WO2010131900A2 - Direction-selecting user interface and user terminal having same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a user interface that arranges user-selectable menu components by azimuth on one or more trajectories having a predetermined geometric figure shape, and when one is selected therefrom, searches for final contents through a method of outputting menu components of the next step, and to a user terminal having same. A user interface according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a plurality of menu components that are selectable by a user; and a component frame having a geometrically possible planar or three-dimensional shape for arranging the menu components in positions predetermined by azimuth on one or more trajectories, wherein a predetermined input means can be used to select a desired menu component, and the menu components configuring the user interface can be edited or reconstructed by a user.

Description

Directional user interface and user terminal implementing the same

The present invention relates to a user interface capable of efficiently searching for desired information with a minimum input operation in a limited screen size and reconfigurable by a user, and comprising: a trajectory for arranging a component frame having a predetermined geometric shape for a plurality of menu components; The present invention relates to a user interface for searching for final content in a manner of outputting menu components of a next step by arranging orientations on a bearing and selecting one of them, and a user terminal implementing the same.

Due to the development of data communication and the spread of cheap network services, the Internet population is exploding. People are living in an age where people can't live outside the Internet, such as accessing news on the Internet, acquiring knowledge for work, working through e-mail, and buying things through cyber shopping malls. In the flood of information via the Internet, hyperlink-based web interfaces are used to quickly access desired information. A user surfs the Internet by clicking on a hyperlink included in a web page, stepping through the desired information.

However, according to the conventional web interface, since the hyperlinks are irregularly distributed on the web page, the user can smoothly surf the web only through extremely limited input means such as a mouse. If you want to surf the web using the keyboard, try pressing the Tab key repeatedly several times to move the active focus to the hyperlink you want and press Enter to open the next web page. It can only be very cumbersome until the user reaches the desired final destination.

On the other hand, in recent years, with the increase of communication speed and the emergence of high-performance terminal devices, portable user terminals capable of internet access and multimedia playback are emerging in the market one after another. However, the portability of the user terminal imposes restrictions on the use of various contents utilizing a communication network such as wireless Internet. That is, due to the small screen and low resolution of the portable user terminal, smooth full browsing of Internet web pages is still difficult, and the limited keypad of the portable user terminal is as smooth as the web surfing using the keyboard. It's a hassle to surf the web.

In order to solve this problem, a technique of miniaturizing the keyboard keyboard and applying it to a portable user terminal has been proposed, but there is a problem that causes frequent typos due to the complicated and small keyboard layout. The problem of not being solved is still not solved.

The problem to be solved by the embodiment of the present invention is to effectively search for various information provided through a communication network, such as the Internet, even with a minimum input operation in a limited screen size, and to implement a user interface that can be reconfigured by a user It is to provide a user terminal.

One aspect of the present invention for solving the above problems is a plurality of user selectable menu components; And a component frame having a geometrically possible planar or three-dimensional figure shape and a frame for arranging the menu components at a predetermined position for each orientation on one or more tracks.

In addition, a user interface including a plurality of menu components selectable by a user, and a component frame having a geometrically planar planar or three-dimensional figure shape and a frame for arranging the menu components at predetermined positions for each orientation on one or more tracks. An input unit providing an output unit for displaying and an operation unit for selecting a menu component of the user interface; And a GUI operating unit configured to configure the user interface and output a user interface of a next step indicated by a selected menu component when one of the menu components is selected, or output final content corresponding to the selected menu. It features.

According to the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention, even if a simplified input means including only a minimum operation key can be used to effectively search for the desired information, the environment mainly requires a small area input means due to the characteristics of the portable terminal device. More efficient information retrieval means are provided.

In addition, according to the user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention, since the configuration menu components can be edited and reconfigured directly according to the user's intention, it is possible to conveniently check the desired content in a short time on a limited size screen. Do.

1 to 6 are screen examples schematically illustrating a general structure of a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7 to 11 are screen examples showing the configuration of a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention.

12 to 15 illustrate types of input units of a user terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

16 and 17 illustrate examples of switching a user interface screen when a menu component is selected and proceeds to the next step.

18 illustrates an example in which a menu component is additionally arranged in the user interface of the present invention.

19 and 20 illustrate examples of a user interface screen outputting a history of step movement when moving to the next step in the user interface of the present invention.

21 and 22 are screen examples illustrating a reconfiguration process of a customized user interface.

23 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of a user terminal to which a user interface is applied according to an embodiment of the present invention.

24 shows an example of a user interface screen according to Modification Example 1 of the present invention.

25 shows an example of a user interface screen according to Modification Example 3 of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings by those skilled in the art. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. In the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted in order to clearly describe the present invention, and like reference numerals designate like parts throughout the specification.

Throughout the specification, when a part is said to "include" a certain component, it means that it may further include other components, except to exclude other components unless specifically stated otherwise. In addition, the terms “… unit”, “… unit”, “module”, etc. described in the specification mean a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which may be implemented by hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software. have.

Hereinafter, a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Configuration of the User Interface

1 to 6 are screen examples schematically illustrating a general structure of an interface according to an embodiment of the present invention.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a user interface includes a plurality of menu components 10 selectable by a user and a component frame 20 that is a frame for arranging the menu components 10 at a specific position. And a final content 30, and optionally a skin 40, which is a background image for emphasizing the presence or position of the menu components 10 or providing a user with a beautiful feeling. It may further include, in addition to the shape of the planar figure may be formed as a three-dimensional figure in the 3D environment.

The menu component 10 may be a link or hypertext or may be the final content 30 itself to switch to the next user interface or output the final content 30 corresponding to the menu component 10. Can be. The menu component 10 may be a combination of link information into any one of a simple text, a thumbnail image or an icon image, and a thumbnail movie. The menu component 10 may include a text and a fragment image or a text and a fragment video. Link information may be combined with a composite of. In addition, the menu component 10 may be a web component or a mini application application that reproduces and outputs an image, a video, a sound source, and the like. The menu component 10 may be arranged on the track in a predetermined direction.

The component frame 20 is a frame for arranging the plurality of menu components 10 at a predetermined position, and each menu component 10 is disposed in a direction on the component frame 20 having a track shape. Note that the arrangement may be arranged in a matrix form of a checkerboard rather than a track. When arranged in a matrix like this, the lower menu may be output as a polyhedron.

The final content 30 is a final object to be explored through the user interface of the present invention and provides a user with news articles, product advertisements, shopping information, entertainment information, audio / video multimedia services, and the like. The final content 30 may be any one of document data, image data, sound source data, video data, or a combination of at least two or more, or an application application program for reproducing these data. As an example of the document data, the final content 30 may be a document that combines and provides at least two or more of the data using a markup language such as html, xml, sgml, etc., in this case, the final content The content menu selected for may include URL (Uniform Resource Locator) or link information indicating a local storage path.

Skin 40 is a background image of menu components 10 and component frame 20. It is preferable to consider that the user can intuitively grasp the relationship between the input means and the operation method of the user interface by using an image in which the shape of the input means is used as the skin 40. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the skin 40 may be formed according to the screen form of the user terminal (for example, a planar figure such as a circle, a horizontal rectangle, a vertical rectangle, and a square, as well as a three-dimensional shape capable of geometry in a 3D environment). The shape of may be implemented in various ways.

Components of the user interface are not limited to the above-described components but may further include various components. For example, the terminal may further include a search term input window for inputting a search term in order to find the final content 30 desired by the user. The search term input window is placed in the center of the user interface. The arrangement position of the search word input window is not limited to the center of the user interface but may be changed according to the user's setting. In addition, the user may select a search word input window and move it to another location.

In addition, the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention may be designed in various designs so as to be simple as shown in FIG.

FIG. 2 shows another configuration example of a user interface in which all the websites are searched and arranged with menu components 10 according to a predetermined category while having their own search engine or interworking with other search engine tools. For example, in FIG. When the user selects the "movie" menu component 10 of the plurality of menu components 10, as shown in FIG. 3, the "movie" submenu components or "movies" included in the "movie" menu component 10 as shown in FIG. 3. When the contents are displayed and the user selects one "movie" submenu component or one "movie" content, detailed information about the "movie" submenu component or the corresponding "movie" content is shown in FIG. Output as shown to the user. As another example, when the user selects the "news" menu component 10 in FIG. 2, the "news" sub-menu component or "news" contents included in the "news" menu component 10 may be output to the user interface, or in FIG. 6. As shown in the related detailed information (text, image or video) may be displayed together.

However, the order in which the relevant sub-menu components or contents are arranged or viewed may be displayed in order by an option set by the user in advance, or may be displayed on the web by a predetermined search engine linked with the user interface of the present invention. The results of searching for the existing contents may be displayed according to predetermined classification criteria such as popularity, search order, time order, file capacity order, and attribute. Of course, it can be displayed randomly. The order in which the menu components 10 are arranged may also be changed by the user's setting.

On the other hand, this feature can lead to unintentional user selection, so that it can be used for business or advertising revenue, and in the case of news content, it can provide a predetermined benefit to an article provider. In this case, depending on the user, the user interface of the present invention may be more advantageous when used for news articles or product search. This is a new search tool that changes the concept of existing web browsers. In particular, in a mobile environment in which the screen size and input means are limited, the mobile terminal has a directivity, and thus it is possible to select and inquire more quickly and conveniently in the second search after the first search. When selecting and inquiring from the first search screen to the second search screen, the third search screen, or the reverse order thereof, it is based on the directional movement concept, thereby enabling a quick and convenient search.

That is, the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention serves as a portal website that can be personalized, and sometimes a web screen or a web window itself, which is a collection of only desired menus. Existing portal websites categorize vast amounts of contents for all of a variety of users according to a predetermined classification criteria and display them on the website.However, in terms of individual users, all the various contents are searched. In fact, there are not a lot of frequently viewed contents. Therefore, if a user sets the classification criteria of contents according to his or her preference or intention, and places only the set categories on the screen, it becomes a more personalized user interface that is much easier to personalize. In this example, the menus classified into eight categories are given examples. However, the number and the directional movement can be easily searched and matched with the directional movement input operation of the user. However, it is natural that the number or arrangement of classification categories and the addition or reduction of category menus can be freely modified according to the usage environment or design purpose, as described below. As such, since the user can reconfigure according to the intention of the user, the space on the screen is sufficient, and the space may be used for other purposes. For example, in the case of a circular shape, as shown in the present embodiment, another web tool or user interface may be placed in a corner space area of a rectangular screen to create a more personalized mobile environment. By default, the user interface area for advertisements can be placed to increase space utilization even on limited screen sizes. But of course, this can be removed and personalized by the user. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the above-described features are the same in the following embodiments.

7 to 11 are screen examples illustrating the configuration of a user interface according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

<Example 1 of Interface Configuration>-User Interface with Circular Orbit

As shown in FIG. 7, a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a skin 40 representing an image of a plurality of circular trajectories, menu components 10 listed according to each circular trajectory, and menu components 10. It comprises a component frame 20 for positioning in a predetermined position.

The circular trajectory is not necessarily fixed to a specific number and may be variously set according to the screen size, resolution, content (or type) of the user terminal 100, and the like. 7 shows an example of a user interface with two circular orbits in particular.

In FIG. 7, eight menu components 10 belonging to the first category may be radially disposed in each direction in the inner track, and eight submenu components belonging to the second category may be radially disposed in the outer track. It is shown.

As an example for the arrangement of the menu components 10 and the sub-menu components, the first category includes a keyword corresponding to a major classification by category, and the second category corresponds to a keyword corresponding to a detailed classification for each keyword of the first category. It may include. Similarly, if there are three circular orbits in the user interface, the first category of the inner track contains the large category of keywords, the second category of the intermediate track contains the middle category of keywords, and the outer category of the third category contains the small categories of keywords. Can be. 2B shows an example of a user interface with three trajectories. That is, when there are a plurality of trajectories, the main menu components 10 belonging to the first category are radially disposed in each direction on the first trajectory, and the first submenu components belonging to the second category are radially main on the second trajectory. When the third trajectory is further formed to correspond to the menu components, respectively, the lower second sub-menu components are respectively arranged radially to correspond to the first sub-menu components belonging to the second category ( See FIG. 8).

As another example for the arrangement of the menu components 10 and the submenu components, the first category includes a keyword corresponding to a major category, and the second category is a keyword of a similar class that can be easily associated with the keyword of the first category. It may include.

In the above description, the eight menu components 10 belonging to the first category are disposed in the inner track as an example. However, the menu components belonging to the first category disposed in the inner track are not limited to eight but variously set according to the user's setting. Can be.

In addition, while the menu component 10 belonging to the first category is disposed in the inner track and the submenu component belonging to the second category is disposed in the outer track, the first category is disposed in both the inner track and the outer track. A menu component 10 belonging to may be arranged. For example, the menu component 10 belonging to the first category may also be disposed on the outer track only when the number of the menu components 10 belonging to the first category cannot be arranged on the inner track.

In addition, each of the menu components classified and arranged by category may output the searched results in cooperation with its own search engine or other search engine tools as described above. That is, as a result, the search results are classified into large headings, middle headings, and subheadings in the DB and are output. This can be output in various ways automatically or by preset.

<Example 2 of Interface Configuration>-User Interface with Polygonal Orbits

Recall that the shape of the skin 40 and trajectory of the user interface according to an embodiment of the invention is not necessarily limited to a circle. Accordingly, the skin 40 and the trajectory of the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention may be implemented as a circle, an ellipse, a polygon having a curved edge, and a corner such as a rectangle, a triangle, a pentagon, a hexagon, an octagon, a star, etc. It may be implemented as a planar figure such as a polygon instead of a curve, and in a 3D environment, it may also be implemented as a geometrically possible three-dimensional figure and may improve user's intuition or experience.

The arrangement of the menu component 10 is described in the case where the screen of the user terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention is particularly rectangular, except that the shape of the skin 40 and the shape of the track are not circular. 1 and the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

10 and 11 illustrate examples of a user interface that enables faster navigation. For example, if the user wants to select the "news" menu component 10 arranged at the 10-11 o'clock position, in the previous example, when the "news" menu component 10 is selected, the sub-menu components of the lower level or Although a user interface displaying the contents is output, in the present example, prior to selecting the "news" menu component 10, the corresponding sub-menu components are inputted through the direction input of the input means while identifying which sub-menu components or contents are present. Or you can browse the contents at once. That is, in FIG. 10, when the user wants to select the "news" menu component 10, for example, a pointing means such as a cursor is placed on the "news" menu component 10, or a finger is touched, the "news" menu is displayed. Submenu components or contents corresponding to component 10, i.e., "economy", "sports", "international", "politics", "society", "culture", "science", "entertainment" submenu components The user interface of the circular selection window in which the radial selection windows are arranged radially is activated to be superimposed on the user interface output screen of the current step, and in this state, the sub-menu components or contents can be explored only by additional direction input. The user interface of the circular selection window may be the final content 30 corresponding to the menu to be selected as described above, or may be a second submenu component. For example, news content for the "Sport" submenu component may be displayed by performing a direction input indicating the "Sport" submenu component at 1 o'clock while the user interface of the circular selection window is activated. Second sub-menu components, such as "," basketball "," soccer "or the like may be displayed. In FIG. 11, an example is shown in which the fan-shaped selection window is replaced with the user interface of the circular selection window. The operation method is the same. However, it will be easily understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention will be a more suitable example in the case of the rotary input means.

Operation of the User Interface 1 (Selection of menu component)

<Example 1 of Menu Component Selection Method>-Fixed Orbit User Interface

When the menu component 10 of the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention is fixed and is touched, for example, through a manipulation of the input means, the user directly selects the desired menu component 10 to move to a next user interface or a cursor. Move to the desired menu component 10 and select the menu component 10 where the cursor is located to move to the next user interface or open the final content 30 corresponding to the menu component 10. It is about.

Here, the term "cursor" refers to a pointing means for indicating which menu component 10 is currently in a waiting state for selection, or waiting for a user input or indicating a position. none. For example, a certain color border is displayed on the menu component 10 that is waiting to be selected (see “News” menu component of FIG. 7), or the size of the menu component 10 that is waiting to be selected is compared with other menu components. The cursor can be expressed in such a way as to enlarge (see "Game" menu component of FIG. 8). In addition, the menu component 10 waiting to be selected may be expressed by giving a three-dimensional effect, color conversion, blinking, or highlight function. In addition, the menu component 10 waiting to be selected may be represented in various ways.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the initial screen of the user interface is output to the user terminal 100, the cursor may be set to be located at a predetermined specific menu component 10. The user manipulates the input means to move the cursor of the user interface and activate the menu component 10 at the point where the cursor is located. This will be described as an example according to the type of specific input means.

12 to 15 illustrate input means for operating a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention for each type.

As an example of the input means, a directional key can be considered.

As shown in FIG. 12, the directional key includes a direction key for moving the cursor and a selection key for selecting the menu component 10 at the point where the cursor is located, and a mode change key for switching the operation mode although not shown in the drawing. It may further include.

The direction key may be a structure consisting of a plurality of keys corresponding to each direction, or may be a structure for selecting a plurality of directions with one circular, elliptical or polygonal key. The selection key is preferably provided at the center of the direction key, but may be provided at a separate location of the user terminal regardless of the direction key. The mode change key may be provided separately from the direction key and the selection key, but is not limited thereto. That is, the selection key and the mode change key may be used as one key. As a specific example, when the corresponding key is shortly pressed for a predetermined time or less, the selection key may be operated. To this end, the user terminal should further include a predetermined counting means. The direction key and / or the selection key and / or the mode change key of the directional key may be implemented by a touch method.

As another example of the input means, a rotary key can be considered.

As shown in FIG. 13, the rotatable key includes a wheel key rotating at 360 ° and a selection key for selecting the menu component 10 at the point where the cursor is located, and although not shown in the drawing, for switching the operation mode. It may further include a mode change key.

When the wheel key rotates clockwise or counterclockwise or a portion corresponding to a specific direction is input in the wheel key, the cursor rotates or moves according to the rotation direction or the input direction. The selection key may be provided at the center of the wheel key or at another position. When the selection key is input, the menu component 10 at the point where the cursor is positioned is selected. The mode change key is preferably provided at a position separate from the wheel key and the selection key, but is not limited thereto. That is, the selection key and the mode change key may be used as one key, and a specific example thereof is the same as described with reference to FIG. 3A. The wheel key and / or the selection key and / or the mode change key of the rotary key may also be implemented by a touch method.

As another example of the input means, a keyboard can be considered.

As shown in Fig. 14, the numeric key part of the keyboard is "1", "2", "3", "4", "5", "6", "7", "8", "9" It includes numeric keys of "and" Enter "key. "1", "2", "3", "4", "6", "7", "8", and "9" on the keyboard are "SW", "S", "SE" and "W" respectively. , "E", "NW", "N", and "NE" can serve as a direction key, and "5" or "Enter" can serve as a selection key for selecting the menu component 10. have. However, the keyboard is not limited to the numeric board portion, and four or six adjacent keys of the character key portion of the keyboard are combined to set direction keys, and other specific keys (such as the "Enter" key). You can also set as the select key. For example, the "I", "J", "M", and "K" keys may be matched to the "N", "W", "S", and "E" directions, respectively.

The keyboard may further be assigned a mode change key for switching the operation mode of the user interface. This is more useful when the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention is operated by a keyboard alone without a mouse.

As another example of the input means, a data input device (not shown), which is an application of the present invention (patent application No. 2007-0045255), may be employed. In particular, the data input device filed by the inventor of the present invention is an input device capable of independently or simultaneously pressing and moving, and is capable of moving in any direction by pressing or moving the input device. It is an input means that can be selected and executed by another operation and can best realize the advantages of the present invention. In particular, those skilled in the art will fully understand that the invention of the patent application as well as the related input device inventions pre- filed by the inventors of the present application are the same. In addition, it is natural that a touch screen (not shown) or a touch pad (not shown) may be considered as another example of the input means.

In addition to the example described above, the input means may employ a rotation direction key as shown in FIG. 15.

In the above, an example of operating the user interface using various types of input means has been described, but the form of the input means is not limited to three types. In other words, a touch method that is widely used in recent years may be employed, and in addition, operation methods of the input means may be distinguished for menu movement on the same track, movement between different trajectories, and selection of the menu component 10 at the cursor point. If so, any type of input means may be used.

<Example 2 of menu component selection method>-Orbital rotation user interface

The menu component 10 of the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention can be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise on the track by the user's manipulation of the input means, and in advance the menu component 10 through the manipulation of the input means. After moving to a predetermined position, the menu component 10 is selected to move to a next user interface or to open a final content 30 corresponding to the menu component 10.

In this embodiment, the position of a particular menu component 10 of a particular trajectory of the user interface may be predetermined as a user's selection waiting position (for example, the east point of the inner trajectory). The user moves the desired menu component 10 to the selection standby position by operating the input means to rotate the trajectory of the user interface, and selects the menu component 10 at the corresponding position. This will be described as an example according to the specific type of the input means as follows.

As an example of the input means, a rotation direction key may be considered as shown in FIG. 15.

As shown in FIG. 15, the rotation direction key includes a center menu selection key, a pair of orbital rotation keys disposed on the left and right sides of the menu selection key, and a pair of orbital movement keys disposed above and below the menu selection key. Each time the user presses the left or right orbital rotation key, the menu components 10 of the current orbit rotate one by one clockwise or counterclockwise. In addition, each time the user presses the upper or lower trajectory movement key, the current trajectory and the other trajectory (s) are alternately switched. The user moves the desired menu component 10 to the selection standby position by using the orbital rotation key and / or the orbital movement key and selects the corresponding menu component 10 by pressing a menu selection key at the center.

As another example of the input means, a rotary key can be considered.

The rotatable key is shown in FIG. 13, wherein the user rotates the track clockwise or counterclockwise by using a wheel key rotated 360 °, and directionally presses the wheel key to change the current track to another track (s). Can be switched to). In addition, the user may select the menu component 10 of the selection standby position through a selection key provided at a location separate from the wheel key or a selection key provided at a center portion of the rotatable key.

Operation of the User Interface 2 (Move Step by Selection)

16 and 17 illustrate examples of switching the UI screen when the user proceeds to the next step according to the selection of the menu component. For convenience of description, a case in which the cursor movement and the menu component 10 are performed by using the directional keys in the fixed-orbit user interface will be described as an example. However, referring to the foregoing description, the present invention also relates to another type of input means. It is possible to easily infer the operating method of the user interface according to the embodiment.

<Example 1 of Step Movement>-User Interface Switching by Step Movement

In the example of FIG. 16, it is assumed that the cursor is located at the “finance” menu component 10 which is a predetermined position in the initial screen of the user interface. The user presses the northwest (NW) of the directional keys to select the "Economy, Sports" first submenu component and moves the cursor to the "news" menu component (10) of the same trajectory, once again the northwest of the directional key ( NW) to move the cursor to the "Economic, Sports" first submenu component of the outer track. Then, press the center selection key of the directional key to select the "Economy, Sport" first sub-menu component.

When the "economic, sports" first sub-menu component is selected, a next stage user interface screen including detailed menus of the first sub-menu component, that is, the second sub-menu component is output. In this case, the cursor may be located at the second position of the "Kim Yu-na" sub-menu component, which is a predetermined position, or at the position of the first sub-menu component selected in the previous step. As in the previous step, the user operates the directional keys appropriately to position the cursor on the desired second menu component and select the corresponding second menu component. Here, if there are detailed menus of the next step, that is, the third sub-menu components, the user interface screen of the next step is output again, and if the next step of the selection is the final content 30, the corresponding final content 30 is displayed. Is activated. In FIG. 4A, a news article in which text data and image data are synthesized is activated as the final content 30 and output to the screen.

<Example 2 of Step Movement>-Content Preview

Referring to FIG. 17, as in FIG. 16, it is assumed that a cursor is located at a “finance” menu component that is a predetermined position in an initial screen (first step) of a user interface. The user presses the northwest (NW) of the directional keys to select the "Economy, Sports" first submenu component, moves the cursor to the "news" menu component of the same orbit, and once again moves the northwest (NW) of the directional keys. Press to move the cursor to the "Economic, Sports" first submenu component of the outer track. Then, press the center selection key of the directional key to select the "Economy, Sport" first sub-menu component.

When the "economic, sports" first submenu component is selected, a user interface screen of a next step (second step) consisting of detailed menus of the first submenu component, that is, second submenus, is output. As in the previous step, the user manipulates the directional keys appropriately to position the cursor on the desired second submenu component and selects the corresponding second submenu component. Here, when detailed menus exist for the second submenu component of the second stage, the user interface screen of the next stage (third stage) is output again, and the next stage of the second submenu component selection (third stage) ) Is the final content 30, the corresponding final content 30 is activated. In this case, when the third step is the final content 30, the information window for displaying the final content 30 or all or part of the content is activated or finalized instead of the second submenu component at the point where the cursor is located in the second step. The content obtained by reducing the content 30 at a predetermined ratio is output.

Referring back to FIG. 17, as the user selects the "Kim Yu-na" second sub-menu component in the second step, the user interface according to the detailed menu of the "Kim Yu-na" second sub-menu component is output in the third step. In this case, it can be seen that the content where the final content 30 is reduced at a predetermined rate is output instead of the second submenu component at the point where the cursor is located. Such reduced content may be simply a reduced content of the final content 30 according to a predetermined ratio, or may extract only a partial content of the final content 30 and output it to a screen area of a predetermined limited size. The user may enter the fourth step to check the contents of the final content 30, but may also check the entire contents or partial contents of the contents in advance by viewing the reduced contents.

16 and 17 illustrate the case in which the menu components, sub-menu components or contents are fixedly disposed on the outer track and the inner track, but are not necessarily limited thereto. That is, when the user selects a menu component 10 of the inner track, the lower menu components having keywords of the detailed field associated with the menu component may be newly disposed in the outer track. As a specific example, as soon as the user selects the "News" menu component of the inner track, the outer track contains "Economic News", "Presence News", "Sports News", "Weather News", "International News", "Real Estate News" , Sub-menu components of "Culture News" and "Art News" are arranged.

In addition, although the news article in which text data and image data are synthesized as an example of the final content 30 in FIG. 16 and FIG. 17 is mentioned as an example, the sound source data, the video data, the web page to which the URL is designated, etc. are also described as the final content 30. Can be used).

<Example 3 of Step Movement>-Additional Menu Components

In the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention, if the number of menu components or sub-menu components to be placed in the track at a stage other than the output stage of the final content 30 is greater than the number that can be actually arranged, The present invention relates to a method of additionally arranging a menu component or a submenu component in a free space of a user terminal screen.

FIG. 18 illustrates an example in which the third submenu component is additionally disposed in the third step of FIG. 17. As shown in FIG. 5, the number of third submenu components that can be arranged in a circular track is eight, although there are 13 detailed submenus of the second submenu component of “Kim Yu-na” in the second stage. Therefore, the remaining five third sub-menu components may be arranged in a list form on the lower right side of the UI screen. In this case, as an example of key operation, the user can move the cursor from the circular orbit to the additional third sub-menu component list through the trajectory movement operation of the input means, and move the cursor within the list through the north and south movement operations. have. The positions at which the remaining five third sub-menu components are arranged in the form of a list are not limited to the lower right of the user interface screen but may be arranged in various locations according to the user's setting.

In the above, the case where the remaining five third submenu components are arranged in the form of a list on the user interface screen has been described, but the remaining five third submenu components may not be arranged on the user interface screen. For example, if the detailed menu for the second sub-menu component “Kim Yu-na” of the second stage, that is, there are 13 third sub-menu components, the number of the third sub-menu components that can be arranged in a circular orbit is 8, Eight third submenu components are placed on the circular trajectory, and the remaining three third submenu components, which were not arranged by the user by operating the input means, are placed on the circular trajectory, and eight third submenus originally placed on the circular trajectory. The menu component may not be placed. The method of arranging five third submenu components that are not arranged in the circular orbit instead of the eight third submenu components that were arranged in the circular orbit is performed by the user's input means. Instead of the menu component, five third sub-menu components that were not arranged in the circular track may be displayed, and in turn, instead of the eight third sub-menu components arranged in the circular track by the user's input means, one by one in the circular track. Five third submenu components that were not arranged may be arranged. In addition to the methods described above, the remaining five third submenu components may be arranged on the screen in various ways.

<Example 4 of step movement>-History output of step movement

19 and 20 show an example of a user interface screen outputting a history of step movement.

As the steps of the user interface are moved, only the user interface of the current step may be output on a single screen, but the user interfaces for the steps that have been passed as well as the current step may also be output on one screen. In this case, all of the user interface of the previous step may be output on one screen. However, since the screen size of the user terminal 100 is limited, only a predetermined number of steps of the previous step may be output. However, as shown in FIG. 19, when the user interfaces of the previous stage are arranged in one screen in a plane, when the number of steps increases, it is difficult to display a large number of user interfaces due to the size limitation of the screen, It may be indistinguishable. Accordingly, in consideration of this, as shown in FIG. 20, the user interfaces of the previous steps may be displayed in a form in which the number of closed curved layers are stacked around the user interface of the current step.

The user can easily check the progress of the current screen in the initial stage of the user interface, and can display as many menu components and sub-menu components as one screen (the stages displayed on the screen * the number of menu components per track). You can check it.

As an example of key operation for the present embodiment, the user can move from the circular trajectory of the current stage to the circular trajectory of the previous stage through the trajectory movement operation of the input means. As another example of the key operation, when the user performs the trajectory movement operation of the input means, the trajectory may be moved in such a manner that the circular trajectory of the current stage and the circular trajectory (s) of the previous stage are alternately switched to the center of the screen.

Custom user interface

Meanwhile, the user may not identify each menu component or submenu components constituting the user interface only in a limited range of predetermined steps. In other words, the user may extract the desired menu components or sub-menu components from the current user interface and reconfigure them into their own user interface.

21 is a screen example illustrating a process of generating a customized user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In order to implement an embodiment of the present invention, the user terminal 100 may operate by dividing into a navigation mode for finding the desired final content 30 using a user interface and a reconfiguration mode for configuring a personalized user interface. have. Therefore, the user terminal must be assigned a key for mode switching. The mode switch key may be provided separately from an input means for manipulation of a user interface, or may use a key of an existing input means as it is. In the latter example, when a key for moving a cursor or a menu rotates and a key for selecting a menu are input at the same time, the operation mode may be set to be switched.

When the mode is switched to the reconfiguration mode by a key operation, a frame of a new user interface to be newly configured is displayed at a predetermined position (for example, the upper left portion of the screen in FIG. 21) among the empty spaces of the screen. In this case, the frame of the new user interface may be displayed on the screen when the reconstruction mode is executed, and the frame of the new user interface is displayed in a blank state without the menu component 10 at a predetermined position from the initial state of the screen, and then after the user input operation. It may even be activated. The user operates the input means to move the cursor in the existing user interface in the center of the screen. When the cursor is located at the desired menu component 10 or submenu component, the menu selection key of the input means is selected to transfer the corresponding menu component 10 or submenu component to the component frame 20 of the new user interface. .

If the component frame 20 of the new user interface has a plurality of trajectories, a process of selecting any one of the plurality of trajectories must be preceded before the menu component 10 or the lower menu component is transferred. To this end, the user moves the cursor from the current user interface to the new user interface by inputting the cursor movement key of the input means several times. For example, if the cursor is located on the inner track of the current user interface, pressing the cursor shift key of the input means once moves the cursor to the outer track, and pressing the cursor shift key once more disappears the cursor and the new user interface The outer track of is activated, and pressing the cursor movement key once more activates the inner track of the new user interface. When the menu selection key is pressed while the inner or outer track of the new user interface is activated, the menu component is set to be moved to the corresponding track later, and the cursor is activated again in the current user interface. Such a trajectory setting method is only one example, and it is obvious that the trajectory setting method can be variously set according to the implementation form of the above-described input means.

You can switch the operation mode back to navigation mode to change the level of the current user interface. In the browse mode, you select a different level of user interface and then switch back to reconfiguration mode to continue editing the new user interface.

When the editing of the new user interface is finished and the operation mode is switched to the navigation mode, the new user interface is displayed on the screen, and the user can operate the input means to perform cursor movement and menu component selection in the same way as in the previous user interface. have.

FIG. 22 is a modified example of FIG. 21. Instead of outputting only one step to the screen using the current user interface, the user interface of the previous step is also displayed on the screen as in the embodiments of FIGS. 19 and 20 to edit the new user interface. It is about the case.

By moving the cursor from the user interface of the current stage to the user interface of the other stage, more menu components 10 or lower menu components can be checked on one screen, thereby reducing the editing time of the new user interface. As an example of the operation of the input means for moving the cursor in FIG. 22, by inputting the SW south key twice, the cursor can be moved from the user interface of the current step to the user interface of the previous step, and again northwest NW. By entering the key twice, you can move the cursor to the user interface of the previous level. After moving the cursor, a menu selection key is input from a desired menu component 10 or a submenu component to send the corresponding menu component 10 or a submenu component to the new user interface, and a method of switching an operation mode as necessary is illustrated in FIG. 21. Is the same as

21 and 22 have described the case in which the directional key is used as the input means, it is obvious that the user interface can be reconfigured in the same manner using the rotary key, the keyboard, or other kinds of input means.

Hereinafter, a user terminal employing a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

23 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. The user terminal 100 includes an input unit 110, an output unit 120, a communication interface 130, a storage unit 140, a controller 150, and a GUI operating unit 160.

The input unit 110 is an instruction for moving a cursor between a menu component 10 or a submenu component on the same trajectory or a menu component 10 or a submenu component on a different trajectory in a menu component fixed user interface. And instructions for selecting the menu component 10 or the submenu component at the point where the cursor is located. In addition, the input unit 110 may rotate the menu component 10 or sub-menu components on the same track or change the trajectory of the rotation target in the menu component rotational user interface, and the menu component 10 located at a predetermined point. Or, the user receives an instruction for selecting a submenu component. For reference, the input means mentioned in the foregoing description is the same concept as the input unit 110.

Directional keys, rotary keys, touch keys, keyboards, touch screens, mice, keypads of mobile terminals for movement of cursors, rotation of menu components 10 or submenu components, and selection of menu components 10 or submenu components, A jog dial, a direction movement key, and the like may be used as the input unit 110.

The output unit 120 outputs general information necessary for driving the user terminal 100 to the screen, and in particular, the step-by-step user interface configured by the GUI operation unit 150 and the final content 30 selected by the user on the screen. Output In addition, the output unit 120 outputs an advertisement simultaneously with the user interface on the screen of the user terminal 100. For output of the user interface and content, a CRT, LCD, LED, plasma type monitor, TV, liquid crystal display, etc. may be used as the output unit 120.

The communication interface 130 downloads an operation application, a frame, configuration content, and an advertisement of a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention through the Internet or a mobile communication network, and transmits the downloaded application to the storage 140.

The storage 140 stores an operating system, various applications, and advertisements necessary for driving the user terminal 100, and in particular, a skin 40, a menu component 10, and final content constituting a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention. 30 is stored in the skin DB 141, the menu DB 142, and the content DB 143, respectively.

The controller 150 performs overall control for smoothly driving the user terminal 100, and in particular, controls the GUI operation unit 160 to smoothly provide a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The GUI operating unit 160 configures a user interface according to an embodiment of the present invention, moves the cursor or rotates the component frame 20, selects a menu component 10 or a submenu component, and additional menu components 10. Or reconfigure the user interface according to the output of the additional submenu component list, the history output of the user interface, the execution of the customized user interface, or provide the user interface of the next step or output the final content 30. The GUI manager 160 may be implemented as an application application that provides the above functions. In addition, the user interface of the present invention may be produced by a dedicated editor, for example, a website is edited by a user using the Namo Web Editor, or may be produced using other known production tools or solutions.

Modification Example

Modified Example 1

The following describes in detail the web page consisting of the user interface described above.

When a user executes a web page by operating one of the input means described above, the output unit 120 outputs a web page composed of a user interface on the screen of the user terminal 100. Since the input means has been described above, a detailed description thereof will be omitted for convenience.

As described above, the user interface constituting the web page is a component frame 20 and a skin 40 which is a frame for arranging the plurality of menu components 10 and the plurality of menu components in a predetermined position by orientation on one or more tracks as described above. It consists of Since components and shapes of the user interface have been described above, detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted for convenience. That is, in this embodiment, the user interface corresponds to a frame constituting an existing web page.

The plurality of menu components 10 may be menu components 10 in an initially set state or may be menu components 10 reconfigured by a user. Since the method of reconfiguring the menu component 10 by the user has been described above, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The plurality of menu components 10 include classified search results retrieved from all websites. Since the search results included in the menu component 10 are search results searched from all websites, duplicate search results may exist. The duplicate search results may or may not be included in the menu component 10 by the user's setting.

In addition, the search results included in the plurality of menu components 10 may be included in a sorted order based on one of the criteria such as the latest order, the popularity order, the search order, the file size order, or the like.

The user operates the input means to select and rotate the menu component 10 to move to the next step and to check the final content 30 desired by the user. Since the method of operating the input means by the user and selecting the menu component 10 to move to the next step or checking the final content 30 by operating the input means has been described above, the detailed description is omitted for convenience.

The user interface configuring the web page may further include a search word input window through which a user may input a search word by operating an input means as shown in FIG. 24. The search word input window may be activated by being activated in an area of the center of the user interface, or may be activated in a predetermined area on the user interface or on each menu component through a separate function key input.

If the user interface constituting the web page further includes a search term input window, the user may easily and quickly check the desired final content 30 by inputting the search term in the search term input window.

For example, when a user manipulates an input means to execute a web page, a web page composed of a user interface is performed, and the user interface constituting the web page is composed of a plurality of menu components 10, and each menu component 10 is executed. Contains search results from all web pages. The user operates the input means to enter the search word "Kim Yu-na" into the search word input window and perform a search. When the search is performed, the plurality of menu components 10 include only search results related to the search word "Kim Yua" entered by the user. As described above, the user inputs a search word in the search word input window so that the user can easily and quickly check the final content 30 desired by the user.

Although the above description has been made of checking the final content 30 desired by the user by inputting a search word in the search word input window, the search word input window may be omitted intentionally or intentionally.

Modified Example 2

Hereinafter, a case in which a menu displayed on a portable terminal such as a mobile phone is made of the user interface of the present invention will be described in detail.

In the second embodiment of the present invention, unlike the first embodiment of the present invention, the submenu component or the final content included in the plurality of menu components 10 is not a search result in which all the websites are searched. There is a difference in that the information stored in is classified and included in each of the plurality of menu components 10.

The user interface consists of a plurality of menu components 10, a component frame 20, and a skin 40, the user can reconfigure the plurality of menu components 10, and the user manipulates the input means to make the menu components 10. ) To move to the next step and check the final content 30 is the same as in the modified embodiment 1 of the present invention, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Modified Example 3

Hereinafter, a description will be given of a user interface and an advertisement described in the first and second modified embodiments of the present invention being simultaneously displayed on the screen of the user terminal 100.

As described in modified embodiments 1 and 2 of the present invention, a user interface is disposed on the screen of the user terminal 100. When the user interface is arranged on the screen of the user terminal 100 Referring to FIG. 25, an advertisement window may be activated or fixedly arranged in an empty space where the user interface is not displayed, thereby displaying an advertisement. The position at which the advertisement window is formed and the size of the advertisement window are not limited and may be variously formed in a range that does not overlap the user interface.

The advertisement displayed along with the user interface on the screen of the user terminal may display various advertisements such as a line advertisement, an image advertisement, a video advertisement, and the like.

In addition, the advertisement displayed on the screen of the user terminal together with the user interface may display an advertisement related to a menu component or content selected by a user by operating an input means through the advertisement window. In addition to the above-described example, the advertisement window displayed on the user terminal screen may display various advertisements such as advertisements input by a user terminal maker or a production company or advertisements downloaded through the Internet.

In the above, the display of the advertisement in the empty space where the user interface is not arranged on the screen of the user terminal 100 has been described. However, various images and images may be displayed according to the user's designation in addition to the advertisement. For example, a user-specified picture may be disposed in a blank margin space in which the user interface is not arranged on the screen of the user terminal 100.

In addition to the above-described example, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the blank space where the user interface is not arranged on the screen of the user terminal 100 may be variously used, and thus detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In the first to third modified embodiments of the present invention, a case in which a web page configured as a user interface and a menu included in the user terminal 100 includes a user interface has been described as an example. It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that it can be used in various cases of searching for.

As a user terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, a desktop PC, a laptop PC, a palmtop PC, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a PMP (Personal Multimedia Player), Telematics Terminal, Car Navigation, Mobile Phone, Smart Phone like Blackberry, Game Terminal like X-Box, PlayStation, Nintendo DS, etc. may be used. .

In addition, the input unit 110 of the user terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention described as a key input input means or a rotary wheel input means using the detection of the mechanical contact, but the electronic input means using a touch sensor Again, the user interface according to the embodiment of the present invention can be operated in the same manner. In addition, when the input unit 110 of the user terminal is implemented as a touch screen, the user may intuitively select each menu component without having to implement a cursor.

The embodiments of the present invention described above are not implemented only through the apparatus and the user interface, but may be implemented through a program for realizing a function corresponding to the configuration of the embodiment of the present invention or a recording medium on which the program is recorded. Such an implementation can be readily implemented from the description of the above-described embodiments.

In addition, although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and improvements made by those skilled in the art using the basic concepts of the present invention defined in the following claims are provided. Forms also belong to the scope of the present invention.

Claims (19)

1. A plurality of user selectable menu components; And

   And a component frame having a planar or three-dimensional figure shape that is geometrically possible and a frame for arranging the menu components at a predetermined position by orientation on one or more tracks.
2. The method of claim 1,

   And a skin that uses an image of the input means as a background image of the menu components and the component frame.
3. The method of claim 1,

   And when one of the menu components is selected, a user interface of a next step corresponding to the selected menu component is outputted, or final content corresponding to the selected menu is outputted.
4. The method of claim 1,

   When one of the menu components is selected, the user interface of the sub-level of the menu component of the target object to be selected or the final content corresponding to the menu to be selected are radially divided and displayed on the user interface output screen. User interface.
5. The method of claim 1,

   A user interface for designating a menu component to be selected by using pointing means when the menu components are fixed on the trajectory.
6. The method of claim 1,

   When the menu components are rotatable clockwise or counterclockwise on the track by a user's input operation, a desired menu component among the menu components is moved to a predetermined position of the track and designated as a menu object to be selected. User interface.
7. The method of claim 1,

   A user interface that outputs at least one previous user interface on one screen.
8. The method according to claim 1 or 7,

   A customized user interface including a blank component frame is output together on one side of the screen, and a desired menu component is selected from among the menu components of the previously displayed user interface and moved to the customized user interface to create a new user interface. User interface.
9. The method of claim 1,

   The user interface for arranging additional menu components on one side of the screen, if the number of menu components belonging to the category of the current step is larger than the number of menu components arranged on the track.
10. The method of claim 2,

    The skin and the shape of the trajectory is any one of a circle, an ellipse and a polygon having a curved edge, or a triangle, square, pentagon, hexagon, octagon, or star whose corners are not curved.
11. The method of claim 1,

    When the tracks are plural, main menu components belonging to the first category are radially disposed on the first track in each direction, and submenu components belonging to the second category are radially corresponding to the main menu components on the second track. And sub-menu components lower radially corresponding to menu components belonging to the second category when the third trajectory is further formed.
12. The method of claim 1,

    A user interface for displaying contents of the final content when the menu component of the selection object is final content when one of the menu components is selected.
13. The method of claim 7, wherein

    When a plurality of user interface of the previous step is output, the user interface is formed around the user interface of the current step by a predetermined number (number of menu components per step X orbits output on the screen) or a predetermined number on one screen.
14. The method of claim 13,

    The user interface of the previous step formed around the user interface of the current step is displayed in a stacked form of the number of the closed surface layer.
15. The method of claim 1,

    The user interface further comprises a search term input window for inputting a search term.
16. Displaying a user interface comprising a plurality of user selectable menu components and a component frame having a geometrically planar planar or three-dimensional figure shape and a frame for arranging the menu components at a predetermined position in azimuth on one or more tracks; Output for;

    An input unit providing operation means for selecting a menu component of the user interface; And

    And a GUI operating unit configured to configure the user interface and output a user interface of a next step indicated by a selected menu component when one of the menu components is selected, or output final content corresponding to the selected menu.
17. The method of claim 16,

    And a communication interface for downloading the menu component and the final content via a communication network.
18. The method of claim 16,

    The input unit is a user terminal implemented in the form of any one of a directional key, a rotary key, a touch key, a touch screen, a mouse, a button key or a stick key.
19. The method of claim 16,

    User terminal characterized in that the advertisement is displayed on the output unit.

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