Patent Publication Number: US-2013235088-A1

Title: Device, method, and storage medium storing program

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority from Japanese Application No. 2012-051682, filed on Mar. 8, 2012, the content of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present application relates to a device, a method, and a storage medium storing therein a program. More particularly, the present application relates to a device including a touch screen, a method of controlling the device, and a storage medium storing therein a program for controlling the device. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     A touch screen device having a touch screen has been known. Examples of the touch screen devices include, but are not limited to, a smartphone and a tablet. The touch screen device detects a gesture of a finger, a pen, or a stylus pen through the touch screen. Then, the touch screen device operates according to the detected gesture. An example of the operation according to the detected gesture is described in, for example, International Publication Pamphlet No. 2008/086302. 
     The basic operation of the touch screen device is implemented by an operating system (OS) built into the device. Examples of the OS built into the touch screen device include, but are not limited to, Android, BlackBerry OS, iOS, Symbian OS, and Windows Phone. 
     Most of touch screen devices display a list including items each corresponding to each of pieces of information on a touch screen. The touch screen device scrolls a screen that displays the list according to a user&#39;s operation so that the user can view all the items in the list. The touch screen device starts scrolling the screen according to the user&#39;s operation, gradually decreases the speed of the scrolling, and finally stops the scrolling. When scrolling the screen, the user may overlook information or may take some time to reach desired information. 
     For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a device, a method, and a program capable of improving operability of screen scrolling. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to an aspect, a device includes a touch screen display and a controller. The touch screen display displays a screen including a plurality of pieces of information. When scrolling the screen, the controller controls speed of scrolling the screen according to an attribute of the piece of the information displayed on the touch screen display. 
     According to another aspect, a method is for controlling a device having a touch screen display. The method includes: displaying a screen including a plurality of pieces of information on the touch screen display; and controlling, upon scrolling the screen, speed of scrolling the screen according to an attribute of the piece of information displayed on the touch screen display. 
     According to another aspect, a non-transitory storage medium stores a control program. When executed by a device having a touch screen display, the program causes the device to execute: displaying a screen including a plurality of pieces of information on the touch screen display; and controlling, upon scrolling the screen, speed of scrolling the screen according to an attribute of the piece of information displayed on the touch screen display. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a smartphone according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is a front view of the smartphone; 
         FIG. 3  is a back view of the smartphone; 
         FIG. 4  is a diagram illustrating an example of a home screen; 
         FIG. 5  is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen when an inbox for e-mails is displayed on a display; 
         FIG. 6  is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen when the WEB page is displayed on the display; 
         FIG. 7  is a diagram illustrating an example of the screen when a WEB page is displayed on the display; 
         FIG. 8  is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the smartphone according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 9  is a diagram illustrating an example of control in a case where a screen scrolling operation is detected through a touch screen while the screen of the inbox is displayed on the display; 
         FIG. 10  is a diagram illustrating another example of the control in a case where a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen while the screen of the inbox is displayed on the display; 
         FIG. 11  is a diagram illustrating another example of the control in a case where a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen while the screen of the inbox is displayed on the display; 
         FIG. 12  is a diagram illustrating an example of control in a case where a screen scrolling operation is performed while the screen of the WEB page is displayed on the display; and 
         FIG. 13  is a diagram illustrating a procedure for controlling the speed of scrolling the screen according to an attribute of information displayed on the display in a case a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Exemplary embodiments will be explained in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. A smartphone will be explained below as an example of a device provided with a touch screen. 
     An overall configuration of a smartphone  1  according to an embodiment will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 3 . As illustrated in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 3 , the smartphone  1  includes a housing  20 . The housing  20  includes a front face  1 A, a back face  1 B, and side faces  1 C 1  to  1 C 4 . The front face  1 A is a front of the housing  20 . The back face  1 B is a back of the housing  20 . The side faces  1 C 1  to  1 C 4  are sides each connecting the front face  1 A and the back face  1 B. Hereinafter, the side faces  1 C 1  to  1 C 4  may be collectively called “side face  1 C” without being specific to any of the side faces. 
     The smartphone  1  includes a touch screen display  2 , buttons  3 A to  3 C, an illumination (ambient light) sensor  4 , a proximity sensor  5 , a receiver  7 , a microphone  8 , and a camera  12 , which are provided in the front face  1 A. The smartphone  1  includes a speaker  11  and a camera  13 , which are provided in the back face  1 B. The smartphone  1  includes buttons  3 D to  3 F and a connector  14 , which are provided in the side face  1 C. Hereinafter, the buttons  3 A to  3 F may be collectively called “button  3 ” without being specific to any of the buttons. 
     The touch screen display  2  includes a display  2 A and a touch screen  2 B. In the example of  FIG. 1 , each of the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B is approximately rectangular-shaped; however, the shapes of the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B are not limited thereto. Each of the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B may have any shape such as a square, a circle or the like. In the example of  FIG. 1 , the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B are arranged in a superimposed manner; however, the manner in which the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B are arranged is not limited thereto. The display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B may be arranged, for example, side by side or apart from each other. In the example of  FIG. 1 , longer sides of the display  2 A are along with longer sides of the touch screen  2 B respectively while shorter sides of the display  2 A are along with shorter sides of the touch screen  2 B respectively; however, the manner in which the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B are superimposed is not limited thereto. In case the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B are arranged in the superimposed manner, they can be arranged such that, for example, one or more sides of the display  2 A are not along with any sides of the touch screen  2 B. 
     The display  2 A is provided with a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic electro-luminescence display (GELD), or an inorganic electro-luminescence display (IELD). The display  2 A displays text, images, symbols, graphics, and the like. 
     The touch screen  2 B detects a contact of a finger, a pen, a stylus pen, or the like on the touch screen  2 B. The touch screen  2 B can detect positions where a plurality of fingers, pens, stylus pens, or the like make contact with the touch screen  2 B. 
     The detection method of the touch screen  2 B may be any detection methods, including but not limited to, a capacitive type detection method, a resistive type detection method, a surface acoustic wave type (or ultrasonic type) detection method, an infrared type detection method, an electro magnetic induction type detection method, and a load sensing type detection method. In the description herein below, for the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that the user uses his/her finger(s) to make contact with the touch screen  2 B in order to operate the smartphone  1 . 
     The smartphone  1  determines a type of a gesture based on at least one of a contact detected by the touch screen  2 B, a position where the contact is detected, a change of a position where the contact is detected, an interval between detected contacts, and the number of detection times of the contact. The gesture is an operation performed on the touch screen  2 B. Examples of the gestures determined by the smartphone  1  include, but are not limited to, touch, long touch, release, swipe, tap, double tap, long tap, drag, flick, pinch in, and pinch out. 
     “Touch” is a gesture in which a finger makes contact with the touch screen  2 B. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the finger makes contact with the touch screen  2 B as touch. “Long touch” is a gesture in which a finger makes contact with the touch screen  2 B for longer than a given time. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the finger makes contact with the touch screen  2 B for longer than a given time as long touch. 
     “Release” is a gesture in which a finger separates from the touch screen  2 B. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the finger separates from the touch screen  2 B as release. “Swipe” is a gesture in which a finger moves on the touch screen  2 B with continuous contact thereon. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the finger moves on the touch screen  2 B with continuous contact thereon as swipe. 
     “Tap” is a gesture in which a touch is followed by a release. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which a touch is followed by a release as tap. “Double tap” is a gesture such that a gesture in which a touch is followed by a release is successively performed twice. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture such that a gesture in which a touch is followed by a release is successively performed twice as double tap. 
     “Long tap” is a gesture in which a long touch is followed by a release. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which a long touch is followed by a release as long tap. “Drag” is a gesture in which a swipe is performed from an area where a movable-object is displayed. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which a swipe is performed from an area where the movable-object displayed as drag. 
     “Flick” is a gesture in which a finger separates from the touch screen  2 B while moving after making contact with the touch screen  2 B. That is, “Flick” is a gesture in which a touch is followed by a release accompanied with a movement of the finger. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the finger separates from the touch screen  2 B while moving after making contact with the touch screen  2 B as flick. The flick is performed, in many cases, with a finger moving along one direction. The flick includes “upward flick” in which the finger moves upward on the screen, “downward flick” in which the finger moves downward on the screen, “rightward flick” in which the finger moves rightward on the screen, and “leftward flick” in which the finger moves leftward on the screen, and the like. Movement of the finger during the flick is, in many cases, quicker than that of the finger during the swipe. 
     “Pinch in” is a gesture in which a swipe with a plurality of fingers is performed in a direction to move the fingers toward each other. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the distance between a position of one finger and a position of another finger detected by the touch screen  2 B becomes shorter as pinch in. “Pinch out” is a gesture in which a swipe with a plurality of fingers is performed in a direction to move the fingers away from each other. The smartphone  1  determines a gesture in which the distance between a position of one finger and a position of another finger detected by the touch screen  2 B becomes longer as pinch out. 
     The smartphone  1  performs operations according to these gestures which are determined through the touch screen  2 B. Therefore, user-friendly and intuitive operability is achieved. The operations performed by the smartphone  1  according to the determined gestures may be different depending on the screen displayed on the display  2 A. In the following explanation, for the sake of simplicity of explanation, the fact that the touch screen detects the contact(s) and then the smartphone determines the type of the gesture as X based on the contact(s) may be simply described as “the smartphone detects X”, “the controller detects X”, “the touch screen detects X”, or “the touch screen display detects X”. 
     An example of the screen displayed on the display  2 A will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 4  represents an example of a home screen. The home screen may also be called “desktop”, “standby screen”, “idle screen”, or “standard screen”. The home screen is displayed on the display  2 A. The home screen is a screen allowing the user to select which one of applications (programs) installed in the smartphone  1  is executed. The smartphone  1  executes the application selected on the home screen in the foreground. The screen of the application executed in the foreground is displayed on the display  2 A. 
     Icons can be arranged on the home screen of the smartphone  1 . A plurality of icons  50  are arranged on a home screen  40  illustrated in  FIG. 4 . Each of the icons  50  is previously associated with an application installed in the smartphone  1 . When detecting a gesture for an icon  50 , the smartphone  1  executes the application associated with the icon  50  for which the gesture is detected. For example, when detecting a tap on an icon  50  associated with a mail application, the smartphone  1  executes the mail application. 
     The icons  50  include an image and a character string. The icons  50  may contain a symbol or a graphic instead of an image. The icons  50  do not have to include either one of the image and the character string. The icons  50  are arranged based on a layout pattern. A wall paper  41  is displayed behind the icons  50 . The wall paper may sometimes be called “photo screen”, “back screen”, “idle image”, or “background image”. The smartphone  1  can use an arbitrary image as the wall paper  41 . The smartphone  1  may be configured so that the user can select an image to be displayed as the wall paper  41 . 
     The smartphone  1  can include a plurality of home screens. The smartphone  1  determines, for example, the number of home screens according to setting by the user. The smartphone  1  displays a selected one on the display  2 A even if there is a plurality of home screens. 
     The smartphone  1  displays an indicator (a locator)  51  on the home screen. The indicator  51  includes one or more symbols. The number of the symbols is the same as that of the home screens. In the indicator  51 , a symbol corresponding to a home screen that is currently displayed is displayed in a different manner from that of symbols corresponding to the other home screens. 
     The indicator  51  in an example illustrated in  FIG. 4  includes four symbols. This means the number of home screens is four. According to the indicator  51  in the example illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the second symbol from the left is displayed in a different manner from that of the other symbols. This means that the second home screen from the left is currently displayed. 
     The smartphone  1  can change a home screen to be displayed on the display  2 A. When a gesture is detected while displaying one of home screens, the smartphone  1  changes the home screen to be displayed on the display  2 A to another one. For example, when detecting a rightward flick, the smartphone  1  changes the home screen to be displayed on the display  2 A to a home screen on the left side. For example, when detecting a leftward flick, the smartphone  1  changes the home screen to be displayed on the display  2 A to a home screen on the right side. The smartphone  1  changes the home screen to be displayed on the display  2 A from a first home screen to a second home screen, when a gesture is detected while displaying the first home screen, such that the area of the first home screen displayed on the display  2 A gradually becomes smaller and the area of the second home screen displayed gradually becomes larger. The smartphone  1  may switch the home screens such that the first home screen is instantly replaced by the second home screen. 
     An area  42  is provided along the top edge of the display  2 A. Displayed on the area  42  are a remaining mark  43  indicating a remaining amount of a power supply and a radio-wave level mark  44  indicating an electric field strength of radio wave for communication. The smartphone  1  may display time, weather, an application during execution thereof, a type of communication system, a status of a phone call, a mode of the device, an event occurring in the device, and the like in the area  42 . In this manner, the area  42  is used to inform the user of various notifications. The area  42  may be provided on any screen other than the home screen  40 . A position where the area  42  is provided is not limited to the top edge of the display  2 A. 
     The home screen  40  illustrated in  FIG. 4  is only an example, and therefore the configuration of each of elements, the arrangement of the elements, the number of home screens  40 , the way to perform each of operations on the home screen  40 , and the like do not have to be like the above mentioned explanation. 
     Examples of the screen displayed on the display  2 A will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 5 ,  FIG. 6 , and  FIG. 7 . The smartphone  1  displays a screen  60  illustrated in  FIG. 5  or a screen  70  illustrated in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  on the display  2 A as well as the home screen  40  illustrated in  FIG. 4 . 
       FIG. 5  represents an example of the screen when an inbox for e-mails is displayed on the display  2 A. The screen  60  illustrated in  FIG. 5  includes a menu button  61 , a plurality of items  62 , and a mark  64 . The menu button  61  is operated by the user when making various setting related to incoming mails. The item  62  is provided for each of received e-mails. The items  62  corresponding to mails  1  to  3  and mails  5  to  9  correspond to e-mails whose bodies have been displayed on the display  2 A. The item  62  corresponding to a mail  4  corresponds to an e-mail whose body has never been displayed on the display  2 A. In the description below, the incoming mail, such as the mails  1  to  3  and the mails  5  to  9 , whose body has been displayed on the display  2 A may be called a read mail, and the incoming mail, such as the mail  4 , whose body has never been displayed on the display  2 A may be called an unread mail. For example, as illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the smartphone  1  displays the item  62  corresponding to the mail  4  being the unread mail in a color  63  different from that of the read mails. The mark  64  is attached to the item  62 . For example, when receiving a selection of a mail to be attached with the mark  64  from among the read mails from the user, the smartphone  1  attaches an image of the mark  64  to the item  62 . The smartphone  1  may change a display mode of the item according to an attribute of the incoming mail in such a manner that the item  62  corresponding to the unread mail is displayed in the color different from that of the read mail as indicated by the color  63  in  FIG. 5 , the mark  64  is attached to the read mail selected by the user, and the like. This enables the user to easily visually recognize the unread mail and the mail selected by the user. Examples of the attribute of the incoming mail include, but not limited to, a field of a mail header and its value, body of the mail, and values stored in a database (repository) for managing whether the mail has been read, whether a reply has been sent, and whether the mail has been selected by the user. 
       FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  represent examples of the screen when a WEB page is displayed on the display  2 A. The WEB page illustrated in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  forms a continuous page that can be viewed by scrolling the screen. In other words, the WEB page illustrated in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  is displayed based on a piece of the HyperText Markup Language (HTML) form data and other pieces of data, such as image data, referred to by the HTML data. The screen  70  illustrated in  FIG. 6  includes text data  71 , text data  72 , and text data  73 . The screen  70  illustrated in  FIG. 7  includes image data  74 , text data  75 , and text data  76 . 
       FIG. 8  is a block diagram of the smartphone  1 . The smartphone  1  includes the touch screen display  2 , the button  3 , the illumination sensor  4 , the proximity sensor  5 , a communication unit  6 , the receiver  7 , the microphone  8 , a storage  9 , a controller  10 , the speaker  11 , the cameras  12  and  13 , the connector  14 , an acceleration sensor  15 , a direction (orientation) sensor  16 , and a gyroscope  17 . 
     The touch screen display  2  includes, as explained above, the display  2 A and the touch screen  2 B. The display  2 A displays text, images, symbols, graphics, or the like. The touch screen  2 B detects contact(s). The controller  10  detects an operation (a gesture) for the touch screen  2 B in cooperation with the touch screen  2 B. 
     The button  3  is operated by the user. The button  3  includes buttons  3 A to  3 F. The controller  10  detects an operation for the button  3  in cooperation with the button  3 . Examples of the operations for the button  3  include, but are not limited to, a click, a double click, a triple click, a push, and a multi-push. 
     The buttons  3 A to  3 C are, for example, a home button, a back button, or a menu button. The button  3 D is, for example, a power on/off button of the smartphone  1 . The button  3 D may function also as a sleep/sleep release button. The buttons  3 E and  3 F are, for example, volume buttons. 
     The illumination sensor  4  detects illumination of the ambient light of the smartphone  1 . The illumination indicates intensity of light, lightness, or brightness. The illumination sensor  4  is used, for example, to adjust the brightness of the display  2 A. The proximity sensor  5  detects the presence of a nearby object without any physical contact. The proximity sensor  5  detects the presence of the object based on a change of the magnetic field, a change of the return time of the reflected ultrasonic wave, etc. The proximity sensor  5  detects the presence of the nearby object, for example, when the touch screen display  2  is brought close to someone&#39;s face. The illumination sensor  4  and the proximity sensor  5  may be configured as one sensor. The illumination sensor  4  can be used as a proximity sensor. 
     The communication unit  6  performs communication via radio waves. A communication system supported by the communication unit  6  is wireless communication standard. The wireless communication standard includes, for example, a communication standard of cellar phones such as 2G, 3G, and 4G. The communication standard of cellar phones includes, for example, Long Term Evolution (LTE), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), CDMA 2000, a Personal Digital Cellular (PDC), a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and a Personal Handy-phone System (PHS). The wireless communication standard further includes, for example, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), IEEE 802.11, Bluetooth, Infrared Data Association (IrDA), and Near Field Communication (NFC). The communication unit  6  may support one or more communication standards. 
     The receiver  7  and the speaker  11  are sound output units. The receiver  7  and the speaker  11  output a sound signal transmitted from the controller  10  as sound. The receiver  7  is used, for example, to output voice of the other party on the phone. The speaker  11  is used, for example, to output a ring tone and music. Either one of the receiver  7  and the speaker  11  may double as the other function. The microphone  8  is a sound input unit. The microphone  8  converts speech of the user or the like to a sound signal and transmit the converted signal to the controller  10 . 
     The storage  9  stores therein programs and data. The storage  9  is used also as a work area that temporarily stores a processing result of the controller  10 . The storage  9  may include any non-transitory storage medium such as a semiconductor storage medium and a magnetic storage medium. The storage  9  may include a plurality type of storage mediums. The storage  9  may include a combination of a portable storage medium such as a memory card, an optical disc, or a magneto-optical disc with a reader of the storage medium. The storage  9  may include a storage device used as a temporary storage area such as Random Access Memory (RAM). 
     Programs stored in the storage  9  include applications executed in the foreground or the background and a control program for assisting operations of the applications. The application causes the controller  10 , for example, to display a screen on the display  2 A and perform a process according to a gesture detected through the touch screen  2 B. The control program is, for example, an OS. The applications and the control program may be installed in the storage  9  through communication by the communication unit  6  or through a non-transitory storage medium. 
     The storage  9  stores therein, for example, a control program  9 A, a mail application  9 B, a browser application  9 C, use status data  9 Y, and setting data  9 Z. The mail application  9 B provides an e-mail function for composing, transmitting, receiving, and displaying e-mail, and the like. The browser application  9 C provides a WEB browsing function for displaying WEB pages and editing bookmarks, or the like. The use status data  9 Y contains information related to use statuses of applications installed into the smartphone  1 . For example, the use status data  9 Y includes items such as Screen, Row, Column, Image, Name, Installation Date/Time, Usage, and Last Use Date/Time, and holds data for each application installed into the smartphone  1 . The setting data  9 Z contains information related to various settings on the operations of the smartphone  1 . For example, the setting data  9 Z includes setting conditions for controlling the screen displayed on the display  2 A. The setting conditions include, for example, a control for screen scrolling so as to display the item  62  corresponding to an unread mail at a specific position in the inbox, and a control for screen scrolling so as to display an item corresponding to an unread mail newly appearing on the screen  60  of the inbox through scrolling at a specific position in the inbox. Alternatively, the setting conditions include a control for screen scrolling so as to display, for example, when an item  62  attached with the mark  64  newly appears on the screen  60  of the inbox through scrolling, the item  62  at a specific position in the inbox. Alternatively, the setting conditions include a control for screen scrolling so as to display, for example, the image data  74  newly appearing on the screen  70  of the WEB page through scrolling at a specific position in the WEB page. 
     The control program  9 A provides a function related to various controls for operating the smartphone  1 . The control program  9 A controls, for example, the communication unit  6 , the receiver  7 , and the microphone  8  to make a phone call. The function provided by the control program  9 A includes a function for controlling, when a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen  2 B, the speed of scrolling the screen according to the attribute of information displayed on the display  2 A. The information displayed on the display  2 A includes information currently displayed on the display  2 A and information to be displayed on the display through screen scrolling. The functions provided by the control program  9 A can be used in combination with a function provided by the other program such as the mail application  9 B. 
     The controller  10  is a processing unit. Examples of the processing units include, but are not limited to, a Central Processing Unit (CPU), System-on-a-chip (SoC), a Micro Control Unit (MCU), and a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The controller  10  integrally controls the operations of the smartphone  1  to implement various functions. 
     Specifically, the controller  10  executes instructions contained in the program stored in the storage  9  while referring to the data stored in the storage  9  as necessary. The controller  10  controls a function unit according to the data and the instructions to thereby implement the various functions. Examples of the function units include, but are not limited to, the display  2 A, the communication unit  6 , the receiver  7 , and the speaker  11 . The controller  10  can change the control of the function unit according to the detection result of a detector. Examples of the detectors include, but are not limited to, the touch screen  2 B, the button  3 , the illumination sensor  4 , the proximity sensor  5 , the microphone  8 , the camera  12 , the camera  13 , the acceleration sensor  15 , the direction sensor  16 , and the gyroscope  17 . 
     The controller  10  executes, for example, the control program  9 A to thereby control, when a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen  2 B, the speed of scrolling the screen according to the attribute of information displayed on the display  2 A. 
     The camera  12  is an in-camera for photographing an object facing the front face  1 A. The camera  13  is an out-camera for photographing an object facing the back face  1 B. 
     The connector  14  is a terminal to which other device is connected. The connector  14  may be a general-purpose terminal such as a Universal Serial Bus (USB), a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), Light Peak (Thunderbolt), and an earphone/microphone connector. The connector  14  may be a dedicated terminal such as a dock connector. Examples of the devices connected to the connector  14  include, but are not limited to, an external storage device, a speaker, and a communication device. 
     The acceleration sensor  15  detects a direction and a magnitude of acceleration applied to the smartphone  1 . The direction sensor  16  detects a direction of geomagnetism. The gyroscope  17  detects an angle and an angular velocity of the smartphone  1 . The detection results of the acceleration sensor  15 , the direction sensor  16 , and the gyroscope  17  are used in combination with each other in order to detect a position of the smartphone  1  and a change of its attitude. 
     Part or all of the programs and the data stored in the storage  9  in  FIG. 8  may be downloaded from any other device through communication by the communication unit  6 . Part or all of the programs and the data stored in the storage  9  in  FIG. 8  may be stored in the non-transitory storage medium that can be read by the reader included in the storage  9 . Part or all of the programs and the data stored in the storage  9  in  FIG. 8  may be stored in the non-transitory storage medium that can be read by a reader connected to the connector  14 . Examples of the non-transitory storage mediums include, but are not limited to, an optical disc such as CD, DVD, and Blu-ray, a magneto-optical disc, magnetic storage medium, a memory card, and solid-state storage medium. 
     The configuration of the smartphone  1  illustrated in  FIG. 8  is only an example, and therefore it can be modified as required within a scope that does not depart from the gist of the present invention. For example, the number and the type of the button  3  are not limited to the example of  FIG. 8 . The smartphone  1  may be provided with buttons of a numeric keypad layout or a QWERTY layout and so on as buttons for operation of the screen instead of the buttons  3 A to  3 C. The smartphone  1  may be provided with only one button to operate the screen, or with no button. In the example of  FIG. 8 , the smartphone  1  is provided with two cameras; however, the smartphone  1  may be provided with only one camera or with no camera. In the example of  FIG. 8 , the smartphone  1  is provided with three types of sensors in order to detect its position and attitude; however, the smartphone  1  does not have to be provided with some of the sensors. Alternatively, the smartphone  1  may be provided with any other type of sensor for detecting at least one of the position and the attitude. 
     Examples of the control based on the functions provided by the control program  9 A will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 9  to  FIG. 12 . The functions provided by the control program  9 A include a function for controlling, when a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen  2 B, the speed of scrolling the screen according to the attribute of information displayed on the display  2 A. The examples of the scrolling operation include user&#39;s touch gestures such as flick, tap, double tap, or long touch. 
       FIG. 9  is an example of control in a case where a scrolling operation is performed for the screen  60  while the screen  60  of the inbox is displayed on the display  2 A. At Step S 11 , the inbox including an item  62   a  corresponding to an unread mail is displayed on the display  2 A, and a user&#39;s right index finger touches the screen  60 . At Step S 12 , the display position of the item  62   a  in the inbox is changed by scrolling the screen  60 . 
     The smartphone  1  acquires a detection result of the touch screen  2 B, and, when detecting an upward flick, scrolls up the screen  60  of the inbox displayed on the display  2 A. The smartphone  1  starts scrolling the screen  60  at a speed according to the speed (acceleration) of the flick (hereinafter also called a “normal speed”). The smartphone  1  may gradually decrease the speed of the scrolling started at the normal speed. Subsequently, the smartphone  1  controls the speed of scrolling the screen  60  according to the setting conditions included in the setting data  9 Z, for example, so as to display the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail at the top of the inbox. For example, the smartphone  1  stops the scrolling at a timing at which the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail reaches the top of the inbox. Alternatively, the smartphone  1  adjusts the initial speed of the scrolling and a decrease rate of the speed thereof so that the speed of the scrolling gradually decreases as the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail approaches the top of the inbox and becomes zero at the timing at which the item  62   a  reaches the top of the inbox. In a case where the initial speed of the scrolling and the decrease rate of the speed thereof are adjusted, the smartphone  1  may control scrolling the screen when the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail is outside the screen  60  (i.e., when the item  62   a  is not displayed), such that the screen  60  is scrolled at the normal speed until the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail enters the screen  60  (i.e., until the item  62   a  is displayed), and, once the item  62   a  enters the screen  60 , the decrease rate of the speed of the scrolling is adjusted so that the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail stops at the top of the inbox. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 9 , when detecting an upward flick, the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen  60  of the inbox displayed on the display  2 A. The smartphone  1  then refers to the setting conditions and stops scrolling when the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail reaches the top of the inbox. That is, the smartphone  1  allows the user to change the display position of an item corresponding to an unread mail, among the items  62  included in the inbox, with the user&#39;s simple touch gesture. Thus, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the operability of screen scrolling. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , the example has been explained in which the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen  60  upon detecting the upward flick and then controls the speed of scrolling the screen  60  so as to stop the unread mail at the top of the inbox according to the setting conditions; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, when detecting a flick in an upward direction (hereinafter also called a “upward flick”), the smartphone  1  may scroll the screen  60  and then control scrolling, for example, so as to stop the unread mail at the bottom of the inbox according to the setting conditions. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , the example has been explained in which the smartphone  1  controls the speed of scrolling the screen  60  so as to stop the item  62   a  corresponding to the unread mail at the top of the inbox; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, when detecting a touch performed for the screen  60  during scrolling the screen  60 , the smartphone  1  may stop scrolling the screen  60 . Thus, the smartphone  1  can prioritize the user&#39;s operation. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , the example has been explained in which the smartphone  1  controls the speed of scrolling the screen  60  so as to stop the item  62   a  of the unread mail currently displayed on the screen  60  at a specific position; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, when an item  62  corresponding to a new unread mail appears on the screen  60  by scrolling the screen  60 , the smartphone  1  may execute the same control as that illustrated in  FIG. 9 . Another example of the control will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 10 . 
       FIG. 10  represents another example of the control in a case where a scrolling operation is performed for the screen  60  while the screen  60  of the inbox is displayed on the display  2 A. At Step S 21 , the inbox including an item  62   b  corresponding to an unread mail is displayed on the display  2 A, and the user&#39;s right index finger touches the screen  60 . At Step S 22 , the item  62   b  is moved to the outside of the display area of the screen  60  by scrolling the screen  60 , and an item  62   c  and an item  62   d  corresponding to unread mails newly appear on the screen  60 . 
     The smartphone  1  acquires a detection result of the touch screen  2 B, and, when detecting an upward flick, scrolls the screen  60  of the inbox displayed on the display  2 A. Subsequently, when the item  62   c  corresponding to the unread mail newly appears on the screen  60  by scrolling the screen  60 , the smartphone  1  controls the speed of scrolling the screen  60  according to the setting conditions included in the setting data  9 Z, for example, so as to display the item  62   c  at the top of the inbox. For example, the smartphone  1  stops the scrolling at a timing at which the item  62   c  corresponding to the unread mail reaches the top of the inbox. Alternatively, the smartphone  1  adjusts the initial speed of the scrolling and a decrease rate of the speed thereof so that the speed of the scrolling gradually decreases as the item  62   c  corresponding to the unread mail approaches the top of the inbox and becomes zero at the timing at which the item  62   c  reaches the top of the inbox. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 10 , when detecting the flick performed for the screen  60 , the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen  60  of the inbox. The smartphone  1  then stops scrolling when the item  62   b  corresponding to the unread mail that newly appears on the screen  60  reaches the top of the inbox through scrolling. That is, the smartphone  1  allows the user to change, with the user&#39;s simple touch gesture, the display position of the item  62  not currently displayed on the screen  60 , among the items corresponding to unread mails to a position where the user can easily visually recognize the item  62 . Thus, according to the present embodiment, it is possible not only to improve the operability of screen scrolling but also to reduce the possibility of overlooking the unread mail. 
     The control is not limited to the case in which the upward flick is detected. When a downward flick is detected, the smartphone  1  may control scrolling, for example, so as to stop the unread mail at the bottom of the inbox according to the setting conditions. 
     In the case illustrated in  FIG. 10 , when detecting a tap performed for the screen  60  during scrolling the screen  60  of the inbox, the smartphone  1  may stop scrolling the screen  60 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 9  and  FIG. 10 , the examples have been explained in which the smartphone  1  controls the scrolling so as to display the item corresponding to the unread mail at a specific position; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, the smartphone  1  may execute the control for scrolling so as to display the item  62  attached with the mark  64  at a specific position. Another example of the control will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 11 . 
       FIG. 11  is another example of the control in a case where a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen  2 B while the screen  60  of the inbox is displayed on the display  2 A. At Step S 31 , the screen  60  of the inbox including a plurality of items corresponding to read mails is displayed on the display  2 A, and the user&#39;s right index finger touches the screen  60 . At Step S 32 , the items  62  corresponding to the mails  1  to  10  are moved to the outside of the display area of the screen  60  by scrolling the screen  60 , and an item  62   e  and an item  62   f  each of which is attached with the mark  64  newly appear on the screen  60 . 
     The smartphone  1  acquires a detection result of the touch screen  2 B, and, when detecting an upward flick, scrolls the screen  60  of the inbox displayed on the display  2 A. Subsequently, when the item  62   e  attached with the mark  64  newly appears on the screen  60  of the inbox by scrolling the screen  60 , the smartphone  1  controls the speed of the scrolling according to the setting conditions included in the setting data  9 Z, for example, so as to display the item  62   e  at the top of the inbox. For example, the smartphone  1  stops the scrolling at a timing at which the item  62   e  attached with the mark  64  reaches the top of the inbox. Alternatively, the smartphone  1  adjusts the initial speed of the scrolling and a decrease rate of the speed thereof so that the speed of the scrolling gradually decreases as the item  62   e  attached with the mark  64  approaches the top of the inbox and becomes zero at the timing at which the item  62   e  reaches the top of the inbox. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 11 , when detecting the flick performed for the screen  60 , the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen  60  of the inbox. The smartphone  1  then stops scrolling when the item  62   e  including the mark  64  that newly appears on the screen  60  of the inbox reaches the top of the inbox through scrolling. That is, the smartphone  1  allows the user to change, with the user&#39;s simple touch gesture, the display position of an item corresponding to the mail attached with the mark  64  by the user, among the items  62  included in the inbox, to a position where the user can easily visually recognize the item. Thus, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the operability of screen scrolling for not only an unread mail but also a mail selected by the user. 
     The control is not limited to the case illustrated in  FIG. 11 . When an upward flick is detected, the smartphone  1  may control scrolling, for example, so as to stop the item  62   e  including the mark  64  at the bottom of the inbox according to the setting conditions. 
     Referring to  FIG. 11 , the example has been explained in which the smartphone  1  stops scrolling so as to display the item  62   e  including the mark  64  that appears on the screen  60  of the inbox at the top of the inbox by scrolling the screen  60  of the inbox; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, the smartphone  1  may stop scrolling the screen  60  when detecting a tap performed for the screen  60  during scrolling the screen  60 . 
     When an item corresponding to the unread mail and an item including the mark  64  are included in the inbox, the smartphone  1  may control the item, which first appears in the inbox among the item corresponding to the unread mail and the item including the mark  64 , so as to be displayed at the top of the inbox through scrolling. Alternatively, the smartphone  1  may control either one of the item corresponding to the unread mail and the item including the mark  64  so as to be displayed at the top of the inbox through scrolling. 
     In the cases illustrated in  FIG. 9 ,  FIG. 10 , and  FIG. 11 , the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to scroll the screen  60  and display a specific item included in the inbox at any specific position other than the top of the inbox. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to display a specific item included in the inbox at the center of the inbox. 
     In the cases illustrated in  FIG. 9 ,  FIG. 10 , and  FIG. 11 , the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to display an item that corresponds to search criteria entered by the user at a specific position in the inbox. For example, the smartphone  1  displays a search-criteria entry screen on the display  2 A and receives an entry of the search criteria from the user. When a flick is detected after the search-criteria entry screen is closed, the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen and stops the scrolling when the item corresponding to the search criteria reaches the specific position in the inbox. For example, the smartphone  1  may accept an entry of a mail address, a text included in the body of a mail, or the like, as the search criteria from the user. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 ,  FIG. 10 , and  FIG. 11 , the examples have been explained in which the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen  60  of the inbox and then stops scrolling so as to display a specific item  62  included in the inbox at a specific position in the inbox; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, the smartphone  1  may scroll the screen  60  of the inbox and then decrease the speed of the scrolling as the specific item  62  included in the inbox approaches the specific position in the inbox. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 ,  FIG. 10 , and  FIG. 11 , the examples have been explained in which the smartphone  1  performs control when the scrolling operation is performed for the screen  60  during the display of the screen  60  of the inbox on the display  2 A; however, the same control can be applied to any screen that includes a plurality of items. For example, the smartphone  1  can apply the same control to a screen that displays a list of items corresponding to text data recorded in a notepad, a screen that displays a list of items corresponding to downloaded applications, a screen that displays a list of address information included in an address book, and a screen that displays a list of items corresponding to bookmarked social network services. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to scroll the screen that displays the list of the items included in the notepad and then to display an item previously selected by the user at a specific position on the screen. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to scroll the screen that displays the list of the items corresponding to the applications and then to display an item corresponding to an application that requires update at a specific position on the screen. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to scroll the screen that displays the list of the address information included in the address book and then to display an item corresponding to address information newly received through wireless communication such as infrared communication at a specific position on the screen. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to scroll the screen that displays the list of the items corresponding to the bookmarked social network services and then to display an item corresponding to a social network service with updated information at a specific position on the screen. 
     The control of scrolling the screen is not limited to the examples in which, as illustrated in  FIG. 9 ,  FIG. 10 , and  FIG. 11 , the smartphone  1  controls the scrolling of the screen including a plurality of items. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling of the screen including a plurality of pieces of information whose attributes are different from each other, such as the screen of a WEB page including text data and image data. The smartphone  1  determines an attribute of the information included in the WEB page based on, for example, a type of a tag included in HTML data or a value of property (attribute) included in the tag. Another example of the control will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 12 . 
       FIG. 12  represents an example of control in a case where a scrolling operation is performed for the screen  70  while the screen  70  of the WEB page is displayed on the display  2 A. At Step S 41 , the WEB page including the text data  71 , the text data  72 , and the text data  73  is displayed on the display  2 A, and the user&#39;s right index finger touches the screen  70 . At Step S 42 , the text data  71  to  73  are moved to the outside of the display area of the screen  70  by scrolling the screen  70 , and the image data  74  and the text data  75  to  76  newly appear on the screen  70 . 
     The smartphone  1  acquires a detection result of the touch screen  2 B, and, when detecting an upward flick, scrolls the screen  70  of the WEB page displayed on the display  2 A. Subsequently, when the image data  74 , whose attribute is different from those of the text data  71  to  73  displayed on the display  2 A at Step S 41 , appears on the screen  70  through scrolling, the smartphone  1  controls the speed of the scrolling so as to display the image data  74  at the top of the WEB page according to the setting conditions included in the setting data  9 Z. For example, the smartphone  1  stops the scrolling at a timing at which the image data  74  reaches the top of the WEB page. Alternatively, the smartphone  1  adjusts the initial speed of the scrolling and a decrease rate of the speed thereof so that the speed of the scrolling gradually decreases as the image data  74  approaches the top of the WEB page and becomes zero at the timing at which the image data  74  reaches the top of the WEB page. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 12 , when detecting the flick performed for the screen  70 , the smartphone  1  scrolls the screen  70  of the WEB page. The smartphone  1  then stops scrolling when the image data  74  that newly appears on the screen  70  of the WEB page reaches the top of the WEB page through scrolling. That is, the smartphone  1  allows the user to change, with the user&#39;s simple touch gesture, the display position of specific data, among a plurality of data included in the WEB page, to a position where the user can easily visually recognize the specific data. Thus, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the operability of screen scrolling. 
     The control is not limited to the case illustrated in  FIG. 12 . For example, when an upward flick is detected, the smartphone  1  may scroll the screen  70  and then stop scrolling, for example, so as to stop the image data  74  at the bottom of the WEB page according to the setting conditions. 
     The control is not limited to the case illustrated in  FIG. 12 . For example, the smartphone  1  may scroll the screen  70  of the WEB page and then decrease the speed of the scrolling as the image data  74  included in the WEB page approaches a specific position in the WEB page. In this case, the smartphone  1  continues to scroll without stopping the scrolling even when the image data  74  reaches the top of the WEB page. By decreasing the speed of the scrolling more than usual when displaying the image data  74  or the neighborhood thereof, the smartphone  1  can make the image data  74  easy to be found. 
     Referring to  FIG. 12 , the example has been explained in which the smartphone  1  stops scrolling so as to display the image data  74  that appears on the screen  70  of the WEB page at the top of the WEB page by scrolling the screen  70 ; however, the control of scrolling the screen is not limited thereto. For example, the smartphone  1  may stop scrolling the screen  70  when detecting a tap performed for the screen  70  during scrolling the screen  70 . 
     In the case illustrated in  FIG. 12 , the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to display the image data  74  at the center of the WEB page instead of at the top of the WEB page. 
     In the case illustrated in  FIG. 12 , the scrolling may be controlled so as to display text data including a specific character string, instead of the image data  74 , at a specific position in the WEB page. For example, the smartphone  1  may control the scrolling so as to display the text data including a specific character string at a specific position in the WEB page. 
     An example of a control procedure based on the function provided by the control program  9 A will be explained below with reference to  FIG. 13 .  FIG. 13  represents a procedure for controlling the speed of scrolling the screen according to an attribute of information displayed on the display  2 A in a case where a screen scrolling operation is detected through the touch screen  2 B. The procedure illustrated in  FIG. 13  is implemented by the controller  10  executing the control program  9 A. The procedure illustrated in  FIG. 13  is repeatedly executed by the controller  10  while a plurality of pieces of information are displayed on the display  2 A. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 13 , at Step S 101 , the controller  10  acquires a detection result of the touch screen. Subsequently, at Step S 102 , the controller  10  determines whether a scrolling operation has been detected. For example, the controller  10  determines whether an upward flick or a downward flick has been detected. 
     When a scrolling operation has been detected as a result of determination (Yes at Step S 102 ), then at Step S 103 , the controller  10  controls the speed of the scrolling according to the setting conditions, and ends the process. Specifically, the smartphone  1  determines whether the attribute of information displayed on the display  2 A corresponds to the setting conditions. When the information displayed on the display corresponds to the setting conditions as a result of determination, the smartphone  1  adjusts the speed of the scrolling. Meanwhile, when the information displayed on the display does not correspond to the setting conditions, the smartphone  1  does not adjust the speed of the scrolling. For example, when the control of scrolling the screen is set as the setting conditions, in the smartphone  1 , so as to display an item corresponding to the unread mail at a specific position in the inbox, the controller  10  stops the scrolling, for example, when an item corresponding to the unread mail newly appearing on the screen reaches a specific position in the inbox by the scrolling. Alternatively, the controller  10  decreases the speed of the scrolling as the item corresponding to the unread mail approaches the specific position in the inbox, and stops the scrolling at a timing at which the item corresponding to the unread mail reaches the specific position in the inbox. When the setting conditions are set such that a piece of information, which is included in a WEB page and differs from other pieces of information in the attribute thereof, is displayed at specific positions, the controller  10  stops the scrolling, for example, when the image data newly appearing on the screen reaches at the specific position of the WEB page through scrolling. Alternatively, the controller  10  decreases the speed of the scrolling as the image data approaches the specific position in the WEB page, and stops scrolling at the timing at which the image data reaches the specific position in the WEB page. 
     The embodiment disclosed in the present application can be modified without departing the gist and the scope of the invention. Moreover, the embodiments and their modifications disclosed in the present application can be combined with each other if necessary. For example, the embodiment may be modified as follows. 
     For example, the programs illustrated in  FIG. 5  may be divided into a plurality of modules, or may be combined with any other program. 
     In the embodiment, the smartphone has been explained as an example of the device provided with the touch screen; however, the device according to the appended claims is not limited to the smartphone. The device according to the appended claims may be a mobile electronic device other than the smartphone. Examples of the mobile electronic devices include, but are not limited to, mobile phones, tablets, mobile personal computers, digital cameras, media players, electronic book readers, navigators, and gaming devices. The device according to the appended claims may be a stationary-type electronic device. Examples of the stationary-type electronic devices include, but are not limited to, desktop personal computers, automatic teller machines (ATM), and television receivers. 
     Although the art of appended claims has been described with respect to a specific embodiment for a complete and clear disclosure, the appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that may occur to one skilled in the art which fairly fall within the basic teaching herein set forth.