KR101761619B1 - Mobile terminal and method for controlling thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal capable of providing a more convenient message use environment and a control method thereof. A mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a touch screen for displaying a second area and a third area including a plurality of first areas corresponding to each message exchange unit; And a controller for controlling the messages exchanged with the message exchange unit corresponding to the selected first area to be displayed on the third area in a predetermined form when a specific first area is selected from among the plurality of first areas, The message exchange unit may include a message exchange object divided into at least one identification information and a group composed of two or more of the message exchange objects.

Description

[0001] MOBILE TERMINAL AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THEREOF [0002]

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal capable of providing a more convenient message use environment 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.

In recent years, there has been a demand for a GUI (Graphic User Interface) capable of transmitting and managing messages more conveniently and efficiently as the exchange of short / multimedia messages through mobile terminals becomes more frequent.

The present invention is intended to provide a mobile terminal that can more conveniently transmit and manage messages.

In addition, the present invention provides a mobile terminal capable of conveniently managing a plurality of message exchange objects in group units.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are not restrictive of the invention, unless further departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. It will be possible.

A mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention for realizing the above-mentioned problem includes a touch screen for displaying a second area and a third area including a plurality of first areas corresponding to each message exchange unit; And a controller for controlling the messages exchanged with the message exchange unit corresponding to the selected first area to be displayed on the third area in a predetermined form when a specific first area is selected from among the plurality of first areas, The message exchange unit may include a message exchange object divided into at least one identification information and a group composed of two or more of the message exchange objects.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling a mobile terminal, the method comprising: entering a message menu; Displaying a second area and a third area including a plurality of first areas corresponding to each of the message exchange units on a touch screen; Selecting a specific first region among the plurality of first regions; And displaying messages exchanged with the message exchange unit corresponding to the selected first area in a predetermined format in the third area, wherein the message exchange unit comprises: message exchange objects divided into at least one identification information; And a group composed of the message exchange objects.

Through the mobile terminal according to at least one embodiment of the present invention configured as described above, the user can more easily exchange and manage the message.

In addition, a plurality of message exchange destinations can be added to a group or can be ungrouped by a simple operation.

The effects obtained by the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and other effects not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description will be.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a front view of a mobile terminal for explaining an operation state of the mobile terminal according to the present invention.
4 is a view for explaining a basic configuration of a message menu user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a method for forwarding message contents of a thread area to another user in a user information area in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 shows an example of a method of setting a group including a plurality of users in a message menu of the mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a function that can be performed by selecting an object and a group of a target information area in a mobile terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a method of setting a group sharing a thread area using objects of an object information area in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 shows an example of a message deletion method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 10 shows an example of a method of informing arrival of a new message in a message menu of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
11 shows an example of a method of creating and temporarily storing a new message in a message menu of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 12 shows an example of a form in which the message menu of the mobile terminal is executed in the landscape view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

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 includes a mobile phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a digital broadcasting terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a PMP (Portable Multimedia Player), a navigation system, . 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.

Overall configuration

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 an output relating to visual, auditory or tactile sense and includes a display unit 151, an acoustic output module 152, an alarm unit 153, a haptic module 154, 155, and the like.

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 for sensing a touch operation (hereinafter, referred to as 'touch sensor') 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.

The proximity sensor 141 may be disposed in an inner region of the mobile terminal or in the vicinity of the touch screen, which is enclosed 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 a 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 projector module 155 is a component for performing an image project function using the mobile terminal 100 and is similar to the image displayed on the display unit 151 in accordance with a control signal of the controller 180 Or at least partly display another image on an external screen or wall.

Specifically, the projector module 155 includes a light source (not shown) that generates light (for example, laser light) for outputting an image to the outside, a light source And a lens (not shown) for enlarging and outputting the image at a predetermined focal distance to the outside. Further, the projector module 155 may include a device (not shown) capable of mechanically moving the lens or the entire module to adjust the image projection direction.

The projector module 155 can be divided into a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) module, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) module and a DLP (Digital Light Processing) module according to the type of the display means. In particular, the DLP module may be advantageous for miniaturization of the projector module 151 by enlarging and projecting an image generated by reflecting light generated from a light source on a DMD (Digital Micromirror Device) chip.

Preferably, the projector module 155 may be provided longitudinally on the side, front or back side of the mobile terminal 100. It goes without saying that the projector module 155 may be provided at any position of the mobile terminal 100 as occasion demands.

The memory unit 160 may store a program for processing and controlling the control unit 180 and temporarily store the input / output data (e.g., telephone directory, message, audio, For example. The memory unit 160 may also store the frequency of use of each of the data (for example, each telephone number, each message, and frequency of use for each multimedia). In addition, the memory unit 160 may store data on vibration and sound of various patterns output when the 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), a RAM (Random Access Memory), SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), PROM A 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. [

Organization description

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a mobile terminal or a portable terminal according to the present invention, as viewed from the front.

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.

Front touch

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

3 is a front view 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 referred to as a so-called " virtual keypad ".

3 illustrates inputting of a touch applied to the virtual keypad through the front surface of the 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 virtual keypad 151c is displayed in which a number for inputting a telephone number or the like is displayed. When the virtual keypad 151c is touched, numbers and the like corresponding to the touched virtual keypad are 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.

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 portion 151 or the touch pad 135, the path along which the finger moves may be visually displayed on the display portion 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.

On the other hand, an arrow or finger-shaped graphic for pointing a specific object or selecting a menu in the display unit is called a pointer or a cursor. However, in the case of a pointer, it often means a finger or a stylus pen for a touch operation or the like. Therefore, in this specification, a graphic displayed on the display unit is referred to as a cursor, and a physical means for performing a touch, a proximity touch, and a gesture, such as a finger or a stylus pen, is referred to as a pointer.

The mobile terminal according to the present invention described below includes at least one of the components described above with reference to Fig. 1, but is not necessarily limited thereto, and may include more components than those of Fig. 1, . ≪ / RTI > However, for convenience, it is assumed that the display unit 151 of the mobile terminal 100 according to the present invention is a touch screen.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a user interface of a message menu in which a plurality of message exchange destinations and message contents are displayed together is provided.

Here, the message menu refers to a menu for partially and integrally executing and managing functions related to a message, such as confirming information of a message transmitted / received from the mobile terminal, composing and transmitting a message, and the like. Types of messages that can be transmitted, received, and managed through the message menu include short messages (SMS), multimedia messages (MMS), and messages transmitted through social network services (for example, a note or a twitter post) And e-mail. In addition, the information of the transmitted / received message includes information such as a telephone number of a sender / receiver, personal information of a sender / receiver, contents of a received / received message, a time of transmitting and receiving a message, Information and the like.

Basic Configuration of the Message Menu User Interface

Hereinafter, a basic configuration of a message menu user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

First, FIG. 4 (a) shows a schematic form of a menu configuration of a message menu user interface.

Specifically, a target information area 410 is arranged on the left side of the message menu. The target information area 410 may be divided into a plurality of sub-areas, and one sub-area includes information on one message exchange unit. Here, the message exchange unit means a group including one or more objects or objects. Further, the object refers to one piece of identification information (that is, contact information such as a telephone number, an e-mail address, a social network service ID, etc.) to be a subject of message exchange or at least one identification information stored in the telephone directory of the mobile terminal with the same name A group is a set of two or more objects. In addition, the information displayed in the sub area may include a phone number of the target, a name of a corresponding target stored in the mobile terminal, a message status (unconfirmed / new message arrival, notification during creation of a new message, etc.) .

On the right side of the message menu, a message area 420 in which a message content is displayed in a predetermined form is disposed. In the message area 420, the contents of a message transmitted and received for one object or one group are displayed. The displayed contents include a message body, a transmission / reception time, an attachment file list, and an attachment file preview (thumbnail) . If a message for one object or group is listed interactively (i.e., forming a message thread) according to a predetermined sorting criterion (e.g., a time sequence), the message area is referred to as a " thread area ".

In addition, the additional information area 430 may be selectively disposed at the upper part of the message menu. In the additional information area 430, information displayed in the target information area 410 and / or the message area 420 may be displayed in more detail, or information not displayed in each area may be displayed.

The above-described areas 410 to 430 may be independently scrolled vertically and / or horizontally to display other information that is not displayed on the current screen.

The menu configuration described above with reference to Fig. 4 (a) is illustrative, and may include a lesser kind of area than the area shown in Fig. 4 (a), may include more kinds of areas, The form may also be varied. However, the target information area and the message area are necessarily included. In addition, the above-described menu configuration can be displayed through the entire screen or a predetermined partial area through the display unit of the mobile terminal 100, and is called when a new message is received or a predetermined command input for calling a message menu is received .

FIG. 4B shows an example of a form in which the menu configuration described above with reference to FIG. 4A is displayed on the mobile terminal.

Referring to FIG. 4B, an indicator region 440 is displayed at the top of the display unit, and a message menu is displayed on the full screen except for the indicator region. Here, the indicator area is an area that briefly indicates various operating states of the mobile terminal, such as a wireless signal reception sensitivity, a reception of a new message, and a battery remaining amount.

A target information area 410 is disposed on the left side of the message menu, and information of one target is displayed in each sub area 411, 413, etc. of the target information area. A menu 415 for creating a new message may be fixedly arranged at the top of the target information area irrespective of other objects / groups, and may be selected to create and transmit a new message to an object that does not appear in the object area. The specific function of the menu 415 will be described later with reference to FIG.

In the sub areas below the new message creation menu 415, objects are displayed according to a predetermined sorting criterion. If there is information about the target in the phone book, the name / photo stored in the phone book is displayed. The telephone number is displayed as the identification information on the corresponding object in the sub area 413 of the sub area 413. In addition, a visual effect for notifying a new message or an unidentified message may be displayed in each sub-area. For example, identification number 451 indicates that there is one new message for the subject.

The order in which the object / group is placed in each sub area of the target information area includes a method of moving the object with the latest message transmission or reception to the uppermost or lowermost position (that is, sorting in chronological order) A method of arbitrarily setting by the user, and a method of combining the above-described methods may be applied.

For example, in a state in which time order sorting is basically applied, a specific object / group may be fixedly arranged in a specific sub region through a menu operation such as a telephone directory setting in addition to the new message creation menu 415. [ In this case, the time alignment may be performed only in the subareas in which the new message creation menu and the position-fixed object / group are arranged.

On the right side of the message menu, a thread area 420 is disposed. The thread area 420 displays the message thread of the selected object / group. In FIG. 4B, "Joanne Holly" 411 is selected and a message thread for the corresponding object is displayed. A predetermined visual effect to be visually distinguished from other sub-areas may be given to indicate that the sub-area in which the selected object 411 is disposed is selected.

If there is no user selection (for example, immediately after calling the message menu), a message thread for the object / group at the top of the top excluding the creation of a new message may be displayed in the thread area by default. In the thread area 420, messages 421 and 423 received from the target and messages 422 transmitted to the target are arranged in chronological order. The contents of the message and the transmission / It is displayed in the speech balloon. Such speech balloon may be given a predetermined visual effect such as a shape change or a color change to indicate whether each message is a transmitted message or a received message.

At the bottom of the message menu, a creation area 470 for composing a message is arranged. In the creation area, a menu 471 for selecting an attachment file to be attached to a created message, an input window 473 for creating a body text, a transmission menu 475, and the like may be disposed. A menu created through the area 470 may be transmitted to the currently selected object 411 in the object information area 410. [

The additional information area 430 is disposed at the top of the message menu and the full name stored in the telephone directory of the selected object 411 in the object information area 410 and the total number of messages exchanged with the corresponding object are displayed.

In the following description, it is assumed that the user interface of the message menu has a menu configuration as shown in FIG. 4 (b).

Forwarding of message content

Hereinafter, a method of transmitting a message already transmitted / received to another object will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a method for transferring (forwarding) a message content of a thread area to another object in a target information area in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5A, a message "Joanne Holly" 511 is selected (by default) in the target information area and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area 520 is displayed. Here, when it is intended to transmit the contents of the message 521 at the uppermost end of the thread area 520 to the "Robert" 513 of the object information area, the user drags the corresponding message 521, The dragging can be canceled in the sub area 513. At this time, the drag may be started by simply applying the touch input to the speech bubble area indicated by the message 521, or may be started by applying the long touch input for a predetermined time or longer.

As a result, "Robert" 513 is selected as shown in FIG. 5 (b), and the messages exchanged with "Robert" 513 are displayed in the thread area 520, The contents of the message 521 to be transmitted are automatically inputted. The user may select the input window 573 to edit the contents of the automatically input message or select the transmission menu 575 directly to allow the contents of the input window 573 to be transmitted to the "Robert" 513.

Group settings

Hereinafter, a method of setting a group including two or more objects will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a method of setting a group including a plurality of objects in a message menu of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 (a), "Joanne" 611 is selected (by default) in the target information area, and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area is displayed. Here, when the user wants to create a group including "Joanne" and "Robert ", the sub area 613 corresponding to" Robert "in the target information area can be dragged to the thread area 620. [ As a result, a group including "Joanne" and "Robert" is created in the sub area 617 below the new message creation menu 615 as shown in FIG. At this time, the generated group 617 may display a part of the identification information (the name stored in the phone book) and the number of the group members of the target constituting the group. At the top of the thread area 620, an area 631 in which a list of members is displayed and a phone book icon 633 for adding members from the phone book to the group viewed are displayed. Further, a virtual keypad for creating a new message for the generated group may be additionally displayed. At this time, when the user further adds "Amanda" in the target information area to the created group, the sub area 619 corresponding to "Amanda" is set to the thread area 620 in the same manner as in FIG. 6 (a) You can drag. As a result, "Amanda" is added to the group as shown in FIG. 6 (c), the member number display of the created group 617 is changed to 3, and "Amanda" is added to the area 631 in which the list of members is displayed .

Here, the virtual keypad 680 may be displayed at the same time as the group configuration, or may appear when the input window 673 is selected by touching. Also, when the groups are configured, the objects constituting the group in the target information area may disappear or may be maintained regardless of whether the groups are formed or not.

Perform additional functions in the target information area

Hereinafter, an additional function that can be performed in the target information area will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a function that can be performed by selecting an object and a group of a target information area in a mobile terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

First, referring to FIG. 7A, "Joanne" 711 is selected (by default) in the target information area and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area is displayed. When "Joanne" is selected and another object in the object area is selected, the message sent and received with the selected object is displayed in the thread area. However, if the sub area corresponding to "Joanne " is selected through the touch input (short touch or long touch) with" Joanne "selected, a popup window 761 may be displayed as shown in FIG. 7B . The pop-up window 761 displays additional functions that can be performed on the target. For example, it is possible to make a voice / video call to the target and to view / modify the phonebook information. In addition, the position fix in the object information area described above can also be performed through the menu of the pop-up window. In addition, an object to be grouped together with the corresponding object in the telephone directory may be selected.

The group pop-up window 765 may be displayed as shown in FIG. 7 (d) if the corresponding group 717 is selected again after the specific group 717 is already selected as shown in FIG. 7 (c) . The group pop-up window 765 may display additional functions related to the group. For example, a list of the members constituting the group, a menu 766 for releasing the group setting, and the like may be included.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a method of setting a group sharing a thread area using objects of an object information area in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, referring to FIG. 8A, "Joanne" 811 is selected (by default) in the target information area and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area is displayed. At this time, in order to create a group that shares the thread area to include "Joanne" and "Robert", the user sub-area 811 corresponding to "Joanne" in the target information area is divided into sub areas 813 ).

As a result, a group 817 including "Joanne" and "Robert" is formed at the position of the sub area 813 corresponding to "Robert " Messages exchanged with "Joanne " are displayed together with messages (821, 823) exchanged with" Robert ". At this time, each message displayed in the thread area can be sorted chronologically regardless of the object. In addition, messages exchanged with each object included in the group may be assigned different colors to distinguish objects. In addition, when the number of messages for each target is displayed in the additional information area 930, if the group that shares the thread area is selected, the total number of messages of the objects included in the group in the additional information area can be displayed.

On the other hand, a method of creating a group sharing the thread area described above is also performed by a method of dragging a sub area 811 corresponding to "Robert " in a target information area into a sub area 813 corresponding to" Joanne & . In addition, the time ordering and color assignment of the thread area shown in FIG. 8 are illustrative, and the present invention is not limited thereto and can be applied to various message sorting criteria and visual effects.

After the group is formed according to the method described above with reference to FIG. 8, a message newly created through the creation area can be transmitted to all the group members, and other objects of the target information area can be dragged into the pre- You can add objects by dragging them to the target. Also, the group can be released by the method shown in (d) of FIG. 7, and after the group sharing the threads is set, the objects constituting the group may disappear or stay in the target information area.

There is an advantage that the message exchange details related to the multi-party can be confirmed at a time through the group formation in which the thread area is shared.

Delete a message by its unit

Hereinafter, a method of deleting a message in a thread area by message unit, target / group unit, and whole unit will be described with reference to FIG.

9 shows an example of a message deletion method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, referring to FIG. 9A, "Joanne" 911 is selected (by default) in the target information area and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area is displayed. At this time, the menu window 950 may be displayed at the bottom of the message menu according to a predetermined command input by the user (for example, a specific hardware key operation). The menu window 950 may include menus that are not displayed in the main menu configuration in using the message menu. For example, a menu for creating a new message storage folder, a menu for changing sorting criteria of a target information area or a thread area, a menu 955 for performing keyword search for each target / group, A menu 953, a setting menu, and the like.

At this time, when the user selects the delete menu 953, the check box 991 of the additional information area, the check box 993 of the target information area, and the check box 995 of the thread area, as shown in FIG. 9B, Is displayed. In addition, a menu button for determining whether or not to delete is disposed at the lower end of the message menu.

When a check box corresponding to "Joanne" in the check box 993 of the target information area is selected as shown in FIG. 9C, all of the check boxes 995 of messages related to "Joanne" do. If the checkbox corresponding to "Joanne" is re-selected here, the check may disappear (i.e., deselect) and uncheck the message individually.

When the delete menu button 977 is selected, a confirmation notification window 905 is displayed as shown in FIG. 9D. If the OK button is selected, a notification window 907 indicating that the deletion menu button 977 is deleted as shown in FIG. Is output. As all the messages related to "Joanne" are deleted, "Joanne" disappears in the target information area, and the objects placed under the " Joanne "

9 (b), if the check box 991 of the additional information area is selected, the entire message can be deleted. If the check box 995 of the thread area is individually selected, only the selected message is deleted .

New message arrival notification

Hereinafter, a new message arrival notification method will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 10 shows an example of a method of informing arrival of a new message in a message menu of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, referring to FIG. 10A, "Joanne" 1011 is selected (by default) in the target information area, and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area is displayed. In the additional information area 1030, the number of new messages not received from the user after being received is displayed. Here, it means that the received message is displayed or displayed through the message menu, but there is no input from the user for confirmation of receipt.

In FIG. 10 (a), there is one unacknowledged message for each of "Joanne" and "Amanda" through the numerical indication 1051 of the corresponding sub-area. Accordingly, new messages in the additional information area 1030 are displayed in two.

At this time, as a new character for "Ben" is received, a visual effect 1053 indicating an event occurrence notification may be displayed in the sub area 1013 corresponding to "Ben" in the target information area.

When the object / group of the target information area is arranged so as to place the object / group in which the latest message reception / transmission is performed at the top, "Ben" 1013 as the destination of the latest message as shown in FIG. Is moved directly below the message creation menu 1015. Also, the visual effect 1053 indicating the event occurrence notification is changed to the numeric display 1051, and the new message count in the additional information area 1030 is changed to 3 accordingly.

Then, when the user selects the sub area 1013 corresponding to "Ben " to confirm a new message, messages exchanged with" Ben "are displayed in the thread area as shown in FIG. 10C. At this time, a predetermined visual effect 1053 may be given to a newly received message in the thread area. Further, the visual effect for the new message notification 1051 of the sub area corresponding to "Joanne " is regarded as having been confirmed as" Ben "is selected and disappears. The new message count in the additional information area 1030 is changed to 2 accordingly.

Create new message

Hereinafter, the creation and interruption of a new message will be described with reference to FIG.

11 shows an example of a method of creating and temporarily storing a new message in a message menu of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

11A, "Joanne" 1111 is selected (by default) in the target information area, and a message exchanged with the target in the thread area is displayed. Also, there is one unacknowledged message for each of "Joanne" and "Amanda " Accordingly, new messages in the additional information area 1130 are displayed in two.

At this time, the user can select a new message creation menu 1115 to create a new message. Accordingly, an undefined object 1119 is generated in the sub area under the new message creation menu 1115 as shown in FIG. 11 (b), and a virtual keypad 1180 for inputting the contents of the new message can be displayed. In addition, a telephone directory icon for selecting a list of destinations to be received and a recipient of a message to be created from the telephone directory can be additionally displayed at the top of the thread area.

On the other hand, the visual effect for the new message notification 1151 of the sub area corresponding to "Joanne " is regarded as having been confirmed as disappearing as the new message creation menu 1115 is selected. Accordingly, the new message count in the additional information area 1130 is changed to 1.

If the user needs to confirm a message sent to "Joanne " during creation of a new message in the creation area 1178 using the virtual keypad 1180 as shown in FIG. 11C, It is possible to select the sub area 1111 corresponding to " Joanne ".

11D, messages are exchanged with "Joanne " in the thread area, and a visual effect 1155 indicating that the creation of a new message is stopped is displayed in the sub area 1119 corresponding to the unspecified object, . In addition, the message being created may be stored in the memory unit 160 as a temporary message.

Change landscape view mode

The above-described embodiments have been described on the assumption that the display unit is arranged in portrait. However, the mobile terminal according to the present invention may be arranged in a landscape to be used (i.e., landscape view mode). In the horizontal view mode, when the horizontal placement of the mobile terminal is detected by the sensing module 140 such as a gyro sensor or a gravity sensor capable of determining the placement state of the mobile terminal according to the basic setting, the controller 180 automatically . Hereinafter, the landscape view mode will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 12 shows an example of a form in which the message menu of the mobile terminal is executed in the landscape view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

12 (a), the basic configuration of the horizontal view mode of the message menu is similar to that of the vertical view mode described above. However, in the landscape view mode, the position of the boundary line 1290 between the target information area and the thread area can be moved by touch input (for example, touch-drag or long touch-drag).

When the boundary line 1290 is moved to the left, the target information area is reduced and the thread area 1220 is expanded in the horizontal direction as the target information area is reduced as shown in FIG. 12B. Accordingly, the display form of the identification information of the message exchange object (here, the name of the object) and the display form of the messages 1221 to 1223 of the thread area in each sub area of the object information area can be changed. More specifically, the name of each object in the target information area is changed from one line to two lines, and the messages 1221 to 1223 in the thread area can also be expanded in the horizontal direction.

On the other hand, the virtual keypad 1280 displayed when the user selects the creation area 1273 may also be displayed in a long shape in the horizontal direction as shown in FIG. 12 (c). Of course, the boundary between the target information area and the thread area may be moved even in the portrait view mode.

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 above-described message menu, and the mobile terminal and its control method for displaying the message menu are not limited to the configuration and method of the above-described embodiments, but the embodiments may be applied to various embodiments All or a part of the above-described elements may be selectively combined.

Claims (15)

A touch screen for displaying a second area and a third area including a plurality of first areas corresponding to each of the message exchange units; And
And a controller for controlling the messages exchanged with the message exchange unit corresponding to the selected first area to be displayed on the third area in a predetermined form when a specific first area is selected from the plurality of first areas,
Wherein the message exchange unit includes a message exchange object divided into at least one identification information and a group composed of at least two message exchange objects,
Wherein,
When a drag input that is started from a first area corresponding to a first message exchange unit and released from a first area corresponding to a second message exchange unit is input on the touch screen, And controls to form a group including the first message exchange unit and the second message exchange unit in a domain. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein,
A telephone number of each message exchange object, an email address, a social network service ID, a name and a photograph stored in a telephone directory,
Wherein,
And controls at least one of the identification information to be displayed in a predetermined form in each of the plurality of first areas. The method according to claim 1,
The message comprises:
A short message (SMS), a multimedia message (MMS), a social network service (SNS) message and an e-mail. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the messages displayed in the third area include:
And is arranged to form a message thread in time order. delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein,
And controls the first and second message exchange units and the messages exchanged with the first message exchange unit and the second message exchange unit to be displayed together in the third area when a first area corresponding to the formed group is selected. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein,
Wherein the controller controls the touch screen to further display a fourth area in which contents of a message to be transmitted in a message transmission unit corresponding to the selected first area are displayed on the touch screen. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein,
When a drag input that starts from a first message among the messages displayed in the third area and is released from a first area other than the selected first area is inputted through the touch screen, And controls to display in the fourth area to be transmitted in a message transmission unit corresponding to the first area. The method according to claim 1,
The second region further comprises a fifth region,
Wherein,
Wherein when the fifth area is selected through the touch screen, a first area in which a message exchange unit is not specified is generated. The method according to claim 1,
The second region and the third region are disposed adjacent to each other,
Wherein,
And controlling the size of the second area and the third area to be changed corresponding to the moved boundary line when the boundary line of the second area and the third area is moved in accordance with the drag touch input inputted on the touch screen The mobile terminal comprising: The method according to claim 1,
Wherein,
When a drag input that is started from a first area other than the specific first area and is released from the third area is input through the touch screen while the specific first area is selected, And a first area corresponding to the group including the exchange unit and the message exchange unit corresponding to the different first area is generated in the second area. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein,
Changing a display order of the plurality of first areas according to a predetermined reference in the second area,
The predetermined criterion may be,
Wherein the mobile terminal includes at least one of a recent message transmission / reception status, a fixed position set in the second area from the user, a frequency of use order, and an order of letters. Entering a message menu;
Displaying a second area and a third area including a plurality of first areas corresponding to each of the message exchange units on a touch screen;
Selecting a specific first region among the plurality of first regions;
A message exchange unit corresponding to the selected first region and messages exchanged are displayed in the third region in a predetermined form; And
When a drag input is detected on a first screen area corresponding to a first message exchange unit and released in a first area corresponding to a second message exchange unit, Wherein the first message exchange unit and the second message exchange unit are formed in a region including the first message exchange unit and the second message exchange unit,
Wherein the message exchange unit comprises:
A message exchange object that is divided into at least one identification information, and a group that is composed of two or more message exchange objects. delete delete

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