JP2004320560A - Input device for portable telephone - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a display part image control means which constantly holds a displayed image and a transfer direction of the image in the same direction even without requiring a user to shift a portable telephone from one hand to the other when operating a pointing device at a state that the the portable telephone is opened and a state that it is folded. <P>SOLUTION: Switching control of image display is performed so that the displayed image when a cabinet having a display part is opened and used at a normal state is displayed at a state that it is rotated by 180 degrees on a display picture when a state detection part which detects whether the cabinet having the display part of the portable telephone is opened and used at the normal state or the cabinet having the display part of the portable telephone is closed and used at the state that it is rotated by 180 degrees detects that the cabinet having the display part of the portable telephone is closed and used at the state that it is rotated by 180 degrees. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an input device for performing a display screen operation on a mobile phone.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Since a mobile phone uses a CPU for its control, it can have not only the original call function, but also functions such as e-mail and Web using the display screen. Since graphics can also be displayed, various devices having a pointing device for scrolling the display screen or moving a cursor or pointer on the display screen have been proposed.
[0003]
For example, in Patent Document 1, a push button is arranged at a position that can be operated with a thumb of one hand of a user holding the mobile phone, with respect to the mobile phone having a display screen that displays information by being arranged on the front surface. On the back of the mobile phone, by arranging a pointing device such as a trackball at a position that can be operated with one index finger of the user holding the mobile phone, scroll the display screen, drag and drop icons displayed on the screen, or It has been proposed to control movement of a cursor displayed on a screen and execution of processing.
[0004]
Patent Document 2 discloses a portable information device including a processing unit for processing various information, a display unit for displaying processing information and the like, and an input unit for inputting information or operating the device. A trackball is provided on the back side of the information device, and the portable information device is displayed on the display screen of the device by moving the portable information device in parallel like a mouse on a desk or operating it with one hand on the palm. There is described a portable information device capable of performing a scrolling operation of a screen and a pointing operation of coordinates.
[0005]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2001-16635 A [Patent Document 2]
JP 2000-29568 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As the functions of the mobile phone have increased, the contents displayed on the display screen have become more complicated, and a larger display screen has been required. For this reason, recent mobile phones have a first housing provided with a display screen on the front and a front housing. A mobile phone in which a second housing provided with a keyboard is foldable by a hinge portion is becoming mainstream.
[0007]
Further, in recent mobile phones, a second display screen is provided on the back of a first housing provided with a display screen, so that the display screen can be viewed even in a folded state. Alternatively, there is a configuration in which a first housing provided with a display screen on the front surface can be rotated by 180 degrees so that the display screen can be viewed even when the first and second housings are folded.
[0008]
When a pointing device such as a trackball described in the above-mentioned patent document is provided for a mobile phone having such a configuration, the pointing device is operated while the mobile phone is open to scroll the screen or move the cursor. The moving direction of the display screen or the cursor when moving the cursor and the moving direction of the display screen or the cursor when the screen is scrolled or the cursor is moved by operating the pointing device in a state where the mobile phone is folded are opposite when viewed from the user. Since the direction is the direction, there is an annoyance that the user has to switch and operate the mobile phone so that the display screen and the moving direction are the same, especially when the enter key button is on the side surface of the second housing. There is a problem that operation becomes inconvenient.
[0009]
An object of the present invention is to provide a mobile phone having the above-described configuration, in which a pointing device is provided on the rear surface of a housing, when the pointing device is operated with the mobile phone opened, and when the mobile phone is folded. It is an object of the present invention to provide a display unit image control means that can maintain a display image and a moving direction of the image in the same direction as seen from the user, even when the pointing device is operated without holding the mobile phone.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
An input device for a mobile phone according to the present invention is configured such that a first housing having a display screen on a front surface and a second housing having a keyboard on a front surface are foldable by a hinge portion, and A back surface of the second housing as means for designating position coordinates on the display screen in a mobile phone in which the first housing is configured to be able to rotate 180 degrees around an axis orthogonal to a hinge axis of the hinge portion. A state detecting means for detecting whether or not the first housing is folded in a state where the first housing is rotated by 180 degrees; and a state detecting means for detecting whether or not the first housing is folded by 180 degrees. When it is detected that the display screen is folded in a rotated state, the display contents of the display screen and the position coordinates specified by the pointing device are rotated 180 degrees on the display screen. Characterized by comprising an image display switching control means for.
[0011]
Further, the input device of the mobile phone of the present invention is configured such that a first housing having a display screen on the front surface and a display screen on the back surface and a second housing having a keyboard on the front surface can be folded by a hinge portion. A pointing device provided on a back surface of the second housing as means for designating position coordinates on the display screen, and detecting whether the mobile phone is in a folded state. State detecting means, when the state detecting means detects that the mobile phone is in a folded state, the display contents of the display screen provided on the back surface and the position coordinates specified by the pointing device; Image display switching control means for rotating by 180 degrees on the display screen.
[0012]
ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the 1st housing | casing provided with the display screen in the front, and the 2nd housing | casing provided with the keyboard in the front and the pointing device in the back were comprised so that a hinge part could be folded. A mobile phone having a configuration in which the first housing is rotated by 180 degrees and the display screen can be viewed in a state where the first and second housings are folded by the hinge portion; or A mobile phone in which a first housing having a display screen on each of the front and back surfaces and a second housing having a keyboard on the front surface and a pointing device on the back surface are foldable by a hinge. In the above, when the display content on the display screen is operated in a state where the mobile phone is opened or folded, an image displayed on the display screen of the mobile phone is always displayed to the user. Since capable of maintaining the same direction, one by one Mochikaeru without requiring the mobile phone according to a use state, it is possible to eliminate the troublesome operation.
[0013]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a front (front) side and a back side of a mobile phone provided with an input device to which the first embodiment of the present invention is applied.
[0014]
In FIG. 1, a mobile phone 100 includes a housing 101 and a housing 102 which are configured to be foldable by a hinge portion 103. The display unit 1 is arranged on the front side of the housing 101, and key buttons 3 for performing operations for executing various functions of the mobile phone are arranged on the surface of the housing 102.
[0015]
A trackball 2 as a pointing device for detecting a moving direction when the back surface of the housing 102 is moved in parallel with a desk or the like is provided on the back surface of the housing 102. By moving the trackball 2 on a desk or the like like a mouse, the trackball 2 can be rotated, and an image displayed on the display unit 1 can be scrolled or the like based on the position information of the trackball 2.
[0016]
The housing 101 has a configuration in which the display unit 1 can be rotated by 180 degrees around an axis orthogonal to the axis of the hinge unit 103. In a normal use mode, the display unit 1 is opened when the mobile phone 100 is opened. 1 is located on the same side as the keyboard 3, but it is possible to fold the mobile phone in a state where the section where the display unit 1 is arranged is rotated 180 degrees around an axis orthogonal to the axis of the hinge unit 103. While viewing the image displayed on the display unit 1 in the folded state, the image can be scrolled by the trackball 2 provided on the back surface of the housing 102.
[0017]
FIG. 2 illustrates an operation of rotating the display unit 101 of the mobile phone 100 to which the present embodiment is applied by rotating the display unit 101 by 180 degrees and folding the display unit 101. When the mobile phone 100 is closed (folded) by rotating about 180 degrees around an axis 51 perpendicular to the hinge axis 50 (FIGS. 2B to 2D), the display unit 1 is in a housing. While being held on the back, the display screen of the display unit 1 can be viewed in a folded state, and the trackball 2 is placed on the back side (the back of the housing 102) (FIG. 2 (e)). )).
[0018]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the mobile phone 100 mainly extracting and showing parts related to the present embodiment. FIGS. 4 and 5 are flowcharts showing an image movement control operation in the present embodiment. FIGS. 6 to 9 are diagrams for explaining the movement operation of the display screen in the present embodiment. In the block diagram of FIG. 3, the control unit 33 has a CPU and a memory, and is illustrated as a block that executes a control operation of all functions of the mobile phone 100 of the present embodiment. Hereinafter, the operation of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0019]
When the mobile phone 100 is moved on the desk such that the trackball 2 rotatably stored on the back of the housing 102 of the mobile phone 100 is in contact with the desk, the trackball 2 rotates. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the movement of the trackball 2 is detected by a rotation / position detection unit 38 incorporated in the mobile phone, and the detection result is obtained by a control unit 33 that controls the display state of the display unit 1. Output to the display control unit. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, a state detecting unit 39 that detects whether the housing 101 having the display unit 1 incorporated in the mobile phone is in a normal state or a state rotated by 180 degrees. Is also output to the display control unit 33.
[0020]
The display control unit 33 reflects the movement of the trackball 2 detected by the rotation amount / position detection unit 38 on the scroll of the display unit image, and changes the housing rotation information from the state detection unit 39 to a state in which the case rotation information is rotated by 180 degrees. When it is detected that there is, the switching of the image display on the display unit 1 is controlled so that the display image is displayed in a state rotated by 180 degrees on the display screen.
[0021]
As shown in FIG. 6, when the mobile phone 100 is opened and the trackball 2 on the back of the housing 102 is moved in the direction of the arrow so as to be in contact with the desk, the display unit 1 of the first housing 101 Can be scrolled in the same direction as the case movement direction, and the selection item can be automatically selected at the cursor position.
[0022]
For example, when the cursor 4 selecting “Kyushu” is selected in a state where the image scrolls in the same direction as the case moves and disappears from the screen, the cursor 4 is displayed at the center of the screen. Cursor 4 'is moved to and "China" is selected. The cursor item can be determined, for example, by operating the key button 3 or the key button 7 provided on the side surface of the housing 102. It should be noted that the screen scrolling and the cursor movement may be switched, and the trackball 2 may be used to operate each independently.
[0023]
Next, when the housing 102 is fixed and the housing 101 is rotated by 180 ° around the axis 51 and the mobile phone is closed by the hinge 103 (the state shown in FIG. 2E), the state detection means displays Since it is detected that the unit 1 is folded in a state of being rotated by 180 degrees, the display control unit displays the image on the display unit 1 'when closed and the image scroll direction by the trackball. The image switching control of the display unit 1 is performed so that the image is displayed by being rotated 180 degrees on the display screen.
[0024]
Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, the image 5 displayed on the display unit 1 moves to the position of the image 5 'in response to the movement of the housing in the direction of the arrow, and the image 6 originally outside the display unit is displayed. Scroll in the direction that appears in the section. The determination of the cursor item when the mobile phone is closed is performed by operating the key button 7 arranged on the side of the housing.
[0025]
On the character information selection screen with the mobile phone open as shown in FIG. 8, the cursor can be moved in the same direction as the case. When there are many character information selection items outside the display, the displayed cursor is moved to the end of the screen in the direction in which the selection items are desired to be scrolled, and the casing is further moved in that direction to scroll the display. The character information outside is displayed on the display unit, and the cursor can be moved and selected.
[0026]
As shown in FIG. 9, when the display unit 1 is rotated 180 degrees and positioned on the back, and the mobile phone is used in a closed state, as shown in FIG. In addition, the control is performed such that the moving direction of the selection item by the trackball is reversed by 180 degrees and reverse to that when the mobile phone is in the open state. Similarly, when the screen is scrolled and character information outside the display unit is displayed on the display unit, the image and the moving direction are controlled so that the image and the moving direction are opposite to those in the open state of the mobile phone.
[0027]
Therefore, when moving the image by the trackball 2 by moving the mobile phone on the desk, the user does not need to hold the mobile phone one by one depending on whether the mobile phone is open or closed. Can be kept in the same direction.
[0028]
FIG. 10 to FIG. 13 are operation explanatory diagrams showing the second embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, not only the image on the display unit 1 is moved, but also the pointer 8 is displayed, thereby enabling pointer movement, image scrolling, and cursor movement.
[0029]
In the present embodiment, regarding the scrolling of the screen, by moving the pointer 9 to the end in the direction in which the user wants to scroll, and further moving the housing in that direction, the screen is scrolled and the selection items outside the display unit are displayed. Is displayed and can be selected. As shown in FIG. 11, the same is possible when the display unit 1 is on the back and the mobile phone is closed.
[0030]
The pointer 10 can be moved in the same direction as the housing in the character information selection screen as shown in FIGS. When there are many character information selection items outside the display unit, move the displayed pointer to the end of the selection item in the direction in which you want to scroll, and then move the housing in that direction to scroll the screen to the outside of the display unit. Is displayed on the display unit, and the cursor can be moved and selected. On the other hand, when the mobile phone is closed with the display unit being on the rear surface of the housing, the moving direction of the pointer 11 of the display unit is opposite to that when the mobile phone is open. The same applies to screen scrolling.
[0031]
In each of the above embodiments, the trackball 2 is used as a pointing device provided on the rear surface of the housing 102. However, with the rear surface of the housing 102 on a flat surface, When the 102 is moved, it may be configured by using an optical movement amount detecting means for optically detecting the movement amount.
[0032]
FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, a foldable mobile phone is provided in which a front display unit 12 and a rear display unit 13 are provided in a housing 101 of the mobile phone 100. By incorporating the same display direction switching means for each display mode when the rear display unit 13 is opened and closed, images of the front display unit 12 when the housing is opened and the rear display unit 13 when the housing is closed, and a trackball Can always be kept in the same direction for the user.
[0033]
In the above embodiments, the front display unit image when the housing is opened and the movement of the pointer are performed by the pointing device provided on the back of the housing 102. Since there is provided a means for moving the image and the pointer by operating the four-direction keys or the like, the front display unit image when the housing is opened and the movement of the pointer can be changed from the operation by the trackball to the key button unit by the command input. A means for switching the operation to the four-way key or the like may be provided.
[0034]
Further, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which a command input switches from the method of moving the front display unit image when the housing is opened to the method of moving by the pointer. At this time, switching from the rear display unit image moving method when the housing is closed to the moving method using the pointer can be performed by, for example, operating a key button or the like arranged on the side surface of the housing.
[0035]
【The invention's effect】
The present invention is configured such that a first housing provided with a display screen on the front and a second housing provided with a keyboard on the front and a pointing device on the back are foldable by a hinge portion, And a mobile phone having a configuration in which the first housing is rotated by 180 degrees and the display screen can be viewed in a state where the first and second housings are folded by the hinge portion. A mobile phone in which a first housing provided with a display screen on the back and a second housing provided with a keyboard on the front and a pointing device on the back can be folded by a hinge, When performing a moving operation of an image with the mobile phone opened and folded, the image displayed on the display screen of the mobile phone is always kept in the same direction for the user. Because can bets, there is no need to Mochikaeru a mobile phone in a reverse direction in accordance with the use state, it is possible to eliminate the troublesome operation.
[0036]
In addition, since a pointing device such as a trackball is incorporated on the back of the housing of the foldable mobile phone on which the keyboard is provided, it is possible to perform an image moving operation like a mouse.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a front (front) side and a back side of a mobile phone provided with an input device to which a first embodiment of the present invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a folding function and a rotation function of the mobile phone to which the embodiment is applied;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mobile phone mainly extracting and showing blocks related to the present embodiment;
FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an image movement control operation according to the embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an image movement control operation according to the embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a movement operation of a display screen according to the embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a movement operation of a display screen according to the embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a movement operation of a display screen according to the embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a movement operation of a display screen according to the embodiment.
FIG. 10 is an operation explanatory view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 12 is an operation explanatory view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 13 is an operation explanatory view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 14 is an operation explanatory view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1, 12, 13 Display unit 2 Trackball 3, 7 Keyboard 4, 4 'Cursor 5, 5', 6 Image 8, 9, 11 Pointer 31 Antenna 32 Wireless circuit unit 33 Control unit 34 Audio circuit unit 35 Speaker 36 Microphone 37 Key switch section 38 Rotation amount / position detecting section 39 State detecting section 50, 51 Axis 100 Cellular phone 101, 102 Housing 103 Hinge section

Claims (7)

A first housing having a display screen on the front surface and a second housing having a keyboard on the front surface are configured to be foldable by a hinge portion, and the first housing is a hinge of the hinge portion. In a mobile phone configured to be able to rotate 180 degrees around an axis orthogonal to the axis,
A pointing device provided on the back surface of the second housing as a means for designating position coordinates on the display screen; and a determination whether the first housing is folded in the 180-degree rotated state. State detection means for detecting, and when the state detection means detects that the first housing is folded in a state of being rotated by 180 degrees, it is designated by the display content of the display screen and the pointing device. And an image display switching control means for rotating the set position coordinates by 180 degrees on the display screen. A mobile phone in which a first housing having a display screen on each of the front and back surfaces and a second housing having a keyboard on the front surface are configured to be foldable by a hinge portion,
A pointing device provided on the back surface of the second housing as means for designating position coordinates on the display screen; state detecting means for detecting whether the mobile phone is in a folded state; When the state detecting means detects that the mobile phone is in the folded state, the display contents of the display screen provided on the back surface and the position coordinates designated by the pointing device are displayed on the display screen by 180. An input device for a mobile phone, comprising: an image display switching control unit that rotates by an angle. 3. The input device for a mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein the pointing device has a function of scrolling display contents of the display screen. The input device for a mobile phone according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a function of moving a pointer displayed on the display screen by the pointing device. The input device for a mobile phone according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the input device has a function of moving a cursor displayed on the display screen by the pointing device. When the pointing device is moved along the plane with the back surface of the first housing placed on a plane, the pointing device rotates a trackball that contacts the plane to detect a movement amount. The input device for a mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein the input device is provided. The pointing device is an optical movement amount detection unit that optically detects the movement amount when the first housing is moved along the plane with the back surface of the first housing placed on the plane. The input device for a mobile phone according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein:

Images