KR101504215B1 - Terminal and method for controlling the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a terminal having a module for integrating a near field data communication function and an infrared proximity sensor function, and a control method thereof, and more particularly to a terminal having a module for integrating a near field data communication function and an infrared proximity sensor function, It is possible to reduce the weight or the volume of the terminal and to reduce the complexity of the circuit or the price of the terminal by selectively controlling the near-field communication mode or the proximity sensing mode according to the operation state of the terminal.

Description

[0001] TERMINAL AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE SAME [0002]

The present invention relates to a terminal including a module for integrating a near field data communication function and an infrared proximity sensor function and a control method thereof.

The terminal can move And can be divided into a mobile / portable terminal and a stationary terminal depending on whether the mobile terminal is a mobile terminal or a mobile terminal. The mobile terminal can be divided into a handheld terminal and a vehicle mount terminal according to whether the user can directly carry the mobile terminal.

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

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

Recently, a terminal equipped with an infrared communication module for infrared data communication is being released. In addition, a terminal equipped with a proximity sensing module using infrared rays is also being introduced. The proximity sensing module may be used for controlling on / off of the display module when the user brings the terminal close to the face for a call. However, by configuring separate modules for providing specific functions as described above, the weight or volume of the terminal, the complexity of the circuit, or the price can be increased.

The present invention provides a terminal having a module for integrating a near field data communication function and an infrared proximity sensor function and a control method thereof.

The present invention also provides a terminal and a control method thereof for controlling the integrated module in a short distance communication mode or in a proximity sensing mode according to an operation state of a terminal.

Also, the present invention provides a terminal that controls the integrated module in a short-range communication mode or a proximity sensing mode according to a menu of a terminal operated by a user, and a control method thereof.

The terminal related to an embodiment of the present invention for realizing the above-mentioned problem is characterized in that it is determined whether the operation state of the integrated module and the terminal is related to the short-range communication mode, And a memory for storing the mode setting information corresponding to the operation state of the terminal. The control module controls the integrated module in the proximity sensing mode if the operation state is related to the proximity sensing mode.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling a mobile communication terminal, comprising the steps of: determining an operating state of a terminal; controlling an integrated module, which is a combination of a communication function and a sensing function, If the operation state is related to the proximity sensing mode, the integrated module in which the communication and sensing functions are combined is controlled in the proximity sensing mode.

The terminal according to at least one embodiment of the present invention configured as described above is provided with a module for integrating the near field data communication function and the infrared proximity sensor function, and the integrated module is selectively switched to the near field communication mode Control or proximity sensing mode, the weight or volume of the terminal can be reduced, and the complexity of the circuit or the price of the terminal can be reduced.

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

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

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

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

Hereinafter, the components will be described in order.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The memory 160 may be a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a multimedia card micro type, a card type memory (for example, SD or XD memory) (Random Access Memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM) A magnetic disk, and / or an optical disk. The mobile terminal 100 may operate in association with a web storage that performs a storage function of the memory 160 on the Internet.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

According to a software implementation, embodiments such as the procedures and functions described herein may be implemented with separate software modules. Each of the software modules may perform one or more of the functions and operations described herein. Software code can be implemented in a software application written in a suitable programming language. The software code is stored in the memory 160 and can be executed by the control unit 180. [

2A is a perspective view of an example of a mobile terminal or a mobile terminal according to the present invention.

The disclosed mobile terminal 100 has a bar-shaped terminal body. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be applied to various structures such as a slide type, a folder type, a swing type, and a swivel type in which two or more bodies are relatively movably coupled.

The body includes a case (a casing, a housing, a cover, and the like) which forms an appearance. In this embodiment, the case may be divided into a front case 101 and a rear case 102. [ A variety of electronic components are embedded in the space formed between the front case 101 and the rear case 102. At least one intermediate case may be additionally disposed between the front case 101 and the rear case 102. [

The cases may be formed by injection molding a synthetic resin, or may be formed to have a metal material such as stainless steel (STS) or titanium (Ti) or the like.

The display unit 151, the sound output unit 152, the camera 121, the user input units 130/131 and 132, the microphone 122, the interface 170, and the like may be disposed in the front body 101 have.

The display unit 151 occupies most of the main surface of the front case 101. A sound output unit 151 and a camera 121 are disposed in an area adjacent to one end of both ends of the display unit 151 and a user input unit 131 and a microphone 122 are disposed in an area adjacent to the other end. The user input unit 132 and the interface 170 may be disposed on the side surfaces of the front case 101 and the rear case 102. [

The user input unit 130 is operated to receive a command for controlling the operation of the portable terminal 100 and may include a plurality of operation units 131 and 132. The operation units 131 and 132 may be collectively referred to as a manipulating portion and may be employed in any manner as long as the user operates in a tactile manner.

The contents inputted by the first or second operation unit 131 or 132 may be variously set. For example, the first operation unit 131 receives commands such as start, end, scroll, and the like, and the second operation unit 132 controls the size of the sound output from the sound output unit 152 or the size of the sound output from the display unit 151 To the touch recognition mode of the touch screen.

FIG. 2B is a rear perspective view of the portable terminal shown in FIG. 2A.

Referring to FIG. 2B, a camera 121 'may be further mounted on the rear surface of the terminal body, that is, the rear case 102. The camera 121 'may have a photographing direction substantially opposite to the camera 121 (see FIG. 2A), and may be a camera having different pixels from the camera 121.

For example, the camera 121 may have a low pixel so that the face of the user can be photographed and transmitted to the other party in case of a video call or the like, and the camera 121 ' It is preferable to have a large number of pixels. The cameras 121 and 121 'may be installed in the terminal body so as to be rotatable or pop-upable.

A flash 123 and a mirror 124 are additionally disposed adjacent to the camera 121 '. The flash 123 illuminates the subject when the subject is photographed by the camera 121 '. The mirror 124 allows the user to illuminate the user's own face or the like when the user intends to shoot himself / herself (self-photographing) using the camera 121 '.

An acoustic output 152 'may be additionally disposed on the rear surface of the terminal body. The sound output unit 152 'may implement the stereo function together with the sound output unit 152 (see FIG. 2A) and may be used for the implementation of the speakerphone mode in a call.

In addition to the antenna for talking and the like, a broadcast signal reception antenna 116 may be additionally disposed on the side of the terminal body. The antenna 116, which forms part of the broadcast receiving module 111 (see FIG. 1), can be installed to be able to be drawn out from the terminal body.

A power supply unit 190 for supplying power to the portable terminal 100 is mounted on the terminal body. The power supply unit 190 may be built in the terminal body or may be detachable from the outside of the terminal body.

The rear case 102 may further include a touch pad 135 for sensing a touch. The touch pad 135 may also be of a light transmission type like the display unit 151. [ In this case, if the display unit 151 is configured to output time information on both sides, the time information can be recognized through the touch pad 135 as well. The information output on both sides may be all controlled by the touch pad 135. [ Alternatively, a display may be additionally mounted on the touch pad 135, and a touch screen may be disposed on the rear case 102 as well.

The touch pad 135 operates in correlation with the display portion 151 of the front case 101. The touch pad 135 may be disposed parallel to the rear of the display unit 151. The touch pad 135 may have a size equal to or smaller than that of the display unit 151.

Hereinafter, a related operation of the display unit 151 and the touch pad 135 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B.

3A and 3B are front views of a portable terminal for explaining an operation state of the portable terminal according to the present invention.

Various types of time information can be displayed on the display unit 151. [ These pieces of information can be displayed in the form of letters, numbers, symbols, graphics, or icons.

At least one of the letters, numbers, symbols, graphics, or icons may be displayed in a predetermined arrangement for inputting such information, thereby being implemented as a keypad. Such a keypad may be called a so-called " soft key ".

FIG. 3A shows a touch input to a soft key through a front surface of a terminal body.

The display unit 151 may operate as an entire area or may be divided into a plurality of areas and operated. In the latter case, the plurality of areas can be configured to operate in association with each other.

For example, an output window 151a and an input window 151b are displayed on the upper and lower portions of the display unit 151, respectively. The output window 151a and the input window 151b are areas allocated for outputting or inputting information, respectively. In the input window 151b, a soft key 151c in which a number for inputting a telephone number or the like is displayed is output. When the soft key 151c is touched, a number corresponding to the touched soft key is displayed on the output window 151a. When the first operation unit 131 is operated, call connection to the telephone number displayed on the output window 151a is attempted.

FIG. 3B shows that a touch applied to the soft key is input through the rear surface of the terminal body. FIG. 3A shows a case where the terminal body is vertically arranged, and FIG. 3B shows a case where the terminal body is arranged horizontally. The display unit 151 may be configured to convert the output screen according to the arrangement direction of the terminal body.

3B shows that the text input mode is activated in the portable terminal. The display unit 151 displays an output window 151a 'and an input window 151b'. In the input window 151b ', a plurality of soft keys 151c' displayed with at least one of letters, symbols, and numbers may be arranged. The soft keys 151c 'may be arranged in the form of a QWERTY key.

When the soft keys 151c 'are touched through the touch pad 135 (see FIG. 2B), characters, numbers, symbols corresponding to the touched soft keys are displayed on the output window 151a'. As described above, the touch input through the touch pad 135 is advantageous in that the soft key 151c 'can not be blocked by the finger when the touch is input, compared with the touch input through the display unit 151. [ In the case where the display unit 151 and the touch pad 135 are formed to be transparent, the fingers located on the rear side of the terminal body can be visually confirmed, thereby enabling a more accurate touch input.

The display unit 151 or the touch pad 135 may be configured to receive a touch input by scrolling, as well as the input method described in the above embodiments. The user can move a cursor or a pointer located on an object displayed on the display unit 151, for example, an icon or the like, by scrolling the display unit 151 or the touch pad 135. [ Further, when the finger is moved on the display unit 151 or the touch pad 135, the path along which the finger moves may be visually displayed on the display unit 151. [ This will be useful for editing the image displayed on the display unit 151. [

One function of the terminal may be executed in response to a case where the display unit 151 (touch screen) and the touch pad 135 are touched together within a predetermined time range. In the case of being touched together, there may be a case where the user clamps the terminal body using the thumb and index finger. The one function may be activation or deactivation of the display unit 151 or the touch pad 135, for example.

The proximity sensor 141 described with reference to Fig. 1 will be described in more detail with reference to Fig.

4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the proximity depth of the proximity sensor.

As shown in FIG. 4, when a pointer such as a user's finger, a pen, or the like approaches the touch screen, the proximity sensor 141 disposed in or near the touch screen senses the proximity sensor and outputs a proximity signal.

The proximity sensor 141 may be configured to output different proximity signals according to the distance between the proximity-touched pointer and the touch screen (hereinafter referred to as "proximity depth").

In FIG. 4, for example, a cross-section of a touch screen having proximity sensors capable of sensing three proximity depths is illustrated. Of course, proximity sensors that detect less than three or more than four proximity depths are also possible.

Specifically, when the pointer is completely in contact with the touch screen (d0), it is recognized as a contact touch. If the pointer is located on the touch screen at a distance less than the distance d1, it is recognized as a proximity touch of the first proximity depth. If the pointer is located on the touch screen at a distance d1 or less and less than the distance d2, the pointer is recognized as a proximity touch of the second proximity depth. If the pointer is located on the touch screen at a distance d2 or more and less than the distance d3, it is recognized as a proximity touch of the third proximity depth. If the pointer is located at a distance d3 or more on the touch screen, it is recognized that the proximity touch is released.

Accordingly, the controller 180 can recognize the proximity touch as various input signals according to the proximity depth and proximity position of the pointer, and perform various operation control according to the various input signals.

Hereinafter, embodiments related to a control method that can be implemented in the terminal configured as above will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following embodiments can be used alone or in combination with each other. In addition, the embodiments described below may be used in combination with the above-described user interface (UI).

The present embodiment relates to a method of operating as a proximity sensor using a short distance communication module 114 of an IrDA (infrared data association). The present invention relates to a short-range communication and proximity sensing integration module (hereinafter referred to as an integration module) that operates as a short-range communication module when data communication is required and operates as a proximity sensor. That is, according to the present invention, when data communication is required, the integrated module 200 is operated to operate in the short-range communication mode. When the data communication is not performed, the integrated module 200 is operated in the proximity sensing mode .

When the control unit 180 operates the integration module 200 in the proximity sensing mode, the integration module 200 detects a state such as opening or closing of the terminal or contact of the user and generates a sensing signal. The generated sensing signal is input to the controller 180. When the integration module 200 is operated in the proximity sensing mode, proximity distance, proximity direction, proximity speed, and the like can be detected like the proximity sensor.

The integration module 200 can radiate an infrared signal (= optical signal) to be reflected and detect the proximity information by using an infrared signal that is reflected by the object to be radiated and returned. The integration module 200 receives the reflected infrared signal and outputs the light amount information to the controller 180. Or may output the light amount information to the control unit 180 only when the light amount of the received infrared signal exceeds a predetermined specific value. The specific value for outputting the light amount information may be set to two or more values.

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an integrated module for local communication and proximity sensing according to the present invention.

The integration module 200 includes an optical signal output unit 210, a signal modulation unit 220, an optical signal reception unit 230, a signal processing unit 240, a signal demodulation unit 250, an interface unit 260, can do. Each component of the integration module may be configured to have more or fewer components. Also, it may be configured as one chip including the above components.

Hereinafter, the components will be described in order.

The optical signal output unit 210 outputs an optical signal for short-distance communication or an optical signal for proximity sensing according to a predetermined mode. The optical signal for close range communication and the optical signal for proximity sensing can be driven in different signal patterns. For example, the optical signal may include a laser, visible light, etc., as well as infrared light. That is, it may include a light source capable of outputting the optical signal. For example, the light source may use a light emitting diode (LED) capable of outputting a corresponding optical signal. That is, the optical signal output unit 210 outputs the optical signal in a specific pattern predetermined by driving the light source under the control of the control unit 180.

The signal modulator 220 modulates a signal in a predetermined pattern under the control of the controller 180. That is, the optical signal is modulated into a specific signal pattern in order to distinguish the optical signal from surrounding optical signals (noise signals). When the signal modulated by the signal modulator 220 is output in a pulse form, the optical signal output unit 210 is controlled to be on / off by the pulse signal, thereby emitting the optical signal in the modulated signal pattern .

The interface unit 260 may receive a control signal for the signal modulation from the control unit 180. [ For example, the interface unit 260 may be a Universal Asynchronous Receiver and Transmitter (UART). That is, the serial bit stream transmitted from the controller 180 may be converted into a UART frame and transmitted to the signal modulator 220.

The optical signal receiving unit 230 receives the optical signal. For example, the optical signal receiving unit 230 may include a photodiode. That is, it may receive only predetermined specific types of optical signals according to the types of the photodiodes. The optical signal receiving unit 230 converts an optical signal into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal. The format of the electrical signal depends on the amount of the received light. For example, the output voltage of the electrical signal may vary depending on the amount of light received.

The signal processor 240 analyzes the intensity of a signal received from the optical signal receiver 230 to determine a proximity distance. If the proximity distance is within a predetermined proximity distance, the signal received from the optical signal receiving unit 230 is output to the signal demodulation unit 250. The proximity distance may determine whether the intensity of the input signal is greater than or equal to a specific value. For example, the intensity of the electrical signal output from the optical signal receiving unit 230 increases within a specific distance, so that the proximity distance can be determined using the intensity of the electrical signal.

The signal demodulator 250 demodulates the signal received from the signal processor 240. That is, it is determined whether the input signal is identical to a predetermined signal pattern. Alternatively, it is also possible to simply demodulate the signal and output it to the control unit 180, and the control unit 180 may determine the signal pattern. According to the determination, if the input signal is the same as the predetermined signal pattern, the predetermined signal may be output to the controller 180. The specific signal is a signal indicating that an arbitrary object has approached a predetermined close proximity.

Meanwhile, the signal processing unit 240 and the signal demodulation unit 250 may be configured in a different order. That is, when the signal received from the optical signal receiving unit 230 is the same as the preset signal pattern, the signal processing unit 240 outputs the received signal to the signal processing unit 240, And outputs the corresponding signal if the proximity distance is a predetermined proximate distance.

The interface unit 260 outputs the signal received from the signal demodulation unit 250 to the control unit 180. That is, a signal transmitted in a UART frame format from the signal demodulation unit 250 may be converted into a serial bit stream and output to the controller 180.

The controller 180 controls the interface unit 260 to operate only the signal modulator 220 and the optical signal output unit 210 in the short distance communication mode. That is, even if an optical signal is received through the optical signal receiving unit 230, the optical signal is not output to the controller 180. Further, in the proximity sensing mode, all the components can be driven. That is, the optical signal output unit 210 may be controlled to output an optical signal having a specific signal pattern, and the optical signal received through the optical signal receiving unit 230 may be processed to receive the determined proximity detection signal.

The control unit 180 controls the predetermined operation of the terminal according to the input proximity detection signal. For example, the display module may be turned on or off at a certain proximity distance. Or may execute a predetermined specific menu.

6 is a flowchart of an example of an integrated module control method of a terminal according to the present invention.

When the terminal is activated (S101), the controller 180 initializes the integration module 200 (102).

In operation S103, it is determined whether the operated menu is a menu related to the short-range communication mode or a menu related to the proximity sensing mode according to the menu operation of the user. That is, it is determined whether to execute the near field communication mode or the proximity sensing mode. For example, when the user manipulates the file transmission / reception menu, it executes the short-range communication mode, and when the user performs the telephone conversation, it executes the proximity sensing mode.

Also, the controller 180 may determine the operation state of the terminal according to the menu operation. Depending on the operation state, it can be determined whether the operation state is related to the short-range communication mode or the proximity sensing mode.

For reference, a mode for controlling the integration module 200 may be set in advance according to the type of the menu. The information on which the control mode of the integrated module corresponding to the type of the menu (or operation state) is set is stored in the memory 160. [ Accordingly, the control unit 180 can change the mode by referring to the information stored in the memory.

When the short-range communication mode is executed according to the above determination (S104), either one of the components 210 and 220 for data transmission or the components 230, 240 and 250 for data reception is selected (S105). For example, in order to configure a communication link with a counterpart terminal or transmit / receive a response signal, the components for the transmission or the components for reception may be selectively driven.

When the proximity sensing mode is executed in step S106, both the data transmission components 210 and 220 and the data reception components 230, 240 and 250 are simultaneously driven in step S107. That is, the optical signal of a specific signal pattern is continuously radiated through the components 210 and 220 for transmission, and the radiated optical signal is continuously transmitted through the components 230, 240 and 250 for reception. .

For reference, the optical signal output unit 210 repeatedly turns on and off according to the signal pattern. However, in the present embodiment, it is determined that the optical signal output unit 210 is continuously driven when it is turned off for signal transmission, It is judged that it is not driven only when it is turned off in the state in which there is no signal to be transmitted. In addition, the optical signal output unit 210 may repeatedly turn on / off periodically according to a predetermined time for the purpose of saving power. That is, the optical signal of a specific signal pattern is output only when the optical signal is in the ON state. As described above, even when the optical signal is output only in a specific period, the components 230, 240, and 250 for reception operate simultaneously.

Further, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the above-described method can be implemented as a code that can be read by a processor on a medium on which the program is recorded. Examples of the medium that can be read by the processor include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, optical data storage, etc., and may be implemented in the form of a carrier wave (e.g., transmission over the Internet) .

The mobile terminal described above can be applied to not only the configuration and method of the embodiments described above but also all or some of the embodiments may be selectively combined so that various modifications may be made to the embodiments It is possible.

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

FIG. 2A is a front perspective view of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG.

FIG. 2B is a rear perspective view of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG.

3A and 3B are front views of a portable terminal for explaining an operation state of the portable terminal according to the present invention.

4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the proximity depth of the proximity sensor;

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an integrated module for local communication and proximity sensing according to the present invention.

6 is a flowchart of an example of an integrated module control method of a terminal according to the present invention.

Claims (9)

An integrated module that combines a local communication function and a proximity sensing function; A controller for controlling the integrated module to a near field communication mode if the operation state is related to a short distance communication mode and controlling the integrated module to a proximity sensing mode if the operation state is related to a proximity sensing mode, Wow; And a memory for storing mode setting information corresponding to an operation state of the terminal. The apparatus of claim 1, Wherein the mode setting information of the integrated module corresponding to the type of the menu operated by the terminal is stored. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, A signal modulator for modulating a transmission signal in a specific pattern according to a mode; An optical signal output unit for outputting an optical signal for short-range communication or an optical signal for proximity sensing according to the modulated signal; An optical signal receiver for receiving an optical signal and converting it into an electrical signal; A signal processor for analyzing the received signal to determine a proximity distance; And a signal demodulator for demodulating the received signal to determine a signal pattern. The optical signal output unit according to claim 3, And a light source capable of outputting an infrared ray, a laser, or a visible ray. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 3, Wherein the controller determines the proximity distance based on the amount of light input to the optical signal receiving unit or the intensity of the electrical signal output from the optical signal receiving unit. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 3, And outputs the signal received from the optical signal receiving unit when the received signal is greater than a predetermined value. Determining an operating state of the terminal; Determining whether the operation state is related to a near-field communication mode or a proximity sensing mode; And controlling the integrated module in which the communication and the sensing function are combined according to a result of the determination, in a short distance communication mode or in a proximity sensing mode. 8. The method according to claim 7, Wherein the terminal is able to make a judgment using the type of the menu operated by the terminal. 8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the mode associated with the operating condition comprises: Wherein the determination is made by referring to the mode setting information of the corresponding integrated module according to the operation state of the terminal stored in the memory or the type of the menu.

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