by the determining means. When it is determined that they match, the character is displayed on the display so that the vertical direction of the display matches the vertical direction of the character, and the vertical direction for the operator and the display of the display are determined by the determination unit. When it is determined that the vertical direction is orthogonal, the character is displayed on the display so that the vertical direction of the display and the vertical direction of the character are orthogonal to each other. In contrast, this has the effect of providing a display device that can be used in an orientation that is most convenient for the operator. Achieve the.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the display device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a method of using the display device according to the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of a method of using the display device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of a method of using the display device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of a method of using the display device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a character display process of the display device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a method of using a mobile phone having a character display function according to the related art.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of a method of using a mobile phone having a character display function according to the related art.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of a method of using a mobile phone having a character display function according to the related art.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Mobile phone 102 Liquid crystal display 103 Band 104a, b MR element 105a, b Permanent magnet 106 Attitude sensor

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A display device having a display for displaying characters, a determining means for determining whether an up-down direction for an operator coincides with or perpendicular to the up-down direction of the display; When it is determined that the vertical direction of the display matches the vertical direction of the display, the character is displayed on the display such that the vertical direction of the display matches the vertical direction of the character, and the determination is performed. When it is determined by the means that the vertical direction of the operator is perpendicular to the vertical direction of the display, a display that displays the character on the display such that the vertical direction of the display is perpendicular to the vertical direction of the character. And a display device.