HK1207915B - Device, method, and graphical user interface for navigating a list of identifiers - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to device, method, and graphical user interface for navigating a list of identifiers. An electronic device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface displays a portion of a list of identifiers. The list of identifiers are associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language. The device concurrently displays a character selection element that includes: a first sub-element associated with the first content items and having a first size, and a second sub-element associated with the second content items and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. In response to detecting an input on the second sub-element, the device displays a portion of the list of identifiers with identifiers associated with second content items.

Description

Apparatus, method and graphical user interface for navigating a list of identifiers

Related information of divisional application

The scheme is a divisional application. The parent of this division is the invention patent application with application date 2011, 11/11, application number 201180058926.0, entitled "apparatus, method and graphical user interface for navigating a list of identifiers".

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to electronic devices with displays and touch-sensitive surfaces, including, but not limited to, electronic devices that include a list navigation index bar.

Background

In recent years, touch sensitive surfaces have been used significantly more as input devices for computers and other electronic computing devices. Exemplary touch-sensitive surfaces include touch pads and touch screen displays. Such surfaces are widely used to manipulate user interface objects on a display.

Exemplary manipulations include navigating through a list to find a desired piece of content. For example, in a digital content player, such as a portable music and/or video player, a user may need to navigate through a list of artists, albums, authors, composers, editors (compilations), or titles (e.g., song titles) to find a desired piece of content. In many cases, users need to search for artists, albums, authors, composers, editors, or titles in multiple languages. For example, a Japanese user may have Japanese content identified in Japanese and English content identified in English; a Chinese user may have Chinese content identified in Chinese, Japanese content identified in Japanese, and English content identified in English; and so on.

Existing methods for navigating through lists are cumbersome and inefficient, particularly when the list contains identifiers for content in more than one language. Navigating through entire lists with multiple languages is tedious and creates a significant cognitive burden on the user. Furthermore, the existing navigation method takes longer than necessary, thereby wasting energy. This latter consideration is particularly important in battery powered devices.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, there is a need for an electronic device having a faster, more efficient method and interface for navigating a list of identifiers for content in more than one language. Such methods and interfaces may supplement or replace conventional methods for navigating lists of identifiers. Such methods and interfaces reduce the cognitive burden on the user and result in a more efficient human-machine interface. For battery powered devices, such methods and interfaces conserve power and increase the time between battery charges.

The above deficiencies and other problems associated with user interfaces for electronic devices having touch-sensitive surfaces are reduced or eliminated by the disclosed devices. In some embodiments, the device is a desktop computer. In some embodiments, the device is portable (e.g., a notebook computer, tablet computer, or handheld device). In some embodiments, the device has a touchpad. In some embodiments, the device has a touch-sensitive display (also referred to as a "touch screen" or "touch screen display"). In some embodiments, the device has a Graphical User Interface (GUI), one or more processors, memory, and one or more modules, programs, or sets of instructions stored in the memory for performing a plurality of functions. In some embodiments, the user interacts with the GUI primarily via finger contacts and gestures on the touch-sensitive surface. In some embodiments, the functions may include image editing, drawing, presenting, word processing, website building, disk making, spreadsheet generation, gaming, making phone calls, video conferencing, sending email, instant messaging, fitness support, digital photography, digital video, web browsing, digital music playing, and/or digital video playing. Executable instructions for performing these functions may be included in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or other computer program product configured for execution by one or more processors.

In accordance with some embodiments, an electronic device comprises a display, a touch-sensitive surface, one or more processors, memory, and one or more programs. The one or more programs are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors. The one or more programs include instructions for: displaying on the display: a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. The one or more programs also include instructions for: detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item; detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display; and in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item.

In accordance with some embodiments, a method is performed at an electronic device having a display and a touch-sensitive surface. The method comprises the following steps: displaying on the display: a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. The method also includes detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item; detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display; and in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item.

In accordance with some embodiments, a graphical user interface on an electronic device with a display, a touch-sensitive surface, a memory, and one or more processors to execute one or more programs stored in the memory comprises: a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. Detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display. In response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item. Detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display. In response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item.

In accordance with some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed by an electronic device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface, cause the device to: displaying on the display: a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. The computer-readable storage medium also stores instructions that, when executed by an electronic device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface, cause the device to: detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item; detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display; and in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item.

According to some embodiments, an electronic device comprises: a display; a touch-sensitive surface; means for displaying on the display: a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number; means for detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; means for displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; means for detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display; and in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, means for displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item.

In accordance with some embodiments, an information processing apparatus for use in an electronic device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface, comprises: means for displaying on the display: a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number; means for detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; means for displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display; means for detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display; and in response to detecting the input at the location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, means for displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item.

According to some embodiments, an electronic device comprises: a display unit for displaying a part of the identifier list; and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers. The list of identifiers is associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items associated with a second language different from the first language, different from the first content items. The character selection element represents a plurality of characters and includes: a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size, and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. The electronic device also includes a touch-sensitive unit for receiving user input; and a processing unit coupled to the display unit and the touch-sensitive unit. The processing unit is configured to perform the following operations: in response to detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive unit that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display unit, a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a first content item is displayed on the display unit. The processing unit is also configured to perform the following operations: in response to detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive unit that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display unit, displaying a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item on the display unit.

Accordingly, electronic devices with displays and touch-sensitive surfaces are provided with faster, more efficient methods and interfaces for navigating lists of items, thereby increasing the effectiveness, efficiency, and user satisfaction of such devices. Such methods and interfaces may supplement or replace conventional methods for navigating item lists.

Drawings

For a better understanding of the above-described embodiments of the invention, as well as additional embodiments of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description read in conjunction with the following drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views.

FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating a portable multifunction device with a touch-sensitive display in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating exemplary components for event handling, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates a portable multifunction device with a touch screen in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 3A is a block diagram of an exemplary multifunction device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplary portable electronic device having a touch screen according to some embodiments.

FIG. 4A illustrates an exemplary user interface for an application menu on a portable multifunction device, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 4B illustrates an exemplary user interface of a multifunction device with a touch-sensitive surface separate from the display, in accordance with some embodiments.

Fig. 5A-5N illustrate exemplary user interfaces for navigating a list of identifiers, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a data structure of a content item database according to some embodiments.

Fig. 7A-7D are flow diagrams illustrating methods of navigating a list of identifiers, according to some embodiments.

Fig. 8 is a functional block diagram of an electronic device according to some embodiments.

Detailed Description

Many electronic devices have graphical user interfaces for accessing items such as digital content (e.g., music and video), electronic documents, and the like. The graphical user interface may include a list and sub-list of identifiers associated with the items. The item is accessed by navigating through the list and sub-list of identifiers and selecting the identifier corresponding to the desired item.

Here, an electronic device is disclosed that displays a character selection element, such as an index bar, to jump to a particular identifier in a list (e.g., an identifier that starts with a particular letter). The character selection element includes at least two sub-elements. The first sub-element represents characters in a first language (e.g., japanese characters) and is used to navigate through content in the first language (e.g., japanese content). The second sub-element represents characters in the second language (e.g., english characters) and is used to navigate through content in the second language (e.g., english content). The character selection sub-elements are sized according to the relative number of content items in each respective language on the device. For example, if a user has a music player application with 3000 songs (including 2000 Japanese songs and 1000 English songs), the Japanese character selection sub-element will be twice as long as the English character selection sub-element. Similarly, if the user has a music player application with 6000 songs (including 3000 chinese songs, 2000 japanese songs, and 1000 english songs), the ratio of the length of the kanji character selection sub-element, the length of the japanese character selection sub-element, and the length of the english character selection sub-element would be 3:2:1, respectively. Thus, the character selection element gives the user a visual cue as to the relative number of content items in a particular language stored in the device. Further, the user may interact with the respective character selection sub-element (e.g., via finger gestures on the sub-element) to quickly navigate through the entire content in a particular language on the device. Thus, interaction with the character selection element simplifies access to content items in different languages. This kind of navigation is particularly useful for portable devices with small touch screen displays, such as portable media players.

1A-1B, 2, 3A, 3B, and 8 provide a description of exemplary devices. Fig. 4A-4B and 5A-5N illustrate exemplary user interfaces for navigating lists of identifiers of content items in more than one language. Fig. 6 illustrates an exemplary data structure of a content item. Fig. 7A to 7D are flowcharts illustrating a method of navigating a list of identifiers. The user interfaces in fig. 5A-5N are used to illustrate the processes in fig. 7A-7D.

Exemplary device

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may be practiced without such specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, circuits, and networks have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the embodiments.

It should also be understood that, although the terms "first," "second," etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, such elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first contact may be referred to as a second contact, and similarly, a second contact may be referred to as a first contact, without departing from the scope of the present invention. The first contact and the second contact are both contacts, but they are not the same contact.

The terminology used herein to describe the invention is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used in the description of the invention and the appended claims, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term "and/or" as used herein refers to and encompasses any and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising," when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

As used herein, the term "if" may be interpreted to mean "at …", "after …", "in response to a determination …", or "in response to a detection …", depending on the context. Similarly, the phrase "if determined … …" or "if [ stated condition or event ] is detected" may be interpreted to mean "upon determination … …" or "in response to determination … …" or "after [ stated condition or event ] is detected" or "in response to [ stated condition or event ] being detected", depending on the context.

As used herein, the term "resolution" of a display refers to the number of pixels (also referred to as "pixel count" or "pixel resolution") along each axis or in each dimension of the display. For example, the display may have a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels. Further, as used herein, the term "resolution" of a multifunction device refers to the resolution of a display in the multifunction device. The term "resolution" does not imply any limitation on the size of each pixel or the pitch of the pixels. For example, the second display having a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels has a lower resolution than the first display having a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels. It should be noted, however, that the physical size of the display depends not only on the pixel resolution, but also on many other factors including the pixel size and pixel pitch. Thus, the first display may have the same, smaller, or larger physical size as compared to the second display.

Embodiments of electronic devices, user interfaces of such devices, and associated processes for using such devices are described. In some embodiments, the device is a portable communication device, such as a mobile telephone, that also contains other functions, such as PDA and/or music player functions. Exemplary embodiments of portable multifunction devices include, but are not limited to, those available from apple Inc. (Cupertino, California)iPodiPodAndprovided is a device. Other portable electronic devices may also be used, such as laptop computers or tablet computers with touch-sensitive surfaces (e.g., touch screen displays and/or touch pads). It should also be understood that in some embodiments, the device is not a portable communication device, but is a desktop computer with a touch-sensitive surface (e.g., a touch screen display and/or a touch pad).

In the following discussion, electronic devices are described that include a display and a touch-sensitive surface. However, it should be understood that the electronic device may include one or more other physical user interface devices, such as a physical keyboard, mouse, and/or joystick.

The device typically supports a variety of applications such as one or more of the following: a mapping application, a rendering application, a word processing application, a website building application, a disk authoring application, a spreadsheet application, a gaming application, a telephone application, a video conferencing application, an email application, an instant messaging application, a fitness support application, a photo management application, a digital camera application, a digital video camera application, a web browsing application, a digital music player application, and/or a digital video player application.

Various applications executable on the device may use at least one common physical user interface device, such as a touch-sensitive surface. One or more functions of the touch-sensitive surface and corresponding information displayed on the device may be adjusted and/or varied from application to application and/or within a respective application. In this way, a common physical architecture of the devices (e.g., a touch-sensitive surface) may support a variety of applications with a user interface that is intuitive and transparent to the user.

Attention is now directed to embodiments of portable devices having touch-sensitive displays. FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating a portable multifunction device 100 with a touch-sensitive display 112 in accordance with some embodiments. Touch-sensitive display 112 is sometimes referred to as a "touch screen" for convenience, and may also be referred to or referred to as a touch-sensitive display system. Device 100 may include memory 102, which may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media, a memory controller 122, one or more processing units (CPUs) 120, a peripherals interface 118, RF circuitry 108, audio circuitry 110, speaker 111, microphone 113, an input/output (I/O) subsystem 106, other input or control devices 116, and an external port 124. The device 100 may include one or more optical sensors 164. These components may communicate over one or more communication buses or signal lines 103.

It should be appreciated that device 100 is only one example of a portable multifunction device, and that device 100 may have more or fewer components than shown, may combine two or more components, or may have a different configuration or arrangement of components. The various components shown in fig. 1A may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of both hardware and software, including one or more signal processing circuits and/or application specific integrated circuits.

The memory 102 may comprise high-speed random access memory, and may also comprise non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state memory devices. Access to memory 102 by other components of device 100, such as CPU 120 and peripherals interface 118, may be controlled by memory controller 122.

Peripheral interface 118 may be used to couple the input and output peripherals of the device to CPU 120 and memory 102. The one or more processors 120 run or execute various software programs and/or sets of instructions stored in the memory 102 to perform various functions of the device 100 and process data.

In some embodiments, peripherals interface 118, CPU 120, and memory controller 122 may be implemented on a single chip, such as chip 104. In some other embodiments, peripherals interface 118, CPU 120, and memory controller 122 can be implemented on separate chips.

RF (radio frequency) circuitry 108 receives and transmits RF signals (also referred to as electromagnetic signals). RF circuitry 108 converts electrical signals to/from electromagnetic signals and communicates with communication networks and other communication devices via electromagnetic signals. RF circuitry 108 may comprise well-known circuitry for performing these functions, including, but not limited to, an antenna system, an RF transceiver, one or more amplifiers, a tuner, one or more oscillators, a digital signal processor, a CODEC chipset, a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, memory, and the like. RF circuitry 108 may communicate with networks such as the internet, also known as the World Wide Web (WWW), intranet and/or wireless networks (e.g., cellular telephone networks, wireless Local Area Networks (LANs), and/or Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs)), among other devices, via wireless communications. Wireless communications may use any of a number of communication standards, protocols, and techniques including, but not limited to, global system for mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Bluetooth (Bluetooth), wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) (e.g., IEEE802.11a, IEEE802.11 b, IEEE802.11 g, and/or IEEE802.11 n), voice over internet Protocol (VoIP), Wi-MAX, email protocols (e.g., Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) and/or Post Office Protocol (POP)), instant Messaging (e.g., extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP), instant Messaging and Presence using extended Session Initiation Protocol (Session Initiation Protocol), SIMPLE), Instant Messaging and Presence Service (IMPS)), and/or Short Message Service (SMS), or any other suitable communication protocol including communication protocols not yet developed by the filing date of this document.

Audio circuitry 110, speaker 111, and microphone 113 provide an audio interface between a user and device 100. The audio circuitry 110 receives audio data from the peripherals interface 118, converts the audio data to an electrical signal, and transmits the electrical signal to the speaker 111. The speaker 111 converts the electrical signals into sound waves audible to a human. The audio circuit 110 also receives electrical signals converted from sound waves by the microphone 113. The audio circuit 110 converts the electrical signals to audio data and transmits the audio data to the peripheral interface 118 for processing. Audio data may be retrieved from memory 102 and/or RF circuitry 108 and/or transmitted to memory 102 and/or RF circuitry 108 through peripherals interface 118. In some embodiments, the audio circuitry 110 also includes a headphone jack (e.g., 212 of fig. 2). The headphone jack provides an interface between the audio circuitry 110 and a removable audio input/output peripheral (e.g., an output-only headphone, or a headphone having both an output (e.g., a monaural or binaural headphone) and an input (e.g., a microphone)).

The I/O subsystem 106 couples input/output peripherals on the device 100, such as the touch screen 112 and other input control devices 116, to the peripheral interface 118. The I/O subsystem 106 may include one or more input controllers 160 for a display controller 156 and other input or control devices. The one or more input controllers 160 receive/send electrical signals from/to other input or control devices 116. Other input control devices 116 may include physical buttons (e.g., push buttons, rocker buttons, etc.), dials, slide switches, joysticks, ratchets, and the like. In some alternative embodiments, the input controller 160 may be coupled to any of (or not) the following: a keyboard, an infrared port, a USB port, and a pointing device such as a mouse. The one or more buttons (e.g., 208 of fig. 2) may include an up/down button for volume control of the speaker 111 and/or microphone 113. The one or more buttons may include a push button (e.g., 206 of fig. 2).

Touch-sensitive display 112 provides an input interface and an output interface between the device and a user. The display controller 156 receives electrical signals from the touch screen 112 and/or sends electrical signals to the touch screen 112. The touch screen 112 displays visual output to the user. The visual output may include graphics, text, icons, video, and any combination thereof (collectively "graphics"). In some embodiments, some or all of the visual output may correspond to user interface objects.

The touch screen 112 has a touch-sensitive surface, sensor, or set of sensors that accept input from a user based on tactile sensation and/or tactile contact. The touch screen 112 and the display controller 156 (along with any associated modules and/or sets of instructions in the memory 102) detect contact (and any movement or blockage of contact) on the touch screen 112 and convert the detected contact into interaction with user interface objects (e.g., one or more soft keys, icons, web pages, or images) displayed on the touch screen 112. In an exemplary embodiment, the point of contact between the touch screen 112 and the user corresponds to a finger of the user.

The touch screen 112 may use LCD (liquid crystal display) technology, LPD (light emitting polymer display) technology, or LED (light emitting diode) technology, although other display technologies may be used in other embodiments. The touch screen 112 and display controller 156 may detect contact and any movement or breaking thereof using any of a variety of touch sensing technologies now known or later developed, including but not limited to capacitive, resistive, infrared, and surface acoustic wave technologies, as well as other proximity sensor arrays or other elements for determining one or more points of contact with the touch screen 112. In an exemplary embodiment, use is made of a material such as that available from apple Inc. (Cupertino, California)iPodiPodAndprojected mutual capacitance sensing techniques of (1).

The touch screen 112 may have a video resolution in excess of 100 dpi. In some embodiments, the touch screen has a video resolution of about 160 dpi. The user may make contact with the touch screen 112 using any suitable object or accessory (e.g., a stylus, a finger, etc.). In some embodiments, the user interface is designed to work primarily with finger-based contacts and gestures, which are less precise than stylus-based input due to the larger contact area of the finger on the touch-sensitive screen. In some embodiments, the device translates the coarse finger-based input into a precise pointer/cursor position or command for performing the action desired by the user.

In some embodiments, in addition to a touch screen, the device 100 may also include a touch pad (not shown) for activating or deactivating certain functions. In some embodiments, the touch pad is a touch-sensitive area of the device that, unlike a touch-sensitive screen, does not display visual output. The touch pad may be a touch-sensitive surface separate from the touch screen 112 or an extension of the touch-sensitive surface formed by the touch screen.

The device 100 also includes a power system 162 that provides power to the various components. Power system 162 may include a power management system, one or more power sources (e.g., battery, Alternating Current (AC)), a recharging system, a power failure detection circuit, a power converter or inverter, a power status indicator (e.g., a Light Emitting Diode (LED)), and any other components associated with the generation, management, and distribution of power in a portable device.

The device 100 may also include one or more optical sensors 164. FIG. 1A shows an optical sensor coupled to an optical sensor controller 158 in the I/O subsystem 106. The optical sensor 164 may include a Charge Coupled Device (CCD), or a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) phototransistor. The optical sensor 164 receives light from the environment projected through one or more lenses and converts the light into data representing an image. In conjunction with imaging module 143 (also referred to as a camera module), optical sensor 164 may capture still images or video. In some embodiments, the optical sensor is located on the back of the device 100, opposite the touch screen display 112 on the front of the device, so that the touch screen display can be used as a viewfinder for still and/or video image acquisition. In some embodiments, another optical sensor is located on the front of the device so that an image of the user may be obtained for the video conference while the user views other video conference participants on the touch screen display.

The device 100 may also include one or more proximity sensors 166. FIG. 1A shows a proximity sensor 166 coupled to peripherals interface 118. Alternatively, the proximity sensor 166 may be coupled to the input controller 160 in the I/O subsystem 106. In some embodiments, when the multifunction device is placed near the user's ear (e.g., when the user is making a phone call), the proximity sensor turns off the touch screen 112 and disables the touch screen 112.

Device 100 may also include one or more accelerometers 168. FIG. 1A shows accelerometer 168 coupled to peripherals interface 118. Alternatively, accelerometer 168 may be coupled to input controller 160 in I/O subsystem 106. In some embodiments, information is displayed on a touch screen display in a portrait view or a landscape view based on analysis of data received from one or more accelerometers. In addition to the accelerometer 168, the device 100 optionally also includes a magnetometer (not shown) and a GPS (or GLONASS or other global navigation system) receiver (not shown) for obtaining information related to the position and orientation (e.g., portrait or landscape) of the device 100.

In some embodiments, the software components stored in memory 102 include an operating system 126, a communication module (or set of instructions) 128, a contact/motion module (or set of instructions) 130, a graphics module (or set of instructions) 132, a text input module (or set of instructions) 134, a Global Positioning System (GPS) module (or set of instructions) 135, and an application program (or set of instructions) 136. Furthermore, in some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1A and 3, the memory 102 stores a device/global internal state 157. Device/global internal state 157 includes one or more of: active application state, which indicates which applications (if any) are currently active; display status indicating which applications, views, or other information occupy various regions of the touch screen display 112; sensor states, including information obtained from the various sensors of the device and the input control device 116; and position information relating to the position and/or attitude of the device.

The operating system 126 (e.g., Darwin, RTXC, LINUX, UNIX, OS X, WINDOWS, or an embedded operating system such as VxWorks) includes various software components and/or drivers for controlling and managing general system tasks (e.g., memory management, storage device control, power management, etc.) and facilitates communication between the various hardware and software components.

Communications module 128 facilitates communications with other devices via one or more external ports 124, and also includes various software components for handling data received by RF circuitry 108 and/or external ports 124. The external port 124 (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB), FIREWIRE, etc.) is adapted for coupling directly to other devices or indirectly to other devices via a network (e.g., the internet, wireless LAN, etc.). In some embodiments, the external port is a multi-pin (e.g., 30-pin) connector that is the same as or similar to and/or compatible with a 30-pin connector used on iPod (apple trademark) devices.

The contact/motion module 130 may detect contact with the touch screen 112 (in conjunction with the display controller 156) and other touch sensitive devices (e.g., a touch pad or physical ratchet). Contact/motion module 130 includes various software components for performing various operations related to detecting contact, such as determining whether contact has occurred (e.g., detecting a finger-down event), determining whether there is movement of the contact and tracking movement across the touch-sensitive surface (e.g., detecting one or more finger-dragging events), and determining whether contact has ceased (e.g., detecting a finger-up event or a blockage of contact). The contact/motion module 130 receives contact data from the touch-sensitive surface. Determining the movement of the point of contact represented by the series of contact data may include determining a velocity (magnitude), a velocity (magnitude and direction), and/or an acceleration (change in magnitude and/or direction) of the point of contact. These operations may be applied to a single contact (e.g., a single finger contact) or to multiple simultaneous contacts (e.g., "multi-touch"/multiple finger contacts). In some embodiments, the contact/motion module 130 and the display controller 156 detect contact on a touch pad.

The contact/motion module 130 may detect gestures input by the user. Different gestures on the touch-sensitive surface have different contact patterns. Thus, gestures may be detected by detecting a particular contact pattern. For example, detecting a finger tap gesture includes detecting a finger-down event followed by detecting a finger-up (lift-off) event at the same location (or substantially the same location) as the finger-down event (e.g., at the location of an icon). As another example, detecting a finger swipe gesture on the touch-sensitive surface includes detecting a finger-down event, followed by detecting one or more finger-drag events, and followed by subsequently detecting a finger-up (lift-off) event.

The graphics module 132 includes various known software components for rendering and displaying graphics on the touch screen 112 or other display, including components for changing the intensity of the displayed graphics. As used herein, the term "graphic" includes any object that may be displayed to a user, including, but not limited to, text, web pages, icons (e.g., user interface objects including soft keys), digital images, videos, animations and the like.

In some embodiments, graphics module 132 stores data representing graphics to be used. Each graphic may be assigned a corresponding code. Graphics module 132 receives one or more codes from an application or the like that specify graphics to be displayed, along with coordinate data and other graphics property data, if necessary, and then generates screen image data for output to display controller 156.

Text input module 134, which may be a component of graphics module 132, provides a soft keyboard for entering text in various applications, such as contacts 137, email 140, IM 141, browser 147, and any other application that requires text input.

The GPS module 135 determines the location of the device and provides this information for use by various applications (e.g., to the phone 138 for use in location-based dialing, to the camera module 143 as picture/video metadata, and to applications that provide location-based services, such as weather widgets, local yellow pages widgets, and map/navigation widgets).

The application programs 136 may include the following modules (or sets of instructions), or a subset or superset thereof:

● contact module 137 (sometimes referred to as an address book or contact list);

● a telephone module 138;

● video conferencing module 139;

● e-mail client module 140;

● Instant Messaging (IM) module 141;

● fitness support module 142;

● camera module 143 for still and/or video images;

● an image management module 144;

● browser module 147;

● calendar module 148;

● widget module 149, which may include one or more of the following: a weather widget 149-1, a stock widget 149-2, a calculator widget 149-3, an alarm widget 149-4, a thesaurus widget 149-5, and other widgets obtained by the user and a user established widget 149-6;

● a widget builder module 150 for generating a user-created widget 149-6;

● search module 151;

● video and music player module 152, which may be comprised of a video player module and a music player module;

● memo module 153;

● map module 154; and/or

● online video module 155.

Examples of other applications 136 that may be stored in memory 102 include other word processing applications, other image editing applications, drawing applications, rendering applications, JAVA-enabled applications, encryption, digital rights management, voice recognition, and voice replication.

In conjunction with touch screen 112, display controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, and text input module 134, contacts module 137 may be used to manage an address book or contact list (e.g., stored in memory 102 or in application internal state 192 of contacts module 137 in memory 370), including: adding the name to the address book; deleting the name from the address book; associating a telephone number, email address, physical address or other information with a name; associating an image with a name; classifying and sorting the names; providing a telephone number or email address to initiate and/or facilitate communication through telephone 138, video conference 139, email 140, or IM 141; and so on.

In conjunction with RF circuitry 108, audio circuitry 110, speaker 111, microphone 113, touch screen 112, display controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, and text input module 134, phone module 138 may be used to enter a sequence of characters corresponding to a phone number, access one or more phone numbers in address book 137, modify a phone number that has been entered, dial a corresponding phone number, conduct a conversation, and disconnect or hang up when the conversation is complete. As mentioned above, wireless communication may use any of a variety of communication standards, protocols, and technologies.

In conjunction with RF circuitry 108, audio circuitry 110, speaker 111, microphone 113, touch screen 112, display controller 156, optical sensor 164, optical sensor controller 158, contact module 130, graphics module 132, text input module 134, contact list 137, and phone module 138, video conference module 139 includes executable instructions to: a video conference between a user and one or more other participants is initiated, conducted, and terminated according to user instructions.

In conjunction with the RF circuitry 108, the touch screen 112, the display controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, and the text input module 134, the email client module 140 includes executable instructions to: email is created, sent, received and managed in response to user instructions. In conjunction with the image management module 144, the email client module 140 makes it extremely easy to create and send emails with still images or video images captured with the camera module 143.

In conjunction with the RF circuitry 108, the touch screen 112, the display controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, and the text input module 134, the instant messaging module 141 includes executable instructions to: entering a sequence of characters corresponding to an instant message, modifying previously entered characters, transmitting a corresponding instant message (e.g., using a Short Message Service (SMS) or Multimedia Message Service (MMS) protocol for a phone-based instant message, or using XMPP, SIMPLE, or IMPS for an internet-based instant message), receiving the instant message, and viewing the received instant message. In some embodiments, the transmitted and/or received instant messages may include graphics, photos, audio files, video files, and/or other attachments as supported in MMS and/or Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS). As used herein, "instant messaging" refers to both telephony-based messages (e.g., messages sent using SMS or MMS) and internet-based messages (e.g., messages sent using XMPP, SIMPLE, or IMPS).

In conjunction with RF circuitry 108, touch screen 112, display controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, text input module 134, GPS module 135, map module 154, and music player module 146, fitness support module 142 includes executable instructions to: establish fitness programs (e.g., with respect to time, distance, and/or calorie burn goals), communicate with fitness sensors (sports devices), receive fitness sensor data, calibrate sensors used to monitor fitness, select and play music for fitness, and display, store, and transmit fitness data.

In conjunction with touch screen 112, display controller 156, optical sensor 164, optical sensor controller 158, contact module 130, graphics module 132, and image management module 144, camera module 143 includes executable instructions to: still images or video, including video streams, are captured and stored into the memory 102, characteristics of the still images or video are modified, or the still images or video are deleted from the memory 102.

In conjunction with the touch screen 112, the display controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, the text input module 134, and the camera module 143, the image management module 144 includes executable instructions to: arrange, modify (e.g., edit), or otherwise manipulate, mark, delete, present (e.g., with a digital slide show or photo album), and store still and/or video images.

In conjunction with the RF circuitry 108, the touch screen 112, the display system controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, and the text input module 134, the browser module 147 includes executable instructions to: browsing the internet according to user instructions includes searching, linking to, receiving, and displaying web pages or portions thereof, as well as attachments and other files linked to web pages.

In conjunction with the RF circuitry 108, the touch screen 112, the display system controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, the text input module 134, the email client module 140, and the browser module 147, the calendar module 148 includes executable instructions to: the calendar and data associated with the calendar (e.g., calendar entries, to-do lists, etc.) are created, displayed, modified, and stored according to user instructions.

In conjunction with RF circuitry 108, touch screen 112, display system controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, text input module 134, and browser module 147, widget module 149 is a micro-application (e.g., weather widget 149-1, stock widget 149-2, calculator widget 149-3, alarm widget 149-4, and dictionary widget 149-5) that may be downloaded and used by a user, or a micro-application (e.g., user-created widget 149-6) created by a user. In some embodiments, the widgets include HTML (HyperText markup language) files, CSS (cascading Style sheets) files, and JavaScript files. In some embodiments, Widgets include XML (extensible markup language) files and JavaScript files (e.g., Yahoo! Widgets).

In conjunction with RF circuitry 108, touch screen 112, display system controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, text input module 134, and browser module 147, widget builder module 150 may be used by a user to build a widget (e.g., change a user-specified portion of a web page into a widget).

In conjunction with the touch screen 112, the display system controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, and the text input module 134, the search module 151 includes executable instructions for: text, music, sound, images, video, and/or other files in memory 102 that match one or more search criteria (e.g., one or more user-specified search terms) are searched according to user instructions.

In conjunction with touch screen 112, display system controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, audio circuitry 110, speakers 111, RF circuitry 108, and browser module 147, video and music player module 152 includes executable instructions to allow a user to download and playback recorded music and other sound files (e.g., MP3 or AAC files) stored in one or more file formats, and executable instructions to display, render, or otherwise play back video (e.g., on touch screen 112 or on an external display connected via external port 124). In some embodiments, the device 100 may include the functionality of an MP3 player such as the iPod (trademark of apple Inc.).

In conjunction with the touch screen 112, the display controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphic module 132, and the text input module 134, the memo module 153 includes executable instructions for: memorandums, to-do lists, and the like are created and managed according to user instructions.

In conjunction with the RF circuitry 108, the touch screen 112, the display system controller 156, the contact module 130, the graphics module 132, the text input module 134, the GPS module 135, and the browser module 147, the map module 154 may be used to receive, display, modify, and store maps and data associated with maps (e.g., driving directions; data about stores and other points of interest located at or near a particular location; and other data based on location) according to user instructions.

In conjunction with touch screen 112, display system controller 156, contact module 130, graphics module 132, audio circuitry 110, speaker 111, RF circuitry 108, text input module 134, email client module 140, and browser module 147, online video module 155 includes executable instructions to: allowing a user to access, browse, receive (e.g., by streaming and/or downloading), playback (e.g., on a touch-sensitive screen, or on an external display connected via external port 124), send email with a link to a particular online video, and otherwise manage online videos in one or more file formats (e.g., h.264). In some embodiments, instant messaging module 141 (rather than email client module 140) is used to send a link to a particular online video.

Each of the modules and applications identified above corresponds to a set of executable instructions for performing one or more of the functions described above and the methods described in this application (e.g., computer-implemented methods and other information processing methods described herein). Such modules (i.e., sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or otherwise rearranged in various embodiments. In some embodiments, memory 102 may store a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Further, memory 102 may store additional modules and data structures not described above.

In some embodiments, device 100 is a device that exclusively performs operations of a predefined set of functions on the device via a touch screen and/or touchpad. By using a touch screen and/or touch pad as the primary input control device for the operation of the device 100, the number of physical input control devices (e.g., push buttons, dials, and the like) on the device 100 may be reduced.

The predefined set of functions that can be exclusively performed via the touch screen and/or the touch pad includes navigation between user interfaces. In some embodiments, the touchpad, when touched by a user, navigates device 100 from any user interface that may be displayed on device 100 to a main, home, or root menu. In such embodiments, the touch pad may be referred to as a "menu button". In some other embodiments, the menu button may be a physical press button or other physical input control device, rather than a touchpad.

One or more content items 600 may be stored in the memory 102. Content item 600 may include text, music, sound, images, video, and/or other files. The corresponding content item 600 may be opened by any compatible or suitable application 136.

FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating exemplary components for event handling, according to some embodiments. In some embodiments, memory 102 (in FIG. 1A) or 370 (FIG. 3) includes event classifier 170 (e.g., in operating system 126) and respective application 136-1 (e.g., any of applications 137-151, 155, 380-390 described above).

Event classifier 170 receives the event information and determines application 136-1 and an application view 191 of application 136-1 to which the event information is to be delivered. Event sorter 170 includes an event monitor 171 and an event dispatcher module 174. In some embodiments, the application 136-1 includes an application internal state 192 that indicates a current application view that is displayed on the touch-sensitive display 112 while the application is active or executing. In some embodiments, the device/global internal state 157 is used by the event classifier 170 to determine which application(s) are currently active, and the application internal state 192 is used by the event classifier 170 to determine the application view 191 to which event information is to be delivered.

In some embodiments, the application internal state 192 includes additional information such as one or more of: resume information to be used when the application 136-1 resumes execution, user interface state information indicating that information is being displayed by the application 136-1 or is ready to be displayed by the application 136-1, a state queue for enabling a user to return to a previous state or view of the application 136-1, and a redo/redo queue of previous actions taken by the user.

Event monitor 171 receives event information from peripheral interface 118. The event information includes information about a sub-event (e.g., a user touch on touch-sensitive display 112 that is part of a multi-touch gesture). Peripherals interface 118 transmits information that it receives from I/O subsystem 106 or sensors (e.g., proximity sensor 166), accelerometer 168, and/or microphone 113 (via audio circuitry 110). Information received by peripheral interface 118 from I/O subsystem 106 includes information from touch-sensitive display 112 or a touch-sensitive surface.

In some embodiments, event monitor 171 sends requests to peripheral interface 118 at predetermined intervals. In response, peripheral interface 118 transmits the event information. In other embodiments, peripheral interface 118 transmits event information only when there is a significant event (e.g., receiving input exceeding a predetermined noise threshold and/or receiving input for more than a predetermined duration).

In some embodiments, event classifier 170 also includes a hit (hit) view determination module 172 and/or an active event recognizer determination module 173.

Hit view determination module 172 provides a software program for determining where a sub-event occurs within one or more views while touch-sensitive display 112 displays the one or more views. A view is made up of controls and other elements that a user can see on a display.

Another aspect of the user interface associated with an application is a set of views, sometimes referred to herein as application views or user interface windows, in which information is displayed and touch-based gestures occur. The application view in which the touch is detected (the application view of the respective application) may correspond to a schema or schema hierarchy within the view hierarchy of the application. For example, the lowest hierarchical view in which a touch is detected may be referred to as a hit view, and a set of events recognized as appropriate inputs may be determined based at least in part on the hit view of the initial touch that began the touch-based gesture.

Hit view determination module 172 receives information related to sub-events of the touch-based gesture. When the application has multiple views organized in a hierarchy, hit view determination module 172 identifies the hit view as the lowest view in the hierarchy that should handle the sub-event. In most cases, the hit view is the lowest level view of the occurrence of the initiating sub-event (i.e., the first sub-event in the sequence of sub-events that form an event or potential event). Once a hit view is identified by the hit view determination module, the hit view typically receives all sub-events related to the same touch or input source for which the view was identified as a hit view.

The active event recognizer determination module 173 determines which view or views within the view hierarchy should receive a particular sequence of sub-events. In some embodiments, active event recognizer determination module 173 determines that only the hit view should receive a particular sequence of sub-events. In other embodiments, active event recognizer determination module 173 determines that all views that include the physical location of the sub-event are the active views involved, and thus determines that all involved active views should receive a particular sequence of sub-events. In other embodiments, even if the touch sub-event is limited to the area associated with one particular view at all, the view higher in the hierarchy will remain the active view involved.

The event dispatcher module 174 dispatches the event information to an event recognizer (e.g., event recognizer 180). In embodiments that include an active event recognizer determination module 173, the event dispatcher module 174 delivers the event information determined by the active event recognizer determination module 173 to the event recognizer. In some embodiments, the event dispatcher module 174 stores the event information retrieved by the respective event receiver module 182 in an event queue.

In some embodiments, the operating system 126 includes an event classifier 170. Alternatively, application 136-1 includes event classifier 170. In yet other embodiments, the event classifier 170 is a stand-alone module or part of another module (e.g., the contact/motion module 130) stored in the memory 102.

In some embodiments, the application 136-1 includes a plurality of event handlers 190 and one or more application views 191, each of which includes instructions for handling touch events occurring within a respective view of the application's user interface. Each application view 191 of the application 136-1 includes one or more event recognizers 180. Typically, the respective application view 191 includes a plurality of event recognizers 180. In other embodiments, one or more of the event recognizers 180 are part of a separate module, such as a user interface suite (not shown) or a higher level object from which the application 136-1 inherits methods and other properties. In some embodiments, respective event handlers 190 comprise one or more of: data updater 176, object updater 177, GUI updater 178, and/or event data 179 received from event sorter 170. Event handler 190 may utilize or call data updater 176, object updater 177, or GUI updater 178 to update application internal state 192. Alternatively, one or more of the application views 191 include one or more respective event handlers 190. Also, in some embodiments, one or more of data updater 176, object updater 177, and GUI updater 178 are included in a respective application view 191.

The respective event recognizer 180 receives event information (e.g., event data 179) from the event classifier 170 and identifies events according to the event information. The event recognizer 180 includes an event receiver 182 and an event comparator 184. In some embodiments, the event recognizer 180 also includes at least a subset of: metadata 183, and event delivery instructions 188 (which may include sub-event delivery instructions).

The event receiver 182 receives event information from the event classifier 170. The event information includes information about a sub-event (e.g., touch or touch movement). Depending on the sub-event, the event information also includes additional information such as the location of the sub-event. When the sub-event relates to the motion of the touch, the event information may also include the velocity and direction of the sub-event. In some embodiments, the event comprises rotation of the device from one orientation to another (e.g., from a portrait orientation to a landscape orientation, or from a landscape orientation to a portrait orientation), and the event information comprises corresponding information about the current orientation of the device (also referred to as the device pose).

Event comparator 184 compares the event information to predefined event or sub-event definitions and determines an event or sub-event, or determines or updates the state of an event or sub-event, based on the comparison. In some embodiments, event comparator 184 includes event definitions 186. Event definition 186 contains definitions of events (e.g., a predefined sequence of sub-events), such as event 1(187-1), event 2(187-2), and other events. In some embodiments, sub-events in event 187 include, for example, touch start, touch end, touch move, touch cancel, and multi-touch. In one example, event 1(l87-l) is defined as a double touch on the displayed object. A two-touch, for example, includes a first touch (touch start) on a displayed object for a predetermined phase, a first touch-up (touch end) for a predetermined phase, a second touch (touch start) on a displayed object for a predetermined phase, and a second touch-up (touch end) for a predetermined phase. In another example, event 2(187-2) is defined as a drag on the displayed object. Dragging, for example, includes a touch (or contact) on the displayed object for a predetermined period, movement of the touch across the touch-sensitive display 112, and lift-off of the touch (touch-off). In some embodiments, an event also includes information for one or more associated event handlers 190.

In some embodiments, event definition 187 includes definitions of events for respective user interface objects. In some embodiments, event comparator 184 performs a hit test to determine which user interface object is associated with a sub-event. For example, in an application view where three user interface objects are displayed on touch-sensitive display 112, when a touch on touch-sensitive display 112 is detected, event comparator 184 performs a hit test to determine which of the three user interface objects is associated with the touch (sub-event). If each displayed object is associated with a respective event handler 190, the event comparator uses the results of the hit test to determine which event handler 190 should be activated. For example, event comparator 184 selects the event handler associated with the sub-event and object that triggered the hit test.

In some embodiments, the definition of the respective event 187 also includes a delay action that delays the delivery of the event information until after it has been determined whether the sequence of sub-events corresponds to an event type of event recognizer or not.

When the respective event recognizer 180 determines that the series of sub-events does not match any of the events in the event definition 186, the respective event recognizer 180 enters a state where an event is not possible, an event fails, or an event ends, after which the respective event recognizer 180 disregards subsequent sub-events of the touch-based gesture. In this case, other event recognizers (if any) that are still active for the hit view continue to track and process sub-events of the ongoing touch-based gesture.

In some embodiments, the respective event recognizer 180 includes metadata 183 having configurable properties, flags, and/or lists indicating how the event delivery system should perform sub-event delivery to the involved active event recognizer. In some embodiments, the metadata 183 includes configurable properties, flags, and/or lists that indicate how event recognizers may interact with each other. In some embodiments, metadata 183 includes configurable properties, flags, and/or lists that indicate whether a sub-event is delivered to a different level in the view or schema hierarchy.

In some embodiments, when one or more particular sub-events of an event are recognized, the respective event recognizer 180 activates an event handler 190 associated with the event. In some embodiments, the respective event recognizer 180 delivers event information associated with the event to the event handler 190. Activating event handler 190 is different from sending (and deferring sending) sub-events to the respective hit views. In some embodiments, event recognizer 180 throws (throw) a flag associated with a recognized event, and event handler 190 associated with the flag captures the flag and performs a predefined process.

In some embodiments, event delivery instructions 188 include sub-event delivery instructions that deliver event information about sub-events without activating an event handler. Instead, the sub-event delivery instructions deliver event information to event handlers associated with the series of sub-events or deliver event information to the involved active views. An event handler associated with the series of sub-events or associated with the involved active view receives event information and performs a predetermined process.

In some embodiments, data updater 176 creates and updates data for use in application 136-1. For example, data updater 176 updates a phone number for use in contacts module 137, or stores a video file for use in video player module 145. In some embodiments, object updater 177 builds and updates objects for use in application 136-1. For example, the object updater 176 creates a new user interface object, or updates the location of a user interface object. GUI updater 178 updates the GUI. For example, GUI updater 178 prepares display information and sends it to graphics module 132 for display on a touch-sensitive display.

In some embodiments, event handler 190 includes or has access to data updater 176, object updater 177, and GUI updater 178. In some embodiments, data updater 176, object updater 177, and GUI updater 178 are included in a single module of a respective application 136-1 or application view 191. In other embodiments, the updater is included in two or more software modules.

It should be understood that the foregoing discussion regarding event handling of user touches on a touch-sensitive display also applies to other forms of user input to operate multifunction device 100 with an input device (not all input devices are initiated on a touch-sensitive screen), such as: coordinating mouse movement with mouse button presses (with or without single or multiple keyboard presses or holds); the user on the touch pad moves to touch, drag, scroll and the like; inputting by a stylus; movement of the device; verbal instructions; the detected eye movement; a biometric input; and/or any combination thereof, which may be used as input corresponding to a sub-event defining an event to be recognized.

Fig. 2 illustrates a portable multifunction device 100 with a touch screen 112 in accordance with some embodiments. A touch screen may display one or more graphics within a User Interface (UI) 200. In this embodiment, as well as others described below, a user may select one or more of the graphics by making a gesture on the graphics, for example, using one or more fingers 202 (not drawn to scale in the figure) or one or more styluses 203 (not drawn to scale in the figure). In some embodiments, selection of one or more graphics occurs when a user blocks contact with the one or more graphics. In some embodiments, the gesture may include one or more taps, one or more swipes (left-to-right, right-to-left, upward and/or downward), and/or a scroll of a finger (left-to-right, right-to-left, upward and/or downward) that has made contact with the device 100. In some embodiments, inadvertent contact with a graphic may not select the graphic. For example, a swipe gesture that swipes across the application icon may not select the corresponding application when the gesture corresponding to the selection is a tap.

Device 100 may also include one or more physical buttons, such as a "home" or menu button 204. As previously described, the menu button 204 may be used to navigate to any application 136 in a collection of applications that may be executed on the device 100. Alternatively, in some embodiments, the menu button is implemented as a soft key in a GUI displayed on the touch screen 112.

In an embodiment, device 100 includes touch screen 112, menu button 204, press button 206 for powering the device on/off and locking the device, volume adjustment button 208, Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card slot 210, headset jack 212, and docking/charging external port 124. Pressing the button 206 may be used to power on/off the device by depressing the button and holding the button in a depressed state for a predefined time interval; locking the device by depressing the button and releasing the button before the predefined time interval has elapsed; and/or unlocking the device or initiating an unlocking process. In an alternative embodiment, device 100 may also accept verbal input via microphone 113 regarding activation or deactivation of some functions.

FIG. 3A is a block diagram of an exemplary multifunction device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface, according to some embodiments. The device 300 need not be portable. In some embodiments, device 300 is a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a tablet computer, a multimedia player device, a navigation device, an educational device (e.g., a child's learning toy), a gaming system, or a control device (e.g., a home or industrial controller). Device 300 typically includes one or more processing units (CPUs) 310, one or more network or other communication interfaces 360, memory 370, and one or more communication buses 320 for interconnecting these components. The communication bus 320 may include circuitry (sometimes called a chipset) that interconnects and controls communication between system components. The device 300 includes an input/output (I/O) interface 330, the I/O interface 330 including a display 340, the display 340 typically being a touch screen display. The I/O interface 330 may also include a keyboard and/or mouse (or other pointing device) 350 and a touchpad 355. Memory 370 comprises high speed random access memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR RAM or other random access solid state memory devices; and may comprise non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state storage devices. Memory 370 may optionally include one or more storage devices located remotely from the CPU 310. In some embodiments, memory 370 stores programs, modules, and data structures similar to those stored in memory 102 of portable multifunction device 100 (fig. 1), or a subset thereof. Furthermore, memory 370 may store additional programs, modules, and data structures not present in memory 102 of portable multifunction device 100. For example, memory 370 of device 300 may store drawing module 380, presentation module 382, word processing module 384, website building module 386, disk authoring module 388, and/or spreadsheet module 390, while memory 102 (FIG. 1) of portable multifunction device 100 may not store these modules.

One or more content items 600 may be stored in memory 370. Content item 600 may include text, music, sound, images, video, and/or other files. The corresponding content item 600 may be opened by any compatible or suitable application 136.

Each of the above-identified elements in fig. 3A may be stored in one or more of the previously mentioned memory devices. Each of the above-identified modules corresponds to a set of instructions for performing a function described above. The above identified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or otherwise rearranged in various embodiments. In some embodiments, memory 370 may store a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Further, memory 370 may store additional modules and data structures not described above.

Although electronic device 300 is depicted as a multifunction device including I/O interface 330 incorporating keyboard/mouse 350 and touchpad 355, in some embodiments, electronic device 300-1 as illustrated in FIG. 3B is a portable electronic device that uses touch screen 112 without a keyboard, mouse, or separate touchpad. In some embodiments, the device 300 is a portable electronic device having a touch screen 112 and primarily functioning as a portable media player.

For example, the portable electronic device 300-1 includes a touch screen 112 having a width 112-w and a height 112-h, both of which are 2 inches in this example. The user's thumb 399, shown superimposed on the touch screen 112, is about half the width 112-w or height 112-h of the touch screen 112.

Thus, in some portable media player embodiments, the touch screen 112 may have physical dimensions of 2 inches or less in width and/or height. In some portable media player embodiments, the touch screen 112 may have a screen resolution of 600 pixels or less in width and/or height. In some portable media player embodiments, the touch screen 112 may have a screen resolution of 900 pixels or less in width and/or height. In some portable media player embodiments, the touch screen 112 may have a screen resolution of 1200 pixels or less in width and/or height.

In some embodiments, memory 370 may store a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. In some portable media player embodiments, the electronic device 300-1 may be a smaller physical device, and typically will not include the specific modules, data structures, and applications identified above that are to be used in a fully featured portable multifunction device, e.g., as the portable electronic device 300-1 with the touch screen 112, may not include one or more of the following: a phone module 138, an image management module 144, a drawing module 380, a presentation module 382, a word processing module 384, a website building module 386, and a disk making module 388.

Attention is now directed to embodiments of a user interface ("UI") that may be implemented on portable multifunction device 100.

Fig. 4A illustrates an exemplary user interface of a menu of applications on portable multifunction device 100, according to some embodiments. A similar user interface may be implemented on the device 300. In some embodiments, the user interface 400 includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:

● signal strength indicators 402 for wireless communications, such as cellular and Wi-Fi signals;

● time 404;

● Bluetooth indicator 405;

● battery status indicators 406;

● have trays (tray)408 for icons of frequently used applications such as:

a phone 138, which may include an indicator 414 of the number of missed calls or voicemail messages;

the email client 140, which may include an indicator 410 of the number of unread emails;

○ browser 147, and

video and music player 152, also known as iPod (trademark of apple Inc.) module 152, and

● icons for other applications, such as:

○IM 141；

○ image management 144;

the O camera 143;

weather 149-1;

the stocks 149-2;

○ fitness support 142;

o-calendar 148;

alarm clock 149-4;

○ map 154;

o memos 153;

○ settings 412 that provide access to settings of the device 100 and its various applications 136, and

an online video module 155 also known as YouTube (trademark of Google corporation) module 155.

FIG. 4B illustrates an exemplary user interface on a device (e.g., device 300 of FIG. 3) having a touch-sensitive surface 451 (e.g., tablet or touchpad 355 of FIG. 3) separate from a display 450 (e.g., touch screen display 112). While many of the examples below will be provided with reference to input on a touch screen display 112 (where the touch sensitive surface and the display are combined), in some embodiments, as shown in fig. 4B, the device detects input on a touch sensitive surface separate from the display. In some embodiments, the touch-sensitive surface (e.g., 451 in fig. 4B) has a primary axis (e.g., 452 in fig. 4B) that corresponds to a primary axis (e.g., 453 in fig. 4B) on the display (e.g., 450). According to these embodiments, the device detects contacts (e.g., 460 and 462 in fig. 4B) with the touch-sensitive surface 451 at locations corresponding to respective locations on the display (e.g., in fig. 4B, 460 corresponds to 468 and 462 corresponds to 470). In this way, when the touch-sensitive surface (e.g., 451 in FIG. 4B) is separated from the display (e.g., 450 in FIG. 4B), user inputs (e.g., contacts 460 and 462, and movements thereof) on the touch-sensitive surface detected by the device are used by the device to manipulate a user interface on the display of the multifunction device. It should be understood that similar methods may be used for the other user interfaces described herein.

Additionally, while the following examples are given primarily with reference to finger inputs (e.g., finger contacts, finger tap gestures, finger swipe gestures), it should be understood that in some embodiments, one or more of the finger inputs are replaced with an input from another input device (e.g., a mouse-based input or a stylus input). For example, a swipe gesture may be replaced with a mouse click (e.g., instead of a contact) followed by movement of the cursor along the swipe path (e.g., instead of movement of a contact). As another example, the tap gesture may be replaced with a mouse click while the cursor is over the location of the tap gesture (e.g., instead of detecting contact, followed by ceasing to detect contact).

User interface and associated process

Attention is now directed to embodiments of a user interface ("UI") and associated processes that may be implemented on an electronic device having a display and a touch-sensitive surface, such as device 300-1 or portable multifunction device 100.

Fig. 5A-5N illustrate exemplary user interfaces for navigating a list of identifiers, according to some embodiments. The user interfaces in these figures are used to illustrate the processes described below, including the processes in fig. 7A-7D.

It should be appreciated that while the embodiments described below are described in the context of content item 600 being an audio file (e.g., a song), the described embodiments are also applicable to other types of content items (e.g., podcasts, videos, images, documents, etc.).

FIG. 5A illustrates a User Interface (UI)500A displayed on the display 112 of a device (e.g., device 300-1). UI500A includes a portion of list 501 of songs represented by song names (also referred to as "song titles"). In UI500A, song title list 501 includes a title 504 written in japanese and a title 506 written in english. Song titles written in other languages (not shown) may also be included in the song title list 501. Japanese song title 504 is written using kana (kana) characters (hiragana and katakana), kanji characters, or any combination of the above. In some embodiments, the japanese song names 504 are ordered based on the pre-kana characters and in fifty-tone order. If the prefix character is a hanzi character, the prefix character (or more generally, a pinyin word or pinyin character) in the kana annotation of the prefix hanzi character is used for sequencing.

The english song title 506 is written in english. In some embodiments, the english song titles 506 are ordered according to an alphabetical order.

In some embodiments, within the song name list 501, Japanese song names 504 are gathered into one group and sequenced within that group, and English song names 506 are gathered into another group and sequenced within that group, and any song names written in other languages are processed in a similar manner; in the song title list 501, japanese song titles and english song titles are not completely mixed together.

Song names 504 and 506 are identifiers of content items 600 stored in memory (e.g., in memory 102 or 370). For example, japanese song name 504 corresponds to a japanese song, and english song name 506 corresponds to an english song. In response to detecting a gesture on the respective song title 504 or 506 (e.g., a touch and press gesture on the respective song title), the content item 600 associated with the respective song title is selected (e.g., for playback, for display of associated information, for further processing, etc.).

In some embodiments, whether a song title (or other identifier such as artist, album, composer, etc.) that includes both japanese and english letters is considered to be written in japanese or english is determined by the leading characters in the song title. For example, if a song name has a pre-hiragana, katakana, or kanji character in the song name, the song name is considered to be written in japanese regardless of whether the song name also has some english letters.

In some embodiments, song titles (or other identifiers such as artist, album, composer, etc.) written as japanese song titles in roman font are considered english song titles because song titles are written in the same alphabet as english regardless of whether they represent japanese song titles.

UI500A also includes a character selection element 502 (also referred to as index bar element 502) proximate (e.g., adjacent) a right vertical edge of display 112. The index bar element 502 is shown as a single column. The position on the index bar element 502 represents the leading character in the song title list 501. In response to detecting a gesture at a location (location), also referred to as position, on the index bar element 502, the song name list 501 jumps to a song name having a preceding character corresponding to the location on the index bar element 502 at which finger contact was detected; the index bar element 502 indexes song names in the list of song names 501 by a prefix character. If there is no song title with the preceding character, the song title list 501 jumps to the song title with the preceding character that is closest in sequence to the preceding character corresponding to the position on the index bar element 502 where the finger contact was detected. Detecting gestures on the index bar element 502 and corresponding navigation in the list of song names 501 is described in further detail below with respect to fig. 5C-5H.

Index bar element 502 includes a Japanese sub-element or portion 502-A, an English sub-element or portion 502-B, and a miscellaneous sub-element or portion 502-C. Japanese sub-element 502-A corresponds to Japanese song title 504. The position on Japanese sub-element 502-A corresponds to the Japanese kana character; the kana characters are ordered in japanese sub-element 502-a according to the japanese language convention (e.g., in fifty-phonetic order). As a visual aid to the user, with respect to the position of japanese subelement 502-a relative to the fifty-phonetic order of kana, japanese subelement 502-a is displayed first with the hiragana character "あ" and last with the hiragana character "わ"; "あ" is the first kana character in the fiftieth order used as the leading character in the song title, and "わ" is the last kana character in the fiftieth order used as the leading character in the song title (the "を" that is ranked after "わ" in the fiftieth order is typically used as a co-word and not in a name or word).

The english sub-element 502-B corresponds to the english song title 506. The position on English sub-element 502-B corresponds to the English letter; the letters are ordered in english sub-element 502-B according to alphabetical order. As a visual aid to the user, English sub-element 502-B is displayed first with the letter "A" and last with the letter "Z" with respect to the position on English sub-element 502-B relative to the English alphabet order.

Miscellaneous sub-elements or portions 502-C are shown as predefined symbols (e.g., "#"), and typically have a predefined length that is independent of the number of songs having an identifier in a particular language (e.g., song name) or a ratio of such numbers. Miscellaneous sub-element 502-C corresponds to song names in song name list 501 that are written in other languages or have preceding characters other than japanese or english letters (e.g., symbols, numbers, sirtuin letters, hebrew letters, arabic letters, etc.).

The size (e.g., length) of Japanese sub-element 502-A as displayed in UI500A is longer than the size of English sub-element 502-B. In some embodiments, the size difference is based on a ratio of the number of songs in content item 600 having a japanese song title to the number of songs having an english song title. When more songs with Japanese song titles than English song titles are available, Japanese sub-element 502-A is correspondingly displayed longer than English sub-element 502-B. The Japanese sub-element 502-A is shown to be slightly longer than the English sub-element 502-B if the songs with Japanese song titles slightly exceed the songs with English song titles in number. The japanese sub-element 502-a is shown to be significantly longer than the english sub-element 502-B if the songs with japanese song names significantly exceed the songs with english song names in number. The opposite is also true. For example, if a song with an English song title significantly exceeds a song with a Japanese song title in number, Japanese sub-element 502-A is shown to be significantly shorter than English sub-element 502-B.

Fig. 5B illustrates a UI 500B displayed on the display 112. UI 500B includes a portion of a list 507 of artists. In UI 500B, artist list 507 includes artist names 508 written in japanese and artist names 510 written in english. Artist names (not shown) written in other languages may also be included in artist list 507. The japanese artist name 508 is written using kana characters (hiragana and katakana), kanji characters, or any combination of the above. In some embodiments, the Japanese artist names 508 are ordered in the same manner as the Japanese song names 504 (based on the prepended kana characters and by fifty-tone order, using the prepended characters in the kana annotations where appropriate).

The english artist name 508 is written in english. In some embodiments, English artist names 508 are ordered according to an alphabetical order.

Artist names 508 and 510 are identifiers of content items 600 stored in memory (e.g., in memory 102 or 370). Selection of the respective artist name 508 or 510 (e.g., by a touch and press gesture on the respective song name) activates display of a list of song names corresponding to the content item 600 associated with the selected artist name on display 112.

In some embodiments, as with song names in the song name list 501, Japanese artist names 508 are gathered into one group and sequenced within the group, and English artist names 510 are gathered into another group and sequenced within the group, and any artist names written in other languages are processed in a similar manner; the japanese artist name and the english artist name are not completely mixed together in the artist name list 507.

UI 500B also includes a character selection element 511 (also referred to as index bar element 511) proximate (e.g., adjacent) a right vertical edge of display 112. Index bar element 511 is similar to index bar element 502, with the difference: the position on index bar element 511 corresponds to the leading character in the artist name in artist list 507. As with index bar element 502, index bar element 511 also includes Japanese sub-element 511-A, English sub-element 511-B, and miscellaneous sub-elements 511-C, which are similar to sub-elements 502-A, 502-B, and 502-C, respectively, described above with respect to FIG. 5A.

The size (e.g., length) of Japanese sub-element 511-A as shown in UI 500B is longer than the size of English sub-element 511-B. In some embodiments, as described above, the size difference is based on a ratio of the number of songs in content item 600 having a japanese song title to the number of songs having an english song title. In some embodiments, the size difference is based on a ratio of the number of songs in content item 600 having a Japanese artist name to the number of songs having an English artist name. For example, when more songs have a Japanese artist name than have an English artist name, Japanese sub-element 511-A is correspondingly displayed longer than English sub-element 511-B. Japanese sub-element 511-A is shown to be slightly longer than English sub-element 511-B if the songs having Japanese artist names slightly exceed the songs having English artist names in number. Japanese sub-element 511-a is shown to be significantly longer than english sub-element 511-B if the songs having japanese artist names significantly exceed the songs having english artist names in number. The opposite is also true. For example, if a song with a Japanese artist name significantly exceeds a song with an English artist name in number, Japanese sub-element 511-A is shown to be significantly shorter than English sub-element 511-B. In some embodiments, the size difference is based on a ratio of the number of Japanese artist names to the number of English artist names in the content item 600.

Fig. 5C shows UI 500C including a portion of song name list 501 that is different from the portion of song list 501 shown in fig. 5A. A gesture 512 (e.g., a finger tap gesture) is detected on Japanese sub-element 502-A. In response to detecting the gesture 512, the song name list 501 jumps to the japanese song name 504 with a leading character corresponding to the position (location), also referred to as position, of the detected gesture 512 on the japanese subelement 502-a, as shown in fig. 5C. If there is no song title with the preceding character, the song title list 501 jumps to a song title with a preceding character that is close (in some embodiments, closest) to the character corresponding to the location of the gesture 512. Thus, in FIG. 5C, gesture 512 is located closer to the beginning of Japanese sub-element 502-A, and thus corresponds to a kana character closer to the beginning of a fifty-tone order. In effect, in response to detecting the gesture 512, the song name list 501 shows the song names 504 with leading characters closer to the beginning of the fifty-note order.

Fig. 5D shows a UI 500D that includes a portion of the song name list 501 that is different from the portion of the song list 501 shown in fig. 5A. A gesture 514 (e.g., a finger tap gesture) is detected on English sub-element 502-B. In response to detecting the gesture 514, the song name list 501 jumps to the english song name 506 having a leading character corresponding to the location (position), also referred to as position, on the english sub-element 502-B where the gesture 514 was detected, as shown in fig. 5D. If there is no song title with the preceding character, the song title list 501 jumps to a song title with a preceding character that is close (in some embodiments, closest) to the character corresponding to the location of the gesture 514.

Fig. 5E shows UI 500E with a portion of song name list 501. A gesture 516 (e.g., a finger drag gesture) having movement 517 is detected on Japanese sub-element 502-A. In response to detecting the gesture 516, the song title list 501 jumps to the Japanese song title 504 having a preceding character corresponding to the location on the Japanese sub-element 502-A where the gesture 516 was detected. As the gesture 516 moves in direction 517, the list of song titles 501 jumps to display other song titles according to the changing position of the contact in the gesture 516.

In some embodiments, when gesture 516 is detected on index bar element 502, temporary character 518 is displayed. The temporary character 518 shows the character in the index bar 502 that corresponds to the current location of the gesture 516. For example, in FIG. 5E, "き" corresponding to the current location of the gesture 516 is displayed as the temporary character 518-1, and the song name list 501 jumps to display the song name (e.g., song name 504-6) having "き" or its katakana equivalent "キ" as the preceding character.

As the contact in the gesture 516 moves in direction 517 on the index bar 502, the temporary character 518 updates because the song name list 501 displays other song names according to the new updated location of the contact in the gesture 516. For example, FIG. 5F shows UI 500F in which the contact in gesture 516 is moved in direction 517 to a new location on index bar 502. "と" corresponding to the current location of the contact in the gesture 516 is displayed as the temporary character 518-2, and the song name list 501 jumps to display the song name (e.g., song name 504-1) with "と" or its katakana equivalent "ト" as the preceding character.

FIG. 5G shows UI 500G in which the contact in gesture 516 is moved further in direction 517 on index bar 502, crossing from Japanese sub-element 502-A to English sub-element 502-B. "H" corresponding to the current position of the contact in the gesture 516 is displayed as a temporary character 518-3, and the song title list 501 jumps to display a song title (e.g., song title 506-4) having "H" as a leading character.

FIG. 5H shows UI 500H in which the contact in gesture 516 is moved further in direction 517 on index bar 502. The "L" corresponding to the current location of the contact in gesture 516 is displayed as a temporary character 518-4. In this example, the english song name 506 does not include any song name having the leading character "L", so the song name list 501 jumps to display a song name (e.g., song name 506-5) having "K (the letter closest to" L "in alphabetical order)" as the leading character, for which there is a song name 506 having the leading character.

Fig. 5I shows a UI 500I that includes a portion of a song name list 519, the song name list 519 being similar to the song name list 501. The song name list 519 includes chinese song names 520 and english song names 506. The Chinese song names 520 are sequenced according to the stroke count of the preceding characters; the leading character in song name 520-1 has the same number of strokes as the leading character in song name 520-2, which has fewer strokes than the leading character in song name 520-3. In some embodiments, if the leading characters have the same stroke number, the stroke count of the second character of the song name is used as a tie-breaking (tiebreaker). In some other embodiments, no tiebreaker is used; song titles with the same number of strokes for the preceding character are listed in random order among the song titles. As with the japanese song names 502, the chinese song names 520 are not mixed with the english song names 506 within the song name list 519.

UI 500I also includes a character selection element 521 (also referred to as index bar element 521) that is similar in operation and appearance to index bar elements 502 and 511. The index bar element 521 includes a Chinese sub-element 521-A, an English sub-element 521-B, and a miscellaneous sub-element 521-C. The length of the Chinese sub-element 521-A relative to the length of the English sub-element 521-B (similar to the length of the Japanese sub-element 502-A relative to the length of the English sub-element 502-B or the length of the Japanese sub-element 511-A relative to the length of the English sub-element 511-B) is based on a ratio of the number of songs having a Chinese name to the number of songs having an English name in the content item 600.

The position (location), also referred to as position, on the Chinese sub-element 521-A corresponds to a number, where the number represents the number of strokes in the preceding character of the song name 520. Thus, for example, the Chinese sub-element 521-A is shown as starting with 1 and ending with 13. In response to detecting a gesture on the Chinese sub-element 521-A, the song title list 519 jumps to display the Chinese song title 520 with the leading character having the stroke count corresponding to the location on the Chinese sub-element 521-A where the gesture was detected (or the stroke count closest to the location on the Chinese sub-element 521-A where the gesture was detected).

Fig. 5J shows a UI 500J that includes a portion of an artist name list 523, the artist name list 523 being similar to the artist name list 507. The artist name list 523 includes a korean artist name 522 and an english artist name 510. The Korean artist names 522 are ordered according to a Korean Pinyin alphabet order. Within the artist name list 523, the korean artist name 522 is not mixed with the english artist name 510.

UI 500J also includes a character selection element 525 (also referred to as index bar element 525) that is similar in operation and appearance to index bar elements 502, 511, and 521. Index bar element 525 includes Korean sub-element 525-A, English sub-element 525-B and miscellaneous sub-element 525-C. In some embodiments, the length of Korean sub-element 525-A relative to the length of English sub-element 525-B (similar to the length of Japanese sub-element 511-A relative to the length of English sub-element 511-B) is based on a ratio of the number of songs having the Korean artist name to the number of songs having the English artist name in content item 600. In some embodiments, the length of Korean sub-element 525-A relative to the length of English sub-element 525-B (similar to the length of Japanese sub-element 502-A relative to the length of English sub-element 502-B) is based on a ratio of the number of songs with Korean song names to the number of songs with English song names in content item 600. In some embodiments, the size difference is based on a ratio of the number of korean artist names to the number of english artist names in the content item 600.

The position on the Korean sub-element 525-A corresponds to a character in the Korean Pinyin alphabet. Thus, for example, the Korean child element 525-A is displayed starting with the first character in the Korean Pinyin alphabet and ending with the last character in the Korean Pinyin alphabet. In response to detecting a gesture on the Korean sub-element 525-A, the artist name list 523 jumps to display the Korean artist name 522 with the leading character corresponding to the position (location) of the detected gesture on the Korean sub-element 525-A (or the closest character to the position (location)) corresponding to the position (location) of the detected gesture on the Korean sub-element 525-A.

Fig. 5K shows a UI 500K with a portion of the artist name list 527. The artist name list 527 includes a japanese artist name 508, an english artist name 510, and a chinese artist name 524. The artist name list 527 operates in a similar manner to the artist name lists 507, 523, and thus details of the artist name list 527 are omitted for the sake of brevity. Note that the concurrent display of three types of identifiers (e.g., japanese artist name, english artist name, and chinese artist name in fig. 5K) is shown to help describe this embodiment, but would be uncommon on portable devices with small displays. For devices with three different types of identifiers, the display of a portion of the list of identifiers with a single type of identifier or the simultaneous display of two types of identifiers (e.g., the portion of the list of identifiers where the first type of identifier ends and the second type of identifier begins) would be more typical, especially if the device contains a large number of content items.

UI 500K also includes a character selection element 529 (also referred to as index bar element 529), the character selection element 529 having a Japanese sub-element 529-A, an English sub-element 529-B, a Chinese sub-element 529-C, and a miscellaneous sub-element 529-D. In some embodiments, the lengths of sub-elements 529-A, 529-B and 529-C relative to each other are based on the number of songs in content item 600 that are song titles in the corresponding language. Thus, for example, subelements 529-C in FIG. 5K are significantly shorter in length than subelements 529-A; songs with chinese song titles are significantly less than songs with japanese song titles. In some embodiments, the lengths of sub-elements 529-A, 529-B and 529-C relative to each other are based on the number of songs in content item 600 that have artist names in the corresponding language. In some embodiments, the lengths of sub-elements 529-A, 529-B and 529-C relative to each other are based on the number of artist names in the content item 600 in the respective language.

In some embodiments, if the ratio of the number of songs with Japanese song title (or artist name) to the number of songs with Chinese song title (or artist name) is greater than a predefined threshold, sub-element 529-C is displayed in a fixed length (e.g., a predefined default length). For example, in FIG. 5L, sub-elements 529-C in UI 500L are displayed at a fixed length as long as the ratio is greater than a threshold.

In some embodiments, the disparity becomes large, such that display sub-element 529-C is not conducive to the user. For example, in UI 500M (FIG. 5M), sub-element 529-C is not displayed and the Chinese artist name 524 is ascribed to miscellaneous sub-element 529-D, which miscellaneous sub-element 529-D, like miscellaneous sub-element 502-C, has a predefined length that is independent of the ratio of the number of songs having an identifier in a particular language.

Fig. 5N shows a UI 500N with a portion of a list 501 of song names. UI 500N includes a character selection element 530 (also referred to as index bar element 530), which character selection element 530 is similar to index bar element 502, but is horizontally oriented and displayed as a single row proximate (e.g., adjacent) a lower horizontal edge of display 112.

The embodiments described above show a list of identifiers (e.g., a list of song or artist names) displayed as a left alignment on display 112. In some embodiments, the list of identifiers is displayed in right alignment and the character selection element is displayed proximate (e.g., adjacent) to a left vertical edge of the display 112 to accommodate identifiers written in languages that are written from right to left (e.g., Hebrew, Arabic).

It should be appreciated that while the embodiments described above describe lists of song titles and artist names, the embodiments are also applicable to lists of other identifiers, such as lists of album names, lists of entertainment show names, and so forth.

It should be understood that English is one of many languages written in Latin letters. Other examples of languages written in latin letters include german, french, spanish, italian, and the like. Identifiers written in any of these languages may be considered identifiers written in different languages and sequenced separately, or grouped together and sequenced together all as identifiers written in latin letters.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a data structure of a content item database according to some embodiments. One or more content items 600 may be stored in memory 102 or 370. Each content item 600 includes the content itself 602. For example, if content item 600-2 is an audio file, content 602 of content item 600-2 is audio data in the audio file. Content item 600 may also include one or more metadata fields, some of which store identifier metadata that may be used to identify content item 600. For example, content item 600-2 includes a name (e.g., song title) 604, a sort name 606, an album 608, a sort album 610, an artist 612, and a sort artist 614. It should be appreciated that this list of identifier metadata is merely exemplary. A content item may have more or less fields than those listed. In addition, the metadata field of the content item 600 may be empty.

In some embodiments, content item 600 is shown with name 604, but placed in the order of the list of identifiers using sort name 606. In some embodiments, content item 600 has a name 604 written in one language and has an ordering name 606 that provides phonetic spelling for name 604. For example, content item 600-2 may have an ordered name 606 written in japanese kana 604 and a name 604 written in roman.

In some embodiments, a determination is made whether content item 600 has a name 604 written in a particular language based at least in part on rank name 606. For example, if the name 604 of the content item 600-2 is written in Kanji and the ordering name 606 is written by kana endorsement of the Kanji name 604, the name 604 is recognized as Japanese. If the rank name 606 is instead empty, the name 604 is recognized as Japanese and instead classified as miscellaneous.

It should be appreciated that relationships similar to the relationships described above exist between album 608 and sorted album 610, artist 612 and sorted artist 612, and the like.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 700 of navigating a list of identifiers, according to some embodiments. Method 700 is performed at an electronic device (e.g., device 300 of FIG. 3A, device 300-1 of FIG. 3B, or portable multifunction device 100 of FIG. 1) having a display and a touch-sensitive surface. In some embodiments, the display is a touch screen display and the touch sensitive surface is on the display. In some embodiments, the display is separate from the touch-sensitive surface. Some operations in the method 700 may be combined and/or the order of some operations may be changed.

Method 700 provides an intuitive method of navigating a list of identifiers, as described below. The method reduces the cognitive burden on the user when navigating the list of identifiers, thereby creating a more efficient human-machine interface. Enabling a user to navigate through a list of identifiers more quickly and efficiently saves power and increases the time between battery charges for battery powered electronic devices.

The device displays a portion of a list of identifiers and a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers on a display (702). The list of identifiers is associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items, different from the first content items, associated with a second language, different from the first language. In some embodiments, the identifiers in the list of identifiers are artists, albums, authors, composers, editors, TV entertainment shows or series titles or titles (e.g., song title, episode title, movie title) associated with a first content item (e.g., japanese content), and artists, albums, authors, composers, editors or titles (e.g., song title) associated with a second content item (e.g., english content). For example, in fig. 5A, a portion of a list 501 of song names is displayed. The song name list 501 includes japanese song names 504 associated with a first number of content items 600 (e.g., japanese songs), and english song names 506 associated with a second number of content items 600 (e.g., english songs). An index bar element 502 is also shown. By performing a gesture on the index bar element 502, the user can select a particular character and quickly navigate to the song name in the song name list 501 having the selected character as the preceding character.

The character selection element represents a plurality of characters and includes: a first character selection sub-element associated with a first content item and having a first size and a second character selection sub-element associated with a second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. In other words, the size of the first character selection sub-element relative to the size (e.g., length) of the second character selection sub-element is based on the number of first content items relative to the number of second content items. For example, in FIG. 5A, the length of Japanese sub-element 502-A relative to the length of English sub-element 502-B in index bar element 502 is based on the number of content items associated with Japanese song title 504 relative to the number of content items associated with English song title 506.

Note that the character selection element is composed of at least two graphic elements (i.e., a first character selection sub-element and a second character selection sub-element). Also, in some embodiments, the respective character selection sub-element is composed of additional graphical elements (e.g., one or more graphical elements corresponding to preceding characters in the respective character selection sub-element, or one or more graphical elements indicating stroke counts in the respective character selection sub-element).

The device detects (704) an input (e.g., a finger contact or finger tap gesture) at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection subelement on the display. For example, in FIG. 5C, gesture 512 is detected at a location corresponding to a location on Japanese sub-element 502-A.

In response to detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, the device displays (706) a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with the first content item (e.g., one or more artists, albums, authors, composers, editors, or titles (e.g., song titles) associated with the first content item). For example, in fig. 5C, in response to detecting the gesture 512, the song name list 501 jumps to the japanese song name 504.

The device detects (708) an input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on a second character selection sub-element on the display. For example, in FIG. 5D, gesture 514 is detected at a location corresponding to a location on English sub-element 502-B.

In response to detecting the input at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, the device displays (710) a portion of the list of identifiers having one or more identifiers associated with the second content item (e.g., one or more artists, albums, authors, composers, editors, or titles (e.g., song titles) associated with the second content item). For example, in fig. 5D, in response to detecting gesture 514, song name list 501 jumps to english song name 506.

In some embodiments, the electronic device is a portable electronic device (e.g., a portable music player and/or a portable video player) (712). For example, device 300-1 is a portable electronic device that functions primarily as a portable media player.

In some embodiments, the display is a touch-sensitive display (714) that includes a touch-sensitive surface. For example, the display 112 is a touch screen.

In some embodiments, the touch-sensitive display has physical dimensions (716) of at least one of: a width of 2 inches or less, and a height of 2 inches or less.

In some embodiments, the touch-sensitive display has a screen resolution (718) of at least one of: a width of 600 pixels or less and a height of 600 pixels or less.

In some embodiments, a character selection element is displayed at a first predefined location on the display, the first character selection sub-element includes a location corresponding to an identifier in a first language associated with the first content item, and the second character selection sub-element includes a location corresponding to an identifier in a second language associated with the second content item (720). For example, in FIG. 5A, index bar element 502 is shown adjacent to the right vertical edge of display 112. The position on Japanese sub-element 502-A corresponds to Japanese song name 504 and the position on English sub-element 502-B corresponds to English song name 506.

In some embodiments, the first character selection sub-element comprises a position of a preceding character corresponding to an identifier associated with the first content item. Note that most or all of the prefix characters are typically not displayed at these locations due to display size constraints. For example, the position on Japanese sub-element 502-A corresponds to the leading kana character in Japanese song title 504 beginning with "あ" and ending with "わ".

In some embodiments, the second character selection sub-element comprises a position of a preceding character corresponding to an identifier associated with the second content item. Note that most or all of the prefix characters are typically not displayed at these locations due to display size constraints. For example, a position on English sub-element 502-B corresponds to the leading English letter beginning with "A" and ending with "Z" in English song name 506.

In some embodiments, in response to detecting the point of contact at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, the device displays (722) a temporary character on the display at a predefined location that is different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the first content item. For example, in FIG. 5E, in response to detecting gesture 516 on Japanese sub-element 502-A, temporary character 518-1 is displayed at a location different from index bar element 502. The temporary character "き" 518-1 represents a preceding character in the Japanese song title 504 (e.g., song title 504-6).

In some embodiments, the temporary character represents a prefix character of an identifier associated with the first content item. For example, in FIG. 5E, the temporary character "き" 518-1 represents the prefix character in the Japanese song name 504-6 ("き" is the Hiragana equivalent of "キ"). In some embodiments, in response to detecting the point of contact at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, the device updates the displayed portion of the list of identifiers to display a corresponding portion of the list having one or more identifiers associated with the first content item. For example, in response to detecting the gesture 516, the song name list 501 jumps to the japanese song name 504 (e.g., song name 504-6) having "き" or "キ" as a preceding character.

In some embodiments, the character selection elements include respective character elements displayed in a predefined respective character element size, the transient characters representing characters in the identifier associated with the first content item are displayed in the predefined transient character size, and the predefined respective character element size is less than the predefined transient character size (724). For example, in FIG. 5E, virtually any character displayed in index bar element 502 (e.g., "あ" and "わ" in Japanese sub-element 502-A) is displayed at a predefined size, and temporary character 518 is displayed at a predefined size that is larger than the predefined size of the character displayed in index bar element 502.

In some embodiments, in response to detecting the point of contact at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, the apparatus displays (726) a temporary character on the display at a predefined location that is different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the second content item. For example, in FIG. 5G, in response to detecting gesture 516 on English sub-element 502-B, a provisional character 518-3 is displayed at a location different from index bar element 502. The alphabetical character "H" 518-3 represents a prefix character in the English song title 506 (e.g., song title 506-4).

In some embodiments, the temporary character represents a prefix character of an identifier associated with the second content item. For example, the temporary character "H" 518-3 represents the prefix character in the English song title 506-4. In some embodiments, in response to detecting the point of contact at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, the device updates the displayed portion of the list of identifiers to display a corresponding portion of the list having one or more identifiers associated with the second content item. For example, in response to detecting the gesture 516, the song name list 501 jumps to an english song name 506 (e.g., song name 506-4) having "H" as a leading character.

In some embodiments, the list of identifiers is further associated with a third number of third content items, the third content items being associated with neither the first language nor the second language, and the character selection element includes a third character selection sub-element (728) associated with the third content items and having a third size. For example, in fig. 5K, the artist name list 527 includes a japanese artist name 508, an english artist name 510, and a chinese artist name 524. The chinese artist name 524 is associated with content items 600 having song titles (or artist names) written in chinese, and a number of such content items 600 are stored in memory 102 or 370. Index bar element 529 includes a Japanese sub-element 529-A, an English sub-element 529-B, and a Chinese sub-element 529-C, where the Chinese sub-element 529-C is associated with a Chinese song and is displayed in a particular size.

As another example, in fig. 5A, song title list 501 may include one or more song titles (not shown in the figure) that are not written in japanese or english. The index bar element 502 includes miscellaneous sub-elements 502-C associated with the song titles, and the miscellaneous sub-elements 502-C are displayed at a particular size.

In some embodiments, the third content item is associated with a third language different from the first language and the second language, and the third size relative to the first size is based on the third number relative to the first number (730). In other words, the size (e.g., length) of the third character selection sub-element relative to the size of the first character selection sub-element is based on the number of third content items relative to the number of first content items. For example, in FIG. 5K, the content item 600 associated with the Chinese artist name 524 may be a Chinese song, and the size of the Chinese sub-element 529-C is based on the number of Chinese songs relative to the number of Japanese songs. Similarly, the size (e.g., length) of the third character selection sub-element relative to the size of the second character selection sub-element may be based on the number of third content items relative to the number of second content items.

In some embodiments, the third content item is associated with a third language different from the first language and the second language, the third size relative to the first size is based on the third number relative to the first number when the third number exceeds a predefined threshold relative to the first number, and the third size is independent of the third number relative to the first number when the third number does not exceed the predefined threshold relative to the first number (732). In other words, in some embodiments, when the number of third content items relative to the number of first content items exceeds a predefined threshold, the size (e.g., length) of the third character selection sub-element relative to the size of the first character selection sub-element is based on the number of third content items relative to the number of first content items. But when the number of third content items relative to the number of first content items is below a predefined threshold, the size of the third character selection sub-element is displayed in a size (e.g., a default length) that is independent of the number of third content items relative to the number of first content items. In some embodiments, the predefined threshold for scaling the size of the third character selection sub-element is based on a number of third content items relative to a number of second content items. In some embodiments, the predefined threshold for scaling the size of the third character selection sub-element is based on a number of the third content items relative to a total number of the first content items and the second content items. In some embodiments, the predefined threshold for scaling the size of the third character selection sub-element is based on the number of third content items relative to the number of other content items in the list. In some embodiments, the predefined threshold for scaling the size of the third character selection sub-element is based on a number of the third content items relative to a total number of content items in the list. These basic principles for scaling the respective character selection sub-elements are substantially equivalent to each other.

For example, in FIG. 5K, the content item 600 associated with the Chinese artist name 524 may be a Chinese song, and the size of the Chinese sub-element 529-C is based on the number of Chinese songs relative to the number of Japanese songs. When the ratio of the number of Chinese songs to the number of Japanese songs exceeds a predefined threshold, the Chinese sub-elements 529-C are displayed with a particular length based on the ratio, as shown in FIG. 5K. When the ratio of the number of Chinese songs to the number of Japanese songs does not exceed the threshold, the Chinese sub-elements 529-C are displayed in a fixed length, as shown in FIG. 5L.

In some embodiments, a character selection element is displayed at a first predefined location on the display, the first character selection sub-element includes a location corresponding to an identifier in a first language associated with the first content item, and the second character selection sub-element includes a location corresponding to an identifier in a second language associated with the second content item (734). For example, in FIG. 5A, index bar element 502 is shown adjacent to the right vertical edge of display 112. The position on Japanese sub-element 502-A corresponds to Japanese song name 504 and the position on English sub-element 502-B corresponds to English song name 506.

In some embodiments, the first character selection sub-element comprises a position of a preceding character corresponding to an identifier associated with the first content item. Note that most or all of the prefix characters are typically not displayed at these locations due to display size constraints. For example, the position on Japanese sub-element 502-A corresponds to the leading kana character in Japanese song title 504 beginning with "あ" and ending with "わ".

In some embodiments, the second character selection sub-element comprises a position of a preceding character corresponding to an identifier associated with the second content item. Note that most or all of the prefix characters are typically not displayed at these locations due to display size constraints. For example, a position on English sub-element 502-B corresponds to the leading English letter beginning with "A" and ending with "Z" in English song name 506.

In some embodiments, in response to detecting movement of the point of contact across a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display (736): the apparatus updates (738) a temporary character displayed at a predefined location different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the first content item; and updating (740) the displayed portion of the list of identifiers having one or more corresponding identifiers associated with the first content item. In some embodiments, the temporary character represents a prefix character of an identifier associated with the first content item. For example, in FIGS. 5E-5F, in response to detecting movement 517 of the point of contact in gesture 516 on Japanese sub-element 502-A, temporary character 518-1 displayed at a location different from index bar element 502 is updated to temporary character 518-2. The temporary characters "き" 518-1 and "と" 518-2 represent the leading characters in the Japanese song title 504 (e.g., song titles 504-6, 504-1). The song name list 501 jumps to a different song name (e.g., from song name 504-6 to song name 504-1) in accordance with the movement 517 of the point of contact in the gesture 516.

In some embodiments, in response to detecting movement of the point of contact across a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a location on the second character selection sub-element on the display (742): the device updates (744) a temporary character displayed at a predefined location different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the second content item; and updating (746) a displayed portion of the list of identifiers having one or more corresponding identifiers associated with the second content item. In some embodiments, the temporary character represents a prefix character of an identifier associated with the second content item. For example, in FIGS. 5G-5H, in response to detecting movement 517 of the point of contact in gesture 516 on English sub-element 502-B, temporary character 518-3 displayed at a location different from index bar element 502 is updated to temporary character 518-4. The alphabetic characters "H" 518-3 and "L" 518-4 represent the leading characters in the English song title 506 (e.g., song titles 506-4, 504-1). The song name list 501 jumps to a different song name (e.g., from song name 506-4 to song name 506-5) in accordance with the movement 517 of the point of contact in the gesture 516.

In some embodiments, the first character selection sub-element includes one or more graphical elements corresponding to a first indexing scheme associated with a first language, and the second character selection sub-element includes one or more graphical elements corresponding to a second indexing scheme associated with a second language (748). For example, in FIG. 5A, Japanese sub-element 502-A includes a start character "あ" and an end character "わ" representing the beginning and end of the fifty-tone sequence of kana; japanese sub-element 502-A indexes the Japanese song title 504 by a prepended kana character ordered in fifty-sound order. English subelement 502-B includes a start character "A" and an end character "Z" representing the beginning and end of the alphabet sequence of English letters; english sub-element 502-B indexes english song title 506 by a leading letter ordered in alphabetical order.

In some embodiments, the first language is chinese and the first indexing scheme is based on character stroke count (750). For example, in FIG. 5I, the Chinese song names 520 are ordered by stroke counts of the preceding characters. The Chinese sub-element 521-A indexes the Chinese song title 520 according to the stroke count. In some embodiments, the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on the alphabet (752). For example, in FIG. 5I, the English song names 506 are ordered alphabetically. English sub-element 521-B indexes english song title 506 in alphabetical order by the preceding alphabet letters.

In some embodiments, the first language is japanese, and the first indexing scheme is based on a kana script (script) (754). For example, in FIG. 5A, the Japanese song names 504 are ordered in fifty-tone order based on the pre-kana characters. Japanese sub-element 502-A indexes Japanese song title 504 according to the leading kana character in fifty-sound order. In some embodiments, the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet (756). For example, in FIG. 5A, the English song names 506 are ordered alphabetically. English sub-element 502-B indexes english song names 506 in alphabetical order by the leading alphabet letters.

In some embodiments, the first language is korean, and the first indexing scheme is based on korean pinyin spelling (758). For example, in FIG. 5J, the Korean artist names 522 are ordered in Korean Pinyin alphabet order. The Korean sub-element 525-A indexes the Korean artist name 522 in Korean Pinyin alphabet order based on the leading Korean Pinyin character. In some embodiments, the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on the alphabet (760). For example, in FIG. 5J, English artist names 510 are ordered alphabetically. English child 525-B indexes english artist name 510 in alphabetical order by the leading alphabet letter.

In some embodiments, the graphical element in the first character selection sub-element and the graphical element in the second character selection sub-element are positioned adjacent an edge of the display (762). For example, in FIG. 5A, index bar element 502, which includes sub-elements 502-A and 502-B, is shown adjacent to the right vertical edge of display 112.

In some embodiments, the graphical elements in the first character selection sub-element and the graphical elements in the second character selection sub-element are part of a single row of graphical elements in the character selection element (764). For example, in FIG. 5N, the index bar element 530, including sub-elements 530-A and 530-B, is shown as a single row.

In some embodiments, the graphical elements in the first character selection sub-element and the graphical elements in the second character selection sub-element are part of a single column of graphical elements in the character selection element (766). For example, in FIG. 5A, the index bar element 502, including sub-elements 502-A and 502-B, is shown as a single column.

According to some embodiments, FIG. 8 shows a functional block diagram of an electronic device 800 configured according to the principles of the present invention as described above. The electronics may be implemented by hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software to carry out the principles of the invention.

As shown in fig. 8, the display unit 801 displays a portion of the identifier list 802 and a character selection element 803 for navigating through the identifier list. The list of identifiers 802 is associated with: a first number of first content items associated with a first language, and a second number of second content items, different from the first content items, associated with a second language, different from the first language. The character selection element 803 represents a plurality of characters and includes a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item and having a first size and a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item and having a second size, the first size relative to the second size being based on the first number relative to the second number. The touch-sensitive unit 804 receives user input. The processing unit 805 is coupled to the display unit 801 and the touch-sensitive unit 804. In response to detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive unit 804 that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on the display unit 801, the processing unit 805 displays a portion of the identifier list 802 having one or more identifiers associated with the first content item on the display unit 801 (e.g., as shown in fig. 5C). In response to detecting an input at a location on the touch-sensitive unit 804 that corresponds to a location on a second character selection sub-element on the display unit 801, the processing unit 805 displays a portion of the identifier list 802 having one or more identifiers associated with a second content item on the display unit 801 (e.g., as shown in fig. 5D).

In some embodiments, the character selection element 803 is displayed at a first predefined location on the display unit 801, the first character selection sub-element comprising a location corresponding to an identifier in a first language associated with the first content item, and the second character selection sub-element comprising a location corresponding to an identifier in a second language associated with the second content item. In response to detecting a point of contact at a location on touch-sensitive unit 804 that corresponds to a location on the first character selection sub-element on display unit 801, the processing unit displays a temporary character on display unit 801 at a predefined location different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the first content item (e.g., as shown in fig. 5E). In response to detecting a point of contact at a location on the touch-sensitive unit 804 that corresponds to a location on a second character selection sub-element on the display unit 801, the processing unit 805 displays a temporary character on the display unit 801 at a predefined location that is different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the second content item (e.g., as shown in fig. 5G).

In some embodiments, the character selection element 803 includes respective character elements displayed in a predefined respective character element size, the temporary characters representing characters in the identifier associated with the first content item are displayed in the predefined temporary character size, and the predefined respective character element size is smaller than the predefined temporary character size (e.g., as shown in fig. 5E).

In some embodiments, the character selection element 803 is displayed at a first predefined location on the display unit 801, the first character selection sub-element comprising a location corresponding to an identifier in a first language associated with the first content item, and the second character selection sub-element comprising a location corresponding to an identifier in a second language associated with the second content item. In response to detecting movement of the point of contact across the location on the touch-sensitive unit 804 that corresponds to the location on the first character selection sub-element on the display unit 801, the processing unit 805 updates on the display unit 801 a temporary character displayed at a predefined location different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the first content item (e.g., as shown in fig. 5F), and the processing unit 805 updates on the display unit 801 a displayed portion of the identifier list 802 having one or more corresponding identifiers associated with the first content item (e.g., as shown in fig. 5F). In response to detecting movement of the point of contact across the location on the touch-sensitive unit 804 that corresponds to the location on the second character selection sub-element on the display unit 801, the processing unit 805 updates on the display unit 801 a temporary character displayed at a predefined location different from the first predefined location, the temporary character representing a character in an identifier associated with the second content item (e.g., as shown in fig. 5H), and the processing unit 805 updates on the display unit 801 a displayed portion of the identifier list 802 having one or more corresponding identifiers associated with the second content item (e.g., as shown in fig. 5H).

In some embodiments, the first character selection sub-element comprises one or more graphical elements corresponding to a first indexing scheme associated with a first language, and the second character selection sub-element comprises one or more graphical elements corresponding to a second indexing scheme associated with a second language (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, the first language is chinese, and the first indexing scheme is based on character stroke counts (e.g., as shown in fig. 5I). In some embodiments, the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet (e.g., as shown in fig. 5I).

In some embodiments, the first language is japanese, and the first indexing scheme is based on kana scripts (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A). In some embodiments, the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, the first language is korean, and the first indexing scheme is based on korean pinyin spelling (e.g., as shown in fig. 5J). In some embodiments, the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet (e.g., as shown in fig. 5J).

In some embodiments, the identifier list 802 is further associated with a third number of third content items that are associated with neither the first language nor the second language, and the character selection element 803 comprises a third character selection sub-element associated with the third content item and having a third size (e.g., as shown in fig. 5K).

In some embodiments, the third content item is associated with a third language different from the first language and the second language, and the third size relative to the first size is based on the third number relative to the first number (e.g., as shown in fig. 5K).

In some embodiments, the third content item is associated with a third language different from the first language and the second language. The third size is based on the third number relative to the first number when the third number exceeds a predefined threshold relative to the first number (e.g., as shown in fig. 5K), and is independent of the third number relative to the first number when the third number does not exceed the predefined threshold relative to the first number (e.g., as shown in fig. 5L).

In some embodiments, the graphical element in the first character selection sub-element and the graphical element in the second character selection sub-element are positioned adjacent to an edge of the display unit (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, the graphical elements in the first character selection sub-element and the graphical elements in the second character selection sub-element are part of a single row of graphical elements in the character selection element (e.g., as shown in fig. 5N).

In some embodiments, the graphical elements in the first character selection sub-element and the graphical elements in the second character selection sub-element are part of a single column of graphical elements in the character selection element (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, the electronic device 800 is a portable electronic device (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, display unit 801 is a touch-sensitive display unit, such as touch-sensitive unit 804, that includes a touch-sensitive surface (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, touch-sensitive display unit 801 has physical dimensions of at least one of: a width of 2 inches or less, and a height of 2 inches or less (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

In some embodiments, touch-sensitive display unit 801 has a screen resolution of at least one of: a width of 600 pixels or less, and a height of 600 pixels or less (e.g., as shown in fig. 5A).

The operations in the information processing methods described above may be implemented by running one or more functional modules in an information processing apparatus (e.g., a general-purpose processor or a dedicated chip). These modules, combinations of these modules, and/or their combination with general hardware (e.g., as described above with respect to fig. 1A and 3A) are included within the scope of the invention.

The operations described above with reference to FIGS. 7A-7D may be implemented by the components depicted in FIGS. 1A-1B. For example, detection operations 704, 708 and display operations 706, 710 may be implemented by event classifier 170, event recognizer 180, and event handler 190. Event monitor 171 in event sorter 170 detects a contact on touch-sensitive display 112 and event dispatcher module 174 delivers the event information to application 136-1. A respective event recognizer 180 of application 136-1 compares the event information to a respective event definition 186, and determines whether a first contact at a first location on the touch-sensitive surface corresponds to a predefined event or sub-event (e.g., selection of an object on a user interface). Event recognizer 180 activates event handler 190 associated with the detection of an event or sub-event when a respective predefined event or sub-event is detected. Event handler 190 may utilize or call data updater 176 or object updater 177 to update application internal state 192. In some embodiments, event handler 190 accesses a respective GUI updater 178 to update the content displayed by the application. Similarly, the manner in which other processes may be implemented based on the components depicted in FIGS. 1A-1B will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.

The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Claims (20)

1. A method, comprising:

at an electronic device with a touch-sensitive display:

displaying on the display:

a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with:

a first number of first content items associated with a first language; and

a second number of second content items, different from the first content item, associated with a second language, different from the first language; and

a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising:

a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item, the first character selection sub-element comprising one or more positions corresponding to one or more character elements in the first language; and

a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item, the second character selection sub-element comprising one or more positions corresponding to one or more character elements in the second language;

detecting a point of contact on the display corresponding to a first location on the first character selection sub-element on the display;

in response to detecting the point of contact on the display corresponding to the first location on the first character selection sub-element on the display:

displaying a first temporary character element in the first language corresponding to the first position on the first character selection sub-element; and

displaying a portion of an identifier list having one or more identifiers with a preceding character corresponding to the first temporary character element in the first language;

detecting movement of the contact to a second location on the first character selection sub-element on the display;

in response to detecting the movement of the contact to a second location on the first character selection sub-element on the display:

displaying a second temporary character element in the first language corresponding to the second position on the first character selection sub-element in place of the display of the first temporary character element; and

displaying a portion of an identifier list having one or more identifiers with a preceding character corresponding to the second temporary character element in the first language.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting further movement of the contact to a third position on the second character selection sub-element on the display;

in response to detecting the further movement of the contact to a third location on the second character selection sub-element on the display:

displaying a third temporary character element in the second language corresponding to the third position on the second character selection sub-element in place of the display of the second temporary character element;

displaying a portion of an identifier list having one or more identifiers with a preceding character corresponding to the third temporary character element in the second language.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first character selection sub-element has a first size; and is

The second character selection sub-element has a second size, wherein the first size relative to the second size is determined based on the first number relative to the second number.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

a respective one or more of the character selection elements are displayed in a predefined size;

the temporary character element corresponding to the current location of the contact is displayed in a size larger than the predefined size.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more character elements of the first character selection sub-element correspond to a first indexing scheme associated with the first language and the one or more character elements of the second character selection sub-element correspond to a second indexing scheme associated with the second language.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first language is Chinese and the first indexing scheme is based on character stroke count.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the second language is English, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the first language is Japanese, and the first indexing scheme is based on kana scripts.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet.

10. The method of claim 5, wherein the first language is Korean, and the first indexing scheme is based on Korean Pinyin.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein

The list of identifiers is further associated with a third number of third content items that are associated with neither the first language nor the second language, and

the character selection element includes a third character selection sub-element associated with the third content item and having a third size.

13. An electronic device, comprising:

a processor;

a memory;

a display unit for displaying on a touch-sensitive display:

a portion of a list of identifiers, the list of identifiers associated with:

a first number of first content items associated with a first language; and

a second number of second content items, different from the first content item, associated with a second language, different from the first language; and

a character selection element for navigating the list of identifiers, the character selection element representing a plurality of characters, the character selection element comprising:

a first character selection sub-element associated with the first content item, the first character selection sub-element comprising one or more positions corresponding to one or more character elements in the first language; and

a second character selection sub-element associated with the second content item, the second character selection sub-element comprising one or more positions corresponding to one or more character elements in the second language;

a detection unit for detecting a point of contact on the display corresponding to a first position on the first character selection sub-element on the display,

wherein:

in response to detecting the point of contact on the display corresponding to the first location on the first character selection sub-element on the display:

the display unit causes: displaying a first temporary character element in the first language corresponding to the first position on the first character selection sub-element; and is

The display unit causes: displaying a portion of an identifier list having one or more identifiers with a preceding character corresponding to the first temporary character element in the first language;

the detection unit detects movement of the contact to a second location on the first character selection sub-element on the display, and in response to detecting the movement of the contact to a second location on the first character selection sub-element on the display:

the display unit displaying a second temporary character element in the first language corresponding to the second position on the first character selection sub-element in place of the display of the first temporary character element; and is

The display unit causes display of a portion of an identifier list having one or more identifiers with a preceding character corresponding to the second temporary character element in the first language.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein:

the detection unit detects further movement of the contact to a third location on the second character selection sub-element on the display, and in response to detecting the further movement of the contact to a third location on the second character selection sub-element on the display:

the display unit displaying a third temporary character element in the second language corresponding to the third position on the second character selection sub-element in place of the display of the second temporary character element; and is

The display unit causes display of a portion of an identifier list having one or more identifiers with preceding characters corresponding to the third temporary character element in the second language.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein:

the first character selection sub-element has a first size; and is

The second character selection sub-element has a second size, wherein the first size relative to the second size is determined based on the first number relative to the second number.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein:

a respective one or more of the character selection elements are displayed in a predefined size;

the temporary character element corresponding to the current location of the contact is displayed in a size larger than the predefined size.

17. The device of claim 13, wherein the one or more character elements of the first character selection sub-element correspond to a first indexing scheme associated with the first language and the one or more character elements of the second character selection sub-element correspond to a second indexing scheme associated with the second language.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the first language is chinese and the first indexing scheme is based on character stroke counts.

19. The device of claim 18, wherein the second language is english, and the second indexing scheme is based on an alphabet.

20. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein

The list of identifiers is further associated with a third number of third content items that are associated with neither the first language nor the second language, and

the character selection element includes a third character selection sub-element associated with the third content item and having a third size.