# US 8,786,636 B2 · Information processing apparatus, program, and control method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 8,786,636 B2 - Document ID: US8786636B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 13/212,362 - Filed: 2011-08-18 - Published: 2012-03-08 - Granted: 2014-07-22 - Earliest claimed: 2010-09-07 - Assignees: Sony Corporation - Applicants: Yusuke Miyazawa; Seiji Suzuki; Yasushi Okumura - Inventors: Yusuke Miyazawa; Seiji Suzuki; Yasushi Okumura - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8786636B2 ## CPC - G06F 3/0346: with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a three-dimensional [3D] space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors - G06F 1/1626: {with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]} - G06F 3/041: Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means - G06F 3/0416: {Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers} - G06F 3/04815: Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional [3D], e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object - G06F 2200/1637: Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer - G06F 2203/04802: 3D-info-object: information is displayed on the internal or external surface of a three dimensional manipulable object, e.g. on the faces of a cube that can be rotated by the user - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) ## Abstract An information processing apparatus includes a display, a sensor, and a controller. The display has a screen. The sensor is configured to detect an inclination. The controller is configured to display a first object on the screen and display a second object associated with the first object on the screen in accordance with the inclination detected by the sensor. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An information processing apparatus, comprising: a display having a screen; a sensor configured to detect an inclination; a controller configured to display a first object on the screen and display a second object associated with the first object on the screen in accordance with the inclination detected by the sensor; and a touch panel configured to detect contact, wherein the second object is an object operable with the touch panel, and the controller switches availability of an operation of the second object using the touch panel in accordance with the inclination, wherein a rotational perspective of objects including the first object and the second object displayed on the screen of the display is changed such that the second object is displayed to emerge from a hidden state in correspondence with an increased degree of the inclination, wherein a function associated with a selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel remains disabled until the inclination becomes greater than a predetermined threshold and the second object has emerged a predetermined amount past a point at which the second object first emerges to be displayed, and wherein the first object having the changed rotational perspective is continued to be displayed on the screen of the display at a time the function associated with the selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel is enabled. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first object is an object operable with the touch panel. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the controller switches a first state where the first object is operable with the touch panel and a second state where the second object is operable with the touch panel in accordance with the inclination. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the controller displays in a rotational manner a three-dimensional display object having a first surface serving as the first object and a second surface serving as the second object in accordance with the inclination, to thereby display the second object on the screen in accordance with the inclination. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the controller controls display such that the three-dimensional display object is rotated less than a predetermined amount in a case where an angle of the inclination is less than a predetermined value, and such that a rotation speed of the three-dimensional display object becomes higher as the inclination increases in a case where the angle of the inclination is the predetermined value or more. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the controller determines a position of a virtual camera in accordance with the inclination, and changes a background image of the three-dimensional display object in accordance with the position of the virtual camera. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller moves the first object and the second object in directions different from each other in accordance with the inclination, to thereby display the second object on the screen in accordance with the inclination. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the controller moves the first object while rotating the first object. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first object is an image displayed when content is reproduced, the second object is an object for operating a reproduction position of the content, and the controller changes, in a case where the second object is operated with the touch panel, the reproduction position in accordance with a change amount of a contact position of the touch panel. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the controller changes a ratio of a change amount of the reproduction position of the content to the change amount of the contact position of the touch panel, in accordance with the inclination. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller can simultaneously execute a plurality of application programs, the first object is an image displayed by one of the plurality of application programs, and the second object is an image for selecting one of the plurality of application programs. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first object is an image indicating content, and the second object is an icon for deleting content. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller can update a reference point serving as a reference of the inclination. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The information processing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the controller determines whether an angle of the inclination is a predetermined threshold value or more, and updates the reference point when the angle of the inclination is the predetermined threshold value or more. ### Claim 15 (depends on 13) The information processing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the controller determines whether the contact with the touch panel is not detected for a predetermined period of time or more and updates, in the case where the contact is not detected for the predetermined period of time or more, a position of the information processing apparatus at that time as the reference point. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The information processing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the controller determines whether a change amount of the inclination is less than a predetermined threshold value within a predetermined period of time and updates, in the case where an angle of the inclination is less than the predetermined threshold value, a position of the information processing apparatus at that time as the reference point. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation of the second object is switched from an unavailable state to an available state at a time after the second object initially becomes visibly displayed on the screen. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotational perspective of the objects including the first object and the second object displayed on the display of the screen is changed such that the second object is displayed to gradually emerge from a hidden state in correspondence with an increasing degree of the inclination. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a function associated with a selection of the first object by operation of the first object with the touch panel is disabled when the function associated with the selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel is enabled. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a function associated with a selection of the first object by operation of the first object with the touch panel remains enabled when the function associated with the selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel is enabled. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the function associated with the selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel is enabled after the inclination becomes greater than the predetermined threshold and remains enabled throughout a range of different rotational perspectives of the second object corresponding to a range of changing the degree of the inclination between the predetermined threshold and an inclination value greater than the predetermined threshold. ### Claim 22 A non-transitory computer-readable medium having embodied thereon a program, which when executed by a computer causes the computer to execute a method, the method comprising: displaying a first object on a screen of a display; displaying a second object associated with the first object on the screen in accordance with an inclination detected by a sensor; and detecting a contact made upon a touch panel associated with the screen and configured to detect contact, wherein the second object is an object operable with the touch panel, and the controller switches availability of an operation of the second object using the touch panel in accordance with the inclination, wherein a rotational perspective of objects including the first object and the second object displayed on the screen of the display is changed such that the second object is displayed to emerge from a hidden state in correspondence with an increased degree of the inclination, wherein a function associated with a selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel remains disabled until the inclination becomes greater than a predetermined threshold and the second object has emerged a predetermined amount past a point at which the second object first emerges to be displayed, and wherein the first object having the changed rotational perspective is continued to be displayed on the screen of the display at a time the function associated with the selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel is enabled. ### Claim 23 A control method, comprising: displaying a first object on a screen of a display; displaying a second object associated with the first object on the screen in accordance with an inclination detected by a sensor; and detecting a contact made upon a touch panel associated with the screen and configured to detect contact, wherein the second object is an object operable with the touch panel, and the controller switches availability of an operation of the second object using the touch panel in accordance with the inclination, wherein a rotational perspective of objects including the first object and the second object displayed on the screen of the display is changed such that the second object is displayed to emerge from a hidden state in correspondence with an increased degree of the inclination, wherein a function associated with a selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel remains disabled until the inclination becomes greater than a predetermined threshold and the second object has emerged a predetermined amount past a point at which the second object first emerges to be displayed, and wherein the first object having the changed rotational perspective is continued to be displayed on the screen of the display at a time the function associated with the selection of the second object by operation of the second object with the touch panel is enabled.