Patent Publication Number: US-10331299-B2

Title: Method and handheld electronic device having a graphical user interface which arranges icons dynamically

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION DATA 
     The present application is a continuation of non-provisional U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/548,538, filed Jul. 13, 2012, which is a continuation of non-provisional U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/498,627, filed Jul. 7, 2009, which claims priority to and the benefit of provisional U.S. patent application No. 61/103,744, filed Oct. 8, 2008. The content of these documents is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates generally to a user interfaces, and in particular to a method and handheld electronic device having a graphical user interface which arranges icons dynamically. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Handheld electronic devices, such as mobile communication devices, provide a number of features and applications including, for example, a phone application, media player application, mapping application, calendar application, email application, instant messaging (IM) application, text messaging application (e.g., for sending and receiving short message service (SMS) messages), and other applications. Navigation between the various features and applications of handheld electronic devices is often provided by way of graphical user interfaces (GUIs) having an icon menu. Any feature, operation, command, function or application can be represented by an icon in the icon menu. However, handheld electronic devices have relative small display screens and there are often more icons to be displayed than there is space to display them. While icons may be decreased in size, this option is limited to the extent that the icons must remain readable to the device user. 
     GUIs sometimes may provide limited customization of the displayed icons, typically being limited to the size of the icons and the selection of which icons are displayed and which are hidden. Some handheld electronic devices with expandable user interface screens having content which extends beyond the virtual boundary of the display screen provide for the icons displayed on the main screen of the expandable user interface screens to be configurable by the user in order to limit scrolling/expanding. However, there remains a need for improved graphical user interfaces which organize displayed icons and associated application information. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating a mobile communication device in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is a front view of the mobile communication device of  FIG. 1  in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 3  is a simplified sectional view of the mobile communication device of  FIG. 1  with the switch shown in a rest position; 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a Cartesian dimensional coordinate system of a touchscreen which map locations of touch signals in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram of a device orientation detection subsystem comprising a digital three-axis accelerometer in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the mobile communication device of  FIG. 1  with a three-axis accelerometer mounted therein in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 7A to 7C  are schematic diagrams illustrating the assignment of pitch and roll vectors of a three-axis accelerometer in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 8A to 8F  illustrate six (6) device orientations recognized by a device orientation subsystem of the handheld electronic device in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 9A  illustrates a first portrait screen of an icon menu in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 9B  illustrates a second portrait screen of an icon menu in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 9C  illustrates a landscape portrait screen of an icon menu in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 9D  is an example screen capture of the icon menu of  FIG. 9C ; 
         FIG. 9E  is an example screen capture of the icon menu of  FIG. 9A ; 
         FIG. 9F  is an example screen capture of the icon menu of  FIG. 9B ; 
         FIG. 10A  illustrates a portrait screen orientation of a media player application in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 10B  illustrates a landscape portrait screen of a media player application in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 11  is a flowchart illustrating example operations for generating a user interface screen in which icons are arranged in accordance with the screen orientation of a graphical user interface (GUI) in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG. 12  is a block diagram illustrating a communication system including a mobile communication device to which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied. 
     
    
    
     Like reference numerals are used in the drawings to denote like elements and features. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS 
     The embodiments described herein generally relate to portable electronic devices. Examples of portable electronic devices include mobile (wireless) communication devices such as pagers, cellular phones, Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation devices and other satellite navigation devices, smartphones, wireless organizers, personal digital assistants and wireless-enabled notebook computers. At least some of these portable electronic devices may be handheld electronic devices. The portable electronic device may be a portable electronic device without wireless communication capabilities such as a handheld electronic game device, digital photograph album, digital camera and video recorder such as a camcorder. The portable electronic devices could have a touchscreen display, a mechanical keyboard in addition to a touchscreen display, or a conventional non-touchscreen display with a mechanical keyboard. These examples are intended to be non-limiting. 
     The present disclosure provides a graphical user interface (GUI) which arranges icons in accordance with the screen orientation of the GUI and changes in the screen orientation. The screen orientation of the GUI may be changed in response to a change in device orientation detected by an orientation sensor of the device, or possibly in response to respective input from the device user. 
     In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for providing a graphical user interface (GUI) for a media player application of a handheld electronic device, the method comprising: (i) determining a screen orientation of the GUI in accordance with a device orientation of the handheld electronic device; (ii) displaying a first user interface screen on a display of the handheld electronic device in a portrait screen orientation when the screen orientation is a portrait screen orientation, wherein the first user interface screen comprises an album list; and (iii) displaying a second user interface screen on the display of the handheld electronic device in a landscape screen orientation when the screen orientation is a landscape screen orientation, wherein the second user interface screen comprises an array of album art images arranged in rows and columns. 
     In accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for providing an icon menu with dynamic icon arrangement within a GUI displayed on a display of a handheld electronic device, the method comprising: determining a screen orientation of the GUI in accordance with a device orientation; displaying a first user interface screen in a portrait screen orientation when a screen orientation of the GUI is a portrait screen orientation, the first user interface screen comprising a reduced icon menu having a plurality of icons arranged in an array of rows and columns and an input area adjacent to the reduced icon menu; and displaying a second user interface screen in a landscape screen orientation when the screen orientation of the GUI is a landscape screen orientation, the second user interface screen comprising a first expanded icon menu having a plurality of icons arranged in an array of rows and columns, wherein the first expanded icon menu includes the array of icons of the reduced icon menu and one or more additional rows of icons, wherein the first expanded icon menu is larger than the reduced icon menu. 
     In accordance with a further embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a handheld electronic device, comprising: a controller; a display coupled to the controller; an orientation sensor connected to the controller for generating an orientation signal in dependence on the orientation of the handheld electronic device; a memory connected to the controller, the memory having stored thereon a user interface module for generating a graphical user interface on the display screen; wherein the controller is configured by the user interface module to performing the method(s) set forth herein. 
     In accordance with yet a further embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a non-transitory machine readable medium having tangibly stored thereon executable instructions for execution by a controller of a handheld electronic device, wherein the executable instructions, when executed by the controller of the handheld electronic device, cause the handheld electronic device to performing the method(s) set forth herein. 
     Mobile Communication Device 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 1  which illustrates a mobile communication device  201  in which example embodiments described in the present disclosure can be applied. The mobile communication device  201  is a two-way communication device having at least data and possibly also voice communication capabilities, and the capability to communicate with other computer systems, for example, via the Internet. Depending on the functionality provided by the mobile communication device  201 , in various embodiments the device may be a data communication device, a multiple-mode communication device configured for both data and voice communication, a smartphone, a mobile telephone or a PDA (personal digital assistant) enabled for wireless communication, or a computer system with a wireless modem. 
     The mobile communication device  201  includes a controller comprising at least one processor  240  such as a microprocessor which controls the overall operation of the mobile communication device  201 , and a wireless communication subsystem  211  for exchanging radio frequency signals with the wireless network  101 . The processor  240  interacts with the communication subsystem  211  which performs communication functions. The processor  240  interacts with additional device subsystems including a display screen  204 , such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen, with a touch-sensitive input surface or overlay  206  connected to an electronic controller  208  that together make up a touchscreen display  210 . The touch-sensitive overlay  206  and the electronic controller  208  provide a touch-sensitive input device and the processor  240  interacts with the touch-sensitive overlay  206  via the electronic controller  208 . The device  201  could include other input devices such as a keyboard or keypad, navigational tool (input device), or both. The navigational tool could be a clickable/depressible trackball or scrollwheel. The other input devices could be included in addition to, or instead of, the touchscreen display  210 . 
     The processor  240  interacts with additional device subsystems including flash memory  244 , random access memory (RAM)  246 , read only memory (ROM)  248 , auxiliary input/output (I/O) subsystems  250 , data port  252  such as serial data port, such as a Universal Serial Bus (USB) data port, speaker  256 , microphone  258 , control keys  260 , switch  261 , short-range communication subsystem  272 , an orientation subsystem  249  and other device subsystems generally designated as  274 . Some of the subsystems shown in  FIG. 2  perform communication-related functions, whereas other subsystems may provide “resident” or on-device functions. 
     The communication subsystem  211  includes a receiver  214 , a transmitter  216 , and associated components, such as one or more antenna elements  218  and  220 , local oscillators (LOs)  222 , and a processing module such as a digital signal processor (DSP)  224 . The antenna elements  218  and  220  may be embedded or internal to the mobile communication device  201  and a single antenna may be shared by both receiver and transmitter, as is known in the art. As will be apparent to those skilled in the field of communication, the particular design of the communication subsystem  211  depends on the wireless network  101  in which mobile communication device  201  is intended to operate. 
     The mobile communication device  201  may communicate with any one of a plurality of fixed transceiver base stations  108  ( FIG. 12 ) of the wireless network  101  within its geographic coverage area. The mobile communication device  201  may send and receive communication signals over the wireless network  101  after a network registration or activation procedures have been completed. Signals received by the antenna  218  through the wireless network  101  are input to the receiver  214 , which may perform such common receiver functions as signal amplification, frequency down conversion, filtering, channel selection, etc., as well as analog-to-digital (A/D) conversion. A/D conversion of a received signal allows more complex communication functions such as demodulation and decoding to be performed in the DSP  224 . In a similar manner, signals to be transmitted are processed, including modulation and encoding, for example, by the DSP  224 . These DSP-processed signals are input to the transmitter  216  for digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion, frequency up conversion, filtering, amplification, and transmission to the wireless network  101  via the antenna  220 . The DSP  224  not only processes communication signals, but may also provide for receiver and transmitter control. For example, the gains applied to communication signals in the receiver  214  and the transmitter  216  may be adaptively controlled through automatic gain control algorithms implemented in the DSP  224 . 
     The processor  240  operates under stored program control and executes software modules  221  stored in memory such as persistent memory, for example, in the flash memory  244 . As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the software modules  221  comprise operating system software  223 , software applications  225  comprising a user interface module  226  and a media player module  228  for providing a media player application. The user interface module  226  renders and displays the GUI of the device  201  in accordance with instructions of the operating system  223  and applications  225  (as applicable). 
     The modules  226 ,  228  may, among other things, each be implemented through standalone software applications, or combined together in one or more of the operating system  223  or other software applications  225 . The functions performed by each of the above identified modules  226 ,  228  may be realized as a plurality of independent elements, rather than a single integrated element, and any one or more of these elements may be implemented as parts of other software applications  225 . 
     Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the software modules  221  or parts thereof may be temporarily loaded into volatile memory such as the RAM  246 . The RAM  246  is used for storing runtime data variables and other types of data or information, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Although specific functions are described for various types of memory, this is merely one example, and those skilled in the art will appreciate that a different assignment of functions to types of memory could also be used. 
     The software applications  225  may include a range of applications, including, for example, an address book application, a messaging application, a calendar application, and/or a notepad application. In some embodiments, the software applications  225  include an email message application, a push content viewing application, a voice communication (i.e. telephony) application and a map application. Each of the software applications  225  may include layout information defining the placement of particular fields and graphic elements (e.g. text fields, input fields, icons, etc.) in the user interface (i.e. the display device  204 ) according to the application. 
     In some embodiments, the auxiliary I/O subsystems  250  may comprise an external communication link or interface, for example, an Ethernet connection. The mobile communication device  201  may comprise other wireless communication interfaces for communicating with other types of wireless networks, for example, a wireless network such as an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) network or a GPS transceiver for communicating with a GPS satellite network (not shown). The auxiliary I/O subsystems  250  may comprise a vibrator for providing vibratory notifications in response to various events on the mobile communication device  201  such as receipt of an electronic communication or incoming phone call, or for other purposes such as haptic feedback (touch feedback). 
     In some embodiments, the mobile communication device  201  also includes a removable memory card  230  (typically comprising flash memory) and a memory card interface  232 . Network access may be associated with a subscriber or user of the mobile communication device  201  via the memory card  230 , which may be a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card for use in a GSM network or other type of memory card for use in the relevant wireless network type. The memory card  230  is inserted in or connected to the memory card interface  232  of the mobile communication device  201  in order to operate in conjunction with the wireless network  101 . 
     The mobile communication device  201  stores data  240  in an erasable persistent memory, which in one example embodiment is the flash memory  244 . In various embodiments, the data  240  includes service data comprising information required by the mobile communication device  201  to establish and maintain communication with the wireless network  101 . The data  240  may also include user application data such as email messages, address book and contact information, calendar and schedule information, notepad documents, image files, and other commonly stored user information stored on the mobile communication device  201  by its user, and other data. The data  240  stored in the persistent memory (e.g. flash memory  244 ) of the mobile communication device  201  may be organized, at least partially, into a number of databases each containing data items of the same data type or associated with the same application. For example, email messages, contact records, and task items may be stored in individual databases within the device memory. 
     The serial data port  252  may be used for synchronization with a user&#39;s host computer system (not shown). The serial data port  252  enables a user to set preferences through an external device or software application and extends the capabilities of the mobile communication device  201  by providing for information or software downloads to the mobile communication device  201  other than through the wireless network  101 . The alternate download path may, for example, be used to load an encryption key onto the mobile communication device  201  through a direct, reliable and trusted connection to thereby provide secure device communication. 
     In some embodiments, the mobile communication device  201  is provided with a service routing application programming interface (API) which provides an application with the ability to route traffic through a serial data (i.e., USB) or Bluetooth® (Bluetooth® is a registered trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc.) connection to the host computer system using standard connectivity protocols. When a user connects their mobile communication device  201  to the host computer system via a USB cable or Bluetooth® connection, traffic that was destined for the wireless network  101  is automatically routed to the mobile communication device  201  using the USB cable or Bluetooth® connection. Similarly, any traffic destined for the wireless network  101  is automatically sent over the USB cable Bluetooth® connection to the host computer system for processing. 
     The mobile communication device  201  also includes a battery  238  as a power source, which is typically one or more rechargeable batteries that may be charged, for example, through charging circuitry coupled to a battery interface such as the serial data port  252 . The battery  238  provides electrical power to at least some of the electrical circuitry in the mobile communication device  201 , and the battery interface  236  provides a mechanical and electrical connection for the battery  238 . The battery interface  236  is coupled to a regulator (not shown) which provides power V+ to the circuitry of the mobile communication device  201 . 
     The short-range communication subsystem  272  is an additional optional component which provides for communication between the mobile communication device  201  and different systems or devices, which need not necessarily be similar devices. For example, the subsystem  272  may include an infrared device and associated circuits and components, or a wireless bus protocol compliant communication mechanism such as a Bluetooth® communication module to provide for communication with similarly-enabled systems and devices. 
     A predetermined set of applications that control basic device operations, including data and possibly voice communication applications will normally be installed on the mobile communication device  201  during or after manufacture. Additional applications and/or upgrades to the operating system  223  or software applications  225  may also be loaded onto the mobile communication device  201  through the wireless network  101 , the auxiliary I/O subsystem  250 , the serial port  252 , the short-range communication subsystem  272 , or other suitable subsystem  274  other wireless communication interfaces. The downloaded programs or code modules may be permanently installed, for example, written into the program memory (i.e. the flash memory  244 ), or written into and executed from the RAM  246  for execution by the processor  240  at runtime. Such flexibility in application installation increases the functionality of the mobile communication device  201  and may provide enhanced on-device functions, communication-related functions, or both. For example, secure communication applications may enable electronic commerce functions and other such financial transactions to be performed using the mobile communication device  201 . 
     The mobile communication device  201  may provide two principal modes of communication: a data communication mode and an optional voice communication mode. In the data communication mode, a received data signal such as a text message, an email message, or Web page download will be processed by the communication subsystem  211  and input to the processor  240  for further processing. For example, a downloaded Web page may be further processed by a browser application or an email message may be processed by an email message application and output to the display  242 . A user of the mobile communication device  201  may also compose data items, such as email messages, for example, using the touch-sensitive overlay  206  in conjunction with the display device  204  and possibly the control buttons  260  and/or the auxiliary I/O subsystems  250 . These composed items may be transmitted through the communication subsystem  211  over the wireless network  101 . 
     In the voice communication mode, the mobile communication device  201  provides telephony functions and operates as a typical cellular phone. The overall operation is similar, except that the received signals would be output to the speaker  256  and signals for transmission would be generated by a transducer such as the microphone  258 . The telephony functions are provided by a combination of software/firmware (i.e., the voice communication module) and hardware (i.e., the microphone  258 , the speaker  256  and input devices). Alternative voice or audio I/O subsystems, such as a voice message recording subsystem, may also be implemented on the mobile communication device  201 . Although voice or audio signal output is typically accomplished primarily through the speaker  256 , the display device  204  may also be used to provide an indication of the identity of a calling party, duration of a voice call, or other voice call related information. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the construction of the device  201  will be described in more detail. The device  201  includes a rigid case  304  for housing the components of the device  201  that is configured to be held or cradleable in a user&#39;s hand while the device  201  is in use. The touchscreen display  210  is mounted within a front face  305  of the case  304  so that the case  304  frames the touchscreen display  210  and exposes it for user-interaction therewith. The case  304  has opposed top and bottom ends designated by references  322 ,  324  respectively, and left and right sides designated by references  326 ,  328  respectively which extend transverse to the top and bottom ends  322 ,  324 . In the shown embodiments of  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the case  304  (and device  201 ) is elongate having a length, defined between the top and bottom ends  322 ,  324 , longer than a width, defined between the left and right sides  326 ,  328 . Other device dimensions and form factors are also possible. 
     As further illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the case  304  includes a back  76 , a frame  78  which frames the touch-sensitive display  210 , sidewalls  80  that extend between and are generally perpendicular to the back  76  and the frame  78 , and a base  82  that is spaced from and generally parallel to the back  76 . The base  82  can be any suitable base and can include, for example, a printed circuit board or flex circuit board (not shown). The back  76  includes a plate (not shown) that is releasably attached for insertion and removal of, for example, the battery  238  and the memory module  230  described above. It will be appreciated that the back  76 , the sidewalls  80  and the frame  78  can be injection molded, for example. 
     The display device  204  and the overlay  206  can be supported on a support tray  84  of suitable material such as magnesium for providing mechanical support to the display device  204  and overlay  206 . The display device  204  and overlay  206  are biased away from the base  82 , toward the frame  78  by biasing elements  86  such as gel pads between the support tray  84  and the base  82 . Compliant spacers  88  which, for example, can also be in the form of gel pads are located between an upper portion of the support tray  84  and the frame  78 . The touchscreen display  210  is moveable within the case  304  as the touchscreen display  210  can be moved toward the base  82 , thereby compressing the biasing elements  86 . The touchscreen display  210  can also be pivoted within the case  304  with one side of the touchscreen display  210  moving toward the base  82 , thereby compressing the biasing elements  86  on the same side of the touchscreen display  210  that moves toward the base  82 . 
     In the example embodiment, the switch  261  is supported on one side of the base  82  which can be a printed circuit board while the opposing side provides mechanical support and electrical connection for other components (not shown) of the device  201 . The switch  261  can be located between the base  82  and the support tray  84 . The switch  261 , which can be a mechanical dome-type switch (or in other example embodiments a plurality of mechanical dome-type switches), for example, can be located in any suitable position such that displacement of the touchscreen display  210  resulting from a user pressing the touchscreen display  210  with sufficient force to overcome the bias and to overcome the actuation force for the switch  261 , depresses and actuates the switch  261 . In the present example embodiment the switch  261  is in contact with the support tray  84 . Thus, depression of the touchscreen display  210  by application of a force thereto, causes actuation of the switch  261 , thereby providing the user with a positive tactile quality during user interaction with the user interface of the  201 . The switch  261  is not actuated in the rest position shown in  FIG. 4 , absent applied force by the user. It will be appreciated that the switch  261  can be actuated by pressing anywhere on the touchscreen display  210  to cause movement of the touchscreen display  210  in the form of movement parallel with the base  82  or pivoting of one side of the touchscreen display  210  toward the base  82 . The switch  261  is connected to the processor  240  and can be used for further input to the processor when actuated. Although a single switch is shown any suitable number of switches can be used. 
     The touchscreen display  210  can be any suitable touchscreen display such as a capacitive touchscreen display. A capacitive touchscreen display  210  includes the display device  204  and the touch-sensitive overlay  206 , in the form of a capacitive touch-sensitive overlay  206 . It will be appreciated that the capacitive touch-sensitive overlay  206  includes a number of layers in a stack and is fixed to the display device  204  via a suitable optically clear adhesive. The layers can include, for example a substrate fixed to the display device  204  (e.g. LCD display) by a suitable adhesive, a ground shield layer, a barrier layer, a pair of capacitive touch sensor layers separated by a substrate or other barrier layer, and a cover layer fixed to the second capacitive touch sensor layer by a suitable adhesive. The capacitive touch sensor layers can be any suitable material such as patterned indium tin oxide (ITO). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4  together with  FIG. 1 , each of the touch sensor layers comprises an electrode layer each having a number of spaced apart transparent electrodes. The electrodes may be a patterned vapour-deposited ITO layer or ITO elements. The electrodes may be, for example, arranged in an array of spaced apart rows and columns. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the touch sensor layers/electrode layers are each associated with a coordinate (e.g., x or y) in a coordinate system used to map locations on the touchscreen display  210 , for example, in Cartesian coordinates (e.g., x and y-axis coordinates). The intersection of the rows and columns of the electrodes may represent pixel elements defined in terms of an (x, y) location value which can form the basis for the coordinate system. Each of the touch sensor layers provide a signal to the controller  208  ( FIG. 1 ) which represent the respective x and y coordinates of the touchscreen display  210 . That is, x locations are provided by a signal generated by one of the touch sensor layers and y locations are provided by a signal generated by the other of the touch sensor layers. 
     The electrodes in the touch sensor layers/electrode layers respond to changes in the electric field caused by conductive objects in the proximity of the electrodes. When a conductive object is near or contacts the touch-sensitive overlay  206 , the object draws away some of the charge of the electrodes and reduces its capacitance. The controller  208  receives signals from the touch sensor layers of the touch-sensitive overlay  206 , detects touch events by determining changes in capacitance which exceed a predetermined threshold, and determines the centroid of a contact area defined by electrodes having a change in capacitance which exceeds the predetermined threshold, typically in x, y (Cartesian) coordinates. 
     The controller  208  sends the centroid of the contact area to the processor  240  of the device  201  as the location of the touch event detected by the touchscreen display  210 . Depending on the touch-sensitive overlay  206  and/or configuration of the touchscreen display  210 , the change in capacitance which results from the presence of a conductive object near the touch-sensitive overlay  206  but not contact the touch-sensitive overlay  206 , may exceed the predetermined threshold in which case the corresponding electrode would be included in the contact area. The detection of the presence of a conductive object such as a user&#39;s finger or a conductive stylus is sometimes referred to as finger presence/stylus presence. 
     It will be appreciated that other attributes of a touch event on the touchscreen display  210  can be determined. For example, the size and the shape (or profile) of the touch event on the touchscreen display  210  can be determined in addition to the location based on the signals received at the controller  208  from the touch sensor layers. For example, the touchscreen display  210  may be used to create a pixel image of the contact area created by a touch event. The pixel image is defined by the pixel elements represented by the intersection of electrodes in the touch sensor layers/electrode layers. The pixel image may be used, for example, to determine a shape or profile of the contact area. 
     The centroid of the contact area is calculated by the controller  208  based on raw location and magnitude (e.g., capacitance) data obtained from the contact area. The centroid is defined in Cartesian coordinates by the value (X c , Y c ). The centroid of the contact area is the weighted averaged of the pixels in the contact area and represents the central coordinate of the contact area. By way of example, the centroid may be found using the following equations: 
                     X   c     =         ∑     i   =   1     n     ⁢           ⁢       Z   i     *     x   i             ∑     i   =   1     n     ⁢           ⁢     Z   i                 (   1   )                 Y   c     =         ∑     i   =   1     n     ⁢           ⁢       Z   i     *     y   i             ∑     i   =   1     n     ⁢           ⁢     Z   i                 (   2   )               
where X c  represents the x-coordinate of the centroid of the contact area, Y c  represents the y-coordinate of the centroid of the contact area, x represents the x-coordinate of each pixel in the contact area, y represents the y-coordinate of each pixel in the contact area, Z represents the magnitude (capacitance value or resistance) at each pixel in the contact area, the index i represents the electrodes in the contact area and n represents the number of electrodes in the contact area. Other methods of calculating the centroid will be understood to persons skilled in the art.
 
     The controller  208  of the touchscreen display  210  is typically connected using both interrupt and serial interface ports to the processor  240 . In this way, an interrupt signal which indicates a touch event has been detected, the centroid of the contact area, as well as raw data regarding the location and magnitude of the activated electrodes in the contact area are passed to the processor  240 . However, in other example embodiments only an interrupt signal which indicates a touch event has been detected and the centroid of the contact area are passed to the processor  240 . In embodiments where the raw data is passed to the processor  240 , the detection of a touch event (i.e., the application of an external force to the touch-sensitive overlay  206 ) and/or the determination of the centroid of the contact area may be performed by the processor  240  of the device  201  rather than the controller  208  of the touchscreen display  210 . 
     In other embodiments, the touchscreen display  210  may be a display device, such as an LCD screen, having the touch-sensitive input surface (overlay)  206  integrated therein. One example of such a touchscreen is described in commonly owned U.S. patent publication no. 2004/0155991, published Aug. 12, 2004 (also identified as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/717,877, filed Nov. 20, 2003) which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     While a specific embodiment of the touchscreen display  210  has been described, any suitable type of touchscreen may be used in the handheld electronic device of the present disclosure including, but not limited to, a capacitive touchscreen, a resistive touchscreen, a surface acoustic wave (SAW) touchscreen, an embedded photo cell touchscreen, an infrared (IR) touchscreen, a strain gauge-based touchscreen, an optical imaging touchscreen, a dispersive signal technology touchscreen, an acoustic pulse recognition touchscreen or a frustrated total internal reflection touchscreen. The type of touchscreen technology used in any given embodiment will depend on the handheld electronic device and its particular application and demands. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 4 , a Cartesian (two dimensional) coordinate system used to map locations of the touchscreen display  210  in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. The touchscreen display  210  defines a Cartesian coordinate system defined by x and y-axes in the input plane of the touchscreen display  210 . Each touch event on the touchscreen display  210  returns a touch point defined in terms of an (x, y) value. The returned touch point is typically the centroid of the contact area. 
     In the shown embodiment, the touchscreen display  210  has a rectangular touch-sensitive overlay  206 ; however, in other embodiments, the touch-sensitive overlay  206  could have a different shape such as a square shape. The rectangular touch-sensitive overlay  206  results in a screen which is divided into a rectangular array of pixels with positional values ranging from  0  to the maximum in each of the x and y-axes (x max. and y max. respectively). The x-axis extends in the same direction as the width of the device  201  and the touch-sensitive overlay  206 . The y-axis extends in the same direction as the length of the device  201  and the touch-sensitive overlay  206 . 
     The coordinate system has an origin (0, 0) which is located at the top left-hand side of the touchscreen display  210 . For purposes of convenience, the origin (0, 0) of the Cartesian coordinate system is located at this position in all of the embodiments described in the present disclosure. However, it will be appreciated that in other embodiments the origin (0, 0) could be located elsewhere such as at the bottom left-hand side of the touchscreen display  210 , the top right-hand side of the touchscreen display  210 , or the bottom right-hand side of the touchscreen display  210 . The location of the origin (0, 0) could be configurable in other embodiments. 
     During operation, a graphical user interface (GUI) for controlling the operation of the device  201  may be displayed on the touchscreen display  210 . The GUI is rendered prior to display by the operating system  223  or an application  225  which causes the processor  240  to display content on the touchscreen display  210 . The GUI of the device  201  has a screen orientation (also referred to as a screen mode) in which the text and user interface elements of the GUI are oriented for normal viewing. It will be appreciated that the screen orientation for normal viewing is independent of the language supported. That is, the screen orientation for normal viewing is the same regardless of whether a row-oriented language or column-oriented language (such as Asian languages) is displayed within the GUI. Direction references in relation to the GUI, such as top, bottom, left, and right, are relative to the current screen orientation of the GUI rather than the device  201  or its case  304 . 
     In embodiments such as that shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4  in which the display screen is rectangular in shape, the screen orientation is either portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal). A portrait screen orientation is a screen orientation in which the text and other user interface elements extend in a direction transverse (typically perpendicular) to the length (y-axis) of the display screen. A landscape screen orientation is a screen orientation in which the text and other user interface elements extend in a direction transverse (typically perpendicular) to the width (x-axis) of the display screen. That is, in the portrait screen orientation icons and text are typically oriented so that they may be read when the touchscreen display  210  is oriented in a manner in which its width is less than its height (such as the orientation in  FIG. 2 ) In the landscape screen orientation, icons and text are typically oriented so that they may be read when the touchscreen display  210  is oriented in a manner in which its width is greater than its height (i.e., when the device  201  of  FIG. 2  is rotated 90°). In some embodiments, the GUI of the device  201  changes its screen orientation between a portrait screen orientation and landscape screen orientation in accordance with changes in device orientation. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the mobile communication device  201  also comprises a device orientation subsystem  249  comprising at least one orientation sensor which is connected to the processor  240  and which is controlled by one or a combination of a monitoring circuit and operating software. The device orientation subsystem  249  may comprise two or more orientation sensors or an orientation sensor and an electronic compass. The device orientation subsystem  249  detects the orientation of the mobile communication device  201  or detects information from which the orientation of the mobile communication device  201  can be determined, such as acceleration using an accelerometer. In other embodiments, an orientation sensor other than an accelerometer could be used, such as a gravity sensor, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, an electronic compass, or other suitable sensor, or combinations thereof. 
     As will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art, an accelerometer is a sensor which converts acceleration from motion (e.g. movement of the mobile communication device  201  or a portion thereof due to the strike force) and gravity which are detected by a sensing element into an electrical signal (producing a corresponding change in output) and is available in one, two or three axis configurations. Accelerometers may produce digital or analog output signals depending on the type of accelerometer. Generally, two types of outputs are available depending on whether an analog or digital accelerometer used: (1) an analog output requiring buffering and analog-to-digital (A/D) conversion; and (2) a digital output which is typically available in an industry standard interface such as an SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) or I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) interface. The output of an accelerometer is typically measured in terms of the gravitational acceleration constant at the Earth&#39;s surface, denoted g, which is approximately 9.81 m/s 2  (32.2 ft/s 2 ) as the standard average. The accelerometer may be of almost any type including, but not limited to, a capacitive, piezoelectric, piezoresistive, or gas-based accelerometer. The range of accelerometers vary up to the thousands of g&#39;s, however for portable electronic devices “low-g” accelerometers may be used. Example low-g accelerometers which may be used are MEMS digital accelerometers from Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI), Freescale Semiconductor, Inc. (Freescale) and STMicroelectronics N.V. of Geneva, Switzerland. 
     Referring briefly to  FIG. 5 , a device orientation subsystem  246  in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. The circuit  600  comprises a digital 3-axis accelerometer  610  connected to the interrupt and serial interface of a controller (MCU)  612 . The controller  612  could be the processor  240  ( FIG. 1 ) of the device  201 . The operation of the controller  612  is controlled by software, which may be stored in internal memory of the controller  612 . The operational settings of the accelerometer  610  are controlled by the controller  612  using control signals sent from the controller  612  to the accelerometer  610  via the serial interface. The controller  612  may determine the device orientation in accordance with the acceleration measured by the accelerometer  610 , or raw acceleration data measured by the accelerometer  610  may be sent to the processor  240  ( FIG. 1 ) of the device  201  via its serial interface where device orientation is determined by the operating system  223 , or other software module  221 . In other embodiments, a different digital accelerometer configuration could be used, or a suitable analog accelerometer and control circuit could be used. 
     The device orientation subsystem  249  may include a three-axis accelerometer  610  having x, y and z sensing axes. As shown in  FIG. 6 , the sensing axes x, y, z may be aligned with the form factor of the device  201 . In some embodiments, the accelerometer  610  is aligned such that a first sensing axis x extends longitudinally along the midpoint of the handheld electronic device  201  between left  326  and right  328  sides of the device  201 , a second sensing axis y extends laterally along the midpoint of the device  201  between top  322  and bottom ends  324 , and a third sensing axis z extends perpendicularly through the x-y plane defined by the x and y axes at the intersection (origin) of these axes. It is contemplated that the sensing axes x, y, z may be aligned with different features of the device  201  in other embodiments. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 7A to 7C , the assignment of pitch and roll vectors of a three-axis accelerometer in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure will be briefly described. Each sensing axis is aligned with an axis of the mobile communication device  201 . As discussed above, the x axis and y axis are typically aligned with the input plane of the touchscreen display  210 . The z-axis is perpendicular to the horizontal plane and detects when the mobile communication device  201  is moved vertically. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7B , pitch (Φ) is the angle of the x-axis relative to the ground. θ is the angle of the z-axis relative to gravity. As shown in  FIG. 7C , roll (ρ) is the angle of the y-axis relative to the ground. It will be appreciated that rotation may occur about any combination of sensing axes. The concepts and methodology described herein can be applied to any axis orientation and any combination of pitch (Φ) angle, roll (ρ) angle and θ (the angle of the z-axis relative to gravity). Pitch (Φ), roll (ρ) and the angle of the z-axis relative to gravity (θ) of a three-axis accelerometer may be calculated using equations (3), (4) and (5): 
                   φ   =     arctan   ⁢           ⁢       x   sensor           y   sensor   2     +     z   sensor   2                     (   3   )               ρ   =     arctan   ⁢           ⁢       y   sensor           x   sensor   2     +     z   sensor   2                     (   4   )               θ   =     arctan   ⁢           ⁢           x   sensor   2     +     y   sensor   2           z   sensor                 (   5   )               
where x sensor , y sensor  and z sensor  are the measurements from the x, y and z-axes of the three-axis accelerometer. It will be appreciated that pitch (Φ), roll (ρ) and the angle of the z-axis relative to gravity (θ) can also be determined by other means.
 
     The device  201  includes a user interface module  226  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) which uses input from the device orientation subsystem  249  to select and update the screen orientation of the GUI presented within the touchscreen display  210  in accordance with the device orientation, amongst other inputs. Referring now to  FIG. 8A to 8F , predefined device orientations used by the user interface module  226  in some embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. The device orientation subsystem  249  or processor  240 , depending on the embodiment, uses measurements of the device orientation subsystem  249  (e.g., the accelerometer) to determine the device orientation to be one of six possible device orientations comprising: (1) a “top up” device orientation (as shown in  FIG. 8A ); (2) a “bottom up” device orientation (as shown in  FIG. 8B ); (3) a “left up” device orientation (as shown in  FIG. 8C ); (4) a “right up” device orientation (as shown in  FIG. 8D ); (5) a “front up” (or “face up”) device orientation (as shown in  FIG. 8E ); and (6) a “back up” device orientation (as shown in  FIG. 8F ). Other device orientations are possible and could be used in other embodiments. 
     It will be appreciated that the predefined device orientations are defined by which one of the top  322 , bottom  324 , left-hand side  326 , right-hand side  328 , front face  305 , and back face  307  of the device  201  are directed generally upwards. Moreover, it will be appreciated that the device  201  need not be orientated precisely in of one the illustrated device orientations for the determination of the device orientation. Instead, the predefined device orientations act as reference positions. The device orientation is determined by selecting the reference position (e.g., which of the six predefined device orientations shown in  FIG. 8A to 8F ) is closest to the actual device orientation. Each of the predefined device orientations may be mapped to orientation values measured by the orientation sensor or derived from its measurements in order to determine the reference position which is closest to the actual device orientation. The orientation values may be used to construct an orientation profile of each of the six predefined device orientations. The orientation values which are mapped to the predefined device orientations, in some embodiments, may be defined, directly or indirectly, in terms of pitch (Φ), roll (ρ) and the angle of the z-axis relative to gravity (θ) measured by a three-axis accelerometer, which may calculated using equations (3), (4) and (5) described above. 
     When the touchscreen display  210  is rectangular in shape as in the illustrated embodiments, the processor  240  ( FIG. 1 ) in accordance with the instructions of the user interface module  226  changes the screen orientation of the GUI to a landscape screen orientation when the mobile communication device  201  is (re)positioned in a generally horizontal direction (such as, for example, in FIGS.  8 C and/or  8 D), and changes the screen orientation of the GUI to a portrait screen orientation when the mobile communication device  201  is (re)positioned in a generally vertical direction (such as, for example, in  FIGS. 8A and/or 8B ). The processor  240  may invert or “flip” the screen orientation of the GUI horizontally or vertically if the mobile communication device  201  is flipped horizontally or vertically. 
     Referring again to the  FIG. 8A to 8F , in some embodiments the screen orientation of the GUI is selected in accordance with mappings of screen orientation to device orientation as set forth below (subject to application overrides as described below): 
     
       
         
           
               
               
             
               
                   
               
               
                 Device Orientation 
                 Screen Orientation 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 “top up” device orientation (FIG. 8A) 
                 portrait (up) screen orientation 
               
               
                 “bottom up” device orientation (FIG. 8B) 
                 portrait (down) screen 
               
               
                   
                 orientation 
               
               
                 “left up” device orientation (FIG. 8C) 
                 landscape (left) screen 
               
               
                   
                 orientation 
               
               
                 “right up” device orientation (FIG. 8D) 
                 landscape (right) screen 
               
               
                   
                 orientation 
               
               
                 “front up” device orientation (FIG. 8E) 
                 default/previous screen 
               
               
                   
                 orientation 
               
               
                 “back up” device orientation (FIG. 8F) 
                 default/previous screen 
               
               
                   
                 orientation (or display screen 
               
               
                   
                 disabled/off) 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     Having regard to the above-described screen orientation (also reference to as aspect ratios), it will be appreciated that the screen orientation is portrait in both the “top up” and “bottom up” device orientations shown in  FIG. 8A  and  FIG. 8B , respectively, and that the screen orientation is landscape in both the “left up” and “right up” device orientations shown in  FIG. 8C  and  FIG. 8D , respectively. To differentiate between the variants of the portrait screen orientation in the “top up” and “bottom up” device orientations and landscape screen orientation in the “left up” and “right up” device orientations, a direction of the screen orientation is defined. The direction is relative to a fixed position on the device  201 , which is the top  322  of the device  201  in the present embodiment. A different directional reference could be used in other embodiments. Thus, the screen orientation in the “top up” device orientation ( FIG. 8A ) is the portrait (up) screen orientation because the top  322  of the device  201  is directed upwards relative to the ground and force of gravity (“g”). The screen orientation in the “bottom up” device orientation ( FIG. 8B ) is the portrait (down) screen orientation because the top  322  of the device  201  is directed downwards relative to the ground and force of gravity. Otherwise stated, in the “bottom up” device orientation of  FIG. 8B , the bottom  324  of the device  201  is directed upwards relative to the ground and force of gravity (“g”). 
     The screen orientation in the “left up” device orientation ( FIG. 8C ) is landscape (left) screen orientation because the top  322  of the device  201  is rotated in the vertical plane towards the left side  326  of the device  201 . The screen orientation in the “right up” device orientation ( FIG. 8D ) is landscape (right) screen orientation because the top  322  of the device  201  is rotated in the vertical plane towards the right side  328  of the device  201 . 
     In some embodiments, the “front up” ( FIG. 8E ) and “back up” ( FIG. 8F ) device orientations are not associated with a particular screen orientation, except for a default screen orientation. When in these positions, it is difficult to determine the location of the device relative to the user. Accordingly, it may be difficult to determine whether the user is in a position in which they would prefer a portrait screen orientation or a landscape screen orientation. Accordingly, in at least some embodiments, the screen orientation of device  201  in the “front up” and “back up” device orientations is dependent on the previous screen orientation. That is, the “top up”, “bottom up”, “left up” and “right up” device orientations have a fixed screen orientation. 
     As described in more detail below, some of the applications  225  have a screen orientation of the GUI which varies in accordance with the orientation of the device  201 ; however, one or more of the applications  225 , such as the phone application, may a fixed screen orientation which is unaffected by the device orientation. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 2 , the control buttons or keys  260 , represented individually by references  260   a ,  260   b ,  260   c ,  260   d , which are located below the touchscreen display  210  on the front face  305  of the device  201  which generate corresponding input signals when activated. The control keys  260  may be constructed using any suitable key construction, for example, the controls keys  260  may each comprise a dome-switch. In other embodiments, the control keys  260  may be located elsewhere, such as on a side of the device  201 . If no control keys are provided, the function of the control keys  260  described below may be provided by one or more virtual keys (not shown), which may be part of a virtual toolbar or virtual keyboard. 
     In some embodiments, the input signals generated by activating (e.g. depressing) the control keys  260  are context-sensitive depending on the current/active operational mode of the device  201  or current/active application  225 . A first key  260   a  may be a send/answer key which can be used to answer an incoming voice call, bring up a phone application when there is no incoming voice call, and start a phone call from the phone application when a phone number is selected within that application. A second key  260   b  may be a menu key which invokes context-sensitive menus comprising a list of context-sensitive options. A third key  260   c  may be an escape/cancel/back key which cancels the current action, reverses (e.g., “back up” or “go back”) through previous user interface screens or menus displayed on the touchscreen display  210 , or exits the current application  225 . A fourth key  260   d  may be an end/hang up key which ends the current voice call or hides the current application  225 . 
     Although in the illustrated embodiments the case  304  is shown as a single unit it could, among other possible configurations, include two or more case members hinged together (such as a flip-phone configuration or a clam shell-style lap top computer, for example), or could be a “slider phone” in which the keyboard is located in a first body which is slide-ably connected to a second body which houses the display screen, the device being configured so that the first body which houses the keyboard can be slide out from the second body for use. In other embodiments, the mobile communication device  201  could have a mechanical keyboard in addition to the touchscreen display  210 . 
     Organization of Displayed Icons in Icon Array 
     The present disclosure provides a graphical user interface (GUI) which organizes icons in accordance with the screen orientation of the GUI and changes in the screen orientation. The screen orientation of the GUI may be changed in response to a change in device orientation detected by an orientation sensor of the device  201 , or possibly in response to respective input from the device user. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 9A to 9F , a series of user interface screens of an icon menu for an icon input mode of the device are shown.  FIGS. 9A to 9C  are schematic illustrations of the user interface screens in the context of the device  201 , whereas  FIGS. 9D, 9E and 9F  are screen captures of example user interface screens of  FIGS. 9C, 9A and 9B  respectively. The icon menu comprises a plurality of selectable and activatable icons  354  (only one of which is labelled in  FIGS. 9A to 9F  to avoid obscuring the drawings). The icon menu in the shown embodiment is a home or “main” user interface screen for controlling the device  201 , sometimes referred to as the home screen of the device  201  or its operating system  223 . 
     The icon menu in the illustrated embodiment provides icons  354  for starting or activating applications or functions on the device  201 . The icons  354  can each be activated via corresponding input via the touchscreen display  210  to start the associated application or function. While the icons  354  are primarily associated with applications  225  on the device  201 , one or more of the icons  354  may be associated with a function such as opening an associated folder in a folder-based data storage system of the device  201  or disabling and enabling the communication subsystem  211 . The icons  354  may, for example, be used to start a media player application, email messaging application, calendar application, notepad application, or other application. If an icon  354  represents an application, activating the selected icon  354  causes the processor  240  to start the application logically associated with the icon  354  such as, for example, the media player application. 
     In some embodiments, the icons  354  can be selected using movement of an onscreen position indicator  356  commonly referred to as a caret, cursor or focus, by respective touch input on the touchscreen display  210 . Selection of a particular icon  354  causes that icon  354  to become highlighted or focused using the onscreen position indicator  356  or otherwise changed in appearance to provide a visual indication of the selected icon  354 . Highlighting of the icon  354  may comprise changing a background colour of the icon  354 , changing the icon  354  from a first version (e.g., idle/unselected) to a second version (e.g., active/selected), or both. 
     The application or function associated with an icon  354  may be activated by clicking or depressing the touchscreen display  210  while the corresponding icon  354  is selected to activate the switch  261 . Depressing the switch  261  causes a switch event (or click event) in which an interrupt signal is generated by the switch  261  at the same time that a touch event in which an interrupt signal and possibly serial data signal is generated by the touchscreen display  210 . These signals are received by the processor  240  and typically processed via the operating system  223  and/or user interface module  226 . The location of the touch input is used by processor  240  to indentify the selected icon  354 , whereas the receiving of the interrupt signal generated by the switch  261  is interpreted as input to activate the application or function logically associated with the selected icon  354 . 
     Other selection and activation methods could be used in other embodiments, for example, depressing one of the control buttons  260  could be used to activate icons  354  or other selectable user interface elements of the GUI. If other input devices are provided instead of, or in addition to, the touchscreen display  210 , input from such other input devices (such as a keyboard or clickable navigation tool) could be used to navigate the onscreen position indicator  356  and activate icons  354  or other selectable user interface elements of the GUI. 
       FIGS. 9A and 9E  illustrate a first portrait screen of the icon menu in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. The first portrait screen has a portrait screen orientation. The icon menu of  FIG. 9A  is referred to as a reduced icon menu  352  which comprises an array of icons  354  arranged in rows and columns. The array of icons of the reduced icon menu  352  has one or two rows of icons (two rows of icons  354  in the shown embodiment). In the shown embodiment, the portion of the GUI adjacent to the reduced icon menu  352  (above the reduced icon menu  352  in the shown embodiment) comprises a secondary input area  358 . The secondary input area  358  may be used to display a background image for the home screen, sometimes referred to as wallpaper, as well as receive touch inputs for receiving inputs from the device user. In other embodiments, the secondary input area  358  could be replaced with another menu different than the reduced icon menu  352 , an application window for displaying a user interface screen for one of the applications  225  of the device  201  (for example, the active application), or any other content. The secondary input area  358  could be scrollable to display additional content which does not fit within the display area provided for the secondary input area  358 . In yet other embodiments, secondary input area  358  could be replaced with a static portion which does not generate input signals in response to touch inputs. 
     In the shown embodiment, a status bar  350  is displayed above the reduced icon menu  352 . The status bar  350  includes information such as the current date and time, icon-based notifications, device status and device state. The reduced icon menu  352  in the shown embodiment is non-scrollable/non-expandable and is approximately the same size as the secondary input area  358 . In other embodiments, the reduced icon menu  352  and secondary input area  358  could be different sizes and the reduced icon menu  354  could be scrollable. 
       FIGS. 9B and 9F  illustrate a second portrait screen of the icon menu in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. The second portrait screen has a portrait screen orientation like the first portrait screen. Not all embodiments have a second portrait screen. The second portrait screen may be invoked by corresponding input. In some embodiments, when the display screen  204  is part of a depressible touchscreen display  210 , the second portrait screen may be invoked be touching the touchscreen display  210  in the secondary input area  358  (see  FIG. 9A, 9D ) and clicking the touchscreen display  210  so as to activate the switch  261 . For example, the secondary input area  358  of the display screen  204  above the reduced icon menu  352  in the first portrait screen of  FIG. 9A  may act as an input region allowing a user presently viewing a user interface screen in the first portrait screen ( FIG. 9A ) to switch to the second portrait screen ( FIG. 9B ). 
     The second portrait screen shown in  FIGS. 9B and 9F  has an expanded icon menu  362  which is larger than the reduced icon menu  352  of  FIG. 9A , and has more icons  354  displayed than the reduced icon menu  352  of  FIG. 9A . In some embodiments, the expanded icon menu  362  may occupy all of, or substantially all of the display screen  204  except for the status bar  350  when the GUI is in the second portrait screen. In some embodiments, the icons  354  of the reduced icon menu  352  are displayed in the same portion of the display screen  204  as the secondary input area  358  of the first portrait screen (i.e., the top of the user interface screen) and additional icons  354  are displayed in the same portion of the display screen as the reduced icon menu  354  of the first portrait screen (i.e., the bottom of the user interface screen). 
       FIGS. 9C and 9D  illustrate a landscape portrait screen of the icon menu in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. The landscape portrait screen has an expanded icon menu  372  which is larger than the reduced icon menu  352  of  FIG. 9A , and has more icons  354  than the reduced icon menu  352 . The expanded icon menu  372  may have the same number of icons  354  as the expanded icon menu  362  of  FIG. 9B , however, it has a different aspect ratio and a landscape screen orientation rather than a portrait screen orientation. In some embodiments, the expanded icon menu  372  may occupy all of, or substantially all of the display screen  204  except for the status bar  350 . 
     In at least some embodiments, the screen orientation (i.e., aspect ratio) is dynamically determined in accordance with the device orientation and changes in device orientation as described more fully below. The screen orientation may be changed from a portrait screen orientation such as that shown in  FIG. 9A or 9B  to a landscape screen orientation such as that shown in  FIG. 9C  by rotating the device  201  or otherwise moving the device  201  to invoke the landscape screen orientation. Conversely, the screen orientation may be changed from a landscape screen orientation to a portrait screen orientation by rotating the device  201  or otherwise moving the device  201  to invoke the portrait screen orientation. In this way, the displayed icons and the icon layout/arrangement of the displayed icons of a supported device mode or state can be dynamically controlled (and changed) via the device orientation. Moreover, the required input to transition the GUI to a mode in which an icon array in which many or all of the icons are displayed requires only minor, intuitive input from the user (i.e., the gesture/motion of the device  201  to invoke the change in screen orientation) in contrast to known solutions for changing the icons displayed which typically require more complex input. Conventional solutions for controlling the displayed icons  354  requires individual selection of the icons  354  to be displayed, which requires the device user to navigate through various menus involving a series of prompts and inputs in order to change the icons  354  displayed on the home screen of a mobile device  201 . 
     The expanded icon menu  362  of  FIG. 9B  and the expanded icon menu  372  of  FIG. 9C  include more icons than the reduced icon menu  352  of  FIG. 9A  so that at least more, possibly all, if the icons  354  of the menu may be shown. The expanded icon menus  362 ,  372  each comprise an array of icons  354  arranged in rows and columns as in the reduced icon menu  352 . However, the expanded icon menus  362 ,  372  have three or more rows of icons  354  whereas the reduced icon menu  352  has one or two rows of icons  354 . In the shown embodiment, the expanded icon menus  362  and  372  are scrollable if the icon menus are not large enough to permit all icons  355  to be displayed at once. To scroll the expanded icon menus  362  and  372 , corresponding directional input is provided by the user. When the device  201  includes a touchscreen display  210 , the user touches the touchscreen display  210  with his or her finger or possibly a stylus and moves the finger in the corresponding direction to provide the directional input. In some embodiments, the expanded icon menus  362 ,  372  may only be scrollable in a single direction, e.g. up-down or left-right with respect to a top of the user interface screen. In other embodiments, the expanded icon menus  362 ,  372  may be scrollable in two-dimensions. In contrast, the reduced icon menu  352  of the shown embodiment is non-scrollable. 
     The reduced icon menu  352  of the first portrait screen of  FIG. 9A  permits the device user to view a limited number of commonly used icons  352  (which may be configurable), whereas the expanded icon menu  362  of the second portrait screen shown in  FIG. 9B  and the expanded icon menu  372  of the landscape portrait screen shown in  FIG. 9B  may permit the device user to access all icons  354  (possibly requiring scrolling to select and activate some of the icons  354  depending on the number and size of the icons  154 ). This embodiment, in at least some systems, may simplify graphics rendering since the first portrait screen does not need to support all of the icons  354  and does not need to support scrolling of the GUI. This reduces the processing and memory constraints imposed by the GUI. Since the commonly used icons  354  are in the reduced icon menu  352 , the frequency with which device users need to access other icons  354  in the second portrait screen or landscape portrait screen may be quite small depending on user preferences. 
     From a user perspective, the present disclosure provides a solution to cluttered icons on a user interface screen such as the home screen of a device  201  by limiting the icons  354  displayed in the icon menu in the first portrait screen, and displaying the remainder of the icons  354  in the expanded icon menu of the landscape portrait screen or possibly a second portrait screen. Furthermore, the input to invoke the expanded icon menus is relatively minor, being intuitive gestural input from the user or a click event on the secondary input area. Moreover, the remainder of the reduced icon menu  352  allows the secondary input area to be provided. The secondary input area may be used for many different purposes, such as the display of a background image, message or other user interface screen, for example, of an application or function of the device  201 . 
     It will be appreciated that the size of the icons  354  in the reduced icon menu  352  of the portrait screen orientation of  FIG. 9A  may be different than the size of the icons  354  in one or both of the expanded icon menus of the second portrait screen of  FIG. 9B  or landscape portrait screen of  FIG. 9C . For example, in some embodiments the icons  354  in the portrait screen orientation of  FIG. 9A  may be narrower than the icons  354  in the landscape portrait screen of  FIG. 9C  in order to account for differences in screen width between the landscape and portrait screen orientations. 
     While the icon menu has been described primarily in the context of application icons on the home screen of the device  201 , it will be appreciated that the teachings of the present disclosure could be applied to any user interface screen having a number of icons, such as in menus or windows activated to the operating system  223  or applications  225  ( FIG. 1 ). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 10A , a portrait screen orientation of the media player application in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. In the shown embodiment, the portrait screen orientation comprises a list-based user interface screen, in particular, an album list of the media player application. The album list comprises a title bar  382  and a table comprising a number of rows and columns. Each row is an album or track in an album list or track list with each column representing a field in the album or track entry. The title bar  382  includes a label of the respective fields for informational purposes. In the shown embodiment, the fields comprise an album field  381 , artist field  383 , year field  385 , genre field  387 , and length field  389 . Additional or different fields could be used in other embodiments. 
     The album field  381  displays the album or track name and/or an icon, or possibly a picture associated with the album or track such as an album art thumbnail image (e.g. album cover art thumbnail image). In the shown embodiment, an onscreen position indicator  356  is provided in the album field  381  for navigating and selecting different albums in the album list or track. The artist field  383  indentifies the artist of the respective album, the year field  385  identifies the year of release of the respective album, the genre field  387  identifies genre associated with the music of the respective album, and the length field  389  identifies the total duration of all tracks of the respective album. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 10B , a landscape portrait screen of a media player application in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. In the shown embodiment, the landscape portrait screen comprises an icon array of album cover art corresponding to the albums in the album field  381  of the album list. The icons in the icon array could be thumbnail image of album cover art. Scrolling down will display more albums in the album list via the respective album cover art when the album icons are too numerous to be displayed on the display screen  204  all at the same time. In at least some embodiments, to improve navigation side-to-side scrolling (e.g., left-to-right scrolling) is disabled. Navigation in the album icon array is limited to scrolling up and down the albums in the icon array. 
     In either the portrait screen orientation ( FIG. 10A ) or landscape portrait screen ( FIG. 10B ), activation of an album icon displays an album user interface screen (not shown) with detailed information about the album such as a larger representation of the album cover art and track list including track information such as the track numbers, track names, individual track lengths, and possibly track ratings assigned by the device user. Further interaction/input with the detailed album user interface screen may commence playback of the album, for example, in response to receiving input to commence playback of the album or a particular track in the album. 
     As in the previous example discussed with reference to  FIGS. 9A, 9B, 9C , the processor  240  ( FIG. 1 ) may switch between the portrait and landscape screen orientations of the media player application in dependence on an orientation signal received from the orientation subsystem  249 . For example, where the device  201  is oriented horizontally so that the width of the display  204  is longer than the height of the display ( FIG. 10B ), the landscape screen orientation is displayed. In contrast, where the device  201  is oriented so that the width of the display  204  is shorter than the height of the display ( FIG. 10A ), the portrait screen orientation may be used. In other embodiments, the orientations which trigger the use of either the album art array or the album/track list may be reversed. For example, the list may be used in the landscape orientation to take advantage of the increased screen width to display additional album or track information. 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 11  which illustrates example operations  700  for generating a user interface screen in which icons are arranged in accordance with the screen orientation of the GUI in accordance with one example embodiment of the present disclosure. The operations  700  are carried out by the processor  240  ( FIG. 1 ) of the mobile communication device  201  under the instruction of the user interface module  226  and/or an active application  225  (also referred to as a foreground application  225 ) on the device  201 , or possibly the operating system  223 . The operations  700  are only performed in connection with user interface screens that support an icon mode. Example user interface screens which support an icon mode are the icon menu  352  of the home screen of the device  201  and the album art array of the media player application  228  described above. Because not all user interface screens support an icon mode, in some embodiments a check may be performed as a precondition to commencing the operations  700  (not shown). 
     The operations  700  are typically performed after the GUI of the device  201  has been returned to its home screen or after an application  225  has become the active application and its initial or opening screen has been displayed. That is, the operations  700  are typically performed in respect of the GUI of the operating system  223  or application  225  after a user interface screen in a default screen orientation has been displayed. The default screen orientation is typically the portrait screen orientation for a “top up” device orientation described above and shown in  FIG. 8A . However, the operations  700  could be applied to select the appropriate screen orientation for the initially displayed home screen of the device  201  or the initial user interface screen displayed for an application  225 . 
     In the first step  702 , the processor  204  monitors for and detects triggers to display a new user interface screen on the display screen  204 . The trigger may be a change in device orientation from a default device orientation (e.g., a “top up” device orientation shown in  FIG. 8A ) or a change from a previously determined device orientation. In such embodiments, the processor  204  monitors for and detects changes in device orientation and performs the operations  700  when a change in device orientation is detected. The processor  240  detects device orientation changes via orientation signals sent from the device orientation subsystem  249 . The orientation signals may include information which specifies the device orientation or information from which device orientation can be determined (e.g., acceleration information when the orientation sensor is an accelerometer). When the operations  700  are performed by the user interface module  226 , the device orientation event notifications may be received by the module  226  from the operating system  223  which generates device orientation event notifications in accordance with device orientation changes based on received orientation signals as described elsewhere. In other embodiments, the trigger could be predetermined input in addition to, or instead of, a detected change in device orientation. 
     Next, in step  704  the processor  240  determines which screen orientation is to be used to display the GUI, based on the device orientation. The user interface module  226  and/or applications  225 , depending on the embodiment, apply rules when rendering the GUI including rules which specify which screen orientations are to be used with which device orientations. In some embodiments, the rules map device orientations to screen orientations, for example, using the table described below. The screen orientation is either a portrait screen orientation or a landscape screen orientation. The screen orientation to be used to display the user interface screen is determined based on the device orientation. The device orientation is determined to be any one of the predetermined six (6) device orientations described above. If the device  201  is in one of the “top up”, “bottom up”, “left up” and “right up” device orientations, the preferred screen orientation is determined in accordance with the following mappings of screen orientation to device orientation: 
                                 Device Orientation   Screen Orientation                  “top up” device orientation   portrait (up) screen orientation       (see FIG. 8A)       “bottom up” device orientation   portrait (down)screen orientation, or       (see FIG. 8B)   portrait (up) screen orientation           depending on device settings       “left up” device orientation   landscape (left) screen orientation       (see FIG. 8C)       “right up” device orientation   landscape (right) screen orientation       (see FIG. 8D)                    
Device orientations different than those described above could be used in different embodiments, and different screen orientations than those described above could be mapped to the device orientations in different embodiments.
 
     If the device  201  is in either of the “front up” ( FIG. 8E ) or “back up” ( FIG. 8F ) device orientations, the input plane of the touchscreen display  210  is in the horizontal plane and there is no effective mechanism to unambiguously select a screen orientation for the GUI. As a result, when the device  201  is in either in the “front up” or “back up” device orientation, the screen orientation for the device orientation is typically a previous screen orientation stored in the memory of the device  201 , for example, in a run-time memory used by the user interface module  226 . The previous screen orientation corresponds to the screen orientation when the device  201  was last in one of the “top up”, “bottom up”, “left up” and “right up” device orientations. 
     It will be appreciated that in the described embodiment more than one configuration of the portrait and landscape screen orientations are supported by the device  201  to allow “inverted” portrait and landscape screen orientations to be used, if desired. The portrait “up” and portrait “down” screen orientations, and landscape “left” and landscape “right” screen orientations, differ from each other in the location of the drawing origin on the display screen  204 . 
     If there is no previous screen orientation stored in memory, for example because the device  201  was turned on while positioned horizontally, e.g. while in the “front up” or “back up” device orientation, a default screen orientation for the device  201  is selected as the screen orientation. In at least some embodiments, the default screen orientation is the screen orientation in the “top up” device orientation, i.e. the portrait (up) screen orientation in the described embodiment. A different default screen orientation could be used in other embodiments. 
     In some embodiments, a check is performed to determine whether the change in device orientation matches a rule for a screen orientation which is different than the current screen orientation. In such embodiments, if the screen orientation has not changed despite a change in the device orientation, the operations  700  end. However, if the screen orientation has changed, the operations  700  continue. 
     If a portrait screen orientation is to be used (step  704 ), processing continues to step  708  and the corresponding user interface screen is rendered. The user interface screen could be a home screen of the device  201  such as that shown in  FIG. 9A , or possibly a user interface screen of a foreground application  225  such as the media player application shown in  FIG. 10A . 
     If a landscape screen orientation is to be used, processing continues to step  706  and the corresponding user interface screen is rendered. The user interface screen could be a home screen of the device  201  such as that shown in  FIG. 9C , or possibly a user interface screen of a foreground application  225  such as the media player application shown in  FIG. 10B . 
     Next, in step  710  after rendering the corresponding user interface screen it is displayed on the display screen  204 . Operations  700  then return to step  702  where the device  201  monitors for and detects triggers to display a new user interface screen. While the device  201  is in the icon mode, it will continue to monitor for and detect device orientation changes or other triggers, and change the displayed user interface screen and its icons  354  accordingly. 
     In some embodiments, additional operations (which may be part of the operations  700 ) monitor for and detect a predetermined touch input in the secondary input area  358  of the first portrait screen when displayed. When the predetermined touch input is detected in the secondary input area  358  (e.g. a screen click event), the second portrait screen having the expanded icon menu  362  is rendered and then displayed on the display screen  204 . After the second portrait screen has been activated, device orientation changes can be used to switch the user interface screen between the second portrait screen and the landscape portrait screen. This operational state will continue until input cancelling the second portrait screen is received while the second portrait screen is displayed. Upon receiving the predetermined cancellation input, for example via depressing the escape/cancel key  260   c , device orientation changes can again be used to switch the user interface screen between the first portrait screen. 
     While the operations  700  have been described as occurring in a particular order, it will be appreciated to persons skilled in the art that some of the steps may be performed in a different order provided that the result of the changed order of any given step will not prevent or impair the occurrence of subsequent steps. Furthermore, some of the steps described above may be combined in other embodiments, and some of the steps described above may be separated into a number of sub-steps in other embodiments. 
     Communication System 
     In order to facilitate an understanding of one possible environment in which example embodiments described herein can operate, reference is made to  FIG. 12  which shows in block diagram form a communication system  100  in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied. The communication system  100  comprises a number of mobile communication devices  201  which may be connected to the remainder of system  100  in any of several different ways. Accordingly, several instances of mobile communication devices  201  are depicted in  FIG. 1  employing different example ways of connecting to system  100 . Mobile communication devices  201  are connected to a wireless network  101  which may comprise one or more of a Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN)  102  and a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)  104  or other suitable network arrangements. In some embodiments, the mobile communication devices  201  are configured to communicate over both the WWAN  102  and WLAN  104 , and to roam between these networks. In some embodiments, the wireless network  101  may comprise multiple WWANs  102  and WLANs  104 . 
     The WWAN  102  may be implemented as any suitable wireless access network technology. By way of example, but not limitation, the WWAN  102  may be implemented as a wireless network that includes a number of transceiver base stations  108  (one of which is shown in  FIG. 1 ) where each of the base stations  108  provides wireless Radio Frequency (RF) coverage to a corresponding area or cell. The WWAN  102  is typically operated by a mobile network service provider that provides subscription packages to users of the mobile communication devices  201 . In some embodiments, the WWAN  102  conforms to one or more of the following wireless network types: Mobitex Radio Network, DataTAC, GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication), GPRS (General Packet Radio System), TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), CDPD (Cellular Digital Packet Data), iDEN (integrated Digital Enhanced Network), EvDO (Evolution-Data Optimized) CDMA2000, EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunication Systems), HSPDA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access), IEEE 802.16e (also referred to as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access or “WiMAX), or various other networks. Although WWAN  102  is described as a “Wide-Area” network, that term is intended herein also to incorporate wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMAN) and other similar technologies for providing coordinated service wirelessly over an area larger than that covered by typical WLANs. 
     The WWAN  102  may further comprise a wireless network gateway  110  which connects the mobile communication devices  201  to transport facilities  112 , and through the transport facilities  112  to a wireless connector system  120 . Transport facilities may include one or more private networks or lines, the public Internet, a virtual private network, or any other suitable network. The wireless connector system  120  may be operated, for example, by an organization or enterprise such as a corporation, university, or governmental department, which allows access to a network  124  such as an internal or enterprise network and its resources, or the wireless connector system  120  may be operated by a mobile network provider. In some embodiments, the network  124  may be realised using the Internet rather than an internal or enterprise network. 
     The wireless network gateway  110  provides an interface between the wireless connector system  120  and the WWAN  102 , which facilitates communication between the mobile communication devices  201  and other devices (not shown) connected, directly or indirectly, to the WWAN  102 . Accordingly, communications sent via the mobile communication devices  201  are transported via the WWAN  102  and the wireless network gateway  110  through transport facilities  112  to the wireless connector system  120 . Communications sent from the wireless connector system  120  are received by the wireless network gateway  110  and transported via the WWAN  102  to the mobile communication devices  201 . 
     The WLAN  104  comprises a wireless network which, in some embodiments, conforms to IEEE 802.11x standards (sometimes referred to as Wi-Fi) such as, for example, the IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b and/or 802.11g standard. Other communication protocols may be used for the WLAN  104  in other embodiments such as, for example, IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.16e (also referred to as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access or “WiMAX”), or IEEE 802.20 (also referred to as Mobile Wireless Broadband Access). The WLAN  104  includes one or more wireless RF Access Points (AP)  114  (one of which is shown in  FIG. 1 ) that collectively provide a WLAN coverage area. 
     The WLAN  104  comprises a wireless network which, in some embodiments, conforms to IEEE 802.11x standards (sometimes referred to as Wi-Fi) such as, for example, the IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b and/or 802.11g standard. Other communication protocols may be used for the WLAN  104  in other embodiments such as, for example, IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.16e (also referred to as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access or “WiMAX”), or IEEE 802.20 (also referred to as Mobile Wireless Broadband Access). The WLAN  104  includes one or more wireless RF Access Points (AP)  114  (one of which is shown in  FIG. 1 ) that collectively provide a WLAN coverage area. 
     The WLAN  104  may be a personal network of the user, an enterprise network, or a hotspot offered by an Internet service provider (ISP), a mobile network provider, or a property owner in a public or semi-public area, for example. The access points  114  are connected to an access point (AP) interface  116  which may connect to the wireless connector system  120  directly (for example, if the access point  114  is part of an enterprise WLAN  104  in which the wireless connector system  120  resides), or indirectly as indicated by the dashed line if  FIG. 1  via the transport facilities  112  if the access point  14  is a personal Wi-Fi network or Wi-Fi hotspot (in which case a mechanism for securely connecting to the wireless connector system  120 , such as a virtual private network (VPN), may be required). The AP interface  116  provides translation and routing services between the access points  114  and the wireless connector system  120  to facilitate communication, directly or indirectly, with the wireless connector system  120 . 
     The wireless connector system  120  may be implemented as one or more servers, and is typically located behind a firewall  113 . The wireless connector system  120  manages communications, including email communications, to and from a set of managed mobile communication devices  201 . The wireless connector system  120  also provides administrative control and management capabilities over users and mobile communication devices  201  which may connect to the wireless connector system  120 . 
     The wireless connector system  120  allows the mobile communication devices  201  to access the network  124  and connected resources and services such as a messaging server  132  (for example, a Microsoft Exchange™, IBM Lotus Domino™, or Novell GroupWise™ email server), and a content server  134  for providing content such as Internet content or content from an organization&#39;s internal servers, and application servers  136  for implementing server-based applications such as instant messaging (IM) applications to mobile communication devices  201 . 
     The wireless connector system  120  typically provides a secure exchange of data (e.g., email messages, personal information manager (PIM) data, and IM data) with the mobile communication devices  201 . In some embodiments, communications between the wireless connector system  120  and the mobile communication devices  201  are encrypted. In some embodiments, communications are encrypted using a symmetric encryption key implemented using Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) or Triple Data Encryption Standard (Triple DES) encryption. Private encryption keys are generated in a secure, two-way authenticated environment and are used for both encryption and decryption of data. In some embodiments, the private encryption key is stored only in the user&#39;s mailbox on the messaging server  132  and on the mobile communication device  201 , and can typically be regenerated by the user on mobile communication devices  201 . Data sent to the mobile communication devices  201  is encrypted by the wireless connector system  120  using the private encryption key retrieved from the user&#39;s mailbox. The encrypted data, when received on the mobile communication devices  201 , is decrypted using the private encryption key stored in memory. Similarly, data sent to the wireless connector system  120  from the mobile communication devices  201  is encrypted using the private encryption key stored in the memory of the mobile communication device  201 . The encrypted data, when received on the wireless connector system  120 , is decrypted using the private encryption key retrieved from the user&#39;s mailbox. 
     The wireless network gateway  110  is adapted to send data packets received from the mobile communication device  201  over the WWAN  102  to the wireless connector system  120 . The wireless connector system  120  then sends the data packets to the appropriate connection point such as the messaging server  132 , content server  134  or application servers  136 . Conversely, the wireless connector system  120  sends data packets received, for example, from the messaging server  132 , content server  134  or application servers  136  to the wireless network gateway  110  which then transmit the data packets to the destination mobile communication device  201 . The AP interfaces  116  of the WLAN  104  provide similar sending functions between the mobile communication device  201 , the wireless connector system  120  and network connection point such as the messaging server  132 , content server  134  and application server  136 . 
     The network  124  may comprise a private local area network, metropolitan area network, wide area network, the public Internet or combinations thereof and may include virtual networks constructed using any of these, alone, or in combination. 
     A mobile communication device  201  may alternatively connect to the wireless connector system  120  using a computer  117 , such as desktop or notebook computer, via the network  124 . A link  106  may be provided for exchanging information between the mobile communication device  201  and computer  117  connected to the wireless connector system  120 . The link  106  may comprise one or both of a physical interface and short-range wireless communication interface. The physical interface may comprise one or combinations of an Ethernet connection, Universal Serial Bus (USB) connection, Firewire™ (also known as an IEEE 1394 interface) connection, or other serial data connection, via respective ports or interfaces of the mobile communication device  201  and computer  117 . The short-range wireless communication interface may be a personal area network (PAN) interface. A personal area network is a wireless point-to-point connection meaning no physical cables are required to connect the two end points. The short-range wireless communication interface may comprise one or a combination of an infrared (IR) connection such as an Infrared Data Association (IrDA) connection, a short-range radio frequency (RF) connection such as one specified by IEEE 802.15.1 or the Bluetooth™ special interest group, or IEEE 802.15.3a, also referred to as UltraWideband (UWB), or other PAN connection. 
     It will be appreciated that the above-described communication system is provided for the purpose of illustration only, and that the above-described communication system comprises one possible communication network configuration of a multitude of possible configurations for use with the mobile communication devices  201 . The teachings of the present disclosure may be employed in connection with any other type of network and associated devices that are effective in implementing or facilitating wireless communication. Suitable variations of the communication system will be understood to a person of skill in the art and are intended to fall within the scope of the present disclosure. 
     While the present disclosure is primarily described in terms of methods, a person of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the present disclosure is also directed to various apparatus such as a handheld electronic device including components for performing at least some of the aspects and features of the described methods, be it by way of hardware components, software or any combination of the two, or in any other manner. Moreover, an article of manufacture for use with the apparatus, such as a pre-recorded storage device or other similar computer readable medium including program instructions recorded thereon, or a computer data signal carrying computer readable program instructions may direct an apparatus to facilitate the practice of the described methods. It is understood that such apparatus, articles of manufacture, and computer data signals also come within the scope of the present disclosure. 
     The term “computer readable medium” as used herein means any medium which can store instructions for use by or execution by a computer or other computing device including, but not limited to, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk drive (HDD), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable-read-only memory (EPROM) or flash memory, an optical disc such as a Compact Disc (CD), Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) or Blu-Ray™ Disc, and a solid state storage device (e.g., NAND flash or synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM)). 
     The various embodiments presented above are merely examples and are in no way meant to limit the scope of this disclosure. Variations of the innovations described herein will be apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art, such variations being within the intended scope of the present application. In particular, features from one or more of the above-described embodiments may be selected to create alternative embodiments comprised of a sub-combination of features which may not be explicitly described above. In addition, features from one or more of the above-described embodiments may be selected and combined to create alternative embodiments comprised of a combination of features which may not be explicitly described above. Features suitable for such combinations and sub-combinations would be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art upon review of the present application as a whole. The subject matter described herein and in the recited claims intends to cover and embrace all suitable changes in technology.