KR20130116976A - Mobile terminal and method for controlling thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A mobile terminal and a control thereof are provided to conveniently select at least one external device which is to be connected to the mobile terminal. CONSTITUTION: A wireless communication unit (110) transmits and receives signals to and from the outside through wire or wireless communications. A user input unit (130) receives a command from a user. A control unit (180) adds at least one object to a shared area according to a first command through the user input unit. If an external device is selected which is capable of displaying an image for which is searched through the wireless communication unit, the control unit transmits an image, which corresponds to the object which is included in the shared area, to the selected external device. [Reference numerals] (110) Wireless communication unit; (111) Broadcast receiving module; (112) Mobile communication module; (113) Wireless internet module; (114) Local area communication module; (115) Location information module; (120) A/V input unit; (121) Camera module; (122) Microphone; (130) User input unit; (140) Sensing unit; (141) Proximity sensor; (150) Output unit; (151) Display; (152) Sound output module; (153) Alarm unit; (154) Haptic module; (155) Projector module; (160) Memory; (170) Interface unit; (180) Control unit; (181) Multimedia module; (190) Power supply unit

Description

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

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal, and more particularly, to a mobile terminal and a control method thereof capable of displaying at least some of the contents of the mobile terminal through one or more external digital devices.

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

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

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

Recently, an image sharing function for displaying an image displayed on a mobile terminal through a display device connected to the mobile terminal has been provided. However, the video sharing function is not intuitive to select the device to be shared, and merely displays the entire image displayed on the mobile terminal as it is. Accordingly, there is a demand for a method for more conveniently and intuitively selecting an external device and content to which contents of a mobile terminal key are to be shared.

The present invention provides a mobile terminal and a method of controlling the same, which can more conveniently select at least one external device to be connected to the mobile terminal.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile terminal and a method of controlling the same, which can more conveniently select and edit an image to be shared with at least one external device to be connected to the mobile terminal.

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

A mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention for realizing the above object, the display unit; Communication unit for transmitting and receiving signals to the outside and wired / wireless; A user input unit for receiving a command from a user; And when at least one object is added to the sharing area according to a first command input through the user input unit, and an external device capable of displaying an image searched through the communication unit is selected, at least one object included in the sharing area. The controller may include a controller configured to control a corresponding image to be transmitted to the selected external device through the communication unit.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling a mobile terminal, the method comprising: displaying a sharing area on a display unit; Adding at least one object to the shared area; Selecting an external device capable of displaying an image; And transmitting an image corresponding to at least one object included in the sharing area to the selected external device.

Through a mobile terminal according to at least one embodiment of the present invention configured as described above, a user may more conveniently share desired content through an external device.

In particular, the content to be shared and the external device can be more conveniently selected through the sharing area according to at least one embodiment of the present invention.

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

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a front view of a mobile terminal for explaining an operation state of the mobile terminal according to the present invention.
4 illustrates an example of a connection type between digital devices applicable to embodiments of the present invention.
5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a content sharing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a display state diagram illustrating a method of activating a sharing mode and a form of a sharing area according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a display state diagram illustrating an example of a method of selecting and editing content to be shared using a sharing area in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a display state diagram illustrating an example of a method of displaying an external device capable of executing a sharing function in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a display state diagram illustrating an example in which an external device is selected and content sharing is started in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
10 illustrates an example of a content sharing method using a sharing area called during an application operation in a mobile terminal according to another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention.

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

The mobile terminal described in this specification may include a mobile phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a digital broadcasting terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a PMP (Portable Multimedia Player), and navigation. However, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the configuration according to the embodiments described herein may also be applied to fixed terminals such as digital TVs, desktop computers, etc., except when applicable only to mobile terminals.

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

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

Hereinafter, the components will be described in order.

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

The broadcast receiving module 111 receives a broadcast signal 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, it may exist in the form of Electronic Program Guide (EPG) of Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) or Electronic Service Guide (ESG) of Digital Video Broadcast-Handheld (DVB-H).

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The sensing unit 140 senses the current state of the mobile terminal 100 such as the open / close state of the mobile terminal 100, the position of the mobile terminal 100, the presence or absence of user contact, the orientation of the mobile terminal, And generates a sensing signal for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100. For example, when the mobile terminal 100 is in the form of a slide phone, it may sense whether the slide phone is opened or closed. In addition, whether the power supply unit 190 is supplied with power, whether the interface unit 170 is coupled to the external device may be sensed. Meanwhile, the sensing unit 140 may include a proximity sensor 141.

The output unit 150 is for generating an output relating to visual, auditory or tactile sense and includes a display unit 151, an acoustic output module 152, an alarm unit 153, a haptic module 154, 155, and the like.

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

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

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

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

When the display unit 151 and a sensor for detecting a touch operation (hereinafter, referred to as a touch sensor) form a mutual layer structure (hereinafter referred to as a touch screen), the display unit 151 may be configured in addition to an output device. Can also be used as an input device. The touch sensor may have the form of, for example, a touch film, a touch sheet, a touch pad, or the like.

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

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

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

Examples of the proximity sensor include a transmission photoelectric sensor, a direct reflection photoelectric sensor, a mirror reflection photoelectric sensor, a high frequency oscillation 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 allowing the pointer to be recognized without being in contact with the touch screen so that the pointer is located on the touch screen is referred to as a "proximity touch", and the touch The act of actually touching the pointer on the screen is called "contact touch." The position where the pointer is proximately touched on the touch screen means a position where the pointer is vertically corresponding to the touch screen when the pointer is touched.

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

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

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

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

In addition to vibration, the haptic module 154 may be configured to provide a pin array that vertically moves with respect to the contact skin surface, a jetting force or suction force of air through an injection or inlet port, grazing to the skin surface, contact of an electrode, electrostatic force, and the like. Various tactile effects can be generated, such as effects by the endothermic and the reproduction of a sense of cold using the elements capable of endotherm or heat generation.

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

The projector module 155 is a component for performing an image project function using the mobile terminal 100 and is similar to the image displayed on the display unit 151 in accordance with a control signal of the controller 180 Or at least partly display another image on an external screen or wall.

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

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

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

The memory unit 160 may store a program for processing and controlling the control unit 180 and temporarily store the input / output data (e.g., telephone directory, message, audio, For example. The memory unit 160 may also store the frequency of use of each of the data (for example, each telephone number, each message, and frequency of use for each multimedia). In addition, the memory unit 160 may store data on vibration and sound of various patterns output when the touch is input on the touch screen.

The memory 160 may be a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a multimedia card micro type, a card type memory (for example, SD or XD memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), PROM A disk, and / or an optical disk. The mobile terminal 100 may operate in association with a web storage that performs a storage function of the memory 160 on the Internet.

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

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

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

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

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

The power supply unit 190 receives an external power source and an internal power source under the control of the controller 180 to supply power for operation of each component.

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 include application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and the like. It may be implemented using at least one of processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, and electrical units for performing other functions. The described embodiments may be implemented by the controller 180 itself.

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

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

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

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

The cases may be formed by injecting synthetic resin or may be formed of a metal material, for example, a metal material such as stainless steel (STS) or titanium (Ti).

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

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

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

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

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

The terminal body is equipped with a power supply unit 190 for supplying power to the portable terminal 100. The power supply unit 190 may be embedded in the terminal body or may be directly detachable from the outside of the terminal body.

Hereinafter, the operation of the display unit 151 and the touch pad 135 will be described with reference to FIG. 3.

3 is a front view of a portable terminal for explaining an operation state of the portable terminal according to the present invention.

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

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

3 illustrates inputting of a touch applied to the virtual keypad through the front surface of the terminal body.

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

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

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

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

For convenience of explanation, it is assumed that the mobile terminal referred to below includes at least one of the components shown in FIG. Also, an arrow or a finger-shaped graphic for pointing a specific object on the display unit 151 or selecting a menu on the display unit 151 is called a pointer or a cursor. However, in the case of a pointer, it often means a finger or a stylus pen for a touch operation or the like. Therefore, in this specification, a graphic displayed on the display unit is referred to as a cursor, and a physical means for performing a touch, a proximity touch, and a gesture, such as a finger or a stylus pen, is referred to as a pointer.

Often, an application is used as a concept of software that is separately installed / executed. However, an application referred to in the present invention is a concept of indicating all objects that visually display information in a predetermined area when a specific function is executed. The controller 180 of the mobile terminal according to the present invention can simultaneously control two or more applications, and the executed application includes the display unit 151, other image display means provided on the mobile terminal, and / or the mobile terminal. The screen may be divided on the display unit provided in another external device connected to the display at the same time or only one of them may be displayed in full screen, or one application may be displayed to cover at least part of an area related to another application. In addition, it is assumed that the controller 180 of the mobile terminal 100 according to the present invention can perform a multi-tasking function of simultaneously executing and controlling two or more of the above-described applications.

Control by connecting external devices, and contents  Play / swap

Recently, as the processor of the mobile terminal, i.e., the controller 180, improves dramatically, advanced computation is possible. In addition, the performance of the wireless communication unit 110 has been improved to enable high-speed data communication through various air interfaces. This makes it possible to share data between the mobile terminal and other digital devices with other mobile terminals or display devices, in particular the images / content displayed. Of course, data sharing between the devices may be performed through a wire as well as wireless.

Interoperability technology for content exchange between digital devices is currently being internationally standardized, and one of them is the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA). The DLNA standard proposes various conditions and methods for mutual data exchange between various digital devices. In the embodiments of the present invention, a connection method, a standard, and the like may be supplemented through the DLNA standard document, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and various communication interfaces, for example, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, IEEE1394, universal serial bus, etc. (USB), infrared communication (IrDA), and UPnP (Universal Plug & Play). The content is delivered from the server to the renderer may be a method that delivers the source of the content as it is to play, as well as a method of transmitting a still-cut screenshot by sampling the image in which the content is displayed at a specific period or a predetermined frame It may be in the form of a real-time video streaming. In addition, a shared application for content sharing may be installed in a server and a renderer, respectively, and data exchange may be performed in a form defined in the shared application.

4 illustrates an example of a connection type between digital devices applicable to embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4A, the mobile terminal 100 according to the present invention may be connected to the computer 410 and the television 430 by wire / wireless to perform content / data exchange between them. In this case, one device may serve as a content server for supplying content to the other device, and the content sharing may be performed in a form in which the other device receives the same and displays the corresponding content. In addition, any one device may control a device serving as a content server, and the remaining devices may perform a content display function only. For example, the computer 410 may be a content server, and the mobile terminal 100 may control the computer 410 so that specific content of the computer is displayed through the television 430. In addition, the connection between the devices according to the present invention may be configured such that the content server may also serve as a control function, or a renderer in charge of displaying content may also perform a control function.

In this case, the content sharing method includes a method in which a server device transmits image information (for example, a frame buffer) itself that can be recognized by a display means to a renderer device, and executes an application of a form previously promised on each device. And transmitting and receiving only control data for changing image / audio information output from the renderer device. In addition, if the operating system or platform used for sharing is compatible between devices, transfer the application installation file (for example, an APK file for Android) from one device to another device, and then apply the application to each device. When the installation of the server is completed, the server device or the controller device may transmit a control data only to the renderer device. In addition, in the case of playing multimedia content having a predetermined compression scheme, a codec for decoding may be provided to the renderer device prior to playback. Of course, the multimedia file itself may be transmitted to the renderer device so that the corresponding multimedia file may be played through a playback application held in the renderer device itself.

The connection between the devices may be configured to further include a digital camera 450 and a digital camcorder 470 as shown in FIG.

With shared area Of content  share

In an embodiment of the present invention, in a state in which digital devices including a mobile terminal are connectable, a user can select a connectable device and contents of a mobile terminal to be displayed through the area using a region appearing according to a predetermined condition on the touch screen of the mobile terminal. Thus, a method of sharing the selected content is provided. Here, the content is not limited to any kind as long as an image (eg, a user interface provided by an operating system, an application execution screen, a video playback screen, etc.) and / or sound that can be displayed on the mobile terminal. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the mobile terminal performs a controller and a content server function, and the external device performs a renderer function. In addition, in the present embodiment, it is assumed that the mobile terminal performs all operations for generating an image and delivers only the resultant image to the external device.

First, a content sharing method using the sharing area according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 5. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a content sharing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, first, in response to a user's command input or event generation, the controller 180 may activate a sharing mode for displaying contents of a mobile terminal on an external device (S501). The user's command input includes selection of a menu or icon through the user input unit 130, touch input of a predetermined pattern, manipulation of a specific key button, and the like. In addition, when an event is detected, when a connectable external device is detected, when a connection request is received from a connectable external device, and when a connection according to a predetermined protocol is detected by the interface unit 170 (eg, wired communication). Cable plug detection, etc.);

As the sharing mode is activated, the controller 180 may display the sharing area on the display unit 151, and the user may select content to be shared using the sharing area or edit two or more contents when the content is selected ( S502).

Here, the sharing area is an area displayed as the sharing mode is activated, and the user may specify the content to be shared by including content to be shared in the area through a predetermined command input. A detailed form of the sharing area, a method for including content to be shared, and an editing method will be described below in more detail with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10.

When the selection and / or editing of the content to be shared is completed, the controller 180 displays a list of external devices to share the selected content in a predetermined form. When the external device is selected according to a user's command input, the controller 180 and the content are selected. A data path for sharing can be established (S503).

In this case, the controller 180 may search for an external device after the selection / editing of the sharing target is completed in displaying a list of external devices that can be connected to the mobile terminal, or perform a search in advance when the sharing mode is activated. You can also search for external devices that you can connect to periodically, regardless of sharing mode activation.

When selection / editing of content to be shared and selection of an external device are completed, the controller 180 may include information related to the content to be shared with the selected external device (for example, an execution / playback screen of the content and an application installation file corresponding to the content). , Execution control information, etc.) may be transmitted to start content sharing (S504).

Meanwhile, in FIG. 5, the selection / editing of the sharing target is described as prior to the selection of the shared device. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the selection of the sharing device may be performed or two processes may be performed simultaneously.

Hereinafter, the shape of the shared area, the content selection / editing method, and the selection process of the shared device will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10.

6 is a display state diagram illustrating a method of activating a sharing mode and a form of a sharing area according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 6, it is assumed that a home screen or a main menu including one or more icons is displayed on a touch screen.

First, as the icon 611 corresponding to the execution of the sharing function according to the present embodiment is selected as shown in FIG. 6A, the sharing function is activated and the sharing area 621 as shown in FIG. Can be displayed.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6C, the sharing area may be displayed in a widget form 622 on any page of the home screen. In this case, the sharing area widget 622 may be generated by a general widget adding method determined by the operating system, and the sharing mode may be activated as the content to be shared is added to the sharing area.

Alternatively, as a long touch is input to any one of the icons displayed on the touch screen of FIG. 6D and FIG. 6D, the icon selected as shown in FIG. 6E is movable (612 '). While the long touch is maintained on the icon, a trash can icon 630 for deleting the icon may be displayed at the bottom of the touch screen, and a sharing area 623 may be displayed at the top. If the user drags the icon selected by the user to the sharing area 623 and releases the long touch in this state, the content corresponding to the icon may be identified as the content to be shared and the sharing mode may be activated.

The size and shape of the sharing area described above with reference to FIG. 6 are exemplary, and the sharing area according to the present invention is not limited thereto and may be displayed in more various forms. For example, the sharing area may be displayed in the form of an on-screen display (OSD), may be given a certain transparency, or may be displayed in a space without an object such as an icon or a widget that is pre-arranged. In addition, the sharing area may have the form of the last connected external device (for example, the sharing area may have the form of TV when the device is last connected to the smart TV), and may be connected when connection is not possible at the time of sharing mode activation. It may be changed to another external device.

7 is a display state diagram illustrating an example of a method of selecting and editing content to be shared using a sharing area according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 7, it is assumed that the sharing area 710 is a process after being displayed on the touch screen through any one of the methods described with reference to FIG. 6.

First, referring to FIG. 7A, a preview of selected content is displayed by dragging and dropping an icon 721 corresponding to a content that a user wants to share among icons disposed on a touch screen to the sharing area 710. The screen 711 is displayed in the sharing area 710. Here, the preview screen may include content information such as the name, capacity, content type of the content, or may be an actual execution screen / playback screen of the corresponding content or a thumbnail thereof.

In this case, when the user wants to share one more content, the user may drag the icon 722 corresponding to the content to be shared additionally to the sharing area 710 as shown in FIG. 7B. Accordingly, while the preview screen 712 of newly added content is generated in the sharing area 710, the size of the previously generated preview screen 711 may be automatically adjusted 711 ′. In this case, the automatic adjustment standard may be set to 1: 1 by default, may be set according to a basic screen ratio of content to be shared, or may be set according to a preset priority for each content. The arrangement state of each preview screen in the sharing area may be reflected when the selected contents are actually shared on the external device. That is, the content corresponding to the preview screen occupying a large proportion in the sharing area may be displayed at a large ratio even when displayed on an external device.

When the user wants to change the ratio or arrangement of the automatically adjusted preview screens, for example, to adjust the aspect ratio of the first content to be larger, the left preview screen (c) of FIG. The touch-drag input through the pointer 730 may be inputted to the right side of the right edge 711 ′. Accordingly, the size of the left preview screen may be enlarged (711 ″) and the right preview screen may be reduced (712 ') as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, in the case of content that does not support the sharing function according to the present embodiment due to resolution or compatibility issues, when dragging and dropping an icon corresponding to the content to the sharing area, the icon is popped out of the sharing area and returned to its place. The effect can be displayed. Although not shown, when a plurality of contents are set to be shared through an external device as shown in FIG. 7, after the sharing is started, the display unit of the mobile terminal determines which of the plurality of contents is to be controlled. The user interface for determining can be further displayed. Such a user interface may be provided in various forms. For example, a list of contents that are currently being shared is displayed. When any one of contents is selected from the list, the selected contents are displayed in a full screen or a window form, and control is performed thereon. Command input can be performed. When the user wants to change the control target content, the list may be called again by inputting a predetermined command.

8 is a display state diagram illustrating an example of a method of displaying an external device capable of executing a sharing function in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 8, it is assumed that the mobile terminal searches for a device that can be connected when executing the sharing mode and determines the name, type, distance, and / or direction of each device. The name or type of the connectable device may be obtained in the mobile terminal by requesting and receiving identification information from each device at the time of searching. In addition, the distance and the direction of each device is compared with the coordinates through the positioning module 115, such as GPS, the path loss value of the signal communicated with each device using a wireless communication unit having two or more antennas arranged in a predetermined form It may be detected by a method such as comparing a delay time or a frequency value using the Doppler effect.

First, as shown in (a) of FIG. 8, a list of connectable devices may be displayed by being separated into tabs by distance. Each item constituting the list may include an icon 811 and a text description 821 indicating the type of each device.

Here, the icon indicating the type may be replaced with an indicator 812 indicating a direction in which each device is located with respect to the mobile terminal as shown in FIG. Of course, although not shown, an icon and an indicator may be displayed together, and in this case, the text description may be omitted.

In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 8C, the peripheral area of the sharing area 820 may be divided according to the direction in which connectable external devices are located, and information of the external device may be displayed in each area. For example, if an external device named Optimus LTE is located in front of the left side of the mobile terminal, a text description 821 of the device may be displayed in an area 813 corresponding to the corresponding direction among the peripheral areas of the shared area. Can be.

However, in each case of FIG. 8, when detection of a distance or direction is omitted or accurate information is not collected, there may be no distinction of distance-specific taps in FIGS. 8A and 8B. Similarly, an indicator indicating a direction may be omitted in (b) of FIG. 8, and the controller 180 may arbitrarily determine the division of the peripheral area in (c) of FIG. 8.

FIG. 9 is a display state diagram illustrating an example in which an external device is selected and content sharing is started in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, in FIG. 9A, a device that can be connected to the area around the sharing area is displayed as shown in FIG. 8C, and selection / editing of content to be shared is performed through any of the methods described with reference to FIG. 7. Assume the case is complete. Referring to FIG. 9A, when a user wants to display content set in the sharing area 910 through an external device called “Optimus LTE,” the sharing area 910 corresponds to an external device called “Optimus LTE”. Touch-drag to the peripheral area 921 being located. Accordingly, the sharing function according to the present embodiment is executed, and the content included in the sharing area may be displayed on the external device called "Optimus LTE".

As another method of starting content sharing, in a situation in which the location or type of the external device is not displayed explicitly as shown in FIG. 9B, the user may use the external device 931 positioned in front of the mobile terminal. You want to display "SMS" content. In this case, the user drags and drops the icon 942 corresponding to the "SMS" function toward the direction in which the corresponding external device 931 is located in the sharing area 910, that is, upward. Accordingly, the SMS content may be displayed on the external device 931 positioned in the drag direction.

On the other hand, the trajectory of the drag and drop touch input may be difficult to make a straight line depending on the position of the icon, the position of the sharing area, and the relative arrangement of the position of the external device with respect to the mobile terminal. For example, when the external device 932 that the user wishes to share is located on the left side of the mobile terminal as shown in FIG. 9C, an icon corresponding to the desired content to be shared should be located on the right side of the sharing area 910. Drag and drop in a straight line. However, when the icon 942 corresponding to the content desired to be shared is located at the bottom of the sharing area 910, the user drags the icon 942 to the sharing area 910 with a linear trajectory toward the external device 932. There is no way to drop it. In this case, the user drags the icon 942 to the sharing area 910 once, and then drags the icon 942 back to the left in the sharing area 910 without dropping the touch input and then drops the content. It may be displayed through the external device 932 located on the left side of the mobile terminal. In this case, the controller 180 may provide a predetermined visual effect when content sharing is started in consideration of the direction in which the external device is located in the mobile terminal. For example, in FIG. 9C, the content 910 ′ to be shared in the direction of the arrow from the right edge of the external device 932 as the content starts to be delivered from the mobile terminal located on the right side of the external device 932. A visual effect such as is shown slowly.

On the other hand, according to another aspect of the present embodiment, the sharing area may be called during the application operation. This will be described with reference to FIG.

10 illustrates an example of a content sharing method using a sharing area called during an application operation in a mobile terminal according to another aspect of an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 10A, a map application is displayed through the touch screen 151 of the mobile terminal. In this case, as the user inputs a predetermined command through the user input unit 130, the sharing area 1010 may be displayed as shown in FIG. 10B. The shared area may be changed in the touch screen through a drag touch input. In addition, as shown in (b) of FIG. 10, the size can be adjusted through a pinch-in / out method of changing a distance between two touch points while simultaneously applying touch inputs to the two points. In addition, a predetermined transparency may be given to the sharing area 1010 in order to help a user select a portion to be shared.

The user may select a desired portion on the map application through the above-described method, and select the connection menu 1020 as shown in FIG. Accordingly, as shown in (d) of FIG. 10, an image 1010 ′ of a map application located in a portion selected through the external device 1030, that is, in a shared area may be output. 10 (d) illustrates a form in which the contents of the mobile terminal are displayed in a form of being overlaid on the previously displayed image on the external device 1030, but the present invention is not limited thereto. It may be displayed.

In FIG. 10C, the connection menu 1020 may be automatically displayed after a predetermined time elapses after the sharing area is called or after a change in size or position, or a predetermined command input through a user input unit or a touch screen. Can be displayed when there is. In addition, when the connection menu 1020 is selected, a user interface for selecting a connectable external device may be displayed similarly to that described with reference to FIG. 8. In addition, although not shown, an external device positioned in the corresponding direction may be selected according to the direction in which the connection menu 1020 is dragged, similarly to FIG. 9.

Meanwhile, when an event occurs on the mobile terminal while the sharing function according to the present invention is performed, an image related to the event may not be shared with an external device. For example, when a new text message arrives while the execution screen of the SMS application is being shared with an external device, the controller 180 displays the arrival alarm image (pop-up window or notification window) of the text message only on the display of the mobile terminal. It can be displayed so that it can be displayed on an external device.

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

The above-described mobile terminal and its control method are not limited to the configuration and method of the above-described embodiments, but the embodiments may be modified such that all or some of the embodiments are selectively And may be configured in combination.

Claims (21)

Displaying a sharing area on the display unit;
Adding at least one object to the shared area;
Selecting an external device capable of displaying an image; And
And transmitting an image corresponding to at least one object included in the sharing area to the selected external device. The method of claim 1,
The at least one object includes an icon corresponding to an application, an icon corresponding to a multimedia file, and a widget. The method of claim 1,
The display unit includes a touch screen,
The additional step,
And dragging the at least one icon onto the sharing area. The method of claim 1,
And displaying a preview image of each of the added at least one object in the sharing area. 5. The method of claim 4,
And when two or more objects are added to the sharing area, changing the arrangement state of the preview image for each of the two or more objects according to a command input through a user input unit. 5. The method of claim 4,
The preview image,
And at least one of text information and an execution image of the added at least one object. The method of claim 3, wherein
Searching for at least one external device capable of displaying an image; And
The method may further include displaying an item corresponding to each of the at least one searched external device.
The selecting step is a control method of a mobile terminal, characterized in that any one of the external device is selected from the list. 8. The method of claim 7,
The step of selecting the external device,
And dragging the shared area to an area where an item corresponding to the selected external device is displayed among the displayed items. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the searching comprises:
Detecting a direction of the at least one external device;
Displaying the list,
And arranging the respective items in correspondence to the detected direction. The method of claim 2,
The image corresponding to at least one object included in the sharing area,
And the application execution image when the object is an icon corresponding to an application, the execution image of the widget itself when the object is a widget, and a reproduction image of the multimedia file when the object is a multimedia file. The method of claim 1,
The shared area,
If an icon for calling the sharing area is selected,
When a user command of a specific format is input to the at least one object, and
The control method of the mobile terminal, characterized in that displayed in any one of the case that the widget including the shared area is added to the home screen. The method of claim 3, wherein
The step of selecting the external device,
And selecting an external device corresponding to the direction of the drag on the basis of the mobile terminal. A display unit;
Communication unit for transmitting and receiving signals to the outside and wired / wireless;
A user input unit for receiving a command from a user; And
When at least one object is added to the sharing area according to a first command input through the user input unit, and an external device capable of displaying an image searched through the communication unit is selected, it corresponds to at least one object included in the sharing area. And a controller configured to control an image to be transmitted to the selected external device through the communication unit. The method of claim 13,
The at least one object includes an icon corresponding to an application, an icon corresponding to a multimedia file, and a widget. The method of claim 13,
The display unit and the user input unit includes a touch screen,
The first command input is
And a touch-drag input performed from the at least one icon to the sharing area. The method of claim 13,
The control unit,
And a preview image of each of the at least one added object is displayed in the sharing area. 17. The method of claim 16,
The control unit,
When two or more objects are added to the sharing area, the mobile terminal is controlled to change the arrangement state of the preview image for each of the two or more objects according to a second command input through the user input unit. 17. The method of claim 16,
The preview image,
And at least one of text information and an execution image of the added at least one object. 16. The method of claim 15,
The control unit,
Displays an item corresponding to each of the at least one searched external device on the touch screen,
And control to select one external device from the list according to a third command inputted on the touch screen. 20. The method of claim 19,
The third command input is
And a touch-drag input performed in an area in which an item corresponding to the selected external device is displayed among the displayed items in the sharing area. 20. The method of claim 19,
The control unit,
And detecting the direction of the at least one external device through the communication unit, and controlling the respective items to be arranged in correspondence to the detected direction.

Images