User interface for electronic devices for controlling the displaying of long sorted lists

Abstract

In a user-interface application, a computing apparatus has a user-interface to assist the user in searching for information from a data array. In an example embodiment according to the present invention, the data array is an ordered list of addresses. In a UI so equipped, the user experiences a particular sequence of events. The user begins at a point on a list of addresses. After the user rotates a jog/shuttle knob, the list rolls down a low rate. As the user rotates the jog/shuttle knob further the scroll accelerates. After a predetermined time or number of items, a helper character is displayed. This character may represent a first letter of a name or a first digit of a telephone number. The UI displays the helper character to the user. The user continues to hold the position of the jog/shuttle knob until a help character, corresponding to his/her desired selection, appears. The user releases the jog/shuttle knob and may step through among a smaller group of data to locate the particular selection by incrementally rotating the knob from the neutral position.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A consumer electronics device comprising:
 an information-rendering device; 
 a force-sensitive user interface, operative to enable a user to scroll through an ordered list of a data array that is rendered and to render the ordered list on the information rendering device; and 
 a helper character-generator being operative to replace only a portion of an item in the rendered ordered list being scrolled, as the rendered ordered list is scrolled with an enlarged rendered helper character that overlays a changing portion of the rendered ordered list as the rendered ordered list is scrolled, wherein the rendered ordered list is otherwise not replaced as the rendered ordered list is scrolled. 
 
     
     
       2. The consumer electronics device of  claim 1 , wherein the information-rendering device is selected from at least one of the following: includes a visual display, and at least one of an audio output, and a tactile feedback. 
     
     
       3. The consumer electronics device of  claim 1 , wherein the force-sensitive interface is coupled to a user interface assisting is configured to assist in searching for information from an ordered list in a data array, the user interface comprising,
 an array scroller responsive to user actuation of the force-sensitive user interface, the user actuation being a magnitude of a force applied to the force-sensitive user interface, a scrolling speed of the array scroller being controlled by the magnitude of the force applied; and 
 the helper character-generator, actuated by continued user actuation of the array scroller, the helper character generator being operative to render an initial character of an item in the rendered ordered list being scrolled, in a an enlarged manner on a whole or a part of a screen of a visual display of the rendering device after being scrolled a predetermined time or a predetermined number of items. 
 
     
     
       4. The consumer electronics device of  claim 1 , wherein, the helper character generator conditionally renders a record of additional helper characters in addition to the initial character. 
     
     
       5. In a data processing environment, a method for enabling a user to scroll through an ordered list in a data array accessible through a data processing device, the method comprising acts of:
 rendering the list; 
 enabling the user to scroll through the list at a predetermined rate, in response to the user actuating the data processing device via a force-sensitive user interface, the predetermined rate being controlled by the magnitude of force the user exerts on the force sensitive interface; and 
 generating a portion of an item of the list being scrolled, in an enlarged manner replacing only a portion of the list being scrolled with the enlarged generated portion of the item overlaying a changing portion of the rendered ordered list as the rendered ordered list is scrolled, wherein the rendered ordered list is otherwise not replaced as the rendered ordered list is scrolled. 
 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the data processing environment comprises a distributed environment. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 6 , wherein the force-sensitive user interface comprises at least one of the following: jog/shuttle dial, touch pad, drawing tablet, mouse scroll wheel, joystick, a touch screen. 
     
     
       8. A consumer electronics device comprising:
 a rendering device for rendering of an ordered list representing user-selectable items; 
 a force-sensitive user-interface for control of a speed of scrolling through the list rendered on the rendering device; and 
 a helper character-generator being operative to render a character in an enlarged manner replacing any prior such character that is representative of only a portion of an item in the list being scrolled with the enlarged generated portion of the item overlaying a changing portion of the rendered ordered list as the rendered ordered list is scrolled, wherein the rendered ordered list is otherwise not replaced as the rendered ordered list is scrolled. 
 
     
     
       9. Software, stored on A computer-readable non-transitory media, for medium having stored software for causing a data processing device to perform a method for enabling a user to scroll through an ordered list in a data array accessible through a the data processing device, the software method comprising acts of:
 instructions for enabling the user to scroll through the list at a predetermined rate, in response to the user actuating the data processing device via a force-sensitive user interface, the predetermined rate being controlled by the magnitude of force the user exerts on the force sensitive interface; and 
 instructions for generating a helper character representative of a portion of the list being scrolled, wherein the helper character is generated, replacing only a portion of the list being scrolled, in an enlarged manner relative to other items of the ordered list with the enlarged generated helper character overlaying a changing portion of the ordered list as the ordered list is scrolled, wherein the ordered list is otherwise not replaced as the ordered list is scrolled. 
 
     
     
       10. The software medium of  claim 9 , wherein the computer-readable non-transitory media medium comprises at least one of the following: semiconductor memory, optical storage, magnetic storage, client/server data storage. 
     
     
       11. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the user interface is operable to receive a user's touch at a location of the information-rendering device and the enlarged rendered helper character corresponds to a portion of an image rendered on the information-rendering device underneath the touched location. 
     
     
       12. The consumer electronics device of claim 11, wherein the user interface is operable to transition to rendering the enlarged rendered helper character by rendering a series of intermediate images developing from the portion of the image rendered to the enlarged rendered helper character. 
     
     
       13. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the enlarged rendered helper character is representative of a cluster of entries in the ordered list at a position currently being scrolled through. 
     
     
       14. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the user interface is operable to render the ordered list with an entry in the list closest to the enlarged rendered helper character as a first item in the rendered ordered list. 
     
     
       15. The consumer electronics device of claim 14, wherein the user interface is operable to remove the enlarged rendered helper character from the rendered ordered list when scrolling ends. 
     
     
       16. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the enlarged rendered helper character is one of a plurality of enlarged rendered helper characters rendered during scrolling. 
     
     
       17. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the enlarged rendered helper character is a first enlarged rendered helper character and the user interface is operable to render a second enlarged rendered helper character together with the first enlarged rendered helper character when scrolling is stopped and thereafter restarted within a predetermined period of time. 
     
     
       18. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the ordered list is an alphabetical list of the data array and the enlarged rendered helper character is at least one letter of the alphabet. 
     
     
       19. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the consumer electronics device is a handheld device comprising a display and the helper character-generator is configured for rendering the enlarged rendered helper character on the display. 
     
     
       20. The consumer electronics device of claim 19, wherein the handheld device is a mobile phone. 
     
     
       21. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, comprising a wired or wireless connection coupled to the helper character-generator wherein the user interface is operative to enable scrolling of the ordered list accessed through the wired or wireless connection. 
     
     
       22. The consumer electronics device of claim 1, wherein the consumer electronics device is configured as an Internet-enabled wireless handheld device. 
     
     
       23. The consumer electronics device of claim 22, wherein the user interface is operative to enable scrolling of the ordered list accessed through the Internet. 
     
     
       24. The consumer electronics device of claim 22, wherein the ordered list is stored on an Internet server device.