JP2016157293A - Computer program for selecting icon - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To select a specific icon even by touching an arbitrary position, without requiring pinpoint touch on an icon position in a mobile terminal.SOLUTION: A computer program for selecting an icon receives a touch operation of a user touching an arbitrary position in a touch panel, detects inclination of a mobile terminal inclined by the user, determines a pointing position on a display unit 70, on the basis of the inclination information, selects at least one of a plurality of icons, on the basis of at least the pointing position, and executes a function associated with the selected icon.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a computer program, and more particularly to a computer program for efficiently selecting icons arranged on a touch display in consideration of usability.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional portable terminal, in particular, a smartphone 1 typically includes a touch display 2. The touch display 2 includes a detection unit (touch panel) and a display unit (display), and the user can operate the smartphone by touching an icon through an object such as a fingertip or a stylus.

  In recent years, smartphones have become multifunctional, and the applications that are installed have also diversified. Also, the data displayed on the display is diversified, and the user's operation is complicated. For example, a user operation is started when a desired operation is performed by starting an application such as a game from a screen after starting the smartphone, and a desired smartphone setting is performed from a screen after starting through a predetermined menu screen. It has become.

  In the prior art, a user interface that guides the user's touch operation by arranging and displaying a plurality of icons 9 in an easy-to-understand manner on the display as shown in FIG. Has provided programs for.

However, the icon display of the prior art is merely for displaying the icons automatically or manually in an aligned manner. In recent smartphones, the touch display 2 tends to be larger, and some of them have the size of a tablet terminal. However, in the conventional smartphone touch display 2, the user has to pinpoint the icon by pinpointing a finger at a predetermined icon position. This is always cumbersome in terms of usability (operability).

  More specifically, when a user needs to perform a touch operation with his / her fingertip while holding with one hand in a moving means such as a train or a bus, or a user performs a continuous touch operation in a game on a smartphone. If necessary, it is not preferable from the viewpoint of usability to request an accurate user operation for the icon position of the touch display. In particular, in a game application operated on a smartphone, it is indispensable to effectively provide the user with icon operability associated with various types of switching such as player behavior switching, mode switching, and screen display switching. Is even more so.

  An object of the present invention is to improve the usability of a portable terminal, in particular, the icon operability on a touch display. More specifically, when the user selects an icon displayed on the touch display of the mobile terminal, the user does not touch the user with a pinpoint at a predetermined icon position, but a simple alternative. To provide a computer program for a user interface that enables efficient icon selection through terminal operation.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a computer program for icon selection.
A first computer program according to the present invention includes a direction determining unit that determines an instruction direction on a display based on inclination information detected by an inclination detecting unit in accordance with a predetermined user operation on a touch panel included in a mobile terminal. A selection unit that selects an icon arranged on a display based on a direction, the selection unit being associated with a predetermined range of the specified direction, and the selection at a predetermined timing. The portable terminal is caused to function as an execution unit that executes the function associated with the icon.

  A second computer program according to the present invention is a direction for determining an instruction direction on a display based on inclination information detected by an inclination detection unit in accordance with a predetermined user operation on an arbitrary position on a touch panel included in a mobile terminal. In the determination unit and the display, an object display unit that displays an object formed so as to move according to the designated direction with the above position as a starting point, an indication direction, an object position, and each icon at a predetermined timing Based on the arrangement position, the mobile terminal is caused to function as a selection unit that selects at least one icon arranged on the display, and an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon.

  According to a third computer program of the present invention, an instruction direction on a display included in a mobile terminal based on inclination information detected by an inclination detection unit in accordance with a predetermined user operation on an arbitrary position on a touch panel included in the mobile terminal. A direction determining unit that determines a position, a layout changing unit that changes the layout of a plurality of icons arranged on the display over time, and at least one of the icons based on the position and the position of the icon The portable terminal is caused to function as a selection unit that selects and an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon.

  According to a fourth computer program of the present invention, an instruction direction on a display included in a mobile terminal is determined based on inclination information detected by an inclination detection unit according to a user swipe operation on an arbitrary position on a touch panel included in the mobile terminal. The direction determining unit for determining the display is formed so as to move over time by a predetermined distance along the object moving path determined based on the pointing direction and the swipe operation direction, with the position as the starting point. The portable terminal is caused to function as an object display unit that displays an object, a selection unit that selects an icon arranged on the object movement path, and an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon.

  By mounting the computer program for icon selection according to the present invention on a mobile terminal, when the user operates the touch display of the mobile terminal, the user can touch the icon position at any point without touching the pinpoint. A specific icon can be selected even by touching the button. In particular, it is possible to efficiently select an icon by replacing the touch operation with a simple user operation such as tilting the terminal. Thereby, the icon selection which was inefficient in the prior art can be made more efficient.

FIG. 1 shows a screen display example of a mobile terminal and icons on the mobile terminal. FIG. 2 is an exemplary block diagram illustrating the hardware basics of the mobile terminal of FIG. FIG. 3 is an exemplary block diagram showing a basic functional configuration of the mobile terminal of FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing angle information detected by the gyro sensor included in the mobile terminal of FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram related to icon selection processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram related to icon selection processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart related to icon selection processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram related to icon selection processing according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram related to icon selection processing according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a flowchart relating to icon selection processing according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram related to icon selection processing according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 is a functional block diagram related to icon selection processing according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a flowchart related to icon selection processing according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram related to icon selection processing according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 15 is a functional block diagram related to icon selection processing according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 16 is a flowchart relating to icon selection processing according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  A computer program for icon selection according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described with some examples with reference to the drawings. In the figure, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  First, with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 4, a basic hardware configuration of a portable terminal for starting a computer program according to the present embodiment will be described. Referring to FIG. 1 again, the user can operate the smartphone 1 through a user operation on the touch display 2 using an object (for example, a finger or a stylus). In particular, when the user selects the icon 3 arranged on the touch display 2, a function associated with each icon can be executed.

The user terminal that starts the computer program according to the present embodiment is not limited to the smartphone 1, and any portable device terminal including a touch panel such as a PDA, a tablet computer, a game console, or a notebook PC may be used. It can also be a device (hereinafter collectively referred to as “portable terminal”).
As shown in FIG. 2, the mobile terminal 1 includes a CPU 3, a main memory 4, an auxiliary memory 5, a transmission / reception unit 6, a display unit 7, and an input unit 8 that are connected to each other via a bus. The main memory 4 and the auxiliary memory 5 constitute a storage unit. The main memory 4 is composed of, for example, a DRAM, and the auxiliary memory 5 is composed of, for example, an HDD. The auxiliary storage 5 is a recording medium capable of recording the computer program according to the present embodiment. The computer program stored in the auxiliary memory 5 is expanded on the main memory 4 and executed by the CPU 3. The main memory 4 also temporarily stores data generated while the CPU 3 is operating in accordance with the computer program and data used by the CPU 3.

  The transmission / reception unit 6 establishes a connection (mainly a wireless Internet connection) between the portable terminal 1 and the network under the control of the CPU 3 to transmit / receive various information. The display unit 7 and the input unit 8 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic functional block diagram of a mobile terminal showing only a basic functional configuration corresponding to the mobile terminal 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown in the figure, the mobile terminal 10 has a display unit / display 70 (corresponding to the display unit 7 in FIG. 2) and a touch detection unit / touch panel 80 (input unit in FIG. 8), a tilt detection unit (gyro sensor) 85, a control unit 60, and a storage unit 40.

  The touch display 20 includes a display unit 70 for displaying various data stored in the storage unit 40, and a contact operation (mainly a touch operation, a swipe (slide) operation, and an object such as a human finger or a stylus). A contact detection unit 80 for detecting a physical contact operation such as a tap operation) is provided. Note that the contact detection unit 80 is disposed in an upper layer of the display 20 such as a liquid crystal panel, an organic EL, a plasma display, etc. due to the structure of the touch display. The touch display 20 can employ a pressure detection method, a resistance film method, a capacitance method, an electromagnetic induction method, or the like. When an input by contact of an object such as a finger or a stylus is received on the contact detection unit 80, the amount of change in pressure, electrical resistance, capacitance, elastic wave energy, etc. is detected at the contact position, and the display unit 70 Corresponding contact coordinates are identified.

  In addition to the contact detection unit 80, an inclination detection unit (gyro sensor / angular velocity sensor) 85 may be included as the input unit 8 of the mobile terminal 1 in FIG. Here, with reference to FIG. 4, the angle information detected with time by the inclination detection unit 85 in the present embodiment will be described. As shown in the figure, an XYZ coordinate system is defined around the mobile terminal 1. The XYZ coordinates are relative coordinates with a predetermined timing as an initial state. More specifically, the display surface of the portable terminal is the XY surface, and the vertical direction is the Z axis. In FIG. 4, the X axis and the Y axis are defined as illustrated on the assumption that the user operates the portable terminal 1 while holding it vertically. In the case of horizontal holding, the X axis and Y axis may be reversed.

  In the tilt detection unit 85, an angle around each axis, that is, a roll angle indicating rotation about the X axis, a pitch angle indicating rotation about the Y axis, and a yaw angle indicating rotation about the Z axis. Can be detected as angle information together with the rotation direction, and the tilt information of the portable terminal 1 can be determined based on temporal change data based at least on the detected angle information.

  Returning to FIG. 3, the storage unit 40 (corresponding to the main memory 4 and the auxiliary memory 5 in FIG. 2) reads / writes data to / from the storage medium. The storage unit 40 stores a plurality of pieces of icon information to be displayed on the display unit 70. A plurality of icons may have a hierarchical structure and may be classified and stored for each hierarchy. In this case, at least one icon corresponding to the hierarchy is displayed on the display.

  The icon information includes an icon type indicating the type of the icon such as “folder” / “file” format, position coordinate information on the display unit 70, and an associated application program executed when the icon is selected. Various information such as information is included. Folders, files, and application programs are also stored in the storage unit 40. In particular, in the storage unit 40, functions such as “folder expansion”, “file open”, “program execution”, “display switching”, and “candidate selection” are associated with icons and stored (for example, as part of icon information). . Note that the information stored in the storage unit 40 may be stored in, for example, a server and temporarily downloaded to the mobile terminal through a network, in addition to being stored in the mobile terminal.

  The control unit 60 is configured to operate the configuration terminal 1 by executing the program according to the present embodiment in accordance with a processing instruction from the CPU 3. Specifically, a process of determining contact coordinates on the display unit 70 that is touched by an object and detected by the contact detection unit 80, and a process of determining tilt information detected by the tilt detection unit 85 when the mobile terminal is tilted Execute. In addition, each process including a process of selecting an icon arranged on the display unit, a process of forming an object and displaying it on the display unit, and a process of executing a function associated with the selected icon is performed.

  An example of the operation of the computer program for selecting an icon according to the embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to FIG. 5 and subsequent figures (first to fourth examples). The basic operation principle of the present invention is as follows: (i) first receiving a contact operation by the user to an arbitrary position of the touch panel 80, (ii) detecting a tilt of the user's portable terminal according to the tilt operation, and (iii) ) Based on the tilt information, determining an indication direction on the display 70, (iv) selecting at least one of the plurality of icons based at least on the indication direction, and (v) the selected icon The function associated with is executed.

First Embodiment With reference to FIGS. 5 to 7, the operation of a portable terminal by a computer program for icon selection according to a first embodiment will be described. FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a series of operations of the mobile terminal according to the present embodiment. FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram implemented so as to control the series of operations. FIG. 7 is a processing flow diagram related to the series of operations.

  In this embodiment, as schematically shown in FIG. 5, first, an input to the touch panel by an object (hereinafter, a user's finger is assumed) in FIG. 5A is received. The input may be performed when the contact state continues for a certain period of time (long press operation), or may be contact with an arbitrary place on the touch panel. In response to the input, the display becomes an icon selection mode display, and the process proceeds to FIG.

  In FIG. 5B, the four icons A to D have a rectangular shape, and are arranged on each side along the periphery of the display. Then, when the user tilts the front part of the mobile terminal downward while maintaining the long-pressed state of FIG. 5A, that is, the front part of the mobile terminal is moved around the Y axis of FIG. When tilted in the negative axis direction (and / or the rear part in the positive Z axis direction), the icon A arranged in the front part of the display is selected. As shown in the figure, when the icon A is selected, an active display such as displaying the area around the icon A with a thick line may be performed. The active display is not limited to being surrounded by a thick line, and any display mode may be used.

  Although not shown, when the user continues to incline so that the right part of the mobile terminal faces downward, that is, when the right part of the mobile terminal inclines in the Z axis minus direction around the X axis in FIG. The icon to be selected and activated is transferred to icon B.

  When the user selects the icon A in FIG. 5B and activates the icon A, the screen moves to FIG. In FIG.5 (c), the contact icon A is opened according to the detection of contact cancellation | release. That is, the function associated with the icon A is executed.

  In order to control the series of operations shown in FIGS. 5A to 5C, each function is implemented as a control unit 60a as shown in FIG. The control unit 60a includes a tilt direction determination unit 100, an icon selection unit 120, and a function execution unit 140. The tilt direction determination unit 100 continuously determines an instruction direction on the display 2 in accordance with the tilt operation of the mobile terminal detected by the tilt detection unit 85 (upward direction in FIG. 5B). The icon selection unit 120 coupled to the tilt direction determination unit 100 selects at least one of the plurality of icons displayed on the display based on the indicated direction (icon A in FIG. 5B). The function execution unit 140 coupled to the icon selection unit 120 executes a function associated with the selected icon.

  Next, a processing flow based on the functional blocks shown in FIG. 6 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. In step S101, the process is started according to the contact detection unit 80 detecting a long press state on the touch panel (FIG. 5A). Upon receiving step S101, the mobile terminal enters an icon selection mode, and a plurality of icons are displayed on the display in step S102.

  In the icon selection mode, the user can perform an operation of tilting the mobile terminal while maintaining the contact state for icon selection. In response to this, in step S103, the tilt detection unit 85 detects the tilt operation of the mobile terminal and determines tilt information. In the detection of the tilt operation in step S103, the tilt information may be determined based on the tilt information relative to the tilt in the initial state, with the long-press state in step S101 as the initial state. The tilt information can include one or more angle information of the roll angle, the pitch angle, and the yaw angle shown in FIG.

  Next, in step S <b> 104, the tilt direction determination unit 100 determines an instruction direction on the display corresponding to the tilt direction of the mobile terminal. As shown in FIG. 5B, for example, when four icons are arranged in the vertical and horizontal directions along the periphery of the display, the roll angle around the X axis and the pitch angle around the Y axis shown in FIG. Based on the angle information including the angle and the rotation direction, that is, relative tilt information in the front / rear / left / right direction, it is determined whether the tilt direction is the front / rear / right / left direction, and the corresponding up / down / left / right directions are determined. Can be determined. For example, in FIG. 5B, it is possible to determine that the indicated direction is the upward direction because the pitch angle is the largest as the rotation angle.

  Based on the instruction direction on the display determined in step S104, in step S105, the icon selection unit 120 selects at least one icon arranged and displayed on the display. The icon is associated with a range in a predetermined pointing direction. In the example of FIG. 5B, icons A, C, D, and B are associated with the angular ranges in the vertical and horizontal directions as the instruction directions. Then, the icon A associated therewith is selected for the upward direction determined in step S103. The number of icons to be arranged is not limited to four, and can be any number as long as it can be associated with the designated direction as a range of angles.

  The processing from step S103 to step S105 is repeated until the contact detection unit 80 detects contact release of the user's finger from the touch panel in step S106. Then, at the timing when contact release is detected in step S106, the process proceeds to step S107, and the function executing unit 140 associates the icon selected in step S105 at the time of contact release (icon A in FIG. 5C). Perform the function.

Second Embodiment With reference to FIGS. 8 to 10, the operation of a portable terminal by a computer program for icon selection according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 8 is a schematic view illustrating a series of operations of the mobile terminal according to the present embodiment. FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram implemented so as to control the series of operations. FIG. 10 is a processing flow diagram related to the series of operations.

  In this embodiment, as schematically shown in FIG. 8, first, in FIG. 8A, an input to the touch panel by the user's finger is received. The input may be performed when the contact state continues for a certain period of time (long press operation), or may be contact with an arbitrary place on the touch panel. In response to the input, the display becomes an icon selection mode display, and the process proceeds to FIG.

  In FIG. 8B, four icons A to D are arranged at equal intervals on the upper part of the display. The arrangement coordinates of the icons are determined in advance and stored in the storage unit 40. And when a user inclines so that the left front part of a portable terminal may turn down, maintaining the long press state of Fig.8 (a), ie, the left part of the portable terminal 1 around the X-axis of FIG. Is tilted in the negative direction of the Z-axis, and the front portion of the mobile terminal 1 is tilted in the negative direction of the Z-axis around the Y-axis, a water droplet-shaped object is generated from the contact position of the finger, and the tilt direction (indicated direction) ) It moves with time in the direction of the icon A so that the drop drips.

  When the water drop-shaped object moves to the icon A to some extent as shown in FIG. 8B, the user continues to move to FIG. 8C by releasing the finger from the touch panel. That is, when the contact state is canceled, the icon A is selected such that the water droplet-shaped object is attracted to the icon A arranged at the tip of the moving direction. Following the selection of icon A, icon A is opened. Then, as shown in FIG. 8D, the function associated with the icon A is executed.

  Although not shown, in FIG. 8B, when the user continues to tilt the right part of the mobile terminal downward, that is, the right part of the mobile terminal is moved in the Z-axis minus direction around the X axis in FIG. In the case of tilting to, the water droplet-shaped object changes its path so as to move from the icon B to the icon D in accordance with the amount of tilt, continuing from the state of FIG.

  In order to control the series of operations shown in FIGS. 8A to 8D, each function is implemented as a control unit 60b as shown in FIG. The control unit 60b includes a tilt direction determination unit 200, an icon selection unit 220, a function execution unit 240, and an object display unit 260. As in FIG. 6, the tilt direction determination unit 200 continuously determines the instruction direction on the display according to the tilt operation of the mobile terminal detected by the tilt detection unit 85 (upper left in FIG. 8B). direction).

  The object display unit 260 coupled to the tilt direction determination unit 200 generates a waterdrop-shaped object based on the contact position of the finger and displays it on the screen. Further, a drop is displayed in the indicated direction on the display so as to be continuously moved in the direction of the icon A (water droplet object in FIG. 8B).

  In the icon selection unit 220 coupled to the tilt direction determination unit 200 and the object display unit 260, at least one of the plurality of icons displayed on the display is set to the indicated direction and the object position in response to the contact release of the finger. Select based on. Further, the screen is displayed so that the object sticks to the selected icon (icon A in FIG. 8C). Then, the function execution unit 240 coupled to the icon selection unit 220 executes a function associated with the selected icon, as in FIG.

  Next, a processing flow based on the functional blocks shown in FIG. 9 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. In step S201, the process is started according to the contact detection unit 80 detecting a long press state at an arbitrary position on the touch panel (FIG. 8A). In response to step S201, the portable terminal enters an icon selection mode, and in step S202, a plurality of icons are displayed on the display (in FIG. 8B, icons A to D are arranged and arranged at the top of the display). .

  In the icon selection mode, the user can perform an operation of tilting the mobile terminal while maintaining the contact state for icon selection. Accordingly, in step S203, the tilt detection unit 85 detects the tilt operation of the mobile terminal and determines tilt information. In the detection of the tilt operation in step S203, the tilt information may be determined based on the tilt information relative to the tilt in the initial state, with the long-pressed state in step S201 as the initial state. The tilt information can include one or more angle information of the roll angle, the pitch angle, and the yaw angle shown in FIG.

  Next, in step S204, the tilt direction determination unit 200 determines an instruction direction on the display corresponding to the tilt direction of the mobile terminal. An arbitrary tilt direction is determined based on at least the angle information including the roll angle around the X axis and the pitch angle around the Y axis and the rotation direction shown in FIG. The corresponding pointing direction can be determined. For example, in FIG. 8B, the instruction direction is determined to be the upper left direction based on the combination of the pitch angle and roll angle angle information.

  Next, in step S205, the object display unit 260 generates a waterdrop-shaped object on the display, starting from the contact position on the touch panel detected by the contact detection unit 80 in step S201. Further, the object is deformed into a drop shape so as to move in accordance with the instruction direction determined in step S204, and is displayed with time.

  The processing from step S203 to step S205 is repeated until the contact detection unit 80 detects contact release of the user's finger from the touch panel in step S206. Then, at the timing when the contact release is detected in step S206, the process proceeds to step S207, at least based on the indication direction on the display at the time of contact release, the position of the object, and the position of each icon. Select one icon. The arrangement coordinates of the icons are determined in advance and stored in the storage unit 40.

  In the example of FIG. 8C, there is an arrangement position of the icon A in the traveling direction from the position of the object. That is, the icon A can be selected based on the pointing direction, the object position, and the arrangement position of the icon A. However, the icon selection method is not limited to this, and for example, an icon at the closest position of the object may be selected at the timing when contact release is detected. Note that the number and arrangement of icons on the display are not limited to those shown in FIG. 8B, and may be any number and may be arranged at any location on the display.

  When at least one icon is selected in step S207, the process proceeds to step S208, and the function associated with the icon is executed by the function execution unit 240.

Third Embodiment With reference to FIGS. 11 to 13, the operation of a portable terminal by a computer program for icon selection according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 11 is a schematic view illustrating a series of operations of the mobile terminal according to the present embodiment. FIG. 12 is a functional block diagram implemented so as to control the series of operations. FIG. 13 is a process flow diagram related to the series of operations.

  In this embodiment, as schematically shown in FIG. 11, first, in FIG. 11A, an input to the touch panel by a user's finger is received. The input may be performed when the contact state continues for a certain period of time (long press operation), or may be contact with an arbitrary place on the touch panel. In response to the input, the display becomes an icon selection mode display, and the process proceeds to FIG.

  In FIG. 11B, three icons A to C are arranged at arbitrary positions on the display. The arrangement coordinates of the icons are determined in advance and stored in the storage unit 40. Then, when the user tilts so that the rear part of the mobile terminal faces downward while maintaining the long-pressed state of FIG. 11A, that is, the rear part of the mobile terminal 1 is Z-axis around the Y-axis of FIG. When tilted in the minus direction, the icons A to C move with time along the tilt direction (instruction direction).

  As shown in FIG. 11B, when the pointing direction is downward, the icons A to C also move along that direction. As a result, the icon B is accommodated in the icon accommodation area centered on the contact position, and the icon B is selected. Following the selection of icon B, icon B is opened. Then, the function associated with the icon B is executed as shown in FIG.

  Although not shown in FIG. 11B, when the user continuously tilts the mobile terminal to the left, that is, when the left part of the mobile terminal tilts around the X axis in FIG. 4 in the negative Z-axis direction. The icons A to C continue to move to the left according to the inclination from the state of FIG.

  In order to control the series of operations shown in FIGS. 11A to 11C, each function is implemented as a control unit 60c as shown in FIG. The control unit 60c includes a tilt direction determining unit 300, an icon selecting unit 320, a function executing unit 340, and an icon arrangement changing unit 360. The tilt direction determination unit 300 continuously determines the instruction direction on the display in accordance with the tilt operation of the mobile terminal detected by the tilt detection unit 85 (FIG. 11 (b). ) Down)).

  The icon arrangement changing unit 360 coupled to the tilt direction determining unit 300 moves each icon over time along the instruction direction (icons A to C in FIG. 11B). In the icon selection unit 320 coupled to the tilt direction determination unit 200 and the icon arrangement change unit 360, at least one of the plurality of icons displayed on the display is determined based on the finger contact position, the pointing direction, and the icon position. select. Then, the function execution unit 340 coupled to the icon selection unit 320 executes a function associated with the selected icon, as in FIGS.

  Next, a processing flow based on the functional block shown in FIG. 12 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. In step S301, this process is started according to the contact detection unit 80 detecting a long press state at an arbitrary position on the touch panel (FIG. 11A). Upon receiving step S301, the portable terminal enters an icon selection mode, and in step S302, a plurality of icons are displayed at arbitrary positions on the display.

  In the icon selection mode, the user can perform an operation of tilting the mobile terminal while maintaining the contact state for icon selection. Accordingly, in step S303, the tilt detection unit 85 detects the tilt operation of the mobile terminal and determines tilt information. In the detection of the tilt operation in step S303, the tilt information may be determined based on the tilt information relative to the tilt in the initial state, with the long-press state in step S301 as the initial state.

  Next, in step S304, the tilt direction determination unit 200 determines an instruction direction on the display corresponding to the tilt direction of the mobile terminal. Based on the roll angle around the X axis shown in FIG. 4, the pitch angle around the Y axis, the yaw angle around the Z axis, and angle information including each rotation direction, that is, relative tilt information, an arbitrary The tilt direction can be determined and the corresponding pointing direction can be determined. For example, in FIG. 11B, it is determined that the indicated direction is the downward direction based on the angle information of the pitch angle.

  Next, in step S305, the icon arrangement changing unit 360 changes the arrangement of the plurality of icons arranged on the display over time along the instruction direction. In the case of FIG. 12B, the icons A to C are displayed so as to be simultaneously moved downward with time along the downward instruction direction.

  The processing from step S303 to step S306 is repeated until at least one icon is selected by the icon selection unit 320 in step S307. In step S307, at least one icon is selected based on the finger contact position in step S301 and the icon placement position determined in step S305. When the icon is on the icon storage area (FIG. 11B) around the finger contact position on the display, the icon may be selected, or when the finger contact is released, the icon storage area is displayed. The closest icon may be selected. Note that the number and arrangement of icons on the display are not limited to those shown in FIG. 11B, and may be any number and may be arranged at any place on the display.

  When an icon is selected in step S307, at that timing, the process proceeds to step S308, and finally the function associated with the icon is executed by the function execution unit 340.

  In this embodiment, the timing at which the user holding down the display releases the finger contact may be added as one determination element for determining whether the icon is selected in step S307, or in step S308. It is good also as timing when performing the function linked | related with the icon.

Fourth Embodiment With reference to FIGS. 14 to 16, the operation of a portable terminal by a computer program for selecting an icon according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 14 is a schematic view illustrating a series of operations of the mobile terminal according to the present embodiment. FIG. 15 is a functional block diagram implemented to control the series of operations. FIG. 16 is a processing flow diagram related to the series of operations.

  In the present embodiment, as schematically shown in FIG. 14, first, in FIG. 14A, an input to the touch panel by the user's finger is received. The input may be performed when the contact state continues for a certain period of time (long press operation), or may be contact with an arbitrary place on the touch panel. In response to the input, the display becomes an icon selection mode display, and the process proceeds to FIG.

  In FIG. 14B, four icons A to D are arranged at arbitrary positions on the display. The arrangement coordinates of the icons are determined in advance and stored in the storage unit 40. Then, when the user tilts the portable terminal in a predetermined direction (for example, the front) while maintaining the long-pressed state of FIG. 14A, and the user moves the upper right on the display as shown in FIG. 14B. When the swipe operation is performed in the direction, the object is generated from the contact position of the finger.

  The object is displayed on the display so as to move over time by a distance determined based on the tilt direction (instruction direction) of the mobile terminal and the swipe operation direction. In particular, in FIG. 14B, in order to move by the distance, the object is displayed so as to be reflected at the upper peripheral edge of the display.

  An icon B and an icon C are arranged on the movement path of the object, and both the icon B and the icon C are selected as the object moves. Subsequent to the selection of icon B and icon C, icon B and icon C are opened. Then, as shown in FIG. 14C, both functions associated with the icons B and C are executed.

  Here, particularly in a game scene in a game application, a plurality of icons may be selected by a single operation and their functions may be executed. The computer program according to the present embodiment can also be applied to such a game application. As an example, in an online competitive RPG game, attack option selection in a scene in which a character to be operated attacks an enemy character is assumed. In this case, for example, the icon A in FIG. 14B is set with the icon A as “ice attack”, the icon B as “magic attack”, the icon C as “fire attack”, and the icon D as (simply) “attack”. Depending on the selection of B and the icon C, in FIG. 14C, two of “attack by magic” and “attack by fire” can be performed.

  Although not shown in FIG. 14B, when the user continuously tilts the mobile terminal in another direction, the icons A to C each control the movement path of the object according to the tilt. Also good. For example, if the mobile device is tilted to the left, the travel route is curved to the left, if it is tilted to the right, the travel route is curved to the right, and if it is tilted forward, the travel distance is increased. If it is tilted backward, the moving distance is reduced.

  In order to control the series of operations shown in FIGS. 14A to 14C, each function is implemented as a control unit 60d as shown in FIG. The control unit 60d includes a tilt direction determination unit 400, an icon selection unit 420, a function execution unit 440, a swipe direction determination unit 460, and an object display unit 480. Similar to FIGS. 6, 9, and 12, the tilt direction determination unit 400 continuously determines the instruction direction on the display in accordance with the tilt operation of the mobile terminal detected by the tilt detection unit 85.

  The swipe operation direction determination unit 460 determines the operation direction of the swipe operation performed by the user on the touch panel. The object display unit 480 coupled to the swipe operation direction determination unit 460 displays an object formed so as to move over time by a predetermined distance along the swipe operation direction, starting from the contact position of the finger. The distance is determined according to the relationship between the operation direction of the swipe operation and the tilt direction (instruction direction) of the display.

  The icon selection unit 420 coupled to the tilt direction determination unit 400 and the object display unit 480 selects at least one icon arranged on the object movement path based on the finger contact position, the pointing direction, and the swipe operation direction. . Then, in the function execution unit 440 coupled to the icon selection unit 420, the function associated with the selected icon is executed as in FIG. 6, FIG. 9, and FIG.

  Next, a processing flow based on the functional block shown in FIG. 15 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. In step S401, this process is started according to detection of a long press state at an arbitrary position on the touch panel by the contact detection unit 80 (FIG. 15A). Upon receiving step S401, the mobile terminal enters an icon selection mode, and in step S402, a plurality of icons are displayed at arbitrary positions on the display.

  In step S403, in the icon selection mode, for the icon selection, the user performs a swipe operation toward the direction in which the desired icon that the user wants to select is arranged. Accordingly, in step S403, the swipe operation direction determination unit 460 determines the swipe operation direction on the display.

  In step S404, the tilt detection unit 85 detects a tilt operation of the mobile terminal, and determines tilt information. In the detection of the tilt operation in step S404, the tilt information may be determined based on the tilt information relative to the tilt in the initial state, with the long-press state in step S401 as the initial state. Next, in step S405, the tilt direction determination unit 400 determines an instruction direction on the display corresponding to the tilt direction of the mobile terminal. More specifically, the roll angle around the X axis shown in FIG. 4, the pitch angle around the Y axis, the yaw angle around the Z axis, and angle information including each rotation direction, that is, relative tilt information. Based on, an arbitrary tilt direction can be determined (step S404), and the corresponding direction can be determined (step S405).

  In step S406, the object display unit 480 determines an object movement path based on the swipe operation direction in step S403 and the instruction direction in step S405, starting from the contact position in step S401. Subsequently, in step S407, the object display unit 480 is formed so that the object is moved by a predetermined distance along the moving path of the object, and the object is displayed.

  The predetermined distance can be determined based on the relationship between the instruction direction in step S405 and the swipe operation direction in step S403. For example, if the instruction direction and the swipe operation direction are the same direction, the distance may be longer than the normal movement distance, and if the direction is the opposite direction, the distance may be shorter. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 14 (b), it may be configured to reflect the upper side of the display and move by a predetermined distance as shown in FIG.

  The processing from step S404 to step S407 is repeated until it is determined in step S408 that the object display unit 480 has moved the object by the processing. If it is determined that the object has moved by a predetermined distance, the process proceeds to step S409, and the icon selection unit 420 selects at least one icon arranged on the object movement path. Note that the number and arrangement of icons on the display are not limited to those shown in FIG. 14B, and may be any number or may be arranged at any place on the display.

In step S410, the function execution unit 340 finally executes the function associated with the selected icon.
The computer program for icon selection according to the present invention has been described above with some embodiments. By activating the computer program on the mobile terminal, when the user operates the touch display of the mobile terminal, the user can touch any place without touching the pin position at the icon position. Allows specific icon selection. It is understood that this is effective particularly when the user operates the smartphone with one hand in view of the recent increase in functionality and size of smartphones. Further, efficient icon selection is enabled by replacing the touch operation with a simple user operation such as tilting the mobile terminal with one hand. This is understood to be particularly effective when the user needs to perform a continuous touch operation in a game application on a smartphone.

  The above embodiments are merely examples for facilitating understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. Further, the present invention can be changed and improved without departing from the gist thereof, and needless to say, the present invention includes equivalents thereof.

Claims (16)

According to a predetermined user operation on the touch panel provided in the mobile terminal,
A direction determining unit that determines an instruction direction on a display included in the mobile terminal based on inclination information detected by the tilt detection unit included in the mobile terminal;
A selection unit that selects an icon arranged on the display based on the indication direction, the selection unit being associated with a predetermined range of the indication direction; and
A computer program that causes the portable terminal to function as an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon at a predetermined timing.   The computer program according to claim 1, wherein the direction determination unit is configured to determine the indication direction based on relative tilt information in the front-rear and left-right directions with respect to a tilt when the touch operation is performed on the touch panel.   The computer program according to claim 1, wherein each of the icons is arranged along a periphery of the display.   The computer program according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the selection unit is further configured to actively display the selected icon.   The computer program according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the predetermined user operation is a touch operation on the touch panel, and the predetermined timing is a timing at which the touch operation is canceled. According to a predetermined user operation for an arbitrary position on the touch panel included in the mobile terminal,
A direction determining unit that determines an instruction direction on a display included in the mobile terminal based on inclination information detected by the tilt detection unit included in the mobile terminal;
In the display, an object display unit that displays, over time, an object that is formed so as to move according to the indication direction, with the position as a starting point;
A selection unit that selects at least one icon arranged on the display based on the indication direction, the position of the object, and the arrangement position of each icon at a predetermined timing;
A computer program that causes the portable terminal to function as an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon.   The said direction determination part is determined based on the relative inclination information of the front-back, left-right direction with respect to the inclination of the said portable terminal at the time of receiving the contact operation to the said touch panel in the said direction determination part. Computer program.   The computer program according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the selection unit selects the icon when the icon is arranged in the indicated direction from the position of the object on the display.   The computer program according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the predetermined user operation is a contact operation on the touch panel, and the predetermined timing is a timing at which the contact operation is released. According to a predetermined user operation for an arbitrary position on the touch panel included in the mobile terminal,
A direction determining unit that determines an instruction direction on a display included in the mobile terminal based on inclination information detected by the tilt detection unit included in the mobile terminal;
An arrangement changing unit that changes the arrangement of a plurality of icons arranged on the display over time along the indication direction;
A selection unit that selects at least one of the icons based on the position and the arrangement position of the icon;
A computer program that causes the portable terminal to function as an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon.   The computer program according to claim 10, wherein the direction determination unit determines the indication direction based on inclination information relative to an inclination of the mobile terminal when receiving a touch operation on the touch panel.   The computer program according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the selection unit selects the icon when the icon is on the position on the display. According to the user's swipe operation on any position on the touch panel of the mobile terminal,
A direction determining unit that determines an instruction direction on a display included in the mobile terminal based on inclination information detected by the tilt detection unit included in the mobile terminal;
In the display, an object formed so as to move over time by a predetermined distance is displayed along an object moving path determined based on the pointing direction and the swipe operation direction, with the position as a starting point. An object display,
A selection unit for selecting an icon arranged on the object movement path;
A computer program that causes the portable terminal to function as an execution unit that executes a function associated with the selected icon.   The computer program according to claim 13, wherein the direction determination unit determines the indication direction based on tilt information relative to a tilt of the mobile terminal when a touch operation is performed on the touch panel.   The computer program according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the selection unit selects an icon when at least one icon is arranged on the object movement path on the display.   The computer program according to claim 13, wherein the predetermined distance is determined based on the indication direction and the swipe operation direction.