Patent Publication Number: US-2020278822-A1

Title: Method and electronic device for displaying content based on virtual display

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) 
     This application is a continuation application of prior application Ser. No. 15/075,566, filed on Mar. 21, 2016, which was based on and claimed priority under 35 U.S.C § 119(a) of a Korean patent application number 10-2015-0056713, filed on Apr. 22, 2015, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a method and an electronic device for displaying content. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a method of displaying one or more content elements by an electronic device. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Recently, electronic devices have been configured to provide a multi-display function using a plurality of displays. A multi-display function combines a display area of two or more displays to create a single display area where a user can interact with the content in the single display area using the two or more displays. In an electronic device implementing a multi-display function, content may be displayed within the entire display area or within a portion of the display area. Alternatively, when a plurality of content elements is provided within the display area, each content element may be individually displayed within the display area. When a content element is displayed within the entire display area, the content element spans the entire display area where a portion of the content element is displayed on a first display, and a portion of the content element is displayed on a second display, etc. When a content element is displayed within a portion of the display area, the content element spans less than the entire display area where the content element may be displayed within a single display or span two or more displays. When a first content element and a second content element are provided within the display area, the first content element and second content element can be displayed using one or more displays. In addition, a user may interact with the content element. For example, a content element displayed on one display may be selected, copied, expanded, and/or moved within the entire display area including another display in the multi-display system. 
     Further, a plurality of content elements may be displayed within a single display using a virtual display. A virtual display is a logical display mapped to a physical display of the device. For example, one use of a virtual display includes a picture in picture (PIP) function. The virtual display function may be implemented using hardware such as a plurality of tuners in a television (TV) or monitor. Alternatively, a second display may be simulated using software such as a development option by JELLY BEAN PLUS used by an ANDROID operating system (OS). 
     The above information is presented as background information only to assist with an understanding of the present disclosure. No determination has been made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the above might be applicable as prior art with regard to the present disclosure. 
     SUMMARY 
     When display directions of a plurality of displays are different from each other, an electronic device supporting a multi-display system may have a limitation in providing a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying content on the display. Further, the electronic device may have a limitation in processing touch inputs received through the plurality of displays as a multi-touch input. 
     Aspects of the present disclosure are to address at least the above-mentioned problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a method and an electronic device for displaying content to solve the above described problems or other problems. 
     In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, a method of displaying content by an electronic device is provided. The method includes identifying a first content element corresponding to a preset virtual display among one or more content elements to be displayed on a display of the electronic device and displaying a first portion of the first content element on the display based on orientation information of the virtual display on the display. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a display that displays one or more content elements and a processor that identifies a first content element corresponding to a preset virtual display among the one or more content elements to be displayed on a display and displays a first portion of the first content element on the display based on orientation information of the virtual display on the display. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a first display that displays a first content element based on a first orientation and a processor configured to display a first area of a second content element on the first display based on a second orientation and to display a second area of the second content element on a second display of another electronic device connected to the electronic device to configure a multi-display based on the second orientation, wherein the second display displays a third content element based on a third orientation. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, although display directions of a plurality of displays are different from each other, an electronic device may provide a GUI for properly displaying content on each of the plurality of displays. 
     Further, according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device may process touch inputs received through the plurality of displays as a multi-touch input. 
     Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certain embodiments of the present disclosure will be more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a network environment including an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a programming module according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, and 3E  illustrate a content display method according to a comparative example of various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D  illustrate a method of recognizing a plurality of touch inputs according to a comparative example of various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5  is a flowchart illustrating a content display method by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 6A  is a block diagram of an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 6B  is a block diagram for describing information included in a memory of an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 7  is a view for describing a state where a virtual screen is mapped by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 8A and 8B  are views for describing a method of displaying content through a virtual screen by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 9  is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying a first portion of a first content element on a display by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying a first portion of a first content element on a display by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 11A and 11B  illustrate a method of displaying a plurality of content elements on a plurality of displays by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 12A and 12B  illustrate a method of displaying a plurality of content elements on a plurality of displays by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 13A and 13B  are flowcharts illustrating a method of recognizing a plurality of touch inputs by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 14A, 14B, and 14C  illustrate a method of recognizing a plurality of touch inputs by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 15  is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements on a display according to a Z-order by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 16A, 16B, 16C, and 16D  illustrate a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements on a display according to a Z-order by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 17A, 17B, 17C, and 17D  illustrate a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements on a display according to a Z-order by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 18A and 18B  illustrate mapping between a virtual display and a physical display by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 19  is a flowchart illustrating a content display method by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 20  is a flowchart illustrating a content display method by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG. 21  is a block diagram of an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     Throughout the drawings, like reference numerals will be understood to refer to like parts, components, and structures. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of various embodiments of the present disclosure as defined by the claims and their equivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the various embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness. 
     The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of various embodiments of the present disclosure is provided for illustration purpose only and not for the purpose of limiting the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. 
     It is to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a component surface” includes reference to one or more of such surfaces. 
     As used herein, the expression “have”, “may have”, “include”, or “may include” refers to the existence of a corresponding feature (e.g., numeral, function, operation, or constituent element such as component), and does not exclude one or more additional features. 
     In the present disclosure, the expression “A or B”, “at least one of A or/and B”, or “one or more of A or/and B” may include all possible combinations of the items listed. For example, the expression “A or B”, “at least one of A and B”, or “at least one of A or B” refers to all of (1) including at least one A, (2) including at least one B, or (3) including all of at least one A and at least one B. 
     The expression “a first”, “a second”, “the first”, or “the second” used in various embodiments of the present disclosure may modify various components regardless of the order and/or the importance but does not limit the corresponding components. For example, a first user device and a second user device indicate different user devices although both of them are user devices. For example, a first element may be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element may be termed a first element without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     It should be understood that when an element (e.g., first element) is referred to as being (operatively or communicatively) “connected,” or “coupled,” to another element (e.g., second element), it may be directly connected or coupled directly to the other element or any other element (e.g., third element) may be interposer between them. In contrast, it may be understood that when an element (e.g., first element) is referred to as being “directly connected,” or “directly coupled” to another element (second element), there are no element (e.g., third element) interposed between them. 
     The expression “configured to” used in the present disclosure may be exchanged with, for example, “suitable for”, “having the capacity to”, “designed to”, “adapted to”, “made to”, or “capable of” according to the situation. The term “configured to” may not necessarily imply “specifically designed to” in hardware. Alternatively, in some situations, the expression “device configured to” may mean that the device, together with other devices or components, “is able to”. For example, the phrase “processor adapted (or configured) to perform A, B, and C” may mean a dedicated processor (e.g. embedded processor) only for performing the corresponding operations or a generic-purpose processor (e.g., central processing unit (CPU) or application processor (AP)) that can perform the corresponding operations by executing one or more software programs stored in a memory device. 
     The terms used herein are merely for the purpose of describing particular embodiments of the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of other embodiments. Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical terms and scientific terms, may have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure pertains. Such terms as those defined in a generally used dictionary may be interpreted to have the meanings equal to the contextual meanings in the relevant field of art, and are not to be interpreted to have ideal or excessively formal meanings unless clearly defined in the present disclosure. In some cases, even the term defined in the present disclosure should not be interpreted to exclude various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     An electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of, for example, a smart phone, a tablet personal computer (PC), a mobile phone, a video phone, an electronic book reader (e-book reader), a desktop PC, a laptop PC, a netbook computer, a workstation, a server, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable multimedia player (PMP), a moving picture experts group phase 1 (MPEG-1) audio layer-3 (MP3) player, a mobile medical device, a camera, and a wearable device. According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the wearable device may include at least one of an accessory type (e.g., a watch, a ring, a bracelet, an anklet, a necklace, a glasses, a contact lens, or a head-mounted device (HMD)), a fabric or clothing integrated type (e.g., an electronic clothing), a body-mounted type (e.g., a skin pad, or tattoo), and a bio-implantable type (e.g., an implantable circuit). 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device may be a home appliance. The home appliance may include at least one of, for example, a television (TV), a digital versatile disc (DVD) player, an audio, a refrigerator, an air conditioner, a vacuum cleaner, an oven, a microwave oven, a washing machine, an air cleaner, a set-top box, a home automation control panel, a security control panel, a TV box (e.g., SAMSUNG HOMESYNC, APPLE TV, or GOOGLE TV), a game console (e.g., XBOX and PLAYSTATION), an electronic dictionary, an electronic key, a camcorder, and an electronic photo frame. 
     According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronic device may include at least one of various medical devices (e.g., various portable medical measuring devices (e.g., a blood glucose monitoring device, a heart rate monitoring device, a blood pressure measuring device, a body temperature measuring device, etc.), a magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a computed tomography (CT) machine, and an ultrasonic machine), a navigation device, a global positioning system (GPS) receiver, an event data recorder (EDR), a flight data recorder (FDR), a vehicle infotainment devices, an electronic devices for a ship (e.g., a navigation device for a ship, and a gyro-compass), avionics, security devices, an automotive head unit, a robot for home or industry, an automatic teller machine (ATM) in banks, point of sales (POS) in a shop, or Internet device of things (e.g., a light bulb, various sensors, electric or gas meter, a sprinkler device, a fire alarm, a thermostat, a streetlamp, a toaster, a sporting goods, a hot water tank, a heater, a boiler, etc.). 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device may include at least one of a part of furniture or a building/structure, an electronic board, an electronic signature receiving device, a projector, and various kinds of measuring instruments (e.g., a water meter, an electric meter, a gas meter, and a radio wave meter). The electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be a combination of one or more of the aforementioned various devices. The electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be a flexible device. Further, the electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is not limited to the aforementioned devices, and may include a new electronic device according to the development of technology. 
     Hereinafter, an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. As used herein, the term “user” may indicate a person who uses an electronic device or a device (e.g., an artificial intelligence electronic device) that uses an electronic device. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a network environment including an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an electronic device  101  within a network environment  100  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure is described. The electronic device  101  may include a bus  110 , a processor  120 , a memory  130 , an input/output interface  150 , a display  160 , and a communication interface  170 . In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device  101  may omit at least one of the above components or further include other components. 
     The bus  110  may include, for example, a circuit for connecting the components  110  to  170  and transmitting communication (for example, control messages and/or data) between the components. 
     The processor  120  may include one or more of a CPU, an AP, and a communication processor (CP). For example, the processor  120  may control at least one other component of the electronic device  101  and/or carry out operations or data processing related to communication. 
     The memory  130  may include a volatile memory and/or a non-volatile memory. The memory  130  may store, for example, commands or data related to one or more other components of the electronic device  101 . According to an embodiment, the memory  130  may store software and/or a program  140 . The program  140  may include a kernel  141 , middleware  143 , an application programming interface (API)  145 , and/or an application program (or “application”)  147 . At least some of the kernel  141 , the middleware  143 , and the API  145  may be referred to as an operating system (OS). 
     The kernel  141  may control or manage system resources (for example, the bus  110 , the processor  120 , or the memory  130 ) used for executing an operation or function implemented by other programs (for example, the middleware  143 , the API  145 , or the application  147 ). Furthermore, the kernel  141  may provide an interface through which the middleware  143 , the API  145 , or the application programs  147  may access individual components of the electronic device  101  to control or manage system resources. 
     The middleware  143  may serve as, for example, an intermediary for allowing the API  145  or the application programs  147  to communicate with the kernel  141  to exchange data. 
     Further, the middleware  143  may process one or more task requests received from the application programs  147  according to priorities thereof. For example, the middleware  143  may assign priorities, by which system resources (for example, the bus  110 , the processor  120 , the memory  130  or the like) of the electronic device  101  can be first used, to at least one of the application programs  147 . For example, the middleware  143  may perform scheduling or loading balancing on the one or more task requests by processing the one or more task requests according to the assigned priorities. 
     The API  145  is an interface by which the applications  147  control functions provided from the kernel  141  or the middleware  143 , and may include, for example, at least one interface or function (for example, command) for file control, window control, image processing, or text control. 
     For example, the input/output interface  150  may serve as an interface that may transfer commands or data input from a user or another external device to other component(s) of the electronic device  101 . Further, the input/output interface  150  may output commands or data received from other component(s) of the electronic device  101  to the user or another external device. 
     The display  160  may include, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light emitting diode (LED) display, an organic LED (OLED) display, a micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) display, or an electronic paper display. The display  160  may display various types of content (for example, text, images, videos, icons, symbols, etc.) for users. The display  160  may include a touch screen, and may receive, for example, a touch, gesture, proximity, or hovering made by using an electronic pen or a part of the user&#39;s body. 
     For example, the communication interface  170  may configure communication between the electronic device  101  and an external device (for example, a first external electronic device  102 , a second external electronic device  104 , or a server  106 ). For example, the communication interface  170  may be connected to a network  162  through wireless or wired communication to communicate with the external device (for example, the second external electronic device  104  or the server  106 ). 
     The wireless communication may use at least one of, for example, long term evolution (LTE), LTE-advanced (LTE-A), code division multiple access (CDMA), wideband CDMA (WCDMA), universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), wireless broadband (WiBro), and global system for mobile communications (GSM) as a cellular communication protocol. Further, the wireless communication may include, for example, short-range communication  164 . The short-range communication  164  may include at least one of, for example, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, near field communication (NFC), and global navigation satellite system (GNSS). The GNSS may include at least one of, for example, a GPS, a global navigation satellite system (GLONASS), a BeiDou navigation satellite system (BeiDou), and Galileo (European global satellite-based navigation system). Hereinafter, in the present disclosure, the “GPS” may be interchangeably used with the “GNSS”. The wired communication may include at least one of, for example, a universal serial bus (USB), a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), recommended standard 232 (RS-232), and a plain old telephone service (POTS). The network  162  may include at least one of communication networks such as a computer network (for example, a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN)), the Internet, and a telephone network. 
     Each of the first and second external electronic devices  102  and  104  may be a device which is the same as or different from the electronic device  101 . According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the server  106  may include a group of one or more servers. According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, all or some of the operations performed by the electronic device  101  may be performed by another electronic device or a plurality of electronic devices (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104  or server  106 ). According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when the electronic device  101  should perform some functions or services automatically or by a request, the electronic device  101  may make a request for performing at least some of the functions related to the functions or services to another device (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104  or the server  106 ) instead of performing the functions or services by itself. The other electronic device (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104 , or the server  106 ) may carry out the requested functions or additional functions and provide results thereof to the electronic device  101 . The electronic device  101  may provide requested functions or services based on the received results or after additionally processing the received results. To this end, for example, cloud computing, distributed computing, or client-server computing technology may be used. 
     The processor  120  may process at least some of the information obtained from other components (for example, at least one of the memory  130 , the input/output interface  150 , and the communication interface  170 ) and utilize the information in various manners. For example, the processor  120  may control at least some functions of the electronic device  101  so that the electronic device  101  may interwork with other electronic devices (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104  or the server  106 ). The processor  120  may be integrated with the communication interface  170 . According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, at least one component of the processor  120  may be included in the server  160  and at least one operation implemented by the processor  120  may be supported by the server  106 . 
     According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the memory  130  may include instructions to operate the processor  120 . For example, the memory  130  may include instructions for allowing the processor  120  to control other component of the electronic device  101  and to interwork with other electronic devices  102  and  104  or the server  106 . The processor  120  may control other components of the electronic device  101  and interwork with other electronic devices  102  and  104  or the server  106  based on the instructions stored in the memory  130 . Hereinafter, the operations of the electronic device  101  will be described based on the respective components of the electronic device  101 . Further, the instructions for allowing the receptive components to perform the operations may be included in the memory  130 . 
     The electronic device  101  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be connected to other electronic devices  102  and  104  to configure and execute a multi-display. As described above, the electronic device  101  may be connected to other electronic devices  102  and  104  through the short-range communication  164  or through the network  162 . Further, the electronic device  101  may be connected to other electronic devices  102  and  104  through a wire. 
     The multi-display function may be a function that combines displays of a device using two or more displays and copies, expands, or individually outputs one or more content elements to the display screens. For example, the user may connect a PC to two or more monitors and copy, expand, or individually output one or more content elements to the screens of the two monitors. Similarly, electronic devices, each of which includes one display, may connect to each other to use the multi-display function such that the display area includes the display of each of the connected electronic devices. For example, electronic device  101  may be connected to other electronic devices  102  and  104  such that a content element displayed on the display  160  of the electronic device  101  may be copied, expanded, or individually output on one or more of the displays of the other electronic devices  102  and  104 . 
     The display  160  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may display one or more content elements. One or more content elements are may be displayed on the display  160  based on at least one of a user input, configuration information of an application, and configuration information of an operating system. The content elements may include an image or video data which can be displayed on the display and may be displayed on the display  160  through a window or interface. 
     The one or more elements may be selected, copied, expanded, or individually output on the display  160  and displays of other electronic devices  102  and  104 . Further, the one or more content elements may be displayed on the corresponding displays, respectively. For example, when a first content element corresponds to a first display, the first content element may be displayed on the first display. When a second content element corresponds to a second display, the second content element may be displayed on the second display. Further, when a third content element corresponds to a virtual display, the third content element may be displayed on at least one of the first display and the second display according to mapping information between the virtual display and physical displays which correspond to the first display and the second display. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may identify the first content element corresponding to a preset virtual display among one or more content elements to be displayed on the display  160 . The virtual display may refer to a logical display mapped to a physical display which is the display  160 . For example, the virtual display has no actual physical device to perform the display and may refer to a logical device including virtual display context. The display context corresponds to information indicating a display state and may include various pieces of information expressing a display state such as a width, a height, a density, and an orientation. As described above, due to inherent display context of the virtual display, the virtual display may have orientation information, size information, and density information, which are different from those of the physical display. Further, while the physical display has a limitation on changing the orientation information, the virtual display can change the orientation information without particular limitation. 
     In addition, through the virtual display, a separate algorithm may not be added to every application to display content elements to overlap the first display and the second display. For example, the virtual display allows the electronic device to display a content element over one or more content elements displayed on the first display and/or the second display without modifying currently existing applications such that any determination associated with displaying the content element over the one or more content elements displayed on the first display and/or the second display is performed separately from each application. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may configure the virtual display by configuring state information such as context of the virtual display. For example, the state information of the virtual display may include at least one of the size, orientation information, and density of the virtual display. In addition, the state information of the virtual display may include various pieces of information expressing the state of the virtual display. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may configure the state information of the virtual display based on a received input. Among various pieces of the state information of the virtual display, the state information, which is not configured based on the user input, may be predetermined. Further, the state information of the virtual display may be automatically configured by an operating system and/or an application. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the communication interface  170  may transmit the state information of the virtual display to the other connected electronic devices  102  and  104  to configure or execute a multi-display function. Further, the electronic device  101  may receive state information of the virtual display configured by the other electronic devices  102  and  104  from the other electronic devices  102  and  104 . Accordingly, the electronic device  101  and the other electronic devices  102  and  104  may share the preset state information of the virtual display. Further, by sharing the state information of the virtual display, the processor  120  may map the virtual display to each of the display  160  and the displays of the other electronic devices  102  and  104 . Accordingly, content elements corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed over the display  160  and the displays of the other electronic devices  102  and  104 . 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may display a first portion of the first content element on the display  160  based on orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160 . For example, the processor  120  may display the first portion of the first content element based on an orientation corresponding to the orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160 . A method of displaying the first portion of the first content element based on the orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160  by the processor  120  will be described below. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may identify the first content element based on at least one of a user input, configuration information of the operating system, and configuration information of the application. For example, the processor  120  may identify the first content element based on content display configuration information of the operating system or content display configuration information of the application. The display corresponding to each of the one or more content elements may be determined or selected in advance. The processor  120  may identify the first content element by using information on the display corresponding to each of the one or more content elements. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may select or determine the display corresponding to each of the one or more content elements based on at least one of a user input, configuration information of the operating system, and configuration information of the executed application. Further, a processor of the electronic device  102  or  104  may select or determine the display corresponding to each of the one or more content elements, and transmit information on the selection or determination to the electronic device  101 . 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may display a first portion of the first content element by using mapping information between the display  160  and the virtual display. The processor  120  may display the first portion of the first content element on an area of the display  160  to which the virtual display is mapped. 
     When the entire virtual display is mapped to the display  160 , the whole first content element may be displayed on the display  160 . However, only a portion of the virtual display may be mapped to the display  160 . For example, a first area of the virtual display may be mapped to the display  160  and a second area of the virtual display may be mapped to the displays of the electronic devices  102  and  104 . In this case, the entire first content element may not be displayed on the display  160 . The first portion of the first content element corresponding to the first area of the virtual display may be displayed on the display  160  and the second portion of the first content element corresponding to the second area of the virtual display may be displayed on the displays of the electronic devices  102  and/or  104 . As described above, when only a portion of the virtual display is mapped to the display  160 , the first content element may be divided and displayed on the display  160  and the displays of the electronic devices  102  and  104 . 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the mapping information may be generated based on state information of the display  160  and state information of the virtual display. As described above, the size of the virtual display such as the width and height may be configured during a configuration operation. The processor  120  may generate the mapping information between the display and the virtual display by using the size of the virtual display. Further, when a display location of the virtual display is configured during the configuration operation, the processor  120  may use the display location for generating the mapping information. When the display location is not configured, the display location may be configured by default. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, when the state information of the virtual display is updated based on at least one of the received user input, a change in the content display configuration information of the operating system, and a change in the content display configuration information of the application, the processor  120  may update the orientation information and the mapping information between the display and the virtual display. As described above, by updating the orientation information and the mapping information, the processor  120  may display the first content element on the display  160  and the displays of the electronic devices  102  and  104  in accordance with the change in the state information of the virtual display. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may display a first portion of the first content element on the display  160  based on orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160 . Further, the processor  120  may display first portion of the first content element on the display  160  such that the first portion is rotated. The following description will be made based on an assumption that the orientation information of the virtual display and the orientation information of the display  160  are different from each other. When the first portion of the first content element is displayed on the display  160  without rotation, the first portion may be displayed to correspond to the orientation of the display  160 . Accordingly, since the first portion corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed based on an undesired orientation, the first portion may be rotated to correspond to the orientation information of the virtual display. The orientation information may be configured according to each display and changed according to at least one of the user input, configuration information of the application, and configuration information of the operating system. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may convert coordinate information of a received first touch input to correspond to the orientation information of the virtual display one the display  160 . The first touch input may correspond to the virtual display. The first touch input is received through a touch panel included in the display  160 . Accordingly, when the coordinate information of the first touch input is not converted, the electronic device  101  may not operate as intended by the user through the first touch input. Accordingly, when the orientation information of the display  160  and the orientation information of the virtual display are different from each other, the coordinate information of the first touch input may need to be converted to correspond to the orientation information of the virtual display. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may receive information indicating that a second touch input corresponding to a second portion of the first content element is received from the electronic device  102  or  104 . When the processor  120  receives the information within a preset time after the first touch input is received, the processor  120  may recognize the first touch input and the second input as a multi-touch input. As described above, although the second touch input is received through the display of the electronic device  102  or  104 , the processor  120  may recognize the first touch input and the second touch input corresponding to the area displaying the first content element as the multi-touch input. Further, the processor  120  may transmit information indicating that the first touch input corresponding to the first portion of the first content element is received to the electronic device  102  or  104  through the communication interface  170 . Accordingly, the electronic device  102  or  104  may also recognize the first touch input and the second touch input as the multi-touch input. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor  120  may identify a Z-order of each of the one or more content elements. Further, the processor  120  may display each of the one or more content elements on the display based on the identified Z-order. As described above, the processor  120  may configure the Z-order according to each content element rather than according to each display. Further, the processor  120  may identify an arrangement order of each of the one or more content elements in a Z-direction based on the configured Z-order without consideration of the display corresponding to each of the one or more content elements. The processor  120  may display each of the one or more elements on the display  160  according to the identified arrangement order of the Z-direction. 
     As described above, according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, when the display  160  displays the first content element based on a first orientation, the processor  120  may control the display to display a first area of the second content element on the first display based on a second orientation. Further, when the display of the electronic device  102  or  104  displays the third content element based on a third orientation, the processor  120  may control the display to display a second area of the second content element on the display of the electronic device  102  or  104  based on the second orientation. As described above, the processor  120  may display the content element based on an orientation different from least one of the orientation of the display  160  and the orientation of the electronic device  102  or  104  by using the orientation information of the virtual display. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a program module according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the program module  210  (for example, the program  140 ) may include an OS for controlling resources related to the electronic device (for example, the electronic device  101 ) and/or various applications (for example, the application programs  147 ) executed in the operating system. The operating system may be, for example, ANDROID, IOS, WINDOWS, SYMBIAN, TIZEN, BADA, or the like. 
     The programming module  210  may include a kernel  220 , middleware  230 , an API  260 , and/or applications  270 . At least some of the program module  210  may be preloaded in the electronic device or downloaded from an external electronic device (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104 , or the server  106 ). 
     The kernel  220  (for example, the kernel  141 ) may include, for example, a system resource manager  221  and/or a device driver  223 . The system resource manager  221  may be configured to control, allocate, or collect system resources. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the system resource manager  221  may include a process manager, a memory manager, and/or a file system manager. The device driver  223  may include, for example, a display driver, a camera driver, a Bluetooth driver, a shared-memory driver, a USB driver, a keypad driver, a Wi-Fi driver, an audio driver, and/or an inter-process communication (IPC) driver. 
     The middleware  230  may provide a function required by the applications  270  in common or provide various functions to the applications  270  through the API  260  so that the applications  270  can efficiently use limited system resources within the electronic device. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the middleware  230  (for example, the middleware  143 ) may include, for example, at least one of a runtime library  235 , an application manager  241 , a window manager  242 , a multimedia manager  243 , a resource manager  244 , a power manager  245 , a database manager  246 , a package manager  247 , a connectivity manager  248 , a notification manager  249 , a location manager  250 , a graphic manager  251 , and/or a security manager  252 . 
     The runtime library  235  may include, for example, a library module that a compiler uses to add new functions through a programming language while the application  270  is executed. The runtime library  235  may be configured to perform input/output management, memory management, and/or a function for an arithmetic function. 
     The application manager  241  may be configured to manage, for example, a life cycle of at least one of the applications  270 . The window manager  242  may be configured to manage graphical user interface (GUI) resources used by a screen. The multimedia manager  243  may be configured to obtain formats required for the reproduction of various media files, and may perform an encoding or decoding of the media file by using a coder/decoder (codec) suitable for the corresponding format. The resource manager  244  may be configured to manage resources such as a source code, a memory, and a storage space of at least one of the applications  270 . 
     The power manager  245  may be configured to operate together with a basic input/output system (BIOS) to manage a battery or power and may provide power information required for the operation of the electronic device. The database manager  246  may be configured to generate, search for, or change a database to be used by at least one of the applications  270 . The package manager  247  may be configured to manage the installation or the updating of applications distributed in the form of package file. 
     The connectivity manager  248  may be configured to manage wireless connection of, for example, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. The notification manager  249  may be configured to display or provide notification of an event such as an arrival message, promise, proximity notification, and the like in such a way that does not disturb a user. The location manager  250  may be configured to manage location information of the electronic device. The graphic manager  251  may be configured to manage graphic effects to be provided to a user and user interfaces related to the graphic effects. The security manager  252  may be configured to provide security functions required for system security or user authentication. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when the electronic device (for example, electronic device  101 ) has a call function, the middleware  230  may further include a telephony manager configured to manage a voice call function or a video call function of the electronic device. 
     The middleware  230  may include a middleware module for forming a combination of various functions of the aforementioned components. The middleware  230  may provide modules specialized according to types of operating systems in order to provide differentiated functions. Further, the middleware  230  may dynamically remove some of the existing components or add new components. 
     The API  260  (for example, the API  145 ) is, for example, a set of API programming functions where a different programming function configuration may be associated with each operating system platform. For example, with respect to each platform, one API set may be provided for ANDROID OR IOS platforms, and two or more API sets may be provided for the TIZEN platform, etc. 
     The applications  270  (for example, the application programs  147 ) may include, for example, one or more applications which can provide functions such as home  271 , dialer  272 , short message service (SMS)/multimedia message service (MMS)  273 , instant message (IM)  274 , browser  275 , camera  276 , alarm  277 , contacts  278 , voice dialer  279 , e-mail  280 , calendar  281 , media player  282 , album  283 , and clock  284 . Other additional applications not illustrated in  FIG. 2  may also be included such as health care (for example, measure exercise quantity or blood sugar) applications environment information (for example, atmospheric pressure, humidity, or temperature information) applications, etc. 
     According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications  270  may include an application (hereinafter, referred to as an “information exchange application” for convenience of the description) supporting information exchange between the electronic device (for example, the electronic device  101 ) and an external electronic device (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104 ). The information exchange application may include, for example, a notification relay application for transferring predetermined information to an external electronic device or a device management application for managing an external electronic device. 
     For example, the notification relay application may include a function of transferring, to the external electronic device (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104 ), notification information generated from other applications of the electronic device  101  (for example, an SMS/MMS application, an e-mail application, a health management application, or an environmental information application). Further, the notification relay application may receive notification information from, for example, the external electronic device and provide the received notification information to the user. 
     The device management application may manage (for example, install, delete, and/or update), for example, a function for at least a part of the external electronic device (for example, the electronic device  102  or  104 ) communicating with the electronic device (for example, turning on/off the external electronic device itself (or some elements thereof) or adjusting brightness (or resolution) of a display, applications executed in the external electronic device, and/or services provided from the external electronic device (for example, a telephone call service or a message service). 
     According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications  270  may include applications (for example, a health care application of a mobile medical appliance or the like) designated according to attributes of the external electronic device  102  or  104 . According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications  270  may include an application received from the external electronic devices (for example, the server  106  and/or the electronic devices  102  or  104 ). According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications  270  may include a preloaded application or a third party application which can be downloaded from the server. Names of the components of the program module  210  according to the above described embodiments may vary depending on the type of operating system. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, at least some of the programming module  210  may be implemented in software, firmware, hardware, or a combination of two or more thereof. At least some of the programming module  210  may be implemented (for example, executed) by, for example, the processor (for example, the processor  120 ). At least some of the programming module  210  may include, for example, a module, program, routine, sets of commands, or process for performing one or more functions. 
       FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, and 3E  are views for describing a content display method according to a comparative example of various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3A , two electronic devices  302 ,  304  according to a comparative example may be connected to each other to construct a multi-display system. The two electronic devices  302 ,  305  may display separate content elements  304 ,  307  on each display  303 ,  306 , respectively, and one content element  308  may be displayed over the respective displays. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 3A , a first content element  304  is associated with a media application, a second content element  307  is associated with a calculator, and a third content element  308  is associated with device options. It is noted that the content elements may be associated with any type of application where each content element is associated with a different application. Alternatively, two or more content elements may be associated with the same application. 
       FIG. 3B  illustrates an orientation of each display. For example, content displayed on display A of electronic device  302  and content displayed on display B of electronic device  305  are oriented in the same direction, for example an up direction as illustrated by the arrows. The two electronic devices  302 ,  305  may simultaneously support an operation mode in which each display  303 ,  306  has an individual orientation and individually displays content elements and an operation mode in which the two displays have a common orientation where one content element is displayed over the two displays  303 ,  306 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 3B , a direction pointed toward by an arrow indicating each of the orientations of the display A and the display B may be a direction in which the top of the content is displayed on each of the displays. Hereinafter, the direction of the arrow indicating the orientation of the display may be the direction in which the top of the content is displayed on the display. 
     As described above, when each of the orientations of the display A and the display B is the same as the orientation of the entire area, the two electronic devices  302 ,  305  according to a comparative example may display the content elements as illustrated in  FIG. 3A . 
     Unlike  FIGS. 3A and 3B , when the orientation of the display B is changed in a left direction such that the orientations of the two electronic devices  302 ,  305  are different is illustrated in  FIG. 3C . 
     In general, when content elements are generated, displays can be designated in which to display the content elements within the display area. In an exemplary embodiment, the content elements may be displayed within a window or other similar interface; however, the content elements may be displayed using any type of interface. In addition, the content elements may be displayed according to state information of the corresponding displays. For example, when the orientation information of the display is changed, such as by using a pivot function or a rotation sensing function through a sensor, the content elements displayed on the rotated display may be also changed in accordance with the changed orientation information as illustrated in  FIG. 3E . 
     Accordingly, when the electronic device maps the content elements to the physical displays to display the content elements, the content elements displayed over the display A and the display B are rotated and displayed according to the orientations of the display A and the display B as illustrated in  FIG. 3E , so that the content elements are separated and may not be continuously displayed. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, as illustrated in  FIG. 3D , electronic devices  302  and  305  are oriented in the same direction such that the content elements are displayed such that content is displayed from the top to the bottom of display A and display B. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3E , when the orientation of display B is changed with respect to display A, the content associated with display A may be displayed still from the top to the bottom. However, the content associated with display B may be displayed from the left to the right in the display B. As described above, as the orientation of the display B is changed, the orientation of the portion of the content elements displayed on the display B, including the content element that overlaps display A and display B. Accordingly, the content element displayed within the display area such that a portion of the content element is displayed in display A and a portion of the content element is displayed in display B may be divided and discontinuously displayed as illustrated in  FIG. 3E . 
     As described above, the electronic devices  302 ,  305  according to the comparative example use only the physical displays and thus are limited when the orientations of at least one of the displays is changed. Accordingly, when the orientation of the display is changed, orientations of the content elements displayed on the display may be changed and content elements displayed over a plurality of displays may be divided and displayed. 
       FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D  are views for describing a method of recognizing a plurality of touch inputs according to a comparative example of various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6A , when two electronic devices  402 ,  404  according to a comparative example are connected to each other to construct a multi-display system, a coordinate system may be formed in an expansion mode or a full screen mode. When display A and display B have the same orientation, the display area may be determined such that display A and display B are combined and treated as one display for the purposes of coordinate assignment. For example, the display area may be defined to include 200 elements in the horizontal direction (H) and 200 elements in the vertical direction (V) such that a coordinate value of (0, 0) is assigned to an upper left side of display A, a coordinate value of (100,0) is assigned to an upper right side of display A, a coordinate value of (101,0) is assigned to an upper left side of display B, a coordinate value of (200, 0) is assigned to an upper right side of display B, a coordinate value of (0, 200) is assigned to a lower left side of display A, a coordinate value of (100, 200) is assigned to a lower right side of display A, a coordinate value of (101, 200) is assigned to a lower left side of display B, and a coordinate value of (200, 200) is assigned to a lower right side of display B as illustrated in  FIG. 4A . 
     Referring to  FIG. 4B , the user may touch each of the two electronic devices  402 ,  404 , which are configured to operate in both a multi-display mode and a full screen mode. When the displays of electronic devices  402 ,  404  are oriented in the same direction, the two electronic devices  402 ,  404  may receive a first touch input X1 and a second touch input X2 on each display, respectively, and process the first touch input X1 and the second touch input X2 as a multi-touch input as illustrated in  FIG. 4A . 
     However, when the orientations of display A and display B are different as illustrated in  FIG. 4C , the first touch input X1 received on display A and the second touch input X2 received on display B may not be recognized as a multi-touch input. For example, when the orientations of display A and display B are different as illustrated in  FIG. 4C , a display area associated with display A and display B cannot be formed using one coordinate system. Accordingly, display A and display B may each individually process the first touch input X1 associated with a first content element  406  and the second touch input X2 associated with a second content element  408  received through the respective touch panels as single touch inputs. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, as illustrated in  FIG. 4D , each content element may be assigned a different coordinate system. For example, the first content element  406  may be associated with a first coordinate system including a first horizontal coordinate axis (H 1 ) and a first vertical coordinate axis (V 1 ), the second content element  408  may be associated with a second coordinate system including a second horizontal coordinate axis (H 2 ) and a second vertical coordinate axis (V 2 ), and the third content element  410  may be associated with a third coordinate system including a third horizontal coordinate axis (H 3 ) and a second vertical coordinate axis (V 3 ). The first coordinate system may be defined such that a coordinate value of (0, 0) is assigned to a upper left corner of the content element  406 , a coordinate value of (0, 200) is assigned to a lower left corner of the content element  406 , a coordinate value of (100, 0) is assigned to an upper right corner of the content element  406 , and a coordinate value of (100, 200) is assigned to a lower right corner of the content element  406 . The second coordinate system may be defined such that a coordinate value of (0, 0) is assigned to an upper left corner of the content element  408 , a coordinate value of (200, 0) is assigned to an upper right corner of the content element  408 , a coordinate value of (0, 100) is assigned to a lower left corner of the content element  408 , and a coordinate value of (100, 200) is assigned to a lower right corner of the content element  408 . It is noted that the orientation of the first content element  406  displayed on the first electronic device  402  is oriented in a different direction from the second content element  408  displayed on the second electronic device  404 . For example, the coordinate value of (100, 200) corresponding to a lower right corner of the first content element  406  may be adjacent to the coordinate value (0, 0) associated with an upper left corner of the second content element  408 . In addition, the third coordinate system may be defined to overlap the first content element  406  and the second content element  408 . In an exemplary embodiment, a coordinate value of (0, 0) associated with the third content element  410  may overlap and/or correspond to a coordinate value in the coordinate system associated with the first content element  406   
     Further, as illustrated in  FIG. 4D , the third content element  410  displayed in both display A and display B may be displayed such that a first portion  411  of the third content element  410  and a second portion  413  of the third content element form a continuous element using a virtual display. In addition, the first touch input X1 and the second touch input X2 may be detected at display A and display B. However, in this case, the first touch input X1 and the second touch input X2 may be individually processed as single touch inputs due to the different orientations of the first content element  406  and the second content element  408 . 
       FIG. 5  is a flowchart illustrating a content element display method by an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , in operation  510 , a first content element corresponding to a preset virtual display is identified from among one or more content elements to be displayed within a display area. The display area is the area available to display information. For example, when two or more electronic devices are connected to establish a multi-display system, the display area corresponds to the number of displays such that when two electronic devices are connected the display area includes the area associated with the display of the first electronic device and the area associated with the second electronic device. Each of the one or more content elements may be identified, selected, or determined based on at least one of a user input, configuration information of an operating system, and/or configuration information of an application. 
     For example, the electronic device  101  may identify the first content element based on at least one of the user input, configuration information of the operating system, and configuration information of the application. The user may configure the first content element to correspond to a first display or the first content element may be automatically configured to correspond to the first display according to the configuration information of the operating system and the configuration information of the application. 
     In operation  520 , a first portion of the first content element may be displayed within the display area based on orientation information of the virtual display. For example, electronic device  101  may display the first portion of the first content element based on an orientation corresponding to the orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160 . 
     Further, the electronic device  101  may display the first portion of the first content element by using mapping information between the display  160  and the virtual display. The mapping information may be configured based on state information of the display  160  and state information of the virtual display. 
       FIG. 6A  is a block diagram of an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     The electronic device  101  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be illustrated as the block diagram of  FIG. 6A . The electronic device  101  may include the processor  120 , the memory  130 , at least one display  160 , a virtual display mapper  610 , and a graphic composer  620 . 
     The processor  120  may be configured to transmit graphic (bitmap) data of content elements included in the memory  130  to the graphic composer  620  to instruct the display  160  to display the content elements. 
     The memory  130  may include graphic (bitmap) data of content elements to be displayed on the display  160 , display-content correspondence information to indicate which content elements are displayed on the display  106 , physical-virtual display mapping information, and state information of the virtual display. Each piece of the information included in the memory  130  will be described below with reference to  FIG. 6B . 
     The virtual display mapper  610  may determine a portion of a content element, which is displayed on a physical display, from among the graphic (bitmap) data of the content elements according to the mapping information between the virtual display and the physical display, and divide the graphic (bitmap) data of the content elements. Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may rotate the graphic data of the elements according to orientation information of the virtual display. 
     As described above, before displaying the content elements corresponding to the virtual display on a frame buffer of the physical display, the virtual display mapper  610  may be configured to perform a separate preprocessing process on the content elements. The separate preprocessing process may perform an operation for dividing, rotating, and/or movement-transforming the graphic data of the content elements so that the content elements corresponding to the virtual display may be output to a proper location according to orientation information of the physical display and the virtual display, and the mapping information. The virtual display mapper  610  may be constructed separately from the processor  120  as illustrated in  FIG. 6A  or may be included in the processor  120  to operate with the processor  120  as one module. 
     The graphic composer  620  may be configured to compose the graphic (bitmap) data of the content elements in a buffer of the display  160 . Through the composition of the graphic (bitmap) data of the content elements in the buffer of the display  160 , the content elements may be displayed on the display  160 . 
     Each of the one or more displays  160  may correspond to an output buffer for displaying the graphic information of the content elements on the display. In general, the output buffer may be used during a step of constructing the screen before outputting the final screen by a graphic driver. Each of the one or more displays  160  may display the content elements temporarily stored in the corresponding output buffer and outputted. 
       FIG. 6B  is a block diagram for describing information included in the memory of the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6B , the memory  130  of the electronic device  101  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may include display-content element correspondence information  630 , content element graphic (bitmap) data  640 , physical-virtual display mapping information  650 , and state information  660  on at least one virtual display in order to display content elements using the virtual display. 
     The display-content correspondence information  630  may be information indicating a correspondence relation between one or more content elements to be displayed on the display  160  and a display predetermined when each of the one or more content elements are generated. The one or more content elements may be displayed on the corresponding displays, respectively. The processor  120  may identify a first content element corresponding to the virtual display among the one or more content elements according to the display-content correspondence information  640  included in the memory  160 . 
     The content element graphic (bitmap) data  640  is data associated with each of the one or more content elements included in the memory  160 . 
     The physical-virtual display mapping information  650  may be generated based on state information of the display  160  and state information of the virtual display. The processor  120  may generate the mapping information between the display  160  and the virtual display by using the size or location of the virtual display configured during a process of generating the virtual display. When the size or location of the virtual display is not configured, the processor  120  may configure information on the size or location of the virtual display by default. 
     The state information  660  associated with the one or more virtual displays may include display context of the displays. The display context corresponds to information indicating a display state and may include various pieces of information expressing a display state such as a width, a height, a density, and an orientation. The processor  120  may configure the virtual display by configuring state information such as context of the virtual display. Further, the processor  120  may store the state information corresponding to the configured virtual display in the memory  160  according to the configuration of the virtual display. 
       FIG. 7  is a view for describing a state where a virtual screen is mapped by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     The electronic device  101  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may generate mapping information between a display area and the virtual display based on state information of the display  160  of the electronic device  101  and state information of the virtual display. Similarly, the electronic device  102  or  104  may also generate mapping information based on the state information of the virtual display received from the electronic device  101  and state information of the display of the electronic device  102  or  104 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , the virtual display may be mapped according to the generated mapping information. For example, it is assumed that state information of a virtual display C  730  includes size information containing a width of 140 and a height of 100, and location information of the virtual display  730  as illustrated in  FIG. 7 . In this case, an upper left vertex of the virtual display C  730  may be mapped to a location of (50, 50) based on an upper left vertex of the display A  710 . Further, an upper right vertex of the virtual display C  730  may be mapped to a location of (50, 90) based on the upper left vertex of the display A  720 . One of the remaining vertexes of the virtual display C  730  may be mapped to one of the display A  710  and the display B  720  based on the size information included in the state information of the virtual display. 
       FIGS. 8A and 8B  are views for describing a method of displaying contents through a virtual screen by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 8A , orientations of the display  160  of the electronic device  101  and the display of the electronic device  102  or  104  may be different from each other according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Further, the orientation of the virtual display mapped to the display  160  and the display of the electronic device  102  or  104  may be also different from the orientations of the display  160  and the display of the electronic device  102  or  104 . 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device  101  may configure orientation information of the virtual display during a process of configuring the virtual display. Accordingly, a first content element corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed to correspond to the orientation of the virtual display while the orientation of the virtual display is not influenced by the orientations of the display  160  and the display of the electronic devices  102  or  104 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 8A , a first content element  802 , which shows device options on the virtual display, may be displayed over a second content element  804  and a third content element  806  where the second content element  804  is displayed on a first electronic device  808  and the second content element  804  is displayed on a second electronic device  810 . 
     Further, the orientation information associated with each content element  804 ,  806  displayed on electronic devices  808 ,  810 , respectively, and the content element  802  associated with the virtual display may be as illustrated in  FIG. 8B . For example, the orientation information associated with content element  804  may correspond to a right direction, the orientation information associated with content element  806  may correspond to a left direction, and the orientation information of the content element  802  associated with the virtual display may correspond to an up direction. 
     Referring to  FIG. 8B , when the orientations are different, electronic device  808  may display a first portion  801  of content element  802  on the display based on orientation information of the virtual display. Similarly, the electronic device  810  may display a second portion  803  of the content element  802  on the display of the electronic device  810  based on orientation information of the virtual display. Accordingly, although the orientations of the displays are different from each other, content element may be continuously displayed on the displays without any separation. 
       FIG. 9  is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying the first portion of a content element on the display by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , in operation  910 , the electronic device  808  or  810  may identify a first area of the virtual display mapped to the display of electronic device  808  based on the mapping information. When the entire virtual display is mapped to the display of electronic device  808 , the whole first content element corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed on the display of electronic device  808 . However, only a portion of the virtual display may be mapped to the display associated with electronic device  808 . For example, the first area of the virtual display may be mapped to the display of electronic device  808 , and a second area of the virtual display may be mapped to the display of electronic device  810 . In this case, the electronic device  808  or  810  may identify the first area of the virtual display mapped to the display of electronic device  808 . 
     In operation  920 , the electronic device  808  or  810  may identify the first portion of the content element corresponding to the first area of the virtual display. As described above, when only a part of the virtual display is mapped to the display of the electronic device  808 , the entire first content element may not be displayed on the display of the electronic device  808 . In this case, the electronic device  808  or  810  may identify the first portion of the content element corresponding to the first area of the virtual display and display the identified first portion of the content element on the display of electronic device  808 . 
     Similarly, the electronic device  810 , which constructs the multi-display system together with the electronic device  808 , may identify the second area of the virtual display mapped to the display of the electronic device  808  based on the state information of the virtual display received from the electronic device  808  or  810 . The multi-display system may be a system in which two electronic devices use each other&#39;s displays. 
     Further, the electronic device  810  may identify the second portion of the content element corresponding to the second area of the virtual display and display the second portion of the content element on the display of the electronic device  810 . 
       FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying the first portion of the first content element on the display by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 10 , in operation  1010 , the electronic device  808  may rotate the first portion of the content element to correspond to the orientation information of the virtual display on the display of electronic device  808 . As described above, the virtual display may be a logical display rather than the physical display. Accordingly, the first portion of the content element corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed on a physical display to which the virtual display is mapped. Therefore, when the orientation information of the virtual display and the orientation information of the physical display are different from each other, the first portion of the content element may be displayed in accordance with the orientation information of the physical display. 
     However, only when the first portion of the content element is displayed based on the orientation information of the virtual display as a content element corresponding to the virtual display such that the discontinuous display as illustrated in  FIG. 3E  can be prevented. Accordingly, the electronic device  808  rotates the first portion of the content element to correspond to the orientation information of the virtual display on the display. 
     In operation  1020 , the electronic device  808  may display the rotated first portion of the content element on the display of electronic device  808 . Accordingly, the electronic device  808  may continuously display the first portion of the content element with the second portion of the content element, which is displayed on the display of the electronic device  810 . 
       FIGS. 11A and 11B  illustrate a method of displaying a plurality of content elements on a plurality of displays by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 11A  illustrates an operation for outputting content elements  1110  and  1120  corresponding to physical displays on the physical displays. 
     Referring to  FIG. 11A , the content elements  1110  and  1120  may correspond to the physical displays. For example, the first content element  1110  may correspond to a first display  160   a  and the second content element  1120  may correspond to a second display  160   b . Hereinafter, it is assumed that the first display  160   a  corresponds to the display of the electronic device  101  and the second display  160   b  corresponds to the display of the electronic device  102  or  104  as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The first content element  1110  may be transmitted to a first frame buffer  1140   a  of the first display  160   a  through the graphic composer  620 , and the first frame buffer  1140   a  may transmit the first content element  1110  to the first display  160   a  to display the first content element  1110 . 
     The second content element  1120  may be transmitted to a second frame buffer  1140   b  of the second display  160   b  through the graphic composer  620 , and the second frame buffer  1140   b  may transmit the second content element  1120  to the second display  160   b  to display the second content element  1120 . 
       FIG. 11B  illustrates an operation for outputting a third content element  1130  corresponding to the virtual display on the virtual display. The virtual display mapper  610  included in each of the electronic device  101  and the electronic device  102  or  104  is illustrated as one block in  FIGS. 11B and 12B  for the convenience of description. 
     Referring to  FIG. 11B , the virtual display mapper  610  may separate, rotate, or movement-transform the third content element  1130  in order to display the third content element  1130  corresponding to the virtual display on the first display  160   a  and the second display  160   b.    
     For example, the virtual display mapper  610  of the electronic device  101  may identify the first area of the virtual display mapped to the first display  160   a  by using mapping information between the virtual display and the first display  160   a . Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may identify the first portion of the third content element  1130  corresponding to the first area. 
     Similarly, the virtual display mapper  610  of the electronic device  102  or  104  may also identify the second area of the virtual display mapped to the second display  160   b  by using mapping information between the virtual display and the second display  160   b . Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may identify the second portion of the third content element  1130  corresponding to the first area. 
     The virtual display mapper  610  may separate the third content element  1130  into the first portion and the second portion. Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may rotate the first portion of the third content element  1130  to correspond to orientation information of the virtual display on the first display  160   a . Similarly, the virtual display mapper  610  may rotate the second portion of the third content element  1130  to correspond to orientation information of the virtual display on the second display  160   b.    
     The rotated first portion of the third content element  1130  may be transmitted to the first frame buffer  1140   a  of the first display  160   a  through the graphic composer  620 , and the first frame buffer  1140   a  may transmit the rotated first portion of the third content element  1130  to the first display  160   a  to output the rotated first portion of the third content element  1130 . 
     The rotated second portion of the third content element  1130  may be transmitted to the second frame buffer  1140   b  of the second display  160   b  through the graphic composer  620 , and the second frame buffer  1140   b  may transmit the rotated second portion of the third content element  1130  to the second display  160   b  to output the rotated second portion of the third content element  1130 . 
       FIGS. 12A and 12B  illustrate a method of displaying a plurality of content elements on a plurality of displays by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 12A  illustrates an operation for outputting content elements  1210  and  1220  corresponding to physical displays on the physical displays. 
     Referring to  FIG. 12A , the content elements  1210  and  1220  may correspond to the physical displays. For example, the first content element  1210  may correspond to the first display  160   a  and the second content element  1220  may correspond to the second display  160   b . Hereinafter, it is assumed that the first display  160   a  corresponds to the display of the electronic device  101  and the second display  160   b  corresponds to the display of the electronic device  102  or  104 . 
     The first content element  1210  may be transmitted to the first frame buffer  1140   a  of the first display  160   a  through the graphic composer  620 , and the first frame buffer  1140   a  may transmit the first content element  1210  to the first display  160   a  to output the first content element  1210 . 
     The second content element  1220  may be transmitted to the second frame buffer  1140   b  of the second display  160   b  through the graphic composer  620 , and the second frame buffer  1140   b  may transmit the second content element  1120  to the second display  160   b  to output the second content element  1220 . 
     Accordingly, in a multi-display system  1240  constructed between the electronic device  101  and the electronic device  102  or  104 , the first content element  1210  and the second content element  1220  may be displayed on the first display  160   a  and the second display  160   b . Although the first content element  1210  and the second content element  1220  are illustrated as separate content elements in  FIG. 12A , the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the first content element  1210  and the second content element  1220  may be the same content elements or partial screens of the entire screens. 
       FIG. 12B  illustrates an operation for outputting a third content element  1230  corresponding to the virtual display on the virtual display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 12B , the virtual display mapper  610  may separate, rotate, or movement-transform the third content element  1230  in order to display the third content element  1230  corresponding to the virtual display on the first display  160   a  and the second display  160   b.    
     For example, the virtual display mapper  610  of the electronic device  101  may identify the first area of the virtual display mapped to the first display  160   a  by using mapping information between the virtual display and the first display  160   a . Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may identify a first portion  1240   a  of the third content element  1240  corresponding to the first area. 
     Similarly, the virtual display mapper  610  of the electronic device  102  or  104  may also identify the second area of the virtual display mapped to the second display  160   b  by using mapping information between the virtual display and the second display  160   b . Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may identify a second portion  1240   b  of the third content element corresponding to the second area. 
     The virtual display mapper  610  may separate the third content element  1230  into the first portion  1240   a  and the second portion  1240   b . Further, the virtual display mapper  610  may rotate the first portion  1240   a  of the third content element  1240  to correspond to orientation information of the virtual display on the first display  160   a . Similarly, the virtual display mapper  610  may rotate the second portion  1240   b  of the third content element  1230  to correspond to orientation information of the virtual display on the second display  160   b.    
     The rotated first portion  1240   a  of the third content element  1240  may be transmitted to the first frame buffer  1140   a  of the first display  160   a  through the graphic composer  620 , and the first frame buffer  1140   a  may transmit the rotated first portion  1240   a  of the third content element  1240  to the first display  160   a  to display the rotated first portion  1240   a  of the third content element  1240 . 
     The rotated second portion  1240   b  of the third content element  1240  may be transmitted to the second frame buffer  1140   b  of the second display  160   b  through the graphic composer  620 , and the second frame buffer  1140   b  may transmit the rotated second portion  1240   b  of the third content element  1240  to the second display  160   b  to display the rotated second portion  1240   b  of the third content element  1240 . 
     Accordingly, in a multi-display system  1250  constructed between the electronic device  101  and the electronic device  102  or  104 , the third content element  1230  may be continuously displayed over the first display  160   a  and the second display  160   b.    
       FIGS. 13A and 13B  are flowcharts illustrating a method of recognizing a plurality of touch inputs by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 13A , in operation  1310 , the electronic device  101  may receive information indicating that a second touch input corresponding to the second portion of the first content element is received at the electronic device  102  or  104 . As described above, the electronic device  102  or  104  may construct the multi-display system through a connection to the electronic device  101  and display the second portion of the third content element. Further, the electronic device  101  may also transmit information indicating that a first touch input corresponding to the first portion of the third content element is received at the electronic device  102  or  104 . 
     In operation  1320 , when the electronic device  101  receives the information within a preset time, the electronic device  101  may recognize the first touch input and the second touch input as a multi-touch input. 
     The method of recognizing the plurality of touch inputs as the multi-touch input through transmission/reception of the information is only an example for the purpose of description, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The method of recognizing the plurality of touch inputs as the multi-touch input may be various. For example, hardware, a device driver, or an operating system may receive an indication of the plurality of touch inputs and transmit the touch inputs based on appointed regulations, and an electronic device having received the plurality of touch inputs may analyze the touch inputs according to a predetermined interface and recognize the touch inputs as the multi-touch. 
     A detailed implementation of the system and interface for recognizing the plurality of touch inputs as the multi-touch input may be various. However, in order to recognize the plurality of touch inputs as the multi-touch, content elements corresponding to the plurality of touch inputs and a coordinate system of the received touch inputs should be the same. This is because whether to recognize the touch inputs as the multi-touch is determined by comparing the coordinates of the content elements with the coordinates of the plurality of touch inputs. 
       FIG. 13B  describes the method of recognizing the plurality of touch inputs by the electronic device  101  in detail. 
     Referring to  FIG. 13B , in operation  1330 , the electronic device  101  may receive a first touch event. In operation  1340 , the electronic device  101  may identify a physical coordinate of the first touch event. The physical coordinate may be a physical coordinate of the display  160  indicating a location where the first touch event is received. 
     In operation  1350 , the electronic device  101  may convert the physical coordinate of the first touch event into a virtual coordinate. For example, the electronic device  101  may identify the display  160 , which receives the first touch event. The electronic device  101  may identify state information of the display  160 , for example, orientation information of the display  160 . Further, the electronic device  101  may convert the physical coordinate of the first touch event into the virtual coordinate based on the orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160 . The virtual coordinate may be converted to correspond to the orientation information of the virtual display on the display  160 . 
     In operation  1360 , the electronic device  101  may display content related to the virtual coordinate. As described above, the content displayed on the display may be associated with the content elements. 
     In operation  1370 , the electronic device  101  may identify whether a second touch event related to the content element is received by another electronic device, which displays at least a portion of the content element related to the virtual coordinate. 
     In operation  1380 , when the electronic device  101  receives the second touch event within a predetermined time after receiving the first touch event, the electronic device  101  may recognize the first touch event and the second touch event as a multi-touch event. 
     In operation  1390 , when the electronic device  101  does not receive the second touch event, the electronic device  101  may recognize the first touch event as a single touch event. Further, when the electronic device  101  receives the second touch event after a predetermined time passes from the reception of the first touch event, the electronic device  101  may recognize the first touch event as a single touch event. 
       FIGS. 14A to 14C  illustrate a method of recognizing a plurality of touch inputs by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       FIGS. 14A to 14C  describe a method of, when a plurality of touch inputs are received in the multi-display system, recognizing the touches according to locations of the plurality of touch inputs and a mapping state between the content and the virtual display. 
       FIG. 14A  illustrates a case where separate content elements are displayed by a first display and a second display. In this case, a first touch input X may be received at the first display  1402  and a second touch input Y may be received at the second display  1404 . A first content element  1406  may be associated with the first display  1402  and a second content element  1408  may be associated with the second display  1404 . As described above, when the first touch input X and the second touch input Y are received at the separate displays  1402 ,  1404 , each of the first touch input X and the second touch input Y may be recognized as a single touch input. 
     Referring to  FIG. 14B , the virtual display is mapped to the first display  1402  and the second display  1404 , and a content element  1410  corresponding to the virtual display is displayed on the first display  1402  and the second display  1404 . In this case, a first touch input X1 and a second touch input X2 may be associated with the content element  1410 . As described above, although the first touch input X1 and the second touch input X2 may be associated with the same content element  1410  even though the first touch input X1 and the second touch input X2 are received at separate displays  1402 ,  1404 , the first touch input X1 and the second touch input X2 may be recognized as a multi-touch input. 
     Referring to  FIG. 14C , the virtual display is mapped to the first display  1402  and the second display  1404 , and the content element  1410  corresponding to the virtual display is displayed on the first display  1402  and the second display  1404 . Further, a first content element  1406  is displayed on the first display  1402  and a second content element  1408  is displayed on the second display  1404 . In this case, a first touch input X may be received in an area associated with the content element  1406  displayed on the first display  1402 , and a second touch input Y may be received in an area associated with the content element  1410  displayed on the second display  1404 . As described above, when the first touch input X and the second touch input Y are received in the separate content elements, each of the first touch input X and the second touch input Y may be recognized as a single touch input. In other words, the first touch input X is recognized as an input associated with content element  1406  and the second touch input Y is recognized as an input associated with content element  1410 . 
       FIG. 15  is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements on the display according to a Z-order by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 15 , in operation  1510 , the electronic device  101  may identify the Z-order of each of the one or more content elements. The electronic device  101  may configure the Z-order according to each of the one or more content elements to be displayed on the display  160  without configuring the Z-order according to each display. 
     In operation  1520 , the electronic device  101  may display each of the one or more content elements on the display  160  based on the identified Z-order. The electronic device  101  may identify an arrangement order of each of the one or more content elements in a Z-direction based on the configured Z-order, without consideration of the display corresponding to each of the one or more content elements. The electronic device  101  may display each of the one or more content elements on the display  160  according to the identified arrangement order of the Z-direction. 
       FIGS. 16A to 16D  illustrate a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements on the display according to the Z-order by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 16A  describes a case where content elements displayed on a first display  1600  are displayed according to the Z-order. For example, when the Z-order of a first content element  1610  is larger than the Z-order of a second content element  1611 , the first content element  1610  may be displayed above the second content element  1611 . Accordingly, in an area where the first content element  1610  and the second content element  1611  overlap each other, the first content element  1610  is shown. 
       FIG. 16B  illustrates a method of displaying content elements according to the Z-order of the display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 16B , the electronic device  101  may identify Z-orders of the displays corresponding to a plurality of content elements in order to display the plurality of content elements. For example, it is assumed that the Z-order of a first display  1620  is largest and the Z-order of a third display  1640  is smallest. In this case, a first content element  1621  corresponding to the first display  1620  may be displayed uppermost. A second content element  1631  and a third content element  1632  corresponding to a second display  1630  may be displayed above a fourth content element  1641  corresponding to a third display  1640 . 
     However, since both the second content element  1631  and the third content element  1632  correspond to the second display  1630 , Z-orders of each content element may be added. For example, it is assumed that the Z-order of the second content element  1631  is larger than the Z-order of the third content element  1632 . In this case, the second content element  1631  may be displayed above the third content element  1632 . 
     As described above, when the Z-order of the display is first considered and the corresponding displays are the same, the arrangement order of each of the one or more content element may be identified in consideration of the Z-order of each content element. 
       FIG. 16C  illustrates a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements according to the Z-order of each of the one or more content elements without consideration of the Z-order of the display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 16C , the Z-orders of the content elements may be ranked such that the second content element  1631  has the highest Z-order, then the first content element  1621 , then the third content element  1632 , and finally the fourth content element  1641 , where the fourth content element  1641  has the lowest Z-order. In an exemplary embodiment, the second content element  1631  may be associated with a virtual display and the first content element  1621 , the third content element  1632 , and the fourth content element  1641  may be associated with physical displays such as the first display  1620 , the second display  1630 , and the third display  1640 . 
     When the electronic device  101  displays the plurality of content elements according to the Z-orders of the plurality of content elements, the content element having the highest Z-order may be displayed on top. For instance, the second content element  1631  may be the content element outmost displayed on the display of the electronic device  101  because it has the highest Z-order in relation to the other content elements (e.g., the first content element  1621 , the third content element  1632 , and the fourth content element  1641 ) where the Z-orders of the displays (e.g., first display  1620 , the second display  1630 , and the third display  1640 ) are not considered. In an exemplary embodiment, when compared to the arrangement illustrated in  FIG. 16B , when the Z-order of the content elements illustrated in  FIG. 16C  are considered and the Z-order of the display is not considered, the second content  1631  may be displayed above the first content  1621 . In contrast, when the Z-order of the display is considered in the arrangement illustrated in  FIG. 16C , rather than the Z-order of the content elements, the second content element  1631  may be displayed below the first content element  1621  such that the Z-order of physical display  1620  is considered to be higher than the Z-order of the virtual display associated with the second content element  1631 . 
     As described above, the electronic device  101  may identify the arrangement order of each of the one or more content elements in the Z-direction based on preset regulations and the configured Z-order. 
       FIG. 16D  illustrates a method of displaying each of the one or more content elements according to the Z-order of each of the one or more content elements without consideration of the Z-order of the display and the virtual display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 16D , the Z-orders of the content elements may be ranked such that content element  1650  has the highest Z-order, then content element  1651 , then content element  1652 , and finally content element  1653 , where content element  1653  has the lowest Z-order. In an exemplary embodiment, content element  1650  and content element  1652  are mapped to the virtual display and content element  1651  and content element  1653  are mapped to a physical display. 
     In this case, the order in which the plurality of elements is displayed on the display is based on a ranking of the Z-orders of the plurality of elements. Similar to  FIG. 16C , the Z-orders of the display and the virtual display may not be considered in the arrangement illustrated in  FIG. 16D . Accordingly, content element  1650 , content element  1651 , content element  1652 , and content element  1653  may be sequentially displayed. 
       FIGS. 17A, 17B, 17C, and 17D  illustrate a method of displaying each of the one or more elements on the display according to the Z-order by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 17A  describes a case where arrangement orders of a plurality of content elements  1710 ,  1720 ,  1730 , and  1740  are identified in the Z-direction according to the Z-order of the display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 17A , the first content element  1710  corresponds to the first display  1702  and the second content element  1720  corresponds to the second display  1704 . Further, the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  correspond to the virtual display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 17A , it is assumed that the Z-order of the virtual display is determined to be higher than the Z-order of the physical displays  1702  and  1704 . Accordingly, the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed to overlap the first content element  1710  and/or the second content element  1720 . 
     In an exemplary embodiment, when the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  are displayed to overlap the first content element  1710  and a touch input is received in an area associated with the first content element  1710  (e.g., within the first display  1702  outside of an area associated with the third content element  1730  or the fourth content element  1740 ), the Z-order associated with the first display  1702  may be changed such that the first display  1702  has a higher Z-order than the other content elements  1730 ,  1740  after the touch input is received. 
     For example, the Z-order of the first display  1702  corresponding to the area associated with the first content element  1710  in which the touch input is received may become larger than the Z-order of the virtual display (e.g., content elements  1730 ,  1740 ). Accordingly, as illustrated in  FIG. 17B , the first content element  1710  may be displayed to overlap the portions of third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  associated with the first display  1702 . 
     As described above, when the arrangement orders in the Z-direction are identified according to the Z-order of the display, both the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  are hidden by the first content element  1710 . However, uninterrupted access to the fourth content element  1740  may be desired. In an exemplary embodiment, when the fourth content element  1740  includes content associated with stock information, it may be desired to display the fourth content element  1740  even when a touch input is received in an area associated with the first content element  1710  or a second content element  1720 . 
       FIGS. 17C and 17D  describe a case where arrangement orders of the plurality of content elements  1710 ,  1720 ,  1730 , and  1740  are identified in the Z-direction according to the Z-orders of the content elements. 
     Referring to  FIG. 17C , the first content element  1710  corresponds to the first display  1702  and the second content element  1720  corresponds to the second display  1704 . Further, the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  correspond to the virtual display. 
     Referring to  FIG. 17C , it is assumed that the Z-order of the virtual display is determined to be higher than the Z-order of the physical displays  1702 ,  1704 . Accordingly, the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740  corresponding to the virtual display may be displayed to overlap the first content element  1710  and the second content element  1720 . 
     When a touch input is received in an area associated with the first content element  1710 , the Z-order of the first display  1702  may be changed such that the first display  1702  has a higher Z-order than the virtual display (e.g., content elements  1730 ,  1740 ). For example, the Z-order of the first content element  1710  associated with the received touch input may become larger than the Z-order of the third content element  1730  and the fourth content element  1740 . However, parameters associated with Z-order configuration may be preselected such that a Z-order associated with a content element and/or a display may be defined to be greater than a Z-order of a selected content element and/or display. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, when the user selects the fourth content element  1740  to remain the highest Z-order, when a first touch input corresponding to the first content element  1710  is received the Z-order of the first content element  1710  is increased but may not become greater than the Z-order of the fourth content element  1740  even though the touch input associated with the first content element  1710  is received. Accordingly, as illustrated in  FIG. 17D , the first content element  1710  is displayed above the third content element  1730  and below the fourth content element  1740 . As described above, when the arrangement orders in the Z-direction are identified according to the Z-order configured according to each of the plurality of content elements, the plurality of content elements may be more adaptively displayed. 
       FIGS. 18A and 18B  illustrate mapping between the virtual display and the physical display by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 18A  describes a case where the electronic device  101  maps a preset virtual display to a null display. When the electronic device  101  maps the virtual display to the null display, the electronic device  101  may maintain a state where there is no physical display mapped to the virtual display although the content element corresponding to the virtual display exists. Accordingly, the electronic device  101  may create an effect of hiding not only the virtual display but also the content element corresponding to the virtual display. Further, the electronic device  101  may rapidly display the virtual display by switching between the null display and the physical display. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 18A , a first content element  1810  displayed on the first display  1802  may be orientated in a direction different from the second content element  1820  displayed on the second display  1804 . For example, the first content element  1810  includes a text input unit where the top left corner of the first content element  1810  is displayed in a lower left corner of the first display  1802 ) and the second content element  1820  includes content oriented such that a top left corner of the content is displayed in a top left corner of the second display  1804 . As described above, when the orientation of the second display  1804  is changed, layouts of all content elements corresponding to the second display  1804  should be controlled. When the content elements corresponding to the second display  1804  do not provide a layout associated with the changed orientation, the entire content element may not be displayed on the second display  1804  where a portion of the content element may not be displayed on the second display  1804 . For example, certain operating systems, such as ANDROID OS may only support one particular orientation according to the content element such that re-orientation of the content element is prevented or does not include the entire content element. 
     When the electronic device  101  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure displays the text input unit to input text into the first content element  1810  displayed on the first display  1802 , the electronic device  101  may change mapping information of the third content element  1830  indicating the text input unit mapped to the null display into mapping information indicating the mapping to the second display  1804 . As described above, by dynamically changing the mapping information such that the virtual display corresponding to the third content element  1830 , which has been mapped to the null display, is mapped to the second display  1804  without changing the orientation of the content element  1820  displayed on the second display  1804 , the electronic device  101  may display the third content element  1830  on the second display  1804  while maintaining the layout of the third content element  1830 . 
       FIG. 18B  illustrates a method of changing a correspondence relation between contents corresponding to the physical display and the virtual display by the electronic device  101 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 18B , in order to input text into a second content element  1850  displayed on the second display  1804 , the electronic device  101  may display a third content element  1860  corresponding to a text input unit on one of the first display  1802  and the second display  1804 . However, when the third content element  1860  is displayed on the second display  1804 , at least a portion of the second content element  1850  is hidden, so it may be difficult to identify whether the text is properly input. Further, when the third content element  1860  is displayed on the first display  1802 , a text input window may be located below the text input unit. 
     Accordingly, displaying the second content element  1850  on the first display  1802  and displaying the third content element  1860  on the second display  1804  may be a method of further improving the usability. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, the orientation of each display may be changed during a process of changing the display displaying the content element. Accordingly, the layout of the content element corresponding to each display should be re-configured, and the content elements may not be normally displayed according to a result of the re-configuration. Further, since the layout of the content element should be re-configured according to the orientation of the display and the re-configured layout of the content element should be displayed through each display, a response speed of the user may be reduced and power consumption may increase. 
     In another exemplary embodiment, as illustrated in  FIG. 18B , by changing only the correspondence relation between the first content element  1840 , the second content element  1850 , and the third content element  1860  corresponding to the first display  1802 , the second display  1804 , and the virtual display, respectively, the electronic device  101  according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may display the second content element  1850  on the first display  1802  and the third content element  1860  on the second display  1804 . Accordingly, a separate change in the orientation of the display is not required, and thus the layout of each of the content elements does not need to be re-configured and abnormal displaying of each of the content elements according to the re-configuration of the layout may not be made. 
       FIG. 19  is a flowchart illustrating a content display method by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 19 , in operation  1910 , the electronic device  101  may display the first content element on the first display of the electronic device  101  based on a first orientation. The first content element may be a content element corresponding to the first display and may be displayed in the first orientation of the first display. 
     In operation  1920 , the electronic device  101  may display a first area of the second content element on the first display based on a second orientation. The second content element may be a content element corresponding to a preset virtual display, and the first area of the second content element may be displayed based on the second orientation according to orientation information of the virtual display on the first display. 
     In operation  1930 , the electronic device  101  may be configured to display a second area of the second content element on the second display of another electronic device based on the second orientation. The other electronic device  102  or  104  may construct a multi-display system with the electronic device  101 , and the electronic device  102  or  104  and the electronic device  101  may use each other&#39;s displays as a multi-display. 
       FIG. 20  is a flowchart illustrating a content display method by the electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 20 , in operation  2010 , the electronic device  101  may select a content element such as a window to be composed from a window list to be displayed on the display. The electronic device  101  may select the window to be composed according to a received user input and configuration information of an operating system and an executed application. 
     In operation  2020 , the electronic device  101  may identify the display to which the selected window is mapped. 
     In operation  2030 , the electronic device  101  may identify whether the identified display is the virtual display. When the identified display is not the virtual display, the electronic device  101  may compose graphic data associated with the window in a buffer corresponding to the identified physical display in operation  2031 . Accordingly, the electronic device  101  may display the selected window on the display  160 . 
     In operation  2032 , the electronic device  101  may identify whether there are more windows to be displayed on the electronic device  101 . The electronic device  101  returns to operation  2010  when there are windows to be displayed, and end the process when there is no window to be displayed. 
     When the identified display is the virtual display, the electronic device  101  may identify virtual-physical display two-dimensional mapping information indicating mapping information between the virtual display and the physical display in operation  2040 . 
     In operation  2050 , the electronic device  101  may identify whether the virtual display and the physical display are mapped based on the virtual-physical display two-dimensional mapping information. When the virtual display and the physical display are not mapped, the electronic device  101  may end the process. 
     When the virtual display and the physical display are mapped, the electronic device  101  may separate the graphic data of the window based on physical display areas to display the selected window according to the virtual-physical two-dimensional mapping information in operation  2060 . A detailed method of separating the graphic data of the window is the same as that described in  FIGS. 9 and 10 . 
     In operation  2070 , the electronic device  101  may compose the separated graphic data of the window in the buffer of the corresponding physical display. Accordingly, the electronic device  101  may display the selected window on the display  160 . 
       FIG. 21  is a block diagram of an electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 21 , an electronic device  2101  may include, for example, all or some of the electronic device  101  illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The electronic device  2101  may include one or more APs  2110 , a communication module  2120 , a subscriber identification module (SIM)  2124 , a memory  2130 , a sensor module  2140 , an input device  2150 , a display  2160 , an interface  2170 , an audio module  2180 , a camera module  2191 , a power management module  2195 , a battery  2196 , an indicator  2197 , and a motor  2198 . 
     The processor  2110  may control a plurality of hardware or software components connected to the processor  2110  by driving an operating system or an application program and perform various types of data processing and calculations. The processor  2110  may be implemented by, for example, a system on chip (SoC). According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the processor  2110  may further include a GPU and/or an image signal processor. The processor  2110  may include at least some of the components (for example, a cellular module  2121 ) illustrated in  FIG. 21 . The processor  2110  may load commands or data received from at least one of the other components (for example, a non-volatile memory) in a volatile memory, process the loaded commands or data, and may store various types of data in a non-volatile memory. 
     The communication module  2120  may have a configuration equal or similar to that of the communication interface  170  of  FIG. 1 . The communication module  2120  may include, for example, a cellular module  2121 , a Wi-Fi module  2123 , a Bluetooth module  2125 , a GNSS module  2127  (for example, a GPS module, a GLONASS module, a BeiDou module, or a Galileo module), an NFC module  2128 , and a radio frequency (RF) module  2129 . 
     The cellular module  2121  may provide a voice call, an image call, a text message service, or an Internet service through, for example, a communication network. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the cellular module  2121  may distinguish between and authenticate electronic device  2101  within a communication network using a SIM (for example, the SIM card  2124 ). According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the cellular module  2121  may perform at least some of the functions which can be provided by the processor  2110 . According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the cellular module  2121  may include a CP. 
     For example, each of the Wi-Fi module  2123 , the Bluetooth module  2125 , the GNSS module  2127 , and the NFC module  2128  may include a processor for processing data transmitted/received through the corresponding module. According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, at least some (two or more) of the cellular module  2121 , the Wi-Fi module  2123 , the Bluetooth module  2125 , the GNSS module  2127 , and the NFC module  2128  may be included in one integrated chip (IC) or IC package. 
     The RF module  2129  may transmit/receive, for example, a communication signal (for example, an RF signal). The RF module  2129  may include, for example, a transceiver, a power amp module (PAM), a frequency filter, a low noise amplifier (LNA), or an antenna. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, at least one of the cellular module  2121 , the Wi-Fi module  2123 , the Bluetooth module  2125 , the GNSS module  2127 , and the NFC module  2128  may transmit/receive an RF signal through a separate RF module. 
     The SIM card  2124  may include a card including a SIM and/or an embedded SIM, and contain unique identification information (for example, an IC card identifier (ICCID)) or subscriber information (for example, an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI)). 
     The memory  2130  (for example, the memory  130 ) may include, for example, an internal memory  2132  or an external memory  2134 . The internal memory  2132  may include at least one of, for example, a volatile memory (for example, a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a static RAM (SRAM), a synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), and the like) and a non-volatile memory (for example, a one time programmable read only memory (OTPROM), a PROM, an erasable and programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM), a flash memory (for example, a NAND flash memory or a NOR flash memory), a hard drive, or a solid state drive (SSD). 
     The external memory  2134  may further include a flash drive, for example, a compact flash (CF), a secure digital (SD), a micro-SD, a mini-SD, an extreme digital (xD), a memory stick, or the like. The external memory  2134  may be functionally and/or physically connected to the electronic device  2101  through various interfaces. 
     The sensor module  2140  may measure a physical quantity or detect an operation state of the electronic device  2101 , and may convert the measured or detected information into an electrical signal. The sensor module  2140  may include, for example, at least one of a gesture sensor  2140 A, a gyro sensor  2140 B, an atmospheric pressure sensor  2140 C, a magnetic sensor  2140 D, an acceleration sensor  2140 E, a grip sensor  2140 F, a proximity sensor  2140 G, a color sensor  2140 H (for example, a red, green, blue (RGB) sensor), a biometric sensor  2140 I, a temperature/humidity sensor  2140 J, a light sensor  2140 K, and an ultraviolet (UV) sensor  2140 M. Additionally or alternatively, the sensor module  2140  may include an E-nose sensor, an electromyography (EMG) sensor, an electroencephalogram (EEG) sensor, an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor, an infrared (IR) sensor, an iris sensor, and/or a fingerprint sensor. The sensor module  2140  may further include a control circuit for controlling one or more sensors included therein. In some embodiments, the electronic device  2101  may further include a processor configured to control the sensor module  2140  as a part of or separately from the processor  2110 , and may control the sensor module  2140  while the AP  2110  is in a sleep state. 
     The input device  2150  may include, for example, a touch panel  2152 , a (digital) pen sensor  2154 , a key  2156 , or an ultrasonic input device  2158 . The touch panel  2152  may use at least one of, for example, a capacitive type, a resistive type, an infrared type, and an ultrasonic type. Further, the touch panel  2152  may further include a control circuit. The touch panel  2152  may further include a tactile layer and provide a tactile reaction to the user. 
     The (digital) pen sensor  2154  may include, for example, a recognition sheet which is a part of the touch panel or separated from the touch panel. The key  2156  may include, for example, a physical button, an optical key, or a keypad. The ultrasonic input device  2158  may detect ultrasonic waves generated by an input tool through a microphone (for example, a microphone  2188 ) and identify data corresponding to the detected ultrasonic waves. 
     The display  2160  (for example, the display  160 ) may include a panel  2162 , a hologram device  2164  or a projector  2166 . The panel  2162  may include a configuration identical or similar to that of the display  160  illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The panel  2162  may be implemented to be, for example, flexible, transparent, or wearable. The panel  2162  may be formed to be a single module with the touch panel  2152 . The hologram  2164  may show a three dimensional image in the air by using an interference of light. The projector  2166  may display an image by projecting light onto a screen. The screen may be located, for example, inside or outside the electronic device  2101 . According to an embodiment, the display  2160  may further include a control circuit for controlling the panel  2162 , the hologram device  2164 , or the projector  2166 . 
     The interface  2170  may include, for example, an HDMI  2172 , a USB  2174 , an optical interface  2176 , or a D-subminiature (D-sub)  2178 . The interface  2170  may be included in, for example, the communication interface  170  shown in  FIG. 1 . Additionally or alternatively, the interface  2170  may include, for example, a mobile high-definition link (MHL) interface, an SD card/multi-media card (MMC) interface, or an infrared data association (IrDA) standard interface. 
     The audio module  2180  may bilaterally convert, for example, a sound and an electrical signal. At least some components of the audio module  2180  may, for example, be included in the input/output interface  150  shown in  FIG. 1 . The audio module  2180  may process sound information which is input or output through, for example, a speaker  2182 , a receiver  2184 , earphones  2186 , the microphone  2188  or the like. 
     The camera module  2191  is a device which may photograph a still image and a dynamic image. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the camera module  2191  may include one or more image sensors (for example, a front sensor or a back sensor), a lens, an image signal processor (ISP) or a flash (for example, LED or xenon lamp). 
     The power management module  2195  may manage, for example, power of the electronic device  2101 . According to an embodiment, the power management module  2195  may include a power management IC (PMIC), a charger IC, or a battery or fuel gauge. The PMIC may have a wired and/or wireless charging scheme. A magnetic resonance scheme, a magnetic induction scheme, or an electromagnetic scheme may be exemplified as the wireless charging method, and an additional circuit for wireless charging, such as a coil loop circuit, a resonance circuit, a rectifier circuit, and the like may be added. The battery gauge may measure, for example, a residual quantity of the battery  2196 , and a voltage, a current, or a temperature during the charging. The battery  2196  may include, for example, a rechargeable battery or a solar battery. 
     The indicator  2197  may display a predetermined state of the electronic device  2101  or a part of the electronic device  2101  (for example, the processor  2110 ), such as a boot-up state, a message state, a charging state, or the like. The motor  2198  may convert an electrical signal into mechanical vibrations, and may generate a vibration or haptic effect. Although not illustrated, the electronic device  2101  may include a processing unit (for example, a GPU) for supporting mobile TV. The processing unit for supporting mobile TV may, for example, process media data according to a certain standard such as digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB), digital video broadcasting (DVB), or MEDIAFLO. 
     Each of the above-described component elements of hardware according to the present disclosure may be configured with one or more components, and the names of the corresponding component elements may vary based on the type of electronic device. The electronic device according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of the aforementioned elements. Some elements may be omitted or other additional elements may be further included in the electronic device. Also, some of the hardware components according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be combined into one entity, which may perform functions identical to those of the relevant components before the combination. 
     The term “module” as used herein may, for example, mean a unit including one of hardware, software, and firmware or a combination of two or more of them. The “module” may be interchangeably used with, for example, the term “unit”, “logic”, “logical block”, “component”, or “circuit”. The “module” may be a minimum unit of an integrated component element or a part thereof. The “module” may be a minimum unit for performing one or more functions or a part thereof. The “module” may be mechanically or electronically implemented. For example, the “module” according to the present disclosure may include at least one of an application-specific IC (ASIC) chip, a field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and a programmable-logic device for performing operations which has been known or are to be developed hereinafter. 
     According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, at least some of the devices (for example, modules or functions thereof) or the method (for example, operations) according to the present disclosure may be implemented by a command stored in a computer-readable storage medium in a programming module form. The instruction, when executed by a processor (e.g., the processor  120 ), may cause the one or more processors to execute the function corresponding to the instruction. The computer-readable storage medium may be, for example, the storage unit  130 . 
     The computer readable recoding medium may include a hard disk, a floppy disk, magnetic media (e.g., a magnetic tape), optical media (e.g., a compact disc ROM (CD-ROM) and a DVD), magneto-optical media (e.g., a floptical disk), a hardware device (e.g., a ROM, a RAM, a flash memory), and the like. In addition, the program instructions may include high class language codes, which can be executed in a computer by using an interpreter, as well as machine codes made by a compiler. The aforementioned hardware device may be configured to operate as one or more software modules in order to perform the operation of the present disclosure, and vice versa. 
     The programming module according to the present disclosure may include one or more of the aforementioned components or may further include other additional components, or some of the aforementioned components may be omitted. Operations executed by a module, a programming module, or other component elements according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be executed sequentially, in parallel, repeatedly, or in a heuristic manner. Further, some operations may be executed according to another order or may be omitted, or other operations may be added. 
     While the present disclosure has been shown and described with reference to various embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.