Horizontal Drag Scroll Control for Compact Displays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional scrolling technologies face difficulties in performing scroll operations with good operability when the scroll instruction region is short in the scrolling direction, particularly in devices with reduced display area due to smaller form factors.
Innovation Solution
A computer-readable storage medium with an information processing program that includes a pointed position detector, scroll instruction determination section, and scrolling controller, allowing the user to scroll an image by shifting the pointed position in a direction different from the scrolling direction within the scroll image display region, even when the scroll instruction region is limited in size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the display section is decreased in size to reduce device size, then the device becomes more compact and portable, but the scroll instruction region becomes too short in the scrolling direction to perform drag operations effectively
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the dimension of the drag operation from vertical (parallel to scrolling direction) to horizontal (perpendicular to scrolling direction). Instead of requiring a long vertical region for scrolling, the system allows users to drag horizontally within the display area to trigger scroll commands, effectively utilizing the width dimension to compensate for the limited height dimension in small displays.
Solution Approach 2:
The display area serves multiple functions: it displays the scrollable image content and simultaneously provides the scroll instruction region. By allowing drag operations anywhere within the displayed image area to trigger scrolling, the entire display region becomes multi-functional, eliminating the need for separate dedicated scroll control regions that would consume valuable screen real estate.
2Area of stationary object
If the scroll image display region is increased to show more content, then the display area proportion increases, but the region available for scroll instructions becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system transforms the scroll instruction mechanism from a vertical drag operation (requiring height in scrolling direction) to a horizontal drag operation (utilizing width perpendicular to scrolling direction). This dimensional transformation allows the scroll image display region to expand vertically without compromising scroll control capability, as horizontal space remains available for drag gestures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the scroll instruction function with the scroll image display region itself. Instead of separating the display area and control area, the system allows the displayed image region to serve dual purposes: displaying content and receiving scroll commands through drag operations performed on or near the displayed content, thereby maximizing the usable display area.
3Ease of operation
If a conventional drag operation is used for scrolling, then the operation is intuitive, but it requires a scroll instruction region of sufficient length in the scrolling direction which is unavailable in small displays
Solution Approach 1:
The patent rotates the drag operation 90 degrees from the scrolling direction. Instead of dragging vertically to scroll vertically, the user drags horizontally to trigger vertical scrolling. This dimensional transformation maintains the intuitive drag gesture paradigm while adapting it to work within the constrained vertical space of small displays, where horizontal width is available but vertical height is limited.
Data Source
AI summary
When it is determined that a touch position by a user has shifted on a scroll image display region in a direction different from a first direction (scrolling direction), a scroll target image is scrolled and displayed in the first direction (scrolling direction).