KR101983411B1 - Electronic device and method for controlling electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present invention, a display for displaying a first screen; A force direction sensor for detecting a force direction of a contact applied to a point by an external object; And detecting the occurrence of a predetermined event for logically dividing the display into at least two areas including a first area and a second area and detecting a force direction of a first contact associated with the predetermined event Determining from the force direction sensor unit an area to display the first screen of the at least two areas in accordance with the force direction of the first contact, ; An electronic device comprising:

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a control method of an electronic device and an electronic device,

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus and a control method of an electronic apparatus for providing a user interface that a user using a flexible display can use more easily and easily.

To manipulate a computer system today, there are many types of input devices, such as a keypad, a mouse, a trackball, a touchpad, a joystick, a touch screen, etc., that include multiple buttons or keys. Such an input device is used for inputting data such as characters, symbols, pictures and the like desired by a user into a computer system or inputting a signal for requesting a specific command to the computer system.

Of these various input devices, recently, a touch input means such as a touch screen, which can miniaturize and simplify the device by simultaneously implementing the input means and the output function, is widely used.

The touch input means can detect touch of a part of the user's body or a touch area by means of contact means such as a touch pen, and can be classified into a depressurization type, an electrostatic type, an optical type, etc. according to a method of sensing a touch. The electrostatic type is a method of sensing a touch through a change in electric charge at a contact point due to a contact of a part of a user's body, Is a method of detecting a touch position using an infrared camera and infrared light.

The initial user interface providing method using the touch input means displays operating means such as a plurality of buttons on the screen and performs the corresponding function based on the detected position of the contact. In order to improve the operability, a variety of information such as a contact start position, a contact start time, a contact end time, and a contact end position may be combined and used as tapping, dragging, sliding, In addition, a method of recognizing a user touch gesture and executing various user commands according to a touch gesture is also used. In addition, a plurality of touch points are recognized in the touch area, and the number of touch points, position and combination, To execute the user command through the network.

In addition, due to the recent development of organic light emitting diode (OLED) technology, various flexible user interfaces using a flexible display have been actively studied It is true.

However, in the conventional user interface method using a touch, a user has to take a complex touch gesture or draw a complicated pattern by touching a plurality of points, so that it is inconvenient that a user is difficult to operate in a situation where only one hand is available. In addition, since the user interface using the flexible display is being studied in such a manner that the shape of the flexible display is changed while the flexible display is gripped with both hands by a large part, the flexible display is gripped with both hands, And a conventional touch input method in which a touch gesture or a touch pattern is input are used in combination, it is predicted that a limitation will occur due to the release of the two-hand grip on the flexible display for the touch input It is true.

Further, the conventional user interface method using a touch has a limitation in providing an immediate response because it takes a predetermined time to take a touch gesture or a touch pattern and recognize it.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a control method of an electronic device and an electronic device for overcoming the limitations of a conventional touch-type user interface and for providing a user interface that a user using a flexible display can use more easily and easily .

According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a display device comprising: a display for displaying a first screen; A force direction sensor unit for detecting a direction of force of a contact applied to a point by an external object; And detecting the occurrence of a predetermined event for logically dividing the display into at least two areas including a first area and a second area and detecting a force direction of a first contact associated with the predetermined event Determining from the force direction sensor unit an area to display the first screen of the at least two areas in accordance with the force direction of the first contact, An electronic device including a control unit for displaying an image is disclosed.

The predetermined event is triggered by: 1) the display is flexed along the line of the center portion of the display, and 2) the first touch point is in the first position and the second touch point is in the second position , The force direction for the first touch point is acting in a direction opposite to the direction from the first position to the second position, and the force direction for the second touch point is in the second position Acting in a direction opposite to the direction toward the first position.

The control unit may further determine whether the first contact is associated with the predetermined event.

 Wherein when the first contact is made between a first point of time before the predetermined time and a second point of time after the predetermined time from when the predetermined event occurs, And may determine that the first contact is associated with the predetermined event.

 The control unit may determine that the first contact is related to the predetermined event when the time when the force direction of the first contact is sensed is within a predetermined time after the occurrence of the predetermined event.

The control unit may determine an area for displaying the first screen among the at least two areas by considering only the force direction of the first touch regardless of the contact position of the first touch.

The control unit may determine one of the two or more areas, which is located on the side facing the force direction at the center of the display, as the area to display the first screen.

When the first screen is displayed in the determined area, the controller may resize the first screen to fit the size of the determined area.

The number of the first contacts may be plural.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a display device comprising: a display logically divided into two or more areas; A force direction sensor unit for detecting a direction of force of a contact applied to a point by an external object; And a controller for controlling the display to change the size of at least one of the two or more areas in accordance with the obtained direction of force, An electronic device comprising:

The control unit may move the position of at least one boundary line existing between the two or more areas in accordance with the force direction of the second contact.

The control unit may adjust the distance by which the position of the at least one boundary line is moved in proportion to the touch time at which the force direction of the second contact is maintained.

The control unit may adjust a speed at which the position of the at least one boundary line is moved in proportion to a strength of the second contact.

The control unit selects one boundary line closest to the position of the second contact in consideration of the position of the second contact when the number of the at least one boundary line is plural, .

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a display comprising: a display for displaying two or more screens, respectively, in each of two or more areas; A force direction sensor unit for detecting a direction of force of a contact applied to a point by an external object; And selecting a screen of one of the two or more screens according to a first force direction of the third contact and determining whether to maintain the display of the selected one screen according to a second force direction of the fourth contact, And a control unit for controlling a display state of the display in accordance with the determination.

The control unit may determine a contact having a force direction perpendicular to the display as the third contact.

The control unit may determine whether to maintain the display of the selected one screen in consideration of the position of the selected one screen and the second force direction.

The control unit may determine to maintain the display of the selected one screen when another screen is displayed in the second force direction based on the position of the selected one screen. At this time, the control unit may control the display so that no other screen in the second force direction is displayed based on the position of the selected one screen. Alternatively, the control unit may control the display to enlarge the selected one screen to an area where the other screen is displayed.

The control unit may determine not to maintain the display of the selected one screen when there is no other screen in the second force direction based on the position of the selected one screen. At this time, the control unit may control the display so that the selected one screen is no longer displayed. Alternatively, the control unit may control the display to enlarge another screen in a direction opposite to the second direction of force based on the selected one screen to an area in which the selected one screen is displayed .

According to the present invention, there is provided an advantage that a user interface is provided which allows a user to more easily facilitate operations for splitting and / or integrating a screen.

According to the present invention, it is possible to more easily facilitate the operation of splitting and / or integrating screens by sensing the force direction of the touch and / or touch and using the sensed force direction in splitting and / or integrating the screen do.

According to the present invention, there is an effect that the user can easily control the division and / or the integrated state of the display without removing the hand gripping the electronic device from the electronic device.

1 is a block diagram of an electronic apparatus related to embodiments of the present invention.
2 is a view for explaining the appearance of an electronic apparatus having a flexible display in connection with some embodiments of the present invention.
3 is a diagram for explaining another appearance of an electronic apparatus having a flexible display in connection with some embodiments of the present invention.
4 is a cross-sectional view showing a section taken along line I-I 'of the electronic device shown in FIG. 2 (a).
5 is a cross-sectional view showing a section taken along line J-J 'of the electronic device shown in FIG. 3 (a).
6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process of detecting a direction of a force using the strength of a force according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a flowchart for explaining a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention.
8 to 14 are diagrams for explaining a control method of an electronic apparatus according to the present invention.
15 is a flowchart for explaining another embodiment of a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention.
16 to 23 are diagrams for explaining another embodiment of a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention.
Fig. 24 is a flowchart for explaining another embodiment of the electronic device control method according to the present invention.
25 to 29 are diagrams for explaining still another embodiment of a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention.

The above objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and similarities.

In the drawings, the thicknesses of the layers and regions are exaggerated for clarity and the element or layer is referred to as being "on" or "on" Included in the scope of the present invention is not only directly above another element or layer but also includes intervening layers or other elements in between. Like reference numerals designate like elements throughout the specification.

In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail since they would obscure the invention in unnecessary detail. In addition, numerals (e.g., first, second, etc.) used in the description of the present invention are merely an identifier for distinguishing one component from another.

Hereinafter, an electronic apparatus related to the present invention will be described in more 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 electronic device described in this specification includes mobile terminals such as a mobile phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a digital broadcasting terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a PMP (Portable Multimedia Player) But also a fixed terminal such as a digital TV, a desktop computer, and the like.

A control method of an electronic device according to the present invention is a control method of an electronic device capable of sensing a touch and / or a contact by an external object (e.g., a body part such as a user's finger and / The present invention can be applied to an apparatus having a means.

The means for sensing the touch and / or contact may be a touch input means such as a general touch screen or a touch pad, but may detect the position of a touch and / or contact that can be implemented by the touch screen and / In addition to the ability to further sense the force direction of the touch and / or contact.

In this case, the means for sensing the touch and / or contact may be configured to be able to sense a touch and / or a touch to the touch screen by being manufactured in an integrated form with respect to the conventional touch screen, Such as a portion of the housing of the device to which the control method of the electronic device is applied, or a grip portion that can be provided separately at a portion of the outer portion of the touch screen, And / or < / RTI > That is, the means capable of sensing the touch and / or contact may be arranged to sense the force direction of the touch and / or contact with respect to other configurations than the touch screen and / or the touch pad .

Meanwhile, the apparatus may be applied to a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention even if the apparatus includes any means capable of sensing touch and / or contact as described above. That is, an apparatus to which the electronic device control method according to the present invention can be applied may include a smart phone, a mobile phone, a tablet PC, a notebook, a desk top, a PDA, and the like.

Hereinafter, a brief description will be given of an electronic apparatus related to some embodiments of the present invention, and then a method of controlling an electronic apparatus according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.

<Configuration of Electronic Device>

1 is a block diagram of an electronic apparatus related to embodiments of the present invention.

The electronic device 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 unit 160, An interface unit 170, a control unit 180, a power supply unit 190, and the like. The components shown in FIG. 1 are not essential, and an electronic device having components 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 that enable wireless communication between the electronic device 100 and the wireless communication system or between the electronic device 100 and the network in which the electronic device 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 a DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) or an ESG (Electronic Service Guide) of a DVBH (Digital Video BroadcastHandheld).

The broadcast receiving module 111 receives a broadcast signal using various broadcasting systems. In particular, the broadcast receiving module 111 may be a digital multimedia broadcasting broadcasting (DMBT), a digital multimedia broadcasting satellite (DMBS), a media forward link only (MediaFLO), a digital video broadcasting ), And ISDBT (Integrated Services Digital Broadcast Terrestrial). Of course, the broadcast receiving module 111 may be adapted to other broadcasting systems that provide broadcast signals 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 unit 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 refers to a module for wireless Internet access, and the wireless Internet module 113 can be embedded in the electronic device 100 or externally. WLAN (WiFi), 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, RFID, IrDA, UWB, ZigBee, WiHD, WiGig, and the like can be used as the short distance communication technology.

The position information module 115 is a module for confirming or obtaining the position of the electronic device. A typical example of the location information module is a GPS (Global Position System) module. According to the current technology, the GPS module 115 calculates information on a distance (distance) from three or more satellites to one point (entity), information on the time when the distance information is measured, , Three-dimensional position information according to latitude, longitude, and altitude of one point (individual) in one hour can be calculated. Further, a method of calculating position and time information using three satellites and correcting the error of the calculated position and time information using another satellite is also used. The GPS module 115 continues to calculate the current position in real time and uses it to calculate speed information.

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 unit 160 or may be transmitted to the outside through the wireless communication unit 110. [ The camera 121 may be equipped with two or more cameras according to the configuration of the terminal.

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.

Meanwhile, the user input unit 130 may include a force direction sensor unit 131 that can sense a force direction of a touch and / or a contact. The force direction sensor unit 131 may detect a position of a touch and / or a touch which can be realized by a general touch screen and / or a touch pad, As shown in FIG.

In the present invention, the term "force direction" refers to a concept including a direction of a force (hereinafter referred to as a shear force) acting in a direction parallel to the touch surface, which can not be detected by a conventional touch sensor . That is, the force direction sensor unit 131 according to an embodiment of the present invention can detect not only the force direction in the vertical direction with respect to the touch surface, but also the direction of the shearing force acting parallel to the touch surface.

The force direction sensor unit 131 may be constructed to be integrated with a conventional touch screen so as to be able to sense a touch and / or a touch to the touch screen, or to control the electronic device according to the present invention Such as a grip portion that may be provided separately on a portion of the housing of the device to which the device is applied or on the portion of the outer periphery of the touch screen so that the touch and / or contact of the portion of the housing and / As shown in FIG. The specific operation of the force direction sensor unit 131 will be described later.

The sensing unit 140 senses the current state of the electronic device 100, such as the open / close state of the electronic device 100, the position of the electronic device 100, the presence or absence of user contact, the orientation of the electronic device, And generates a sensing signal for controlling the operation of the electronic device 100. For example, when the electronic device 100 is in the form of a slide phone, it is possible to sense whether the slide phone is opened or closed. In addition, it may be responsible for a sensing function related to 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 an orientation sensor 141 and / or a proximity sensor 142.

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 and outputs information processed by the electronic device 100. [ For example, when the electronic device is in the call mode, a UI (User Interface) or a GUI (Graphic User Interface) associated with the call is displayed. When the electronic device 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, a thin film transistor liquid crystal display, an organic light emitting diode, a flexible display, a 3D display And may include at least one.

Some of these displays may be transparent or light transmissive so that they can be seen through. This may be referred to as a transparent display. A typical example of the transparent display is a transparent LCD or 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 electronic device 100. [ For example, in the electronic device 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. Or the display unit 151 may be logically divided into two or more areas.

The display unit 151 is connected to a display unit 151 and a sensor for sensing a touch operation (hereinafter, referred to as 'touch sensor') having 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.

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 142 may be disposed in an inner area of the electronic device to be wrapped by the touch screen or in the vicinity of the touch screen. The proximity sensor 142 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 an electromagnetic force or infrared rays. The proximity sensor 142 has a longer life span than the contact-type sensor and its utilization is also high.

Examples of the proximity sensor 142 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. However, in the case where it is not necessary to separately describe the touch by the proximity touch and the contact touch, the term 'touch' or 'touch input' includes both input by proximity touch and input by touch.

The proximity sensor 142 senses proximity touch and proximity touch patterns (e.g., proximity touch distance, proximity touch direction, proximity touch speed, proximity touch time, proximity touch position, 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 unit 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 outputs sound signals associated with functions (e.g., call signal reception tones, message reception tones, etc.) performed in the electronic device 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 electronic device 100. Examples of events that occur in electronic devices 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 can also be output through the display unit 151 or the audio output module 152.

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 be configured to perform various functions such as an effect of stimulation by a pin arrangement vertically moving with respect to a contact skin surface, an effect of stimulation by air spraying force or suction force through a jet opening or a suction opening, A variety of tactile effects such as an effect of stimulation through contact of an electrode, an effect of stimulation by an electrostatic force, and an effect of reproducing a cold sensation using a heat absorbing 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 feel the tactile effect through the muscles of the user's 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 unit 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 unit 160 may store data related to vibration and sound of various patterns outputted when a touch is input on the touch screen.

The memory unit 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) At least one of a random access memory (RAM), a static random access memory (SRAM), a read only memory (ROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a programmable read- Lt; / RTI &gt; type of storage medium. The electronic device 100 may operate in association with a web storage that performs a storage function of the memory unit 160 on the Internet.

The interface unit 170 serves as a path for communication with all external devices connected to the electronic device 100. The interface unit 170 receives data from an external device or receives power from the external device to transfer the data to the respective components in the electronic device 100 or to transmit data in the electronic device 100 to an 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 usage right of the electronic device 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 electronic device 100 is connected to an external cradle, the interface unit may be a path through which electric power from the cradle is supplied to the electronic device 100 or various command signals input from the cradle by the user It can be a passage to the device. Various command signals input from the cradle or the power source may be operated as a signal for recognizing that the electronic device is correctly mounted on the cradle.

The control unit 180 typically controls the overall operation of the electronic device. 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 processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, and electrical units for performing functions. In some cases such embodiments may be implemented using a controller 180 &lt; / RTI &gt;

According to a software implementation, embodiments such as procedures or functions may be implemented with separate software modules that perform at least one function or operation. The software code may be implemented by a software application written in a suitable programming language. Also, the software codes may be stored in the memory unit 160 and executed by the control unit 180. [

< Flexible  Display>

Hereinafter, an electronic apparatus 100 to which a flexible display and a flexible display applicable to the electronic apparatus 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5. FIG. Hereinafter, the electronic device 100 to which the flexible display is applied is described, but the control method of the electronic device according to the present invention is not necessarily applied to the electronic device having the flexible display. Hereinafter, a case where a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention is applied to the electronic device 100 to which the flexible display is applied is described in more detail. The scope of the present invention is applied only to an electronic device adopting a flexible display It is clear that this is not the case.

The electronic apparatus 100 according to the present invention may include a display unit 151 implemented by a flexible display, as described above.

A flexible display is a display device that is flexible and flexible or foldable. In other words, a flexible display is a display device that is lightweight and does not break by being formed on a thin and flexible substrate that can be bent, bent, or bent like a paper while maintaining the display characteristics of a conventional flat panel display. Also called display.

Such a flexible display can be realized through thin film transistor liquid crystal (TFT) LCD, organic LED (OLED), electrophoretic, and LITI (Laser Induced Thermal Image) technology.

On the other hand, electronic paper may be used as a flexible display. Electronic paper is a display device to which general ink and paper features are applied and is also referred to as e-paper. Unlike traditional flat panel displays that apply backlighting to pixels, electronic paper uses reflected light like ordinary paper, and once an image and / or text is formed it can maintain the shape of the image and / or text formed without additional power supply.

When the flexible display is applied to a mobile terminal due to its light and non-breakable characteristics, the flexible display can provide various forms and functions to the mobile terminal by its shape and arrangement freedom.

2 is a view for explaining the appearance of an electronic apparatus having a flexible display in connection with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a simplified illustration of a form in which a mobile terminal is equipped with a flexible display, and other components that may be additionally provided to a mobile terminal for the sake of intuitive understanding are omitted.

2 shows an example of an electronic apparatus having a flexible display according to embodiments of the present invention.

The electronic apparatus 100 shown in Fig. 2 has two bodies B1 and B2. The two bodies B1 and B2 may be made of a rigid material and may not be flexible.

A display unit 151 implemented as a flexible display may be provided on one side of the two bodies B1 and B2. The two bodies B1 and B2 may be physically separated from each other by a different flexible display, but preferably one flexible display unit 151 may be disposed.

The two bodies B1 and B2 are connected to each other by a hinge H and one of the two bodies B1 and B2 is connected to the other body with the hinge H as a rotation axis And may be rotatably coupled. That is, the two bodies B1 and B2 may be coupled by a folder type.

2 (a) shows a state in which the two bodies B1 and B2 are fully extended. Hereinafter, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), the two bodies B1 and B2 are fully extended Quot; flat state &quot;.

2B shows a state in which one of the two bodies B2 and B2 slightly rotates to slightly bend. FIG. 2C shows a state in which the two bodies B1, B2 are completely folded. Hereinafter, as shown in FIGS. 2 (b) and 2 (c), a state in which the two bodies B1 and B2 are bent and coupled to each other is referred to as a 'bending state' . However, for convenience of explanation, as shown in FIG. 2C, the state in which the two bodies B1 and B2 are completely folded may be called 'folded state'.

As the two bodies B1 and B2 are changed from a flat state to a bending state, the flexible display 151 may be bent together.

Hereinafter, the term "flat state" or "bending state" may be used for the display unit 151 in accordance with the criteria described above, depending on whether the display unit 151 is fully extended or bent. For example, in the case of FIG. 2 (a), 'the state of the display unit 151 is flat' or 'the display unit 151 is in a flat state' The state of the display unit 151 is in the bending state, or the display unit 151 is in the bending state, as shown in (b) or (c) of FIG.

2, there is shown a case where two bodies are coupled to each other so as to be rotatable with respect to each other. However, the electronic apparatus 100 does not necessarily have to be composed of two bodies, . At this time, one body may be coupled to other bodies adjacent to each other such that they can rotate with respect to each other.

3 is a diagram for explaining another appearance of an electronic apparatus having a flexible display in connection with some embodiments of the present invention.

2, the first body B1 and the second body B2, which are made of a rigid material, are connected by the hinge portion H. However, 3, the third body B3 may be made of a flexible material as in the case of the flexible display, unlike the appearance of the electronic apparatus shown in FIG.

In such a case, in the case of the flexible display shown in FIG. 2, the folding position of the flexible display can not be changed by the rotation of the rigid first body B1 and the second body B2, the degree of freedom for the flexing operation can be greatly increased.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3 (b), the flexible display may be bent based on the Y-axis of the rectangular coordinate system that can be set on the display surface of the electronic device 100 so that the shape of the flexible display 3 (c), the shape of the flexible display may be modified by bending the flexible display based on the X-axis of the rectangular coordinate system that can be set on the display surface of the electronic device 100 .

For another example, for both the flexing of the type shown in FIG. 3 (b) or for the flexing of the type shown in FIG. 3 (c) , The position to be bent may not be fixed.

In another example, the display of the electronic device 100 may be bent in such a manner that only the right-upper corner portion of the electronic device 100 shown in FIG. 3 (a) is partially flexed.

Unless otherwise specified, in order to illustrate the preferred embodiments of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3, a flexible third body B3 is coupled to a flexible display I will explain the device as an example. However, this is for the convenience of description of the present invention, meaning that the appearance of the electronic device 100 to which the present invention is applied does not apply to the electronic device 100 having an appearance as shown in FIG. 2 no.

4 is a cross-sectional view showing a section taken along line I-I 'of the electronic device shown in FIG. 2 (a). The thicknesses of the layers of each of the bodies B1 and B2 and the display portion 151 shown in Fig. 4 are exaggerated so that each layer may be thicker or thinner than shown, The relative thickness may also be different from that shown. In other words, although the thickness of the display unit 151 is shown to be thinner than the thicknesses of the bodies B1 and B2, the thickness of each of the bodies B1 and B2 is thinner than the thickness of the display unit 151 .

The electronic apparatus 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention is configured such that when viewed in the direction V shown in Fig. 4, each of the bodies B1 and B2, as shown in Fig. 4 (a) And the area of the display unit 151 are arranged to be equal to each other. Alternatively, the electronic apparatus 100 may be configured such that the areas of the bodies B1 and B2 are larger than the area of the display unit 151, as shown in FIGS. 4 (b) and 4 (c) .

On the other hand, in the electronic device 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 4 (b), the edge portion of each of the bodies B1 and B2 is provided with the display portion 151 As shown in FIG. 4 (c), the edge portion may further extend in the horizontal direction so as to cover one side of the display portion 151. In addition, as shown in FIG.

Although not shown in the figure, other components may be further interposed between the bodies B1 and B2 and the display unit 151. Further, other components may be provided on the display unit 151, Lt; / RTI &gt; Further, other components may be disposed on the lower surfaces of the bodies B1 and B2. However, since these components are not directly related to the description of the present invention, a detailed description will be omitted.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing a section taken along line J-J 'of the electronic device shown in FIG. 3 (a). The thicknesses of the layers of the third body B3 and the display portion 151 shown in Fig. 5 are exaggerated so that each layer may be thicker or thinner than shown, and the relative thickness of each layer May be different from those shown. In other words, the thickness of the display unit 151 is shown to be thinner than the thickness of the third body B3, but the thickness of the third body B3 may be made thinner than the thickness of the display unit 151. [

The electronic apparatus 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention is configured such that when viewed in the direction V shown in Fig. 5, each of the bodies B1 and B2, as shown in Fig. 5 (a) And the area of the display unit 151 are arranged to be equal to each other. Alternatively, the electronic apparatus 100 may be configured such that the area of the third body B3 is larger than the area of the display unit 151, as shown in FIGS. 5 (b) and 5 (c) .

On the other hand, in the electronic device 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention, as shown in Fig. 5B, the edge portion of the third body B3 can be projected more widely than the display portion 151 5 (c), the edge portion may be further extended in the horizontal direction so as to cover one side of the display portion 151. In addition, as shown in FIG.

Although not shown in the drawing, other components may be further interposed between the third body B3 and the display unit 151, and further, other components may be mounted on the display unit 151 . Further, other components may be disposed on the lower surface of the third body B3. However, since these components are not directly related to the description of the present invention, a detailed description will be omitted.

4 and 5 illustrate a grip portion (GP), which is an area in which the user mainly holds the electronic device 100. In this case, Hereinafter, the grip area GP will be described as indicating the area indicated by the dotted line exemplified in Figs. 4 and 5. Fig. For example, when the electronic device 100 is flexed as shown in FIG. 3 (c), the grip area GP may not be limited to the grip area GP, It should be noted that the electronic device 100 may be an upper side and a lower side.

The electronic apparatus 100 shown in FIGS. 2 to 5 is shown as being arranged so that the first to third bodies B1, B2, and B3 are overlapped with the entire area of the display unit 151, 1 to the third bodies B1, B2, and B3 may be disposed to overlap with a partial area of the display unit 151. [ For example, a rigid body may be provided only at the position of the grip area GP shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, and a rigid body may not be provided at the central area of the display part 151 .

Meanwhile, the electronic device 100 can sense the state of the display unit 151 as described above. To this end, the electronic device 100 is provided with a sensor for detecting whether the display unit 151 is folded (bent state) or spread (flat state) (hereinafter, referred to as 'bending') . Further, the sensor may sense the folding position of the display unit 151 (hereinafter, referred to as a 'bending position'), and may also detect how much the display unit 151 is folded Quot; degree &quot;).

At this time, a sensor for detecting whether the flexible display 151 is bent may be provided in the flexible display. The sensors may be arranged in one or more numbers. If there are more than two such sensors, the sensors may be spaced apart from one another on at least one edge of the flexible display.

Meanwhile, a sensor for detecting whether the flexible display 151 is bent may be provided in the first body B1 to the third body B3.

Hereinafter, the sensor for detecting whether or not the flexible display is bent will be referred to as " bending sensor " The present invention is not limited to the method and the form of implementation of the bending sensor, but it is preferable that the bending degree and / or the bending position of the flexible display can be detected by the controller 180 with an electric signal.

< Force direction The sensor unit >

Hereinafter, the force direction sensor unit 131 that can be applied to the electronic apparatus 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

The force direction referred to in the present invention refers to the direction of the shear force acting on the touch surface which can not be detected by the conventional touch sensor, And includes forces in a parallel direction. That is, the force direction sensor unit 131 may detect the shear force generated on the touch surface by the touch and / or the touch when the external object touches and / or contacts.

The force direction sensor unit 131 according to the present invention may include a sensor array (SA) composed of a unit sensor for sensing the force direction.

For example, the force direction sensor unit 131 arranges the sensor arrays SA in an area in which the force direction is to be sensed, so that when a touch and / or contact is made with respect to an area where the sensor array SA is disposed , The force direction of the touch and / or contact can be sensed.

That is, the sensor array SA may be disposed in an area where a force direction of a touch and / or a contact is to be sensed. For example, when the electronic device 100 includes a touch screen, The sensor array SA may be used to operate the display 151 area of the electronic device 100. That is, The electronic device 100 can receive information on the touch input that can be obtained from the touch screen and information on the touch input obtained from the force direction sensor unit 131 which is an aggregate of the sensor array SA And the force direction information may be combined together so as to be usefully used for the operation of the electronic device 100. [

Alternatively, by arranging the sensor array SA in the first through third bodies B1, B2, and B3 of the electronic device 100, the first through third bodies B1, B2, B3 of the electronic device 100 may be sensed and sensed information may be usefully used in the operation of the electronic device 100. [

Particularly, when the control method of the electronic device according to the present invention is applied to the electronic device 100 having a flexible display, the grip area (GP, see Figs. 4 and 5) (SA) &lt; / RTI &gt; At this time, the sensor array SA may be provided in the touch screen area of the grip area GP, or the first through third bodies B1, B2, B3 included in the grip area GP ). &Lt; / RTI &gt; However, even when applied to the electronic device 100 having a flexible display, it is obvious that the sensor array SA is not necessarily provided only in the grip area GP.

The force direction sensor unit 131 detects various information related to a touch and / or a touch operation with respect to a force direction detecting area (FDDA) determined by a region provided with the sensor array SA . For example, the force direction sensor unit 131 may determine whether or not the external object touches the force direction sensing area, the contact position, and the force intensity at the time of contact (that is, the force intensity And the direction of the force (i. E., The force direction of the touch and / or contact).

Each of the sensors of the sensor array SA included in the force direction sensor unit 131 senses at least one of the contact of the external object with respect to the sensor, the contact position, the strength of the force at the time of contact, can do.

The information corresponding to at least one of contact, contact, contact force, and force direction with respect to one point of the touch region detected by the force direction sensor unit 131 may be transmitted to the controller 180 and / May be transmitted to a separately provided touch event processing module (not shown).

The control unit 180 and / or the touch event processing module may be configured to set a contact area having a predetermined area with respect to a point at which a touch and / or a touch is sensed in the force direction sensing area, It is possible to determine the direction of the force applied to the point by comparing the strength of a point (for example, a point where each unit sensor constituting the sensor array SA is disposed). The force direction determination by the touch event processing module may be performed as illustrated in FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process of detecting a direction of a force using the strength of a force according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, the controller 180 and / or the touch event processing module can determine the direction of the force according to the intensity distribution of the force detected at a plurality of sensing points included in the contact area TA. , The direction of the sensing point at which the intensity of the greatest force is detected with respect to the center O of the touch area TA can be determined as the direction of the force.

For example, when the touch and / or contact of the external object OB with respect to one point of the force direction sensing area FDDA is made, the surface of the force direction sensing area FDDA and the external object OB contact with each other A contact area TA having a predetermined area based on one point can be set or extracted. The contact area TA may be set to a range of a predetermined area based on a specific coordinate (for example, a center coordinate) of the one point, A number of adjacent sensing points sensing contact can be connected and set.

Then, the strengths F1 to F5 of the force detected at a plurality of sensing points of the set or extracted contact area TA are detected. A further strength of the force can be detected at a sensing point in the direction in which the user exerts a force on the contact area TA.

Therefore, the electronic device 100 according to the present invention is configured such that the direction of the sensing point having the strongest strength among the plurality of sensing points from the center point of the contact area TA is defined as a force Direction (FD).

Therefore, when the force direction sensor unit 131 is used, when the touch and / or contact of the external object OB with respect to the force direction sensing area FDDA occurs, And / or the position of the contact, as well as the state in which the shear force is applied in the touch and / or contact position.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention will be described using the electronic device 100 described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. Fig.

Hereinafter, for convenience of description, embodiments of a method of controlling an electronic device according to the present invention will be described using the electronic device 100 described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. As a result, Is not limited to the electronic apparatus 100 described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. That is, the control method of the electronic device according to the present invention may be applied to an electronic device that does not include at least a part of the components of the electronic device 100 described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. Conversely, The control method of the electronic device according to the present invention may be applied to an electronic device having more components than the components of the device 100. [

In addition, in the various embodiments of the control method of the electronic device according to the present invention, the method of sensing the force direction may be an electronic device sensing the force direction in a different manner than the method described with reference to FIG. 6, The control method of the apparatus may be applied. That is, with respect to the electronic device employing the sensor capable of sensing the force direction of the touch and / or contact by a method other than the method of sensing the shear force with respect to the touch surface described with reference to FIG. 6, The control method of the electronic device by the method of FIG.

<Control Method of Electronic Device>

1. Method of providing user interface # 1 - Selection of divided screen

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining a control method of an electronic apparatus according to the present invention, and FIGS. 8 to 14 are views for explaining a control method of an electronic apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, a method of controlling an electronic device according to the present invention includes displaying a first screen on a display 151 (S100), dividing the display 151 logically into two or more areas (S120) of detecting a force direction of a first contact related to the occurrence of the predetermined event (S120), detecting the occurrence of an event (S130) of selecting one area of the selected area, and displaying the first screen in the selected area (S140).

Hereinafter, each step will be described in more detail with reference to Figs. 8 to 14. Fig.

The control unit 180 may display the first screen SC1 on the display 151 as shown in FIG. 8 (S100). The first screen SC1 may be a screen selected according to a user input and / or an event occurring in the electronic device 100. [ For example, FIG. 8 shows, in particular, that the electronic device 100 displays the mail message screen SC1 via the display 151 via the mail application.

Then, the control unit 180 may detect occurrence of a predetermined event for logically dividing the display 151 into two or more areas (S110).

The predetermined event may be variously set in the electronic device 100. [

For example, referring to FIG. 9A, the electronic device 100 may set an action to be flexed on the display 151 of the electronic device 100 as the predetermined event have. In particular, if the controller 180 senses the flexing state of the display 151 and, along the line of the central portion of the display 151, determines that the display 151 is flexed as if it were folded in half, It can be determined that the predetermined event has occurred.

9 (b), the electronic device 100 may include a first touch point TP1 and a second touch point TP2 sensed by both hands gripping the electronic device 100, A leftward shearing force LF is sensed for the first touch point TP1 and a shearing force RF directed toward the right is detected for the second touch point TP2 And may be set to the predetermined event. That is, when the position of the first touch point TP1 is at the first position and the second touch point TP2 is at the second position, the force direction with respect to the first touch point TP1 is at the first position And when the force direction with respect to the second touch point TP2 is acting in a direction opposite to the direction from the second position toward the first direction, The electronic device 100 may determine that the predetermined event has occurred.

Although not shown in the drawing, the electronic device 100 may set an operation of a separate hardware key / soft key separately provided in the electronic device 100 as the predetermined event, in addition to the two examples described above In addition, various types of operations may be set as the predetermined events.

When the electronic device 100 senses a predetermined event to logically divide the display into two or more regions, the control unit 180 determines the force direction of the first contact associated with the occurrence of the predetermined event Can be detected.

The control unit 180 can determine whether or not the first contact is associated with the occurrence of the predetermined event.

The manner in which the control unit 180 determines whether or not the first contact is associated with the occurrence of a predetermined event may vary.

For example, when the first contact is generated within a predetermined time from when the predetermined event is detected, the controller 180 may determine that the first contact is related to the predetermined event .

At this time, if the contact does not occur within the predetermined time that has been set after the predetermined event is generated, and the contact occurs after a predetermined time has elapsed, the control unit (180) It is determined that the event is irrelevant, and the contact can be ignored.

For example, if the first contact has occurred before the time when the predetermined event is detected and the force direction of the first contact is changed within a predetermined time after the predetermined event is generated, the controller 180 May determine that the first contact is associated with the predetermined event. That is, when the predetermined event is set to 'flexing operation' as shown in FIG. 9 (a), the user can grip the display 151 for the flexing operation, Although the first contact (e.g., the contact generated by the user's thumb) with respect to the display 151 occurred prior to the flexing operation, after performing the flexing operation, a predetermined time (e.g., , The control unit 180 determines that the first contact is associated with the predetermined event (i.e., when the force direction is changed from the vertical direction to the right (or leftward) with respect to the contact point generated by the grip within a predetermined period It can be judged.

At this time, if a contact occurs within a predetermined time without changing the force direction of the first contact within the predetermined time that has been set after a predetermined event has been generated, the control unit (180) It is determined that the event is irrelevant to the predetermined event, and the contact can be ignored.

In addition, the control unit 180 may determine, according to various methods, whether the first contact is associated with the predetermined event.

On the other hand, at this time, the first contact does not necessarily have to be one, and there may be more than one first contact judged to be related to the predetermined event.

Then, the control unit 180 can sense the force direction of the first contact through the force direction sensor unit 131. Since the method of sensing the force direction through the force direction sensor unit 131 has been described above, a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

Then, the controller 180 may determine one of the two or more regions according to the sensed force direction (S130).

Hereinafter, a method of determining one of the divided screens of the display 151 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. FIG. In the example described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, the display 151 is divided into two regions R1 and R2 by step S110. For convenience of explanation, after the display 151 is divided, a region located on the left side in the longitudinal direction (horizontal direction) of the display 151 is referred to as a first region R1, and a region located on the right side is referred to as a second region (R2).

10 (a) shows a case in which the force direction of the first contact TP3 with respect to the first region R1 is the first direction D1. At this time, the controller 180 controls the first area R1 and the second area R2, which are located in the first direction D1, based on the center of the display 151, ) Can be selected. That is, the controller 180 controls the first region R1 positioned on the force direction D1 side of the regions R1 and R2 in consideration of the force direction D1 of the first contact TP3 You can choose.

10B shows a case where the force direction of the first contact TP3 with respect to the second region R2 is the first direction D1. 10 (a), the control unit 180 determines the force (force) of the first contact TP3 in consideration of the force direction D1 of the first contact TP3, It is possible to select the first area R1 positioned on the direction D1 side.

10C shows that the first contact TP3 to the first region R1 and the force direction of the first contact TP4 to the second region R2 are both in the first direction D1 FIG. 10 (a), the control unit 180 determines the force (force) of the first contact TP3 in consideration of the force direction D1 of the first contact TP3, It is possible to select the first area R1 positioned on the direction D1 side.

That is, the control unit 180 can sense the force direction of the first contact and select the region facing the sensed force direction, irrespective of the contact position of the first contact and / or the number of the first contacts. 10 (c), the force direction of the first contact TP3 with respect to the first region R1 and the force direction of the first contact TP4 with respect to the second region R2 are different from each other The control unit 180 may not select any one of the first and second areas R1 and R2 in step S130.

11, the force direction of the first contacts TP3 and TP4 is the second direction D2. Unlike the case of FIG. 10, the force direction of the first contacts TP3 and TP4 is the second direction D2, The control unit 180 can select the second area R2 located on the second direction D2 side with respect to the center of the display 151 in step S130.

Then, the control unit 180 may display the first screen SC1 in the determined area (S140).

For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the force direction of the first contact is directed to the first direction D1, and a selected one of the two regions R1 and R2 of the display 151 1, the controller 180 may display the first screen SC1 in the selected first area R1 as shown in FIG. 12 (a).

11, the force direction of the first contact is directed to the second direction D2, and a selected one of the two areas R1 and R2 of the display 151 through step S130 In the case of the second area R2, the controller 180 can display the first screen SC1 in the selected second area R2 as shown in FIG. 12 (b).

In performing step S140, when the first screen SC1 displayed in the entire area of the display 151 is displayed in one of the divided areas, the controller 180 displays the first screen SC1, Can be adjusted. That is, the size of the first screen SC1 may be resized according to the size of the determined one area.

10 and 12, it is assumed that the display 151 is divided into two areas R1 and R2. However, when the display 151 is divided into three areas R3 , R4, R5), how the steps S130 and S140 are performed will be further described.

According to some embodiments of the present invention, when the controller 180 detects a predetermined event according to the above-described step S110, the controller 180 controls the display 151 can be logically divided into three regions, i.e., a third region R3 located at the left side, a fourth region R4 located at the center, and a fifth region R5 located at the right side.

13 (b), the control unit 180 controls the direction of the first contact force to be a direction parallel to the plane of the display 151 The force direction can be sensed not only in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2 but also in the third direction D3 which is a direction perpendicular to the surface of the display 151. [

10 and 11, regardless of whether the first contact is located in any one of the three regions R3, R4, and R5, It is possible to select one of the three regions R3, R4 and R5 in consideration of the force direction of the first contact. Further, the control unit 180 may display the first screen SC1 in one selected area.

For example, when the force direction of the first contact is sensed in the first direction D1 shown in FIG. 13B, the control unit 180 controls the display unit 151 based on the center of the display unit 151, It is possible to select the third area R3 located in one direction D1 and to display the first screen SC1 in the third area R3 as shown in Fig. have.

13 (b), the control unit 180 controls the display unit 151 to display the first direction of the first contact on the basis of the center of the display unit 151. For example, when the force direction of the first contact is sensed in the second direction D2 shown in FIG. The fifth area R5 located in the second direction D2 is selected and the first screen SC1 is displayed in the fifth area R5 as shown in Fig. 14 (c) .

13 (b), the control unit 180 controls the display unit 151 to display the first direction of the first contact in the third direction D3, The fourth area R4 may be selected and the first screen SC1 may be displayed in the fourth area R4 as shown in Fig. 14 (b).

2. Method of providing user interface # 2 - Resizing of divided screen

Hereinafter, another control method of an electronic apparatus according to the present invention will be described using the electronic apparatus 100 described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. Fig.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining another embodiment of the method for controlling an electronic device according to the present invention, and FIGS. 16 to 23 are views for explaining another embodiment of a method for controlling an electronic device according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 15, another embodiment of a method of controlling an electronic device according to the present invention includes a step S200 of dividing a display 151 into two or more areas, a step S210 of sensing a force direction of a second contact, And changing the size of at least one of the two or more areas along the force direction (S220).

Hereinafter, with reference to Figs. 16 to 23, each step will be described in more detail.

First, the control unit 180 can logically divide the display 151 into two or more areas (S200).

The display 151 may be divided into two areas, and may be divided into three or more areas.

In dividing the display 151 into two or more areas, the display 151 may be divided into two or more areas in accordance with the control method of the electronic device according to the present invention described with reference to Figs. 7 to 14, The display 151 may be divided into two or more areas.

16 shows an example in which the display 151 is divided into a first area R1 on the left side and a second area R2 on the right side so that different areas (R1 and R2) Screen and an Internet browser screen) are displayed.

20 shows that the display 151 is divided into a third area R3 on the left side, a fifth area R5 on the right side and a fourth area R4 on the center part, and the respective areas R3, R4, (For example, a mail message screen, an internet browser screen, and a music playback application screen) are displayed on the screen of the display device.

Then, the control unit 180 can sense the force direction of the second contact through the force direction sensor unit 131 (S210).

Since the method of sensing the force direction has already been described above in detail, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Then, the control unit 180 may change the size of at least one of the two or more regions according to the detected direction of the force (S220).

In the following, step S220 will be described in more detail.

When the second contact is sensed and the direction of the force of the second contact is sensed, the control unit 180 determines a boundary line between the respective areas according to the force direction BL1 and BL2, BL3 in Fig. 20) can be moved. As the boundary line moves along the force direction, the size of at least one of the areas can be changed.

For example, referring to FIG. 17, when the display 151 is divided into two regions R1 and R2 as shown in FIG. 16, a second contact TP5 is formed with respect to the first region R1 17 (a), when the force direction of the second contact TP5 is the first direction D1, the boundary line BL1 shown in FIG. 16 corresponds to the first As shown in Fig. 17 (b), the force direction of the second contact TP5 can be moved to the position BL1 'that is moved by the predetermined moving distance MS in the direction D1, In the case of the two directions D2, the boundary line BL1 shown in FIG. 16 can move to the position BL1 "shifted by the predetermined moving distance MS in the second direction D2.

18, the display 151 is divided into two regions R1 and R2, and a second contact TP6 is formed with respect to the second region R2, as shown in Fig. 16. In other words, 18 (a), when the direction of force of the second contact TP6 is the first direction D1, the boundary line BL1 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 18 (b), the force direction of the second contact TP6 may be shifted to the position BL1 'shifted by the predetermined shift distance MS in one direction D1, In the second direction D2, the boundary line BL1 shown in FIG. 16 can move to the position BL1 "shifted by the predetermined moving distance MS in the second direction D2.

In addition, when the control unit 180 moves the position of the boundary line, the control unit 180 may determine the position moving distance of the boundary line and the moving speed of the boundary line, considering the following factors.

For example, referring to FIG. 19, the control unit 180 determines whether or not the touch direction in which the force direction of the second contact is held in a specific direction (for example, the first direction D1 or the second direction D2) The position shift distance MS of the boundary line can be determined in proportion to the length of the touch time TT by sensing the time TT. That is, when the touch time TT, in which the force direction of the second contact is maintained in the first direction D1, is longer, the boundary line can move more.

19, the controller 180 may sense the force intensity of the second contact and determine the moving speed of the boundary line in proportion to the force intensity. That is, if the force intensity of the second contact is larger, the boundary line can move faster.

On the other hand, when the size of at least one area is adjusted by moving the position of the boundary line in consideration of the force direction of the second contact, the control unit 180 needs to select a boundary line to adjust the position.

In other words, when the display 151 is divided into two areas, since the number of the boundary lines is one, there is no need to select a boundary line for adjusting the position, 20, since the number of the boundary lines is two, it is possible to determine whether to adjust the position of the boundary line between the two boundary lines BL2 and BL3 There is a need to choose.

For this, the control unit 180 may determine the boundary line that is closer to the position of the second contact, as a 'boundary line for adjusting the position', in consideration of the position of the second contact.

For example, referring to FIG. 21, it is shown that the second contact TP5 is made in the third region R3, and at this time, the position of the second contact TP5, Is the second boundary line BL2. Accordingly, it can be seen that the boundary line where the second contact TP5 is moved is the second boundary line BL2, and the position of the third boundary line BL3 is not changed. At this time, the moving direction, moving speed, moving distance, etc. of the second boundary line BL2 may be determined similar to the above.

22, it is shown that the second contact TP6 is made in the fifth region R5, at which time the boundary line TP6 is moved by the second contact TP6, May be a third boundary line BL3 which is closer to the position of the second contact TP6. At this time, the position of the second boundary line BL2 may not be changed. On the other hand, the determination of the moving direction, moving speed, moving distance and the like of the third boundary line BL3 may be made similar to the above.

On the other hand, referring to FIG. 23, it is shown that the second contact is made at two positions TP5 and TP6, in which case it is closer to one position TP5 of the second contact The third boundary line BL3, which is closer to the second boundary line BL2 and the other position TP6 of the second contact, may all be determined as a boundary line for adjusting the position.

At this time, the control unit 180 may individually detect the force intensity, the force direction, the touch time, and the like with respect to each second contact, and accordingly, the second boundary line BL2 and the third boundary line BL3 may be independently controlled.

3. How to provide the user interface # 3 - Select the screen to be integrated

Hereinafter, another control method of the electronic apparatus according to the present invention will be described using the electronic apparatus 100 described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6. Fig.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart for explaining another embodiment of a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention, and FIGS. 25 to 29 are views for explaining another embodiment of a control method of an electronic device according to the present invention .

Referring to FIG. 24, another embodiment of a method of controlling an electronic device according to the present invention includes displaying two or more screens SC1 and SC2 on a display 151 divided into two or more areas R1 and R2 (S310) of selecting one of the two or more screens (SC1, SC2) according to a first force direction of the third contact (S310). According to the second force direction of the fourth contact, (S320) of determining whether to continue to display the selected one screen (S320), and controlling the display state of the display (151) according to the determination (S330).

Hereinafter, with reference to Figs. 25 to 29, each step will be described in more detail.

First, for convenience of explanation, the display 151 is logically divided into two areas R1 and R2.

The control unit 180 controls the display 151 of the electronic device 100 to be divided into two or more regions R1 and R2 in a state where the display 151 is logically divided into two or more regions R1 and R2, , The first screen SC1 and the second screen SC2 can be displayed (S300), respectively. For example, a first screen SC1 displaying a mail message is displayed in the first area R1, and a second screen SC2 displaying an Internet browser is displayed in the second area R2 Can be.

At this time, the controller 180 can select one screen of the two or more screens SC1 and SC2 according to the third contact having the first force direction (S310), and the second force direction (Step S320), and may determine whether to continue the display of the selected one screen according to the second force direction.

Steps S310 and S320 will be described in more detail.

The control unit 180 detects a third contact having a first force direction with respect to any one of the first region R1 and the second region R2 through the force direction sensor unit 131 .

The first force direction may be a third direction D3 which is a direction perpendicular to the display 151. [ That is, when the contact having the third direction D3 is detected, the controller 180 can recognize the contact as the third contact.

26 (a) shows that the third contact TP7 is formed in the first region R1, and FIG. 26 (b) shows that the third contact TP7 And is formed in the second region R2.

The control unit 180 can select one of the first screen SC1 and the second screen SC2 according to the position of the third contact TP7. 26 (a), when the third contact TP7 is made in the first area R1 displaying the first screen SC1, It is possible to select the first screen SC1 displayed in the first area R1 as shown in Fig. 26 (b), while the second area SC2 displaying the second screen SC2 can be selected The control unit 180 can select the second screen SC2 displayed in the second area R2 when the third contact TP7 is made in the second area R2.

Then, the control unit 180 can sense the fourth contact having the second force direction.

26A shows that the fourth contact TP8 is made in the second region R2 and the force direction of the fourth contact TP8 is in the second direction D2 ). &Lt; / RTI &gt; 26 (b) shows another example in which the fourth contact TP8 is formed in the first region R1 and the force direction of the fourth contact TP8 is the first direction D1 Respectively.

The control unit 180 may determine whether to maintain the display of one screen selected through step S310 according to the second force direction of the fourth contact TP8.

The control unit 180 may consider the position of the selected screen and the second force direction when determining whether to maintain the display of the screen. If the position of the selected screen does not exist in the first direction D1 and is displayed in the second direction D2 on the basis of the selected screen , The selected screen may be selected so that the selected screen is no longer displayed if the second direction of force is a first direction (D1), and the second screen If the force direction is the second direction D2, the selected screen can be selected to be displayed continuously.

For example, referring to FIG. 26 (a), the screen selected in step S310 is the first screen SC1 displayed in the first area R1, as described above. At this time, 4 contact TP8 has a second force direction toward the second direction D2, the controller 180 may select to continue displaying the first screen SC1.

26 (b), the screen selected in step S310 is the second screen SC2 displayed in the second area R2 according to the above description. At this time, If the fourth contact TP8 has a second force direction toward the first direction D1, the control unit 180 may select to continue displaying the second screen SC2.

Then, the control unit 180 may control the display state of the display 151 according to the determination of step S320 (S330). According to the control method of the electronic device according to another embodiment of the present invention, when the control unit 180 determines to maintain the display of the selected one screen in accordance with the selection and determination of step S310 and step S320, It is possible to maintain the display of the other one screen which is not selected when it is determined not to hold the display of the selected one screen on the contrary.

For example, referring to FIG. 26 (a), as described above, the control unit 180 determines to continue the display of the first screen SC1 by selecting the first screen SC1 At this time, the control unit 180 may not keep the display of the second screen SC2 which is not selected. 27 (a), the controller 180 can display the first screen SC1 in the entire area of the display 151, and the second screen SC2 ) Can be controlled so that they are no longer displayed.

For example, referring to FIG. 26 (b), as described above, the control unit 180 selects the second screen SC2 and continues to display the second screen SC2 At this time, the control unit 180 may not keep the display of the first screen SC1 that is not selected. 27 (b), the controller 180 can display the second screen SC2 in the entire area of the display 151, and can also display the first screen SC1 ) Can be controlled so that they are no longer displayed.

For example, when the first screen SC1 is selected and the force direction of the fourth contact TP8 is directed to the first direction D1, although not shown in the drawings, The control unit 180 can determine to hold the display of the second screen SC2 without maintaining the display of the first screen SC1 in this case, The second screen SC2 can be displayed in the entire area of the second screen SC2.

For example, if the second screen SC2 is selected and the force direction of the fourth contact TP8 is directed to the second direction D2 although not shown in the figure, The control unit 180 can determine that the display of the first screen SC1 is held without holding the display of the first screen SC2, The first screen SC1 can be displayed in the entire area of the first screen SC1.

26 shows an example in which the third contact TP7 and the fourth contact TP7 are in different contact positions. However, as shown in FIG. 28, And the fourth contact TP8 may have the same contact positions. 28 (a) shows the case where the third contact TP7 is located in the second region R2. In this case, the fourth contact TP8 is still in the second region R2 ).

In the case shown in Fig. 28, on the screen selected by the third contact TP7, whether to hold the display is selected depending on the force direction of the fourth contact TP8.

For example, when the third contact TP7 is made as shown in Fig. 28 (a), the control unit 180 selects the second screen SC2, and then, as shown in Fig. 28 (b) 27A, when the force direction of the fourth contact TP8 is directed to the second direction D2 as shown in FIG. 27A, the control unit 180 displays the first screen SC1 on the display The second screen SC2 can be extended to the entire area of the display 151 and can be continuously displayed, and the display 151 can be controlled so that the second screen SC2 is no longer displayed.

28 (c), when the force direction of the fourth contact TP8 is directed to the first direction D1, the control unit 180 determines that the force The second screen SC2 can be extended to the entire area of the display 151 and continuously displayed and the display 151 can be controlled so that the first screen SC1 is no longer displayed .

Meanwhile, the display 151 may be logically divided into three or more regions rather than two regions. In such a case, the methods described with reference to FIGS. 25 to 28 may be applied.

29 is a diagram illustrating a case where the display 151 is divided into three areas R3, R4 and R5 and the third screen SC3, the fourth screen SC4 and the fifth screen SC5 are displayed in the respective areas Referring to FIG. 29, a method of displaying a screen in a unified manner when divided into three areas will be briefly described. FIG.

First, the case where the third contact is made in the third region R3 and the force direction of the fourth contact is the first direction D1 will be described. In this case, the controller 180 selects the third screen SC3 displayed in the third area R3. In this case, the controller 180 selects the third screen SC3 displayed on the third area R3, It is possible to decide not to hold the display of the third screen SC3 any longer because there is no displayed screen in one direction D1. Accordingly, the controller 180 can control the display 151 to enlarge and display the fourth screen SC4 to the third area R3. Accordingly, the fourth screen SC4 may be displayed in the third area R3 and the fourth area R4, and still the fifth screen SC5 may be displayed in the fifth area R5. As described with reference to Figs. 24 and 28, it is determined whether or not the display of the fourth screen SC4 and the fifth screen SC5 is maintained, by receiving the third contact and the fourth contact again in this state And display the selected screen according to the determination.

Second, the case where the third contact is made in the third region R3 and the force direction of the fourth contact is the second direction D2 will be described. In this case, the controller 180 selects the third screen SC3 displayed in the third area R3. In this case, the controller 180 selects the third screen SC3 displayed on the third area R3, Since the fourth screen SC4 is displayed in the two directions D2, it can be determined to hold the display of the third screen SC3. Accordingly, the control unit 180 can control the display 151 to enlarge and display the third screen SC3 to the fourth area R4. Accordingly, the third screen SC3 may be displayed in the third area R3 and the fourth area R4, and still the fifth screen SC5 may be displayed in the fifth area R5. Of course, at this time, the controller 180 may again receive the third contact and the fourth contact and control the display state of the display 151 accordingly.

In the above-described method of controlling an electronic device according to the present invention, the steps constituting each embodiment are not essential, and therefore, each embodiment can selectively include the above-described steps. Moreover, each step constituting each embodiment is not necessarily performed according to the order described, and the step described later may be performed before the step described earlier.

Further, the control method of an electronic device according to the present invention can be implemented in the form of a code or a program for performing the control, and the code or the program can be stored in a computer-readable recording medium.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, The present invention is not limited to the drawings. In addition, the embodiments described in this document can be applied to not only the present invention, but also all or some of the embodiments may be selectively combined so that various modifications can be made. Further, the steps constituting each embodiment can be used separately or in combination with the steps constituting the other embodiments.

100: Electronic device
151: Display
131: Force direction sensor unit
B1, B2, B3: Body
GP: grip area
R1, R2, R3, R4, R5:
BL1, BL2, BL3: Boundary line
BL1 ', BL1 ", BL2', BL2", BL3 ', BL3 ": Boundary after movement
D1: the first direction
D2: the second direction
D3: Third direction (vertical direction)
MS: Movement distance (of the boundary line)

Claims (17)

A display that is logically partitioned into two or more areas, said at least two areas including a first area and a second area;
A force direction sensor for detecting a force direction of a contact applied to a point by an external object; And
Acquiring a second force direction of the second contact through the force direction sensor portion,
A controller for controlling the display to change the size of at least one of the two or more areas in consideration of the obtained second force direction and the area subjected to the second contact;
.
The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control unit
And controlling the display such that the first area is enlarged and the second area is reduced when the second contact is obtained from the first area and the obtained second force direction is toward the second area,
Electronics.
The apparatus of claim 1,
And moves the position of at least one boundary line existing between the at least two areas along the second force direction of the second contact.
The apparatus of claim 3,
And moves the position of the at least one boundary line toward the second force direction of the second contact.
The apparatus of claim 3,
And adjusts the distance by which the position of the at least one boundary line is moved in proportion to the touch time at which the second force direction of the second contact is maintained.
The apparatus of claim 3,
And adjusts the speed at which the position of the at least one boundary line is moved in proportion to the force intensity of the second contact.
The apparatus of claim 3,
An electronic controller for selecting a boundary line closest to the position of the second contact in consideration of the position of the second contact and moving the position of the selected one boundary line when the number of the at least one boundary line is plural, device.
A display for displaying two or more screens, respectively, in each of the at least two areas, the at least two areas including a first area and a second area;
A force direction sensor for detecting a force direction of a contact applied to a point by an external object; And
Selecting one of the two or more screens according to the third contact area and the third force direction of the third contact,
Determines whether to maintain the display of the selected one screen in accordance with the fourth contact area and the fourth force direction of the fourth contact,
A control unit for controlling a display state of the display according to the determination;
.
9. The apparatus according to claim 8,
And determines whether to maintain the display of the selected one screen in consideration of the position of the selected one screen and the fourth force direction.
10. The apparatus according to claim 9,
And determines to maintain the display of the selected one screen when another screen is displayed in the fourth force direction based on the position of the selected one screen.
11. The apparatus according to claim 10,
And controls the display so that no other screen in the fourth force direction is displayed based on the position of the selected one screen.
11. The apparatus according to claim 10,
And controls the display to display the selected one screen in an area where the other screen is displayed.
10. The apparatus according to claim 9,
And determines not to maintain the display of the selected one screen when there is no other screen in the fourth force direction based on the position of the selected one screen.
14. The apparatus of claim 13,
And controls the display so that the selected one screen is no longer displayed.
14. The apparatus of claim 13,
And controls the display to display another screen in a direction opposite to the fourth force direction on the basis of the selected one screen, to an area in which the selected one screen is displayed.
9. The method of claim 8,
And the third contact and the fourth contact are formed in one of the two or more regions.
10. The method of claim 9,
And the third contact and the fourth contact are formed in different ones of the two or more regions.

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