JP2013206274A - Portable electronic apparatus and display control method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve a portable electronic apparatus for supporting the selection of a function by a user.SOLUTION: Portable electronic equipment includes: a radio communication device; position detection means; distance calculation means; display processing means; and start means. The position detection means acquires information relating to the current position of the portable electronic apparatus from the outside via the radio communication device, and detects the current position of the portable electronic apparatus. The distance calculation means calculates a distance from a first reference position to the current position. The display processing means makes the display of the portable electronic apparatus display a display object showing one or more functions associated with the combination of the calculated distance with time zone attributes corresponding to the current time. The start means starts one function among one or more functions selected in accordance with the operation of the display object.

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a portable electronic device capable of presenting a display object such as a menu to a user, and a display control method applied to the electronic device.

  In recent years, various portable electronic devices such as portable personal computers, tablet terminals, PDAs, and mobile phones have been developed. This type of portable electronic device can perform various functions, for example, playback of moving images, playback of music, games, presentation of news information, presentation of weather information, presentation of various other information, and the like. .

  Many of these functions are displayed on the display of the portable electronic device by display objects such as menus and buttons. The user can activate a desired function by selecting a desired function to be used from these many functions.

JP 2002-259011 A

  However, it is not always easy for the user to find a target function from a large number of functions.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a portable electronic device and a display control method that can assist a user in selecting a function.

  According to the embodiment, the portable electronic device includes a wireless communication device, a position detection unit, a distance calculation unit, a display processing unit, and an activation unit. The position detection means acquires information on the current position of the portable electronic device from the outside via the wireless communication device and detects the current position of the portable electronic device. The distance calculating means calculates a distance from a first reference position to the current position. The display processing means displays a display object indicating one or more functions associated with a combination of the calculated distance and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time on the display of the portable electronic device. The activation means activates one of the one or more functions selected in accordance with the operation of the display object.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of the portable electronic device according to the embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the hardware key provided in the back surface of the portable electronic device of the embodiment. FIG. 2 is an exemplary block diagram illustrating a system configuration of the portable electronic device according to the embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the function definition table for associating one or more functions with each combination of a position attribute and a time zone attribute used with the portable electronic device of the embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the position attribute used with the portable electronic device of the embodiment. 2 is an exemplary block diagram showing the functional configuration of a menu display control program executed by the portable electronic device of the embodiment. FIG. FIG. 6 is an exemplary view showing an example of a menu table used in the portable electronic device of the embodiment. 4 is an exemplary view showing an example of a menu displayed by the portable electronic device of the embodiment. FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of menus corresponding to the first usage scene and the second usage scene displayed by the portable electronic device of the embodiment. 6 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating a procedure of menu display control processing executed by the portable electronic device of the embodiment. 6 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating a procedure of menu editing processing which is executed by the portable electronic device of the embodiment. 6 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating a procedure of a menu display change process which is executed by the portable electronic device of the embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of a portable electronic device according to an embodiment. This portable electronic device can be realized as, for example, a tablet terminal, a portable computer, a smartphone, a PDA, or the like. Below, the case where this portable electronic device is implement | achieved as the tablet terminal (tablet-type personal computer) 10 is assumed. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the tablet terminal 10 includes a main body 11 and a touch screen display 17.

  The main body 11 has a thin box-shaped housing. The touch screen display 17 incorporates a flat panel display such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a touch panel. The touch panel is provided so as to cover the screen of the flat panel display. The touch screen display 17 is attached to be superposed on the upper surface of the main body 11. The touch screen display 17 can detect a position on the display screen where an external object (a pen or a finger of a hand) is touched.

  A camera 19 is disposed on the upper surface of the main body 11. On the top surface of the main body 11, hardware keys 21A, 21B, 21C, and 21D are arranged. Each of these hardware keys 21A, 21B, 21C, 21D can be used to activate the menu display function of the tablet terminal 10. The menu display function is a function for displaying on the touch screen display 17 a display object (menu) indicating one or more of the plurality of functions of the tablet terminal 10. In the present embodiment, the usage scene of the tablet terminal 10 is estimated based on the distance from the first reference position to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time, and the estimated usage. Depending on the scene, the display content of the menu is automatically changed.

  For example, the first reference position may be home or other registered location. That is, the home position (for example, latitude and longitude) or the position of another registered place (for example, latitude and longitude) is used as the first reference position. The current usage scene is estimated based on the combination of the distance from the reference position (first reference position) to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. Then, the content of the display object (menu) is changed according to the estimated current usage scene. Thereby, for example, display objects (menus) displayed on the tablet terminal 10 between the case where the tablet terminal 10 is used at home or another registered place and the case where the tablet terminal 10 is used at various places to go. ) Can be changed automatically. Furthermore, when the tablet terminal 10 is used in a short distance from the home or other registered location (daily) and when the tablet terminal 10 is used in a long distance from the home or other registered location (non-) The contents of the display object (menu) displayed on the tablet terminal 10 can be automatically changed. In the following, it is assumed that the home position is used as the reference position (first reference position).

  On the touch screen display 17, software keys (buttons) 22A and 22B are displayed. Each of these software keys (buttons) 22A and 22B can also be used to activate the menu display function. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a hardware key 21E is arranged on the bottom surface of the main body 11. This hardware key 21E can also be used to activate the menu display function.

  The user easily activates the menu display function at any timing by operating one of the hardware keys 21A, 21B, 21C, 21D, 21E, or by operating any of the software keys 22A, 22B. can do.

  When the menu display function is activated, a menu showing one or more functions determined in advance for the current usage scene (distance and time zone from home) is displayed on the touch screen display 17. By viewing this menu, the user can easily find out a function to be used from a large number of functions of the tablet terminal 10, and can easily select a function to be used by operating this menu.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration of the tablet terminal 10.
As shown in FIG. 3, the tablet terminal 10 includes a CPU 101, a north bridge 102, a main memory 103, a south bridge 104, a graphics controller 105, a sound controller 106, a BIOS-ROM 107, a LAN controller 108, a nonvolatile memory 109, a vibrator. 110, an acceleration sensor 111, a wireless communication device 112, an embedded controller (EC) 113, an EEPROM 114, an HDMI control circuit 3, and the like.

  The CPU 101 is a processor that controls the operation of each unit in the tablet terminal 10. The CPU 101 executes an operating system (OS) 201 and various application programs loaded from the nonvolatile memory 109 to the main memory 103. The application program includes a menu display control program 202. The menu display control program 202 executes the menu display function described above.

  The CPU 101 also executes the BIOS stored in the BIOS-ROM 107. The BIOS is a program for hardware control.

  The north bridge 102 is a bridge device that connects the local bus of the CPU 101 and the south bridge 104. The north bridge 102 also includes a memory controller that controls access to the main memory 103. The north bridge 102 also has a function of executing communication with the graphics controller 105 via a PCI EXPRESS standard serial bus or the like.

  The graphics controller 105 is a display controller that controls the LCD 17 </ b> A used as a display monitor of the tablet terminal 10. A display signal generated by the graphics controller 105 is sent to the LCD 17A. The LCD 17A displays a screen image based on the display signal. A touch panel 17B is disposed on the LCD 17A. The touch panel 17B is a pointing device for inputting on the screen of the LCD 17A. The user can operate a graphical user interface (GUI) displayed on the screen of the LCD 17A using the touch panel 17B. For example, the user can instruct execution of a function corresponding to the button by touching the button displayed on the screen.

  The HDMI terminal 2 is an external display connection terminal. The HDMI terminal 2 can send an uncompressed digital video signal and a digital audio signal to the external display device 1 with a single cable. The HDMI control circuit 3 is an interface for sending a digital video signal to the external display device 1 called an HDMI monitor via the HDMI terminal 2.

  The south bridge 104 controls each device on a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus and each device on an LPC (Low Pin Count) bus. The south bridge 104 includes an ATA controller for controlling the nonvolatile memory 109.

  The south bridge 104 has a built-in USB controller for controlling various USB devices. Further, the south bridge 104 has a function of executing communication with the sound controller 106. The sound controller 106 is a sound source device and outputs audio data to be reproduced to the speakers 18A and 18B. The LAN controller 108 is a wired communication device that executes, for example, IEEE 802.3 standard wired communication. The wireless communication device 112 includes all of the wireless LAN controller 112A, the GPS receiver 112B, and the 3G mobile communication unit 112C, or at least one of the wireless LAN controller 112A, the GPS receiver 112B, and the 3G mobile communication unit 112C. The wireless LAN controller 112A is a wireless communication device that executes wireless communication of, for example, the IEEE 802.11 standard. The GPS receiver 112B is a receiver that receives GPS signals from GPS satellites. The 3G mobile communication unit 112C is a mobile communication device that performs communication with each base station of the mobile telephone network.

  The EC 113 is a one-chip microcomputer including an embedded controller for power management. The EC 113 has a function of powering on / off the tablet terminal 10 in accordance with a power button operation by the user.

  Next, an example of a function definition table used by the menu display control program 202 will be described with reference to FIG. This function definition table is a table for associating one or more functions with individual combinations of position attributes and time zone attributes. The position attribute is an attribute of the usage location of the tablet terminal 10. The tablet terminal 10 has a large number of functions such as video playback, music playback, game, news information presentation, weather information presentation, SNS service, peripheral information presentation, tourist guidance information presentation, and other various information. Have presentations, etc. One or more functions selected in advance from these functions are associated with each combination of the position attribute and the time zone attribute.

  In the present embodiment, position attributes such as “home”, “short distance”, “far distance”, and the like are used as the position attributes of the current position (use place). Position attributes such as “home”, “short distance”, and “far distance” are defined based on the distance from the home position to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 as shown in FIG.

  Based on the distance from the first reference position to the current position, the menu display control program 202 separates the current position from the first position attribute (home) corresponding to the first reference position and the first reference position. A second position attribute (short distance) in which the distance from the first reference position to the current position is within a predetermined distance, or a third position in which the distance from the first reference position to the current position is greater than the predetermined distance It is determined whether the attribute (far distance). Then, the menu display control program 202 specifies one or more functions associated with the combination of the determined position attribute and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time as functions to be displayed by the display object (menu).

  For example, when the current position of the tablet terminal 10 is within a distance of about 10 m from the position of the home, for example, the position attribute of the current position is determined to be “home”. When the distance from the home position to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 is within the range of 10 m to xm (the current position is outside the range corresponding to the first reference position (home position) and the home position Is within the range of xm), the position attribute of the current position is determined to be “short distance”. For example, xm may have a value of about several tens of kilometers to 100 kilometers. When the distance from the home position to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 exceeds xm, it is determined that the position attribute of the current position is “far”.

  Thus, in the present embodiment, the usage location is not distinguished based on the individual location corresponding to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 but based on the distance from the home to the current position of the tablet terminal 10. Differentiated. Accordingly, the display content of the menu can be automatically changed according to the difference in usage scenes such as a normal time such as going out (short distance) such as a normal outing and a non-daily time such as travel / business trip (long distance). it can.

  If the usage locations are distinguished based on the individual locations corresponding to the current location of the tablet terminal 10, a large number of usage locations must be individually set, and the setting process requires a lot of trouble. Time can be spent. In the present embodiment, as described above, since the current usage scene is estimated based on the distance from the home to the current position of the tablet terminal 10, the current usage scene can be obtained without setting many usage locations individually. A menu suitable for the scene can be easily displayed.

  In the present embodiment, the time zone attributes include times such as “breakfast”, “morning”, “lunch”, “afternoon”, “dinner”, “night”, “after bedtime”, and “working”. The band attribute is used. For each of these time zone attributes, initial values (default values) of the start time and end time are defined in advance. Of course, the user can change the initial values of the start time and the end time corresponding to each time zone attribute to arbitrary values.

  Each cell of the function definition table of FIG. 4 is assigned one or more functions determined in advance based on a combination of a position attribute and a time zone attribute corresponding to the cell. Regarding the position attribute of “home”, a function that is estimated to be likely to be used at home is assigned in advance for each time slot. In addition, regarding the “close distance” position attribute, a function that is estimated to be highly likely to be used when going out on a daily basis is assigned in advance for each time zone. In addition, with respect to the position attribute of “long distance”, a function that is estimated to be highly likely to be used at an extraordinary outing such as a trip is assigned in advance for each time zone.

  By referring to the function definition table, the menu display control program 202 refers to the position attribute (“home”, “short distance”, “far distance”, etc.) corresponding to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 and the time corresponding to the current time. A function associated with the band attribute is specified, and a menu showing the specified function is displayed.

  Further, the menu display control program 202 has an editing function for adding / changing the contents of the function definition table in accordance with a user operation. By operating this editing function, the user can change the contents of each cell of the function definition table, or additionally register position information of a specific place such as work or school as a new position attribute in the function definition table. Can be.

  For example, it is assumed that the location (latitude, longitude, etc.) of the user's workplace is additionally registered in the “addition 1” field of the function definition table. For this additional registration, the user may activate the “add current location” function of the menu display control program 202, for example, at the user's workplace. The menu display control program 202 stores position information indicating the current position of the tablet terminal 10 in the “addition 1” field. In addition, the menu display control program 202 calculates the distance from the home to the current position (here, the position of the workplace), and from the position attributes such as “home”, “short distance”, “far distance”, etc. The position attribute that is most similar to the calculated distance is selected. Then, the menu display control program 202 stores the contents of the function definition table related to the selected position attribute, that is, the function assigned to each time zone attribute of the selected position attribute in the “addition 1” field. Copy as. For example, when the distance from home to work belongs to the range of distance corresponding to “short distance”, the contents of the cell group in the function definition table regarding “short distance” correspond to the field “additional 1”. Copied as the default value of the function to the cell group. The user can easily set a function group to be used in the workplace only by changing a part of the copied content as necessary.

  If the menu display control program 202 is activated in a state where the tablet terminal 10 is present at a position corresponding to the workplace, the menu display control program 202 refers to the function definition table, and the position of “addition 1”. The function associated with the attribute and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time is determined, and a menu indicating the determined function is displayed.

  Further, in the function definition table, position attributes such as “communication disabled” and “moving” can be defined. “No communication” indicates a location attribute corresponding to an environment in which wireless communication cannot be performed. When the wireless communication by the wireless communication apparatus 112 cannot be performed, the menu display control program 202 refers to the function definition table to combine the position attribute of “communication disabled” and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. The associated function is determined, and a menu showing the determined function is displayed. For example, a function or the like that can be executed without using wireless communication may be assigned in advance to the combination of the position attribute “not communicable” and each time zone attribute. Thereby, in the case of “communication impossible”, a menu indicating functions that can be executed without using wireless communication can be displayed.

  “Moving” indicates a position attribute corresponding to an environment where the communication quality is lower than the reference value. The menu display control program 202 acquires, for example, values (for example, bit error rate, received signal strength, etc.) indicating the quality of wireless communication by the wireless communication device 112 from the wireless communication device 112, and the wireless communication quality is the reference value. Whether it is “moving” is estimated according to whether it is the following. If the menu display control program 202 is estimated to be “moving”, the menu display control program 202 refers to the function definition table to associate the position attribute “moving” with the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. A menu showing the determined function is displayed. For example, for a combination of a “moving” position attribute and each time zone attribute, a function that is estimated to be highly likely to be used in a train, or a function that can be executed without using wireless communication Alternatively, a function that requires a relatively small amount of data to be downloaded from a server or the like by wireless communication may be allocated in advance. Thereby, for example, when the user is moving on a train, a function that is estimated to be highly likely to be used in a train, or a function that can be executed without using wireless communication, a server, etc. A menu showing functions and the like that require a relatively small amount of data to be downloaded from can be displayed.

Next, the functional configuration of the menu display control program 202 will be described with reference to FIG.
The menu display control program 202 includes, as its function execution modules, a position information acquisition processing unit 301, a position storage unit 302, a distance calculation processing unit 303, a current location determination processing unit 304, a time acquisition processing unit 305, a time zone determination processing unit 307, A time zone storage unit 306, a display menu change processing unit 308, a display menu storage unit 309, a display processing unit 310, an activation unit 311 and an editing processing unit 312 are included.

  The menu display control program 202 is activated when any one of the hardware keys 21A to 21E and the software keys 22A and 22B is operated by the user, and is configured to connect to a communication network or the like via the wireless communication device 112. Yes. The position information acquisition processing unit 301 acquires information on the current position of the tablet terminal 10 from the outside via the wireless communication device 112 and detects the current position of the tablet terminal 10. For example, the position information acquisition processing unit 301 can receive GPS signals from several GPS satellites using the wireless communication device 112 and detect the current position of the tablet terminal 10 using these GPS signals. Further, for example, information on the current position of the tablet terminal 10 is acquired from an external server or the like via a wireless LAN access point or a mobile communication base station, and the current position of the tablet terminal 10 is acquired using the acquired information. Can also be detected. The position storage unit 302 stores position information of a home or a registered place.

  The distance calculation processing unit 303 calculates the distance from the home or registered location to the current position. The current location determination processing unit 304 determines a position attribute (for example, “home”, “short distance”, “far distance”, etc.) of the current position based on the calculated distance. The time acquisition processing unit 305 acquires the current time. The current time can be acquired from a clock module such as a real time clock (RTC) in the tablet terminal 10 or can be acquired from the OS 201, for example. The time zone storage unit 306 holds information defining the start time and end time for each time zone described in FIG. The display menu storage unit 309 stores a menu table described later with reference to FIG. 7, a function definition table described with reference to FIG.

  The display menu change processing unit 308 changes the contents of the menu to be displayed based on the position attribute corresponding to the calculated distance (position attribute of the current position) and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. More specifically, the display menu change processing unit 308 specifies one or more functions associated with a combination of the position attribute of the current position and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time, and the specified one or more functions are displayed. A menu to be displayed is displayed on the screen of the LCD 17A via the display processing unit 310. The display menu change processing unit 308 can also change the contents of the menu to be displayed based on information such as weather and temperature received from an external server or the like via the wireless communication device 112. The display menu change processing unit 308 can also change the contents of the menu to be displayed in cooperation with a schedule management program such as a scheduler. For example, on a day of travel, functions such as sightseeing information and surrounding information may be preferentially displayed. Furthermore, the display menu change processing unit 308 recognizes the situation such as the menu activation after going to bed or the current position of the tablet terminal 10 at home during the time corresponding to “working” as an abnormal situation, and the hospital or pharmacy. It is also possible to display an emergency menu for presenting information on the user to the user.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of the menu table. In this menu table, a plurality of functions (function names or application program names corresponding to the functions) that can be displayed on the menu are commands for executing the application programs corresponding to these functions (application execution commands). Stored in an associated state.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of a menu displayed when the time zone attribute is “AM” and the position attribute is “HOME”.

  FIG. 9 shows an example of a menu displayed when the time zone attribute is “AM” and the position attribute is “SHORT”, and is displayed when the time zone attribute is “AM” and the position attribute is “FAR”. An example of a menu is shown.

  When the time zone attribute is “AM” and the position attribute is “SHORT DISTANCE”, the menu 400 displays “weather” 501, “news” 502, “shopping” 503, “editor” 504, and “SNS” 505. , Function items such as “electronic book” 506 are displayed. “Weather” 501 is a function for presenting information related to the weather to the user. “News” 502 is a function for presenting news to the user. “Shopping” 503 is a function for presenting information related to shopping to the user. When “shopping” 503 is selected, for example, a process of receiving information related to stores around the current position of the tablet terminal 10 from the server and presenting information related to the stores to the user is executed. . An “editor” 504 is a function for starting an editor application program. “SNS” 505 is a function for starting an application program program for using a social network service (SNS). An “electronic book” 506 is a function for starting an application program for purchasing or reading an electronic book.

  For example, the application program corresponding to each of “weather” 501 and “shopping” 503 transmits position information indicating the current position of the tablet terminal 10 to an external device such as a server via the communication network, and Weather information corresponding to the position, shopping information around the current position of the tablet terminal 10, and the like may be received from an external device.

  When the time zone attribute is “AM” and the position attribute is “Long Distance”, “Weather” 601, “Nearby information” 602, “Tourist information” 603, “Transfer” 604, “SNS” are displayed on the menu 400. Function items such as “605” and “Gourmet” 606 are displayed. The “peripheral information” 602 is a function for presenting information related to landmarks and the like around the current position of the tablet terminal 10 to the user. When the “peripheral information” 602 is selected, for example, the application program corresponding to the “peripheral information” 602 transmits position information indicating the current position of the tablet terminal 10 to an external device such as a server via the communication network. Then, information related to stores around the current position of the tablet terminal 10 is received from an external device, and information related to the stores is presented to the user. “Sightseeing information” 603 is a function of presenting information related to sightseeing spots around the current position of the tablet terminal 10 to the user. When “tourist information” 603 is selected, for example, the application program corresponding to “tourist information” 603 transmits position information indicating the current position of the tablet terminal 10 to an external device such as a server via the communication network. Then, information related to sightseeing spots around the current position of the tablet terminal 10 is received from an external device, and information related to information relating to the sightseeing spots is presented to the user.

  Next, the procedure of the menu display control process executed by the menu display control program 202 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In response to the operation of the hardware key or software key by the user, the menu display control program 202 is activated. The menu display control program 202 acquires information (position information) related to the current position of the tablet terminal 10 from the outside via the wireless communication device 112, and detects the current position of the tablet terminal 10 (step S11). If the position information cannot be acquired (NO in step S12), the menu display control program 202 can be executed without using one or more functions that can be executed without using wireless communication or the current position information. One or more functions are specified as functions to be displayed on the menu, and a menu indicating the functions presented by the technology is displayed on the LCD 17A (step S13).

  Further, for example, in a situation where GPS signals can be received but other wireless communication such as wireless LAN or mobile communication cannot be performed (YES in step S14), the menu display control program 202 is The current time is acquired and the time attribute corresponding to the current time is determined (step S15). Then, the menu display control program 202 determines the function associated with the position attribute of “communication impossible” and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time by referring to the function definition table of FIG. Is displayed on the LCD 17A which displays the menu (step S16). In step S16, for example, one or more functions that can be executed without using communication with an external device are specified as functions to be shown by the menu. Regardless of whether or not location information has been acquired, a process is performed to determine whether or not communication is possible. If “communication is not possible”, the location attribute of “communication not possible” corresponds to the current time. The menu may be displayed based on the time zone attribute to be performed.

  When wireless communication such as wireless LAN or mobile communication is feasible, the menu display control program 202 determines whether or not the current environment of the tablet terminal 10 is moving (step S17). If it is moving (YES in step S17), the menu display control program 202 acquires the current time and determines a time attribute corresponding to the current time (step S18). Then, the menu display control program 202 determines the function associated with the “moving” position attribute and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time by referring to the function definition table of FIG. Is displayed on the LCD 17A which displays the menu (step S19).

  If not moving (NO in step S17), the menu display control program 202 determines whether or not the current position is a position corresponding to the additionally registered place (first place) (step S20). . If the current position is a position corresponding to the additionally registered place (first place) (YES in step S20), the menu display control program 202 acquires the current time and sets the time attribute corresponding to the current time. Is determined (step S21). Then, the menu display control program 202 refers to the function definition table of FIG. 4, and the function associated with the position attribute of the added registered place (first place) and the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. And a menu showing the determined function is displayed on the LCD 17A (step 22).

  If the current position does not correspond to the additionally registered location (NO in step S20), the menu display control program 202 calculates the distance from the home (first reference position) to the current position (step S23). Then, based on the calculated distance, the menu display control program 202 determines whether the position attribute of the current position corresponds to “home”, “short distance”, or “far distance” (step S24). . Thereafter, the menu display control program 202 acquires the current time and determines a time attribute corresponding to the current time (step S25). Then, the menu display control program 202 refers to the function definition table in FIG. 4 to correspond to the position attribute (“home”, “short distance”, or “far distance”) corresponding to the current position and the current time. The function associated with the time zone attribute is determined and displayed on the LCD 17A that displays a menu indicating the determined function (step S26).

  The menu display control program 202 determines whether or not a function in the menu is selected by a user operation (step S27). If a certain function is selected (YES in step S27), the menu display control program 202 activates the selected function (step S28). In step S28, the menu display control program 202 specifies the command (9) corresponding to the selected function by referring to the menu table of FIG. 7. Then, the menu display control program 202 specifies the specified command. By executing the command, an application program corresponding to the selected function is started.

  Next, the procedure of menu customization processing (editing processing) executed by the menu display control program 202 will be described.

  The menu display control program 202 displays a customization guidance message on the LCD 17A (step S31). The user can instruct the contents of the menu customization process (addition, change, replacement, etc. of functions that can be displayed on the menu). Here, the replacement means a process of changing an application program associated with a certain function to another application program capable of executing the function.

  When the user gives an instruction to add a certain function (“Add” in Step S32), the menu display control program 202 executes a menu table addition process (Step S33). In step S33, the menu display control program 202 displays the function instructed to be added by the user and the application execution command for executing the application program corresponding to this function in the menu table of FIG. Store.

  On the other hand, when a function change or replacement is instructed by the user (“change / replacement” in step S32), the menu display control program 202 displays the function shown in the menu table of FIG. 7 according to the user operation. The function to be changed or replaced is selected from among them (step S34). If it is instructed by the user operation to delete the selected function (“delete” in step S35), the menu display control program 202 displays the selected function and an application execution command corresponding to this function. Is deleted from the menu table of FIG. 7 (step S36).

  If a change or replacement of the selected function is instructed by a user operation (“change / replacement” in step S35), the menu display control program 202 executes a menu table addition process as necessary (step 37). ). The process of step 37 is executed when, for example, a certain function is changed to a function not stored in the menu table.

  Then, the menu display control program 202 determines whether the editing process designated by the user indicates a function change or a function replacement (step S38). If the editing process designated by the user is a function replacement ("replacement" in step S38), the menu display control program 202 executes the menu table replacement process to execute an application execution command corresponding to the function to be changed. Is changed to an application execution command corresponding to the change destination application program designated by the user (step S39). On the other hand, if the editing process designated by the user is a function change (“change” in step S38), the menu display control program 202 indicates that the content of the cell in the function definition table corresponding to the function to be changed is the user. The function definition table is changed so as to indicate the function of the change destination specified by (Step S40).

  Then, the menu display control program 202 changes the display contents of the menu based on the contents of the current function definition table, the contents of the current menu table, and the like (step S41).

  Next, two processes for dynamically changing the display content of the menu, that is, the custom display process and the priority display process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  The custom display process is a process executed when a custom display mode is selected by the user. When the custom display mode is selected, the menu display control program 202 displays the custom display mode menu stored in the display menu storage unit 309. The priority display process is a process of displaying a menu (priority display menu) received from the communication network or from the manufacturer of the tablet terminal 10.

  The menu display control program 202 first executes processing for determining the contents of the menu to be displayed based on the combination of the position attribute of the current position and the time zone attribute (step S51). Thereafter, the menu display control program 202 determines whether or not the custom display mode is selected (step S52). When the custom display mode is selected (NO in step S52), the menu display control program 202 acquires a menu for custom display mode stored in the display menu storage unit 309.

  Next, the menu display control program 202 determines whether there is information to be preferentially displayed (step S54). If there is information to be preferentially displayed (NO in step S54), the menu display control program 202 acquires a preferential display menu (step S55). In step S55, the menu display control program 202 may execute a process of acquiring a priority display menu from the communication network or from the manufacturer of the tablet terminal 10 via the wireless communication device 112, or may be received and displayed. The priority display menu stored in the menu storage unit 309 may be acquired from the display menu storage unit 309.

  Then, the menu display control program 202 changes the display contents of the menu determined in step S51 to the contents of either the custom display mode menu or the priority display menu, or both the custom display mode menu and the priority display menu. (Step S56). When only the custom display mode menu is acquired, the display content of the menu determined in step S51 is replaced with the content of the custom display mode menu. When only the priority display menu is acquired, the display content of the menu determined in step S51 is replaced with the content of the priority display menu. When both the custom display mode menu and the priority display menu are acquired, the display contents of the menu determined in step S51 are replaced with the contents of both the custom display mode menu and the priority display menu. It is done.

  In step S56, one or more functions indicated by the custom display mode menu and the priority display menu may be added to the display contents of the menu determined in step S51.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the distance from the first reference position (for example, home) to the current position is calculated, and the calculated distance is combined with the time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. A display object (menu) showing one or more associated functions is displayed on the display. As described above, the position attribute of the current position is defined by the distance from the first reference position corresponding to a predetermined registered place such as a home to the current position, and not only the position attribute but also the time corresponding to the current time. By determining the content of the display object in consideration of the band attribute, for example, the content of the display object can be changed between daily and extraordinary times, and one day in both daily and extraordinary times. The contents of the display object can be changed according to the living behavior of the user. Therefore, it is possible to assist the user in selecting a function without performing an operation or the like for setting each of a number of usage locations.

  In addition to displaying information associated with a place, presentation as a usage scene is possible, unnecessary place information is not presented, and functions not related to the place can be presented. Also, in this embodiment, a function definition table is provided in which the definition of the place and time is defined by the distance from the home and the living behavior, and the function associated with the combination of the position attribute and the time zone attribute is stored in advance. Therefore, the function expected to be used by the user in the current usage scene can be automatically presented to the user without the user creating information for defining the display content of the menu. Therefore, it is not necessary to create a database on the network side or on the terminal. In this embodiment, since the menu display function can be activated by a plurality of hardware keys and software keys, it is not necessary to change the portable electronic device, thereby reducing the number of operations and the operation time. it can.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Tablet terminal 301 ... Position information acquisition process part 302 ... Position storage part 303 ... Distance calculation process part 304 ... Present location determination process part 305 ... Time acquisition process part 306 ... Time zone storage part 307 ... Time Band determination processing unit, 308... Display menu change processing unit, 309... Display menu storage unit, 310... Display processing unit, 311.

Claims (9)

A portable electronic device,
A wireless communication device;
Position detection means for acquiring information on the current position of the portable electronic device from outside via the wireless communication device and detecting the current position of the portable electronic device;
Distance calculating means for calculating a distance from a first reference position to the current position;
Display processing means for displaying a display object indicating one or more functions associated with a combination of the calculated distance and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time on a display of the portable electronic device;
A portable electronic device comprising activation means for activating one of the one or more functions selected in accordance with an operation of the display object.   The display processing means is configured such that, based on the calculated distance, the current position is separated from the first reference position, the first position attribute corresponding to the first reference position, and the first reference position. Whether the distance from the current position to the current position is a second position attribute or a distance from the first reference position to the current position is a third position attribute that is greater than the predetermined distance The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein one or more functions associated with a combination of the determined position attribute and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time are specified as a function to be indicated by the display object. Type electronic equipment.   When the current position of the portable electronic device is a position corresponding to a first location registered in advance, the display processing means associates with a combination of the first location and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time. The portable electronic device according to claim 1, wherein a second display object indicating one or more functions displayed is displayed on a display of the portable electronic device.   When the display processing unit cannot acquire information about the current position of the portable electronic device, the display object should indicate one or more functions that can be executed without using the current position of the portable electronic device. The portable electronic device according to claim 1 specified as a function.   2. The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein when the wireless communication cannot be performed, the display processing unit specifies one or more functions that can be executed without using communication with an external device as a function to be indicated by the display object. Type electronic equipment. Obtaining information on the current position of the portable electronic device from outside via a wireless communication device in the portable electronic device to detect the current position of the portable electronic device;
Calculating the distance from the first reference position to the current position;
Displaying a display object indicating one or more functions associated with a combination of the calculated distance and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time on a display of the portable electronic device;
A display control method for activating one of the one or more functions selected in accordance with an operation of the display object.   The displaying means that, based on the calculated distance, the current position is separated from the first reference position, the first position attribute corresponding to the first reference position, and the first reference position. Whether the distance from the current position to the current position is a second position attribute or a distance from the first reference position to the current position is a third position attribute that is greater than the predetermined distance And determining one or more functions associated with a combination of the determined position attribute and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time as a function to be indicated by the display object The display control method according to claim 6.   One or more functions associated with a combination of the first location and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time when the current location of the portable electronic device is a location corresponding to the first location registered in advance; The display control method according to claim 6, further comprising: displaying a second display object indicating: on a display of the portable electronic device. On the computer,
A procedure for obtaining information on the current position of the computer from outside via a wireless communication device in the computer and detecting the current position of the computer;
Calculating a distance from a first reference position to the current position;
Displaying a display object indicating one or more functions associated with a combination of the calculated distance and a time zone attribute corresponding to the current time on a display of the computer;
A program for executing a procedure for activating one of the one or more functions selected in accordance with an operation of the display object.

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