Adaptive display aspect ratio adjuster and gestures on curled devices

Abstract

An apparatus and method for intuitively optimizing the size of visual content (9) displayed on a rollable display device (1), wherein the visual content (9) is optimally scaled to the current size of a front screen (5), or a touch-sensitive display (4) is rolled up to the desired extent to optimally display the best possible aspect ratio of the visual content (9) as permitted using an input gesture (10) such as a multi-touch "stretch" or "pinch" gesture. The touch-sensitive display (4) can also be manually rolled up between a rolled-up state (18) and an unfolded state (19) using a "shake to roll" movement gesture.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates generally to flexible display devices, and more particularly to methods and devices for adjusting the aspect ratio or size of a display or displayed content on a rollable display device. Background Art

[0002] Consumers are increasingly interested in large, bright display devices, and as a result, there is a growing demand for display devices that are easy to carry and store. Flexible display panels offer a solution to achieving portability by using a display panel in which multiple pixels are arranged on a flexible substrate such as a plastic film rather than a rigid substrate, so that it can be easily bent.

[0003] Accordingly, flexible display devices using flexible display panels have been developed in recent years, such as rollable display devices, foldable display devices, and expandable display devices. The rollable display device includes a flexible display panel that can be unfolded to increase the available screen area and can be rolled up to a compact position to increase portability, which is achieved by using a rolling unit to support a curved portion of the flexible display panel rolled up around the rolling unit, and using a driving module to rotate the rolling unit in response to a driving signal. Some rollable display devices include a flexible touch-sensitive display panel that can also act as an input device by detecting touch gestures.

[0004] However, the problem with such rollable display devices is that it is difficult to provide intuitive control options to optimize the available screen area according to the size and aspect ratio of the displayed visual content (e.g., a video stream), and it is difficult to easily disable or enable the curling of the display device upon request. Such control options are usually placed on the side of the device (similar to audio output volume control options), but one side of the device in a rollable display device forms part of the flexible display panel and is therefore not fixed. Using the touch-sensitive display panel itself for input detection to enable the display device to curl or adjust the display size can also cause the problem of users unconsciously touching the dedicated area of ​​the display device and accidentally rolling up or unrolling the display device.

[0005] The prior art has attempted to solve the above problems in a variety of ways. However, they still have certain disadvantages.

[0006] According to one solution, the screen size of the flexible display can be adjusted according to the screen ratio of the displayed content by driving a motor and a moving member, and vice versa, wherein the screen size of the flexible display can be increased or decreased by physically moving (e.g., waving, shaking) a remote control. However, this solution does not disclose any permission request that requires a user gesture to change the screen size. In addition, no information is provided on how to specifically use such movement (e.g., waving, shaking) to change the screen size of the flexible display.

[0007] According to another scheme, a flexible device may include a flexible display that can be deformed by folding, bending or curling, and may provide a user interface screen in which the visual presentation dynamically changes in interaction with the deformation of the flexible display (e.g., the size of the displayed object may change with the degree of deformation). Such a flexible device may improve user readability by adjusting the proportion or size of an activation area on the flexible display in interaction with the degree of deformation or state of the flexible device. In addition, the flexible display of such a flexible device may be attached to a rotating roller and may be moved in a predetermined direction by a one-dimensional, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional motion input (e.g., shaking), which may be sensed by a motion sensing module including at least one motion sensor (e.g., an accelerometer). However, such a scheme does not disclose how to deform the flexible screen according to the best possible aspect ratio after obtaining user permission, nor does it disclose how the shaking motion of the flexible device corresponds to the curling of the flexible display.

[0008] Therefore, there is still a need to provide a solution that can dynamically adjust the aspect ratio of visual content displayed on a rollable display to optimize the aspect ratio of the visual content according to the front size of the rollable display, and also enable the user to provide intuitive input to enable or disable the rolling and unfolding of the rollable display to avoid unconscious or accidental adjustment of the display. Summary of the invention

[0009] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a device and method for detecting user gestures on a rollable display device to adjust the aspect ratio or size of the display or displayed content, thereby overcoming or at least reducing the above problems.

[0010] The above and other objects are achieved by the features of the independent claims. Further implementations are apparent from the dependent claims, the detailed description and the drawings.

[0011] According to a first aspect, there is provided a device, comprising:

[0012] case;

[0013] A curling unit, installed in the housing and configured to rotate around a roller;

[0014] a flexible touch-sensitive display for being rolled around the rolling unit so as to define a flat front screen having a first size and a second size, wherein the first size is fixed and the second size varies according to a degree of rotation of the rolling unit;

[0015] A controller is used to control the display to display visual content on the front screen and adjust at least one size of the visual content to match a corresponding size of the front screen.

[0016] Adjusting the size of the visual content to match the corresponding size of the front screen of the rollable display device provides a simple and dynamic method for improving the user's viewing experience by automatically adapting and optimizing the different sizes and screen ratios of the visual content presented on the rollable touch-sensitive display without adding any special hardware to the device. Therefore, the method allows the display to be rolled up and rolled out without any visual UI elements (such as slider switches, clickable icons, etc.) or physical user interaction elements (such as hardware buttons, scroll wheels, etc.). The aspect ratio of the visual content can be changed to conform to endless aspect ratio options, including new aspect ratios that may appear in the future. In addition, this also enables the full utilization of the display in a way that there are no black bars on any edge of the borderless display, which can provide the user with the best visual experience.

[0017] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the controller is used to adjust the size of the visual content to match the size of the front screen by adjusting the aspect ratio of the visual content so that two sizes of the visual content match the corresponding first size and second size of the front screen, thereby maximizing the available display area of ​​the rollable display device.

[0018] In another possible implementation of the first aspect, the controller is used to: calculate an optimal second size of the front screen for displaying the visual content based on the fixed first size, the orientation of the display, and the aspect ratio of the visual content; and adjust the second size of the front screen to the optimal second size by rotating the curling unit, thereby optimizing the aspect ratio of the visual content by adjusting the size and aspect ratio of the front screen.

[0019] In another possible implementation of the first aspect, the controller is used to: in response to detecting a user input, selectively enable or disable rotation of the curling unit to adjust the second size, thereby limiting accidental input and erroneous front screen size adjustment.

[0020] In another possible implementation of the first aspect, the touch-sensitive display is used to detect a touch gesture, and the user input includes a touch gesture detected on the front screen.

[0021] In another possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the touch gesture includes sliding of multiple touch inputs detected on the front screen simultaneously or in a sequence that is immediately adjacent to each other; and the controller is further configured to:

[0022] in response to detecting a pinch gesture including sliding of the plurality of touch inputs closer to each other, enabling rotation of the curling unit to adjust the second size;

[0023] In response to detecting a stretch gesture including sliding of the plurality of touch inputs away from each other, rotation of the rolling unit is disabled such that the second size cannot be adjusted.

[0024] Limiting the types of touch gestures to multiple touch inputs detected simultaneously with a predefined slide, or to multiple touch inputs detected in a sequence that is immediately adjacent to each other, can avoid accidental adjustments caused by the user inadvertently touching the display or simply holding the device.

[0025] In another possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the device further includes: an accelerometer connected to the controller and configured to detect a movement gesture of the display; the front screen is configured to be adjusted by the controller between a rolled-up state and an unfolded state, wherein the second size is the smallest when in the rolled-up state and the second size is the largest when in the unfolded state; and the controller is further configured to:

[0026] In response to the accelerometer detecting a first movement gesture, adjusting the front screen to an unfolded state;

[0027] In response to the accelerometer detecting a second movement gesture, the front screen is adjusted to a rolled-up state.

[0028] Defining a motion gesture for rolling up and unrolling the rollable display provides an intuitive user input option without requiring additional hardware or use of display area. In addition, the motion gesture is a low power solution because it only requires an accelerometer to sense the occurrence of the gesture.

[0029] In one embodiment, the first movement gesture comprises:

[0030] A first sub-gesture sets the display to a horizontal upward state;

[0031] a second clockwise sub-gesture to shake the display by rotating in a clockwise direction about an axis parallel to the roller while keeping the display upward and returning the display to the horizontal upward state;

[0032] The second movement gesture comprises:

[0033] the first sub-gesture;

[0034] The second counterclockwise sub-gesture shakes the display by rotating in a counterclockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller while keeping the display upward and returning the display to the horizontal upward state.

[0035] The “shake-to-roll” gesture is intuitive and bidirectional, thus bidirectionally controlling the rolling of the rollable touch-sensitive display.

[0036] In another possible implementation of the first aspect, the controller is used to: detect the time interval Td between the first sub-gesture and the corresponding second clockwise sub-gesture or the second counterclockwise sub-gesture; and interpret the first movement gesture and the second movement gesture as valid only when the time interval Td is equal to or shorter than a predefined time threshold Tr.

[0037] This can further limit accidental input and incorrect front screen resizing.

[0038] In another possible implementation of the first aspect, the curling unit further includes: gears arranged at both ends of the curling unit for engaging the display; and a reversible drive unit for rotating the curling unit around the roller in response to a control signal received from the controller, the control signal including instructions for determining the direction and degree of rotation.

[0039] In one embodiment, the driving unit is a motor, which is further configured to adjust the rotation speed of the curling unit in proportion to the input voltage.

[0040] In another possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the device is a smart device, preferably a smart phone; and the visual content is displayed as a part of a graphical user interface of an application running on the smart device.

[0041] In one embodiment, the visual content is video content having a fixed aspect ratio.

[0042] According to a second aspect, there is provided a method for controlling a rollable display device, the rollable display device comprising: a controller; a housing; a rollable unit mounted in the housing and rotatable about a roller; a flexible touch-sensitive display rolled around the rollable unit to define a flat front screen having a first size and a second size, wherein the first size is fixed and the second size changes according to a degree of rotation of the rollable unit; the method comprising:

[0043] The controller detects a current second size of the front screen;

[0044] adjusting at least one dimension of visual content to be displayed on the front screen to match a corresponding dimension of the front screen;

[0045] The visual content is displayed on the front screen.

[0046] Adjusting the size of the visual content to match the corresponding size of the front screen of the rollable display device provides a simple and dynamic method for improving the user's viewing experience by automatically adapting and optimizing the different sizes and screen ratios of the visual content presented on the rollable touch-sensitive display without adding any special hardware to the device. Therefore, the method allows the display to be rolled up and rolled out without any visual UI elements (such as slider switches, clickable icons, etc.) or physical user interaction elements (such as hardware buttons, scroll wheels, etc.). The aspect ratio of the visual content can be changed to conform to endless aspect ratio options, including new aspect ratios that may appear in the future. In addition, this also enables the full utilization of the display in a way that there are no black bars on any edge of the borderless display, which can provide the user with the best visual experience.

[0047] In a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the method further includes:

[0048] The controller calculates an optimal second size for displaying the visual content based on the fixed first size, the orientation of the display, and the aspect ratio of the visual content;

[0049] The second size of the front screen is adjusted to the optimal second size by rotating the curling unit.

[0050] This can further optimize the aspect ratio of the visual content by adjusting the size and aspect ratio of the front screen.

[0051] In another possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the touch-sensitive display is used to detect a touch gesture, and the method further includes:

[0052] detecting a touch gesture comprising simultaneous sliding of multiple touch inputs on the front screen;

[0053] selectively enabling or disabling rotation of the curling unit based on the touch gesture to adjust the second size, wherein,

[0054] in response to detecting a pinch gesture including sliding of the plurality of touch inputs closer to each other, enabling rotation of the curling unit;

[0055] In response to detecting a stretching gesture including sliding of the plurality of touch inputs away from each other, the rotation of the rolling unit is disabled.

[0056] Limiting the types of touch gestures to multiple touch inputs detected simultaneously with a predefined slide, or to multiple touch inputs detected in a sequence that is immediately adjacent to each other, can avoid accidental adjustments caused by the user inadvertently touching the display or simply holding the device.

[0057] In another possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the curled display device further includes an accelerometer connected to the controller, and the method further includes:

[0058] The accelerometer detects a first movement gesture or a second movement gesture;

[0059] The controller adjusts the front screen between a rolled-up state and an unfolded state, wherein the second size is smallest in the rolled-up state and the second size is largest in the unfolded state;

[0060] In response to the accelerometer detecting a first movement gesture, adjusting the front screen to an unfolded state;

[0061] In response to the accelerometer detecting a second movement gesture, the front screen is adjusted to a rolled-up state.

[0062] Defining a motion gesture for rolling up and unrolling the rollable display provides an intuitive user input option without requiring additional hardware or use of display area. In addition, the motion gesture is a low power solution because it only requires an accelerometer to sense the occurrence of the gesture.

[0063] In one embodiment, the first movement gesture comprises:

[0064] A first sub-gesture sets the display to a horizontal upward state;

[0065] a second clockwise sub-gesture to shake the display by rotating in a clockwise direction about an axis parallel to the roller while keeping the display upward and returning the display to the horizontal upward state;

[0066] The second movement gesture comprises:

[0067] A first sub-gesture sets the display to a horizontal upward state;

[0068] The second counterclockwise sub-gesture shakes the display by rotating in a counterclockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller while keeping the display upward and returning the display to the horizontal upward state.

[0069] The “shake to curl” gesture is intuitive and bidirectional, thus bidirectionally controlling the curling of the rollable touch-sensitive display.

[0070] In another possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the method further includes:

[0071] Detecting a time interval Td between the first sub-gesture and the corresponding second clockwise sub-gesture or second counterclockwise sub-gesture;

[0072] The first movement gesture and the second movement gesture are interpreted as valid only when the time interval Td is equal to or shorter than a predefined time threshold Tr.

[0073] This can further optimize the aspect ratio of the visual content by adjusting the size and aspect ratio of the front screen.

[0074] These and other aspects will be apparent from one or more of the embodiments described hereinafter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0075] In the following detailed description of the present invention, aspects, embodiments and implementations will be explained in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

[0076] Figure 1 An isometric view of a rollable display device provided by an embodiment of the first aspect is shown;

[0077] Figure 2 A top view of a rollable display device in a rolled-up and rolled-out state and displaying visual content provided by an embodiment of the first aspect is shown;

[0078] Figure 3 A top view of a roll-up display device showing roll-up enabling and disabling gestures is shown provided by another embodiment of the first aspect;

[0079] Figure 4 An isometric view of a roller for rolling up a display device is shown;

[0080] Figure 5 An isometric view of a movement gesture on a rolled display device provided by another embodiment of the first aspect is shown;

[0081] Figure 6 A 3D side view of a gear and a driving unit of a rollable display device provided by an embodiment of the first aspect is shown;

[0082] Figure 7 A top view of a rollable display smartphone device provided by another embodiment of the first aspect is shown;

[0083] Figure 8 A flow chart showing a method for controlling a curled display device provided by an embodiment of the second aspect;

[0084] Fig. 9 Another flow chart of a method for controlling a rollable display device provided by another embodiment of the second aspect is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0085] Figure 1 The rollable display device 1 provided by the present invention is shown. The rollable display device is defined as including a flexible display panel, which can be rolled out around a rolling unit (usually including one or more gears engaging the flexible display panel) to increase its available (front) screen area, and can be rolled up to a compact position to increase portability, which is achieved by using the rolling unit to support the curved portion of the flexible display panel, and using a drive module to rotate the rolling unit in response to a drive signal. In other words, if the rollable touch-sensitive display is rolled up, the device (such as a smartphone) has a front screen and a rear screen. Depending on the usage scenario, the front screen and the rear screen can be used separately or in succession. If the rollable touch-sensitive display is rolled out to the maximum extent, the user can use the entire rollable touch-sensitive display.

[0086] The rollable display device may include a flexible touch-sensitive display panel that may also act as an input device by detecting touch gestures. In some embodiments, the flexible touch-sensitive display panel uses multi-touch technology, whereby the display panel is able to recognize the presence of multiple contact points with the screen surface, whereby in this case, a multi-touch gesture is made by touching the rollable touch-sensitive display with multiple contact points (e.g., a user's fingers), with or without movement of the contact points (fingers) on the display. These multi-touch gestures may help users perform tasks quickly and intuitively on mobile devices and the like.

[0087] The device 1 provided by the present invention comprises a housing 2 and a rolling unit 3 rotatably mounted in the housing 2. The device 1 also comprises a flexible touch-sensitive display 4, which is used to roll around the rolling unit 3, thereby defining a flat front screen 5 having a first size 6 and a second size 7, wherein the first size 6 is fixed and the second size 7 changes according to the rotation degree of the rolling unit 3. In other words, when the display 4 is rolled around the rolling unit 3 (for example, between a rolled-up state and an unrolled state), its front area (front screen 5) facing upward toward the user changes accordingly. When the rolling unit 3 is rotated clockwise, the second size 7 of the front screen 5 increases; on the contrary, when the rolling unit 3 is rotated counterclockwise, the second size 7 of the front screen 5 decreases in a linear relationship with the rotation degree of the rolling unit 3. Since the first size 6 of the front screen 5 is fixed, an increase or decrease in the second size 7 causes the size of the front screen 5 to change accordingly.

[0088] The device 1 also includes a controller 8, which is connected to the curling unit 3 and is used to: control the display 4 to display visual content 9 on the front screen 5; adjust at least one dimension (i.e., width or length) of the visual content 9 to match the corresponding (i.e., parallel) first dimension 6 or second dimension 7 of the front screen 5. The visual content can be static media content such as digital images, or dynamic media content such as digital videos. The visual content can also be a graphical user interface of an application running on the device 1, such as a local application or browser for presenting web-based content. In some embodiments, the visual content 9 can be used to: adapt to the available size of the front screen 5 by changing the arrangement and size of elements of the web-based content according to the principles of adaptive or responsive web design.

[0089] exist Figure 2 In the illustrated embodiment, the controller 8 can be used to adjust the size of the visual content 9 to match the size of the front screen 5 by dynamically adjusting the aspect ratio of the visual content 9 presented on the front screen 5 so that two dimensions (i.e., width or length) of the visual content 9 match the corresponding (i.e., parallel) first dimension 6 or second dimension 7 of the front screen 5 (e.g., by distorting the visual content 9, resizing and rearranging elements of the visual content 9, or cropping and adjusting the visual content 9 to change the aspect ratio from 4:3 to 1:2).

[0090] The visual content 9 is scaled to the current front size of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 when the height and width of the visual content 9 are fully expanded, so that the visual content 9 can optimally cover the current front size of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. If the aspect ratio of a given display 4 is the same as the aspect ratio of the visual content 9, an optimal view of the visual content 9 can be provided without any black bars on either side of the given display. This may not always be possible for different types of visual content 9. For example, in some cases, the visual content 9 is scaled to fit the display 4 when the height is fully expanded, and there may be black bars on the left and right sides of the display 4, or in other cases, the visual content 9 is scaled to fit the display 4 when the width is fully expanded, and there may be black bars on the top and bottom of the display 4. When such black bars are present, another solution can be used to adjust the aspect ratio, as described below.

[0091] like Figure 2As shown, the controller 8 can (also) be used to calculate the optimal second size 7A of the front screen 5 for displaying the visual content 9 based on the fixed first size 6, the aspect ratio of the visual content 9 and the orientation of the device 1 (e.g., landscape or portrait mode), wherein the orientation of the device 1 is determined based on the horizontal or vertical position input of the built-in tilt sensor or accelerometer in the device 1 according to the direction in which the device is held. Such accelerometers or tilt sensors are included in almost all mobile phones and digital cameras for automatic image rotation, motion sensing games, and correcting shake when taking pictures. In addition, the controller 8 can also use information about the minimum, maximum and current second size 7 of the front screen 5 to calculate the optimal second size 7A.

[0092] It is worth noting that the aspect ratio of the front screen 5 of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is adaptive, which means that for a given visual content 9, it can be adjusted to the best possible aspect ratio. The aspect ratio of the front screen 5 is constantly changing, and endless aspect ratio options can be provided, so that the visual content 9 can be fully scaled to fit the front screen 5.

[0093] Specifically, the adaptive aspect ratio adjuster mechanism of the controller 8 provides aspect ratio adjustment using the form of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. The adaptive aspect ratio adjuster knows the dimensions (first dimension 6 and second dimension 7) of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 in the fully unfolded state and the fully rolled-up state. Therefore, the adaptive aspect ratio adjuster knows the given width and given height of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 in different rolled-up states. Since the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 can be rolled up / unrolled to various degrees, the adaptive aspect ratio adjuster needs to know the current front dimensions (i.e., the current front width 7 and the current front height 6) of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. The adaptive aspect ratio adjuster grasps this information in real time. In addition, the user of the device 1 can also choose to operate the device 1 in portrait mode or landscape mode. Accordingly, the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 will be oriented in portrait mode or landscape mode. Knowing the current orientation of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 enables the adaptive aspect ratio adjuster to calculate the best possible aspect ratio in any of the above modes. Finally, the controller 8 obtains the visual content 9 , such as image or video information (eg, size, resolution of the image / video), from the media player application that presents the visual content 9 .

[0094] After the controller 8 calculates the optimal second size 7A, it rotates the rolling unit 3 using a control signal sent to the rolling unit 3, etc. to adjust the second size 7 of the front screen 5 by rolling up or unrolling the display 4 to match the optimal second size 7A.

[0095] In one embodiment, the controller 8 may be configured to selectively enable or disable the rotation of the rolling unit 3 to adjust the second size 7 in response to detecting a user input 10. This means that the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is not allowed to be rolled to obtain the best possible aspect ratio without user permission. Any multimedia player that wants to integrate this functionality needs to provide the user with an explicit option (e.g., a button or gesture) to enable it.

[0096] like Figure 3 As shown, the touch-sensitive display 4 of the rollable display device 1 can be used to detect a touch gesture 11 as a user input 10. Such a touch gesture 11 may include sliding of multiple touch inputs 12 detected simultaneously or in a sequence close to each other on the front screen 5. In one embodiment, the multiple touch inputs 12 include 2 or 3 touch inputs 12. In another possible embodiment, the multiple touch inputs 12 include 4 or 5 touch inputs 12. Defining such a minimum number of touch inputs can avoid accidentally rolling and unfolding the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 due to false touches.

[0097] According to this embodiment, the controller 8 is further configured to: in response to detecting a pinch gesture 11 including sliding of the multiple touch inputs 12 closer to each other, enable the rotation of the rolling unit 3, thereby adjusting the second size 7 by rolling the display 4 on the rolling unit 3, as described above. Accordingly, the controller 8 is further configured to: in response to detecting a stretch gesture 11 including sliding of the multiple touch inputs 12 away from each other, disable the rotation of the rolling unit 3, thereby preventing any adjustment of the second size 7. Therefore, the touch gesture 11 for rolling and unfolding the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is intuitive, and the user does not need to particularly remember any complex gesture pattern for rolling and unfolding the rollable touch-sensitive display 4.

[0098] Figure 4 and Figure 5 Another embodiment of the device 1 is shown, wherein the device 1 can be implemented individually or combined into a controller configuration.

[0099] according to Figure 4In the illustrated embodiment, the curled display device 1 may also include an accelerometer 13, which is connected to the controller 8 and is used to detect movement gestures of the display 4. The accelerometer 13 is defined as a device for measuring intrinsic acceleration, which is the acceleration (or rate of change of velocity) of an object in its own instantaneous stationary coordinate system, in contrast to which coordinate acceleration is the acceleration in a fixed coordinate system. In other words, at any moment in space and time, the equivalence principle guarantees the existence of a local inertial coordinate system, and the accelerometer 13 measures the acceleration relative to the coordinate system. Such acceleration is usually called G force; that is, compared with standard gravity. An accelerometer 13 at rest relative to the surface of the earth will indicate approximately 1g upward because the surface of the earth exerts a normal force upward relative to the local inertial coordinate system (the coordinate system of a free fall body close to the surface of the earth). In order to obtain the acceleration caused by the motion relative to the earth, this "gravity offset" is subtracted and the effect of the rotation of the earth relative to the inertial coordinate system is corrected.

[0100] exist Figure 4 In the illustrated embodiment, the accelerometer 13 is a multi-axis accelerometer that can be used to detect the magnitude and direction of the inherent acceleration relative to three axes [X, Y, Z] as a vector. Figure 4 In the horizontal upward position of the device 1 shown, the vector determined by the accelerometer is [X=0, Y=0, Z=-1]. In one embodiment, the accelerometer 13 is a micromachined microelectromechanical system (MEMS) designed to detect the position and orientation of the device 1.

[0101] exist Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, the front screen 5 is used to be adjusted by the controller 8 between the rolled-up state 18 and the unfolded state 19 in response to the accelerometer 13 detecting the first movement gesture 14 or the second movement gesture 15, wherein the second size 7 is the smallest in the rolled-up state 18 and the largest in the unfolded state 19. Specifically, the controller 8 is used to adjust the front screen 5 to the unfolded state 19 when the first movement gesture 14 is detected; and to adjust the front screen 5 to the rolled-up state 18 in response to the second movement gesture 15 being detected.

[0102] exist Figure 5In the preferred embodiment shown, the first movement gesture 14 includes: a first sub-gesture 16 that sets the display 4 to a horizontal upward state. The controller 8 detects this initial gesture by continuously analyzing the acceleration values ​​reported by the accelerometer 13 on all three axes. On the z-axis, the reported acceleration should be close to -1g (with + / -1 allowed), which is consistent with the initial sub-gesture pattern of the device 1 being stationary and the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 being upward and held horizontally. On the x-axis and y-axis, the reported acceleration should be close to zero, which means that the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 remains horizontal [X=0, Y=0, Z=-g].

[0103] Next comes the second clockwise sub-gesture 17A, which shakes the display 4 by rotating in a clockwise direction about an axis parallel to the roller axis 3A while holding the display 4 upward and returning the display 4 to the horizontal upward state. The controller 8 detects this shaking sub-gesture by continuously analyzing the acceleration values ​​reported by the accelerometer 13 on all three axes. On the z-axis, the reported acceleration should be close to -1g (allowing + / - tolerance), which is consistent with the shaking sub-gesture pattern of the device 1 moving horizontally to hold the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 upward. On the x-axis, the acceleration suddenly increases from close to zero [X=0, Y=0, Z=-g] (allowing + / - tolerance) to a threshold [X=threshold, Y=threshold, Z=-g], and quickly decelerates back to close to zero [X=0, Y=0, Z=-g] (allowing + / - tolerance, for example, the threshold is 1g). On the y-axis, the acceleration and deceleration change in time and direction are the same as the acceleration and deceleration on the x-axis.

[0104] The second move gesture 15 includes a similar sequence of sub-gestures, but the rotation direction is opposite (counterclockwise), specifically: a first sub-gesture 16, setting the display 4 to a horizontal upward state [X=0, Y=0, Z=-g], as described above; a second counterclockwise sub-gesture 17B, shaking the display 4 by rotating in a counterclockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller 3A while keeping the display 4 upward [X=-threshold, Y=-threshold, Z=-g] and returning the display 4 to the horizontal upward state [X=0, Y=0, Z=-g] (the threshold is, for example, 1g).

[0105] For any sub-gesture, the larger the + / - tolerance, the more sensitive the sub-gesture recognition is. The setting of the tolerance value needs to take into account both gesture sensitivity and misoperation.

[0106] A change in acceleration / deceleration on the x-axis and y-axis means that the device 1 is moving in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction around the wrist.

[0107] To avoid erroneous operation, the shaking sub-gesture is only effective when the device 1 is shaken horizontally while holding the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 upwards.

[0108] In other words, the accelerometer 13 is sensitive to the slightest motion and force applied to the device 1 by measuring linear acceleration in the x, y, z directions based on the movement of the device 1. When the device 1 including the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is shaken, the reported accelerometer 13 values ​​are continuously processed, and only when these values ​​meet the specific requirements of the shake gesture as described above, the gesture is detected as a valid "shake to roll gesture" 14, 15. If the user wants to unroll the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 when it was previously in a rolled-up state, the user can do so by holding the lower part of the device 1, holding the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 horizontally upward, and shaking the device 1 clockwise around his / her wrist. If the user wants to roll up the display 4 when the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 was previously in an unrolled state, the user can do so by holding the solid lower part of the device 1, holding the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 horizontally upward, and shaking the device 1 counterclockwise around his / her wrist.

[0109] This shake-to-roll gesture is intuitive because the rolling / unrolling of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is controlled in a simple manner. In addition, this shake-to-roll gesture is a low-power solution for rolling the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 because it only uses the accelerometer 13 to detect movement. This shake-to-roll gesture is considered to have a strong dependency on a smartphone with a rollable touch-sensitive display 4. Without changing its principle, the same shake-to-roll gesture cannot be used on other types of smartphones (e.g., upright smartphones, foldable smartphones, etc.).

[0110] Figure 6 A 3D side view of a gear and a drive unit of a rollable display device provided by an embodiment of the first aspect is shown, wherein the roll unit 3 further includes: a gear 20, arranged at both ends of the roll unit 3, for engaging the display 4; a reversible drive unit 21, for rotating the roll unit 3 around the roller 3A in response to a control signal received from a controller 8, etc., wherein the control signal includes an instruction for determining the direction and degree of the rotation. Such a reversible drive unit 21 (motor) can provide a bidirectional rotational motion to the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. The reversible drive unit 21, the gear 20 and the gear shaft together constitute a rollable touch-sensitive display 4 rollable mechanism (rolling unit 3). The drive unit 21 can be controlled by sending a signal to achieve high-precision (up to millimeter accuracy) bidirectional rotation. The higher the voltage provided to the drive unit 21, the faster the movement of the gear shaft, thereby driving the rollable display 4 to roll faster. In addition, the roll direction, moving distance and roll speed can be controlled by providing a correct signal to the reversible drive unit 21.

[0111] In a possible embodiment, the driving unit 21 is a motor, which is used to further adjust the rotation speed of the curling unit 3 in proportion to the input voltage.

[0112] exist Figure 7 In one possible embodiment shown, the device 1 is a smart device, preferably a smart phone 22. The controller 8 shown in such an embodiment can also be used to provide a graphical user interface 23 on the front screen 5 of the display 4, and the graphical user interface 23 is adjusted in response to the size of the front screen, as described above. In other optional embodiments, the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 can be part of other smart devices such as smart TVs and smart watches.

[0113] Figure 8 and Fig. 9 A flow chart of the working mechanism of the roll-up display device 1 according to the above configuration of the controller 8 is shown, wherein the roll-up display device 1 can be implemented separately or combined into one controller configuration.

[0114] In a first step 101 , as described above, the current second size 7 of the front screen 5 is detected based on the current degree of rotation of the curling unit 3 .

[0115] In a next step 102 , at least one size of the visual content 9 to be displayed on the front screen 5 is adjusted to match the corresponding size of the front screen 5 ; thereafter, in a final step 103 , the visual content 9 is displayed on the front screen 5 with the adjusted new size.

[0116] The adaptive aspect ratio adjuster enables the aspect ratio of the visual content 9 to be adjusted according to the current front size of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. Therefore, the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is not limited to a fixed aspect ratio, but the aspect ratio of the visual content 9 can actually be changed by rolling up the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. This enables many aspect ratio options to be provided on the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 to accommodate the aspect ratios of various images and videos and improve the user experience. This also enables the screen aspect ratio to adapt to new aspect ratios that may appear in the future. In addition, this also enables the full use of the display in a way that there are no black bars on any edge of the borderless display, which can provide the user with the best visual experience.

[0117] In another embodiment, the rollable display device 1 can function by adjusting the size of the front screen 5 to the aspect ratio of the visual content 9 (alone or combined into one controller configuration having the above functions).

[0118] According to this embodiment, in an initial step 104, based on the fixed first size 6, the orientation of the display 4 and the aspect ratio of the visual content 9, an optimal second size 7A for displaying the visual content 9 is calculated, as described above in conjunction with Figure 2 described.

[0119] In the next step 105, the second size 7 of the front screen 5 is adjusted by rotating the curling unit 3 to the optimal second size 7A, such as Figure 2 In other words, depending on the combined controller configuration of the device 1, the visual content 9 is optimally scaled to the current size of the front screen 5, or the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is rolled up (optionally, with user permission, as described below) to the desired degree to best display the best possible aspect ratio of the visual content 9.

[0120] According to another embodiment of the rolled display device 1 (implemented alone or in combination as a controller configuration having the above functions, such as Figure 8 As shown), the touch-sensitive display 4 is used to detect a touch gesture 11. According to this embodiment, in an initial step 201, a touch gesture 11 comprising a simultaneous sliding of multiple touch inputs 12 is detected on the front screen 5.

[0121] In some embodiments, at least 2 simultaneous touch inputs 12 need to be detected before the touch gesture 11 is considered valid. In other possible embodiments, at least 3, 4 or 5 simultaneous touch inputs 12 need to be detected before the touch gesture 11 is considered valid. In other words, in order to enable or disable the curling of the touch-sensitive display 4, the user needs to touch the front screen 5 with multiple fingers and move (slide) the multiple fingers closer to or away from each other on the front screen 5. Such gestures are also commonly referred to as "stretching" or "pinch". Therefore, the touch gesture 11 can be understood as a multi-finger touch (pinch or stretch) gesture. This gesture that requires multiple fingers is rarely used on smart devices, so it is very unique and helps to avoid accidental or unnecessary curling of the display 4.

[0122] In the next step 202, the controller 8 determines whether the sliding of the touch input 12 is detected as a pinch gesture or a stretch gesture, and selectively enables or disables the rotation of the curling unit 3 to adjust the second size 7 based on the detected touch gesture 11. Specifically, in response to detecting a pinch gesture including a sliding of multiple touch inputs 12 moving closer to each other (or the palms of the user), the rotation of the curling unit 3 is enabled; in response to detecting a stretch gesture including a sliding of multiple touch inputs 12 moving away from each other (or the palms of the user), the rotation of the curling unit 3 is disabled.

[0123] In one embodiment, the controller 8 may also determine the pinch-in or pinch-out gesture based on the number of touch inputs 12 detected, such as 2, 3, 4, or 5 touch inputs 12 .

[0124] In another embodiment, touch gesture 11 may be determined to be valid only if the media player application running on device 1 presenting visual content 9 supports adaptive aspect ratio adjustment and visual content 9 is active on front screen 5 .

[0125] Accordingly, in a preferred embodiment, a given touch input 11 is inferred to be valid for enabling / disabling curling of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 only if predefined constraints are met (number of touch inputs 12, input detection on the front screen 5, pinch or stretch gesture, adaptive aspect ratio adjuster support, and visual content 9 on the front screen 5).

[0126] Fig. 9 Another embodiment of the rolled display device 1 (implemented alone or in combination as a controller configuration having the above functions) is shown, wherein the rolled display device 1 includes an accelerometer 13 connected to the controller 8, as described above in conjunction with Figure 4 The following describes the steps according to the controller configuration.

[0127] In an initial step 301 , the accelerometer 13 detects a first movement gesture 14 or a second movement gesture 15 .

[0128] In the next step 302, the controller 8 adjusts the front screen 5 between the rolled-up state 18 and the unfolded state 19 based on which movement gesture is detected, wherein the second size 7 is the smallest when in the rolled-up state 18 and the second size 7 is the largest when in the unfolded state 19. Specifically, in response to the accelerometer 13 detecting the first movement gesture 14, the front screen 5 is adjusted to the unfolded state 19; in response to the accelerometer 13 detecting the second movement gesture 15, the front screen 5 is adjusted to the rolled-up state 18.

[0129] In a preferred embodiment, the first movement gesture 14 includes: a first sub-gesture 16, which sets the display 4 to the horizontal upward state; a second clockwise sub-gesture 17A, which shakes the display 4 by rotating in a clockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller 3A while keeping the display 4 upward and returning the display 4 to the horizontal upward state. In contrast, the second movement gesture 15 includes: the same first sub-gesture 16, which sets the display 4 to the horizontal upward state; and a reverse second counterclockwise sub-gesture 17B, which shakes the display 4 by rotating in a counterclockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller 3A while keeping the display 4 upward and returning the display 4 to the horizontal upward state.

[0130] According to one embodiment (implemented alone or in combination as a controller configuration having the above functions, such as Fig. 9), in a further step 303, the time interval Td between the first sub-gesture 16 and the corresponding second sub-gesture (the second clockwise sub-gesture 17A or the second counterclockwise sub-gesture 17B) is detected; in the following step 304, the controller 8 determines whether the first movement gesture 14 and the second movement gesture 15 should be interpreted as valid. The gestures 14 and 15 are interpreted as valid only when the time interval Td is equal to or shorter than the predefined time threshold Tr, otherwise they are ignored.

[0131] Specifically, the device 1 records the exact time at which the above sub-gestures 16, 17A / 17B are recognized. Each time the device 1 recognizes the first sub-gesture 16, it records the time (t i ) to milliseconds and continuously updates the time. Similarly, when the device 1 detects the shaking sub-gesture 17A / 17B, it will update the time (t s ) are recorded to milliseconds.

[0132] The time interval T between the first sub-gesture 16 and the shaking sub-gesture 17A / 17B d Calculated as: Td = t s -t i .

[0133] When the time interval Td is greater than the threshold value Tr (e.g., 500 milliseconds), this means that the two sub-gestures do not appear continuously. In this case, the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 does not roll up or roll out (specifically, no further operation is performed). On the contrary, when the time interval Td is equal to or less than the threshold value Tr, the two sub-gestures appear continuously. In this case, the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 rolls up or rolls out according to the direction of the shaking sub-gesture 17A / 17B.

[0134] Td is a key parameter for determining the continuity of the two sub-gestures. A smaller Td requires the user to follow the shake to curl gesture constraints more strictly. A larger Td provides a larger tolerance for recognizing the user's gesture. In practice, Td needs to be carefully selected to strike a balance between the success rate of gesture recognition and false operations.

[0135] Accordingly, in a preferred embodiment, only when the above constraints (direction and order of sub-gestures and time interval between sub-gestures) are met, a given movement gesture is inferred to be valid for controlling the rolling of the rollable touch-sensitive display 4. In other words, when two sub-gestures 16, 17 appear consecutively, the rollable touch-sensitive display 4 is rolled up or spread out, otherwise no further operation is performed.

[0136] Various aspects and implementations have been described herein in conjunction with various embodiments. However, by studying the drawings, the disclosure and the appended claims, those skilled in the art can understand and implement other variations of the disclosed embodiments when implementing the claimed subject matter. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and "one" or "an" does not exclude multiple. A single processor or other unit can satisfy the functions of several items described in the claims. The listing of certain measures in mutually different dependent claims does not mean that the combination of these measures cannot be effectively used. The computer program may be stored / distributed on a suitable medium, such as an optical storage medium or solid-state medium provided together with other hardware or as part of other hardware, and may also be distributed in other forms, such as through the Internet or other wired or wireless telecommunications systems.

[0137] Reference signs used in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.

Claims

1. A device (1), characterized in that include: Housing (2); A curling unit (3) installed in the housing (2) and configured to rotate around a roller (3A); A flexible touch-sensitive display (4) adapted to be rolled around the rolling unit (3) so as to define a flat front screen (5) having a first size (6) and a second size (7), wherein the first size (6) is fixed and the second size (7) varies according to the degree of rotation of the rolling unit (3); a controller (8) for controlling the display (4) to display visual content (9) on the front screen (5), and adjusting at least one dimension of the visual content (9) to match a corresponding dimension of the front screen (5); The controller (8) is further configured to calculate an optimal second size (7A) of the front screen (5) for displaying the visual content (9) based on the fixed first size (6), the orientation of the display (4) and the aspect ratio of the visual content (9); By rotating the curling unit (3), the second size (7) of the front screen (5) is adjusted to the optimal second size (7A).

2. The device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that The controller (8) is used to adjust the size of the visual content (9) to match the size of the front screen (5) by adjusting the aspect ratio of the visual content (9) so that two sizes of the visual content (9) match the corresponding first size (6) and second size (7) of the front screen (5).

3. The device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 2, characterized in that The controller (8) is used to selectively enable or disable the rotation of the curling unit (3) to adjust the second size (7) in response to detecting a user input (10).

4. The device (1) according to claim 3, characterized in that The touch-sensitive display (4) is used to detect a touch gesture (11), and the user input (10) comprises a touch gesture (11) detected on the front screen (5).

5. The device (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that The touch gesture (11) comprises sliding of a plurality of touch inputs (12) detected simultaneously or in a sequence immediately adjacent to each other on the front screen (5); the controller (8) is further configured to: In response to detecting a pinch gesture comprising sliding the plurality of touch inputs (12) closer together, enabling rotation of the curling unit (3) to adjust the second size (7); In response to detecting a stretching gesture including sliding the plurality of touch inputs (12) away from each other, the rotation of the rolling unit (3) is disabled so that the second size (7) cannot be adjusted.

6. The device (1) according to any one of claims 1-2, 4-5, characterized in that Also includes: an accelerometer (13) connected to the controller (8) and used to detect movement gestures of the display (4); The front screen (5) is used to be adjusted by the controller (8) between a rolled-up state (18) and an unfolded state (19), wherein the second size (7) is the smallest when in the rolled-up state (18) and the second size (7) is the largest when in the unfolded state (19); The controller (8) is also used for: In response to the accelerometer (13) detecting a first movement gesture (14), adjusting the front screen (5) to an unfolded state (19); In response to the accelerometer (13) detecting a second movement gesture (15), the front screen (5) is adjusted to a rolled-up state (18).

7. The device (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that The first movement gesture (14) comprises: A first sub-gesture (16) is to set the display (4) to a horizontal upward state; A second clockwise sub-gesture (17A) for shaking the display (4) by rotating in a clockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller (3A) while keeping the display (4) facing upward and returning the display (4) to the horizontal upward state; The second movement gesture (15) comprises: the first sub-gesture (16); The second counterclockwise sub-gesture (17B) shakes the display (4) by rotating in a counterclockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller (3A) while keeping the display (4) upward and returning the display (4) to the horizontal upward state.

8. The device (1) according to claim 7, characterized in that The controller (8) is used to: Detecting a time interval Td between the first sub-gesture (16) and the corresponding second clockwise sub-gesture (17A) or second counterclockwise sub-gesture (17B); The first movement gesture (14) and the second movement gesture (15) are interpreted as valid only if the time interval Td is equal to or shorter than a predefined time threshold Tr.

9. The device (1) according to any one of claims 1-2, 4-5, 7-8, characterized in that The curling unit (3) further comprises: Gears (20) are arranged at two ends of the curling unit (3) and are used to engage with the display (4); A reversible drive unit (21) is used to rotate the curling unit (3) around the roller (3A) in response to a control signal received from the controller (8), wherein the control signal includes instructions for determining the direction and degree of the rotation.

10. The device (1) according to claim 9, characterized in that The driving unit (21) is an electric motor, and the electric motor is also used to adjust the rotation speed of the curling unit (3) in proportion to the input voltage.

11. The device (1) according to any one of claims 1-2, 4-5, 7-8, 10, characterized in that The device (1) is a smart phone (22); the visual content (9) is displayed as a part of a graphical user interface (23) of an application running on the smart device (1).

12. The device (1) according to claim 11, characterized in that The visual content (9) is video content with a fixed aspect ratio.

13. A method for controlling a curled display device (1), characterized in that: The rollable display device (1) comprises: a controller (8); a housing (2); a roll unit (3) mounted in the housing (2) and rotatable around a roller (3A); a flexible touch-sensitive display (4) rolled around the roll unit (3) to define a flat front screen (5) having a first size (6) and a second size (7), wherein the first size (6) is fixed and the second size (7) changes according to the degree of rotation of the roll unit (3); the method comprises: The controller (8) detects a current second size (7) of the front screen (5); adjusting at least one dimension of the visual content (9) to be displayed on the front screen (5) to match a corresponding dimension of the front screen (5); Displaying the visual content (9) on the front screen (5); The controller (8) calculates an optimal second size (7A) for displaying the visual content (9) based on the fixed first size (6), the orientation of the display (4) and the aspect ratio of the visual content (9); By rotating the curling unit (3), the second size (7) of the front screen (5) is adjusted to the optimal second size (7A).

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The touch-sensitive display (4) is used to detect touch gestures, and the method further comprises: Detecting a touch gesture (11) comprising a plurality of touch inputs (12) sliding simultaneously on the front screen (5); selectively enabling or disabling the rotation of the curling unit (3) based on the touch gesture (11) to adjust the second size (7), wherein: In response to detecting a pinch gesture comprising sliding the plurality of touch inputs (12) closer together, enabling rotation of the curling unit (3), In response to detecting a stretching gesture including sliding of the plurality of touch inputs (12) away from each other, the rotation of the rolling unit (3) is disabled.

15. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 14, characterized in that The rolled display device (1) further comprises an accelerometer (13) connected to the controller (8), and the method further comprises: The accelerometer (13) detects a first movement gesture (14) or a second movement gesture (15); The controller (8) adjusts the front screen (5) between a rolled-up state (18) and an unfolded state (19), wherein the second size (7) is smallest in the rolled-up state (18) and the second size (7) is largest in the unfolded state (19); In response to the accelerometer (13) detecting a first movement gesture (14), adjusting the front screen (5) to an unfolded state (19), In response to the accelerometer (13) detecting a second movement gesture (15), the front screen (5) is adjusted to a rolled-up state (18).

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The first movement gesture (14) comprises: A first sub-gesture (16) is to set the display (4) to a horizontal upward state; A second clockwise sub-gesture (17A) for shaking the display (4) by rotating in a clockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller (3A) while keeping the display (4) facing upward and returning the display (4) to the horizontal upward state; The second movement gesture (15) comprises: A first sub-gesture (16) is to set the display (4) to a horizontal upward state; The second counterclockwise sub-gesture (17B) shakes the display (4) by rotating in a counterclockwise direction around an axis parallel to the roller (3A) while keeping the display (4) upward and returning the display (4) to the horizontal upward state.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that The method further comprises: Detecting a time interval Td between the first sub-gesture (16) and the corresponding second clockwise sub-gesture (17A) or second counterclockwise sub-gesture (17B); The first movement gesture (14) and the second movement gesture (15) are interpreted as valid only if the time interval Td is equal to or shorter than a predefined time threshold Tr.

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