Method of interacting with an electronic device while the display screen is deactivated
AssigneeBlackBerry Limited
InventorsDapeng Gao, Brian Alexander Oliver
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method of interacting with an electronic device while the display screen is deactivated and the electronic device is possibly locked is described. In one embodiment, the electronic devices generate a notification regarding a new event and/or device state using a notification element in response to receiving a predetermined key input from the hardware keyboard while the electronic device is in the locked state and while the display screen is deactivated, wherein the notification is generated while the display screen remains deactivated.
Claims20
A handheld electronic device, comprising:
- a processor;
- a display screen coupled to the processor;
- an input device coupled to the processor;
- an output device coupled to the processor;
- and
- a communication subsystem coupled to the processor for communication over a wireless network;
- wherein the processor is configured to:
- turn off the display screen;
- detect a first input at the input device;
- and
- in response to the detection of the first input at the input device while the display screen remains turned off:
- determine a number and type of new events associated with the first input;
- and
- activate the output device a number of times equal to the number of new events of the event type associated with the first input.
A method of interacting with a handheld electronic device, comprising:
- turning off a display screen of the handheld electronic device;
- detecting a first input at an input device of the handheld electronic device;
- and
- in response to the detection of the first input at the input device while the display screen remains turned off:
- determining a number and type of new events associated with the first input;
- and
- activating an output device of the handheld electronic device a number of times equal to the number of new events of the event type associated with the first input.
A non-transitory machine readable medium having tangibly stored thereon executable instructions for execution by a processor of a handheld electronic device, wherein the executable instructions, in response to execution by the processor of the handheld electronic device, cause the handheld electronic device to:
- turn off a display screen of the handheld electronic device;
- detect a first input at an input device of the handheld electronic device;
- and
- in response to the detection of the first input at the input device while the display screen remains turned off:
- determine a number and type of new events associated with the first input;
- and
- activate an output device of the handheld electronic device a number of times equal to the number of new events of the event type associated with the first input.
A handheld electronic device, comprising:
- a processor;
- a display screen coupled to the processor;
- an input device coupled to the processor;
- a multi-color light emitting diode (LED) coupled to the processor;
- and
- a communication subsystem coupled to the processor for communication over a wireless network;
- wherein the processor is configured to:
- turn off the display screen;
- detect a first input at the input device;
- and
- activate the multi-color LED a number of times equal to a number of new events in response to detection of a first input at the input device while the display screen remains turned off, wherein the multi-color LED is activated in a particular one of a number of colors of the multi-color LED in dependence on an event type associated with the first input.
A handheld electronic device, comprising:
- a processor;
- a display screen coupled to the processor;
- an input device coupled to the processor;
- a plurality of notification elements coupled to the processor, wherein the plurality of notification elements comprise a light emitting diode (LED), a vibrator and a speaker;
- and
- a communication subsystem coupled to the processor for communication over a wireless network;
- wherein the processor is configured to:
- turn off the display screen;
- detect a first input at the input device;
- and
- in response to the detection of the first input at the input device while the display screen remains turned off:
- determine a number and type of new events associated with the first input;
- and
- activate a notification element in the plurality of notification elements a number of times equal to the number of new events of the event type associated with the first input, wherein the notification element that is activated is selected from the LED, vibrator or speaker in dependence on the event type associated with the first input.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.